Thursday, April 3, 2014

100 POSTS!

Yay!!!  Today is my 100th post! If I were cool, I might have planned this out better...  If I were cool, I might have something special to report or some amazing project to show.  If I were cool, I might have gotten together a giveaway...  Uhm, but I'm not.  Ha!  We all know I am not.

I actually just wanted to stop here to document one of my favorite recipes... and then I noticed that this will be my 100th post.  I LOVE FOOD!  I love to cook and bake and EAT, so I guess it seems fitting that this milestone would be captured and remembered by food :-)  I am not complaining about that one bit!

Today is rainy day number two in my city.  I am not complaining about that either.  For me, as a mom, I am not able to just sleep the day away, like I used to do when I was younger and single.  But the same concept applies, while we are home on spring break.  Rainy Day = Do Nothing Day.  I am letting my Little Darling and her buddy in crime, "Kiki" do their thing today, as I catch up on domestic responsibilities.  I thought I was caught up at one point...

Next thing I know, I look up, and HOLY MOLY!  I realized the load in the dryer had been in there since... how long?  Who knows, but the dryer full of towels, socks, and undies was almost empty.  That means, we have run out of clean things and have been using what's in the dryer so much that we have used an entire load without my ever having bothered to fold it!  So yes, laundry is so going to happen today.  I also have other things to do... Boring things.  Housework, to me, is so mundane!  I love having it done though.  I think better with a clean an organized space.  I just don't want to be the one to clean or organize! Why can't there be some trading system?  I love to cook, and in exchange for cleaning services, I will meal prep for a family.  Bam!  Problem solved.  Mystery Family is well-fed for a week, and my apartment is cleaned for the week.  I wish!!

Yesterday, was a play date.  That really translates into "Children, occupy yourselves with play while the moms gab for a few hours".  I loved it!!!  My friend *S* is literally one of the coolest, most intelligent, and hilarious people I know.  She's so laid back and down-to-earth. She and her family are truly a joy to have around, and so easy to spend time with. No make up, No dress up, No fuss, No concealing the hot mess you might truly be, and No judgment.  I love, live for, and CRAVE those sorts of relationships!!!

In honor of my getting to spend time with *S*, I made an apple cake...  I mentioned before that I love to bake :-)

This apple cake comes from a recipe that I found somewhere years ago.  I wanted to make it, but I didn't bother until about 6 months ago.  Since then, I have changed so much about the recipe to make it taste the way I want.  So, because of that, I will post how *I* make the cake, rather than the original recipe.  If you want to know about that original recipe, leave a comment or contact me, and I will give it to you.  So, without further babbling, here's my recipe for APPLE CAKE!

Ingredients
3 medium Granny Smith apples (I imagine you can just use for your favorite apple.  This is mine.)
2 tablespoons cinnamon (If this seems like a lot, use less.  Cinnamon is good for you!)
1/2 cup Original Bisquick mix
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon melted butter/margarine
2 eggs

(Optional) Streusel Topping
1/2 cup Original Bisquick Mix
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped walnuts and pecans
1/4 cup wheat germ
2 tablespoons margarine

Prepare the batter:

1. Preheat the oven to 350° Farenheit
2. Peel and cut your apples
I slice my apples nice and thin after they're peeled.  I don't like apple chunks in my desserts.

3. Sprinkle the apples with the cinnamon and stir with a spoon to evenly coat the apples.  Set the apples to the side.
 

4. Mix the Bisqick, sugar, heavy cream, melted butter, and eggs in a bowl with a fork or whisk until completely blended.  It should be similar to the consistency of cake batter, but a little less thick.
 
5. Prepare your pie dish. I used a 10 inch pie dish. And yep, I am poor, so no fancy shmancy prep here.  I used BUTTER, baby!  Smeared that pie dish with good, old margarine :-)
 

Make the Streusel (Optional)
 
 

Mix all the ingredients together.  I do not like large chunks of walnuts, so I chop mine down further.
 
Is it me, or do the walnuts appear to be in the shape of a heart?  Ha :-)  That's how much I love baking!!

After you have everything in a bowl, use a pastry cutter or a fork to further break down and combine the ingredients for the streusel.

Put It All Together:

1. Place a layer of apples on the bottom of the greased pie pan.
It doesn't have to be a perfect layer.  Over-lapping is fine. 

2. Pour the batter over these apples and then place the rest of the apples into the batter.  You will have much more apples than batter, and that's perfectly fine.

This way, the apples won't all be on the bottom, which makes it difficult to get a nice, clean slice of cake.  The batter won't all be on the bottom, which makes this pastry too "cakey" and the batter turns brown during the long bake period.  So: Layer of apples, pour batter, add the rest of the apples.  Perfect combo.

3. Cover with the (optional) streusel topping

 
4  Bake at 350° Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.  Let it cool, and enjoy!!
 
It will look like this.  Sorry, no cute food play pictures with this one!  I was in the middle of having talks with friends when I noticed... that the cake was gone!  Ha!!! 

Everyone really enjoys this apple cake.  Either that, or I have VERY GOOD FRIENDS!  I am sure it's the latter, but that doesn't mean the first statement is any less true.  So this is for all the friends who have asked for the recipe :-)

Have fun with this and GOOD LUCK!


 

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