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Apple & Brie Pie

For more than one holiday, my sister and I have wrapped a small round of brie (to bake) in puffed pastry. Before it’s wrapped, we top the brie with walnuts, dried cranberries, and honey. It’s served with (buttery) crackers, and it’s amazing. One could lighten it up by serving it with some apple slices or celery… You do you. Naturally, due to my butter inclination, it lead to that would make a good pie.

2 – Pie Crusts, homemade or store bought

5 medium Apples (up to 7 small), peeled and sliced about ½ inch thick

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 Tbsp Flour

2 Tbsp granulated Sugar, plus more for sprinkling

3 Tbsp Brown Sugar

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1/8 tsp Nutmeg, freshly grated

1 Tbsp Honey

1 sprig fresh thyme, finely chopped (or small leaves striped from stem)

1/2 cup dried Cranberries

5 oz. Brie cheese, diced into ½ inch cubes

2 oz. White Cheddar, shredded

1/2 cup Walnuts, chopped

1 Egg white + 1 splash water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 375º.

Blind bake 1 pie crust in a baking dish 10-12 minutes. (Blind bake means to pre-cook the crust, without filling using pie weights, rice or dry beans in parchment paper set on top of the crust.) Set aside.

Meanwhile, place apple slices, lemon juice, flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme, and cranberries in a bowl.

Gently toss until all is mixed well. In the pre-baked crust, evenly distribute apple mixture and brie pieces. Cover the apple and brie filling with an even layer of shredded cheddar cheese. Next place an even layer of chopped walnuts over the cheese.

Carefully lay the second pie dough (in a pattern or not) over the top of the layered pie filling.

Side note: My inspiration for the diamond pattern came from the latest issue of Martha Stewart’s Living Magazine:

(If you do not have a pattern, cut a few slices in the top of the dough to release steam.) With a pastry brush (or spoon), lightly cover the pie dough with the egg wash, and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until cheese is oozy, crust is browned, apples are softened but still a little firm, walnuts are toasted, and flavors are melded.

Let stand 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.

…Or at room temp.

…Or for breakfast the next day.

…(Because I can easily eat cheese, crackers and fruit for breakfast. Same thing?)

Erica’s Apple Baked Brie

A friend of mine made this, so I feel at ease to boast and say, “Look at this gorgeous presentation!” I am a long-time fan of baked brie. If you are not familiar with the cheese, it is a soft French cow’s milk cheese, most often encased in an edible covering of white mold. Depending on the process it can range from very mild to a strong musky flavor. (I am not one to shy away from a pungent cheese). Usually I do mine wrapped in a puff pastry, but I love that Erica used a croissant pastry dough! It made for such a lovely crust! Of course the rustically sliced apples were beautiful too… and then the taste! Sweet apples and brown sugar with warm creamy brie on slices of fresh bread, grainy crackers, and ripe fruit. La vie en rose!

1 – 16 oz round Brie

2 cans Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

1 apple (plus 1/2 for decoration, optional)

4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) Butter

2 Tbsp Brown Sugar

1 Egg

 

Preheat oven to 350°.

Melt butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Thinly slice or dice (your preference) the apple and sauté it in the butter. Add the brown sugar to the butter and apple mixture, and gently stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture has slightly thickened. Place the beautiful apple syrup on top of the Brie and wrap it in the crescent rolls. Whisk the egg and brush it top of the dough. Optionally, cut a few slices of apple for decoration and position them on top in a circular pattern. Bake for about 30-40 minutes, until crust is golden brown and cheese is warmed through. Allow to set for a few minutes before serving. You want the cheese to be warm and spreadable, but not to ooze. Serve with slice rounds of bread, apple slices, and or crackers.

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Marsh-bani Fruit Dip & Fruit Salad

It doesn’t get easier or tastier than this. Honestly it’s just delicious. The fruit dip is sweet and a little tangy, ridiculous when you think about how easy it is. Did I mention it is fat-free? Your taste buds will never know. The yogurt goodness coats the fruit nicely as a dip, but why stop there? The next thought was, oh my goodness, this needs to be in a fruit salad. And can I just tell you, it was stellar. As in: this is what fruit salad needs to taste like for the rest of my life. If you are having a party this weekend, it’s great to serve dip style or in individual cups. So because I really can’t decide which way I like more, I’m sharing both. Lastly, let me just add that if you have any left over, you should throw it into a morning smoothie, because it is awesome… and so are you.

1 cup Marshmallow Creme

1/2 cup Chobani Fat Free Vanilla Greek Yogurt

1 pint blueberries, rinsed and drained

2 pints strawberries, rinsed and drained

2 large bananas (or 3 medium), I leave mine in the peel and third or quarter

2 apples, cut into wedges (with a couple center slices reserved for garnish)

Dipping fruit of your choice

Garnish with apple slices and fresh mint (optional)

That’s it! Two parts marshmallow creme to 1 part Chobani Vanilla Greek yogurt. Brilliant! I used a hand held mixer (with a whisk attachment) to blend the marshmallow and yogurt in a medium sized bowl. If you are blending by hand, just mix until they are incorporated. Place the mixture into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes (or until party time), and the marshmallow and yogurt blend will continue to infuse.

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Now if you want to turn it into fruit salad…

Hull and half (or quarter depending on size) your strawberries, peel your bananas and cut them along with the apples into bite size pieces. Place the fruit into a bowl, drizzle with the Marsh-bani Fruit Dip and gently toss. I take the extra step of tossing the fruit salad in a separate bowl from the one I am serving in, especially for a party… but that’s up to you. The dip can be made a day in advance, but I would not dress and toss the salad until ready to serve. Present in a bowl with a serving spoon or in individual serving dishes for guests to help themselves. Indulge yourself in this sweet treat!

