12 Weeks of Christmas Treats ~ Week 10 ~ Shoofly Pie

Shoofly Pie by Bakewell Junction

It’s the tenth week of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats blog hop hosted by Brenda Thompson from MealPlanningMagic.com.  If you’d like to join us, please fill out the form on Brenda’s blog.

Today I’m sharing another pie recipe that I’ve been wanting to try for a long time.  Many years ago a co-worker brought in a Shoofly pie and having never had one, I was quickly enthralled.  Since then I haven’t been able to find a recipe or even a pie to purchase.  Last year I found a recipe for Shoofly pie bars and they were good but I still wasn’t happy.  I’d seen this recipe on the Eva Bakes website and it looked pretty authentic, so I gave it a try.  I hadn’t realized until I read Eva’s post is that this is an Amish pie and is quite different than what I’m normally accustomed to.

I used the same flaky pie crust recipe on Annalise’s site Completely Delicious as for my apple pie  I liked the results with the apple pie, so I have to say that this pie crust will be my go-to recipe from now on.

Enjoy.

Shoofly Pie

Yield:  1 9 inch pie                  Cook Time:  100 minutes

Crust

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup buttermilk, cold (substituted 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice and enough milk to come up to 1/2 cup)
• 1-2 tablespoons vodka or water, cold (substituted rum because I was out of vodka)
• 1 egg (I use extra large)

Filling

• 1 cup (packed) brown sugar (I used golden brown sugar)
  
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/3 cup boiling water
• 2/3 cup cold water

Crumb Topping

• 2 cups flour
• 2/3 cup (packed) brown sugar (I use golden brown sugar)
• 1/3 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup shortening or lard (I substituted 1 stick butter)

Directions:

Step 1:  For the crust, use 1/2 the recipe stated for one bottom pie crust.  Add flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl.  Add butter and coat with the flour mixture.  Pour the mixture onto a work surface.  Using a rolling pin, roll the flour and butter mixture into thin sheets until the butter is combined with the flour.  Gather the mixture back into a pile and scrape the rolling pin as necessary.  When done the mixture will look flaky.  Move the mixture to the bowl and freeze for 15 minutes.

Step 2:  After the mixture is chilled, add the buttermilk.  Stir mixture with a spoon until it forms a ball.  You may need to do some of the stirring by hand.  Shape dough into a flat disc.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or overnight (will keep for up to three days).

Step 3:  To roll out the refrigerated dough, let it sit for five minutes in your workspace.  Place the chilled dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to 1/4 inch thick with a floured rolling pin.  The rolled dough should be about 13 inches in diameter.  Use your rolling pin to lift and move the pie crust to your 9 inch deep dish pie plate.  Cut off any excess dough.  Fold under any extra dough and crimp to have a nice finish.  Place the pie plate in the refrigerator for at least an hour until the filling is ready.

Step 4:  For the filling, stir together brown sugar and egg in a large bowl.  Add the molasses and honey and stir to to combine.  In a measuring cup add baking soda to the boiling water and stir to dissolve.  Add the cold water to the boiling water and stir.  Combine water with the egg mixture.

Step 5:  Transfer filling to the unbaked crust.  Place the filled pie in the refrigerator for at least an hour.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Step 6:  In the interim, prepare the crumb topping.  Mix flour, sugar and baking powder in a bowl.  Cut shortening into the flour mixture until crumbly.  Sprinkle evenly on top of pie filling.

Step 7:  Bake for 10 minutes with aluminum underneath to catch any possible drippings.  Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 50 minutes or until done.  You may want to cover the pie crust until half way through baking so the crust doesn’t get too dark.

Step 8:  Remove pie from the oven and let cool on rack for at least two hours.

Tips:  To make flaky pie crusts it helps to chill butter and flour before using.  Follow Annalise’s tutorial on Completely Delish.

Storing:  Store baked pie in sealed plastic wrap.  You can freeze the unbaked pie and put it directly into the oven provided it isn’t in a glass or ceramic pie plate.

Enjoy!!!

