Embarrassingly Easy Apple Turnovers

Ridiculously, embarrassingly easy Apple Turnovers

It's officially Fall, with bright leaves, cool air, and rain.  This prompts my urge to bake things.  It's a mixed blessing, because I would much rather try my hand at some odd confection at the spur of the moment than make a meal that will feed my family.  Or I get the urge, as I did last night, to make "something to do with apples" after 9 PM.

So, without a real plan, I started peeling and slicing 2 Granny Smith apples, while helping Lizzie finish her bedtime snack.  Then I dug out some rock-hard raisins and added them to the bowl of apples.  Then I threw them in a small saucepan, and gave Lizzie her toothbrush.  It needed a little liquid--apple juice.  Probably a quarter cup.  And some spices.  Cinnamon.  A tiny shake of cloves.  It smelled too much like apple sauce, so in goes a couple heaping spoonfuls of brown sugar.  I turned on the heat, stirred it so the raisins were in the juice, and put Liz to bed. I kept it low, and stirred a few more times, until the apples were pretty tender - starting to look slightly transparent.  I added a spoonful of cornstarch because it seemed a little too runny.  Stirred and cooked some more.

Apple Turnover Filling

When the apples were done, I poured them into a bowl in the fridge because it was late and I didn't know what else to do with them.  Then I browsed cookbooks for things to put apple into.  I didn't have enough apples to make a pie, so I had to adapt everything.  Fortunately, I had a prepared pie crust in the refrigerator, awaiting some noble purpose. I found it.

This morning a 2 year old jumped on me and demanded that I "det up" and "pum" with her into the "yiving woom."  Since I was up, and in the living room, and the coffee was starting, I decided it was time to finish my apple experiment.

I pulled the pie crust out of the fridge and tended to diapers and coffee while it softened on the counter.  I preheated the oven to 425 F, and laid out a couple sheets of waxed paper and unrolled the pie crust.  Then I cut it into 4 equal quarters, and spread a dollop of apple stuff in the middle of each quarter.  I beat an egg and brushed it onto one straight edge and half the curved edge of the pie crust, then folded one side over the apple, and used the prongs of a fork to seal the crust edges together with the egg wash.  Once they were all folded over and closed up, I brushed them with the egg, then sprinkled them with a pinch of white sugar and a dash of cinnamon, to make them look perty.  I slid them onto an ungreased cookie sheet and into the oven they went, for almost 15 minutes, until they just started to get browned.  Then I turned the oven down to 350 F and baked them for just another 10 minutes, until they were golden and crispy.

 

Breakfast?  Works for me.

Isn't that easy?  Way too easy.  And it is completely delicious.

Adapted from the Joy of Cooking, here is a ridiculously easy Apple Turnover recipe:

(measurements are approximate)

2 baking apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
1/4 c raisins
2 to 4 Tbsp apple juice (could use any fruit juice or water)
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch cloves
1/2 to 1 tsp corn starch
2 prepared pie crusts
1 egg, beaten in small bowl
(additional sugar & cinnamon, optional)

Combine everything but corn starch, pie crusts, and egg in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Bring juice to a boil, then simmer until apples are tender and raisins are plump.  About 10-20 min.
Add corn starch, stir until dissolved.
Let apple filling cool.
Unroll pie crusts and cut into quarters.  Place a large spoonful of filling onto each crust quarter, then brush 1/2" with egg wash, and fold over, sealing crust by pressing edges with the tines of a fork.
Brush egg wash over the top of the turnovers.  Sprinkle with a pinch of sugar and cinnamon, and place on an ungreased baking sheet at least 1" apart.
Bake at 425F for 12-15 min, until slightly browned.  Reduce heat to 350F and continue to bake until turnovers are browned and crisp.
Remove from oven and serve warm.  Ice cream wouldn't hurt.


(linked to WFMW here)

Washing Kiddy Straws in the Dishwasher {WFMW}

I'm a lazy homemaker.  Really.  So when it comes to washing some things, like picky little straws that come with toddler cups, you can bet I am not going to break out the pipe cleaners. A good rinse is not sufficient when you have a sick little kiddo.  Or when you didn't realize there was a sippy cup half filled with milk under the piano bench for 2 days. 

 

No, no, that is no good.  I must figure out a way to put them in the dishwasher.  But they fall through the holes. And those crazy bottle/nipple/straw/ baby silverware contraptions are nice in theory, but not worth their space for 2 or 3 puny straws.  And dishwasher real estate is priceless:  I will put more effort into rearranging cups and bowls to make them all fit than it would ever take to just wash them by hand. 

So, here is my solution, and it works quite well.

Wrap a rubber band around at least 2 straws.  You have to wrap it around multiple times, and get around each straw individually at least once.  You don't want to have to fish one of them out because it fell through the silverware during the rinse cycle.

Then, drop 'em in with the silverware.

 

They come out clean and sterilized.  Can it get any easier?  I think not.  That's why it works for me! 
(I also learned that if you have only one straw to wash, you can band it to a knife.  Works just as well.)

Sneaking

Do you have to hide your junk food from your children, too?

