BRENDA BLAKEMAN OWENS' APPLE WALNUT BREAD

 This year I joined a facebook group called Olden Days of Christmas Town Recipes, Memories & More.  I have really enjoyed this group of people from around the world sharing stories and recipes. Today Brenda posted this recipe and the story of how she always made this for her parents who both passed away this year.I thought this was a recipe worth sharing here in honor of Brenda's parents.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. unsweetened applesauce
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. Flour
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. apples diced very fine
1 c. chopped walnuts
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Prepare one large loaf pan or 3 small. Spray pan(s) with non-stick spray and put parchment paper on the bottom of the pan(s).
Beat together first 4 ingredients.
Add the dry ingredients mixing well and scraping sides of the bowl.
Fold in the apples and the nuts.
Pour batter into loaf pan(s).
Bake for 60 min. (large) and 35-40 min. (small)
Let cool on a rack.

INDIVIDUAL TOFFEE PUMPKIN PIES

20 Single-Serve Graham Cracker Crumb Crusts
1-1/3 cups (8 oz. pkg.) HEATH BITS 'O BRICKLE Toffee Bits; divided
3/4 cup Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger
2 Eggs
1 can (15 oz.) Canned Pumpkin
1 can (12 oz.) Evaporated Milk
Sweetened Whipped Cream or Whipped Topping
Kisses Acorn Treats

Ingredients for Kisses Acorn Treats
Royal Icing or Decorator's Frosting (recipe follows)
HERSHEY'S KISSES Milk Chocolates
Mini Vanilla Wafer Cookies
REESE'S Peanut Butter Chips or HERSHEY'S Butterscotch Chips

Directions:
ROYAL ICING: Stir together 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon warm water and 1-1/2 teaspoons pasteurized dried egg whites (meringue powder). Beat at medium speed of electric mixer until spreadable. Add additional water, 1 teaspoon at a time, to get desired consistency. Transfer icing to pastry bag with desired tip. Cover icing and tip of pastry bag with damp paper towel to keep icing from drying out. This makes about 1/2 cup icing. 

Prepare ROYAL ICING and place in pastry bag with small tip. Remove wrappers from milk chocolates.
Place mini vanilla wafer cookies on tray or plate with flat side of cookie toward the top. Squeeze small amount of icing onto bottom of milk chocolate piece. Immediately press chocolate bottom onto vanilla wafer cookie. Allow icing to set.
Place small dab of icing on bottom of peanut butter chip or butterscotch chip; immediately attach to top of cookie to finish acorn.

Pie Instructions:
Heat oven to 350°F. Place individual graham crusts on baking sheet. Place 2 teaspoons toffee bits into bottom of each crust; set aside.
Stir together sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves and ginger in large bowl. Add eggs, pumpkin and evaporated milk, stirring until well blended. Gradually add 1/4 cup pumpkin mixture to each prepared crust.
Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted into pie centers comes out clean. Cool completely on wire rack. Cover; refrigerate until ready to serve.

Prepare KISSES ACORN TREATS. To serve, top each pie with dollop of sweetened whipped cream, "acorn" and additional toffee bits, if desired.

Note: This recipe is from Dollar General.com

File Photo

TEXAS PECAN PIE POUND CAKE

This cake recipe and photo are from Texas Hill Country.

4 sticks butter

4 cups sugar

4 cups flour (cake or all purpose)

8 large eggs

8 oz. cream cheese

2 to 3 tsp of vanilla flavoring

1 cup pecans, chopped

1 cup brown sugar

1 jar of caramel ice cream topping

 

Leave cream cheese, butter, and eggs out to reach room temperature.

In mixer, cream butter, cream cheese, and sugar until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time. Then, add flour, one cup at a time. Last, add vanilla flavoring.

Grease and flour tube/bundt pan and pour in batter. Pour in batter first, then sprinkle pecans and brown sugar on top (a cup or little more of each). Lightly press into the batter.

Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes. (You may want to tent the top with foil to keep the nuts from scorching.) Then, increase the temperature to 325 degrees and bake for an additional 30 minutes. Test the cake with a fork or wooden skewer to check for doneness. The utensil should come out dry and clean (no batter). Bake 5 more minutes if not quite done.

Remove from the oven and allow a few minutes to cool before removing from pan. When you invert onto a plate, you may lose a few nuts, but most will bake into the top layer of crust. Then, turn the cake onto another plate so that the nuts are on top. Drizzle with jar of caramel ice cream topping. Heat from the cake will make the caramel melt over the pecans. Enjoy!
Recipe by cookyourfood1.blogspot.com.

Disclaimer: This recipe and picture were sent to me to share with you. I do not believe this is the correct picture. I did go to the Texas Hill Country website to see if this was a mistake. This is the same as the picture they have posted with this recipe. That does not look like caramel to me. Anyway I am told by those who have made it that it is delicious. As a diabetic, I have not made it.

 

Happy July 4th!

MOTHER'S DAY

To all the mothers who follow this blog...

MUFFIN PAN SUBSTITUTE

One of my friends says she does this and it works great.

CLASSIC DOUBLE PIE CRUST FROM KING ARTHUR FLOUR

Posting this King Arthur Flour recipe here for my benefit. I want to give this a try.

CRUST

• 2 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or Pastry Flour Blend
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt*
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 10 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter
• 6 to 10 tablespoons ice water**
• *Reduce the salt to 1 teaspoon if you use salted butter.
• **Use the lesser amount of water if you use Pastry Flour Blend.

TOPPING (OPTIONAL)

• 1 teaspoon milk
• 1 tablespoon coarse sparkling sugar

Instructions

1. Whisk together the flour and salt.
2. Add the shortening, working it in until the mixture is evenly crumbly.
3. Cut the butter into small (about ½") cubes.
4. Add the butter to the flour mixture, and work it in roughly with your fingers, a pastry cutter, or a mixer. Don't be too thorough; the mixture should be very uneven, with big chunks of butter in among the smaller ones.
5. Add 4 tablespoons of water, and toss to combine.
6. Toss with enough additional water to make a chunky, fairly cohesive mixture. It should hold together when you gather it up and squeeze it in your hand.
7. Divide the dough in half, and gather each half into a rough disk. Smooth the disks; it's OK if they have a few cracks in the surface. Smooth the disks' edges by running them along a floured surface like a wheel.
8. Wrap in plastic, and chill for 30 minutes, or up to overnight. Or wrap in aluminum foil over the plastic, and freeze for up to 2 months.
9. When you're ready to make pie, remove the crust from the refrigerator or freezer, leaving it wrapped. Allow it to thaw (if it's frozen) or warm a bit (if it's been chilled longer than 30 minutes), until it's softened enough to roll, but still feels cold to the touch.
10. Next, measure the bottom diameter, and up the sides of your pie pan. If your pan is 7" across the bottom, and 1 ½" up each side, that's a total of 10". This means you should roll your bottom crust to a diameter between 11" and 12", which gives you enough extra for crimping the edges.
11. Place the crust on a floured work surface; our silicone rolling mat is a fine choice. Roll it to the desired width. See the big chunks of butter? That's a good thing.
12. Place the crust in the pan by folding in quarters and placing in the pan. Or you can simply pick it up with a piecrust lifter, and move it that way.
13. For a single-crust pie, fold the edges of the crust under, and gently squeeze them together. Crimp as desired. It's nice to make a tall crimp, as the filling for a single-crust pie is usually fairly liquid (think pumpkin or custard), and it's good to have that tall "dam."
14. For a double-crust pie, leave the edges of the bottom crust as is (no folding or crimping). Once you've added the pie filling, roll out the top crust to the outside diameter of your pan, and place it atop the filling.
15. Trim excess crust with a pair of scissors, then press the two edges together.
16. Crimp as desired. A simple fork crimp is fast and easy. At this point, it helps to return the pie to the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes; this chills the fat, which ultimately increases the crust's flakiness.
17. Cut a hole in the center of the crust for steam to escape. Or slash the pie's top surface several times.
18. Brush with milk and sprinkle with coarse sparkling sugar, if desired.
19. Bake... enjoy!
    
