Apple Crisp

This just happens to be my fathers favorite desserts, along with ice cream.  I call it Apple Crisp but I've heard it called Apple Betty, Apple Brown Betty and "woe oh Black Betty sham ba lam"...just kidding on that last one.  So we've established that this dessert has several names but I prefer to call it Apple Crisp so for the sake of argument we'll just call it that for this recipe.  And it couldn't be simpler to make so let's get started. 

First off you are going to need some apples.

O.K. so thats 2 apples and a lemon but there is a method to the madness.  Choose 2 different apples to make this dessert.  One should be a cooking apple (I tend to favor Granny Smith but choose what you like) and the other should be an eating apple (I tend to favor a Golden Delicious).  The idea here is that you want some texture to the dish so you have some firm and some soft apple pieces.  I use the lemon to keep the apples from turning brown once you have peeled and sliced them.  See how that works. 

Then you want to peel and slice up the apples and then toss all the slices in lemon juice to keep them from turning brown.  The possoms are gonna be happy, happy, happy tonight.   Fresh apple cores and peels in the compost pile....yummy!!!!

So once the apples are all sliced and put into a bowl and a little lemon juice is squeezed over them, you want to put together the dry ingredients. 

So in a seperate bowl or actually you can put your apple slices into the pan that you are going to cook them in and used the bowl that you previously had the apples in.  That way you have less dishes to do in the end.  See how that works. 

 So you take flour, sugar, butter, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix them all up together

 Cut the butter into the mixture until it's in about pea sized.

Once you've done that then just put the whole mess over the apples making sure that it gets all the way down into the bottom of the bowl.

Now just throw the whole mess into the oven and bake it for about 45 minutes.  It all depends on your oven.  The most important thing is for it to brown up a bit so it might take a few minutes more or less.

Hard to tell the difference between these last two photos but there is a difference.  Here's the recipe.

APPLE CRISP

4 cups sliced and peeled apples..use two different kinds

1\4 cup orange juice or lemon juice

1cup sugar

3\4 cup all purpose flour

1\2 teaspoon cinnamon

1\4 nutmeg..fresh is best

1\2  cup butter

 

Peel and slice apples and sprinkle with the orange or lemon juice.  Then mound the apples in a buttered 9 inch pie plate or 9 x 11 baking dish.  Combine sugar, flour, spices and dash salt: cut in butter till mixture is crumbly; sprinkle over dapples.  Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or till apples are tender and topping is crisp.  Serve with ice cream.  Serves about 6.  This recipe is easily doubled.

 

Update on my Father

I realized a few weeks ago that I had not written an update on my father's health in a while and because it is taking up so much of my time right now I think that I'll post an update. 

Sometime in November my father through a series of Dr. appointments found out that he was no longer in remission.  We also found out that his oncologist was going to be leaving our hospital and going to another city and another hospital system.   We sure were disappointed but the Dr. has to do what he has to do and so we have to be open to welcoming a new Dr. into the fold. 

The new plan was for my father to do radiation.  There were no more additional tumors but the ones in his groin area were showing up again and they were a little bigger than they were before.  The radiation would be only to the groin area and the treatment would be 15 sessions (a session every day) and then they would re-evaluate.  But he could start after the holidays.  So he could drive to Vegas to see my little brother and family for Thanksgiving and enjoy Christmas here after that.

So first part of January we went back to the Dr.'s to schedule his radiation.  Which he did and it did, in fact shrink the tumors that he was experiencing growth in. 

So then a PET scan was ordered.  I know that many of you have heard of a PET Scan but may not know what it is exactly.  

"A positron emission tomography (PET) scan is an imaging test that allows doctors to check for disease in your body.
The scan uses radioactive tracers in a special dye. These tracers are injected into a vein in your arm and are then absorbed by your organs and tissues. When highlighted under a PET scanner, the tracers allow doctors to see how well your organs and tissues are working. The PET scan is able to measure blood flow, oxygen use, glucose metabolism (how your body uses sugar), and much more."

