My mom used to make this pie years ago and it has become one of our favorites. She first made it with a graham cracker crust but eventually mastered traditional pie crusts and from then on she never looked back. I told about her pie crust saga in this post.

Peanut Butter Pie

1 baked 9" pie shell
1/3 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsps. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten (save egg whites)
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine
1 Tbsp. vanilla

Mix together the peanut butter and powdered sugar until crumbly. Save out about 2 Tbsps. of this mixture and put the rest of it into the cooled pie shell. Set aside.
In a saucepan stir together the sugar and cornstarch. Blend the milk and the egg yolks together and gradually stir into the sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir for one minute. Remove from heat and add vanilla and butter and stir until butter melts. Pour the hot mixture onto the peanut butter crumbs in the pie shell. Set aside while you prepare the meringue.
Meringue
3 egg whites
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
6 Tbsps. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until frothy. Beat in sugar 1 Tbsp. at a time until the meringue is stiff and glossy. Blend in vanilla. Spread over hot filling making sure to seal the meringue to the inner edges of the pie crust. Take a spoon and use the back of it to form peaks in the meringue. Sprinkle the remaining peanut butter crumbs on top of the meringue and bake at 375 degrees for about 10 mins. or until nicely browned. Let cool at room temperature and then refrigerate at least two hours before cutting.

Enjoy your delicious pie!

Becka

Rice KrispieTreats are quick and easy to make in the microwave and they are very tasty. Here's a recipe for my favorite version:

Marshmallow Treats

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup peanut butter
4 cups of mini marshmallows
5 cups chocolate krispies (I got these at Aldi -- most stores have their own brand)

In a large bowl or measuring cup (I use a 6 cup measure) melt the butter and peanut butter on high for 35-45 seconds. Add the marshmallows and microwave for 1 minute at 70% power. Stir in the krispies and coat throughly. Press into a buttered 9" x 13" pan. Cool and cut into squares. Enjoy your quick and easy treat!

While Drew has been with us this week he has been helping with a variety of chores around the house. Here he is washing the bench from our front porch:

Here he is rolling out some dough for Gorditas with his mom. He said he was "doughing." We've been having fun.

Becka

You might find the cereal to be a surprising ingredient. After the pie bakes you would not even know the cereal is in there. I think it helps to prevent a soggy crust and it just blends into the apple filling. The original recipe calls for Corn Flakes, but I generally use either bran flakes or Raisin Bran. I take the raisins out but you could certainly leave them in.

Danish Pastry Apple Bars

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 cup shortening
1 egg yolk (reserve the egg white)
milk (about 2/3 cup)
1 cup cereal flakes (corn flakes, bran flakes, etc.)
8 cups peeled and sliced apples (about 8-10 apples)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
the reserved egg white

In a large bowl combine the flour and salt. Cut in the shortening. Place the egg yolk in a measuring cup and then fill the cup with milk. Blend and then add this to the flour mixture to form pastry dough. Divide the dough into two pieces and form each piece into a rectangle. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate while you peel and cut the apples. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. At this point you might want to preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll one piece of the pastry into a 17" x 12" rectangle and place in a 15 1/2" x 10 1/2" jelly roll pan. Sprinkle in the cereal flakes. Top with the apples and then sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Roll out the second piece of pastry and place on top of the apples. Crimp the edges, patching if necessary. Make a few slashes with a knife for steam vents. Whisk the egg white until it's a bit frothy and brush on top of the pastry. Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 mins. or until golden brown and the apples are tender. After baking drizzle with this glaze if desired:

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2-3 Tbsps. cream or milk
Mix all together with a wire whisk and then drizzle on top of bars.

I omitted the glaze this time and served the bars with ice cream.

There's still time to enter the contest to win a copy of the book Dewey's Nine Lives. See my last post for details.

Becka

Becka

Since I was pretty much banned from the kitchen for about a week I started work on a sewing project--another baby quilt. I'll post pictures of that soon as well. This one is girly and I've been having fun working on it.

