Pear Crumble

I love Fall...it is my favorite season. The leaves, the change in the weather, all of it!  What do I also love in the fall...the end of the dreaded pear canning season. Don't get me wrong, I love pears. I DO NOT like canning them.....ugh...peeling...touching them a bazillion times. So what do I do with the last bunch of pears? I make Pear Crumble!  It is delicious! I use the nice, ripe pears and some apple pie spices with a yummy crumble recipe from Mel's kitchen cafe...one of my favorite blogs! So, hears to the last of the pears! Huzzah, Huzzah!

Pear Crumble

10-12 firm, ripe pears, peeled and quartered

3/4 cup sugar (more or less depending on sweetness of fruit)

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

1/4 c. flour

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. cinnamon
1 t. freshly grated ginger

pinch of nutmeg

Combine the dry ingredients together and gently mix with the fruit being careful not to break it up.

Pour into a  greased 18x20 baking dish. Prepare the crumble.

Crumble

1 1/2 c. oats
1 1/2 c. flour

3/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 c. melted butter

Mix all together and pour on the fruit in the baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

crumble recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

Sifter....woohoo!

Now....I like using whole wheat, white whole wheat, mind you. BUT....when I go to make cookies or other non-bread recipes I use soft white wheat.  It has less protein and makes for a better product....less gluten.

ok...so I admit it...i still don't like the wheatiness in my cookies quick breads, muffins,etc.

 All that lovely bran! (groan)

TaDa! I found a sifter for my Bosch !

I LOVE you sifter!!!

It fits over the bowl and low and behold...it sifts all the bran out of the flour!

AMAZING!

To test it out I made my regular chocolate chip cookie recipe. Yum! 

I did learn this..the flour is REALLY fluffy after you sift it and doesn't measure exactly true.

FLAT COOKIES!

So I will have to adjust next time.

You still get the nutrition from the whole wheat...with less fiber!  I figure...it's fresh ground. I will sacrifice a little fiber.

You can use the leftover bran on your cereal, yogurt, in other baked goods to get that fiber back in your diet!

Sifter at work!

Here is a little comparison...really bad picture.On the top is the sifted bran, on the left is the fresh ground flour, and on the right is the sifted flour!

New Year---New Journey

I haven't posted for a few months. It has been a journey for me that is for sure.   My Dad became ill in September and I have been back and forth to Idaho and Utah since that time.  My Dad died  December 17th.  We had his funeral on the 22nd in Kaysville, Utah. 

What is it about our parents that leads us to believe they will never die?  I am a really positive person and I honestly thought he was going to get better....and he tried so hard to do so.  The last time I spoke to my dad he told me that he was so very tired and didn't want to live his life if he couldn't be active.  He was done.  I told him I loved him and that he was the very best Dad anyone could ever have.  It was so hard to KNOW that he was going back to Heavenly Father, but comforting to KNOW he was ready.  I am at peace with all that has happened....I miss him so very badly!   I was cleaning out my planner in my purse and came across some notes that he had written to me in October while he was intubated in the hospital.  I was at work....whew....tears flowed!  I think of him everyday when I hear a song or find a new recipe that he would have liked to try, or while driving to Utah spotting the deer, antelope, and mountain sheep along the road! (I am the best at that). He instilled in me my positive, sunny, disposition.  Everyone was his friend....including strangers anywhere!  I am like him in that way too.  I love him so very much!
So, now what?  New Year, new journey.....with my Dad watching me and helping me from above!
For my Dad...new life, new journey....with much work to be done!

Pumpkin Pie----old style!

I was watching Good Eats the other day and Alton Brown made pumpkin pie from a fresh pumpkin.  I have always wanted to do that....soooo....I was in Safeway today and they had organic sugar pumpkins! Score!

I brought it home, cut it in half, scooped out the seeds,  put the halves face down on a parchment lined baking sheet, and baked them until they were super tender. I was unsure of what the taste and texture would be like.....taste: very sweet...texture, suprisingly smooth!  I scooped out the flesh from the skin and threw it in the food processor until it was super finely pureed.  Then I put the puree in a saucepan on medium heat and let it cook for a few minutes to evaporate the extra liquid from it.  It was now ready to make the filling.

I dumped the filling ingredients into the food processor (No...I didn't wash it in between) mixed them up and poured the filling into a Trader Joe's pie crust....already made! They are pretty dang good for a store-bought crust....actually the best I've ever had!  Baked it up and voila!  Pumpkin Pie....old style.

Now...what to do with the extra pumpkin puree I have left over.....cookies, bread, pancakes?

