Tag Archives: dessert

Baked Apples with Vanilla Sauce

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Totally delicious melding of flavors: the tartness of baked apples, cinnamon, raisins and toasted almonds.. topped with a sweet and creamy vanilla sauce.. It’s a classic Scandinavian dessert. Comfort food for winter is what I call it! 🙂

Blog baked apples vanilla cream (3) Blog baked apples vanilla cream (2) Blog baked apples vanilla cream (1)

Baked apples

  • 4 apples (Granny Smith work great) – cored
  • 1/3 cup roughly chopped almonds
  • 1/3 cup raisins or dried currants
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • water

Directions

  • Core your apples carefully with a pairing knife
  • Toss raisins, almonds and cinnamon
  • Place apples upright in glass baking dish and fill each center with nut/raisin mixture
  • Any leftover nut/raisin mixture can be tossed into the bottom of the baking dish
  • Pour a little water into the baking dish
  • Cover with foil and bake @350 for 45 minutes or until knife inserts easily into apple

Vanilla Sauce

  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla or 1 vanilla pod
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 2 Tbsp agave syrup or other sweetener
  • 1 Tbsp tapioca or other starch (whisked with some water)

Directions

  • Put all ingredients (including vanilla pod if you are using that, but excluding vanilla essence) in a pot and bring to light boil while stirring to avoid clumps
  • Remove from heat and add vanilla essence (if you are using that)
  • Cool a bit and ladle on to baked apples
  • Delicious hot or cold! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Apples & Toffee Caramel Dip

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Go Seahawks!!!!!!!!!! I’m reposting this as an awesome super bowl game day snack. Totally unhealthy, totally delicious. Super easy to make. Enjoy!

This dip pairs especially well with Honeycrisp (or a tarter) apple!

Blog apples caramel dip

Ingredients

  • 1 brick cream cheese
  • 1/4 c. brown sugar
  • 1/4 c. white sugar
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 1 bag toffee chips (like Heath toffee bits)

Mix first four ingredients well and fold in chips. Let chill for at least an hour. This makes very well a day in advance.

Honeycrisp apples are amazing with this dip!

dit-elle-Esther

Paleo Apple Crisp

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I was inspired by Lauren’s recent Apple Pie post and wanted to make a gluten free and paleo version!

This is a delicious paleo version of a classic apple crisp. Instead of flour and oats, you use almond meal which pairs beautifully with the apples. So yummy topped with some cold coconut milk.

blog paleo apple crisp (3) blog paleo apple crisp (2) blog paleo apple crisp (1)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups blanched almond flour
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ½ cup coconut oil or butter (melted)
  • ¼ cup honey
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 6 large apples, peeled and diced (I like Granny Smith apples)

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, combine almond flour, cinnamon and nutmeg
  • In a smaller bowl, combine oil, honey and vanilla
  • Stir wet ingredients into dry
  • Place apples in a glass baking dish
  • Crumble topping over the apples
  • Cover with tinfoil and bake at 350° for 50 minutes on low rack
  • When apples are soft and their juices bubble, remove cover and bake 10 more minutes to turn golden brown
  • Serve warm with coconut milk

Inspired and modified: http://cavemanstrong.com/2010/09/apple-crisp/

dit-elle-Esther

Grandma Ople’s Apple Pie // aka Best Apple Pie Ever!

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I want to preface this by saying it’s not my Grandma Ople’s Apple Pie.  I don’t have a Grandma Ople, but just the name alone should tell you how good it is!  I originally found this recipe 7-8 years ago, and I’ve never looked for another apple pie recipe since!

I always make it over the holidays (only just now getting around to blogging it!), and it’s always one of the pies that disappears the quickest!  Well, it’s usually a tie between this one and the Pumpkin Layer Pie.  We usually have 6+ pies or…about 1/2 a pie for each family member in attendance haha.

Blog Grandma Oples Apple Pie-1Ingredients

  • 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie (pre-marriage and kids, I made my own, but I cheat now and buy store bought.  Nobody complains, and then I have time to do lattice!)
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup water

  • 8 Granny Smith Apples (cut, peeled, and sliced)  I used Honeycrisp this last time, because that’s what I had, and it was a mistake.  It was too watery 😦  BUT…every time I’ve used the Granny Smith apples it’s been perfect.  And it sounds like a lot, but it’s a mountain of yumminess!!!

Directions

  1. Peel and then cut all your apples.  I usually do them in 1/2 inch slices.
  2. Melt butter in a sauce pan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add white sugar, brown sugar and water; bring to a boil. Reduce temperature, and simmer 5 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Cover with a lattice work crust. Lattice isn’t as hard as it looks.  I just cut mine in to strips and then started layering here and there.  It doesn’t have to be perfect!
  4. Gently pour the sugar and butter liquid over the crust. Pour slowly so that it does not run off.  A lot of reviews said to just mix the apples in with the mixture, but don’t!  It makes this golden crispy sweet glaze on the top that is one of the best parts!
  5. Bake 15 minutes at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes.

