Caramel Apple Oat Frangipane Tart

Caramel Apple Oat Frangipane Tart
one freshly baked nine inch pie crust
one can or jar dulce de leche
6 medium cooking apples, peeled and cut into eighths
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon water
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
one recipe oatmeal frangipane (see tomorrow's post)

Preheat oven to 320◦F.
Spread the dulce de leche over the crust bottom.
Place the apples, sugar, water and cinnamon in a wide pot. Bring to a simmer and cook until apples are just beginning to soften. They will continue to cook in the oven. Drain well.

Arrange the apples over the dulce de leche.
Spread with oatmeal frangipane.

Bake for about 40 minutes until frangipane is golden and set and a toothpick inserted in the frangipane comes out clean.

Serve hot, warm, cooled, or even cold. If reheated, the oven is much better used than the microwave.

Quick Apple Tarts For Two

The inspiration for this treat just came along one day while trying a rum. Though there was nothing wrong with the rum, it wasn't all that pleasant to drink straight. The flavor did, however; spark my imagination as to all the great thing sit could pear with. I found an apple in the fridge, cinnamon and almonds in the cupboard, and went to work. Rum in an apple tart with rum caramel sauce? One of the best ways to 'drink' some rum!

Quick Apple Tarts For Two
1/2 cup almonds
1 Tablespoon syrup (honey, maple, agave)
1 green apple, thinly sliced (I left the peel on)
rum of choice
ground cinnamon
rum caramel sauce (recipe to follow tomorrow)

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Grind the almonds in a small food processor. Add the syrup until it forms into a clump. Press this mixture into the bottom of two mini casserole dishes or ramekins. Bake while preparing the topping (until the crust is golden and firm).
Meanwhile, saute the apples in enough rum to cover, add cinnamon and cook until apples are just softened and some rum has evaporated. Arrange the apple slices artistically over the crust.
Drizzle with rum caramel sauce all over and serve immediately! 

Apple Pudding

Apple Pudding
6 large cooking apples, peeled and thinly sliced
ground cinnamon, to taste
1/4 cup butter or hard margarine, melted
1 large egg
1 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
1/2 cup granulated (white) sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 Tablespoon all-purpose (plain) flour
1 Tablespoon butter or hard margarine, melted
1 1/2 cups hot water

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Grease a 9x13 inch pan.
Spread the apples in the bottom of the pan and sprinkle liberally with cinnamon.
In a medium bowl, stir together the butter, egg, flour, sugar, and baking powder. Spread batter evenly over apples in pan.
In a separate small bowl, stir together the remaining ingredients. Pour over batter, do not stir.
Bake for 30-40 minutes until topping is cooked and apples are soft. Let stand for several minutes before serving and serve warm.

This is a fairly quick and easy fall dessert, snack food, or sweet breakfast dish that used some nice, fresh apples. It is something like apple slices in a caramel sauce topped with a cake-like batter, but really combines all in one to form a nice pudding. It is excellent warm from the oven and needs no more garnish. It may not look the prettiest, but you could dress it up with some nuts or a little ice cream or whipped cream. It is something like an apple jack, apple cobbler, apple crisp, or apple pan dowdy dish. 

Apple Almond Oatmeal

Apple Almond Oatmeal
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 medium apple, diced (peeled if desired)
2 Tablespoons whole natural almonds
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch ground cloves
1-2 teaspoons ground flaxseed
brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup, to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and microwave on HIGH (100%) power for 90 seconds until liquid is absorbed. Allow to set and enjoy!

Apples and almonds - what a classic combination! This bowl of oatmeal provides plenty of crunch, but the apple bakes up and becomes soft and sweet. It smells sort of like apple pie baking. A hearty balanced breakfast when served with a glass or milk or some yogurt. 

Dutch Doughnuts

Here are the Dutch Ollie Bollen our Dutch family traditionally makes every New Year's Eve. We have been making them for the past four years - ever since we got a deep-fryer. A better explanation of Ollie Bollen can be found in my past two posts: {2011} and {2012}.
We have tried plain Ollie Bollen, apple, raisin, raisin and apple, candied fruit, and chocolate chip. The conclusion? Plain are a bit too plain, apple adds a little moistness and flavor but still lacks a little, raisin are good, apple and raisin are better, candied fruit are good but very sticky, and chocolate chip are delicious but not ideal for doing large batches, as it is also messy. How do you like your Ollie Bollen?

