Homemade Cranberry Sauce with Orange

Cranberry sauce: it's a staple for a holiday feast, mandatory for a Thanksgiving spread, and frankly, an under appreciated gem of a dish. Having been raised eating homemade cranberry sauce, I could never understand why I knew so many people who didn't care for cranberry sauce. Then, when I was 20 or so, I tried canned cranberry sauce for the first time and it all started to make sense.

Now, there is certainly nothing wrong with canned cranberry sauce, but the homemade version can really be something special. You can adjust the sugar to your liking, you can add spices or other flavors to jazz it up, and the color and texture are just lovely.

With the exception of one Thanksgiving where my mom made some sort of cranberry jell-o that had celery in it (she maintains it was delicious, I maintain it was gross. I think I was 3, and I think I cried when I ate it), I've been a devoted cranberry sauce fan since a young age. And this recipe, well, this one is my family's tried and true. It's got a perfect balance of sweet and tart, and the additions of orange juice, orange zest, and brown sugar make it really something special. Here's how to make it!

Cranberry Sauce with Orange- Makes about 2 1/2 cups worth

Ingredients:
- 3/4 cups water
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (from about half an orange)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 12 oz fresh cranberries
- 1/2 tsp orange zest

1. Begin by combining the water, orange juice, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a medium sized sauce pan.

2. Bring to a boil over medium to medium-high heat, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved.

3. Add the cranberries to the pot, and simmer for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has thickened and most of the cranberries have popped. (Did you know cranberries are hollow? It's pretty cool! They actually bounce, which my cats couldn't get enough of when I dropped a few!)

4. Remove the cranberry sauce from the stove, add the orange zest, and stir to combine.

5. Let cool, then serve!

It may not be as simple as opening a can, but this homemade cranberry sauce with orange is worth the extra bit of effort. In less than 20 minutes, you can make a delicious, memorable cranberry sauce worthy of any feast!

I hope you enjoy it!

Til next time!

-Becca

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Apple Crumble Pie

Alright guys, with Thanksgiving coming up next week, I thought it would be time to talk pie. Ohhhhhhh, pie. Could you be any dreamier? I, for one, am a big pie fan. Lemon Meringue? Yes please! Cherry? Duh. Really, just give me all the pie!

Of course, when it comes to Thanksgiving, most people reach for pumpkin pie. And don't get me wrong, I love the stuff, but after a big ol' meal I kind of can't handle something as rich as pumpkin pie. I want something that's tart, sweet, and deliciously spiced! So for me, Thanksgiving is all about the Apple Pie. Apple Crumble Pie to be exact! 

This Apple Crumble Pie is one of those awesome foods that may not be much to look at, but is tasty as all get out. Buttery crust, tart apples, cinnamon, and sweet, crunchy crumble topping. Yum!

Alright, let's hop to it, shall we?

Apple Crumble Pie Makes 1 Pie!

Ingredients:

- 1 prepared pie crust. I used this recipe, made with Trader Joe's all purpose gluten free mix and couldn't have been happier!

For filling:

- 3/4 cup sugar

- 1 tbsp plus 1 tsp cornstarch

- 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- 1 tsp vanilla extract

- 2.5 lbs Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into 1/2" slices

(note: I know it's sort of uncouth, but I don't peel my apples. 1. I think the peels look pretty, 2. I like the extra bit of tartness they add, and 3. Let's be real, I'm lazy. You can totally peel your apples if you want to.)

- 2 tbsp butter, melted

- 2 tsp fresh lemon juice

For topping:

- 3/4 cup flour (I used Trader Joe's all purpose gluten free mix)

- 3/4 cup oats (I used Bob's Red Mill gluten free rolled oats)

- 3/4 cup brown sugar

- 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- Pinch of salt

- 6 tbsp butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. Get your pie crust all set in the pan, crimp the edges, etc.

3. To make the filling, begin by mixing the sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon together in a large mixing bowl.

4. Add the apples, vanilla, butter, and lemon juice, and mix until the apples are nicely coated in all that awesome stuff. Also? You should totally use your hands. It's more fun that way!

5. Next, put your filling into the pie crust! You don't have to lay them out all fancy like I did, but I would recommend it. 1. It's pretty, and I like pretty food. 2. You can totally fit more apples in this way than if you just dump them all in. Truth.

6. To make the topping, begin by mixing the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium sized mixing bowl.

7. Add the melted butter, and mix with a fork until the topping has formed sort of a crumble. It'll look real tasty.

Alright, at this point, we've got our filled pie crust, and our topping! Let's bring 'em together!

8. Put that crumble topping all over them apples! Seriously, cover 'em up! You can see that when it's done, it'll just look like a big pile of crumble. That's what we want! You can also see that you will undoubtedly make a mess doing this.

