Apple Pie

As promised, here's the first recipe in the Welcome Autumn: Apple Series!

I love apple pie! It's a classic that will never go out of style! Serve it up with some vanilla ice cream and you've yourself a little slice of heaven. Here is my go-to recipe, one that everyone should have in their recipe box! Not all pies are created equal...and this one ranks far above the rest. =)

Start with the crust. Prepare it about 2 hours beforehand because it needs to be refrigerated. To me, the crust is the most important part. Mmmm...carbs! As I always say: if you've got a fantastic crust, it doesn't really matter what you put in it! I've tried tons of pie crust recipes...some aren't flaky enough, others are too soft and difficult to work with, blah blah. None of them have stacked up to this one: the ultimate pie crust by WS. It's the only recipe for crust you'll ever need. I use it for everything from fruit to chicken! It has a great buttery and flaky texture- so delicious. And it's also easy to work with, which is super important.


Combine ingredients in a food processor according to the recipe's instructions. When it comes out, it should look like this: kinda crumbly.


Gently push the dough together and form into two round disks. I like to make one slightly larger than the other, because the bottom crust will need more dough than the top. Wrap tightly in saran wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.



For more tips on working with pie crust, please read two of my older posts: (1) All about pies, and (2) Blueberry pie. Pie crust can be difficult to work with for first time bakers, so be sure to read these before attempting!

Next, start on the pie filling. See recipe below. I like this recipe a lot because it requires cooking the apple first to create a thick filling. I hate it when I get a runny, watery pie that makes the crust soggy!

Chop up about 6 large granny smith apples. The recipe calls for a dutch oven. But those things are so heavy and super expensive. Not everyone has one, so if you don't, any old pot will do!

Cook for about 30 minutes with a few fantastic ingredients: cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, etc. It'll cook down to create a great pie filling!


Pour the filling into the pie crust you prepared earlier. Add a few cubes of butter throughout, then start on the top crust.



Creating a lattice can be tricky. You have to start in the middle of the pie and work your way out. Again, for first timers, please refer to my Blueberry Pie entry for tips and tricks.

I got these great star shaped pie crust cutters from WS! They came in a great set of four. For more info on these awesome cutters, see this prior post where I used them to make bite sized chocolate graham crackers!

The cutters are great! I love them. They really "fancy up" your pie! =)

Bake for about 45-50 minutes. Check on it half way through to make sure your crust isn't browning too much. If it is, cover the top with foil.

Mmmmm! Serve with vanilla ice cream!

Stay tuned for the second and third installments of the Welcome Autumn: Apple Series. Don't miss out on these two fantastic apple recipes to come:

• French Toast topped with Caramelized Apple, Cardamom Whipped Cream, and Candied Walnuts.

• Applesauce Spice Cupcakes, topped with a Caramelized Apple Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

For the recipes shown on this entry, please click HERE.

Welcome Autumn

Autumn is officially here! There's a definite chill in the air. And the rain is here to stay. It's the beginning of monsoon season in Seattle. =)

In order to celebrate the changing of seasons, I'm doing a two-part series that features two essential flavors of fall: apple and pumpkin! For each series, I will post three blog entries- three great ways to use each ingredient.

First up: APPLE!

Here are the three great apple recipes to look forward to:

(1) Apple Pie - always a classic!

(2) French Toast topped with Caramelized Apple, Cardamom Whipped Cream, and Candied Walnuts. YUM!


(3) Applesauce Spice Cupcakes, topped with a Caramelized Apple Swiss Meringue Buttercream. The chunks of apple in this butter cream = pure joy to your taste buds!

Make sure to check out all the great recipes in the Pumpkin Series!

Cute Cupcake Wrappers!

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Related posts:

(1) Grace's Cupcakes
(2) Pumpkin Cupcakes
(3) Candied Sweet Potato Cupcakes
(4) Gingerbread Cupcakes

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A while ago, my friend Lindsey sent me a link to a website featuring cupcake wrappers. They were so incredibly cute! I immediately wanted to buy some, but they were $12 for a dozen, plus additional for shipping! It was super expensive for what it was. And I wondered if I could just make some myself...


I had a bunch of scrap-booking paper and materials, so I brought them out and started to experiment! I had paper of all kinds, rhinestone stickers, double sided tape, and craft scissors that produce cute scalloped edges!



First, I carefully disassembled a cupcake liner, and then taped it down to a sheet of paper to create a pattern/cut-out. But unfortunately, this didn't actually work. The angle of the arch was off. You have to make the "rainbow" shape slightly wider. So I ended up starting over. As it turns out, it required lot of trial and error.. but I was finally able to trim the perfect "rainbow" shaped pattern that would give me a great cupcake wrapper!

