Weekend Cooking - Applesauce

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.


This week I'm going to share a recipe on how to make applesauce.  I'm sure there are a ton floating around on the internet, but this one is from my Grandma and she has been making it for years.  She's been making it so long, she can't even remember who taught her the recipe.   In fact, she doesn't even have the recipe written down. She just adds a little of this, a little of that, a little more of this, etc. This does not make it easy for somebody like me who has no cooking skills and needs specific amounts. haha!   My sister tries to make it every year but it never turns out as good as when my Grandma makes it (or so she says..I've never had hers), so yesterday we went to my Grandma's house and made applesauce and I wrote down what she did.   Ok, I admit, I didn't make the applesauce, I took pictures and played with my nephew.  However I checked in on the progress and helped with dinner (even if it was just making garlic bread).


Applesauce
10 apples
1/4 cup water - or more
1 cup sugar
Cinnamon - to taste
3 tbsp butter


Peel and cut the apples.  Don't make the apple pieces too small though.

Put apples in a big pan on the stove, add roughly 1/4 cup water.   If your apples are really juicy you won't have to add more water, but as you cook if you think more water is needed, add it.   Cook apples on medium heat.

Once the apples are soft, keep them on the stove and mash them.   For ours, it took about 30 min to get soft. Mash as much or as little as you want. It just depends on if you want a lot of apple chunks or if you want it smoother.

While you are mashing the applies, add the sugar a little at a time.  Taste once in awhile so you know if you want to add more or stop with the amount added.  Add the cinnamon to taste.  Add about 3 tbsp butter.

Once you have the amount of sugar, cinnamon, and butter that you want and you have the consistency you want, remove from the heat and let cool.

**the ingredients are based on 10 apples because that's how many my sister brought with her.  You can use more, you'll just have to make the appropriet changes.


As you can probably see, this is a recipe that you will have to play with until you get it right.  It's all about trial and error and what tickles your fancy while making it.   My Grandma does freeze her applesauce. I didn't ask how long it lasts, but I know we have it for dinners all year round when we are at her house so it does last awhile.

As for me, my sister was nice enough to give me some to take home so I won't have to attempt making this myself for a bit.  When I do, it will be interesting, I'm not the best cook (although I'm a damn good baker).

Weekend Cooking: Red Velvet Cake and Cream Cheese Icing

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.

If you are anything like me, you are/were nervous about making a red velvet cake for the first time.  I kept hearing from people how hard it was, how it never turned out right, etc.   I finally decided to make one because the husband loves red velvet cake and it was for a special occasion, maybe his birthday, I can't really remember.  So I went searching online, I read several different recipes.  I read some from unknown people, I read some from famous people (such as Paula Dean and Martha Stewart).  There were always raving reviews and bad reviews.   I finally picked one from an unknown person on about.com for one reason.  The directions.  The directions to make the cake were different from all the others.  The reviews were all positive, although there weren't very many.   I figured, all good reviews, this person does something different, it's worth a try.  I tell you what...it was easy peasy and came out great!  I will never fear making the red velvet cake again.  In fact, I made it again today for my husband. (I needed a cake for my cake decorating class and he got a new job, so I let him pick since it's a celebratory cake). 

Red Velvet Cake

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter

2 whole eggs **

2 tbsp (heaping) cocoa

2 1/4 cup cake flour **

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp white vinegar

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 oz red food coloring **

1 cup buttermilk **

1 tsp vanilla 

1 tsp baking soda

Preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar, then add eggs.  Make a paste of food coloring and cocoa, then add to the creamed mixture.  Combine flour and salt.  Add buttermilk and the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, alternating.  Add vanilla.  Add the baking soda to the vinegar, HOLD OVER THE BOWL BECAUSE IT FOAMS.  Then add the soda and vinegar to the mixture, blending instead of beating.

Bake 25-30 minutes in 2 8-inch round cake pans, greased.   Cool on racks.

** - If possible, use eggs that are room temperature.  I used normal flour.  I only use one container of red food coloring.  I use a powdered buttermilk.   You can buy it in the baking aisle and then keep in fridge once open.  It lasts a long time. There are directions on the container on how to get the correct amount of buttermilk for your recipe.

Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients"

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened

8 cups (about 2 lbs) confectioners' sugar

1 tbsp milk

Directions"

In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese with mixer until light and fluffy.  Gradually add the sugar and milk.  Beat on high until smooth. 

**This makes a ton of icing.  I had enough to ice the cake and a lot left over.  I am ok with that since I have to make it stiffer and use it to decorate the cake for class on Tuesday.  Normally, it would be a waste though. Today is the first time I have made cream cheese icing and it does taste good, but thinking there has to be another recipe out there that doesn't make as much.  This recipe came from Wilton's website.

(PS...as I was starting to ice the cake I remembered I wanted to share a picture of how red it looks with just one thing of red food coloring.  As you can see, there really isn't a need for 2 of them...so my recommendation is to save your money and only use 1).