Roasted Pear Shortcakes with Warm Toffee Sauce

I have never watched Rachel Ray, but when I was at the grocery store yesterday, I was drawn to her Holiday magazine, and took it home (after paying for it).

Last night, as a brave move,  I tried the Roasted Pear Shortcakes with Warm Toffee Sauce for guests, and it came out amazingly delicious.  And it was pretty easy.

(photo from Everyday with Rachel Ray)

I marked my changes in the following recipe, and broke down the instructions a bit differently than in the magazine.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups of flour (I used 1/2 wheat, 1/2 white)

1 cup, plus 3 T light brown sugar

2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt (I omitted this)

2 1/2 stick of butter, chilled and cut into pieces

1 large egg

2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup whipped

6 pears, peeled, and sliced to about 1/4-inch thick

Preheat oven to 400'

Shortcakes

1. Mix the flour with 1/4 cup brown sugar, the baking powder and salt.  

The recipe called to use an electric mixer, I just used a spoon.

2.  Add 1 1/2 sticks butter and mix on low until crumbly.

Again, I did not use a mixer but my very clean hands.

3.  In a small bowl whisk the egg and 1/2 of the unwhipped cream, and mix into the sugar-butter mixture until just combined.

4.  Pat the dough onto a cookie sheet until about 1-inch thick.  Cut into 6 pieces and place about 1 inch apart.  Bake until golden and a toothpick comes out clean.  About 15-18 minutes.

Pears

Meanwhile, toss the pears with the 3 T of brown sugar and 3 T of butter.  Place on a cookie sheet, cover loosely with foil, and roast until the pears are tender and caramelized, about 15 minutes.

Toffee Sauce

In a small saucepan, cook the remaining stick of butter, 1/2 cup unwhipped cream and 3/4 cup of brown sugar over medium-low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Increase the heat to medium-high, and summer the sauce until thickened, about 5 minutes.

To serve, slice each shortcake in half horizontally, and layer the bottom halves with the toffee sauce, roasted pears and whipped cream.  Drizzle more toffee sauce and cover with the shortcake tops.

Enjoy!!

Linguine with Salmon and Arugula

This is a recipe I used to make a lot pre-baby, but I have recently resurrected it.  

It is a pretty quick recipe and great when having guests over.  It basically takes as long as the pasta does to cook.  I would make sure your water is almost ready before you start the sauce, because once the sauce is done, you wont to serve it right away.

2 T butter

2 T olive oil

2 shallots, minced

3 garlic cloves, chopped

3 plum tomatoes, chopped

1 1/3 C dry white wine

2 T fresh lemon juice

1 t dried marjoram

1 3/4 salmon, skinless and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

3 cups loosely packed arugula

2 T drained capers

1 T chopped fresh basil

1 T chopped fresh parsley

12 ounces linguine (I have also made this with bow tie pasta)

Melt butter with olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.

Add shallots and garlic, saute 3 minutes.

Add tomatoes and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes.

Add wine, lemon and marjoram, simmer 5 minutes.

Add salmon and simmer until almost cooked through, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

Add arugula, capers and fresh herbs to salmon mixture.  Simmer until salmon is cooked through and arugula is just wilted, about 2 minutes.

Once pasta is al denté, drain the pasta, return to pot, and add the salmon mixture.

Serve warm.  Enjoy!

Apple Crisp

This is a super easy dessert and perfect to use to bribe little ones to finish their dinner...or at least to sit at the table.

I will get this ready before dinner, and then put it in the over to cook while we are eating.

Heat oven to 375'

4 cups sliced apples
2 T sugar (I use raw)
1 T fresh lemon juice
--------------
1/3 cup flour

1 cup oats (do not use steel cut here)

1/2 cup brown sugar

--------------

1/3 cup butter, melted

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, combine the next 3.  Add the melted butter and stir until coated.

Pour apples in a baking dish, pour the other mixture on top.  I usually stir to combine a little once in the dish.

Bake for 35 minutes.

I like serving it with vanilla ice cream.  Martin liked it with plain yogurt.  It is even good plain =)

Grilled apple & gorgonzola sandwich

I just made this for lunch today, and it is so yummy. I actually found the recipe in this month's issue of Southern Living.



I probably made mine a little thick. Southern Living actually used this recipe as thinner appetizer sandwiches...but I couldn't resist piling it on for a hearty lunchtime meal.

1 pkg cream cheese (I use 1/3 less fat)
1 4-oz. pkg gorgonzola crumbles.
1 T honey
(the recipe added roasted chopped walnuts as well, but I am not a fan of walnuts, so I left it out)

thinly sliced apples
arugula
sliced bread (I used whole wheat)

Mix the cream cheese, gorgonzola, honey in a bowl, and season with pepper. Spread a T on each slice of bread. Add sliced apples, and a handful of arugula.

Grill in a griddle or a pan.

Eat....so good!!

Post-apple picking deliciousness!

Last weekend we went to our favorite apple orchard, where we have gone for the last 4 Octobers..even before Zoë was born.

And I made these yummy treats today.  I can't get enough!!

Now, I have to think up lots of ways to use our apples. So far, I have made the treats above, and apple bread, where I used my zucchini bread recipe, but substituted shredded apples for zucchini. It came out delicious. I think next will be one of our favorite breakfasts of a huge apple pancake, and may some apple cobbler, apple pie....I am up for suggestions :)

I also read this great sandwich idea in this month's Southern Living, about making a spread with cream cheese and gorgonzola, and putting it on bread with apple slices and arugula. I bought the gorgonzola today, so I will try that this weekend as well.

Buttermilk oatmeal blueberry bread

I kind of put this recipe together from other stuff I found.  I just had a craving for something "oatmealy", but more bready than a cookie, so I am came up with this.  It is easy and nutritious!  I use applesauce in place of some of the butter, and have replaces the buttermilk, at times, with plain yogurt, and it comes out super moist and satisfying.

Heat oven to 350'

1 C oats

1 C buttermilk or plain yogurt

1 large egg, slightly beaten

1/2 C brown sugar

1/4 C butter, melted

1/4 C applesauce

1 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

1/2 t cinnamon

1/2 t nutmeg

1 C flour (I use 1/2 white, 1/2 wheat)

1 C frozen blueberries

Soak the oatmeal in the buttermilk or yogurt for an hour.

Once soaked, combine with the wet ingredients.  

Combine 1/4 C of the flour with the blueberries in a small bowl.  This will prevent the blueberries from bleeding and falling apart if you were to put the blueberries directly in the batter.

Mix the dry ingredients with the wet.  Stir until combined.  Add blueberries.

Bake for an hour, or until a knife comes out clean.

I have also tried these as muffins and they are just as yummy.  Muffins would work perfectly for children's pre-school snacks too!

Enjoy!

Yummy apple dip!

Yesterday, while on Zoë's field trip to the apple orchard, one of the other mom's passed on a great recipe to me.  So super easy!

Combine equal parts plain yogurt and peanut butter.  Stir well.  Dip apples.

Simple, healthy and delicious!