Strawberry Pie

My dad is famous in our family for making delicious strawberry pie.  I love strawberry pie.  We have a grocery store nearby called California Farmers Market.  Every time I shop there I can't help but ask myself does this store even at all remind me of California?  Not really, but it is cool to buy produce grown in California.  One of my favorite finds at this store are the strawberries.  New York City is not known for good produce, in fact it is difficult to find certain produce that tastes good, one of those items is strawberry's.  California Farmers Market has the ripest sweetest strawberries.  I bought the strawberries and made my daughters promise, cross their heart and hope to die promise, they would not eat any of these strawberries.  Thankfully they didn't eat the strawberries, and I made a pie with them. My pie is not like my dad's.  I made the crust using my graham cracker recipe that I already shared with you, and I didn't use Junket filling like my dad.  I made my own.  I brought the pie I made to my husbands work and everyone loved it, so I figure that means it is blog worthy.

 I love the glistening strawberry's and yes the crust was so very yummy.

Ingredients for Graham Cracker Crust:

1 1/2 cups Oat Flour
1 1/2 cups Spelt Flour
2/3 cup Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Molasses
3 tablespoons Raw Honey
2/3 cup Turbinado Sugar

 Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit.

 Mix dry ingredients in a bowl: flours, cinnamon, turbinado sugar, sea salt, and baking soda.

 Add coconut oil, molasses, and honey.  Using your hands mix together until combined.

Press dough into a 9 inch by 2 inch tart pan.  I use a tart pan because it is easier to cut and serve the pie slices.  Freeze pie crust for 15 minutes.

Bake pie crust for 10 minutes.

Ingredients for Strawberry Pie:

4 lbs. Strawberry's
1/2 cup Cane Sugar
1 1/2 cups Water
1/2 cup Tapioca Flour
1 Pre-baked Graham Cracker Crust

Clean 1 lb. of strawberry's.  Remove green stems and put in a small sauce pan with water and sugar.  

Cook over a medium flame until boiling.

Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes.

Remove pan from heat and using a potato masher, mash the strawberry's.

Strain the strawberry's into a bowl and return strained strawberry juice to small saucepan.

Cook strawberry juice over medium heat.

Slowly sprinkle in tapioca flour while whisking.

After adding all the flour turn of heat.

Clean remaining 3 lbs. of strawberry's, remove stems and cut in half.

Place strawberry's in pie crust.

Pour strawberry filling over fruit.  

Allow pie to cool and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving

Enjoy!

Strawberry Pie

Printable Recipe Found Here

Ingredients for Graham Cracker Crust:

1 1/2 cups Oat Flour
1 1/2 cups Spelt Flour
2/3 cup Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Molasses
3 tablespoons Raw Honey
2/3 cup Turbinado Sugar

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit.

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl: flours, cinnamon, turbinado sugar, sea salt, and baking soda.

Add coconut oil, molasses, and honey.  Using your hands mix together until combined.

Press dough into a 9 inch by 2 inch tart pan.  I use a tart pan because it is easier to cut and serve the pie slices.  Freeze pie crust for 15 minutes.

Bake pie crust for 10 minutes.

Ingredients for Strawberry Pie:

4 lbs. Strawberry's

1/2 cup Cane Sugar

1 1/2 cups Water

1/2 cup Tapioca Flour

1 Pre-baked Graham Cracker Crust

Clean 1 lb. of strawberry's, remove green stems and put in a small sauce pan with water and sugar.  

Cooker a medium flame until boiling.

Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes.

Remove pan from heat and using a potato masher, mash the strawberry's.

Strain the strawberry's into a bowl and return strained strawberry juice to small saucepan.

Cook strawberry juice over medium heat.

Slowly sprinkle in tapioca flour while whisking.

After adding all the flour turn of heat.

Clean remaining 3 lbs. of strawberry's, remove stems and cut in half.

Place strawberry's in pie crust.

Pour strawberry filling over fruit.  

Allow pie to cool and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Enjoy!

Graham Crackers

My daughter's and I are part of a Girl Scout troop nearby, and while at a meeting a few weeks ago I somehow ended up volunteering to teach the Girl Scouts how to make homemade graham crackers and marshmallows for S'mores.  The S'mores were to be desert at an Educator Appreciation lunch our troop was hosting.  This recipe is my take on graham crackers, since I don't have Graham flour.  Food fact for you, Graham Crackers were invented by Presbyterian Minister Sylvester Graham in 1829.  He believed that his parishioners should be eating less processed foods, and more whole grains in order to better serve God. For more information you can read about the invention of graham crackers here. Another interesting tidbit about graham flour and why it is not the same as whole wheat flour:  "The endosperm is ground finely, initially creating a fresh unbleached yellowish-white flour. The bran and germ are ground coarsely. The two parts are then recombined, creating a coarse-textured flour that bakes and keeps well." (reference found here).  FYI what I volunteered for was to make homemade S'mores for possibly 200 people, homemade graham crackers and marshmallows for that many people is a daunting task.  Just so you know I did make over 200 graham crackers to serve as part of the S'mores.  

