I have always been fascinated with pies, American pies, those ones you can see in the TV series and films. The reason why I haven’t baked any pie so far was because I had no pie form and as I got one for Christmas I can share my attempts with you.

This recipe I have the pleasure to show today is adapted from Sally’s and it is a recipe that screams for autumn, but unfortunately it is winter. It is LOVE. With that said I go on and tell you that this is my second round baking this pie this week. The last one was gone within two days.

Because today is Sunday and for better or worse I have some spare time so I have decided to spoil my sweet tooth, because WHY NOT?

Apple pie is all I want! Please give me some!! It seems I’m hearing my husband’s words. Luckily he will have some tonight. Seriously, it is love at first bite.

To be my second pie, I think I’ve done it pretty well… of course I am still learning and I know I have to improve some things but it really is a pie!! So I’m happy and you will be too (after you bake this :p)

To make this heavenly pie all you need is here:

Ingredients

Pie crust

• 315g all-purpose flour
• 1 ¼ teaspoon salt
• 90g unsalted butter, cubed and cold
• 148g vegetable shortening, cold
• 120ml ice water

Pie filling

• 6 apples, peeled, and seeds removed
• 30ml lemon juice
• 31g all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• A dash of ground black pepper
• 100g white sugar
• 14g unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• 1 egg with a tablespoon of milk (egg wash)
• Sugar for decoration

How to make it:

Start with the pie crust. You might want to make the pie crust one day before to avoid all the waiting.

To make the pie crust, all you need to have on hand is a big bowl.

1. Toss the flour (measured, no more than that amount), salt, butter and shortening. As I don’t have any pie crust cutter I used a wooden spoon and a glass. Combine all the ingredients well, and lastly add the ice water carefully. The first pie I made I used all the water of the recipe, but for my second one I only used a bit more than half of the water. If you think your dough needs more liquid then add it, but first observe if the pie crust is smooth enough.

2. Place the dough on a floured surface and work on it. Divide the dough in 2 parts and shape two discs with your hands (at least 2 cm thickness). Finally, wrap them with transparent paper and take them to the fridge for at least 2 hours.

The filling is very easy, so better do it after your pie crust has chilled for at least 2 hours.

1. Peel your apples, and remove the seeds. Cut thin slices and place them in a big bowl.
2. Add lemon juice, flour, sugar and all the spices. Let it rest for your apples to release their juice.

Once the pie crust and the filling are ready, the only step left is to put them together.

Spread some oil or butter to your pie form. With this ready, take one of the discs of pie crust out of the fridge and use a rolling pin to make a round circle to cover the base and part of the walls of the pie form. Use a spoon and fill your pie. Try not to add the liquid from the apple bowl into your pie form. Put some cubes of cold butter to top the centre of the filling.

You can already turn the oven on to the maximum power.

This picture is when I had the pie crust and the filling ready.

Here the filling is all set and waiting for its cover, yummy

Take the other disc out of the fridge and repeat the procedure with the rolling pin. Cover the pie and stick the edges together.

Use a brush to bathe the pie with some egg and with a sharp knife make some small cuts in the centre of the pie to allow the steam of the filling come out.

Decorate the top of the pie with sugar or leave it plain. I had a very special pink sugar that I’ve been wanting to use and this was the opportunity 🙂

Place the pie in the oven at 190ºC for 20 minutes and cover it with aluminium paper after the 20 minutes. Continue baking it for 30 minutes longer.

Your pie will look like this or more gorgeous:

Enjoy with a hot tea or coffee! You will have a nicer day!

 

The table of my kitchen has lots of things that I don’t always use. Have I mentioned that our flat is tiny? Well, we have a space problem and I don’t know where to store kitchen stuff. For example: 3 different types of peanuts, amaranth, muesli, box with tea… so they lay on our kitchen table. Among all those things there it was: my Hokkaido pumpkin =). I had it there lying for some time and I knew I wanted to do something special with it, but I was waiting for a special occasion. Let me tell you how I planned today morning yesterday night.

• -Me: tomorrow I want to get up earlier to go get baking stuff in the supermarket.
• -Him (my husband): ok, make a list.
• -Me: I am not sure of what I want to make tomorrow. I have some time because my student has cancelled the lesson, so…
• -Him: why don’t you use the old chocolate that we have been keeping in that box? I give you this week if not and I will throw it away.
• -Me: mmm chocolate? I don’t feel like it. I was thinking something more like autumn flavour, we have to eat the autumn season, soon it will be over =(
• -Him: just make something and let me read the news.
• -Me: ok, anyway I won’t ask for your opinion.

Finally I saw it, I saw what I wanted to make. Cupcakes, yes cupcakes! So I grabbed my “Objetivo: Cupcake perfecto” (by Alma Obregón) book and I pictured it in my head: a beautiful red velvet cupcake with a beautiful frosting.

