Baked Brie with Oats & Apple Topping

This is basically a quick version of baked brie + apple crisp! I was very impressed with this idea, and it makes a great snack.

Baked Brie

Adapted from Half Baked Harvest

16 oz brie (1 round or a couple wedges)

1 cup oats

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup pecans (or pecan pieces)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 apple, cut into 1" pieces

Preheat the oven to 350 and butter a baking dish or cast iron skillet. In a bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, pecans and butter. Mix in the apples. Place the brie in the skillet and top with the oats mixture. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the apples are softened and the topping is a little browned. Serve with crackers or just eat with a spoon.

Apple Custard Pancake

I'm always on the lookout for brunch recipes since it's my favorite meal to host. Back in college, we would call it epic brunch. After Sunday mass, we would gather any friends that showed up and have what we called epic brunch. Brunch would last until the late afternoon and we would put off our studies to eat and spend more time together. It is a tradition that has carried on even after graduation. Even though we're all miles away, we still have brunch during our reunions. Since Sunday is a day for sleeping in and general relaxation, I like simple recipes that can be thrown together quickly. This apple pancake is one of them. I made it with the anticipation that it would be more like a German pancake. It wasn't. It was really more of a custard- at least, to me! It reminded me of Laura's apple cinnamon bread pudding minus the bread. The recipe is from the Kitchn.

Apple Custard 

3 medium Granny Smith apples

4 tablespoons sugar, divided

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/3 cup unsalted butter

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

3/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

5 eggs

Apple & Blue Cheese Pizza

More apples on pizza! I'm still not over it, almost two years after I first made the apple & cheddar pizza, which is still a favorite. I actually haven't made pizza at all in the new apartment because I lost my jar of yeast in the move. I still have not gotten around to buying yeast, so this pizza was made on a Trader Joe's dough. Not as good, but definitely good enough.

I eat a lot of blue cheese, especially on salads, and Twilly always thinks he wants it since it is cheese, but I don't think he actually likes it.

We've been here since mid-July, but I'm still getting used to my new kitchen here. For the first time ever, I'm using an electric stove! Where's the fire?? I think I'm pretty accustomed to it now, but for the first few weeks I kept turning on the wrong burners and wondering why my pan wasn't heating up. As the weather starts cooling down, I'm starting to feel more like cooking again, so I'll get more use out of this apartment's kitchen in the next few months.

Also: look what Kate found.

Apple & Blue Cheese Pizza

1 pizza dough (I used Trader Joe's this time but see this recipe for my homemade dough)
1 cup mozzarella, grated
1 small apple, thinly sliced
2 tbsp blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 white onion, sliced
honey, drizzled
pepper

Dino Kale Salad with Garlicky Vinaigrette

I went to the new Squirrel Hill farmer's market this morning, and it was so nice! I wish I had started going earlier this summer. It's spread out between two parking lots between Bartlett and Beacon, parallel to Murray. Along with a pie pumpkin, I got some dino kale from One Woman Farm. For lunch I made this basic salad with a great garlicky dressing. I'm also making chicken broth right now, and the apartment smells amazing!

Dino Kale Salad with Garlicky Vinaigrette 
Serves 2 or 1 for a huge lunch salad

10-15 leaves dinosaur kale (depending on size)
1/2 apple
1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles
1 tbsp sesame seeds
2-3 tbsp dried cranberries, cherries or raisins

3 cloves garlic
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
salt & pepper

Chop up the dinosaur kale into little pieces - cut the ribs out and fold up the leaves to make thin slices and keep slicing into they are little 1 inch strips. Put the strip in a bowl and crush them a couple of times in your hands. (Your hands will turn a little green, and the kale will become a shade darker.) Cut up the apple into chunks. Mix the kale, apple, feta, sesame seeds and dried fruit.

Smash the garlic cloves with the side of a knife. Mince the smashed garlic. Mix and stir all of the dressing ingredients (garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper). Toss well with the salad.

Cranberry Apple Tart

Before you make this tart, I just have to warn you-- it's amazing and it'll be gone before you know it! Also don't heat it up before serving. Hehe. I served it at Thanksgiving dinner for my cousin Julian's birthday and it turned into mush. Still delicious though. The recipe is from My New Roots!!! Oh and SURPRISE it's vegan and gluten free! 