Enjoy!!!dit-elle-Lauren

Crème Brulee

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Crème Brulee! This is one of my all time favorite desserts. Chilled creamy custard is topped by a hard crunchy sugar crust. Serve with some fresh berries and garnish with mint. Yes – there are a lot of steps, but it’s SO worth it. I’ve made this three times now, and this recipe has not failed me yet!

Blog creme brulee (1)

Blog creme brulee (4)

Ingredients

  • 4 cups chilled heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • pinch salt
  • 1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise and seeds scraped out
  • 12 large egg yolks
  • 8-12 tsps turbinado or demerara sugar (these are coarser sugars, but you can certainly use regular granulated sugar)

Directions

  • Set oven to 300 degrees and set a pot of water to boil over high heat.
  • Combine 2 cups of the cream, sugar and salt in saucepan
  • Add vanilla seeds including the pod and bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently to ensure sugar dissolves
  • Remove from heat and let steep for 15 minutes to infuse flavors
  • Place kitchen towel in bottom of large baking dish or roasting pan and arrange eight 4 or 5 oz ramekins on towel.
  • After vanilla has steeped, stir in remaining 2 cups cream to cool mixture.
  • Whisk egg yolks in a large bowl and whisk in about 1 cup of the cream mixture, repeat with cups of the cream mixture until all evenly combined
  • Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a pitcher or clean bowl (discard solids from strainer)
  • Pour or ladle mixture into ramekins
  • Now pour the boiling water into the dish holding the ramekins – taking care not to splash water into the ramekins and cream mixture – until water is about 2/3 of the way up the outside of ramekins
  • Bake about 30-35 until the centers of custards are just barely set – an instant read thermometer should register 170-175 degrees at this point
  • Transfer to a wire rack and cool at room temperature for 2 hours
  • Once cool, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, 4 hours or up to 4 days.
  • Uncover when ready to serve – remove any condensation that may have formed with a paper towel – and sprinkle each dish with 1 tsp sugar. Shake a little to distribute sugar evenly on top of custard.
  • Ignite torch and caramelize the sugar.
  • Ready to serve or return to refrigerator for no more than 45 minutes
  • Garnish with fresh berries

dit-elle-Esther

Apple Tartlets

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It’s definitely apple season! Pick a favorite cooking apple (Granny Smith apples are wonderful), make this easy crust, and voila – easy paleo dessert. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream for some totally-non-paleo goodness! 🙂

The recipe calls for apple juice – this is the only sweetener. I thought the apples might be too tart – but they are perfect. Even without the ice cream, this is a yummy dessert!

These Upside Down Apple Tartlets are inspired from Elana’s Pantry (with some minor modifications).

Blog apple tartlett (3) Blog apple tartlett (1)

Crust

  • 2 cups blanched almond flour
  • dash sea salt
  • ¼ cup coconut oil, at room temperature
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Filling

  • 6 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced, and cut into ¼-inch slices (I like Granny Smith Apples for baking)
  • 1 cup apple juice
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder (What’s arrowroot? That’s what I said! It’s a natural thickener – a starch extracted from arrowroot. Read more on Wikipedia.)
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350° and place eight 1-cup wide mouth Mason jars on a large baking sheet (you could also make one large pie/tart if you prefer – just use an ~8″ round or square baking dish and crumble or lay the crust on top)
  2. To make the crust, pulse together almond flour and salt in a food processor, then add coconut oil and vanilla and pulse until the mixture forms a ball
  3. Transfer dough to a piece of parchment paper and place in freezer for 20 minutes
  4. To make filling, toss apples, apple juice, lemon juice, arrowroot powder, and cinnamon in a large bowl to combine
  5. Transfer apples to Mason jars so that each one is overfull and divide remaining juice from the bottom of the bowl between the jars
  6. Remove dough from freezer, place between 2 pieces of parchment paper generously dusted with almond flour and roll out to about ¼-inch thick and remove top sheet of parchment
  7. Use top of a wide-mouth Mason jar to cut out 8 circles of dough
  8. Place one on top of each apple-filled Mason jar
  9. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the juices are bubbling and the crust is golden brown
  10. Serve the tartlets hot out of the oven with coconut whipped cream or ice cream 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Gluten Free Pumpkin Waffles

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Love the Gluten Free Waffles we posted last week? Here’s a pumpkin version! 🙂

Blog gluten free waffles-2 (1) Blog gluten free waffles 2 (6)  Blog gluten free waffles 2 (2)

Ingredients

  • 1  cup rice flour or a gluten free flour mix
  • 1/4 cup cornmeal (omit if you are corn free and add another 1/4 cup of the rice flour back)
  • 1/2 cup potato starch (NOT Potato Flour)
  • 1/4 cup tapioca flour
  • 2  teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • dash of salt
  • 1/4 cup melted butter or coconut oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk (regular milk works, too)