Ollie Bollen 
1/4 cup warm water
1 1/2 Tablespoons granulated (white) sugar
1 package yeast
1 large egg, beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
raisins and/or diced, peeled apple (1-2 cups total) 
oil for deep-frying
icing sugar for dusting 

In a large bowl, stir together the water and sugar. Sprinkle yeast over top, let stand for ten minutes until frothy. Stir to dissolve. 
Beat in next seven ingredients. Allow dough to rise for an hour and a half until doubled in bulk. 
Heat oil to 375◦F. Drop dough by tablespoon into the oil. Cook until crispy, a few minutes per side. Drain on paper towels then coat in icing sugar. 

Autumn Muffins

These spicy, flavorful, moist muffins have some nice harvest flavors of apples, cranberries, dried fruit, nuts and spices. They are a different muffin but definitely delicious and certainly a nice flavor of fall. They may not look that presentable, but they certainly smell good during baking. 

Autumn Muffins
3 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
3/4 cup granulated (white) sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup melted butter or margarine
2 large eggs, beaten
1 1/4 cups milk
1 cup chopped, peeled apple
1 cup fresh, frozen, or dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped dried figs, dates, or raisins
3/4 cup chopped (toasted) nuts, optional

Preheat oven to 375◦F. Grease or line muffin cups.
In a large bowl, stir together the first nine dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add the butter, eggs, and milk. Stir in remaining ingredients. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Bake for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Apple Banana Muffins

Apples and bananas are likely two of the most common fruits. They seem to pair well together, so why not put them together in a muffin? These muffins are moist, with a subtle hint of cinnamon, and a nice texture from the addition of oats. Some chopped nuts or dried fruit would add a little extra. For a little extra flavor and sweetness, sprinkle the muffins with cinnamon sugar before baking.

Apple Banana Muffins
2 large, overripe bananas, mashed
1 large egg
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup oil
1 3/4 cups rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat or all-purpose (plain) flour
3/4 cup granulated (white) sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 medium apples, peeled and chopped

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Grease or line muffin cups.
In a large bowl, mix together the first four wet ingredients. Stir in the dry ingredients, then fold in the apples. Divide evenly among muffin cups.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Makes 12 muffins.

Mock Apple Pie

You will not believe this until you try it! It looks just like apple pie, it smells just like apple pie, and it even tastes just like apple pie, but it contains no apples! Instead, the "apple" mixture is soda crackers! I was skeptical too, so I just had to try it. The pie contains the usual apple pie flavors of lemon juice, cinnamon, and sugar, and the sugar caramelizes the crackers into a mixture that looks just like apple pie filling, if not a tad runnier and softer. Be sure to keep the cracker pieces fairly large, as in the size of apple slices. This recipe came from a mystery novel, entitled "Key Lime Pie Murder".

Mock Apple Pie
1 two layer, 9-inch pie crust
or one 9-inch pieshell plus enough dough for a crumble topping
FILLING
20 salted soda crackers, lightly buttered on one side
1 1/2 cups cold water
1 1/2 cups granulated (white) sugar
3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

Place pie dough in the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate. For most pie crusts, I recommend pre-baking it so it does not become soggy. I baked mine at 400◦F for 10 minutes, without weighing it.

Place crackers in a medium saucepan, and break them up into fairly large pieces with a spoon. Add remaining ingredients, stir well, then bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, then simmer for exactly two minutes. Pour into prepared pie shell. Top with another pie crust, cutting in vents to allow steam to escape, or crumble pie dough over top. Bake at 425◦F for about 20 minutes, until top crust is golden. Let cool slightly before serving. 

I don't care for traditional pie pastry, but a I wanted something that would be close, so I used an oil-based pastry recipe that I have used before. It is similar in taste and texture to traditional pie dough, just a little less flaky. It uses less fat, and is a lot easier to mix up. It doesn't have to be rolled, it can just be patted in the pan. I didn't bother with an entire top crust, just sprinkled on some extra pie dough as a crumble, which was nice and less work.

I made this pie ahead, then baked it when I was ready. I pre-baked the crust to avoid sogginess and made the filling, poured the filling in the hot crust, then let it cool before refrigerating it. The topping was crumbles on just before baking several hours later. This recipe worked well made in advance. 
Actually, my mother finished the pie for me, by putting the crumble on and baking it. She also buttered the crackers for me. It seems a bit tedious  but just remember that buttering 20 crackers is much less tedious than washing, peeling, coring, and chopping a bunch of apples. 

Fluke, Joanne. "Mock Apple Pie." Recipe. Key Lime Pie Murder, New York: Kensington, 2007. 112-113.

New Year's Ollie Bollen

I know I featured these last year as well, but the occasion for Ollie Bollen only comes around once a year, so I figured I would share them again! Besides, this is only our third year making them, and every year we are improving more and more and discovering different techniques that work better. Just as a brief recap, Ollie Bollen are deep fried Dutch fritters, literally translated as "oil balls", but commonly referred to as Dutch doughnuts. They are traditionally made and enjoyed once a year on New Year's Eve, and any leftovers (which doesn't always happen) are enjoyed for breakfast the next morning with a steaming cup of coffee. Ollie Bollen are best eaten fresh of course, but they do reheat fairly well the next day in the toaster oven. And of course, you cannot have Ollie Bollen that have not been sprinkled (or more commonly, drowned) in a layer of icing sugar.
My father is always the master of the Ollie Bollen dough and deep fryer at our house. This is likely because he grew up in the Dutch household and was already familiar with the process. I believe he uses a recipe that is a combination of a modern recipe we found in one of our breads cookbooks, and his mother's old recipe. Ollie Bollen are okay plain, but they taste better with some chopped apples or raisins and the best with both. We also tried chopped, mixed glazed fruit (leftover from Christmas), which was good but a tad sticky and messy in the deep-fryer. We have even tried adding miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips, but be advised that this turns the oil a little messy, so if you really want chocolate Ollie Bollen, wait until the end of the batch. They are quite tasty though!

Apple Jack

This is a nice fall apple recipe to make when you are looking for something a bit different than the typical apple crisp. This topping is more cake-like. This recipe is quick and easy, always a hit, and can easily be doubled. I bet it would  be good with other fruits too. It comes from Company's Coming "Desserts".

Apple Jack
6 large apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup granulated (white) sugar
ground cinnamon, to sprinkle
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons butter or hard margarine, melted
1/2 cup granulated (white) sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Lightly butter an 8x8 inch casserole dish.
Arrange apples in bottom of dish. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.
In a large bowl, mix the egg, butter, and sugar. Stir in milk. Add flour, baking powder, and salt, mix well. Spoon over apples. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm. Good with cream or ice cream.
Because I used a glass pan, I baked it at 325◦F. It took a bit longer to cook thoroughly.

Paré, Jean. "Apple Jack." Recipe. The Potato Book, Edmonton Alberta: Company's Coming Publishing Limited, 1989. 28.

Apple Crisp

Although Apple Crisp is generally thought of as a warming fall harvest dessert, it is just as good on cold winter nights, and even those nights leading up to spring that are still cold and snowy. In fact, often apple crisps are practical to make at this time of the year because most of our apple supply is the end of the bunch from the fall harvest. Therefore, instead of being in peak shape for eating right out of hand like in the fall, they are a lacking a little in quality and are better suited for dishes where you won't notice this. Apple crisp is a prime choice as the apples are cooked up with sugar and cinnamon into a sweet delicious sauce topped with an oatmeal crumble. Apple crisp is a delicious stand-by, and is excellent served alone, with ice cream, or with whipped cream, for dessert, snack, or even a divine breakfast!

Everyone has a slightly different recipe for apple crisp, and they swear by their own recipe. This recipe is the one my mother always uses, straight from her head. It consists of apples, sugar, cinnamon, oats, flour, brown sugar, and butter. Some people also like to add nuts, lemon juice, or other spices. Almost any type of apple can work in apple crisp, although some may yield slightly different levels of sweetness and textures, so adjust sugar levels and thickeners accordingly. Some apple crisps will turn out chunkier, and some smoother, almost like applesauce. If you use a combination of different types of apples, you can end up with a very nice texture and balance in sweetness and tartness.

Ollie-Bollen

Ollie-Bollen are deep-fried Dutch fritters traditionally made on New Year's Eve. There are several different spelling variations of the name, including Olie Bollen, Oliebollen and Oliebol, but they all refer to these delicious Dutch doughnuts. The literal translation of Ollie-Bollen is "oil balls" as they are deep fried. This doesn't make them sound very appealing, but they really are good, and don't turn out very greasy at all. Although they are referred to as doughnuts, Ollie-Bollen are closer in taste and texture to little fritters. They are made from a yeast dough enriched with flour, eggs, milk, salt, and vanilla. They are usually flavored with something too, commonly apples, raisins, citrus zest, or combinations of these; although we have also successfully made plain ones, a bit bland, but nothing a pile of icing sugar can't fix!  Ollie-Bollen  are dropped by teaspoons into hot oil and fried just until crispy and golden. Then they are drained and dunked in as much icing sugar as possible. It isn't considered Ollie-Bollen unless you can inhale icing sugar while biting into a fritter.