Filling and crumb recipe adapted from Eva Bakes, originally by Stoltzfus Farm Restaurant.
Crust recipe from Completely Delish

Have a look at the other great cookies in the blog hop by clicking on the Linky Tools link below.  Sorry my blog doesn’t support the blog hop participant icons directly.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats Blog Hop

Week 10, November 29, 2012

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I’ve seen some of the other bloggers that participate in the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats listing their submissions from the prior weeks.  I like this idea, so I’ve incorporated it into this week’s post.  If you’ve missed my posts for the prior weeks, here’s a reminder:

• Week 1 – Almond Crescent Cookies
• Week 2 – Pizzelle
• Week 3 – Phil’s Grandmother’s Italian Cookies
• Week 4 – Giant Ginger Cookies
• Week 5 – Italian Almond Crescents
• Week 6 – Baci di Dama
• Week 7 – Mini Linzer Cookies
• Week 8 – Christmas Tree Vanilla Sugar Cookies
• Week 9 – Apple Pie with Crumb Topping

This post was also entered in the following linky parties.  Click the buttons below to see the other great posts in the blog hop.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats ~ Week 9 ~ Apple Pie with Crumb Topping

Apple Crumb Pie by Bakewell Junction

It’s the ninth week of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats blog hop hosted by Brenda Thompson from MealPlanningMagic.com.  If you’d like to join us, please fill out the form on Brenda’s blog.

Today I’m sharing an Apple Pie recipe that I’ve been trying to perfect for a while.  I like to use Honeycrisp apples because they have a lot of flavor, are very juicy and give the pie an awesome aroma. Once I attempted a pie recipe that said it was the best apple pie but I was disappointed because there were too many apples for each slice.  The recipe called for 4 1/2 pounds of apples sliced in thin slivers which made the pie very dry as there was no room for the pie juices.

One of the problems I’ve had with my current apple pie recipe is that apples take a long time to become fork tender, so I’ve modified the recipe to incorporate the Honeycrisp apples.  Another issue I’ve had is with pie crusts, so I’ve taken to only having a bottom crust and crumbs for the topping.  The crumb topping is very tasty but I still need a good crust for the bottom.  I happened to see a tutorial to make flaky pie crust on Annalise’s site Completely Delicious.  This is the first time I used the recipe and I’m confident that it will be a hit.  Annalise’s tutorial is detailed and very helpful to those of us who are pie crust challenged.  You should check it out on her site.  I was debating whether to share this recipe with you because my crust shrunk a little during baking, although this doesn’t affect the delicious flavor and aroma.  I thought the shrinking wouldn’t happen this time but I figured out that it was because the crust warmed up when I rolled it and pie was sitting on the counter while the oven was heating up, so I added some additional chilling/resting time before and after filling the pie this way you won’t have the same thing happen to you.

This pie will be for Thanksgiving but I think it’s a great addition to any Christmas treat table.  Since this post is published before Thanksgiving, I’ll have to update it later with a single slice of the pie after we dig in on Thursday.

Dig in.

Enjoy.

Apple Pie with Crumb Topping

Yield:  1 9 inch pie                  Cook Time:  100 minutes

Crust

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup buttermilk, cold (substituted 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice and enough milk to come up to 1/2 cup)
• 1-2 tablespoons vodka or water, cold (substituted rum because I was out of vodka)
• 1 egg (I use extra large)

Filling

• 1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
  
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel (substitution 2 teaspoon lemon juice)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 3/4 pounds Honeycrisp apples (about 6 medium), peeled, halved cored, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices and then 1/3 inch chunks (about 8 cups) (can use yellow-skinned ripe Golden Delicious)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Crumb Topping

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt (I used Kosher salt)
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Garnish

• Whipped Cream (optional)
• Vanilla Ice Cream (optional)

Directions:

Step 1:  For the crust, use 1/2 the recipe stated for one bottom pie crust.  Add flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl.  Add butter and coat with the flour mixture.  Pour the mixture onto a work surface.  Using a rolling pin, roll the flour and butter mixture into thin sheets until the butter is combined with the flour.  Gather the mixture back into a pile and scrape the rolling pin as necessary.  When done the mixture will look flaky.  Move the mixture to the bowl and freeze for 15 minutes.

