Apple Crisp

I made this simple apple crisp when I was trying to use up a lot of apples from the trees in our yard. It was getting late so I only got this one pic.  The whole family enjoyed this with whipped cream (we were out of vanilla ice cream).

Apple Crisp
adapted from Allrecipes
recipe halved; makes one 8x8 or 9x9 pan

5 cups all-purpose apples, peeled, cored and sliced (measured after slicing/peeling)
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup quick-cooking (or old-fashioned) oats
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup salted butter, melted

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degree C).  Place the sliced apples in a 8x8 or 9x9 inch pan. Mix the white sugar, 1/2 tablespoon flour and ground cinnamon together, and sprinkle over apples. Pour water over all.

2.  Combine the oats, 1/2 cup flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter together. Crumble evenly over the apple mixture.  Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 25-35 minutes, or until apples are tender and topping is browned.

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/**

Pear Crostata

We have two pear trees in the yard (surprise! never saw them last year!) and although they are not producing a ton, they are producing more than we can eat, so I needed a way to use up more.  I've been giving some away too, which helps.  I have always wanted to try a crostata so I did just that.  In case someone doesn't know, a crostata is just fruit filling folded up free-form into a pastry or pie crust and baked. Less work and a lot more rustic than a usual pie.

Pear Crostata 
adapted from relish

1 recipe pastry for single-crust pie (recipe suggestion follows)
1 1/2 pounds firm-ripe pears, peeled, halved, cored and quartered, each quarter cut in 3 slices

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar, divided

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 pinch freshly ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1.  Take pastry or pie dough and roll out on a sheet of parchment paper to a 12-inch circle.  Slide parchment onto a baking sheet and chill 30 minutes in refrigerator. (optional... I forgot this and it was fine.)

2.  Preheat oven to 400F.  Toss pears with lemon juice in a medium bowl. Combine 1/2 cup sugar with flour, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small bowl. Sprinkle over pears; toss gently. Add vanilla; toss again.

3.  Arrange pear filling in center of pastry to within 1 1/2 inches of the edges. Working quickly, fold and pleat edges of dough up and over pears. Dot pears with butter and sprinkle remaining 1½ teaspoons sugar over top of pastry and pears.  Bake 40 minutes, or until pastry is golden and pears are tender. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing.

Mom's Pie Crust
from my Mom... obviously

1 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour, stirred and measured
1/4 cup cold water

1. Measure shortening into bowl. Add salt and half of flour. Stir with a spoon until ingredients cream together and mixture is smooth and satiny. Add water and remaining flour. Stir with spoon until mixture clings together in ball. Roll out as desired on a generously floured board. Don't be afraid to handle or overmix. Makes 2 (9-inch) pastry shells or enough for 1 double pie. (Will only use half for the pear crostata, unless you want to make two crostatas.)  

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Sweet Cherry Crisp

 Just like the cherry pie and cherry ice cream I posted about recently, this Cherry Crisp was made with cherries from our cherry tree. We even served this with the cherry ice cream.  The whole family really loved this crisp.  For some reason, they boys weren't crazy about the cherry pie.  Too bad, because that one was a lot more work!  This one is super easy, so I'd probably make this recipe again next time instead of the pie, although making the pie was very satisfying.

I just got two of my wisdom teeth out on Saturday, so I'm only eating soft foods right now and liquids.  We made this crisp a few weeks ago, and I have some stuff backed up to post here.  BTW, I'm in Italy and apparently they don't use "the good meds" after dentist work that one might enjoy back in the US.  The stuff they gave me didn't really do anything.  I want to be totally out of it and loopy, gosh-darn-it!!!  Oh well, I think the worst days are behind me now.  I only have an ache in my mouth and a huge swollen cheek now.  For some reason, one side is fine and dandy and on the other, it looks like I'm holding a giant grapefruit inside my mouth. But anyway.  Also, the best thing I've eaten for the past 2 days had to be last night when I made myself mac and cheese... sauce.  Just the cheese sauce.  And cooled it to lukewarm, and ate it with a spoon.  It was almost like eating real food!!  Yum!  Lol.

