Apple Crisp

Crispy Apple Crumble Recipe

Yield: 2 servings

2 Granny Smith apples, cored and diced
2 tbsp Brown sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon (I much prefer grating a cinnamon stick with a microplane to get the most potent fragrance)
2 tbsp / 30g / 1oz. cold butter, cut into cubes

Topping:
½ cup oats
½ cup flour
1/4th cup granulated sugar
1/4th cup brown sugar
1/4th cup walnuts, chopped
5 tbsp / 75g / 2.65 oz. cold butter, cut into cubes

Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.

In a bowl, toss together apple, brown sugar and cinnamon, until well coated.

Grease an ovenproof dish with butter and transfer the apples to it. Dot with cold butter. Set aside.

In another bowl mix together the ingredients for the topping. Cut the butter into the mixture with a pastry cutter. Refrigerate this for about 10 minutes if you’ve got the time.

Spread chunks of the topping mixture over the apples and bake for 35-40 minutes until the apples are done.

If the apples are rather juicy, you might have to drain off the excess juices halfway through baking.

Sneak in a few bites while still in the oven, under the pretext of making sure there isn’t too much liquid in there.

Serve the apple crumble with vanilla icecream with caramel sauce or even better, Dulce de Leche.

Pesto Cheese Blossoms

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Prep Time:

20 min

Inactive Prep Time:

--

Cook Time:

--

Level:

Easy

Serves:

15 to 20 servings

Ingredients

• 1 (8-ounce) package sliced provolone cheese
• 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
• 20 pistachios, shelled
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
• 1/2 cup pine nuts
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 ounces oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

Directions

Line a medium bowl with plastic wrap, leaving enough overhang to cover the top. Reserving 3 slices of the provolone, line the bottom and sides of the bowl with the remaining provolone, overlapping the slices. For the cream cheese layer, process the cream cheese, pistachios, and 1 of the garlic cloves in a food processor until blended; scrape the mixture into a bowl and set aside. For the pesto layer, process the basil, parsley, pine nuts, and the remaining garlic clove in the food processor until blended. Dissolve the salt and pepper in the olive oil and mix well.

With the machine running, add the oil in a fine stream. Scrape this mixture into a second bowl and set aside. For the tomato layer, drain the tomatoes, reserving the oil. Puree the tomatoes with a small amount of the reserved oil in a food processor. Spread some of the cream cheese mixture over the cheese slices lining the bowl. Layer the pesto mixture, half of the remaining cream cheese mixture, the sun-dried tomato mixture, and then remaining cream cheese mixture in the bowl. Cover with the remaining provolone. Bring the edges of the plastic wrap together over the top and secure with a twist tie. Freeze until firm. Remove the plastic wrap and invert the mold onto a serving platter. Serve with party crackers. This will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.