Step 2:  After the mixture is chilled, add the buttermilk.  Stir mixture with a spoon until it forms a ball.  You may need to do some of the stirring by hand.  Shape dough into a flat disc.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or overnight (will keep for up to three days).

Step 3:  To roll out the refrigerated dough, let it sit for five minutes in your workspace.  Place the chilled dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to 1/4 inch thick with a floured rolling pin.  The rolled dough should be about 13 inches in diameter.  Use your rolling pin to lift and move the pie crust to your 9 inch deep dish pie plate.  Cut off any excess dough.  Fold under any extra dough and crimp to have a nice finish.  Place the pie plate in the refrigerator for at least an hour until the filling is ready.

Step 4:  For the filling, mix brown sugar, flour, lemon peel, and cinnamon in large bowl.  Add apple slices, and vanilla.  Mix until well coated.  Move the mixture to a stock pot and begin heating on medium for about 10 minutes.  When the mixture begins bubbling, turn it down to low and cook for another 20 to 30 minutes until the apples are fork tender.  Let the mixture cool to about room temperature.

Step 5:  Transfer filling to unbaked crust but remove about 1 cup of filling juices and let filling mound slightly in the middle.  Place the filled pie in the refrigerator for at least an hour.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Bake for 40 minutes with aluminum underneath to catch drippings.

Step 6:  In the interim, prepare the topping.  Mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl.  Mix butter into the flour mixture with finger until clumps begin to form.

Step 7:  Remove pie from the oven and sprinkle topping on the pie.  Return pie to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes.

Step 8:  Remove pie from oven and let cool on rack for at least two hours.

Tips:  To make flaky pie crusts it helps to chill butter and flour before using.  Follow Annalise’s tutorial on Completely Delish.

Storing:  Store baked pie in sealed plastic wrap.  You can freeze the unbaked pie and put it directly into the oven provided it isn’t in a glass or ceramic pie plate.

Enjoy!!!

Filling and crumb recipe adapted from Bonappetit posted by Chris Hall.
Crust recipe from Completely Delish

Have a look at the other great cookies in the blog hop by clicking on the Linky Tools link below.  Sorry my blog doesn’t support the blog hop participant icons directly.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats Blog Hop

Week 9, November 21, 2012

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I’ve seen some of the other bloggers that participate in the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats listing their submissions from the prior weeks.  I like this idea, so I’ve incorporated it into this week’s post.  If you’ve missed my posts for the prior weeks, here’s a reminder:

• Week 1 – Almond Crescent Cookies
• Week 2 – Pizzelle
• Week 3 – Phil’s Grandmother’s Italian Cookies
• Week 4 – Giant Ginger Cookies
• Week 5 – Italian Almond Crescents
• Week 6 – Baci di Dama
• Week 7 – Mini Linzer Cookies
• Week 8 – Christmas Tree Vanilla Sugar Cookies

This post was also entered in the following linky party.  Click the button below to see the other great posts in the blog hop.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats ~ Week 8 ~ Christmas Tree Vanilla Sugar Cookies

Christmas Tree Vanilla Sugar Cookies by Bakewell Junction

It’s the eighth week of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats blog hop hosted by Brenda Thompson from MealPlanningMagic.com.  If you’d like to join us, please fill out the form on Brenda’s blog.

Welcome back and thanks for reading about all the Christmas cookies I make.  Today I’m sharing another recipe that I’ve been making for the past several Christmases.  These are decorated cookies and since I’m sharing them with you, I made some changes to make them look a little less cartoonish (that’s a new word – no need to thank me).  I also used some tips from Bridget at Bake at 350 while making these.  Since Bridget makes the most beautiful cookies, I thought that my cookies would look better by following her lead.

As I mentioned last week, the star I cut out of the Mini Linzer cookie tops are used at the top of the Christmas Tree cookies.  I iced the stars and topped with sparkling sugar to give them a little sugar bling.

Enjoy.

Using an inexpensive cookie sheet (tips via Bridget), line it with wax paper and placed the cookies along the edges so they could be decorated without smearing any of them.  Then I ringed the cookies with a thin bead of icing (another Bridget tip).  I turned the cookie sheet as I went along until they were all done (another Bridget tip).

