Apple Pie

Apple pie is my favorite.  Most. Favorite. Ever. 

Although I generally don't care for sweets, if I am left alone with an apple pie, it might not be there the next day.

This recipe, hands down, makes the best apple pie I have ever tatsed.  I wish that I could tell you that this is an old family recipe, but I actually found this on the Williams Sonoma website several years ago.

Click Here

for the recipe

If you can't find the apples listed in the recipe, I would try and use one sweet apple and one sour.  Macintosh work well if you can't find the Pink Lady apples.

If you and pie crust haven't made nice yet, this post may be helpful, or this video.

Macarons

We (Girly Gatherings) have been invited as a vendor for one of the biggest events in our area and we are just beyond estatic!

More to come, but here's a sneek peek.... I baked eight dozen sugar cookies and then another 140 of these macarons this weekend.  These little beauties will be sandwich'd with white chocolate ganache. 

If you know anything about macarons (the DIVA of french pastries)  it is an enormous feat for the home baker to get "feet" on them.

YAY!!! I got feet!

Rocky Road Marshmallows

I have been asked to make the dessert table at an upcoming wedding clear down in Nashville... and I am absolutely giddy with excitement!

The bride's colors are white and black.  I have come up with a list of desserts that are black, white, and black and white.  Now it's time to try them out! 

If you've never made homemade marshmallow, you should definitely give it a try.  It is so easy, it practically makes itself.  Homemade marshmallow tastes NOTHING like the marshmallows in the bag.  These are creamy little clouds that melt in your mouth.

I used what I had in the pantry for this one, which was milk chocolate morsels and a chopped mixed nut topping (that we use for ice cream sundaes).  Melt the chocolate over a double broiler.  Make sure you turn the heat off once you place the bowl over the water.  The steam will melt the chocolate slowly and allow it to set and harden on the marshmallow.  Some I dipped in the chocolate and rolled in nuts, and some I piped the chocolate directly on.

My husband will be saddened to know that these are going to the girls in my office instead of him.

Like he needs another treat!

Caroline's White Cake With Chocolate Frosting

Caroline is six.  Don't you think it's high time she should know how to bake a cake and make frosting? 

She certainly thinks so. 

So first thing this morning - 7AM - we put our aprons on and got to baking.  She made me promise that she could do the WHOLE THING by herself.  Luckily enough for me, I didn't have a single thing planned this weekend, so at 7am we went at it.  Well, she did.

I tried to show her how to crack the eggs to separate them and she kept breaking the yolks.  She looked me straight in the eye and said "If you just leave me alone and let me do it, they won't break."  She didn't break a single one after I let her be!

Normally I don't let the kids get too dirty in the kitchen and make a big mess, but she wanted to feel what the yolks felt like.  :)  She said they were squishy.

Our next door neighbor Megan came over right when it was time to taste the batter.  She has great timing!

Semi-sweet chocolate for the frosting, ready to go into the food processor.

I've tried several different methods of melting chocolate that are much quicker than this. Using a double broiler seems to produce a better consistency though.

My son happened to wander over when the frosting was done.  He has good timing too!

Don't you just want to eat this?  Click Here for the frosting recipe.

Ever wonder how people frost a chocolate cake and never seem to get any of the frosting on their cake plate?  This is how: cut up four squares of parchement paper and overlap them so no part of the cake plate is exposed.  When the cake is set, then pull out the parchment and voila!

Sampling her work....

Click Here

for the recipe

We made a special trip to the store to get ice cream for her.  *Of course, she added sprinkles.**  it's just not finished without sprinkes!

Cherry Pie

I was asked to bring a dessert, "something cherry", to a birthday party this coming weekend.  Not just any birthday party... my Mother-in-Law's birthday party.  Yes, this pie has to be perfect, so it required making one in advance to make sure it would be.

  I have to admit cherry is not exactly my favorite thing, so I don't have any tried and true recipes under my belt. 

Until now.

In my opinion, the crust on a pie is equally important as the filling itself.  An icky crust makes for an icky pie.  I use a standard pie crust recipe which is simply flour, cold butter, ice water, salt and sugar.

Try and handle the butter as little as possible to keep it cold.  I like to cut up the butter first, then throw it in the freezer until I am ready to use it, about 5 minutes or so.

Once you mix in the butter, add the water.  Depending on the humidity in your home, you will need anywhere from 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup.  Add the water while your food processor is still going.  Stop it before the mixture forms a ball, but not until the mixutre holds itself together.  It should not be crumb-y (is that a word?), but easily lifted out of the food processor.

Flatten dough into two discs, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours.

The grocery stores in my area do not have fresh cherries yet, so I had to buy the frozen ones.  Let them thaw for about 30 minutes, discarding any extra juice.  Bring the cherries, sugar and cornstarch to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.  The mixture should firm up nicely.  Then stir in a tablespoon of butter along with the almond extract.

Meanwhile, roll out the first disc of dough and fit into your pie plate.  I chose to make a lattice top on this pie, so I used a pastry wheel to cut decorative strips out of the second crust.

Isn't this pretty?

I made an egg wash with an egg white and a teaspoon of water and spread it over the crust.  Then I sprinked two teaspoons of sugar on top.

I've made dozens of pies and tried dozens of 'treatments' on the crust.  I've decided that egg white wash with sugar turns out the prettiest.

Click Here

for the recipe

Pear Champagne Cupcakes

Pear Champagne Cupcakes with Pink Champagne frosting!

Click Here

for the recipe

These are not fluffy like cake batter cupcakes because they have the pears in them.  They are incredibly moist and taste fantastic!  I suppose regular cake batter cut with a little champagne and tinted pink would be fabulous too....

Do your self a favor though, grate the pears using a food processor, not a cheese grater!

Black Forest Cake

We spend Christmas Eve with the same friends every year, and the hostess' favorite dessert is Black Forest cake.  So of course, I make it for her and bring it along!

Click here

for the recipe

There are literally dozens of different ways to assemble a Black Forest cake...

  I make two 8 inch cake rounds and then torte them so I have four layers.  A simple syrup made up of sugar, water and Kirsch (cherry brandy) is brushed onto the cakes so they will absorb the cherry flavor. 

The filling is canned dark cherries, in their syrup, mixed with more Kirsch and a little bit of cornstarch to thicken it up.  So basically you've got a four layer chocolate cake with cherry filling dripping throughout.

Homemade chocolate frosting, a one inch layer of homemade whip cream and chocolate shavings top this beauty off!

Christmas Goodies

How great are these handsome little men?  I used some of my baker's twine to tie little 'scarves' around their necks.  Very simple, yet very festive!

I made these cookies for the kids that were coming over to my house on Saturday evening.

The kids just loved to see their names on cookies!  How cute are they all lined up??  Okay, we forced them to line up and smile.  *HA HA HA*

I made these for Jacob's class 'Holiday Party' this week.

It just wouldn't be Christmas time without a ginger bread house!

Caroline's learning to use the piping bag at 6 years old...  I didn't learn until just this year!  My mother was not big on baking.

Homemade marshmallow!  My first try at marshmallow and they turned out really cute, and were so yummy!

Do you have any Christmas goodies to share?