Mock Apple Pie or Crunch

It starts with a zucchini squash that got to big and ends up as a delicious desert that is worth the labor and all the steps.  (mock apple on the left, normal sized zucchini on the right - both picked from my garden the same day)

Mock Apple Crunch or Pie

Obviously, this is the crunch version.  

The pie version is simple as well and a breeze if you are a great pie crust maker.  I have tried making it a pie with the crunch topping, but my store-bought pie crusts tend to burn.  I am not a pie crust maker.  I am a pie eater though.  But since I have to make this from start to finish I go the crunch version.  

NOTE:  The crunch can be frozen for a delicious desert at Thanksgiving time with a change in the cooking schedule because obviously, you don't want mushy crunch.  If you want to freeze this, utilize a foil pan and wait to do the last cooking step with the addition of crunch until the day you are ready to serve it.  You will want it to be thawed out but really the last 40 minutes with the crunch topping freshly placed is the perfect end to a beautiful meal of turkey leftovers.

INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED:

Overly large zucchini or yellow squash, 1 per dish.

brown sugar

white sugar

cinnamon

cream of tartar

cornstarch

quick oats

flour

finely chopped walnuts

1 1/2 sticks of butter or margarine

cool whip, vanilla ice cream or heavy cream (half & half)

You start with your overgrown zucchini or yellow squash.  One is all you need for a pie or 8x10 or 9x9 pan for the crunch.  You will want a baking dish that is deep to keep things from bubbling over.  Fill a small stock pot with water and set it on the stove.  It needs to be a rolling boil by the time you dump the mock apple slices into the water.  Medium-high should be enough time.

Next you peel the zucchini.  If you have food grade gloves for one hand, I suggest using that to keep your hand free of squash skin and slippery zucchini syndrome.  Peel the zucchini and then cut off both ends.

Next, you want to slice the zucchini in half length-wise and "core" the seeds and soft stuff around them out.  You will end up having 2 small "boats" that look like hand hollowed out canoes that have no seeds left inside of them.

I used my glove at this point to hold the zucchini because this is where you really get the squash skin and slipperiness.  But it can happen early on as well which is why I suggest putting it on the hand the does the holding of the squash.

Then you take each half and slice it to make apple slices about 1/4 inch thick.  Obviously my sliced apple I was having for my breakfast while I did this was not cut that thin but I put it there for size reference.

Now they are ready for the boiling water.  You will want to boil them for approximately 7 minutes, over boil them and you have apple sauce squishy squash.  Drain them into a colander and immediately rinse them with cold running water.  Shake in the colander to get as much of the water off as possible.  Dump into a mixing bowl.  I just used the one I had them in after slicing.

Now for the recipe part.  Before was all the getting your mock apple slices prepared.

Preheat your oven to 475 degrees.  Yes that is right, this was not a typo.  475 degrees.  Best to turn it on when you put the zucchini slices in the water because you are going to need the time to get it up to temperature.

Mix in a bowl the following:

2/3 C brown sugar

1/3 C white granulated sugar

1 1/2 tsp of cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar

2 tbsp of corn starch

Toss with cooked squash until well coated.

Grease your baking dish or pie pan.  Place the squash/sugar mixture into the greased pan.  Dot with butter or margarine and sprinkle with white vinegar (approx 2 tbsp).  I generally pour the vinegar into my cupped hand and then shake it slowly through my fingers as I open my hand.  It gives a more even coverage of the vinegar sprinkle instead of using a tbsp measuring spoon.  So the hand method of measuring is 2 small handfuls.

Bake in oven for 12 minutes and then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake another 35 minutes.  Now is the time to assemble your crunch topping.  Get your dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them well before you add the melted butter/margarine.

CRUNCH TOPPING:

1/2 c brown sugar

1 1/2 c quick oats

1/3 c flour

1/2 c chopped walnuts

1 stick margarine/butter melted

Mix well

Pull out baking dish and add crunch topping to it.  Place back in oven, increase temp to 375 degrees and bake for 40 minutes or until bubbly and brown.

Remove, cool slightly before serving with vanilla ice cream, cool whip, or, my personal favorite, in a bowl with half and half cream.  

You can thank me later when your house smells AMAZING!!!!  It is also a great way to get kids and husbands to eat their veggies, especially squash.  Don't tell them what the apples are made of. 😍

Pie instructions:

Same as above except use a deep pie plate greased, crust on bottom, fill with squash/sugar mixture, dot with margarine/butter and sprinkle with vinegar (just as above).  Top with crust, slits for steam to escape.  Bake the 12 minutes at 475, then reduce heat to 350 and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes.  Watch your crust edges and cover with foil to keep from burning.

#mockapplecrunch

PINK PUMPKIN MEMORIALS

Pink Pumpkin Memorials for Breast Cancer Survivors and in memory of those who have lost the battle!

This year I am trying something new, I would like to dedicate a pink pumpkin for those who have fought breast cancer, whether they have won the battle or lost the battle.