9. Place your pie on a baking sheet (to catch any bubbling over pie goo), and put your pie in the oven.

10. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 350°F and bake for another 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the topping is golden and the pie is bubbling around the edges.

Aw yea, look at that! 

Now, it may not be the prettiest pie you've ever seen, but it's real tasty. So tasty, I couldn't resist eating a piece before I took photos of it! To be fair, by the time I finished baking, it was super dark out (at 5pm. Sheesh), and I had to wait until morning to take pictures of the finished product. You would eat some, too. It smells too good not to!

Serve up a slice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and you'll have yourself a little slice of Thanksgiving heaven!

Do you guys have any favorite Thanksgiving desserts?

Til next time!

-Becca

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Clementine Pumpkin Bread with Cardamom

Today I'm super excited to share a guest post from amazing DIY blogger, Marlene from Jade and Fern. Not only does she create gorgeous DIY projects, she also makes delicious treats; and today Marlene is here to share her recipe for Clementine Pumpkin Bread with Cardamom. Yum! Drool over her post here and then be sure to pop over to Jade and Fern to check out Marlene's fantastic DIY projects and skills!

Like so many squash lovers, I crave pumpkin this time of year. Pumpkin cookies. Pumpkin beer. Pumpkin donuts. Grande pumpkin double latte with pumpkin pie spice and pumpkin drizzle. And today— pumpkin bread.

I’m so excited to share this recipe with Ladyface Blog and all you wonderful readers! It’s a simple quick bread that comes together fast for a weeknight treat, yet is elegant enough to serve to your dinner party guests. Flecks of clementine zest add zing, and ground cardamom rounds out the complexity. Can you tell I’m writing this when I’m hungry? Plus—it’s vegan!

Clementine Pumpkin Bread with Cardamom

Ingredients:

1 ½ C. flour

½ tsp. salt

¾ C. sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1 C. pumpkin puree*

½ C. vegetable or canola oil

½ C. applesauce

¼ C. water

¼ tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. allspice

¼ tsp. cloves

2 T. clementine zest (or zest from your favorite orange)

1 ¼ tsp. ground cardamom

*Depending on the moisture content of the pumpkin puree, the bread may turn out super dense, but don’t be alarmed; it will still taste awesome.

Directions:

Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan, and preheat the oven to 350° F.

Sift the flour, salt, sugar, and baking soda into a large bowl and set aside.

Add the pumpkin, oil, applesauce, water, spices, and clementine zest into a medium bowl and stir to combine. Use a whisk to beat out larger pumpkin lumps (some small lumps are ok).

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. You should keep mixing until you don’t see any more white flour, then stop— overdoing it will make the bread tough.

Pour the batter into the loaf pan and use your spoon to spread the batter evenly into the corners.

Bake for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the bread comes out clean. If it’s not done at 50 minutes, check it every 2 minutes thereafter, as the sides can get brown quickly at this point.

Allow the bread to cool in the pan for no more than 5 minutes, then gently remove and transfer to a cooling rack.

Enjoy with a schmear of cream cheese or on its own. It’s a perfect snack to keep you energized during the upcoming holiday bustle. If you’re serving it to guests, you’d better make two—this bread never lasts long!

What other pumpkin treats do you enjoy this time of year?

-Marlene at Jade and Fern

Cup of Dirt

Hey guys! Today I'm sharing a fun Halloween recipe for Cup of Dirt! This awesome treat is made up of chocolate pudding, cookie crumbs, and gummy worms, and is named Cup of Dirt because, well, that's what it looks like! It was one of my favorite spooky desserts as a kid, so I thought it would be fun to make up a batch just in time for Halloween.

This dessert is super tasty, super fun, and shockingly easy to make. And hey! If you're not a fan of the more whimsical desserts, be sure to read on for the pudding recipe if nothing else. It's AWESOME.

Ok, let's hop to it!

Cup of Dirt: Serves 6

Ingredients:

For the Pudding (adapted from this recipe from Smitten Kitchen)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 cups whole milk
- 6 ounces dark chocolate (I used Theo Chocolate Pure 70%)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract

For the Spooky Stuff:
- 1 cup of pretty fine chocolate cookie crumbs. To make these, I put 8 gluten free chocolate sandwich cookies in a food processor and pulsed until smooth. Easy peasy!
- 18 gummy worms- enough for 3 per cup

1. Combine the cornstarch, sugar, and salt in a medium sauce pan and whisk together.

2. Pour the milk at a slow stream into the cornstarch mixture, being sure to whisk as you go, and whisk until all the milk has been added and the cornstarch mixture is well mixed in.