I filled in the center of the cookies with icing and before the icing dried, I added the star at the top, used Sugar Pearl Sprinkles for the garland and melted chocolate for the trunk.

Christmas Tree Vanilla Sugar Cookies

Yield:  25 – 30 cookies                  Cook Time:  10 – 12 minutes

Cookies

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened (I put the stick in the microwave upside down for 8 seconds and then right side up for 6 seconds to soften)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg (I use extra large)

Royal Icing

• 3 tablespoons powdered egg whites (I skip the powdered egg whites)
• 4 cups (1 pound box) powdered sugar
• 6 tablespoons of water
• Green food coloring

Decorations

• Sugar Pearl Sprinkles
• 1 tablespoon semi-sweet chocolate, melted (heat in the microwave for 30 second increments and stir until melted)
• White sparkling sugar

Directions:

Step 1:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Step 2:  In a large bowl, combine the butter, egg, vanilla and sugar and blend with an electric mixer, since this is a small dough a hand held mixer will do.  In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.  Stir flour mixture to the butter mixture until just combined – this will be more of a folding motion rather than stirring.  Shape dough into a flat disc.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Step 3:  Place the chilled dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to 3/8 inch thick with a floured rolling pin.  Using a 4 1/2 to 5 inch Christmas Tree shaped cookie cutter, cut out cookies.  After you finish cutting the rolled dough, you can gather the scraps into a flat disc and roll out the dough again and repeat cutting out the cookies.

Step 4:  Place the cookies on the cookie sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart and refrigerate for 15 minutes.  Bake chilled cookies 10 – 12 minutes until edges begin to become golden.  Cool 10 minutes on cookie sheets.  Carefully move cookies to cooling racks and let cool completely.  Repeat for the remaining cookies.

Step 5: For the icing (make 1/4 or 1/2 the recipe), combine the powdered egg whites, powdered sugar and water in a bowl.  The icing should be the consistency of honey.  Reserve two teaspoons of the icing to remain as white.  Mix in enough of the green food coloring to the remaining icing to turn it a vibrant green color.

Step 6:  Line an inexpensive cookie sheet with wax paper.  On top of the wax paper, ring the edges of the cookie sheet with the cooled cookies facing outward.  Spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of the green icing into the corner of a ziploc bag and cut about 1/8 inch of the tip off.  Pipe the green icing along the outline of each of the cookies but bypassing the trunk at the bottom of the cookie.  Cover the remaining green icing with a damp paper towel and then plastic wrap to store until the next day.

Step 7:  While the outlined cookies are setting, pour 2 teaspoons of the white sparkling  sugar into a small bowl, dip the star cut-outs from last week’s Mini Linzer cookies in the reserved white icing and then dip the iced side of the star into the white sparkling sugar.  Place the stars iced and sugared side up on a platter to dry.

Step 8:  Since the outlined cookies have set a bit, use a small spatula to spread the melted chocolate on the cookies’ tree trunks.  I used a demitasse spoon because I’m just more comfortable using spoons rather than a spatula.  After all the cookies’ trunks are finished, let the outline and chocolate dry overnight.

Step 9:  Stir the green frosting to ensure it hasn’t separated.  Using a spatula, fill in the outlined cookies to the edge of the outline.  After filling in several, go back to the first one and add the star at the top of each filled cookie and then add the sugar pearl sprinkles in rows to look like garland.  I added a row from each point on one side of the cookie to the other and then some of them I added a swag going diagonally from one row of garland to the other – to look almost like a z.  Repeat in batches of several cookies for the remaining cookies.  Let dry overnight.

Storing:  Store cookies in a sealed plastic container.  The cookies are fine for many days when stored this way.

Enjoy!!!

Recipe from Family Circle magazine, 12/12/2000.