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JELL-O PIZZAS

What a fun cool dessert for kids on a hot day or an after school snack. (I can't believe kids are already heading back -to-school!)

2 pkgs (4-serving size) JELL-O gelatin dessert (grape is pictured but any flavor may be used)
2 cups boiling water
1 cup cold water
Frozen whipped topping, thawed
Assortment of small fresh fruit* for topping

Dissolve the gelatin in the boiling water, stirring to dissolve completely, about two minutes. Stir in the cold water. Pour gelatin into a 13-x-9-inch pan. Refrigerate at least 3 hours until firm.

To make the pizzas, pour about 4-inches of warm, not hot, water in sink. Dip pan briefly in the warm water, being careful not to get water on the gelatin. Using the rim of a large glass or a large round cookie cutter, cut out the circles. Lift carefully from the pan to serving plates.

Spoon whipped topping over the circles and decorate with the pieces of fresh fruit.

*Suggestions include white and red grapes, blueberries, raspberries, mandarin orange slices cut in half, etc.

Note: Layer the leftover pieces of Jell-O in parfait glasses with whipped topping.

THE BEAUTY OF THIS RECIPE IS THAT YOU CAN USE SUGAR-FREE JELL-O TO MAKE A FUN DIABETIC DESSERT FOR DIABETIC CHILDREN.

APPLE BUTTER PUMPKIN PIE

1 unbaked pie shell
1 cup apple butter
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
3 large eggs
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1 egg white
Whipped cream for serving
Ground cinnamon for garnish, if desired.

Place oven rack in lowest position and preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a bowl, combine the apple butter, pumpkin, brown sugar, salt and spices; stir in the eggs. Gradually add the milk, mixing well using an electric mixer on low.

Brush the inside of the pie shell with egg white, coating lightly; discard any remaining egg. Using a fork make pricks in the bottom of the crust. Pour the filling mixture into the pie shell and bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.

Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 35 minutes or until the center is slightly puffed and jiggles a bit when the pan is lightly tapped.


Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Serve topped with whipped cream lightly sprinkled with ground cinnamon, if desired. I suggest the cinnamon as it is a blood sugar stabilizer and always a good idea with sweets when it is tasty.

Note: File Photo

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LAYERED PUMPKIN CAKE WITH CARAMEL AND PECANS

I got this cake recipe from a friend's facebook post. It is from Chef Ron Lock and his information is at the end of the post. Haven't tried it yet but I plan to. Perhaps some of you would like to try it, too.

(This cake is a total show stopper. The mixed flavors and textures pecans, caramel and cream cheese make this one of best pumpkin recipes of all time! Enjoy!)

Ingredients:

1 pkg. (2-layer size) yellow cake mix
1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin, divided - 100% pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup oil
4 eggs
1-1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, divided
1 pkg. (8 oz.) Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tub (8 oz.) whipped topping, thawed
1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping
1/4 cup chopped Pecans

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F

BEAT cake mix, 1 cup pumpkin, milk, oil, eggs and 1 tsp. spice in stand mixer, or, beat in a large bowl with a hand mixer.

Pour into 2 greased and floured 9-inch round pans.

Put the cake pans in the oven and bake for 28 to 30 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans 10 min. Remove the cakes from the pans and transfer to wire racks to completely cool.

BEAT cream cheese in medium bowl with hand mixer, or stand alone mixer, until creamy. Add in the sugar, remaining pumpkin and spice; mix well. Gently stir in the whipped topping.

Cut each cake layer horizontally in half with serrated knife; stack on serving plate, spreading cream cheese filling between layers, leaving top layer unfrosted. Do not frost the top layer!

Drizzle with caramel topping just before serving; top with nuts. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/TheChefRonLock