Peach Pie

What a busy summer!! Things have just started to quiet down a bit after a summer of racing around and non-stop visiting with family and friends. Which is somehow what our summers turn into every year. I both love it and hate it at the same time. I love, love, love getting to catch up with everyone who lives far away and who we don't get much chance to see otherwise. But I hate the midweek racing around that being away every weekend leads to. Each year, I strive to hit a bit more balance in the summer, and somehow, I'm still miles away... but I love getting to see everyone and can't say no to an invite anywhere. It's completely self-created chaos and I guess it just part of who I am.

As fall has approached (despite the humid days - or is that just because I'm pregnant??), our weekends are starting to free up and we have more time to just relax at home and breathe (aka cook and bake). With less than 6 weeks until my due date and the likelihood that I will be induced a bit early to prevent a highway birth, the pressure is on these days to get Logan moved into his new room - which means getting it painted and all set up prior. Plus, I guess I should be packing some bags for the hospital one of these days, just in case... I have one more week of work left (can you say yay???) and then intend to entirely devote myself to filling our freezer chock-full of homemade dinners so that I will not have to cook until the baby is at least 6 months old!

In a traditional old-school division of labour, this afternoon, I found myself inside playing Martha Stewart once again and making peach pie.  All the while, Jerome was outside, cutting the mouldings to be put into Logan's new bedroom.  For some reason, as much as I bake and bake and bake, I've never been much of a pie maker. I've made the occasional pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, and made a delicious apple cream cheese pie a couple of years back. And we've certainly made French pies, which are basically just a crust with the fruit on top (but are delicious).  But I've never really made a true, traditional, North American, double-crust pie. Maybe because they're a bit time intensive?? 

Which means that I've never actually even eaten a wide variety of types of pies. For instance, I've somehow never had a strawberry pie. And I realized at Logan and Maddy's baptism two weeks ago that I'd also never had peach pie. Andrea brought two with her from the Niagara reason (mmm... peaches...) and they were both to die for. Which made me finally get up enough motivation to actually make my own pie. And in the end, it wasn't as time-consuming as I'd anticipated.


After having many the delicious pie made by my mother-in-law or various other members of my husband's French family, I cannot ever bring to buy store-bought crusts. They just don't cut it in this household after having the fabulous-beyond-words flaky pastry of my mother-in-law (which reminds me that I vowed a year ago to learn how to make her crusts and have done nothing to do so... must get on that during my next mat leave!). So I guess the idea of making and rolling two crusts, plus making the filling has led to me never really making a pie. So I will admit that I cheated a bit on the crusts and used a food processor recipe.  This saved me the dreaded kneading that keeps me away from making any real crusts. You can find the recipe I used for the crust here, though this time, I used all-purpose flour instead of whole-wheat. And from there, it was simple.

I got the rest of the pie recipe from the Wives with Knives blog here:

pastry for 9-10 inch double pie crust
3/4 C - 1 C sugar depending on sweetness of the peaches
4 tbsp. flour
dash salt
1 tsp. vanilla
6 C peeled sliced fresh peaches
2 tbsp. butter
egg wash made with 1 egg yolk and 2 tbsp. water
sanding sugar

Moutains of freshly sliced peaches.

1.  Line pie plate with pastry.  Combine sugar, flour, spice and salt.  Add vanilla to peaches, mix lightly.  Stir in spice mixture and mix lightly.

Peaches mixed with flour/sugar/cinnamon mixture.

2.  Fill shell.  Dot with butter.

3.  Add top crust; crimp edges.  Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar (I didn't have any sanding sugar, so I just sprinkled with regular granulated sugar - it doesn't look quite as nice, but it's not bad).

4.  Bake in a 400 degree Farenheit oven for 45-50 minutes or until juices are bubbling and the crust is nicely browned.

Mmmm... pure delight!

5.  Serve warm with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.

I have to say that I'm more than impressed with the appearance of my pie. I wish we were having guests over for dinner tonight. It seems like a waste to cut into such a beautiful creation for just the two of us. 

For a dairy-free option, you can substitute shortening for the butter in the pie crust. Which apparently makes them taste that much better anyhow!

Apple Date Squares

We went on our annual apple-picking adventure yesterday with Heather and Bap, along with their kids and Heather's mom. Heather's mom said to me as we were heading into the orchard "didn't we go strawberry picking together last time I was in town?" (she's visiting from Halifax). Which made me chuckle. Yes, I have a slight obsession with fresh-fruit picking in the summer...