In the meantime here's a cool and easy summer pie recipe:

Symphony Pie

1 King size Symphony Candy Bar (4.5 oz.) milk chocolate or toffee flavored
1/4 cup water
8 oz. tub Whipped Topping
a prepared graham cracker crust

Break up the candy bar into a large microwavable bowl. Add the water and heat for 45 seconds. Stir until the chocolate is melted. Set aside briefly to cool. Stir in about 1/3 of the whipped topping to cool the chocolate and then fold in the remainder. Pour into the crust and freeze for at least three hours. Garnish with additional whipped topping, chocolate syrup, chocolate or toffee chips.

I have also made this using 1 cup chocolate chips and omitting the water when I did not have a Symphony bar.

Becka

This Peanut Butter Pie is a specialty from my friend Linda.You know you have a true friend when she invites your family over for dinner right before a major kitchen remodel! This pie is delicious and I hope you will keep it in mind the next time you need a cool dessert that can be made up ahead of time.

Frozen Peanut Butter Pie

Crust:
1 sleeve graham crackers, broken
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup cocoa
1/3 cup melted margarine or butter
Combine crackers, sugar, and cocoa in food processor and whirl to make crumbs. Add the melted margarine and whirl again until the crumbs look like wet sand. Press into a 10" pie plate.

Peanut Butter Filling:
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup milk
2 cups powdered sugar
8 oz. Cool Whip
8 oz. cream cheese
Soften cream cheese and then cream together with the peanut butter. Add the powdered sugar and milk alternately and beat until smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip. Pour into the crust and freeze. This looks pretty garnished with chocolate syrup.

This chocolate crust could be used for a number of desserts:

Enjoy on a hot summer day!

Becka

Streusel Topped Pumpkin Pie

Pie Filling:
1 15 oz. can pumpkin
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. ginger
1.4 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
2 large eggs

Streusel Topping:
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup oats
1/4 cup chopped pecans
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ginger
2 Tbsps. chilled butter

1 prepared pie shell (unbaked)

Combine filling ingredients and whisk together.
Combine streusel dry ingredients and cut in butter until mixture is crumbly.
Pour pumpkin mixture into prepared pie shell. Top with streusel. Bake at 375 degrees for 50-60 mins. or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Enjoy a new twist on pumpkin pie!

Becka

USDA Pecan Pie

1 unbaked pie shell
2 Tbsps. melted margarine or butter, cooled
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
pinch salt
1 1/2 cups dark Karo syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup pecans (can use halves or pieces)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the pie crust. Place the pecans in the pie shell. In a mixing bowl blend together the sugar, eggs, and salt. Add the corn syrup and vanilla. Combine thoroughly and then pour over the pecans. Place the pie in the oven and then immediately reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Bake for 60-70 mins. It will still be somewhat soft and sloshy in the center but will firm up while it cools.

If the crust appears to be getting too brown before the pie is done you can cut the center out of a piece of foil to cover the edges of the pie.

Happy baking!

Becka

This is exam week here at school. Rob got some kind of virus last week and has been resting a lot, trying to recover. He did go to the doctor and was told that it was not Swine flu (H1 whatever) but a combination of allergies and a virus that is going around.

We also made a few finishing touches in the spare/guest room. We hung some pictures and placed a few decorative objects around the room in preparation for our guests who are to arrive Wednesday evening.

This picture hung in my bedroom when I was a little girl. We had it matted and framed several years ago.

We found these pictures at the same consignment shop where we bought the dresser.

I also have been planning the menus for the nights they will be eating with us and trying to include things that aren't too unusual. We don't know anything about the couple who will be staying with us so it should be an interesting week for all of us!

Over the weekend I did make a lemon pie using a recipe from Sunkist that I have used for many years. It makes a very tasty pie and the method is a bit different than any other lemon pie that I have tried. If you have a few lemons on hand I hope you will give it a try.

