June 30, 2013

Amish Custard Pie

I love going to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is an area of the northeast with a large population of Amish people. Amish people are kind and many keep a distance from the 'English' (anyone not Amish) but they are wonderful craftspeople and incredibly hardworking. Amish food is always hearty, delicious and unprocessed. I found this recipe for a custard pie and I knew that I had to try it.

Amish Custard Pie
Courtesy of: http://www.mrfood.com/Pie/Amish-Bakery-Custard-Pie/ml/1

Serves 8 (one 8 inch pie)

Ingredients

One prepared pie crust
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups half and half
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup packed, light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Ground cinnamon, for sprinkling

What to do:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt and half and half. Keep on medium heat, whisking often. Don't make the mistake that I did by leaving your pan to take pictures for your blog... The bottom on my pan had a thick coating of starch and sugar when I went back. Once the mixture is bubbling and thick, take your pan off the heat.


Immediately, add the butter, brown sugar and vanilla extract and whisk until butter is melted and contents of your pan are homogeneous. Pour custard into prepared pie plate. Sprinkle a light dusting of cinnamon on top. By the way, I poured my custard through a sieve in order to get the clumps of starch out. I successfully rescued my pie.


Bake for 35 minutes. The center will not be set. Allow the pie to cool for 1 hour and then refrigerate for 7-8 hours. The time in the refrigerator will allow the pie to set. You can let it sit in the refrigerator longer, obviously, but be sure to cover your pie.




This pie is definitely a keeper. I let the pieces sit at room temperature for a little bit before eating. The flavor is milky with a beautiful hint of cinnamon. It was enjoyed by all. I do wish it was a little less sweet. I don't know if less sugar would impact the consistency. My guess is that it would because there are no eggs in this recipe. If you pair it with some tea or coffee then it will be perfect! This recipe is most certainly simple thanks to using a prepared pie crust. It took me about 20 minutes from start to finish before putting it in the oven. Now, Amish food is unprocessed so you must be asking, 'why use a prepared pie crust?' Why? Because, Ain't Nobody Got Time For That! Hahaha. If you have a recipe for homemade pie crust then I encourage you to use that. I still have never made pie crust from scratch, but that's for another adventure!

I hope you enjoy this recipe from the Amish!

June 22, 2013

Suggestions?

I think it is so cool that I have people from around the world checking out my blog. I've noticed that there are a few people in several different countries checking me out. Russia, Germany, UK, Malaysia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Cyprus, Romania and others. I just wanted to say thank you.

I also have been wanting to make desserts that are international and post them on my blog. If you have any suggestions as to what I could make, I would love to hear from you! Just drop me a suggestion at kaitlynskupcakes@gmail.com.

I look forward to your suggestions!
Kaitlyn

June 10, 2013

Banana Pudding Trifle

Trifles are a quick and easy dessert that are great for large groups of people because they're inexpensive. It's a semi-homemade recipe that's always a hit.

My family was planning on going on a picnic so I wanted to make Banana Pudding Trifle but because we were going to a beach, I decided to make individual servings and put them in canning jars. Easy to transport and easy to eat.

This recipe can make atleast 12 individual 2-cup servings.



~Ingredients~

3 cups of cold milk
1 package (5.1 oz) Banana Pudding
3 Bananas, sliced (The tops and bottoms of the bananas should be a little green)
1 large tub of whipped topping
1 (12 oz) prepared pound cake
1 box vanilla wafers, crushed
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Take out your whipped topping so that it comes to room temperature.

Cube your pound cake into small pieces. Mine were 1cm x 1cm because of the size of my canning jars.

Mix together milk and pudding until smooth. Stir in sliced bananas with a spatula. Set aside.