 These are what graham crackers should taste like by the way.

Ingredients for this Recipe Are:

1 1/2 cups Oat Flour
1 1/2 cups Spelt Flour
1 cup Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Molasses
3 tablespoons Raw Honey
2/3 cup Turbinado Sugar

Mix all the dry ingredients together: flours, salt, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon and salt  in a 
large bowl with a spoon.

 Add wet ingredients: honey, molasses, coconut oil, and honey.

 Using your hands or a mixer mix together until it comes together.

Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit

Divide dough in half and roll flat between two sheets of parchment paper until it is 1/4 inch thick.

Cut dough into desired rectangles or squares.  

 Using a fork poke crackers three times.

Move paper and dough to a cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes.  

After removing crackers to counter, cut squares/rectangle again.

Enjoy!

Graham Crackers

Printable Recipe Found Here

1 1/2 cups Oat Flour

1 1/2 cups Spelt Flour

1 cup Coconut Oil

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1 tablespoon Molasses

3 tablespoons Honey

2/3 cup Turbinado Sugar

Mix all the dry ingredients together: flours, salt, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon and salt  in a large bowl with a spoon.

Add wet ingredients: honey, molasses, coconut oil, and honey.

Using your hands or a mixer mix together until it comes together.

Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit

Divide dough in half and roll flat between two sheets of parchment paper until it is 1/4 inch thick.

Cut dough into desired rectangles or squares.  

Using a fork poke crackers three times.

Move paper and dough to a cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes.  

After removing crackers to counter, cut squares/rectangle again.

Enjoy!

Spelt & Tipo 00 Pizza Dough

I have been working on a good pizza dough recipe that includes Spelt, but isn't heavy, and still has the chewy texture of a good New York pizza.  Last week I tried a new combination of Spelt and Tipo 00 flours.  Tonight I mad the dough again and I think I found the right combination.  The pizza was amazing!

 This was a wonderful dough.  It makes great pizza.

Ingredients for this recipe are:

2 3/4 cups Lukewarm Water (microwave for 45 seconds)

1 1/2 tablespoons Instant Yeast

1 1/2 tablespoons Salt

1 tablespoon Honey

1/4 cup Olive Oil

3 cups Spelt Flour

4 1/2  cups Tipo 00 Flour

Mix all ingredients together in bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook on low until combined, 
then increase speed to medium and mix for 5 minutes.

Place dough in oiled 6 quart lidded container.  Allow to rest on counter for 2 hours before 
making into pizza.  

Dough will keep in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

This recipe makes 3 lbs. of dough.

Use 1/2 lb. of dough to make a 12 inch pizza.

Enjoy!

Spelt & Tipo 00 Pizza Dough

Printable recipe Found Here

2 3/4 cups Lukewarm Water (microwave for 45 seconds)

1 1/2 tablespoons Instant Yeast

1 1/2 tablespoons Salt

1 tablespoon Honey

1/4 cup Olive Oil

3 cups Spelt Flour

4 1/2  cups Tipo 00 Flour

Mix all ingredients together in bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook on low until combined, then increase speed to medium and mix for 5 minutes.

Place dough in oiled 6 quart lidded container.  Allow to rest on counter for 2 hours before making into pizza.  

Dough will keep in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

This recipe makes 3 lbs. of dough.

Use 1/2 lb. of dough to make a 12 inch pizza.

Enjoy!

Cornbread

I'm making chili for dinner.   See the next post for the recipe.  My husband always reminds me that if I'm going to make chili, I must also make cornbread.  Our church has a chili cook-off every year around Halloween, and what I have noticed is that very few people bring cornbread and it is gone far quicker than the chili.  My point is cornbread should be with chili.  You know the saying (using your best hillbilly accent) "Cornbread and chili," they are synonymous with each other, they go together like Lavern and Shirley, milk and cereal.  I like cornbread, it can be tricky though.  Making cornbread that is moist and flavorful is hard.  Tonight's cornbread recipe was born out of my pantry using what I had to work with, and even with that history it turned out well.

Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit

 Cornbread and chili, did you say it with the accent?  I did.

 Ingredients for this recipe are: 2 cups white or yellow cornmeal (I had white on hand), 2 cups self-rising flour, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 1/2 cups milk (next time I'll use my homemade cultured buttermilk, mine wasn't ready yet, recipe found here), 3/4 cups honey (I used raw).

 Pour or put all ingredients in mixer bowl.

 Mix with whisk attachment until thoroughly mixed, let rest until oven is preheated.

 Evenly divide between two cake pans, or pour into a 9x13 pan.

 Bake for 30-35 minutes.  Remove from pans, allow to cool then cut.

Cornbread and chili, another chance to say with an accent.  Silly people.

Enjoy!

Pear Ginger Honey Popovers

Yes the popovers I made were not your average popovers, and the post title is a mouth full.  This morning I had to make breakfast for my children.  They love popovers.  Popovers are very easy to make and fast too.  I learned about popovers a few years ago while watching a cooking show and have fallen in love with them.   So have my children.  Yesterday morning I created a popover with fruit to take to a women's social for church.  This morning I made them again so I could share the recipe.  

 Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

 

 Fruity popover goodness.

 Ingredients for this recipe are: 1 cup all purpose flour, 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 cup milk
(warmed in microwave for 30 seconds), 1 large pear, 1 inch piece of ginger,
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 tablespoon butter.

 Blend eggs until light yellow, either in a blender or with an immersion blender. 

 Add milk, salt, and flour and blend till smooth.

 Peel the pear and finely dice it.  Peel  the ginger or scrape outside of ginger with spoon.
Grate the ginger either with a Microplane, ginger grater, or finely dice.

 

Saute pear, ginger, 1 tablespoon honey, and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice in a small saute pan 

until pear is slightly soft.

Fill a 1 1/2 ounce ladle with batter and pour into a standard muffin pan. I doubled the recipe.  Expect to use one 12 cup muffin pan.  Put one tablespoon of pears in each muffin cup.  Bake in the middle of the oven for 30-35 minutes, when they are golden brown.  Remove from oven and pop out of the pan.

Enjoy!

Stephanie's Food For Thought: Raw Honey

I have a son and daughter who love honey, again my mind said how can I make a change to our honey?  I wanted my children to have the healthiest version of foods they love.  I looked into raw honey and this is what I found, Dr. Oz on his site says "Many naturopaths and nutrition experts (myself included) suggest choosing raw honey for optimal health and beauty benefits. Raw honey is never strained, filtered or heated. Research suggests it’s loaded with many trace minerals, organic enzymes, antioxidants, plus antibacterial and anti-fungal properties that make it a powerful package of health. Its rich origins mean that it’s loaded with more interesting taste and flavor."  You can find what he wrote here.  Keep in mind raw honey should not be given to children under one year old. 

Caution: The American Academy of Pediatrics advises that children age 1 and under should not be given honey whatsoever, as it can potentially carry spores of the toxin Clostridium botulinum, raising the risk of infantile botulism.

I buy my raw honey in bulk, the picture above is the raw honey I buy from here.  Is it cheaper, no but we don't use it all that often.

Spelt Pita Bread

I wanted a chicken gyro for dinner tonight so I set to work to make pita bread.  This recipe is one I found online and changed a little to use spelt instead.

Homemade pita bread, lets make some together.

 Ingredients for this recipe are: 1 tablespoon honey (I used raw), 1 1/2 cups warm water, 1/4 cup
olive oil, 2 1/2 teaspoons vital wheat gluten, 1 teaspoon Kosher salt, 2 1/2 cups spelt flour,
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast.

 Bloom the yeast in 1/2 cup warm water, and 1 tablespoon honey.  Look how happy and foamy that yeast is.

 Add the remaining 1 cup warm water, yeast mixture, salt, and olive oil into a mixing bowl.  I mixed these ingredients in a stand mixer.

 Add flour and mix some more with a dough hook until dough forms a ball.

 Put dough on lightly floured surface and knead in flour until it isn't sticky.  Round the dough, pulling
it on itself to form a skin and place in an oiled bowl covered in plastic wrap.  Putting the bowl on a heating pad set to medium will help the dough rise, my kitchen is cold so this step helps. Let the
dough rise for an hour or until doubled.

 The dough has doubled in size and is ready to be used.

 I weighed my dough and it is 818 grams.  I divided this by 12 and it divided the dough into balls.

 My divided dough is ready.

 Flatten the dough and place on parchment paper and let rest for 30 minutes.

 Set your oven temperature to 500 Fahrenheit.  When the oven is ready place the pita on the wire
 rack and cook for 2 minutes or until it bubbles up and flip over for another minute of cooking.

 Voila, we have pita bread fresh from the oven.

We ate our with my homemade Tzaziki sauce, sliced cucumbers, sliced red bell pepper, spinach,
Feta cheese, and shredded rotisserie chicken.

Enjoy!