Cup-pies in Ramekins

My mom gave me some adorable colored ramekins and I was so excited to try something in them that on Pi day, I decided to try out some mini-pies.

Aren't they adorable?

I was thrilled. It was so fun to make rustic little pies with fantastic apple filling. I experimented with a new crust recipe that I LOVED. I also tried adding a new ingredient (vanilla) to my apple pie filling and I think it was a smashing success.

***as a side note: "Rustic" in this case means uneven, imperfect, no-fuss, etc. It's one of my happiest cooking words. It means that things don't have to be exactly perfect and it's OKAY!

Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients:
4-5 Granny Smith Apples, or other baking apple
1/2c brown sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp butter, melted

Directions:
Wash and peel apples. Slice into very thin slices, discarding the core. In a bowl, combine apple slices, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and butter. Pour into pie crust or ramekins, top with crust. Poke three or so holes in the top crust and bake according to crust directions (typically until golden--I baked mine at 375 for 30-45 minutes.)

I know it's not exact...I'm trying to get better at that, but there you go! They were amazing. And the perfect kiss goodbye to apple season.

Happy Pie Day!

March 14, or 3.14 is Pi day! Yay!

Michael and I were talking last night about how fun it would be to go back to elementary school knowing what we know now. You have parties in the middle of the day for big reasons, little reasons, and sometimes no reason.

So although Friday is our crazy day (I am on campus from 7am to 7pm and Michael works till 8:45pm), we're celebrating Pi day this evening with pie.

I'm also going to watch an episode of Pushing Daisies online.

This meant that I had to choose ONE kind of pie to make. Sigh...

I really love making pies. It's been my favorite Thanksgiving responsibility for years. Pecan pie, pumpkin pie, chocolate cream pie, lemon meringue pie, strawberry pie, banana spice pie (SO GOOD, somday I'll post the recipe), apple crumble pie, and then...there's the most amazing pie in all the world: cherry almond pie.

How I wish I had the ingredients on hand to make that pie! My uncle made it for me last fall and I fell so deeply in love with that pie that I had him make several more for my wedding in December. The poor man also made my beautiful wedding cake, but that's another story.

ANYWAY... I've decided that based on the ingredients I have on hand, we're having apple pie. I'm sort of toying with the idea of making cup-pies. Sort of like cupcakes...except with pie...in ramekins.

I'll post pictures and the pie recipe later on to share.

Muffin Thursdays--Banana Chocolate Chip

As Michael can easily attest, I am sort of a muffin fiend. Of all the things I bake, I most often bake muffins and cookies. Last fall, Michael would come over to my apartment on Thursday nights to watch The Office and I'd bake a batch of muffins. It sort of mutated into Muffin Thursdays. This semester, I'm not quite as vigilant about muffin Thursdays, but I still love muffins nonetheless.

This recipe is adapted from one by my old roommate Mandy, a queen among chefs. Not only is she the master of Italian cooking, but she is one stellar baker.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients:
1/2c brown sugar
1/2c margarine
1 1/2c mashed ripe bananas (3-4)
1/4c milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
2c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4tsp salt
chocolate chips--I use semi-sweet

Directions: cream butter and sugar. Stir in bananas, milk, vanilla, and eggs. Stir in dry ingredients, stirring till just blended. Fold in chocolate chips. Use as many as you want based on whether you want them as a treat, a snack, or a breakfast food.

Quite honestly, for me...there's not always a difference.

Bake at 375 20-25minutes

Minestrone and Grilled Italy

Michael and I agree that so far, this is the best meal I make. We both love the minestrone, and I really love Grilled Italy as well (Michael's creative genius is responsible for its name). Anyway, I thought I'd like to share the recipes.

Remember I'm an amateur photographer. More like a pre-thinking-about-becoming-a-novice-in-the-pre-amateur-photographer-thing-of-whatever.

Note: don't be daunted by the ingredient list. I have recipes that use up all the other ingredients, so if you want those recipes or suggestions, let me know. I'd be happy to pass them along. You can easily substitute the type of beans used, etc. or leave anything out that you don't care for. The broth for this soup is amazing. It's rather thin, but it's SO delicious.











Minestrone Soup
This soup is a fantastic way to get lots of delicious vegetables into your diet. Feel free to add or subtract veggies to this recipe too. I've tried adding a handful of frozen or fresh spinach, and I'm sure it would be great with green beans or broccoli. The broth will change your life. Like I said, dont' be daunted by the ingredient list. I can think of lots of ways to use up those extra ingredients if you're nervous.

Ingredients:

• 8oz, kielbasa sausage, cut in half lengthwise and sliced (I use the lite version--don't get the smoked version...ew.)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 bell pepper (any color) chopped. (I use green or a mixture of red and green)
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 4-5c water
• 3 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1 1/2c diced carrots (2-3 carrots)
• 3/4c diced celery (1-2 stalks)
• 2 (14.5oz) cans Italian diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 can cannellini (or Great Northern) beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2c dry farfalle (bowtie) pasta

Directions: brown sausage in bottom of soup pot. Remove sausage and set aside. Add onion, green pepper, garlic, and olive oil to pot, stirring to scrape up any brown bits from the pot. Cook on medium heat until onion is tender. Add c water, bouillon cubes, carrots, and celery to pot. Bring to a boil. Cook 5-8 minutes, or until carrots and celery begin to get tender. In separate saucepan, bring water to boil for pasta. Add pasta to saucepan and cook according to directions, making sure to stop cooking when pasta is still a bit firm (it will finish cooking in the soup). Add tomatoes and sausage to soup and reduce to simmer. Simmer 5-10 minutes. Add beans and pasta. Simmer at least 8 minutes more, or until ready to serve.

It tastes even better the longer it sits (as is the case with most soups)











Grilled Italy
I "made up" this recipe when I wanted the same great flavors that I get from my Ham and Mozzarella Pesto Stromboli but didn't have the time to make French bread dough. Use any bread that you have on hand. I'd recomment something that will toast up nicely and not mask the great flavor of the basil pesto. The buttery outside melts in your mouth, as do the rich pesto and delicious combination of melty cheese and smoky ham. Feel free to adjust proportions.

Ingredients:

• bread of choice (I used leftover Sheepherders bread that I had on hand, but French bread, or white bread, or any bread will do)
• Smoked sandwich ham of your choice
• Basil pesto (I use Classico brand)
• Mozzarella cheese, shredded
• butter to spread

Directions:
Assemble as many sandwiches as desired, by spreading pesto on one side of the bread, and layering ham and cheese to taste. butter the top and bottom of the sandwich and cook in pan or on griddle until cheese is melty and bread is toasted to taste. Enjoy!