HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE PUDDING

Making your own pudding is so easy, that if more people took the time to do, they would never buy pudding from their local mega mart again, and Jell-o's stock would plummet. But..... even though this particular recipe is easy, I feel the flavor needs to be tweaked a little. If you're into dark chocolate, you're going to love this pudding. Me, not so much. I know that dark chocolate is good for you, and that it's very hip to be into dark chocolate right now. But, I really don't give a shit, because I like milk chocolate. Give me the creamy, full sugar blast of milk chocolate anytime. And if saying that makes me sound less mature,and like less of a foodie, then so be it. I also have another food confession. When it comes to pudding, I actually LIKE the skin that forms on the top. Yep, I'm a weirdo, but don't knock it if you haven't tried it.

Let's talk about pudding for a minute. If you're a Generation X'er like me, then most of your pudding memories consist of Jell-o instant pudding that your mother threw together and poured into drinking glasses for consumption after dinner. Or, if your family was well off, you had pudding packs in the school lunch your mom packed for you. So there's a chance that many of us only have memories of pudding that originated from a powdered mix, which is really a shame. Because pudding you make yourself has a bold, chocolatey taste that can never be matched by anything that is shilled by Mr. Bill Cosby. If you have an extra 30 minutes on your hands, making your own pudding is completely worth it. I recommend everyone take time to smell the chocolate in life.

MY AWESOME APPLE PIE

The picture turned out pretty well huh? Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.


If you've read this blog before you know that I don't really get excited about pie. I think it's overrated. Especially that All-American behemoth, the apple pie. Often apple pies are made with canned, apple pie filling, meaning that you really can't tell one person's pie from another. Or you get an apple pie that is made from scratch where the crust and apples are not only overly mushy, but there is a substantial gap between where the top layer of crust ends and the filling actually begins. Even though I don't care for pie, I do care for my Father-In-Law who happens to like apple pie, and because of that caring I set out to put together my own apple pie recipe that would live up to my high dessert standards.


I've always tinkered with pre-existing recipes, and on a few occasions I've made up my own recipes, so this wasn't going to be that hard for me.


It calls for eight large apples ( 2 each Granny Smith, Braeburn, Gala and Golden Delicious). You then peel core and dice the apples. Then toss the apples with about 1/4 cup of lemon juice and 1/2 Tbs. of salt and then let the apples sit in a collander over an empty bowl that the juices can run off into.Let the apples drain for approximately one hour. Take the drained apple juice in the drainage bowl and whisk it together with two Tbs of cornstarch. Put your diced apples into a large bowl and then toss the apples with two Tbs. granulated sugar, and two Tbs. dark brown sugar. Add one cup crushed pecans, and two tsps. finely diced fresh ginger. Add apple juice and corn starch mixture to your apple mixture, stirring until mixture coats apples. Pour mixture into a store bought, bottom pie crust, level out apple mixture, and top with second pie crust. Bake at 375 for one hour.




This pie was freaking fantastic! I don't remember the last time I was so proud of something that I had made, and it had very little sugar in it to boot. You could really taste the apples, and the fresh ginger gave it a little something special. I rock.


It turned out so well the first time I made it, that I decided to make it a second time for my FIL's birthday barbecue last weekend. It was even better on the second try.


Up next....homemade chocolate pudding, and believe it or not, another pie. Cherry this time ( far superior to apple, in my opinion).

For those of you that have been asking, the hole that I previously posted pictures of has been filled in. Wanna see? Here it is.....

Muuuuuuch better. With the hole filled in, my life is back to normal, and I no longer want to burst into tears when I look at my back yard. Also, let me say that Mr. Icequeen and his dad tackled this grand project entirely on their own and did an amazing job. My husband is truly something special and I feel that he can really do anything that he becomes determined to do. Can I get a round of applause for my better half?