Apple Turnovers

Another new pick from my new cookbook, The Food You Crave by Ellie Krieger. I am seriously addicted to these they are so tasty. It was my first experience with phyllo dough and I think it was very successful. These were really easy to make once I got the hang of it. There's really not much else to say! 

Notes:

• I didn't think Scott would like the cranberries so I left them out. 
• I don't know what happened, but somehow I ended up with enough apple mixture for 16 turnovers rather than 8 so I doubled everything else to use it all up (ladyfingers, phyllo dough, and canola oil). I really don't see how I could possibly have fit all those apples into the first 8. *shrugs shoulders* 
• Also, my turnovers did not take the full 20 minutes to bake, so I would keep an eye on them after about the 15 minutes mark.

Yield: 8 turnovers

Ingredients:

• 4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1/3 cup unsweetened dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• Pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 Tablespoon cold water
• 6 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
• 3 Tablespoons canola oil
• 4 ladyfinger cookies, crushed
• Cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large nonstick skillet, combine the apples, cranberries, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the fruit is tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook until the juices in the skillet thicken, another 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Lay a sheet of phyllo on a large cutting board and brush with the oil. Top with a second sheet and brush with the oil. Sprinkle half o fhte crushed cookies on top. Add another sheet of phyllo and brush with the oil. Cut the layered phyllo into 4 long strips (I ended up doing my width-wise to use up more apple mixture). Put a small mound of the apple mixture about an inch from the bottom of one strip and fold the phyllo over the mixture into a triangle shape so a turnover is formed. Repeat with the other three strips. Repeat the whole process again with the remaining three sheets of phyllo so that you wind up with 8 turnovers. Be sure to reserve a little oil to brush the top of each turnover.

coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, place the turnovers on the sheet, brush the tops with the remaining oil, and bake until nicely browned, 20 to 25 minutes.  

Apple Dumplings

So, I've been on a hiatus for a while because of school and everything, but I'm gonna try to get into a regular routine of blogging. This is all so new to me!

I made these for Scott and mine's little Christmas dinner for just the two of us and they were great! They were kinda like my mom's apple pie (which is delicious by the way) but I didn't have to buy a pie dish! I got the recipe from Taste of Home's Cooking for 2's website after discovering their little gem of a magazine in Border's. Sorry the pic isn't very good, I was just anxious to get started eating!

Notes:

• I pretty much followed the recipe to a 'T' besides cutting it in half.

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 t salt
• 1 cup shortening
• 1/3 cup cold water
• 8 medium tart apples, peeled and cored (I used Golden Delicious)
• 8 t butter
• 9 t cinnamon-sugar, divided

SAUCE:

• 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup butter, cubed

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt; cut in shortening until crumbly. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Divide into 8 portions. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or until easy to handle.

Roll each portion of dough between two lightly floured sheets of waxed paper into a 7-in. square. Place an apple on each square. Place 1 teaspoon butter and 1 teaspoon cinnamon-sugar in the center of each apple.

Gently bring up corners of pastry to each center; pinch edges to seal. If desired, cut out apple leaves and stems from dough scraps; attach to dumplings with water. Place in a greased backing dish. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar. 

In a large saucepan, combine sauce ingredients. Bring just to a boil, stirring until blended. Pour over apples.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until apples are tender and pastry is golden, brown, basting occasionally with sauce. Serve warm.

Golden Applesauce

No pic for this one. : (

I love apple desserts. So because this is so easy, I enjoy making it to eat on it for a few days as a dessert for lunch. It's really easy and very tasty. I got it from an episode of Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals.

Notes:

• I haven't been able to find the golden raisins and it tastes fine without.
• I also smash the sauce right at the end with a spoon just to make it more like a puree than a chunky sauce.

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 4 golden delicious apples, peeled and chopped
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 2 oz. golden raisins, a handful (I haven't been able to find any and it is still tasty w/o)
• 1 inch piece fresh ginger root
• 3 Tablespoons light brown sugar
• 2 cups all natural apple juice or cider 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Directions:

 Combine all ingredients in a medium pot placed over medium high heat and cook until chunky sauce forms, 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally. If sauce begins to spatter as it bubbles, reduce heat back a little, but it shoul be allowed to reduce and form quickly. Once apples are soft and sauce forms, remove it from the heat.