Though we've been going on our own for years, as the only coupleless child at the entire orchard, apple-picking is getting more fun as Logan gets older. I just can't wait until he's old enough to put to work to help with the picking ;)

Logan, on his first apple-picking adventure, last year.

And somehow, this year, he's
old enough to eat an apple...

I used to pick a couple of big bags of apples, turn them all into homemade apple sauce and can them for the winter months. But with Logan racing around the house, baby no. 2 on the way in just 6 short weeks and Logan's 'big boy room' not yet painted and decorated, I've had to come to the realization that this will not be in my future this year (though I'll probably still make the odd batch to eat fresh, as there's nothing better than homemade applesauce for dessert!).

But I've nonetheless already started working on the 20 lb. bag of apples we picked yesterday. We are probably going apple picking again with some other friends early October, so I figure we'd better eat through these ones quickly.

This recipe is a minor, but tasty, twist on the classic date square. And I absolutely love date squares. I was inspired to make these by some delicious looking apple date squares that they sold at the apple orchard we visited. Though they looked more delicious than they actually were. I told Jerome that I was sure I could make a better version myself at home, and these are it.

I took the base of this recipe from Cook Great Food, because I love their date square recipe (which they call Matrimonial Cake). I then took the filling from the BC tree fruits website recipe for apple date squares.

Base:
1 1/2 C all-purpose flour (I used whole-wheat)
1 1/2 C oats (I used large flake)
1 C lightly packed brown sugar (I used 3/4 C and would try 1/2 C next time)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 C butter or margarine (butter gives it better flavour)

Filling:
1 1/2 C pitted dates
3/4 C water
2 apples, peeled and coarsely grated (I used 3 apples and left the skins on for the extra fiber)

In a medium saucepan, combine the dates and water and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and mash dates.  Remove the heat and stir in apples.

In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, brown sugar and baking soda. Cut in butter with pastry blender or in food processor until mixture is crumbly.

Press half of the crumb mixture into nonstick or lightly greased 8x8 inch square pan. Top with the apple-date mix. Cover with the remaining flour mixture. Pat down.

Bake for 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees Farenheit. Cool and cut into squares.

If you've also gone apple-picking and are looking for apple recipes, you might be interested in some of the following:

finnish apple pancake for breakfast (I intend to whip up one of these later today to make for tomorrow's breakfast):








date and apple sweet bread (this is delicious!):







  
apple cream cheese pie (also gonna make this before we run out of apples):

fiber-full bran pancakes with little pieces of chopped up apples inside:

apple cake/muffins:

Peanut Butter Chocolate Mousse Pie

This has got to be amongst the healthiest of dessert choices...  Can you tell that I'm pregnant and just don't care??? Can I maybe justify it by saying that at least the peanut butter has some protein and good fats??? 

Nah, let's just go back to the just don't care part, as that's the truth of the matter. This is one of my all-time favourite desserts, and I really almost never get a chance to make it. Since it's not terribly healthy, I usually only make it when we have company or are going to someone else's for dinner. But given that half of the people I know have someone in their family who has a nut allergy (my family included), my opportunities to make this are few and far between. And as I'm already dreading the day that I will have to cut out peanut butter to breastfeed again, I decided to just make it for us this weekend. A whole pie, for us. Not something I typically do. But at least this one is kept in the freezer, so we'll be under no obligation to eat it every single day (heehee... obligation).

I omit the sugar in the chocolate mousse, as I don't find you need it. I don't bother decorating it most of the time. On the odd occasion, I've used Reese's Pieces to decorate the outside edge of the pie. As this is kept in the freezer, it's great for when company is coming, as you can make it a few days in advance and no one will be able to tell the difference.

Crust:
1 1/4 C chocolate wafer crumbs (I use Oreo crumbs)
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1/3 C melted butter (I use light margarine) 

Peanut butter filling:
4 oz. (120g) cream cheese
2 tbsp. table cream (15%)
3/4 C smooth peanut butter
1/3 C granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 C whipping cream (35%), whipped

Chocolate mousse:
1/2 C whipping cream (not whipped) 
1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 eggs, divided
1/4 C granulated sugar (I omit this last amount of sugar)

Garnish:
1/2 C whipping cream, whipped
1 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, grated



Crust:  In mixing bowl, combine crumbs, sugar and butter, mixing until combined.  Press into bottom and sides of a 10-inch pie place (I only put the crust on the bottom).  Bake in a 325 degree oven for 10 minutes.  Cool before filling.

Peanut butter filling: In bowl, mix cream cheese, cream, peanut butter, sugar and vanilla; beat until smooth.  Gently whisk in whipped cream; mix until well blended.  Spread over cooled crust; refrigerate while preparing the mousse.

