Sour Cream Raisin Pie

I grew up having this pie for Thanksgiving every year. My Dads' mom made it every year as well. 

1       cup raisins                             

3/4     cup sugar                               

1       cup sour cream                      

3       Tbsp. corn starch                    

2      eggs separated

1     tsp vanilla

1     Tbsp butter

1/2   tsp salt

Add sugar to raisins in a sauce pan.  Barely cover with water and simmer until tender, (it just takes a few minutes).  Add sour cream and bring to a boil.  Thicken with cornstarch that is thinned with cream ( my grandma used cream, my mom used milk so pick which you prefer. I usually use milk).  Add egg yolks and cook 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and add vanilla, butter and salt.  Cool.  Pour into a baked shell.  Cover with meringue. 

I grew up with French meringue. I never liked it, but this year I tried a Swiss meringue and it was amazing. Next year I might try an Italian meringue. 

Here's the Swiss meringue recipe. 

4 large eggs, whites only

200g of caster sugar (I used regular sugar because that's what I had at the time)

1 pinch of salt

Bring a pan of water to a gentle simmer

Combine the egg whites and sugar in a metal or glass bowl and place over a pan of water. Gently whisk until the sugar has dissolved or a temperature probe reads 80°C (about 8 minutes). If you don't have a thermometer, you can pinch some of the mixture between your fingers, if you can still feel grains of sugar, it needs a little longer

Remove the bowl from a heat and either transfer to a stand mixer with whisk attachment or use an electric whisk on medium setting to whip up the egg whites into a thick, glossy Swiss meringue

The meringue is now ready to transfer to a piping bag to make it easier to use

Brown Butter Creamy Apple Pie

One of the pies I make every Thanksgiving.

 

Ingredients

Filling

• 1/4cup Butter
• 1/2cup granulated sugar
• 1Egg
• 2tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1teaspoon vanilla
• 5cups sliced peeled apples (5 medium) : I like a mix of granny smith and honeycrisp

Crust

This is a pillsbury recipe, so they recommend:

• 1crust from 1 package (12 oz) frozen Pillsbury™ Deep Dish Pie Crusts (2 Count)
• But I've made my own crust or used a roll-out pillsbury crust and they've both been fine

Streusel -- I double this and use as much as I want to cover the pie. 

• 1/2cup  all-purpose flour
• 1/4cup granulated sugar
• 1/4cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4cup cold butter
• 
  

• 1
  Heat oven to 400°F. Place cookie sheet in oven to heat. In 1-quart saucepan, cook 1/4 cup butter over medium heat, stirring constantly, until melted and lightly browned. Cool completely, about 15 minutes.
• 2
  In large bowl, beat 1/2 cup granulated sugar and the egg with wire whisk until light and fluffy. Beat in 2 tablespoons flour and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in cooled butter. Gently stir in apples. Pour into crust-lined pie plate.
• 3
  In medium bowl, stir together all streusel ingredients except butter. With pastry blender or fork, cut in 1/4 cup butter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over apples. Place pie on cookie sheet in oven.
• 4
  Bake 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F, and cover edge of crust with strips of foil to prevent excessive browning. Bake 40 to 50 minutes longer or until apples are tender and crust is golden brown. Cool 2 hours.
  

Chocolate Cream Pie

 One of the two pies I make each Thanksgiving. 

Chocolate Cream Pie

1 pre-baked oreo crust
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1/3 cup cornstarch
3/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup whipping cream
3 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
sweetened whipped cream

Stir together sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt in medium saucepan. Gradually add milk and cream, stirring until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Boil 1 minute.

Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into prepared crust. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface, being careful to remove all air bubbles. Refrigerate 4-6 hours. Top with whipped cream and oreo pieces.

Flour Tortillas

 

This is the recipe taught to me by my friend Marcela Gonzalez.

2 C flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

3 T shortening (or lard or butter or bacon grease or some combination of those)

1 C (plus extra if needed) hot- but not scalding- water

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt into a mixing bowl. 

Add the fat and pinch it into the flour with your hands until it's evenly combined and sandy-textured.

Add nearly the full cup of hot water and knead it into the flour until you have a soft, but not sticky ball. If you add too much water, you can add a little flour. 

Let the dough rest, covered with a lightly damp dish cloth, for a half hour. 

Divide the dough into 6,8, or 10 balls, depending on how big you want your tortillas. Let the dough rest for at least another half hour, and up to a couple hours. 

Roll out the a ball from the center to the edges, and then stretch the dough very thin from the center outwards with your fingers. I sometimes lay it over my fist and gently tug as I spin it in a circle.

Ideally, heat a cast-iron pan or skillet over medium-high heat until it's nice and hot. Otherwise, you can use an electric skillet at about 350-375, or a heavy frying pan.

Place the rolled tortilla on the hot pan until it looks drier and begins to puff. Turn it over and cook through, until there's light brown spots, using a spatula to pat down the tortilla. Careful of the steam!

Creamy Chicken Zoodles

I made this while Randy and Rebecca visited and we all (the adults and most of the kids anyway). 

 INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon butter

1 1/2 lb skinless chicken thigh fillets , cut into strips

4oz fresh semi-dried tomato strips in oil , chopped *See Notes ( I usually can't get this - seems to always be out of stock, so I just do the full 7-8 jar of sun dried tomatoes in oil, adding only the 1 tbsp of the oil as recommended)

3.5oz jarred sun dried tomatoes in oil , chopped

4 cloves garlic , peeled and crushed

1 1/4 cup thickened cream , reduced fat or full fat (or half and half)

1 cup shaved Parmesan cheese

Salt to taste

Dried basil seasoning

Red chilli flakes

2 large Zucchini (or summer squash), made into Zoodles (use a vegetable grater if you don't have a Zoodle grater)

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the butter in a pan/skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken strips and sprinkle with salt. Pan fry until the chicken is golden browned on all sides and cooked through.

Add both semi-dried and sun dried tomatoes with 1 tablespoon of the oil from the jar (optional but adds extra flavour), and add the garlic; sauté until fragrant. (While the chicken is browning, prepare your Zoodles with a Zoodle maker OR with a normal vegetable peeler. Make sure to squeeze the zucchini in a towel after shredding, otherwise it gets really runny in the end. I don't have a zoodle maker so I just shred in my food processor. i don't know if you'll need to squeeze the zoodles if you make it like that.)

Lower heat, add the cream and the Parmesan cheese; simmer while stirring until the cheese has melted through. Sprinkle over salt, basil and red chilli flakes to your taste.

        Stir through the Zoodles and continue to simmer until the zoodles have softened to your liking (about 5-8 minutes) and serve.

NOTES

*If you can't find semi-dried tomato strips (usually found in a deli), sub with extra jarred sun-dried tomatoes