Pumpkin Pie Martini

Happy Halloween everyone! The holiday in my neighborhood was weakened by pouring rain and gale-force winds this year. While bored waiting around for trick-or-treaters to come to our door, we accidentally came up with this fantastic martini recipe. Enjoy!

4 shots Bailey's Irish Creme

2 shots pumpkin vodka

3 T pumpkin purée

1 t honey

1/2 t pumpkin pie spice 

2 ice cubes

Put all ingredients in blender and blend well. Makes 2 martinis.

Apple Nut Cake

I was craving an apple fritter on a lovely autumn Sunday and couldn't bring myself to drive 20 minutes away to my favorite apple orchard (http://www.pattersonfarm.com/) when I knew I had all the ingredients and talent to make an apple cake at home.

I know this sounds crazy, but when I was 8 years old I won Best in Show in a baking contest (against adults!) with an apple nut cake. Hoping to recreate this awesome cake, I ransacked my kitchen (which admittedly still has a few boxes from moving 6 months ago) and could not for the life of me find my old award-winning recipe.

A little research found a similar recipe in my Southern Living Cookbook. Adapted to be very slightly healthier, this recipe was delicious and definitely put me in the mood for cooler weather and colorful leaves. It has quickly become a favorite in my house and I have already been asked to make it again.

Ingredients

½ cup (one stick) butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 t vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 t baking soda
½ t salt
2 t cinnamon
½ t nutmeg
4 apples*
1 cup walnuts, chopped

*A note on choosing apples for baking: I like to use a 50-50 mix of green Granny Smith apples and tart red apples. For this recipe I used Fuji as my red apples, but Gala, Pink Lady, Melrose, and Jonagold all have a similar tart flavor. NEVER use Red Delicious apples for baking; they do not have enough flavor and your baked goods will be terribly boring.

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel and cut up four apples. This should give you about four cups of apple pieces.

Stir together butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Sift together both types of flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg until well blended. Slowly add dry ingredients to above wet ingredients, stirring until mixed well. Fold in apples and walnuts. The resulting mixture will be VERY thick, resembling cookie dough.

Spread dough into a non-stick or greased glass 13 x 9 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow cake to cool on a wire rack.

This cake is best served warm, and I swear the taste got even better the next day as the moisture from the apples permeated the cake.

References:

"Chunky Apple Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting." Southern Living Cookbook. Birmingham, Alabama: Oxmoor House, 2006. 154.

http://www.food.com/recipe/apple-nut-cake-60893