Then, the fun began! I created a ton of different wrappers by tracing and cutting out the "rainbow" design on different patterned paper.

I stamped some...


...and others I embellished with rhinestones!


A few hours later, I had a whole stack of them!

I was super tired that day and didn't have the time/energy to bake a batch of cupcakes for the Cupcake Wrapper Photoshoot, so I ran out to Whole Foods to purchase some. Thus, the cupcakes you're about to see are not actually made by me. They're still super pretty and they were great models for my wrappers! Not to mention, they were super tasty, too! =)

Cherry blossom gift wrapping paper.


Cute poka dots with rhinestones.

More with rhinestones!


Pretty green ones with textured paper.


Plain green ones with flower & rhinestone embellishments.

Aren't they fantastic? They turned out better than I could have imagined! And all it took was some imagination and persistence!

Eggplant Parmesan

This dish of mine is famous among my family and friends. Yup. It's what I'm known for- my signature dish. People make special requests for it all the time. It's right up there with cupcake requests for birthday parties. Crazy, eh?


In fact, it's so good that I have reformed eggplant haters. I've had quite a few people tell me that they refuse to eat eggplant because of a bad experience, blah blah. But I take no excuses and force them to try it anyway. And of course, they're hooked after the first bite. When you have eggplant haters loving your eggplant dish, you know you've got something spectacular!

Since eggplant is mild in flavor, when all is said and done, this dish tastes like a super savory lasagna. But ten times better. So if you like lasagna, you'll love this dish! I hardly ever make lasagna now because Hubby (and everyone else) prefers this instead. It's a good way to get your hubby/kids to eat their veggies without knowing it!


You'll want to pick out two large eggplants. Make sure that they're both similar in shape and size. This is super important for when you slice them later (you'll need your slices to be similar in size). Pick the eggplants that are large in circumference and are pretty much even throughout. Meaning, don't pick the ones that are thin at the top and fat at the bottom. Get the ones that are as close to being a cylinder as possible.

Peel the eggplant and trim off the edges on all four sides to make a square-ish shape. This serves two purposes: (1) it gets rid of the tough edges. If you use them in your dish, you will have pieces that are tough and chewy. (2) it makes it so that your slices will be more uniformed...

...like so. You should be able to get 6 slices per eggplant at 1/2 inch thick.

Next, set up a breading station with: (1) the slices of eggplant, (2) a flour, salt, and pepper mixture, (3) egg wash, (4) a breadcrumb and seasoning mixture, and (5) a clean plate.

First, coat the eggplant with your flour mixture. Tap off the excess flour.

Next, dip it in the egg wash.

Then transfer it to the breadcrumb plate and coat well. Tap off the excess.

Place on a clean plate and repeat until all the eggplant slices are coated.

You'll have egg wash left over, about 1/4 cup. Pour all of it into a mixing bowl with 32oz of ricotta and mix well until smooth and blended. For your first time doing it, your egg wash might not come out as clean as mine. You might have bits of flour/breadcrumb clumps. If so, add 2 new eggs to the ricotta instead.

Next, heat up a skillet filled about half way with extra virgin olive oil. And please use only olive oil. I've tried it with vegetable oil and it's just not the same. I notice a drastic change in flavor and it doesn't taste as good. Quickly fry each side of the eggplant slices until golden brown. This doesn't take very long. It's about 1 minute on each side. Use tongs and do it very gently. If you're rough, you'll break the breading.

When all of them have been fried, you're ready to assemble!

You'll need two regular sized jars of Prego or one large Costco sized jar (the regular jars contain 1lb, 9.5 oz of sauce). You'll also need the ricotta mixture, Parmesan cheese and mozzarella (or I like to use the Italian blend package of cheese). Start by coating the bottom of a 13x9 pan generously with prego.

Then start layering: (1) eggplant, (2) ricotta, (3) more prego, (4) parmesan, (5) repeat. It's not an exact science. Heap on as much ricotta as you want with a generous amount of Prego per layer. You should end up with 3 loaves, with 4 slices of eggplant each. They should be able to sit side by side, filling up the entire length of the pan.


When finished with the layering, heap a generous amount of the mozzarella or Italian blend cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Remove the foil half way through, so that the cheese on top has a chance to brown.


You will have extra Prego left over. It is just enough extra sauce to serve with the eggplant. Warm it up in a sauce pan or in the microwave. Serve on the side or drizzle on top of each slice before serving.

The eggplant isn't very photogenic. But it's SO delicious.. I guarantee your guests will be raving about this dish for years to come! It's a go-to classic that everyone should have in their recipe box!

Please Click HERE for the recipe.