My father's family used to always make Ollie-Bollen on New Year's Eve, and we recently began continuing the tradition. The leftovers are commonly eaten for breakfast the next morning with a cup of coffee. Ollie-Bollen are said to have originally been in eaten in the Netherlands by Germanic tribes during the Yule period.

Ollie-Bollen are not particularly difficult to make, but they do take some practice, and you must be familiar with a deep fryer to make them. Although they can be fried in a pot of hot oil on the stove, this can be dangerous and is not recommended. Ollie-Bollen dough also requires some rising time, so plan ahead. You may find some fritters close to Ollie-Bollen in coffee shops, especially in Europe, but homemade are much better. Ollie-Bollen are nice and crisp on the outside and tender and flaky on the inside. They also have a nice flavor and a sweet coating. There is nothing like a fresh Ollie-Bollen on New Year's Eve!

Apple Oven Pancake

Tonight we had breakfast for supper. We love to do this; pancakes, pan-fried ham, French toast, sausage, waffles, scrambled eggs, these are all typical supper foods for us. 

Tonight I tried a new recipe for breakfast at supper: Apple Oven Pancake. The recipe is from the book "Essentials of Baking" which I find to be an excellent, all-inclusive, and very explanatory book that I refer to as my baking bible. The recipe states that this is a classic Dutch dish, a simple oven pancake that billows like a popover. It doesn't look like much in the picture, but it is an excellent dish. It has a nice balance of textures, from the crisp and flaky shell to the soft and fluffy inside pancake to the buttery softened apples. It is good enough on its own, but a drizzle of pure maple syrup or a dusting of icing sugar would make it even sweeter.

Apple Oven Pancake
4 Tbsp butter
4 cups diced peeled apples
2 Tbsp firmly packed golden brown sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon, strained
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp vanilla 
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 425◦F. Place a 9x13 inch baking dish in the oven to preheat for 5 minutes.
In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, melt 2 Tbsp butter. Add the apples and saute, turning as needed, just until tender, 5-7 minutes. Sprinkle with the sugar, juice, and cinnamon and stir to combine.
Add 2 Tbsp butter to the preheated baking dish and tilt to coat. Evenly spoon the sauteed apples into the bottom.
In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, flour, vanilla, and salt until blended. Carefully pour the batter over the hot fruit. Bake until puffed and golden brown, 20-25 minutes.

Williams and Sonoma. "Apple Oven Pancake." Recipe. Essentials of Baking, San Francisco: Oxmoor House, 2003. 101.

Apple Cinnamon Cake

Today I picked up some fresh apples from a nearby farmer's market. 

Coincidentally, a few days earlier I came across a recipe in the newspaper for a beautiful looking apple cake. 

When an article takes up almost a full page and is pictured five times, you know it has got to be good! So I was eager to try it.



Apple Cinnamon Cake
6 or 7 apples
half a lemon
3/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar, packed
3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp white sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish or line with parchment paper.
Wash apples well, but don't peel them (unless you really want to). Cut apples in quarters ad removes cores; thinly slice. Toss with the juice of half a lemon to keep apples from browning. Set aside.

Cream together butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. 
Whisk together milk, yogurt or sour cream, and vanilla in a measuring cup. 
In another bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder.
Now mix half flour mixture into butter mixture, followed by half milk mixture, repeat.
Beat just until everything is incorporated; don't overmix. Now fold in half the sliced apples; spread batter into prepared pan. Arrange remaining apple slices in neat rows over the batter (or scatter them haphazardly over top).
Mix together white sugar and cinnamon, sprinkle evenly over top.
Bake 30-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.


The article states this is a moist cake that does not need any dressing up, although whipped cream or maple walnut ice cream are both good accompaniments. It also says the cake is best served warm, just 20 minutes after baking, but leftovers are great for breakfast and school lunches. 

A few changes I made. I didn't have a lemon or lemon juice, so I just used a little apple juice to keep the apples from turning brown - more apple flavour! I didn't have any sour cream either, and the only yogurt I had was flavoured, so I just whipped up a half cup of thick, homemade buttermilk and used that instead. I just used a bit less than the 1/2 cup milk called for to compensate the liquids. Also, since I used a glass cake pan, I lowered the oven temperature to 325◦F, which resulted in a cooking time of 40 minutes.

The cake turned out very good, with a nice and tender, moist crumb. A few things I would do differently next time I make it is to chop the apples that go into the batter instead of slicing them, that way the apples will be softer and you will get a piece of apple with each bite. I would also add some cinnamon and maybe a pinch of ginger to the batter as well, to give it a little boost. Other than that, this cake was absolutely delicious!