Food Fun Family

Chocolate Pecan Pie

Lolli — Wed, 19 Aug 2015 19:41:38 +0000

This recipe for Chocolate Pecan Pie and the connected giveaway are sponsored by Ginny’s. All thoughts are my own. Don’t forget to scroll down below the recipe to enter not one but TWO giveaways!

My dad is crazy about pecan pie. When I was little, I didn’t quite understand his love for a nutty pie – I was much more drawn to fruit and cream pies.

Then when I got married, I discovered that my husband was also a big fan of pecan pies. Over the years, I’ve tried several (some good, some not so great, and most of them store-bought).

It wasn’t until earlier this month that I discovered the problem all along. The problem wasn’t that I didn’t like pecan pie, but that I had never eaten a truly glorious, can’t-stop-eating, I’ll-share-but-I-don’t-want-to, homemade pecan pie.

Until now.

When I saw that August 20 is National Chocolate Pecan Pie Day, I thought that I’d give pecan pie another shot. Frankly, the addition of chocolate had me too curious to not at least give it a try. I figured that if it was a flop, I could just make my pecan pie-loving husband finish it off.

Ha! Let’s just say that was not the way things went down when I made this pie…

This pie was relatively easy to make and tasted divine. I even impressed my husband, who remarked several times (as we both ate 2-3 slices a day til we had polished the whole thing off) that this pecan pie tasted much more light – not as “heavy” as the typical pecan pie. (Don’t ask me why it tasted lighter than usual…because I didn’t use “light” ingredients).

I loved the light (not over-powering) addition of chocolate (because CHOCOLATE) and honestly couldn’t find a single thing I didn’t love about it. (OK, if I’m being honest, maybe I don’t love what eating 2-3 slices a day does to my figure…or the fact that I’ve been craving another one ever since I made it a few weeks ago).

My advice? If you love pecan pie, make this. If you don’t love pecan pie, make this. It may just change your mind.

Yum

Chocolate Pecan Pie

Ingredients

1 pie pastry
3 eggs
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 melted butter, cooled to room temperature
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup pecan halves

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place pie shell in pie dish (I baked mine in a cast iron skillet).
Combine eggs, corn syrup, brown sugar, butter, salt, and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl and our into unbaked pie shell. Sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over the top of the pie filling. Next, evenly spread pecan halves over the top of the pie.
Bake pie for about 45 minutes, or until top and middle are soft to the touch but starting to firm up. Cool. Note: pie will become more firm as it cools.

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Note: I used the new cast iron skillet that I got from Ginnys.com but you can use any pie dish to make it.

Enter to Win a $100 Ginny’s Gift Card

I am excited to be able to give away a $100 gift card to Ginny’s! I got my new colorful cast iron skillet and pot from Ginny’s (along with a few other amazing kitchen items) and I know you’ll find some things that you love (or need) for your kitchen. This giveaway will end on September 2 at 11:59 ET. Open to US residents only. After the giveaway ends, a winner will be chosen at random and notified via email. Good luck!

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Another Chance to WIN with Ginny’s!

Ginny’s is also hosting their own giveaway during August where readers can enter to win one of five $250 gift cards. You can enter on Ginny’s Facebook page.

Peaches and Cream Icebox Pie with Gingersnap Crust #Pyrex100

Lolli — Mon, 29 Jun 2015 18:43:14 +0000

This story and recipe for Peaches and Cream Icebox Pie is part of the #Pyrex100 campaign, sponsored by Pyrex®, a World Kitchen brand. Although I have been compensated, all opinions are my own.

When I was a teen, I learned how to make apple pie at a workshop through my church youth group. I became so enamored by homemade pies (and especially what became known as “Laura’s Apple Pie” in my extended family) that I started asking for pie instead of birthday cake for years. I have now been making pies for every family gathering and holiday meal for the last 25 years (boy, that makes me feel old!).

Just last week, when I was in Chicago for my sister’s wedding, my sister asked if my mom and I could make some apple pies for her reception. Our pre-wedding evening with my mom and sisters slicing apples and rolling out crust (and getting burned by boiling hot apple pie syrup!) is one of the best memories of the trip.