So when we got the results back from the PET scan we were pretty disappointed.  We were thinking that things were really going well except for the little flair up in his groin area.  Unfortunately there were a LOT of things going on.  Belly, neck and lungs were showing signs of "activity".  Especially since we had had such a long period of time where there was nothing to report.  But that is how it is with cancer.  At least in my experience. 

The new oncologist (who is a woman and who we like very much) decided that my father needed to have a colonoscopy to see what was going on in his gut.  But she also felt that because of the new activity he should not go back on the Retuxan.  It was only for maintenance and his cancer seemed to be on the upswing.  She had a plan...there is a new drug that was just approved in November for the treatment of this particular type of cancer.  It was once a third line approach but the results have been so good that they have moved it up to the front line of defense in this type of cancer.  It's called Imbrutinib and it's in pill form.  He would take 4 pills every day at the same time and if all goes well we may see results as early as a month.  Really exciting as it's much better than my dad going back on chemo with all it's harsh effects and I'm not so sure at this point whether he wants to go back on chemo. 

We went right from the oncologists' office to the Gastro guys office.  Fortunately for us....all his Dr.s' are in the same building/Hospital.  Makes it very easy for them to confer with once another as well so that everyone is on board when my father has to have some kind of test.  The gastro guy told us that the colon area was particularly troubling as he saw some thickening and a few other spots that had him concerned.  Procedure would be the next day. 

So here is what was found...there is a small colon cancer.  Very small and apparently not growing (fingers crossed) very quickly.  It needs to come out but his blood levels are not good enough for him to go through surgery.  So plan is...he immediately begins his new medication and keep retesting his blood so that we can see if the medication is working.  If his levels come up enough then they will take him into surgery, take out the small cancer....get in, get out and continue on.  This would be an ideal scenario and I would love that it would happen in just that way.  I'm not a person of prayer because I believe that things are going to be what they are going to be no matter how much you pray for them to be different.  My life, my thoughts.


I hope that things work out ideally and that my father lives to be at least 85.  He will turn 83 next week and just the fact that he has survived this long is pretty surprising.  But there are a few milestones coming up this year that would make his survival all the more sweet because my mother is not here to celebrate them.  We have a graduation from Vet school so we'll have a DVM in the family.  Another child (young woman) will be getting married.  Such milestones that my mother wanted to be here for. 

I'm hoping for the best but I am also knowing that the worst could also happen. 

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Sweets for the Sweet

 

 

 

 

 

Friday is Valentines Day and although many women like to be wined and dined I prefer to stay at home and fix my husbands favorite meal and dessert.  After all it was just last week that we went out to dinner twice because of my birthday and call me crazy but I think that Valentine's Day is also for him. 

So here is a recipe for Cheesecake that I adapted to make into a Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake that my husband adores and my hips grow another 3 inches just looking at. 

This Cheesecake is also a non-baking cheesecake so if you've any fear about cracks in your cheesecake this will aleve all those fears.  There is some cooking involved but it involves on top of the stove rather than in the stove.  So let's get cooking.......

First you will want to make a graham cracker crust and you'll also want to have a 9-inch spring form pan. 

So to make the graham cracker crust you'll need....wait for it....graham crackers. 

There a few schools of thought on the graham crackers...some people do somewhat of a cookie base by baking something like a sugar cookie base or some people do vanilla wafers and some people do something that resembles an actual cake base.  Me, I like the graham cracker crust...but you are free to do what ever crust you desire.                                                                                                           

As you can see in the above picture I have put 1 sleeve of the graham crackers in a bag and I have used a rolling pin to smash them into teeny tiny pieces.  You can also use a food processor to do this and I have done it that way in the past but sometimes I just like the act of smashing all those graham crackers the old fashioned way. 

I've also found that 1 sleeve of crackers adds up to about 1 1/4 cups of graham crackers which is just perfect for a 9 inch spring form pan with enough to go about 1/2 way up the sides.  So add a little sugar to your mixture and some melted butter and put it in your pan.