Grab your container and begin your assembly line. Layer the pound cake on the bottom, followed by the pudding, followed by the whipped topping and then the crushed vanilla wafers. Repeat all 4 layers: cake, pudding, whipped topping, vanilla wafers.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Nomnomnom





June 4, 2013

My Cinnamon Buns

I love Cinnamon Buns. The sweet, fluffy, cinnamony goodness is irresistible especially with a nice cup of coffee. I've had Cinnabon once in my life and although it was delicious my teeth hurt and I'm pretty sure I gave my grand children diabetes. I've been wanting to make Cinnamon buns with less sugar so I don't feel sick and guilty after eating them. Until recently, I've had a phobia of working with yeast. I don't know why but yeast intimidated me. Well, I got over it and now here we are.

I found a recipe on Pinterest and I made it about 3 days ago. I wanted to make sure that I found a recipe that called for ingredients that were already in my fridge and pantry. I didn't feel like buying new ingredients. Well, they turned out fine. My brother and his family enjoyed them and they asked me to make it again. The original recipe was really sweet and I messed up the yeast because it didn't proof. So I tried again. SUCCESS! I want to share with you my less sweet version of Cinnamon buns.

Cinnamon Buns
Makes 12

Dough:
1 envelope Yeast
1 cup warm milk
1 tbs sugar
----------------
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 tsp salt
2 eggs plus 1 yolk
4 cups AP flour

Filling:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2-2/3 cup finely chopped walnuts
2 1/2 tbs cinnamon
1/3 cup unsalted butter (softened)

Icing:
8 tbs unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup cream cheese
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt

~Directions~



This is the yeast I used. I needed to proof it. So I heated the milk to 100-110 degrees F, added 1 tbs sugar and whisked in the yeast. Whisk until the yeast dissolves. Don't use a spoon to mix the yeast or you'll regret it. Leave it for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, gather your other ingredients. I used my Kitchen Aid with a paddle attachment to add the remaining dough ingredients. If you like sweeter buns then add 1/2 cup of sugar here, otherwise, carry on. Once the 4 cups of flour are just mixed, switch to the dough hook and let it go for about 5-8 minutes. If you're a tactile person or if you feel the need to knead your dough then you are more than welcome to do so. Place the dough in a buttered bowl, cover with a clean towel and place in a warm, dark place for 1 hour.



Mix the filling in a separate bowl. Again, if you have a real sweet tooth then feel free to add more brown sugar. I thought the sugar was perfect.

After an hour of rising, take out the dough and lightly knead it. Use a liberal dusting of flour because this dough is very sticky. I didn't have a board or work space large enough so I used my fondant mat. Nor did I have a rolling pin long enough so I used my fondant rolling pin.



I didn't measure my rectangle. I just kept working at the dough until it was about 1/4 inch thick and resembled a rectangle. Once it was done, I spread the butter on with an off-set spatula and sprinkled my filling evenly.



The benefit of using my fondant mat was that it aided in the rolling the dough. Be sure to roll along the long side of your rectangle. Work evenly and take your time. You don't want the dough to be too loose.



Next, use a knife to score the top of the roll. Make 11 scores so you get 12 pieces. Get some dental floss (unminted) so you can make the cuts. I didn't have floss so I used butcher's twine. The floss will give you clean, uncrushed buns. Slide the floss underneath the roll, cross the ends and pull.



Place your buns into a buttered 9x13 dish. From here you can bake them because they are ready. I covered my dish with saran wrap and placed it in the refrigerator over night.

Before:


The next morning:


Preheat to 400 degrees. While oven is preheating, spread a small amount of butter over each bun. Bake for 20 minutes.

While your sweet morsels of yumminess are baking you can make the frosting. Simply blend the ingredients until the frosting is fluffy. This frosting is sweet but I would rather have a really sweet frosting on top so I can control the amount that is placed on the buns. Once the buns are done, let them cool about 15-20 minutes. Frost slowly. I put about 2 tbs on each bun and let it sit on the warm bun for about 2-3 mins and then gently spread the frosting.

I hope you enjoy them! Happy Baking!!