3. Place the mixture over low to medium-low heat and stir frequently, being sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the pan as you go. 
4. After about 10 minutes or so, the mixture will thicken up slightly- just enough to coat the back of the spoon. At this point, add in the chocolate, and stir for another 2-4 minutes, or until the chocolate is fully incorporated and the mixture is quite thick. Be sure to stir constantly and thoroughly so as not to burn the chocolate.

5. Remove the pot from the stove, add the vanilla, and stir until well combined.

6. Next, ladle your pudding into 6 small cups, being sure to distribute the pudding evenly. After your cups are filled, put them in the refrigerator to set, which will take about 2 to 3 hours.

7. Once your pudding is set, pull it out of the refrigerator. It's time to make these guys a little spooky! You'll begin by pushing a couple of the gummy worms into the pudding.

8. Then, spoon the cookie crumbs over the top of the pudding, and place another worm on top for good measure. I'm a gummy candy fiend so the more the merrier!

9. Once you've gotten them all spookified, serve 'em up!

This Cup of Dirt dessert is seriously delicious, and seriously fun. I'm so glad I made up a batch in time for Halloween.

I hope you enjoy it!

Til next time!

-Becca

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Pumpkin Spice Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Hey guys! Today I'd love to share another one of my favorite fall recipes with you: Pumpkin Spice Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting!

You've probably picked up on this by now, but I love seasonal cooking, and really really love fall. What you may not have learned yet, is that I think cream cheese frosting may be one of the most delicious things ever invented. Seriously. If I make standard buttercream, it's pretty likely I'll lick the beaters clean, but when I make cream cheese frosting, I lick the beaters, and then spend the next 5 minutes or so scraping every last bit of frosting out of the bowl with my finger and devouring it. Truth.

So, this cake is the best. The cake itself is super moist, full of awesome pumpkin and spices, and has a really great texture. It's almost like a carrot cake, but pumpkin style! And then the frosting. Ohhhhhh the frosting. Dreamy cream cheese frosting with a bit of pumpkin puree added in for a hint of pumpkin flavor. It makes the frosting the most gorgeous peach hue that I can't get enough of!

Well, enough of my rambling about this cake. Let's hop to it!

Pumpkin Spice Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting: Adapted from this recipe 

Serves 12-20 (this cake is super filling).

Ingredients:

For the Pumpkin Spice Cake:
- 2 cups all purpose flour (I used Trader Joe's Gluten Free mix. Since it doesn't have xanthan gum added to it, I also added 1tsp xanthan gum)
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 1 cup canola oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups unsweetened pumpkin puree
- 1 cup lightly packed sweetened flaked coconut
- 3/4 cup crushed canned pineapple- do not drain

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened and cut into large cubes
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
- 3 tbsp unsweetened pumpkin puree
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. In a very large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and the cloves.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, oil, and vanilla and mix until well combined.

4. In medium bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, coconut, and pineapple. Mix until well combined.

5. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until just combined.

6. Add the pumpkin mixture and stir until just combined. I swear, it won't look as much like chili in person...

7. Pour your chili, ahem, I mean cake batter into two 9" cake pans, and spread evenly.

8. Pop your cake pans in the oven and let bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

9. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack, still in the pans, for 15 minutes. Then, run a knife around the edge, remove the cake from the pans, and let cool on the wire rack until cooled completely.

10. Meanwhile, while the cake cools, combine the cream cheese and the butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with electric mixer until it gets light and fluffy.

11. Add the pumpkin puree, vanilla, and about half of the powdered sugar, and beat until fairly well combined.

12. Add the rest of the powdered sugar, and beat until super smooth. Let's look at a close-up

Awwwwwww yea, this is the stuff that dreams are made of.

13. Ok! Now place one of your fully cooled cake layers on a plate. Then scoop about half of the frosting on top of it, and use a spatula to spread the frosting out to the edges.

14. Place the second layer on top, scoop the second half of the frosting onto the top cake layer, and spread out to the edges with your spatula.

15. Once that's done, lick that spatula clean. This step is not mandatory, but it is highly encouraged!

Ah! Look at that beauty! So, once everyone oohs and ahs, you can slice into this sucker.

Oh, hello dream cake! Now, just to note, because of the coconut, etc, this cake is a bit on the crumbly side. Be sure to use a sharp, long knife when you cut this. It can help to chill the cake for about half an hour before slicing into it.

If you do gluten-free baking or are looking to try it, this is a really fantastic recipe. I brought about half of this cake to work with me the other day, and it was a total crowd pleaser! My gluten eating co-workers raved about it and quite a few got through their piece, thought about who had baked it and said "Wait! Was that gluten free?" Ahhh success!

Anyway, I hope you get to try out this dreamboat of a fall cake soon!

Til next time!

-Becca

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