Chocolate mousse layer: Bring cream to a boil; add chocolate chips and stir until melted.  Add egg yolks, whisking until well blended.  In mixing bowl, beat egg whites until frothy; gradually add sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.  Fold into chocolate mixture and when blended, pour over peanut butter layer.  Cover and freeze until ready to serve.  Remove from the freezer 20-30 minutes before serving, but serve frozen.

Garnish: Spread with whipped cream and sprinkle with grated chocolate.  

Makes 8 to 10 servings (I cut it into 12 servings).

Make-Ahead All-Dressed Mashed Potatoes

This recipe came in the Kraft Canada What's Cooking Fall 2011 edition. I made this to go with supper last night and it was quite tasty. I likely won't make it super often, as it's not exactly the healthiest of side dishes, but it was a nice change from our standard fare. You don't need to add any additional salt to the potatoes, as the bacon makes it salty enough.

2 1/2 lb. Yukon gold potatoes (about 6), peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks

2 tbsp. non-hydrogenated margarine

1 C sour cream, divided (I used low-fat)

1/2 C chopped fresh chives, divided (I left this out, as I didn't have any)

1 pkg. real bacon pieces, divided - I think this refers to the packaged, precooked bacon pieces. I used real bacon, using maybe 8 slices, cooked and crumbled

1 C cheddar cheese, shredded

1.  Cook potatoes in boiling water 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender; drain.  Return potatoes to pot.  Add margarine and 2/3 C sour cream; mash until potatoes are smooth.  Stir in 2/3 each of the chives and bacon.

2.  Spread into a 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.  Cool to room temperature; cover.  Refrigerate up to 24 hours.  Remove from refrigerator 20 minutes before baking.

3.  Heat oven to 400 degrees Farenheit.  Bake potatoes, covered, 20 to 25 minutes or until heated through.  Sprinkle with cheese; bake, uncovered, 3 to 5 minutes or until melted.  Serve topped with remaining sour cream, chives and bacon.

To bake immediately after mashing, bake (uncovered) in 400 degree Farenheit oven 10 minutes or until heated through.  Sprinkle with cheese; bake, uncovered, 3 to 5 minutes or until melted.

Makes 14 servings.

Crumb-Top Choco-Peanut Butter Bars

Is there any combination in the world more divine than peanut butter and chocolate? I'd say that anything strawberry-banana runs a close second, but peanut butter and chocolate really can't be beat.

I was scooping out some natural peanut butter from our ginormous Costco package today at lunch and found myself dreaming about peanut butter cookies. Which I probably haven't eaten in about a year and a half, since I didn't eat nuts while breastfeeding Logan. And somehow, the thought of peanut butter cookies didn't cross my mind since I've started eating nuts again until today at lunch. How is that even possible?

And so I found my confronted with a difficult decision. I had the choice of charting my clients while watching Bachelor Pad or making peanut butter cookies.  And as much as I was dying to find out what had happened on  Bachelor Pad this week, I found myself doing what any responsible, self-employed individual confronted with such a dilemma would do: I thumbed through my recipe books to find something deliciously peanut buttery. And I stumbled across this delicious recipe. Which I believe I may have already made before, many moons ago. Well worth giving up watching Bachelor Pad.

This recipe comes from the a little booklet called the Treasury of Holiday Cookies, made by Jif. I don't really consider these to be holiday-related though, but they're still delicious.

1 pkg. (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (1 C)
1 C firmly packed brown sugar
2/3 C creamy peanut butter (I used natural pb)
1/2 C butter or margarine, softened
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 C flour (I used whole-wheat)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 C quick-cooking oats

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.  Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking pan (I used an 8-inch square pan for the whole batch, as I like the squares a bit thicker.  If you make it in a 13x9-inch pan, I'd recommend doubling the chocolate filling, as I don't think there would have been enough to spread nicely over the base).

2.  Place chocolate chips in top of a double boiler or in a medium bowl that fits securely over the medium saucepan.  Heat over boiling water until chocolate melts (water in bottom of double boiler or in saucepan should not touch top pan).  Set aside.

3.  Cream together brown sugar, peanut butter and butter in mixing bowl.  Add egg and vanilla; beat well.

4.  Sift together flour, salt and baking soda; add to creamed mixture.  Beat just until well mixed.  Stir in oats.

5.  Spread 3/4 of dough in greased baking pan.  Spread with melted chocolate.  Dot chocolate layer with remaining 1/4 of dough.  Bake 25 minutes or until done.  Cut into bars when cool.