Directions

  • Mix the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another
  • Combine and mix
  • Add more liquid if you need to thin the batter (water, milk or more pumpkin)
  • Scoop in portions onto waffle iron and cook
  • Serve with butter & sugar & cinnamon, maple syrup & whipped cream & toasted pecans, or other favorite toppings

dit-elle-Esther

Pumpkin Layer Pie

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Pumpkin Pie used to be the main thing I loved about Thanksgiving dinner (foodwise that is ;)), until I found this recipe about 15 years ago.  I’ve never had a piece of regular pumpkin pie since.  I’ve tried a bite here and there, just to see, but this pie is SO much better that I don’t think I’ll ever go back.  I’ve modified it over the years from the original recipe.  I never could get a consistent texture, until I tweaked a few things.  In the original recipe the cream cheese layer is about 1/3 to 2/3’s pumpkin.  I evened it out a bit, because pumpkin layer would tend to not set (the biggest complaint in all the reviews).  It’s still delicious as a soupy pie haha, but I like it better with the below modifications.Blog Pumpkin Layer Pie-1Ingredients

For the Crust…
I am a BIG graham cracker crust fan.  I have been known to double a recipe both for this or when I make cheesecake haha.  So, this is a bit thick, but so yummy!!
  • 2 packets of graham crackers
  • 1 1\2 sticks of butter (3/4 cup) (melted)

Crush graham crackers (either in a food processor or in a large zip lock bag with a rolling pin).  Pour butter over graham crackers and mix until you can form it into your pie pan.Blog Pumpkin Layer Pie-2 For the bottom layer…

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened (I use light, but wouldn’t use non fat-too soft)
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen whipped topping, thawed (you could probably use real whip cream if you’re a purist ;).  I happen to LOVE Cool Whip-total guilty pleasure!)
  • 1 Tablespoon Milk

In a large bowl, whisk together cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of milk, and sugar until smooth. Gently stir in whipped topping. Spread into bottom of crust.Blog Pumpkin Layer Pie-3For the Pumpkin Layer

  • 2  packages of 3.4 oz instant vanilla pudding mix
  • 1 Can (15 oz) of pumpkin puree.
  • 1 Cup Cold Milk
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin Pie Spice (I go a lot lighter on the spice, because it tasted to overwhelming to me)  You could also use a mix of cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.

Pour pumpkin puree and a cup of milk into large bowl, and thoroughly mix in pudding mix, and spices. When thickened, spread over cream cheese layer.  I knifed across the layers to make a marble pattern 🙂Blog Pumpkin Layer Pie-4Refrigerate for 4 hours, or until set.  I usually make it the night before…

Enjoy!!dit-elle-Lauren

Gluten Free Waffles

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Need a great staple waffle recipe? Having a hard time finding a good gluten free version? Here you go! This is a great gluten free waffle recipe. To quote Adam, “how are these so good?” I think that about sums it up.

I have a little Norwegian waffle iron – makes beautiful hearts that were a huge hit with the kids! Scandinavians like to serve waffles for dessert with strawberry or raspberry jam and sour cream – or with a large scoop of ice cream! Shown below with whipped cream, some powdered sugar and raspberries!

Blog gluten free waffles 2 (7) Blog gluten free waffles 2 (4)

Ingredients

  • 3/4  cup rice flour or a gluten free flour mix
  • 1/4 cup cornmeal (omit if you are corn free and add another 1/4 cup of the rice flour back)
  • 1/2 cup potato starch (NOT Potato Flour)
  • 1/4 cup tapioca flour
  • 2  teaspoons baking powder
  • dash of salt
  • 1/4 cup melted butter or coconut oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk (regular milk works, too)

Directions

  • Mix the wet ingredients in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another
  • Combine and mix
  • Scoop in portions onto waffle iron and cook
  • Serve with butter & sugar, jam & sour cream, maple syrup, fresh fruit, powdered sugar or other favorite toppings

dit-elle-Esther

Chocolate Pumpkin Chiffon Pudding

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This is an amazing, rich and silky chocolate pudding inspired by Elanaspantry.com. Yes it has pumpkin in it, but no it did not taste like pumpkin! So if you are looking for a pumpkin flavored pudding this is not it. But a great way to add some pumpkin to a dessert.

The original recipe called for raw egg, which I’m not a fan of, so I’ve modified the recipe to allow for cooking the egg.

I bet this would be amazing with some Coconut Cream Pumpkin Spice Frosting (Let me know if you try it :))

Blog chocolate pumpkin pudding-1

Ingredients

  • ½ cup pumpkin puree
  • ½ cup coconut milk
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup coconut sugar
  • 1 cup chocolate chunks, melted
  • dash of celtic sea salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

  1. In a double boiler (I use a stainless steel bowl in a pot of 1-2″ of water) combine pumpkin, coconut milk, and eggs
  2. Whisk while mixture heats, and keep whisking till hot and bubbly
  3. If egg starts to turn solid (clumping) use an immersion blender to fix
  4. Mix in chocolate, sugar, salt and stir till chocolate is melted
  5. Add vanilla and remove from double boiler
  6. Transfer into ½ cup jars, and place in fridge for 2 hours to set

dit-elle-Esther