For every memorial donation to my BCRF fundraising page, I will assign a pink pumpkin with the information provided (First name of Survivor, location, years cancer free or year the battle was lost) on a tag and place it with the pumpkin.

I will be posting the memorial pumpkins here on the page, but am also working on getting them a public recognition place where they can be viewed. I will also send you a picture of your memorial pumpkin if you provide your mailing address but will make the pictures public if you choose to save a copy of it for yourself.

If you have a loved one who lost a battle with another cancer, I have flat stackers and baby boos that can also be part of the memorial pumpkin display.

Message me for more details.

Here is the link to make your memorial donation: http://www.stayclassy.org/nancyspinkpumpkins

Pumpkins & Potions

A new endeavor of mine is making skin creams/balms for a variety of ailments.  It started out finding something for my own perpetually dry skin, diabetic neuropathy pain, lack of healing and it has grown from there.  Everytime I make a batch of "potion" for whatever I need it makes a significant amount.  Then I am pressed to figure out how to store it and how to use it all.  So I started making it available for sale, just trying to get my surplus down to a manageable level.  Amazingly, it has taken off and is being used in ways I could have never imagined.

So I started setting up at a local monthly flea market.  From there I have gotten a lot of new customers.  I have shipped as far west as San Diego, CA and the Puget Sound area in the Pacific Northwest, and as far east as Akron, OH.

Even more amazing is new ways people are finding to use these potions, especially Pain Potion #9.  It has been used on neuropathy pain, insect bites, scalding water burns, adult acne breakouts, unhealing skin sores, shingles, psoriasis, surgical incisional pain, cancer pain, migraine headaches, tension headaches, sunburns, and probably some I am not aware of.

Cowgirl Lessons - March calving season

I am so over losing baby calves to this crazy winter.  I also hate when my husband brings in a newborn calf all wet and cold in its birthday suit.  No blanket, no toweling off.  He has no mothering instinct and he has been doing this way longer than I have been around.

We had a blizzard blow through last night.  A bomb cyclone they called it and I have been out today in the aftermath, more than ever before, bringing in 3 newborns in the back of a mule to the warming box.

Each time I had a blanket to wrap them up in so they weren't shivering and the last time out I even took off one of my sweatshirt jackets and braved the cold myself to wrap it up so it could get drying off.   Running calf bus with more than one passenger is quite the challenge.  A bigger challenge is unloading a calf from the back of the mule 4x4 all by myself and getting it into the shed where the warming box is located.  I definitely do not know the proper way to carry one of these not so little ones.

None of the calves that I have wrapped up and started drying off have died in the warming box.  Maybe it is the mothering instinct I have in me to preserve life and get the baby the best start to life.  The first one (323) has already gone back to momma and was all dry, warm and fluffy.  Baby #2 (161) is in the warming box and baby #3 (???) got to stay out with mom but is in a temporary shed where it is dry and out of the cold wind.

Of course, all my clothes are now in the laundry because baby slime gets on everything.

Baking 101

I recently attempted homemade bread using my mother-in-laws fail safe recipe that she uses constantly.  She says she mixes it up in the bread machine sometimes and sometimes she uses her mixer, just depends on how many batches she is making. . . . .so I thought, okay I can do this with the bread machine and make some homemade wheat bread just like mom-in-law does.

I very carefully followed the directions after going to the grocery store to get a few things I didn't have.  I was so excited when the dough about pushed the door up it was so raised up.  I didn't even really let it raise in the pan other than until the oven was warmed up.

Great now I have 2 loaves stacked on top of each other.  Guess I should have split it and put it in 2 pans.

Great, so lets try again, first time worked out so well.  I followed the instructions and did everything exactly the same, except I managed to get out of bed when my alarm went off instead of turning it off and turning over until I woke up an hour later.  

So this monstrosity is what came out of the bread machine.  I left it to raise thinking it just needed a little more time.  FAIL!!!!

Right? Not even close.  Ok, so maybe if I put it in the bread pan and bake it, then it will raise some in the oven.  NOPE, this is what it looked like afterwards (see above.  BAKING FAILURE!!!  Needless to say, the dogs got a not so yummy treat and the rest went somewhere for the coyotes.

 Do I dare try a third time?  I decided to give it another try.  This time, I did not use my bread machine for the mixing and raising part.  I used my Kitchenaide Mixer with the dough hook and my mom on the phone cheering me on and providing some encouragement and tips.  So when I took it out of the mixer to raise I had a nice dough ball.

 After the proper baking time I had 2 nice smaller loaves of bread that I had split 2/3 in the big pan and 1/3 in a smaller pan.

But as you can see, this method was successful.  I was so excited I cut the smaller loaf before it was even cooled off so I could give it a taste test with some good old fashion butter on the bread.  I do say, it was quite tasty and I will try to make more next week.

Do I use the Mixer or the Bread machine?  Cast your vote in the comment section!  Thanks for laughing right along with me!