Butter Chickpeas

I haven't been on my blog much at all lately, as we've been running around all over the place the past few weeks. I spent a week visiting my new little niece Maddy, was then home for 2 days before leaving for Anna and Willie's wedding in Boston and was then home for a day before Eliza came up from Boston to visit for a few days. This has been the flavour of our entire summer and I'm loving the chance to get to catch up with everyone once again. 

It's been great getting to see Eliza so much over the past couple of months, as we usually don't get to see her very often at all. And after making this Indian dish for her for dinner last night, tonight we're going to get a sitter (yay!) and meet her in the Old Port for Indian at Ghandi - a fabulous Indian restaurant for those of you in the area who like good quality Indian food.

My friend Heather made this for us for dinner a couple of months ago and it was absolutely fantastic. I made it last night for dinner for Eliza and realized that it's also super quick and easy to make. I think that I'm going to make a few batches of this without the potatoes to freeze for once the baby comes (since potatoes don't freeze well). You'll need to include the garam marsala in this recipe, as it is key to the flavour of the recipe. You may have to hunt for this a bit, but would definitely be able to find at at a bulk food store, such as the Bulk Barn or, in our part of the woods, you can get it at Mourelatos or Adonis.

Heather serves this with delicious whole-wheat chapati, which she picks up in the freezer section of Maxi.  But since Eliza is gluten-free, I served it with short brown rice, which is a bit of a sticky rice. You just have to soak it in a bit of water for a couple of hours prior to cooking it.

2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced small (use a variety of potatoes that will hold its shape when cooked, such as red potatoes)
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp. fresh garlic
2 tsp. curry powder
2 tsp. garam marsala
1 tsp. powdered ginger 
1 tsp. cumin
1 - 1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 10 oz. can of tomato soup
1/2 C milk
1/3 C butter
1 can of drained chickpeas

 

1.  Boil potatoes until completely cooked. You will have to watch them to know when they are cooked, but I think it took about 15 minutes or so to cook mine. You want to make sure that they are cooked, but not overcooked, so that they won't lose their shape once they are mixed into the rest of the mixture.

2.  Fry together the onion, garlic and spices until the onion is cooked.

3.  Add the tomato soup, milk, butter and chickpeas.  At the last minute, stir in the potatoes and heat until warm.

Sesame-Grilled Asparagus and Berry Tart

I made this recipe this weekend while my family was down to visit. I used to make it a lot, but somehow, in the recent baby-dom of life, it's become much easier to just steam veggies than to actually do anything with them. Though, overall, this is still quite a quick and easy recipe. And I'd forgotten just how delicious it is. This recipe comes from How to Grill, by Steven Raichlen (who is featured on the Food Network).

1 lb. asparagus (the stalks shouldn't be too thin)
2 tbsp. dark sesame oil
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
coarse salt and black pepper
2 tbsp. sesame seeds

















1.  Soak either wooden toothpicks or slender bamboo skewers for 1 hour in cold water to cover, then drain.

2.  Set up the grill and preheat to high.  

3.  Snap off the woody bases of the asparagus and discard.  

Though not recommended in the recipe, I chose to boil the asparagus for a few minutes before grilling them, to be sure they were cooked enough and wouldn't take forever to grill. I just boiled them until they were fork-tender.

4.  Skewer 4 or 5 asparagus spears together, using toothpicks or bamboo skewers. (I just use a barbecue grill basket and don't bother spearing them together).

5.  In a small bowl, combine the sesame oil, soy sauce and garlic, and stir with a fork to mix.  Brush this mixture on the asparagus on both sides.  Season the asparagus with a little salt and lots of pepper.

6.  When ready to cook, place the asparagus on the hot grate and grill until nicely browned on both sides, 2 to 4 minutes per side.  Sprinkle the asparagus with the sesame seeds as they grill.  You can serve the asparagus with or without the skewers.

Serves 4.

I then served a berry tart for dessert from a recipe that I had put up on my blog last year:

 













Except that this year, I used a mixture of fresh berries.  We also made a glaze for it this year (having a bit more time than we did when we originally made it with a one-month old). We basically just put some strawberry jam in a pot (you want to use a jam without too many chunks), added a small amount of water and heated it and mixed it together until it had a runny gelatin-like consistency.  We also had to add a bit of sugar to keep it all sticking together, as the jam I happened to have was a reduced sugar jam.  When heated, we let it cool a bit and then just used a food brush to paint it onto the fruit. The tart then has this lovely looking glaze that also protects the fruit for a bit longer before it turns (if it lasts that long without getting eaten!).  The glaze so makes the tart. I highly recommend spending the extra few minutes that it takes to make the glaze.