There’s something special about the family baking together – and since we’re all spread out across the country, we don’t do it together often enough.

As my mom and I were shopping for the pie supplies, I added one special “ingredient” to the cart: 2 new Pyrex pie plates. Although I knew there would be pie plates at the house for us to use to make the pies that night, I wanted to give my sister and her new wife some pie plates of their own to take home….so that they could think of me and the family and our pie-baking traditions whenever they baked a pie.

Now that I’m back home, I decided that I needed to try a new pie recipe in my new Pyrex pie plate, and Oh-My-Goodness….the pie was incredible!

Instead of the traditional apple pie that we made last weekend, I used some fresh peaches to make a peach icebox pie. This pie may not look as “pretty” as an apple pie, but it takes a LOT less work and it’s absolutely delicious! I will be making this pie over and over again for my family! Possibly my favorite part about this peach pie recipe is the gingersnap crust (pure heaven!). Although…the perfectly creamy pie filling was a close second.

Note: I used a fresh peach, but because the pie is baked, you could certainly use canned peaches, drained and sliced thin, instead.

Yum

Peaches and Cream Icebox Pie with Gingersnap Crust

Ingredients

CRUST:

1 3/4 cups crushed gingersnap cookies
4 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

PIE:

1-2 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced thin
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup peach jam
3 large egg yolks
1/4 cup buttermilk
Whipped cream

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Make crust by mixing butter with crushed gingersnap cookies. Press cookie crumble into the bottom and sides of an ungreased pie plate. Bake for 10 minutes.
Remove crust from oven and let cool. When mostly cool, lay sliced peaches on the bottom of the crust.
Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.
In a medium bowl, mix sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice, and peach jam. Set aside.
Beat egg yolks with a hand mixer on high for about 4-5 minutes. The yolks will look like creamy butter. Gradually add egg yolks to sweetened condensed milk mixture, mixing thoroughly. Whisk in buttermilk. Pour over sliced peaches in pie crust.
Bake at 325°F for 20-25 minutes, or until pie is set around edges (it will be pretty jiggly). Cool on a wire rack for about an hour. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and freeze for several hours (4+).
Top with homemade whipped cream before serving (I use 1 cup of whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1/3 cup powdered sugar and whip with hand beaters on high for several minutes, until soft peaks form). You can serve pie with sliced fresh peaches for an yummy addition!
Store in the freezer.

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Enter the #RaiseYourGlassSweeps:

Hurry to enter the #RaiseYourGlassSweeps (Ends July 4, 2015)! You can enter by submitting a photo on Twitter and Instagram that features the hashtag #RaiseYourGlassSweeps. Just snap a picture of yourself using your own Pyrex glassware (see my photo with one of my new Pyrex measuring cups). There will be weekly prizes, as well as one (1) grand prize winner.

About Pyrex:

Pyrex – proudly made in the USA – has been a staple in American kitchens since 1915. I’m still using the Pyrex dishes that I got for my wedding 20 years ago! To celebrate 100 years of Pyrex, they’ve released the Pyrex® 100th Anniversary “Centennial” collection (red, white, and blue theme) and the Pyrex® 100th Anniversary “Vintage Future” collection (red, teal, and chartreuse products). Although Pyrex has witnessed many changes over the last 100 years, the core benefits of Pyrex cookware remain the same today as they did in 1915: provide an oven-safe glass product which is easy to clean, achieves uniform baking with each use, and that will not absorb stains or odors.

Connect with Pyrex:

Websites: Pyrex 100 | Pyrex & World Kitchen

Facebook: Pyrex Home

Twitter: World Kitchen, LLC

Instagram: Pyrex Home

Pinterest: Pyrex Home

The Pyrex® 100 Days of Giveaways is sponsored by World Kitchen, LLC. There is no purchase necessary to enter. In order to participate, you must be a legal resident of the fifty United States or the District of Columbia and must be at least 18 years old at the time of entry. Entries will be accepted from March 22, 2015 at 10:00:00 a.m. ET until June 30, 2015 at 9:59:59 a.m. ET.

Disclosure: I have happily partnered with World Kitchen LLC to share the wonderful Pyrex® 100th Anniversary product line. All opinions are my own.

Pyrex® 100th Anniversary Giveaway

The Best Apple Pie Recipe

Lolli — Mon, 15 Dec 2014 14:10:00 +0000

I have been making this apple pie recipe since I was a teenager. I was given the recipe by a long-forgotten acquaintance at a church activity where we were taught how to make pies…and I’ve been making it for my family ever since.

I have tried many apple pies over the years, and this pie beats them all (at least according to my taste buds!). I even converted my not-an-apple-pie-fan husband to my apple pie early in our marriage, and now he swears that it wouldn’t be the holidays without Laura’s Apple Pie. He won’t even let another apple pie touch his lips.

The great thing about this pie is its simplicity. As far as from-scratch fruit pies go, this couldn’t be any easier.

Laura’s Famous Apple Pie Recipe

The Best Apple Pie Recipe

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

50 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

Author: Lolli

Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

Crust:
2 cups flour
¾ cup shortening
1 tsp salt
4 tablespoons water
Filling:
6 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced thin
2 Tbsp butter, cold
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp flour or cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon

Instructions

Mix flour, shortening, and salt in medium mixing bowl (I use a large fork or a pastry blender). Add water one tablespoon at a time. Mix, kneading slightly with hands if needed, until just blended. Don't over-mix. Divide dough in half. Roll each half between two sheets of waxed paper to fit your pie dish. Remove top waxed paper and carefully place in pie dish, exposed-side down. Peel off the other piece of waxed paper and press dough into dish.
In a small bowl, mix sugar, flour or cornstarch, and cinnamon.
Layer sliced apples, 2-3 slices of butter, and sugar-cinnamon mixture until pie is heaping full of apples.
Cover apples with the other half of the dough, pinching edges together (you can crimp edges down with a fork, if desired, or make a pretty wave design by pinching between fingers). With a sharp knife, cut several small slices in the top to vent.
Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.
Allow pie to cool before slicing. Best served with vanilla ice cream!

One little tip: the pie occasionally spills over while baking, so I often place a piece of aluminum foil on the rack below the pie to catch any gooey mess before it makes it to the bottom of my oven. Better safe than sorry!

Note: this pie is delicious for breakfast, lunch, and dessert. Trust me. I’ve tried it at all times of the day and night.

Enjoy!

Lemon Meringue Pie

Lolli — Tue, 25 Feb 2014 18:01:01 +0000

I love pies. Love them. When I turned 16, I asked my mom to make me pies instead of cakes for my birthday from then on. Seriously, I need to limit the number of pies that I allow myself to be around because I WILL eat them. Especially cream pies. Creamy and chocolate, creamy and fruit. Doesn’t really matter. I just love cream pies.

This past week, I opened up my old family cookbook and tried my cousin’s lemon meringue pie. It doesn’t get much better than this, even though I had a hard time making it look beautiful in the pictures. After I chilled it, the meringue formed little dark beads of perspiration on top – the pie still tasted perfectly wonderful, but the drops were a little irritating.

Ready for the recipe?

Lemon Meringue Pie

Save Print

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

45 mins

Author: Lolli

Ingredients

1½ cups sugar
6 Tablespoons cornstarch
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup cold water
½ cup lemon juice
3 egg yolks, well-beaten (reserve the egg whites for later)
2 Tablespoons butter
1½ cups boiling water
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
Baked pie shell
3 egg whites
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare pie shell.
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. Gradually blend in ½ cup cold water and lemon juice. When smooth, add well-beaten egg yolks and 2 T. butter. Blend thoroughly. Gradually add 1½ cups boiling water. Bring the mixture to a full boil, stirring gently. As it begins to thicken, reduce the heat and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in lemon peel.
Pour into a baked pie shell.
In a new medium-sized bowl, whip 3 egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar and whip to stiff peaks. Beat in powdered sugar and vanilla.
Spread meringue over lemon pie filling, sealing the edges.
Bake 10-15 minutes, or until lightly browned on top.
Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Note: You can use a pre-prepared pie crust or make your favorite pie crust recipe. For my favorite homemade pie crust, check out my recipe for chicken pot pie. yes, I use the same pie crust for both sweet and savory pies and it is delicious with both. For lemon meringue pie, you would only need half of this recipe.

What is your favorite kind of pie to make OR to eat?

Easy Lime Pie Recipe

Lolli — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:31:42 +0000

My husband heard about an amazing – and easy – saltine-crusted lime pie on the radio the other day and couldn’t stop talking about it until I made it. So I made it for him. Yum!

I LOVE key lime pie. While this is not quite as mouth-watering as my favorite key lime pie, the fact that it has only six ingredients (seven if you count the whipped cream on top) and it was so mind-blowingly easy to make means that I will be making it again and again.

Six-Ingredient Lime Pie

Easy Lime Pie Recipe

Cook time

35 mins

Total time

35 mins

Author: Lolli

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 8

Ingredients

Crust:
1 sleeve of saltine crackers
⅓ cup softened butter
2 tablespoons sugar
Filling:
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
4 egg yolks
½ cup lime juice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Crush the crackers (small crumbs) in a large plastic zippered bag. Add cracker crumbs to a medium bowl and add the sugar, then butter. Knead until the crumbs hold together like dough. Press crust into an 8 inch pie pan. Bake for 18 minutes or until the crust is a light golden brown.
Cool the crust slightly. Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks into the sweetened condensed milk, then beat in the lime juice until completely combined.
Pour into the pie shell and bake for 16-18 minutes, or until the filling has set. Cool slightly and then chill in refrigerator until pie is completely cooled.
Serve with fresh whipped cream and a sprinkling of sea salt.

The filling is delicious (creamy and slightly tart) but the unique saltine cracker crust makes the pie extra special. If you prefer the taste of lemon, it’s totally fine to substitute lemon juice for the lime.

Now I’m craving another piece….

My husband heard this recipe on the radio (I’m sure it was NPR) but I’m not sure about the origins of the recipe. I modified it slightly from what he sent me.

Chicken Pot Pie – Perfect Recipe for Thanksgiving Leftovers

Lolli — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 17:00:41 +0000

Chicken Pot Pie is pure comfort food.

It’s also one of the few recipes in my arsenal that every single person in the family cheers for. When I made this last batch of chicken pot pie, my 11 year old son said, “Mom, you do NOT make this often enough. Can you please start making this regularly? Like once a week?”

Yes, it really is that good.

The other thing I love about making homemade chicken pot pie is that I can use chicken or turkey leftovers (which means that this is the perfect meal for the week after Thanksgiving when you’re sick of eating turkey sandwiches!). It’s also easy to customize to your family’s taste. Don’t like a particular vegetable? Leave it out. I promise–this recipe will become a family favorite in your home like it is in mine.

Chicken Pot Pie

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie is pure comfort food! It is my son's favorite meal and one that is frequently requested at our house.

Ingredients

Pie crusts for bottom and top of pie
⅓ cup butter
⅓ cup chopped onion
⅓ cup flour
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
1 ½ cup chicken broth
⅔ cup milk
2 to 3 cups cooked chicken
2 cups frozen vegetables, thawed (ie—corn, carrots, and peas)

Instructions

Heat oven to 425 F. Prepare pie crusts and place bottom crust in a 9-inch pie pan.
In a medium saucepan, melt butter. Add onion and cook 2 minutes. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper until well blended. Gradually stir in broth and milk; cook, stirring constantly, until bubbly and thickened.
Add chicken and vegetables; remove from heat. Spoon chicken mixture into crust-lined pan.
Top pie with remaining crust; cut slits in several places.
Bake at 425 F for 30-40 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

To make my favorite homemade pie crust, mix 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 3/4 cup shortening in a medium bowl (I like to mix with a large fork). Add 4 Tablespoons of cool water one at a time, mixing as you add. Mix (or lightly knead with hands) until completely combined. Split crust mixture in half and roll each half into a circle (I prefer rolling dough between 2 sheets of wax paper). Press one rolled-out crust into pie plate. *If you need to pre-bake the crust (as in a fruit or cream pie) bake at 425° for about 20 minutes, or until browned.

Do you have a favorite recipe using leftover turkey?