For the crust:

1 cup rolled oats 

1/2 cup pecans

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1 tsp. vanilla 

1/2 tsp sea salt

75 g whole buckwheat flour (scant 1/2 cup)

For the filling:

1 apple, sliced thin

2 cups fresh cranberries

1/2 cup maple syrup 

2 Tbsp. chia seeds

6 Tbsp. orange juice 

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1 tsp. vanilla 

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. cardamom

zest of 1 orange

Beet Apple Gingerbread

Hello! My name is Catherine and I am new to Pittsburgh Kitchen.  I am originally from the same part of Pittsburgh as Laura, although I only just met her last year. We enjoyed cooking and sharing recipes while we worked together, so she invited me to contribute.  A few months ago, I moved to a small city in Russia.  I write my own blog with some recipes and reflections about living abroad, but I’ll post here whenever a recipe makes me particularly nostalgic.

This recipe is my beet redemption.  Before I left for Russia, we had a dinner party at Laura’s house and I tried to make beet pancakes that utterly failed.  This beet cake is an adaptation and amalgam of about a half dozen zucchini and carrot cake recipes.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of grated apples and beets (1 small-medium beet, peeled and grated and 2 small apples, peeled, cored and grated)
• 2 cups flour
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp powdered ginger
• 3/4 c oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup candied ginger (I made my own candied ginger using Alton Brown's recipe)

Baked Apples for Dessert

I spent a couple weeks in a mountain village when I studied abroad in Ecuador, and one of my favorite things about living there was preparing dinner with a couple different local women. The town, Principal, was "famous" for its apples, so we ate apples all the time - people would always give me them because I was a random white girl. One night for dinner we made baked apples for dessert, and I still think it's pretty much the ideal simple dessert.

 We scooped the core out, filled it in with sugar, topped them with butter and poured sparkling wine on top. Then they're roasted in the oven (or wrapped in foil over a fire) until the apples soften. 

Principal, Ecuador - close to Cuenca

The way I've done that kind of apple dessert since then is pretty much the same, but I haven't tried the sparkling wine on top again. My favorite topping is peanut butter! I also like sprinkling cinnamon on top or smushing a marshmallow on top of the butter.

BAKED APPLES FOR DESSERT

Adapted from the kitchens of Ecuadorian ladies

Per person/apple 

1 apple

2-3 tbsp sugar

thin slice of butter

Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding

This is a great brunch recipe! It's really easy and fast, and it looks and tastes like something special. I served it with some cream cheese frosting, which is just cream cheese, powdered sugar and a little vanilla.

APPLE CINNAMON BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from About.com Southern Food

4-5 cups day+ old bread, cut into cubes or ripped into chunks

1 tbsp cinnamon
1 apple, sliced thin
1/4 cup raisins, or mixed dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, apricots, etc.)
2 cups milk
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp butter
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tbsp sugar

Preheat your oven to 350. Distribute the bread pieces, apples, raisins and cinnamon in a baking dish. In a saucepan, heat up the milk, brown sugar and butter until it's all mixed and melted. Meanwhile, mix up the eggs and vanilla. Then pour the hot milk mixture into the eggs and combine. Pour that into the baking dish and use a spatula to make sure all the bread is covered. Top with some sugar and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes. The top should be a little crispy.

Vegan Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cashews!

It seems silly to call this dish macaroni and cheese, but it actually does taste like it! Brittany said this is her favorite version of my many vegan mac and cheeses. I made it for a late dinner after yoga class at the Union project (it was much needed)!

2 cups butternut squash puree
1/2 apple, roasted until soft
1 small onion, roasted until tender
2 cups cashews, soaked overnight in bowl of water
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
salt and pepper
1 pound pasta

Simple Apple Crisp

This gluten-free and vegan apple crisp is so perfect for a fall day. With some vanilla ice cream, it's even better! My favorite recipes are the ones that are so simple, they can be made in just a few minutes. I didn't even peel the apples (I used Jonagolds for a sweet taste). The recipe is from The Minimalist Baker!

Apples:
8-10 apples, cored and sliced
splash of lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon

For the topping:
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup gluten-free flour mix
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt
1/3 cup solid coconut oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss the cut apples with some lemon juice and cinnamon. Add to baking dish. Mix the topping by combining the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Then add the coconut oil and mix to form a crumbly mixture. Pour over the apples and bake for about 45 minutes. Serve with ice cream or for breakfast with oatmeal!

Apple & Goat Cheese 'Za

This pizza is a close cousin to the Apple & Cheddar 'Za I posted about last month. Remember that? Actually, I just checked, and it was EXACTLY one month ago... Weird pizza coincidence.

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APPLE AND GOAT CHEESE PIZZA

Here's the pizza dough recipe my family always uses. I'm not sure where it came from originally but we've used it for a long time. Many, many pizzas.