Sweet Cherry Crisp
adapted from Food

4 cups pitted sweet cherries (measure after pitting)
3 tablespoons vanilla sugar (or regular sugar)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1⁄2 tablespoon lemon juice
1⁄8 teaspoon almond extract

Crisp:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup cold butter, cut into pieces
3/4 tsp cinnamon

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, gently toss first 5 ingredients together. Place in a greased casserole dish, 8 inch square pan, or a deep-dish pie pan.

2.  In another bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients, using a pastry blender or fork. The mixture should resemble course crumbs. Spread mixture over pie filling. Bake for 30 minutes or until brown. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Sweet Cherry Pie!

This is another dessert I made with cherries from my cherry tree.  The cherries are sweet, not pie cherries, but a friend pointed out this recipe to me, and I tried it, and loved it!!  The cherries I used were similar to Bing cherries.  (But we used them before they turned really dark... they were still sweet though.)  I've also made freezer jam and cherry crisp with my cherries, and will share those recipes later.

Some reviewers complained about an overly-juicy pie.  Mine was juicy when I cut into it a few hours after baking, but I thought that was normal for fruit pies.  We stuck the leftover pie in the fridge and it firmed up really well.  Pic below is of "first cutting".  Lol.  The first pic on this post is after being in the fridge overnight.  I use my mom's pie crust recipe for this, but you can use your favorite recipe.

Our cherry blossoms in April; pics above and below.

Sweet Cherry Pie
adapted from Simply Recipes

Pie crust for double crust pie, recipe follows (or use own recipe)
5 cups sweet cherries, pitted (I measure after pitting)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 Tbsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp corn starch
1 Tbsp of butter, cut into small pieces

1.  In a large bowl, combine the pitted cherries, sugar, almond extract, lemon juice and corn starch. Toss until the cherries are well coated with everything.

2.  On a lightly floured counter or large cutting board, roll out the bottom crust. Place it into a 9 or 10-inch pie pan. Trim the edges, if needed, so that they extend beyond the edge of the pie pan by about 1 inch.

3.  Roll out the top crust to about the same size as the bottom crust.  Place the filling on top of the rolled crust in the pie plate. Dot with small pieces of butter. Cover with the top crust. Trim the edges. Crimp to seal the edges together. Cut slits in the top crust so that the steam can escape while the pie is cooking. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before cooking.

5.  Preheat the oven to 425°F. Bake the pie in the middle rack, with a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any drippings. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the temp to 350°F and bake for 35 to 45 minutes longer, or until the crust is nicely browned and the filling is thick and bubbly.  Allow to cool completely before serving. (A few hours.... to firm up the filling, refrigerate overnight.)

Mom's Pie Crust

from my Mom... obviously 

1 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour, stirred and measured
1/4 cup cold water

1.  Measure shortening into bowl. Add salt and half of flour. Stir with a spoon until ingredients cream together and mixture is smooth and satiny. Add water and remaining flour. Stir with spoon until mixture clings together in ball. Roll out as desired on a generously floured board. Don't be afraid to handle or overmix. Makes 2 (9-inch) pastry shells or enough for 1 double pie. (Will use the whole recipe for the cherry pie.)

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

White Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream

 I love David Lebovitz's ice cream book.  We have a cherry tree in our yard (yay! we thought it was an apple tree; lol.) that is full of cherries right now.  Or, was.  It's winding down now.  But anyway, we picked a bunch of them and I wanted to make ice cream.  In his book, there were many good ideas for using cherries in ice cream recipe, but this one jumped out at me because I love white chocolate.

You make a white chocolate custard base, and then cook cherries in sugar and water until they turn into a candy-like consistency.  Let both cool (I did overnight), and use the drained cherries in the ice cream and the leftover syrup on top.  Very good!  

White Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream
adapted from David Lebovitz

For the candied cherries:

1 pound fresh or frozen cherries, pitted (I measure after pitting)
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract

For the white chocolate ice cream:

8 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream

1.  Cherries: (Make the cherries ahead of time.) In a large heavy saucepan, combine the cherries, water, sugar and lemon juice. Heat over medium to medium high heat, until the liquid starts to boil.

2.  Turn down the heat to a low boil and cook, stirring frequently at first and then occasionally, for another 25 to 35 minutes, until the juice reduces to a thin syrupy consistency. Remove from the heat, stir in the almond extract and allow to cool to room temperature.

3.  Set a strainer over a bowl, and drain the cherries for at least 1 hour before folding into churned ice cream.  Overnight is good, too.  Coarsely chop the cherries or you can keep them whole. Reserve the liquid and store the candied cherries and syrup separately in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. To use, fold cherries into ice cream or drizzle the syrup as a topping.

4. Ice Cream Base: Place the chopped white chocolate in a large bowl with a mesh strainer set over top; set aside.

5.  In a medium heavy saucepan, heat the milk, sugar, and salt over medium-low heat until warm. In a separate medium bowl, beat the egg yolks together. Slowly pour the warm milk into the bowl with the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then transfer the mixture back into the saucepan.

6.  Set the saucepan back on the stove and heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heat-proof spatula or whisk, until the mixture thickens slightly. Pour the custard through the strainer over the white chocolate bowl. Stir the strained custard and white chocolate together until the white chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Stir in the cream.  Partially cover the bowl (at first) and chill the ice cream mixture in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning, freeze according to your ice cream maker's manufacturer's directions.

7.  As the ice cream comes out of the ice cream maker, place it into a freezer-safe container and fold in the candied cherries.  Cover, and freeze until hardened (or until desired consistency is reached.  My ice cream had a hard time freezing this time around; not sure why.)

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Fig & Balsamic Jam

We have a few fig trees in our new yard here.  They were ripe when we moved in (over a month ago!) but we were so busy we didn't do much with them, except eat a few (two of our sons love fresh figs).  There were so many they couldn't keep up, though, and sadly, a lot of them rotted on the tree. Then, a friend who also lives in Italy posted on Facebook that she made some fig jam with her neighbor's figs, and I thought it would be a shame to let all of mine go to waste. So she inspired me to make jam the very next day.  I hope I'm not posting this too late; this was made about 2 weeks ago, and I think the fig season is over now, here, at least. Hopefully somebody can still use this recipe.  :)  

I was going to make the same recipe my friend posted, but I didn't have enough fresh lemon juice on hand.  So I had the idea to search for a Balsamic Vinegar jam recipe and was happy to find this one! It smelled pretty "earthy" when it was boiling away, but it tastes awesome; not earthy, and not even vinegary; it's nice and sweet.  The Balsamic adds a really nice flavor.  I also added a few cinnamon sticks to the mixture.

This jam is really good on bread, but I also want to try it paired with different cheeses.  Fig jam always reminds me of fall.  :)  My 3-year old absolutely LOVES this jam.

Fig & Balsamic Jam

adapted from Food

2 lbs fresh figs, (any variety) stems removed and coarsely chopped (do not peel)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (use a good-quality sweet balsamic)
2 cinnamon sticks
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1.  Combine the figs, sugar, balsamic vinegar, and a cinnamon sticks in a large saucepan and attach a candy thermometer to the pan (optional). Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, stirring to break up the large pieces of fig, until the jam reaches 220 degrees F. Remove from the heat. (I just cooked until about 215, because it was super thick already.  I would just cook to whatever consistency you like in jam.  At 215, the jam is not runny at all.)   At this point, you can choose to puree with a stick blender or leave chunky.  I made this 8/2015 and pureed it and I really, really prefer the smooth, pureed version.

2.  Remove the cinnamon sticks and stir in the lemon juice to taste. Spoon the jam into a canning jar or other storage container, cover, and let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for up to 1 month. (Store in the freezer for longer, probably up to one year.)

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **