#martha stewart recipes pear pie

[classicsstudentsunion]

Ancient Recipes: Apricot Dessert (Apicius, De re coquinaria)

Did you know when you Google Apicius, they call him a professional chef?

Given that he was the closest thing Ancient Rome had to Betty Crocker or Martha Stewart, we guess it makes sense. These apricots are a fantastic dessert from De re coquinaria (c. 5th cent. CE), arguably the best-known Ancient Roman cookbook. They likely would have been enjoyed at room temperature, but taste fantastic after being chilled. We make this at every rendition of our Ancient Food Day, and it's always a hit.

Latin: duracina primotica pusilla precoquiis purgas, enucleas, in frigidam mittis; in patina conponis; teres piper mentam siccam; suffundis liquids; adicies mel passum uinum et acetum; refundis in patina super precoquia, olei modicum mittis et lento igni ferueat, cum ferbuerit, amulo obligas, piper aspargis et inferes. (De re coquinaria, 4.177)

Translation (by John Liao): Wash firm, early or small apricots, pit them, and put them in the cold [water]. Arrange them in a pan. Crush pepper and dried mint, pour over liquamen and add honey, passum, wine and vinegar. Pour over the apricots in the pan. Add a little oil and heat on a low flame. Thicken [the sauce] with starch while it simmers. Sprinkle with pepper and serve. 

Ingredients

10-12 apricots (pitted and halved if fresh, rehydrated in water overnight if dried)

1 ½-2 tbsp freshly cracked black pepper (plus extra for garnish)

1 tbsp dried mint flakes

1 tsp garum/liquamen (substitute fish sauce if you can't find/make it yourself)

3-4 heaping tbsp of honey

3/4 cup of red wine

3/4 cup of passum (also known as raisin wine. Substitutes can include cranberry juice (less sweet), grape juice (more sweet), or ice wine (if you don’t have to make this for a school event).

1 tsp of vinegar (2 tsp if you're not using passum/alcoholic passum substitute)

1 ½ tbsp of olive oil

½ tsp corn starch

3-4 tbsp cold water

Our Recipe

Soak halved, pitted fresh apricots in cold water for 15 minutes (skip if using rehydrated fruit)

In a wide pan (at least 3 inches deep), lightly toast the black pepper and mint at medium heat until fragrant.

Add the liquids: honey, passum, wine, vinegar, and liquamen. Bring to a simmer and stir until well incorporated, and the honey has dissolved. Continue simmering to cook off the alcohol. If the mixture begins to reduce too much, add water in small amounts.

Once the desired amount of alcohol has been cooked off, add the apricots. Continue simmering until apricots reach your desired texture (usually 8-12 mins).

Remove the apricots from the pan. Mix cornstarch with cold water into a slurry, and add to the remaining liquid. Stir and cook until thick, then pour over reserved apricots. Let cool.

Serve chilled or at room temperature, with fresh black pepper sprinkled on top.

Below, we served them with libum (Roman cheesecake) and statites (Ancient Greek spelt crepes).

Some more anachronistic ways to serve this can include using it as pie or tart filling, mixing it with Greek yogurt, or serving it with vanilla ice cream while it's still hot (sort of like a poached pear situation).

Some FAQs

Q. "How long do I actually boil the sauce?"

A. As long as you want, depending on how much alcohol you want in the dish (we serve these at school events, so we have to boil it to hell and back to get rid of all the alcohol).

Q. "The ancient recipe says to cook the apricots first, why do you make the sauce first?"

A. When we tried the apricot-first method, the apricots fell apart and turned the whole thing into a jam-like stew because of how long we had to cook the sauce. It tasted great but lacked the nice texture of the whole apricots.

Q. "Can I substitute ingredients 1-1?"

A. Generally, yes. For our passum substitute, we use cranberry juice for its tartness, but any of the three substitutes work. However, if you have the ability to make/buy garum and passum, definitely give it a try!

[valvobetty]

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[tonylandaverderealtor]

Fall harvest dessert recipes from Martha Stewart including apple pie, poached pears, pumpkin pie, pear cake, cranberry clafouti, sweet potato Bundt cake, pumpkin cupcakes, and much more. https://www.advisorstream.com/read/trendspottr/home-decor/25-classic-fall-dessert-recipes-starring-apples-pears-pumpkins-and-more/?c=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJub2RlX2lkIjoyNjk4MCwicHJldmlldyI6ZmFsc2UsImNvbW1faWQiOjE0NzAzODgsImRlc3RfaWQiOjIwNDExNDZ9.oxnGAN2ho82tdepD624RcfMFQBRYf9YBykFxMHSBBDg https://www.instagram.com/p/B2h-OzfHY6S/?igshid=12rqo6tf90jq4

[kennethherrerablog]

12 DIY Christmas Gifts That’ll Make Your Loved Ones (and Your Budget) Happy

I grew up with a big family, which made it hard to buy everyone something nice at Christmas.

My gift options were to shop at the dollar store or “do it yourself.”

While the dollar store is by far the easier path, DIY gifts are a genuine labor of love. But you don’t have to be Martha Stewart or a contestant on “Making It” to explore the DIY route. It’s more about the gesture than making a perfectly crafted artisanal present. Your loved ones will likely appreciate a heartfelt and useful gift more than a store-bought one.

Plus, staying at home to make these gifts will save you from the impulse purchases shopping can bring.

12 DIY Christmas Gift Ideas to Try This Holiday Season

1. Photo Magnets

These are so much fun to make, and there are dozens of ways to get the job done.  

Use precut wood shapes, tiles, glass stones or mason jar lids — all found at your local arts and crafts store — as your base. Use some Mod Podge (a glue-type sealant) to adhere your printed photos to the base. Once dry, glue magnet strips to the back of the base. Done.

Or, you can use adhesive magnetic sheets for bigger images. You can make hundreds of these personal DIY gifts and inexpensively give your friends and family all the feels.

2. Baked Goods

The fastest way to someone’s heart is through their stomach. Home-baked treats will do the trick.

Try making holiday-themed cookies with cookie cutters and decorations, or play with seasonal flavors like peppermint, ginger and chocolate.

Turn up the sweetness with some fudge, challenge yourself to whip up toffee or make a loaf of banana bread (my mother’s signature baked good).

Bake your goods in large batches and deliver them to family, friends and coworkers in reusable holiday tins, treat bags or Tupperware.

3. Family Cookbook

Covertly gather recipes from your family members and put them into a special family cookbook.

Ask family members to share their recipes or take notes next time someone whips up a casserole or batch of cookies. Maybe grandma has a box of handwritten recipes you can convert.

Create an accessible digital version online or assemble your own hard copy. Free and low-cost templates and software are available if you want to do it yourself.

The cookbook will be a treasured gift for generations to come. Just don’t tell anyone else what’s in the sauce, because we all know that’s a family secret.

4. Pickled Fruits and Veggies

Use a hot water bath to pickle fruits and vegetables. You can pickle anything from cucumbers, green beans and carrots to cauliflower and pears. Find out your relatives’ favorites and surprise them with a homemade jar — or five.

One minimal investment in canning equipment and the basic ingredients can yield enough to give something to everyone special in your life during the holidays. Go a step further and create your own cheeky product labels for the jars.

You might find a workshop in your city to teach you how. Follow our pickle tutorial or use herbs and vegetables from your garden to save on produce costs.

5. Framed Pictures

Love that photo of you and mom on vacation? What about the one of all your best friends together? Frame it.

Scope out affordable picture frames at thrift stores, dollar stores, Michael’s (it always has a coupon available) or another major retailer.  Or spruce up and decorate an old picture frame with buttons.

Once you know what size frame you have, get the highest-resolution copy of the picture and have it printed to size at a local photo processor (CVS, Walgreens, Walmart). Each print usually costs less than $1. Too many photos to narrow down? Assemble an entire photo album.

6. Ornaments

Commemorate the year with a homemade ornament using paper, glass, precut shapes or reusable everyday products like wine corks, popsicle sticks and bottle caps. Spend a Saturday and craft them all yourself, or get the kids or significant other involved.

Make cheeky ones using pictures of the kids or fur babies, or you can tailor them specifically to your home state or siblings. Start a tradition and create a new one every year.

7. Mason Jar Mixtures

Assemble an edible gift in a jar. Concoct your own specialty holiday recipe like salsa, dry soup mix, hot chocolate, snack mix, nuts and cookie ingredients. Shoot, you can even go the alcohol route and infuse vodka.

All you need is a case of Mason jars, your ingredients and a recipe tag. The tag should include ingredients and any baking instructions.

If it’s really good, you’ll have everyone excited for next year’s batch.

8. Kid Art

There’s nothing wrong with this kind of child labor. The rugrats get creative and you get cheap DIY Christmas gifts out of it. Win-win.

Gather non-toxic paints, glitter and large pieces of posterboard (paper, cardboard or canvas work, too) for the kiddos to craft their masterpiece upon. Let them go to town. Once it’s finished and dry, cut up the project into frameable pieces. Sign and date the bottom like a true artist.

Frame the pieces and give them out as gifts. I have the one my nieces made me in 2011 on my desk.

9. Coasters

Do your civic duty and save all tables from condensation rings by making DIY coasters for your friends and family. It’s a cheap and easy gift you can’t go wrong with, because everyone needs coasters, especially funky (or classy) homemade ones.  

Craft DIY coasters out of ceramic tiles, wood slices and pressed flowers, mason jar lids, popsicle sticks or fabric. The picture magnets mentioned above can double as coasters if you skip the magnetic strips.

Sets of four are standard, so put on some Netflix and settle into a project weekend.

10. Pressed Flowers

Pick wildflowers on a walk, or save flowers from a special occasion and use them to create a piece of art.

Press the flowers with a book or iron and display them between glass, on paper, as a bookmark or matted onto a candle holder or key ring. There are a surprising amount of pressed flower projects to try.

While the art of flower pressing takes time, the elegantly preserved souvenir will be worth it.

11. Homemade Spices

Homemade spices, seasonings and extracts are an affordable and practical gift for the food lovers in your life.

Awaken your inner chef and concoct a spice combination that suits your personality or complements a slice of your favorite meat. Blend a piquant taco seasoning, dry rub or apple and pumpkin pie spice mixes.

Just don’t forget to add your own labels for that extra zing.

12. Knitted or Crocheted Goods

My favorite handmade gifts over the years have been knit scarves and shawls my mother made.

Knitted and crocheted goods are truly one-of-a-kind gifts.  Something as simple as a hat, scarf or bag will carry sentiment forever. The only thing they really cost is time, which makes a finished product feel more valuable.

If you don’t want to make bulky sweaters and ill-fitted hats for people, try coasters, blankets or rugs. There are free patterns galore online.

Probably not a new hobby to take up 10 days before Christmas, though.

Stephanie Bolling is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She’s making mustard and pickled things as gifts for her friends and family this year. Read her full bio here or say hi on Twitter @StephBolling.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

The Penny Hoarder Promise: We provide accurate, reliable information. Here’s why you can trust us and how we make money.

12 DIY Christmas Gifts That’ll Make Your Loved Ones (and Your Budget) Happy published first on https://justinbetreviews.tumblr.com/

[carolynkitchennotes-blog]

With fall knocking on our door, I’ve put together a bucket list containing cozy recipes for when the temperatures take a turn.

Fall Cooking Bucket List

Breakfast

Salted Brioche Cinnamon Rolls (Half Baked Harvest, p. 35)

Apple n’ Spice Baked Oatmeal (SkinnyTaste Cookbook, p. 30)

Pumpkin Vanilla-Glazed Scones (SkinnyTaste Cookbook, p. 42)

Slow Cooker

Healthier Slow Cooker Butter Chicken (Half Baked Harvest, p. 133)

Slow Cooker Beef Stew with Sweet Potatoes (SkinnyTaste Fast and Slow, p. 69)

Slow Cooker Bolognese Sauce (SkinnyTaste Fast and Slow, p. 120)

Slow Cooker Goulash with Sauerkraut (SkinnyTaste Fast and Slow, p. 202)

Dinner Mains

Thai Butternut Squash and Peanut Soup (Half Baked Harvest, p. 219)

Chipotle-Roasted Sweet Potato and Quinoa Tacos (Half Baked Harvest, p. 223)