 Evenly distribute it as well as you can.

 Here's how I like to get it nice and smooth and even.  I use one of my metal measuring cups....the 1 cup measure to be exact.  It fits nicely into the curved surface of the pan and does a fine job of taking the extra crumbs up the side as well. 

See...all finished and a nice job to boot.  Now put this in the fridge and lets get to the best part of this dessert and that's the cheesecake mixture. 

So here we have the beginnings of the only "cooked" part of this recipe.  You need 2 envelopes of unflavored gelatin, some sugar, some salt, 3 egg yolks and a cup of whole milk. 

You want to beat the milk and egg yolks together really, really well.  Then you want to put the envelopes of gelatin, the sugar and the salt in a saucepan. 

When the egg yolks and milk are mixed really well together,add it to the dry ingredients in the saucepan and mix it really well.   

Then put it on the stove over medium heat and cook until it thickens and it coats a spoon so that you can draw a line through it and the line stays there. 

Yep, that's ready....now set that aside to cool and lets get to the other part.  

Take 3 packages of cream cheese...that's 3 - 8 oz. packages and put them in the bowl of a standing mixer.  It's best to let the cream cheese come to room temperature and I actually let it sit out over night to make sure that it stays nice and creamy. 

Then add 1 teaspoon of almond extract and mix that in really well.  Then add about 1/3 of Amaretto Liquore.  This just happens to be my favorite brand of Amaretto and I really think that it tastes better than the one that is advertised on the T.V.  and cheaper as well.  But taste is subjective so use what you like to drink.  Mix this very well scraping down the sides of the bowl often.   

Once all is mixed together you want to put this in the fridge until the mixture begins to mound up. 

Now remember that you had 3 egg yolks....well there were 3 egg whites that went with them and you are going to take a mixer and start beating them till they get frothy.  Then you will slowly add 1/4 cup of sugar very slowly and beat until you get stiff peaks. 

Once the egg whites are stiff and the mixture that's in the fridge has begun to mound you can add the egg whites and 1 cup of sour cream to the mixture until it's all incorporated.  And you are ready to begin assembling. 

 

 

I take a small bowl and fill it with some chocolate chips...semi-sweet, bittersweet, milk chocolate...what ever floats your boat.  The above picture did not turn out as well as I had intended....I think the flash went off and so it's a little hard to tell that that is a small bowl with chocolate chips in it.  I'm using semi-sweet chips here. 

I carefully microwave them and then put the small bowl in a larger bowl of boiling hot water to keep them melted and dripable (is that a real word?).

Anyway, start by putting as much or as little of chocolate on the base of the crust.  Then put your cheesecake mixture.  

Continue to layer the chocolate in drips and drabs with either a spoon or a fork in between the layers of the cheesecake mixture.  So you have graham cracker crust, some chocolate dribbles, cheesecake mixture, chocolate dribbles, cheesecake mixture until you are done.  This particular recipe will completely fill up a 9 inch spring form pan.  You can put it in a larger pan if you like it will just not be as thick.  It's all in how you want the dessert to look. 

 

So here's the recipe:

Chocolate Amaretto Cheesecake

GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST

1 sleeve of graham crackers pulverized

2 `1/2 tablespoons sugar

6 1/2 to 6 3/4 tablespoons butter melted

 

CHEESECAKE FILLING

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 teaspoon salt

3 egg yolks

1 cup milk

3 pkg. (8 oz. size) cream cheese (at room temp.)

2 teaspoon almond extract

1/3 cup Ammaretto Liquore

3 egg whites (at room temp.)

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup sour cream (8 oz.)

semi-sweet chocolate chips...or bittersweet or milk chocolate

 

Make graham cracker crust: in a small bowl, combine crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar and the butter; mix well with fork.  With back of spoon or measuring cup press the mixture evenly on the bottom of and up the sides of a 9 inch spring form pan.  Put into the refrigerator.

