Uncle Roman said it was the best he's ever tasted . . .

Uncle Roman said that last night's spaghetti sauce (Peter, forgive him for calling all pasta sauce "spaghetti sauce") was the best he's ever tasted.  Which is interesting.  I actually intended to make one of our family's favorite recipes:  Uncooked Spaghetti Sauce (again, Peter, forgive us for calling all pasta sauce "SS").  This recipe calls for the following:

3 c. uncooked tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1/3 c. olive oil
1/4 c. fresh basil, chopped or 1 T. dry basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 c. fresh parsley, chopped or  1 heaping T. dry
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, grated
1 t. salt or more if needed

I decided to "primavera" this recipe (or add a bunch of chopped vegetables) so I chopped onion, zucchini, and eggplant and sauteed that with the garlic in a little oil.  I then added the 1/3 c. olive oil, basil, parsley, cheese, and tomatoes.  I did not cook it after I added these ingredients!  Voila!  The best "spaghetti sauce" Uncle Roman has ever tasted on angel hair pasta.  Try it, but please don't call it "spaghetti sauce." 

Yum!  This is the season for fruit pies. . .

Tonight I tried a new recipe for a pear pie that was shared by Kristen Olsen, the amazing administrative assistant to the Young Women.  It was all hands on deck, so Aimee and Aaron and Peter helped too. It's a wonderful time to make fruit pies.  Besides the pear pie I also made a fresh peach pie.  Here are the recipes.  Try them before the delicious Utah fruit disappears.  And by the way, honey crisp apples are available now at the Spanish Fork farmer's market or at the McMullin's stand in Payson.

French Pear Pie
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.\

Single crust unbaked pie shell
4 large ripe pears, peeled and sliced into the pie shell
3 T. frozen orange juice concentrate drizzled over the pears.

Combine following ingredients for topping and crumble over the top of the pears.
3/4 c. flour
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. white or brown sugar (I used brown sugar and the color was nice)

Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes.  (I had to turn down the heat to 300 after 25 min.)


Fresh Peach Pie Filling

In small saucepan combine:
1 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. water
2 T. lemon juice

Bring to a boil and add:
3 T. cornstarch mixed in 1/4 c. cold water.
Add food coloring - yellow or orange for peach pie and red for strawberry pie.

Bring to a boil again and stir until thickened.  Remove from heat and cool.

Slice fresh peaches and generously fill a baked pie shell.  Pour cooled filling over the peaches.  Serve immediately with whipped cream or ice cream.  (The pie shell and filling can be made ahead.  Just before serving, dip peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds.  Remove skins and slice the peaches.)

Hope you try these recipes out and report back!

Gluten Free Banana Bread

Here's a recipe I read in the paper.  Emily and Beth, you should try this!

Gluten Free Banana Bread by Elisabeth Hasselbeck, author of Deliciously G-Free cookbook

5 T. butter, room temp
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 c. mashed banana
1 c. brown rice flour
3/4 c. millet flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. xanthan gum
1/4 t. baking powder
1/2 c. chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Line 9 x 5 loaf pan with aluminum foil and coat foil with cooking spray.
2. Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer on high speed until light yellow and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing on mnedium until thoroughly combined.
3. Add banana and 1/3 c. water and mix on low for 1 minute.  Sprinkle brown rice flour, millet flour, baking soda, salt, xanthan gum, and baking powder over batter.  Add nuts, if desired.  Stir batter just until ingredients are combined.
4. Spoon into pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until center of loaf springs back to the touch.
5. Transfer pan to a wire rack and allow to cool for 5 minutes.  Lift bread out of pan and let it cool completely on rack.

Jen made a great peach pie for Sunday dinner.  It had a double crust and the peaches inside were soft and yummy.  I invite her to add her recipe to this blog!

Yesterday we got out Auntie Ruthie's recipe card files and were looking through the recipes.  She came upon her friend's lemon pie recipe.  This is the recipe in the family cookbook.  You'll notice that there are notes about the way Auntie Ruthie makes this pie verses the way Grandma Murakami made the pie.  Follow Auntie's directions and you'll have a lemon pie that "stands up" when cut and tastes delicious.  I made a mistake and put the egg yolks in at the very beginning instead of tempering them later. I had to carefully cook it at a low heat and stir it constantly to make sure those egg yolks didn't cook too fast, but all turned out in the end.  I think it would have been faster to cook it the correct way.  Here's the recipe and the correct method.  You have to bake a pie crust first.  I used our family's recipe with the vinegar.