Sunkist Lemon Pie

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsps. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup lemon juice
3 egg yolks, well beaten
2 Tbsps. margarine or butter
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1 baked 9" pie shell

In a saucepan mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt with a wire whisk. Gradually blend in cold water and then lemon juice. Add egg yolks, then add margarine or butter. Add boiling water gradually, stirring with a rubber spatula. Bring mixture to a boil while stirring with the spatula. Boil for one minute. Remove from heat and stir in the grated lemon peel. Pour the hot filling into the baked pie shell. Let this stand while you prepare the meringue.

Meringue

3 egg whites at room temperature
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
6 Tbsps. sugar

Beat egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar. Beat on high until soft peaks form. Reduce speed to medium and gradually add the sugar. Return to high speed and beat until the egg whites are fairly stiff but still glossy and soft peaks form. Place the meringue on the hot filling making sure to seal the meringue to the edge of the crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 mins. or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack and then refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving.

Becka

When I was a little girl my grandmother would make sugar cream pies. She would put brown sugar and flour in an unbaked pie shell which she would then place on the oven rack and pour in some milk. She would add a couple of butter pats and bake the pie until it was firm. It was one of my favorites.

They also used to sell Sugar Pie at Bob Evans restaurants when we lived up in Michigan. We would sometimes order it when we ate there.

After I was married I tried making Sugar Pie a few times, but mine just didn’t taste like Grandma’s. Looking back now I think it’s because she was using non-homogenized milk in those days so it contained cream which made the pie richer and more flavorful.

A few years ago I had a delayed flight and was stuck in the Detroit airport for several hours. I bought a copy of Midwest Living magazine and found a recipe for Sugar Pie. It has a few more ingredients than Grandma used, but it does produce a very good pie. Here is the recipe:

Sugar Pie

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup cream
1 egg yolk
2 Tbsps. melted butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla
dash salt
1 unbaked 9" pie shell (do not prick)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the flour and brown sugar making sure to break up any lumps. Add the evaporated milk, the cream, the egg yolk, the vanilla, salt, and melted butter. Pour into the pie shell and bake for 40 mins. Serve with whipped topping or whipped cream.

Brenda over at CoffeeTeaBooksandMe recently posted several recipes for Sugar Pie that I hope to try. Sugar Pie is a good recipe to keep in mind in the winter when fruit is expensive or when you need to make something from things you have on hand. Everything but the cream is a pantry staple. I have also edited my recent post on pie crust to add a few more tips on making tender pastry since that post seemed to strike a nerve among several of my faithful readers.

Becka

I'll begin by telling you a family story. My grandmother, my mother's mother, died when mom was thirteen. She dropped out of school that year (after her eighth grade graduation) to take care of her "kid" brother, Ed, who I believe was about seven or eight years old. Some of the neighbor ladies gave her advice and taught her to cook a few things. She was a very good cook, but she did not really enjoy cooking very much. One thing that she never mastered was pie crust. All during my childhood the only pies that she made had graham cracker crusts. She made all kinds of cream pies with graham cracker crusts.

Sometime while I was away at college my grandmother, my dad's mother, gave her two recipes for pie crust which grandma said were "never fail." One of the recipes contained lard and the other contained an egg and some vinegar. Mom tried these recipes and with a little practice soon began baking absolutely beautiful pies. Her pies could have graced the pages of a cookbook. As the years went on she also used pie crust mix. I think by then her confidence and skill had increased to the point where she could work the pastry without overworking and toughening it.

Here is the version of pie dough that I use the most. It contains an egg and some vinegar, both of which promote tenderness. You can smell the vinegar as the crust bakes, but you cannot taste it. If you haven't found a pie crust recipe that you are satisfied with I hope you will give it a try.