Pumpkin Pie a la Alton Brown

16 oz. pumpkin puree-freshly made

1 c. half and half     * I used 1 c. evaporated milk

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

3/4 c. brown sugar  * I used 1 cup brown sugar

1 t. nutmeg-freshly grated

1/2 t. kosher salt

* I added 1 t. cinnamon and 1 t. pumpkin pie spice.

Pour into an unbaked 9 inch pie shell. Bake @ 425 for 15 minutes then reduce the heat to 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until the center is just barely jiggly!

Let cool completely.

Inspiration Plantation-A fresh chicken field trip!

The other day I was reading a couple of blogs that I keep track of and noticed a link to a place near my house called Inspiration Plantation.  The reason it caught my eye was because they raise and process their own chickens for meat......AND they were processing chickens that VERY day! Being the ever adventurous girl that I am...I set out for the farm..with the husband at the wheel. Happy chickens were outside in a field...being chickens! Happy Chickens!
 I have wanted to see the difference in the taste of a freshly processed chicken and how it compares to store bought.  Inspiration Plantation raises 2 kinds of meat chickens...Cornish Cross-which are like the chickens you buy in the store....bred to have more white meat~~~And Heritage chickens-which are like the old-time chickens our grandparents used to raise.  They take longer to finish and have a smaller breast.
 We met the owners, Jen and Matt Schwab. They were so nice and explained the whole process to me!  I should have taken my camera to show you the set-up.  I decided to buy 2 of the Heritage chickens...$5.50 a pound and worth every penny!
They also have pork, turkey and eggs to sell. They are sold-out of pork and turkeys for 2010.


For Sunday dinner I made fried chicken.  What a great way to see the difference! And what a difference it was. When I opened the bags of raw chicken....there was NO YUCKY CHICKEN SMELL!  In fact, there was NO SMELL! WooHoo! I cut it up and fried it like my Grandma Kelin would have done it......It was delicious!!!!  The meat had texture...and that is a good thing! The flavor was fantastic!  I loved it and will buy more!


Check out their site and try some "REAL" chicken! http://www.inspirationplantation.com/

Creamed Corn-my Mom's way!

August is one of my favorite months. It is usually the best month  here in the Pacific Northwest for summer weather. It is also my anniversary and birthday month!  It is also the month for fresh, sweet corn.  I love corn in any preparation. Corn on the cob is so good simply prepared and eaten with butter, salt, and pepper.  If you want to go a little fancy-schmancy try the California Seasoned Pepper and Shallot Salt from Penzey's.  www.penzeys.com  It is a yummy variation.  My all-time favorite recipe is one that my mom made for me on my birthday at least 10 years ago.  I don't remember where she got the recipe..but it is divine.  It isn't low-calorie....but it's my birthday, right?  It combines fresh sweet corn with bacon and onions. Sauteed in a frying pan with a secret ingredient.....cream cheese!  Yum! I am making it tonight for dinner!

Creamed Corn-My Mom's way!

8 ears of fresh corn-sliced off the cob
1/2 pkg of bacon-cut into bite-size pieces
1 onion-chopped
1-2 T. sugar
1 brick Cream cheese
1-2 T. milk or half and half
Fry the bacon until crisp. Take out of pan and drain. Reserve the fat in the pan and add the onion and corn. Saute until the corn is done but still crisp. Add the sugar if needed. I usually taste it and then judge how much sugar to add...if any! Lower the heat and add the cream cheese. Stir until it is melted and incorporated. You may need to add a little milk/half and half to thin it down. Now.....add in the bacon. OMGsh! Nirvana.
Try to have some restraint and wait until it is cool to eat it! 
This should serve 4 people easy...or 1 girl on her birthday!

Blackberry Cream Pie

This pie is sooo good! Sour cream, sugar, blackberries. A yummy combo for sure!   Blackberries, marionberries, loganberries, blueberries...even peaches,  could all be used in this recipe.  I made it once and it was gone....they ate it all.   I even ate it and I am not especially fond of cooked blackberries.  Pretty easy to make....uncooked pie shell..add berries and the delicious sour cream mixture over the top. Bake and cool before eating!

Blackberry Cream Pie
1 unbaked pie shell
2 c. blackberries  *or the others mentioned
1 1/2 c. cugar
2 eggs
1/4 c. flour
1/2 c. sour cream
1 t. vanilla
Pour the blackberries in the pie shell.  Mix the remaining ingredients and pour into the pie shell over the blackberries.  Add topping on the top.
Topping
In the bowl of a food processor place 1/2 c. of each of the following: sugar, flour, butter. Add a pinch of salt and pulse until there are nice crumbs. Sprinkle on the pie and bake.

 Bake @ 400 degrees for 15 minute. Turn oven down to 350 degrees for 20 minutes more.