INGREDIENTS:

1 envelope active dry yeast or two teaspoons

1 cup warm water

1 teaspoon sugar

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

at least 1/4 cup olive oil

Butternut Squash, Onion & Apple Galette

I've been meaning to make a free-form pie like this for a while, and I'm definitely looking forward to making lots of different kinds now that I've made this one. I'm still using up that gigantic squash I roasted (see the mac and cheese and enchiladas), and I love using apples in everything (see half of the things I've posted on the blog plus Colleen's quiche). And rosemary!!!! Michelle and other sage-addicts can sub in sage.

Butternut Squash, Onion and Apple Galette

Adapted combo of Food Network's Butternut Squash, Apple Onion Galette with Stilton and the Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Galette on Seven Spoons

Dough:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Pinch salt

8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, diced (1 stick)

1 large egg, lightly beaten

(from Food Network) "For the dough: Pulse the flour and salt together in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse about 10 times until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal with a few bean-size bits of butter in it. Add the egg and pulse 1 to 2 times more; don't let the dough form a mass around the blade. If the dough seems very dry, add up to 1 tablespoon of cold water, 1 teaspoon at a time, pulsing briefly. Remove the blade and bring the dough together by hand. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour."

Filling:

1 large baking apple, such as Rome Beauty or Cortland

1 small or 1/2 medium butternut squash (about 3/4 pound), roasted and cut into chunkes

1 small onion, rough chopped

1⁄3 cup cubed cheddar (optional)

3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme (I didn't use)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons mustard

1-2 egg yolks to brush over crust

Mix up everything but the mustard & egg yolk in a bowl. Then put as much as you can in the middle of the pie crust.

Fold up the edges of the crust, folding pieces over each other and pinching to seal. Bruss with egg yolk if you want - it'll look pretty. Here's what mine looked like at this point, kind of odd-looking:

Bake at 400 for about 35 minutes. 

On the Food Network recipe it uses raw butternut squash and says to cook for 55 minutes, but I would think that would burn the crust, I don't know.

This fancy galette inspired some sister/puppy lovin'.

Apple & Cheddar 'Za

Like pretty much everyone, I love pizza. And even my mom, who's normally hesitant about my pizza creations without tomato sauce, likes this one.

Everything goes together really well - apples, caramelized red onion, cheddar, sage, bacon...

He's kind of mad that I've been taking credit for all his blog posts.

APPLE & CHEDDAR PIZZA

Adapted but almost exactly from the recipe on How Sweet ItIs

white or wheat pizza dough

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large apple, very thinly sliced

5 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into squares

1 small red onion, sliced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 cup freshly grated cheddar

1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

8-10 sage leaves

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Slice onions. Heat a skillet over medium heat and add 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, then add onions with a sprinkle of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized, soft and juicy. In the last minute, add garlic and cook for 60 seconds, then set aside off heat.

3. While onions are cooking, cut bacon. Place on a paper-towel lined plate, and cover with another paper towel. Microwave for 3-4 minutes, just until the fat is rendered so the pizza is not incredible greasy. Set aside.

4. Remove pizza dough from the bowl and throw on a floured surface. Using a rolling pin or your hands, roll and shape it into your desired shape. Brush with remaining olive oil and sprinkle with nutmeg.

5. Slice apples (either do this now or, if earlier, preserve with lemon juice), then add about 1/4 cup cheese onto the dough. Place a layer of apples on the cheese, then add the onions and garlic. Add the remaining cheese evenly over top, then finish with bacon and another layer of apples. Lightly coat the sage with olive oil and place on top.

6. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown and bubbly.

Sage from now-abandoned Duquesne Community Garden from DYEP!!

French Apple Tart

I have been making this recipe from the Barefoot Contessa for a couple of Thanksgivings at this point. My mom demands that I make it at every holiday because it is so delicious. I'm a huge fan of French pastries, and this is a pretty accesible recipe to make. I overcooked it a bit but it was still good!

 For the pastry:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 12 tablespoons (11/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cubed
• several tablespoons of ice water

For the apples:

• 4 Granny Smith apples
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup apricot jam
• 2 tablespoons water

Chicken & Apple Pot Pie

Suddenly it's all nasty and cold again, so it's pot pie time! Specifically chicken and apple pot pie. One of the nice things about just working part-time in the afternoon is that it leaves all morning for productive things like watching long PBS documentaries about Frank Lloyd Wright and pot pie making, but this recipe isn't actually very time-consuming, even if you make the crust. Or you could use puff pastry and make it even faster. 

It's shortening!

Everything boiling up and reducing

Pie crust after being chilled in fridge

Pie crust laid out on top of everything with slits cut 

I wasn't sure where the baby dog was hiding, and so I went to go find him as the pot pie baked. He had snuck into my bed.

And it's ready.