 

In a small heavy saucepan, combine gelatin, 3/4 cup sugar and the salt.  n small bowl, with wire whisk, beat egg yolks with milk until smooth, gradually stir into gelatin mixture, mix well.  Cook over medium heat, stirring until gelatin is dissolved and custard is thickened slightly (should form a coating on metal spoon) about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and cool for about 10 minutes.  In large bowl, with electric mixer at medium speed, beat cream cheese, almond extract and the Amaretto.  Beat until smooth about 3 minutes.  Slowly add cooled custard, beating at low speed just to blend. 

 

Set mixture in the fridge or in a bowl of ice to chill, stirring occasionally, until mixture mounds when lifted with spoon.  Meanwhile, at medium speed and using clean beaters, beat egg whites until soft peaks form when beater is slowly raised.  Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, beating until stiff peaks form.  Add beaten egg whites and sour cream to cheese mixture; beat at low speed just until smooth.   

Pour some semi-sweet chocolate chips in a small bowl and microwave in 10 second increments until completely melted.

 

Now drizzle melted chocolate on crust, layer the cheesecake mixture then chocolate until done. 

Refrigerate until firm and well chilled at least 4 hours or overnight. 

Enjoy.

 

 

Sliding Doors

Ouch, that hurts. 
This is my truck and it got hit last night on the way home from dinner.  Let me start at the beginning.

So this week was my birthday and if you've read this blog for a little while you will also remember that it is also my sister's birthday.  We were born on the same day but 5 years apart.  I love sharing a birthday with her and we have our little rituals that we perform for no one but ourselves and we think we are both very clever...but I digress. 

We made a plan to celebrate together on Friday night at first and then at the last minute we changed it to Saturday night.  Sliding doors.

We first thought that we'd go eat one place and then changed our minds and went to another....sliding doors. 

Bob and I discussed taking the 4-Runner but then changed our minds and took the Dodge Truck....sliding doors.

Dinner was great, it was my husband and I, Chick and her husband and my dad.  Older brother and his wife were invited but didn't attend and that's just fine. 

So Bob and I are on the way home and we decide to get some ice cream and we're going to stop at an Austin institution "Amy's Ice Cream" but we miss the exit and decide to go on to another ice cream place that serves 31 Flavors.  Sliding doors.

We are about 10 to 12 miles from home and we're stopped at a red light...there are several cars in front of us and we are chatting away like normal.  Just as the light changes to green we are hit from behind. 

Ice Cream goes all over the cab of the truck, Bob's cap and glasses are thrown into the back seat and we are for but an instant stunned....what just happened?  We look at each other and I say..."We've been hit". 

Bob immediately gets out of the vehicle and I search for the hazard lights.  The woman who hit us is crying and telling us how sorry she is.  Bob tries to console her...it's an accident, that's why we have insurance etc....

He comes back to the truck and reaches for his cell phone and makes the call to 911. 

Police are there fairly quickly and we assure them that we are fine...a bit shook up but fine so no ambulance is needed. 

We know that there is damage....ABS light on dash will not go out as well as emergency brake light. Not to mention the back bumper and tailgate.   It will all be fixed and if one of us is hurt in the next couple of days we will certainly have it checked out as we both know that sometimes these things take a couple of days to appear. 

And today I'm actually more shook up about it than I was last night, must be adreline that keeps us going.....

So here's my thinking.....what if we'd decided to go on Friday night instead of Sat...would this still have happened?  What if we'd decided on the original restaurant?  What if we'd taken the 4-Runner instead of the Dodge?  What if  we'd stopped at the original ice cream place or the light had not changed when it did?  So many questions you can ask yourself all day long..sliding doors......

We will wait and see how my husband feels in the morning and take it from there about wether to see the Dr. or not.  I think he should be checked out regardless but he's a tough guy and it's hard to get him to see a Dr. for any reason unless bone or guts are showing. 