Never Fail Pie Crust

3 c. flour, unsifted
1 1/4 c. shortening (butter flavored is best)
1 t. salt
1 egg, well-beaten
5 T. water (filled as full as possible)
1 T. vinegar (scant)
(Add 1 T. sugar for a slightly sweetened crust)

 Cut shortening into flour and salt until the size of peas.  Combine egg, water, and vinegar.  Pour liquid into flour all at once.  Blend well with spoon just until flour is all moistened.  This is an easy crust to handle and can be re-rolled without getting tough.  It also keeps in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or divided into 3 parts, wrapped in plastic, and kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. 

I find that this recipe makes one double-crust pie and 1 single crust pie.  I bake the extra single crust, wrap it well, and put it in my freezer.  I'm always glad I have it on hand when I want to make a lemon, fresh fruit, or cream pie. 


Auntie Ruthie's Lemon Pie

1 c. sugar
2 c. cold water
6 T. cornstarch
3 egg yolks, well beaten with a fork in a medium sized bowl
3 T. fresh lemon juice (depends on the lemon - we used 5 T.)
zest of one lemon
1 T. butter

In medium saucepan heat sugar, water, and cornstarch until it becomes thick and starts to boil.  Remove from heat.  Put a small amount of this hot sauce into the egg yolks and beat vigorously.  Add another spoonful and beat.  Do this until half of the hot sauce is mixed into the eggs.  Return the sauce and eggs to the saucepan.  At low heat, cook while stirring constantly until it comes to a boil.  Add lemon juice, zest, and butter.  Stir until combined.  Remove from heat and pour into a baked pie crust.  Put a piece of plastic wrap on top of the filling to keep it from drying out.  Chill thoroughly.  Serve with sweetened, whipped cream.  YUM!

I got this great recipe from Robert Gourley's (caramel lady) daughter. Looks like she got it from Cook's Country.   Haven't made it yet but Michelle tells me that it is fantastic and that everyone asks for the recipe.
Take the time to Watch This Recipe (link below).  It's worth it!

French Silk Chocolate Pie

February/March 2009

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Why this recipe works:We wanted a French Silk Pie recipe with ramped-up chocolate flavor that didn’t call for raw eggs. Testing showed that only real eggs would do, but rather than incorporate them raw, we cooked them with sugar on the stovetop, almost like making a custard. Once the egg and sugar mixture was light and thick, we removed it from the heat and continued whipping it until it was fully cooked. Bittersweet chocolate folded into the cooled egg and sugar mixture boosted the chocolate flavor. And to lighten our French Silk Pie, we incorporated whipped cream into the filling before spooning it into the pie shell.

From our TV Show Watch This Recipe Once an award-winning recipe, this no-bake pie has an incredible light and fluffy texture-but we wanted to amplify the chocolate flavor.
Season 4: Icebox Desserts

Serves 8 to 10

You will need a fully baked pie shell for this recipe. Use your favorite pie dough or use our No-Fear Pie Crust recipe (related). Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream.

Ingredients

• 1 cup heavy cream, chilled
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and softened
• 1 (9-inch) pie shell, baked and cooled (see note)

Instructions

• 1. Whip cream: With electric mixer on medium-high speed, whip cream to stiff peaks, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer whipped cream to small bowl and refrigerate.
• 2. Beat eggs: Combine eggs, sugar, and water in large heatproof bowl set over medium saucepan filled with ½ inch barely simmering water (don’t let bowl touch water). With electric mixer on medium speed, beat until egg mixture is thickened and registers 160 degrees, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and continue to beat egg mixture until fluffy and cooled to room temperature, about 8 minutes.
• 3. Beat, fold, cool: Add chocolate and vanilla to cool egg mixture and beat until incorporated. Beat in butter, a few pieces at a time, until well combined. Using spatula, fold in whipped cream until no streaks of white remain. Scrape filling into pie shell and refrigerate until set, at least 3 hours and up to 24 hours. Serve.

Great pasta sauce last night!

Jen and I made a great pasta sauce last night.  Veggies (2 red pepper, 2 green peppers, 1 onion) all blended so kids like this sauce.  Cream makes it a bit creamy.  Here's the recipe:

Sausage Pasta Sauce - makes a lot!  Eat it for one meal and freeze the rest for another meal later.

• 2 pounds Johnsonville® Ground Sausage
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 medium sweet red peppers, chopped
• 2 medium green peppers, chopped
• 6 to 8 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cans (29 ounces each) tomato sauce (6 8-oz. cans)
• 2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) Italian stewed tomatoes, drained
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 4 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1-1/2 pounds uncooked bow tie pasta
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• Shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

In a large skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain and set aside. In a Dutch oven, saute the onions, peppers and garlic in oil until tender. Stir in the tomato sauce, tomatoes, brown sugar and seasonings. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a blender, process tomato mixture in batches until smooth. Return to the pan.  Add sausage; heat through. Gradually stir in cream. Cook and stir over low heat for 5 minutes. Drain pasta; top with sauce. Sprinkle with cheese. Yield: 12 servings.