Tag Archives: Apples

October 7, 2013 · 2:30 am

How to Use Pumpkin Pie Spice (aside from a pumpkin pie…)

We all have spices in our cupboards that we never use. I personally have a shaker of garam masala that I used once two years ago and haven’t touched since. Well… there was one time I mistook it for nutmeg. Needless to say those pancakes ended up in the trash.

You probably use your pumpkin pie spice once a year at Thanksgiving, but during this pumpkin-y time of year why not pull it out for some unorthodox uses? Not that the below are TOO out of the box, but perhaps they’re new and exciting to you. I do hope that’s the case.

Maple brown butter pumpkin spice popcorn

On the menu:
Maple brown butter pumpkin spice popcorn
Serves 2

1/2 cup unpopped corn kernels
3 Tbsp butter
2 tsp pure maple syrup
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Pop the popcorn in an air popper.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan melt the butter over low heat. Watch the mixture closely as the color turns from white and yellow to a light brown. As soon as the butter is a light brown color, turn off the heat. Mix in the maple syrup and the pumpkin pie spice and stir to combine.

Pour half the mixture over the popcorn and toss to coat. Pour remaining butter mixture over the popcorn and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Pancakes with sauteed apples with maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice

On the menu:
Pancakes with apples sauteed with maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice
Serves 2

2 small apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Make pancakes according to this recipe.

In a small frying pan, melt butter over medium heat. Once butter is melted, add apple slices and stir to coat. Cook apples for approximately 5 minutes or until they soften. Add maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice. Stir to combine. Cook for another 2 – 3 minutes or until mixture is heated through. Top pancakes with sauteed apples and serve.

2 Comments

Filed under Cooking, Recipes, Tips

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

August 2, 2011 · 4:00 am

Squash Your Fears

So, this one time I got it in my brain to make zucchini bread and then I got to the grocery store and there was none. Huh. No zucchini. In a season when gardens all across the northeast are overflowing with zucchini, my grocery store had none. Nada. Zero. Zilch. Sometimes you kill me, Queens. So I plucked up some Mexican squash and hoped for the best.

On the menu:
Mexican squash bread (but you can call it zucchini bread if it makes you feel better)

2 cups flour
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups shredded carrot
1 cup shredded apple (no skin)
1 cup shredded Mexican squash (or zucchini!)
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Beat together eggs and oil with an electric mixer until mixture is frothy. Add carrot, apple, and zucchini in with the eggs. Add vanilla to egg mixture. Add liquids to dry ingredients and mix until completely incorporated.

Fill one large greased loaf pan with mixture. Bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

1 Comment

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , ,

December 14, 2010 · 10:28 am

These Pancakes Have a Secret

I’m about to tell you a story, but in order to read it, you’re going to have to put your judgment face away and slap on an open minded grin.

Got it?

Okay, here goes. I ate pancakes 3 days in a row. I can’t explain it. I needed something comforting and warm and salty and sweet and when I got home last night it was beautiful and snowy and I thought, “What else do people eat when it’s cold and snowy and Christmastime but pancakes?” I couldn’t come up with anything. So I made these. And they have a secret.

HEY. Remember when I told you not to judge me? Pancakes with bacon sounded good, so I thought, I will combine these beauties into one easily consumed dish.

I started by crisping up the bacon real nice, setting it aside to drain, pouring the grease out of the pan, and then making the pancakes (using this recipe*, obviously) in that same beautiful pan all ready to go and coated with bacon grease. Once I poured the batter in the pan I laid the crispy strips in the center of the pancake and cooked as usual.

Then for the sauce: I cubed some apple and sauteed it in a small saucepan with 2 Tbsp of butter, 1/4 cup pure maple syrup, and 2 tsp of cinnamon. Once the apples are softened, you pour the mixture on top of the pancakes.

And then you eat your face off. Or you share. But… probably the former.

*I realized upon arriving home that I was out of baking powder. I said a few curse words, looked out at the snow, and then remembered I could make my own. 2 parts cream of tartar to 1 parts baking soda = baking powder. (For example: in this recipe you need 3 tsp of baking powder, so instead you’d use 2 tsp cream of tartar and 1 tsp baking soda) A handy trick for you in case you’re ever in the same predicament.

101 Comments

Filed under Cooking, Recipes

Tagged as , , , , ,