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Chicken & Apple Pot Pie

Crust from Simply Recipes' Chicken Pot Pie

Pot Pie Crust (make first & chill)

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled, unsalted butter, diced into 1/2" cubes)

1/4 cup vegetable shortening, chilled

3 to 4 Tbsp ice water

Straight from Simply Recipes: "Combine the flour and salt in a food processor. Add the chilled butter cubes and pulse 5 times to combine. And the shortening and pulse a few more times, until the dough resembles a coarse cornmeal, with some pea-sized pieces of butter. Slowly stream in ice water, a tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition, until the dough sticks together when you press some between your fingers. Empty the food processor, placing the dough on a clean surface. Use your hands to mold into a ball, then flatten the ball into a disk. Sprinkle with a little flour, wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 days, before rolling."

 

Pot Pie Filling

1 small onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

2 carrots, diced

1 zucchini, diced

1-2 apples, chopped (not too small)

1 tbsp butter

1 sprig rosemary, just leaves & chopped
1 sprig thyme
1 tbsp curry (or more)
1 tbsp paprika (or more)
2 tbsp flour
water/broth/wine to cover
1/4 cup milk
2 cups pre-cooked chicken (I was using leftover rotisserie chicken, but you could boil some up and use the broth)
1 package frozen peas

1. Saute onion, celery, carrots, zucchini, apples, rosemary, thyme, curry and paprika in butter for about 5 minutes. Stir in flour and cook another couple minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Pour in water/broth/wine and milk. Bring to bubbles and let simmer for about 15 minutes. Add chicken and peas and let simmer another 5 minutes or until it's a bit thicker.

3. Pour mixture into pie pan. Cover with rolled-out dough. Make at least a couple slits for venting.

4. Bake at 400 for about a 1/2 hour or until golden. You might want to put a baking sheet underneath in case of overflow.

Crustless Apple-Sausage Quiche

A few weeks ago,  my brother and his girlfriend came to visit for the weekend, so we went apple-picking.  More accurately, I went to work, and everyone else went apple-picking:

Which of course meant that I came home to a delicious apple cobbler...mmmmmm....  Anyway, Steve didn't want to bring the apples home in the car, so the majority of the pickings were left in my kitchen, which I'm certainly NOT complaining about.  Since fall weather deserves delicious fall cooking, and since I'm unfortunately allergic to raw apples (yes, weird), I've been cooking up apples any way I can think of!  Basically I've been googling "apple-[insert random ingredient here] recipe" and seeing what comes up.  The favorite so far: Apple-Sausage Quiche.  I couldn't find one recipe that I really loved so this is kind of a mixture of a few different ideas I gathered from other recipes.

Note: I'm not a huge fan of pie crusts, so I usually skip the effort of making a crust (and the calories!) and just enjoy a crustless quiche.  I'm sure this would be just as tasty with a crust as well.

Ingredients:
2-3 medium sized apples (any variety, I tend to prefer the sweeter ones)
6 oz ground pork sausage
1/2-1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
orange zest (optional)
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

Brown sausage in a skillet; drain the fat.  Alternatively, you could use precooked sausage links cut into small pieces.

Slice apples and arrange on the bottom of a pie pan.  Try to cover the whole bottom of the pan...make sure you get that apple-y goodness in every bite!

Spread cooked sausage over the layer of apples.  Top with shredded cheese.

Mix eggs and milk in a small bowl.  Add salt/pepper and orange zest, if desired.  (Confession: Orange zest is my new addiction. I like to put it in EVERYTHING.  But it's probably not essential, since the apples contribute a lot of sweetness.)

Pour egg mixture over other ingredients in the pan.

Bake uncovered at 375 for 15-20 minutes. 

Finally....enjoy!



Braised Acorn Squash, Apple & Chicken

This week my mom wanted to bring dinner over to the grandparents' house, and I wanted to use up some acorn squash and try braising something in beer. 

To get these ideas together I used a Better Homes & Gardens recipe for "Brown Ale-Braised Chicken" and combined it with an Emeril Lagasse recipe for "Braised Apple, Roasted Acorn Squash, and Fresh Thyme." Both of those recipes sound great; what I made doesn't resemble either one. But it was really good, just a little sweet and lots of good texture, and I'm looking forward to making different variations of it for fall and winter dinners.

Pretty much everything in our fridge found its way into this dish, and somehow it worked out. We've got apples, acorn squash (which got a little pre-roasting before going in the mix), red peppers, onion, celery, carrots, garlic, chicken and broth. And pumpkin beer. 

The grandparents liked it.

They weren't told about the beer since according to them "alcohol is not necessary for success," potentially even in braised chicken dishes. They are entitled to their opinion since they are 86 and 87 years old.