Welcome, Baby Challah!

Our friend, Samara made this lovely Challah bread.  She delivered it swaddled in cloth, like a baby.  It's about that size, too, but a lot less squirmy.

It's a wonderfully rich egg-y bread to start with.  What better treatment than to soak it in more eggs with cinnamon and milk to make French toast!  So delicious!  What a treat!  Thank you, Samara!

Apple Crisp - Autumn Tastes and Smells

  

 

THIS is the taste and smell of FALL!  The first batch of apple crisp of the season. Yummy!  We get the first apples of the season in August.

Apple Crisp Recipe *
Peel, slice and core 8-10 apples (We don't really measure anymore, we just fill the pan.)
       Cortlands and/or MacIntosh cook down nicely.
       We prefer the saucier apples for this.
       You want enough to fill the baking dish.  Heap it up, because the apples tend to cook down.
       Also-sprinkle some lemon juice on the apples to keep them from turning brown as you work. It also adds a pleasant tang. ;-)

Topping :
1 cup oats
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/2 cup butter (or 1 stick of butter)

Preheat oven to 375 degees F.
Put apples into a 13 in x 9 in glass baking dish.  You can also sprinkle some cinnamon and ginger on the apples.
For topping, combine all dry ingredients.  Cut in butter until the mixture is crumbly.  Sprinkle over apples.
Bake at 375 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes, or until apples are tender and topping is golden. 

Enjoy!

*  This is another "old family recipe" from my Coop days.   It's adapted from Susan Hollingsworth's Rhubarb Crisp recipe from Summit Ave. Coop in Madison, WI.

Who Makes Your Heart Catch Like This?

Who makes your heart catch like this?
[Click on the link to watch the short video.  Sorry I couldn't imbed it here.]

Read the explanation in Patti Digh's blog post before you watch the video.  It will provide a context for what happens in the video :  3 minutes without a single word. 

A heart opens and blossoms in the presence of another.  What a gift to be able to witness it!  Life past, present and future(?) right there in 3 minutes.  Oh, how I hope they at least went out for dinner afterwards so they could talk. 

One commenter, Marion Williams-Bennett summed it up this way : "Everything happens in this three minutes - Love, passion, forgiveness, hope, connection, remembrance - while others look on. Then, he walks away and she finds herself and starts over. It's life in three minutes."

Yes, there are a few people who could make my heart catch like this.  And I think they know who they are ...  ;-)   Thank you to Patti D for asking the question. 

It also makes me think about the concept of presence.  Was the artist really there with other people who sat down with her at the table?  The ones she didn't have a past with?  I'm not sure ...  She was guarded, that's for sure.

Apple Sheet Cake

For years, this has been my favorite and preferred Birthday Cake.  My Gramma Pickles used to make it just right when I was a teenager.  But now she's older and doesn't cook anymore, it's been years since I had it.  The recipe has been long since lost -- until someone brought it to work one day, and I asked for the recipe.  Yum!  My sweet husband has since made this for me on birthdays the last few years.  It makes me look forward to getting another year older just to have apiece of this Apple Sheet Cake again!   

Here's the gadget that makes peeling all those apples quick and easy!

 

 In about 10 minutes, a whole bag of apples is reduced to the sum of its parts, including cores, flesh, and long strings of apple peels.

Apple Sheet Cake - "Happy Cake"

Use your favorite pie crust / pastry recipe.

We prefer a double batch of Rose Levy Beranbaum's basic crust (p.22 of the Pie & Pastry Bible).
Make 2 batches of the #3 size.  However, if you're short on time, try this one instead :

Pastry :
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup milk

Apple Filling :
3 pounds apples - peeled, cored, and sliced
        Cortlands and/or MacIntosh cook down nicely for this.
1 cup white sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 T. all purpose flour
1/2 cup butter

Icing :
1-3/4 cup powdered sugar
1-1/2 T milk
2-1/2 T. butter, softened
1/2 tsp Vanilla

Directions :
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine 3 cups flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening to the consistency of course crumbs. Stir in 1 cup cold milk, slowly until completely blended.  Separate dough into two balls.  Roll out one ball of dough to fit a 15 x 10 inch pan with some dough extending over the edge of the pan.

2.  In a large bowl, combine sliced apples, sugar, cinnamon, and 2 T. flour. Place filling in an even layer over prepared crust.  Thinly slice 1/2 cup butter and evenly distribute over the apples.  Roll out the remaining dough and place over the apple filling.  Seal edges and prick the top all over with a fork.

3.  Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.  Cool 5 minutes before frosting.

4. To make the frosting : In a small bowl, combine ingredients for icing.  Beat until smooth and creamy.