 

 

 

Harvest Chili

This is the ultimate harvest chili. It’s loaded with autumn vegetables and goodness such as sweet potatoes, onions, apples, and turkey. It looks like the prettiest fall tree color-changing picture (in abstract food form) ever! It’s really healthy, so some of you are going to love that. For the rest of you, don’t let that hold you back because it’s also delicious. It’s a little spicy, a little sweet, a bountiful treat. And if I may, I think the ground turkey could easily be substituted with leftover Thanksgiving turkey… which would be awesome. Just sayin’.

As organic as possible:

2 large Orange sweet peppers, seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces

2-3 canned Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, roughly chopped

4 cloves Garlic, roughly chopped

2 pounds ground turkey

1 large Onion

1 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground Black pepper

1 Tbsp Chili powder

1 Tbsp Cumin

1/2 tsp Oregano

1 – 15 oz can Pinto beans, rinsed and drained

2 – 14.5 oz cans Red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 – 14.5 oz can diced Tomatoes

4 cups Chicken broth

1 Tbsp sugar* (I think this adds balance, but if you prefer healthier leave it out)

2 Sweet potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 1/2″ pieces

2 medium tart Apples (such as Granny Smith)

*Spicy Chipotle seasoned Pine nuts (Recipe follows), Optional

Place orange peppers, chipotle peppers, and garlic in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Set aside.

In a large Dutch oven brown turkey with onion, salt and pepper. Drain excess fat (but a little left is okay). Add pepper-garlic mix, stir and cook about 5 minutes. Then add tomatoes, pinto and kidney beans, and chicken broth. (Side note: This much can be made ahead and allowed to simmer as long as needed until about 35 minutes before serving.)

Stir in sweet potatoes and apples. Bring to boiling and reduce to simmer, about 25-30 minutes until sweet potato is tender. Taste for seasonings. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly, about 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with Spicy Chipotle Seasoned Pine Nuts (Optional), or corn chips. Enjoy!

Spicy Chipotle Pine Nuts

2 Tbsp Butter

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp Water

1 tsp ground Chipotle chili pepper

1 tsp snipped fresh Rosemary (or 1/2 tsp dried)

1/2 tsp Celery salt

1/2 tsp Garlic powder

1 1/2 cups Pine nuts

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 325°. Line a baking sheet with Silpat or parchment paper. Set aside. In a small saucepan melt butter, add Worcestershire sauce, water, chipotle pepper, rosemary, celery salt, and garlic powder. Simmer over low heat for about 2 minutes. Stir in pine nuts and remove from heat.  When well coated, spread onto prepared baking sheet and bake about 10-15 minutes (shaking pan a couple times in-between), until lightly toasted. Sprinkle with salt while warm. (Side note: Nuts can be prepared ahead of time and stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. They are delicious on their own, and would be a nice addition on top of a salad too!)

This recipe has been adapted, tweaked, and changed from a Chipotle Harvest Chili recipe I found a few years ago in a Midwest Living Magazine. I think it’s perfection.

If you were going to use leftover turkey, I would sauté onions in 1 Tbsp olive oil for a couple minutes. Add pepper-garlic mixture and let cook 5 minutes more. Then add turkey with the tomatoes, broth, etc., and follow the remaining instructions.

 

 

Mom’s Apple Pie

When I was in Dublin, Ireland there was one place I wanted to go. Ok like two. I wanted to see the world renown Guinness Brewery and Queen of Tarts. When we made it to the latter the line was outside the door. The place was full of satisfied customers and I wanted to be one of them! They sold several different pastries, but like Owen says “You don’t go to a pie shop and order a cake.” So we ordered a berry tart. It was perfect. It had a good flaky crust, an awesome crumble topping and a flawless sweet fruity center. It was love at first bite and immediately I said “this is just like mom’s apple pie.” (Except the obvious fruit difference).

As organic as possible:

5 large or 7 medium Granny Smith apples

1 cup Sugar

1/2 cup Brown sugar

2 tsp Cinnamon

3 Tbsp Flour

1/4 tsp Salt

1 pie crust (I like Martha Stewart paté brisée)

Crumble Topping:

1 cup Sugar

1 cup Flour

1 stick cold salted Butter, cut into cubes

Preheat the oven to 375°. Put the unbaked pie crust in a pie dish and pinch the edges. Set aside. Peel and cut apples into fork full size pieces. Toss apples in sugar and cinnamon and let sit. In the mean time make crumble topping.

To make crumble topping; whisk together sugar and flour, add butter cubes. You must use two butter knives and cross-cut butter into flour/sugar mixture until butter is in pea size pieces. (Do not over cut, because pockets of butter are essential.) Set aside.

Side note: I did not follow the rules this time, and used a pastry cutter, and my pieces were not light and fluffy and my top crumble (pictured) was more of a solid piece and not my mother’s usual look or texture. So don’t be a renegade like me; follow the instructions for a perfect pie.

Back to the pie: Add flour and salt to apple mixture, gently toss. Pour filling into prepared pie dish. Now lovingly spoon crumble topping over apples, making sure all are covered and butter pieces are evenly distributed. Once you run out of visible butter pieces you can leave behind the extra flour (maybe a 1/2 to whole tablespoon full). Bake for 50 minutes to an hour, until golden brown.