Butternut Squash Lasagna Rolls (SkinnyTaste Cookbook, p. 248)

Crispy Brown Butter Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Balsamic Caramelized Mushrooms and Goat Cheese (Half Baked Harvest)

Butter Chicken Meatballs (Half Baked Harvest)

Dessert

Salted Apple Treacle Butter Apple Pie (Half Baked Harvest, p. 255)

Warm Apple-Pear Crumble (SkinnyTaste Cookbook, p. 298)

Crustless Slow Cooker Apple Pie a la Mode (SkinnyTaste Fast and Slow, p. 292)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares (Martha Stewart)

[thesugarapple]

so, I just got back from the U.S. Virgin Islands where I got to spend Mother’s Day weekend (yeah!).  and I baked this apple tart for Mother’s Day dinner with my family (it’s perfect for any celebration or any day!).  it’s a recipe that I hope you will enjoy immensely – so please share if you make it!

apple tart

pie crust:

I used the buttery, flaky all purpose pie crust  recipe from Chef Steps (it’s really good!)

filling (modified from Martha Stewart’s Perfect Apple Pie):

5-6 granny smith apples (you can substitute a red apple for one of the granny smith’s, or for this recipe I actually include a pear – variety is good!)

1-2 small lemons, squeezed

1/2 tsp. – 3/4 tsp. of apple pie or pumpkin pie spice to season apples (it depends on how much you like the flavor)

1/3 cup to 1/2 cup of sugar (depending on how sweet you like it!)

1/4 cup of brown sugar

4 Tbsp. of unsalted butter (1/2 of one stick)

1-2 tsp. of cornstarch

pinch of salt

cinnamon sugar (optional, but highly recommended)

apple tart – seasoned apples with spices and sugar

apple tart – brown sugar and butter mixture for cooking apples

apple tart – cooked apples

instructions:

important! make the pie pastry first and cool in fridge.  (let cool for at least 30 minutes if you’re short on time, but ideally 2-4 hrs. you’ll only need half of this recipe for an open face tart, or use it to make a double crust pie if you wish 😉 )

wash, core and cut the apples into bite-size pieces.

add the fresh squeezed lemon juice to the cut apples to keep them from turning brown

season cut apples with spices, 1/2 cup of sugar and the pinch of salt.  (use more or less of the sugar and spices depending on your taste)

melt 2 Tbsp of butter in a large pan with the brown sugar over medium heat, stirring frequently.  (the sugar and butter should be fully incorporated but do not let it burn)

add the cut apples to the melted brown sugar and butter mixture and coat the apples.

lower the heat.

let the apples cook down slightly, until they are softened— about 15-20 minutes (not too soft, we’re looking for less of a crunch then when they are raw – we’ll be cooking them in our tart, so we’re not looking for applesauce 😉  )

after about 15 minutes on the stove, sprinkle in the cornstarch to thicken up the apple mixture – mix in thoroughly.

cook the apples for another 5-10 minutes (test an apple to see how soft they are, you want a slightly less crunch than when they are raw).

when satisfied with the texture, remove from heat.

let the cooked apples cool. 

meanwhile, take out your cooled pie pastry from the fridge and cut it in half for this tart recipe.

roll out the crust (turning clockwise as you roll and add small amounts of flour to prevent sticking) – use your tart pan as a guide for the size of your crust and ease it into the pan.  cut off any excess.

put the pie crust and tart pan back into the fridge for another 30 minutes to 1 hr (a cold pie crust prevents shrinkage when cooked)

preheat oven to 425 degrees while the pie crust is in the fridge and the apples are cooling.

take the cold pie crust out the fridge and fill it with the cooled apples.

dot the apples on top with the remaining 2 Tbsp of butter (sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on the apples as well)

place in heated oven and cook for 35-40 minutes.  (apples and crust should be a golden brown)

enjoy with whip cream, ice cream or all by itself. delish!

apple tart – crust

apple tart – dot butter on top

apple tart – final cooked

fun fact: national apple pie day- May 13th!

  apple tart. so, I just got back from the U.S. Virgin Islands where I got to spend Mother's Day weekend (yeah!).