Extra Tender Pastry

2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 egg beaten
1 Tablespoon cider vinegar
3 Tablespoons water

Stir together flour and salt. Cut in shortening until pieces are the size of small peas. In a small bowl blend together the egg, vinegar, and water. Add a few spoonfuls of the flour mixture to the egg mixture to form a paste. Add the paste to the rest of the flour mixture. Press into a ball shape. Divide in half and form into two disk shapes. Wrap each individually with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least twenty minutes. (This step is important and really helps to make the dough easier to work with by fully hydrating the flour.)

You can refrigerate this for a couple of days or place in a ziplock bag and freeze for a few weeks. (Thaw in refrigerator before using.) When ready to use roll the dough as desired and bake according to the recipe you are using.

Here is a really good recipe for a chocolate pie from Hershey's:

Gone to Heaven Chocolate Pie

2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp. salt
4 egg yolks
3 cups milk
2 Tbsps. butter or margarine
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1 3/4 cups chocolate chips (they recommend the special dark but I usually use semi-sweet)
whipped topping or sweetened whipped cream
1 baked pie shell

Bake pie shell. (Prick with a fork and bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 mins.) Cool. Stir together sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a two quart saucepan. Combine the egg yolks and milk in a container with a pouring spout. Gradually blend the milk mixture with the sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil and stir one minute (this is important). Remove from heat. Stir in butter, vanilla, and chocolate chips. Stir until chips are melted and mixture is well blended. Pour into prepared pie shell.

Press plastic wrap onto filling. Cool and refrigerate several hours or overnight until well chilled and firm. Garnish with whipped topping or cream and additional chocolate chips if desired. Makes eight delicious servings!

Becka

This is a really old recipe that I got from one of my teachers when I was in school. I have modified it some over the years to make the filling a bit firmer.

Fresh Strawberry Pie

Crust:
1/2 cup margarine
2 Tbsps. sugar
1 cup plus 2 Tbsps. flour (the extra 2 Tbsps. flour may not be necessary in some areas)

Blend together the margarine, sugar, and flour. (I use the mixer for this.) This should form a dough. Pat into a 9" pie pan with your fingertips.

Bake at 375 degrees for 12-14 mins. Set aside to cool. This can be made a couple of days in advance if desired.

Filling:
1 cup sugar
pinch salt
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 cup cold water
2 Tbsps. dry strawberry gelatin
1 quart strawberries, washed, hulled, and cut into bite size pieces
Mix sugar, salt, and cornstarch in a saucepan. Add cold water. Bring to a boil and boil a full minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add the gelatin. Stir for another minute or so to completely dissolve the gelatin. Pour over the prepared berries and then refrigerate for two hours to thicken. Pour the thickened filling into the cooled pie crust.

Chill for several hours or overnight. Serve with whipped cream or whipped topping.

A delicious taste of spring!

Becka

I had made an appetizer for New Year's Eve and had more of the ingredients on hand so I made another batch for today. They are called Broiled Stuffed Pepper Wedges and I found the recipe at Tammy's Recipes.

Here they are before broiling:

Here they are ready to eat:

The next new recipe was from this book that I got from my friend, Marge, for Christmas.

It is basically a stir fry of asparagus, snow peas, frozen peas, and green onions with a sauce. The sauce was OK, but the next time I plan to just season the vegetables with soy sauce and sesame oil after a quick stir fry. I thought the combination was really pretty and tasted good.

Here's a picture of the finished stir-fry:

The final new recipe was from this book that I got for Christmas from my friend, Sandy.

Sandy knows that Rob and I both have read a number of the Cat Who... mysteries by Lilian Jackson Braun. The beauty of this particular recipe was that it used up the half can of leftover jellied cranberry sauce that I had in the refrigerator left from my DSIL's recent visit. You just make a box of jello with one cup of boiling water, 1 cup of sour cream and one cup of the cranberry sauce, let it thicken slightly and pour into a baked pie shell. I did have to run the mixture through the blender because the cranberry sauce wouldn't blend in with a whisk.

We had all these new dishes with an old family favorite - Pizza Rolls. I will have to post that recipe on another day.

Becka