Disguised as coffee.  One day she will catch on.  Until then, it's all mine!

Morning Psalms

I have to wonder how those who hold to the belief that one's personal quiet time should be done first thing in the morning don't "backslide" terribly during the infant and toddler stages of motherhood.  Or maybe they just don't have kids.  Having someone in your family who wakes with--or before--the dawn and demands your undivided attention does not typically make for a peaceful and quiet time of early morning communion with your Creator.  Or maybe it's just me.

Truthfully, I have had about 3 mornings in the past 4 months in which I awoke before my daughter and managed to engage in a prayerful and healthy devotional time.  Now that Sam is working and has to be out the door early, and now that I am able to drink coffee again, and now that I am able to make it through my morning without being sick, my mornings have become much more pleasant.  Beautiful, even.

As I've dealt with this reality, I've also been wondering about and praying for a way to incorporate the Word of God into my daily routine in a way that includes my daughter.  She knows what the Bible is (Duh, it's a book that is very big, and covered in leather, with shiny page edges), and she was taught at a very young age the parlor trick of throwing her hands up in the air when we say, "Praise the Lord!"  She has her own board book of "Baby's First Bible" and she points out Jesus.  And the kitten and puppy who are on almost every page.  She often wants to pack her Bible with us in the diaper bag when we go to church.


For a little while, and not with incredible consistency, I have been reading one psalm aloud to my 19-month-old at breakfast.  She loves to hear words she recognizes:  high, strong, house, sky, face, horses, clap, and praise the Lord! 


It is really the most fun I've had reading the Word in a long time.  We laugh and clap and use hand gestures.  It is a very small practice, but if it were more elaborate, there's no way I would be able to keep it up.  Some days, this is pretty much the extent of my spiritual depth.  As it is, it is approachable, it is doable, and it is a lot of fun!


Usually I have to stop every few words to help her with her breakfast.  Yes, it takes us at least 10 minutes to read through about 20 sentences.  But it works for us right now, and it's so worth it.

Make Your Squash Sit Up Straight - Baked Acorn Squash

I recently baked Acorn Squash, using a recipe much like this one from Simply Recipes.  They're all basically the same, and they are always the best if they have brown sugar and butter in them.  I mean, really, isn't everything?

Unless you are extremely skilled at cutting the squash perfectly, it is a little bit tricky to make them sit upright and hold all the buttery sugary goodness in the hollowed out center.  All of my anal retentive friends out there will appreciate that I have found an extremely simple and cheap way to make the acorn squash halves sit perfectly straight and upright.

See the sad crooked squash half

Rip off a section of foil, and crumple it loosely

Wrap foil into a loose doughnut

See the happy squash half, ready to be filled with sugar and butter!

Find more tips and recipes at We Are THAT Family's carnival Works For Me Wednesday!

Life's Simple Pleasures - Afternoon Coffee

Light blue feathers of flame in the gas range.

The tarnished and warm and well-loved kettle
rumbling with near-boiling water.
(No percolator for me; it has been banished to the garage for being dank and difficult to clean.)

The long 5-minute wait for the coffee to steep in the French Press.



Foaming hot coffee poured into a colorful mug,
a gift from my thoughtful young friend.

All these pieces culminate in afternoon coffee;
Sometimes a simple necessity to make my afternoon work for me;
it's also a simple pleasure.

Bibs

I just realized that we gave Lizzie her first bites of solid food A YEAR AGO.

It gave me a scare for a moment not unlike the moments in which you realize you can measure your life in DECADES.

We've come a long way. The first thing she ate was avocado. She loved it.

These days, Liz will eat almost anything except for avocado. The texture gets to her. I guess it reminds her of baby food. And she is such a big girl that she wants nothing to do with baby food.

Now she eats green beans. Whole. Frozen--especially when she's teething.

(Speaking of teething, we are almost done. Praise Jesus! The last incisor is through and is working its way into its position. Oh, the relief!)

Ever since teething began, along with the buckets of drool, bibs have been part of our daily routine.

Until recently, they have been wadded in one of the few drawers in the kitchen. The same drawer that holds the hot pads and towels and cloth napkins. And it's pretty small. You know how it is trying to cram too many things into one small drawer. It was frustrating, so I began not putting them away. That never helps the frustration level go down, because then they're just out where they don't belong.

Here is my solution:

This picture only shows two bibs hanging, for clarity's sake. Normally there are about a dozen. And the way this kid eats, we go through that many between laundry days.

They are now hanging on the wire shelving behind the door of the pantry. The bibs that clasp are wrapped around the wire.
The bibs that don't clasp--the kind you have to pull over the head like a t-shirt--are looped through a plastic link.

This has solved the bib problem!

Since I'm talking about bibs, and mentioned laundry, I also realized that bibs should be washed inside mesh lingerie bags. Even if you close all the Velcro tabs before you throw them in, there is no guarantee they won't catch on something you really didn't want to have frayed.

I'm giving the "Works for Me Wednesday" link up a whirl. Because I believe this will help more than just me.

So far I have linked up with 3 different sites this week. It is so much fun to meet new people through these sites. I don't know why I haven't tried to do this before!