Have a look at the other great cookies in the blog hop by clicking on the Linky Tools link below.  Sorry my blog doesn’t support the blog hop participant icons directly.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats Blog Hop

Week 8, November 15, 2012

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I’ve seen some of the other bloggers that participate in the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats listing their submissions from the prior weeks.  I like this idea, so I’ve incorporated it into this week’s post.  If you’ve missed my posts for the prior weeks, here’s a reminder:

• Week 1 – Almond Crescent Cookies
• Week 2 – Pizzelle
• Week 3 – Phil’s Grandmother’s Italian Cookies
• Week 4 – Giant Ginger Cookies
• Week 5 – Italian Almond Crescents
• Week 6 – Baci di Dama
• Week 7 – Mini Linzer Cookies

This post was also entered in the following linky parties.  Click the button below to see the other great cookies in the blog hop.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats ~ Week 7 ~ Mini Linzer Cookies

Mini Linzer Cookies by Bakewell Junction

It’s the seventh week of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats blog hop hosted by Brenda Thompson from MealPlanningMagic.com.  If you’d like to join us, please fill out the form on Brenda’s blog.

The weeks are flying by and I’m sharing another recipe that I’ve been making for the past several Christmases.  Although these cookies have mini in the name, they aren’t small cookies.  They are rich and when they’re first made they are a bit crispy but as the preserves and flavors meld together the crispness goes away and they melt in your mouth.

Just so you know, the star I cut out of the cookie tops are used on another cookie that I make for Christmas.  I’ll post those next week.  Be sure to tune in for that.

Enjoy.

Mini Linzer Cookies

Yield:  18 – 20 sandwich cookies                  Cook Time:  10 – 12 minutes

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup good seedless raspberry preserves (I substitute grape jam because that’s what my husband likes)
• Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:

Step 1:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Step 2:  In a large bowl, combine the butter and sugar and mix with an electric mixer.  Add vanilla to the butter mixture.  In another bowl, combine flour and salt.  Add flour mixture to the butter mixture.  Mix on low until dough begins to form.  Shape dough into a flat disc.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Step 3:  Place the dough onto a floured surface and roll to 1/4 inch thick with a floured rolling pin.  Using a 2 3/4 in inch plain or shaped cutter, cut out cookies.  For half of the cookies, cut a hole out of the middle in the shape of a star (for Christmas).

Step 4:  Place the solid cookies on the cookie sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes.  Bake chilled cookies 10 – 12 minutes until edges begin to become golden.  Cool 10 minutes on cookie sheets.  Carefully move cookies to cooling racks and let cool completely.  Repeat for the remaining solid cookies.  Place the cut out cookies on the cookie sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes.  Bake chilled cookies 10 – 12 minutes until edges begin to become golden.  Cool 10 minutes on cookie sheets.  Carefully move cookies to cooling racks and let cool completely.  Repeat for the remaining cut out cookies and the star cut outs.

Step 5:  Pair similarly sized solid and cut out cookies together.  Spread the jam or preserves on the flat side of solid cookies.  Dust the top of the cut out cookies with powdered sugar.  Press the flat side (bottom) of the cut out cookies on top of the preserves creating a sandwich cookie with the preserves in the middle and the powdered sugar on top.  Reserve the star cut outs for another cookie in the Christmas cookie platter.

Tips:  The dough is a bit crumbly, so when rolling the dough try to close any cracks.  Since the solid cookies have more dough, bake them separately from the cookies with the center cut out.  This way the cookies with the center cut out can be baked for less time and aren’t overcooked.  Watch the star cut outs carefully as they are much smaller than other cookies and will cook much more quickly.

Storing:  Store cookies in a sealed plastic container.  The cookies are fine for several days when stored this way.

Enjoy!!!

Adapted from Ina Garten’s The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook recipe on Food Network.  A variation of Eli Zabar’s shortbread cookies.

Have a look at the other great cookies in the blog hop by clicking on the Linky Tools link below.  Sorry my blog doesn’t support the blog hop participant icons directly.

12 Weeks of Christmas Treats Blog Hop

Week 7, November 8, 2012

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This week in addition to the Christmas Treats, I’m joining Food Bloggers Support for Sandy.  This is was created by Barb of Creative Culinary and Jenn from Jenn Cuisine to show support for the victims of Sandy.  Be sure to visit their sites to see what the other supporters have made.  It would be great if you could join us or donate to the Sandy relief efforts.  There are still many people who don’t have electricity, heat or homes.  If you’re looking for an organization to donate, some of the organizations that are helping victims of Sandy are:

• Red Cross
• Salvation Army
• Feeding America