So this morning I got up with the second (of three) alarm and I ate my overnight oats that I will also post here soon. Then we got ready and we left to the supermarket, and I thought, mmm I want pumpkin, and pumpkin it is! I had seen this recipe and I wanted to do it sooner or later and today is the lucky day.

Canned pumpkin puree is not easily found at stores in Germany as in the USA… Instead of using the easy lazy version I make the fresh one. It is a bit of a work but it is totally worthy. Here I was in the kitchen cutting and peeling the Hokkaido pumpkin. Then I boiled big pieces in some water for 10 min or so (until tender) and mashed it…and fresh pumpkin puree it was!

This is a recipe that will make you taste fall in all its splendour. It will make you want to step on crispy leaves and hug a cat!! It is pure golden Fall.

I want you to enjoy them as much as I do whenever I make them.

Soft pumpkin cookies (adapted from Sally’sbakingaddiction)

Ingredients:

• 115g unsalted butter
• 50g dark brown sugar
• 200g granulated sugar (only 100g in the dough!)
• 90g fresh pumpkin puree
• 190g flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice: ground ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves.
• 3 handfuls of pumpkin spice morsels

DIRECTIONS:

To begin with, grab a microwavable recipient and melt the butter. With a mixer combine both sugars and once creamy and no lumps add the pumpkin and mix well.

Then get a big recipient work with the dry ingredients: sift flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and pumpkin spice. Mix them well and set aside.

Carefully fold in the wet ingredients into the dry ones and with a spatula stir it and mix them well. Last but not least add the pumpkin spice morsels. Do not over mix the batter.

Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.

Once they have rested in the fridge, get a spoon and form small balls and roll them in a mixture of 100g granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon (to get that bakery shinny effect). Repeating the action with a ball after ball and place those on a baking tray with baking paper.

I flattened them a little by pressing my fingers on them.

Preheat the oven before and bake for 8-10 minutes. Do not over bake them. They will look very soft almost uncooked but let them rest for 5 minutes with the oven open and after transfer them to another surface to cool down.

Feel free to add more pumpkin morsels for fun and taste. If you feel like, you could use some of the pumpkin puree to make a real homemade pumpkin spice latte…That is what I did. What a delicious treat they were!! I should have shaped smaller balls because the outcome was bigger than I expected! They were giant cookie balls with extra pumpkin morsels!

These cookies must be stored in a dry place.

With love,

Pink Maple

 

 

 

 

The other day I went to my local supermarket and to my surprise avocados had their price reduced. Then without hesitation I picked two beautiful ones and I went back home. That night I made guacamole and sweet potatoes wedges and it was a very tasty dinner. I love dipping anything in that stuff. So, I thought I could do something sweet with the avocados next time, and reading and searching I found this nice recipe and the rest is history. This is a good one; I highly recommend it to those who are like me. Why not give it a try? I have a jumbo muffin pan and this also works with any form you like. My next adventure with avocado will be pancakes!!

The ingredients for this incredible recipe are:

Muffin

• 220g all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• A dash of salt
• 2 teaspoons lime zest
• 1 normal size avocado (mashed)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 200g white sugar
• 222ml vanilla soy milk
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

For the topping of these muffins I halved the ingredients of the recipe, the ingredients are:

Frosting

• 1 normal size avocado (mashed)
• ½ tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 125g icing sugar

Directions

First of all preheat the oven at 200 ºC.

Grab 2 recipients where the ingredients will be mixed. In a big bowl, toss flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and lime zest. Set aside.

In another smaller recipient smash the avocado using a fork or blender. Then add the oil and stir with your spatula. Proceed to fold in the rest of the ingredients: sugar, soy milk and lime juice.

Next step all you need to do is combining the wet ingredients into the dry ones (carefully). Use a whisk to work on the batter.

Before filling your muffin form, apply some butter and flour to it to avoid complications when they are baked (or use muffin liners).

Once your dough is fine and free from lumps, fill your muffin form. Use an ice cream spoon to distribute the same amount.

The last step is to put the muffins in the oven, and lower the temperature to 180 ºC. The baking time will be 25-30 minutes. As every oven is different, the time might change too. So please watch them and introduce a toothpick to prove they are done.

To make the frosting

The frosting is ready in a couple of minutes. Get a small bowl and smash your avocado, add the lime juice and fold in the icing sugar. Use a mixer and combine it well. Keep in the fridge until your muffins have cooled down and proceed to top and decorate them.

My muffins looked like this: I love hearts and colours… who doesn’t?

 

Please give it a go! I enjoyed them so much, and my husband, his colleagues, my students…

Lots of love,

Pink Maple

 

First of all I’d like to introduce myself, I’m Pink Maple and I’m the person behind this blog. I am a peanut butter lover, avocado, chili chocolate, Gilmore girls fan, obsessed with Fall and of course colorful maple leaves!

Check out more about me on my new About page. =)

Pink Maple