It could have been so much worse, but it wasn't and for that I am thankful and that's just more sliding doors. 

Tiramisu

I am way behind on posts and I know that I promised this recipe a while ago so I will post this now and hopefully catch up a little later.  Life sometimes just gets in the way. 

This particular recipe I got off the Food Network Website about 5 or 6 years ago.  I took a chance with it and it turned out to be delicious.  I've had a lot of compliments on it when I have served it and there is always the "wow" factor when you just take the extra time to make it purdy. 

Now here's a little warning just in case......there are raw eggs in this so if you have any problems with that then don't make this recipe.  Enough said. 

So let's assemble our ingredients.  You'll nedd 4 eggs....2 seperated and two whole.  12 tablespoons sugar, 500 grams of mascarpone cheese, 1 cup heavy whipping cream, pinch of salt, 10 tablespoons Marsala (optional), 2 cups espresso, plus more if needed, 1 large package Lady Fingers (4 sleeves of 12 biscuits), and 1 whole cup chopped semisweet chocolate. 


First thing you want to do is place 2 eggs and 2 whole egg yolks in an electric mixer bowl and add 8 tablespoons of sugar.  With whisk attachment beat until the mixture forms a good ribbon (should have nearly soft peaks).  Once the correct consistency is achieved, whisk in the Mascarpone cheese. 

 

Now in a separate bowl, whip the cream along with 2 tablespoons sugar and a pinch of salt.

Whip until hard peaks form (careful you don't whip it into butter), add the whipped cream to the egg/mascarpone mixture and beat until smooth, adding approximately 2 tablespoons Marsala if you are adding the Marsala.

 

 

 In a seperate bowl, pour the hot espresso and add 2 tablespoons sugar and 8 tablespoons Marsala.

 

Assembly:  One at a time, quickly dip each biscuit in the espresso mixture and then place on the bottom of a 9 x 13 glass baking pan or a trifle bowl like I have.  Continue until have have an entire layer of biscuits on the bottom of the pan. (Note:  dip quickly or biscuits will become soggy.)

Using a spatula spread half of the mascarpone cream over the biscuits. Note: ( The spatuala will work fine if you are working in a flat pan but I have found that if I put the mascarpone/egg mixture in a piping bag it works much better for the trifle bowl).   Repeat the process above to make a second layer.  This should fill the pan.

TADA!!!  Aint it purdy.....
Refrigerate 8 to 10 hours or overnight.  Grate the chocolate over the top and inbetween the layers if desired. 

Recipe:
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
12 tablespoons sugar
500 grams mascarpone
1 cup heavy whipping cream
pinch of salt
10 tablespoons Marsala (optional)
2 cups espresso, plus more if needed
1 large package Lady Fingers ( 4 sleeves of 12 biscuits)
1 whole cup chopped semisweet chocolate

Place the 2 eggs and 2 whole egg yolks in an electric mixer bowl and add approximately 8 tablespoons of sugar.  With whisk attachment beat until the mixture forms a good ribbon (should nearly have soft peaks).  Once the correct consistency is achieved, whisk in the Mascarpone cheese.  In a separate bowl, whip the cream along with 2 tablespoons sugar and a pinch of salt.

One hard peaks form, add the whipped cream to the egg/Mascarpone mixture and beat until smooth, adding approximately 2 tablespoons Marsala.

In a separate bowl, pour the hot espresso and add 2 tablespoons sugar and 8 tablespoons Marsala.

Assembly:  One at a time, quickly dip each biscuit in the espresso mixture and then place on the bottom of a 9 x 13 glass baking pan.  Continue until you have an entire layer of biscuits on the bottom of the pan. Dip quickly or they will become soggy.

Using a spatula spread half of the mascarpone cream over the biscuits.  Repeat the process above to make a second layer.  This should fill the pan.  (I can get 3 layers in the trifle bowl).

Refrigerate 8 to 10 hours or overnight.  Grate the chocolate over the top.