French Bread

I needed something to go with my Tomato Tortellini Soup and French Bread was the perfect fit. It has a crunchy exterior and a nice soft and chewy inside. We dipped the bread in some Oregano flavored Extra Virgin Olive Oil and it was amazing!

I quartered the recipe below and still got 2 nice size loaves.

Tomato Tortellini Soup

Today I am a guest blogger over at Hanging On By A Thread. Since Fall has arrived and cooler weather is among us, K is hosting Soup Week.

Head on over to K's site to see the Tomato Tortellin Soup I made last week. Check out the rest of K's blog while you're there. She is such a creative and crafty person. She amazes me by finding dollar deals at her local Good Will and turning them into new.

Apple Nachos

With lots of apples left from our trip to the apple orchard several weeks ago, I needed another apple idea. This cute idea for Apple Nachos comes from Taste of Home. Instead of slicing apples in wedges, cut them in circles to resemble nachos!

We learned how to make a really good caramel sauce in my Baking and Pastries class so I used that to drizzle on top then sprinkled them with mini chocolate chips and chopped pecans.

Caramel Apple Salad

Fall is officially here. My preschooler automatically associated the beginning of Fall with apple picking and so off to Wasem Fruit Farm we went! We love picking our own apples at the apple orchard. They had Gala, McIntosh, and Prime Gold ready to pick so we picked some of each. Note to self: Don't forget the bug spray next time! The mosquitos were literally swarming around us in herds!

My sister introduced me to this recipe this summer. I love it! It can be served as a side dish or as a dessert. Anyone can make it...the only direction is "Mix together and refrigerate". Doesn't get any easier than that! Enjoy!

Strudel Dough

I hope everyone was able to read my post from yesterday. It explained my first strudel making experience I had with a family that has done it for years! I feel quite lucky to be able to share this special recipe with you. It is my friend Mary's great-grandma's recipe. It is said that she would make strudel for her family every day! Sometimes sweet and sometimes savory. There are many things you can fill strudel with. I hope you will enjoy this treasured recipe.



Strudel Dough
Source: Grandma Schranz

3 c. Sifted High Gluten Flour
2 Eggs
1/2 t. Salt
3 T. Oil (do not use Canola oil)
2/3 c. Warm Water

Sift flour onto a pastry board, make a well in center and add eggs, salt, and oil. Add water slowly and work mixture into a soft dough. Knead dough until it becomes elastic and leaves the board clean, or pick up the dough and throw it on the board about 100 times. Form dough into a smooth ball. Cover with a warm bowl and let stand about 1 hour.

Spread a clean cloth over a large table. Dust the whole cloth lightly with flour. Place dough in middle of cloth and roll out into a large oblong. Then reach under the dough with palms up and stretch the dough until it is thin. Trim thick edges off and patch any holes with any dough that is falling off the table edges. Cover the dough with desired filling. For squash, spread with grated hubbard squash, dribble 1 stick of melted margarine over squash, sprinkle with salt, cinnamon, and sugar. Starting at each end roll both ends at the same time towards middle until each roll meets. Slice dough between rolls and place each roll on a greased cookie sheet. Brush with milk, sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until brown.

Apples may be substituted for squash (omit salt with apples).

Strudel Day!

I was honored to spend the day with the Potter family last weekend. Saturday was their annual Strudel Making Day and they invited me to join them! I had been waiting months for this day to come! I was so excited and had never made or seen strudel being made before. This is their family tradition that has been going on for the past 37 years! The recipe belongs to Mary's great-grandma and they are keeping the art of strudel making alive in their family. I had such a fun day with the Potters, eating, chatting, eating, making dough, eating, stretching dough, eating, and making strudel while learning about their family's history.

As soon as everyone arrived we all immediately pitched in to core, peel, and slice apples and shred squash. Teamwork and laughter was in the air the entire day. My friend, Mary, is on the left.

Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

We learned all about making ice cream, sorbets, and sherbets in class recently. I've been able to make or try all of the following ice creams: Strawberry, Chocolate and Peanut Butter, Orange Creamsicle, and Banana with Candied Pecans to name a few.

I've had an ice cream maker sitting in my basement collecting dust for the past 5 years until now. Learning how to make a homemade ice cream base and being able to turn it into any flavor I want completely sparked my interest. Oh, and did I tell you how good it was??? All the flavors I had were just amazing! I believe the Orange Creamsicle may have been my favorite but I would give them all very good ratings!

After class that day I rushed home, went straight to my basement and dug up my ice cream maker. It's one of those small ones where you put the inside canister into the freezer for overnight or longer. It's the perfect size for my family of 4 and we still had some leftovers. I had a hard time deciding which flavor to make so I went with my hubby and son's favorite: Strawberry. There will be lots more ice cream making in the new future. I don't care if summer is over. Ice cream is good any time of the year! :)

Note: I made 1/2 a recipe and was able to get two batches out of it with my small ice cream maker.