Ina's "Perfect" Pie Crust

I have been on a quest to find a good pie crust for awhile now and this is the best one I have found so far! The crust is tender, flakey, and delicious! Thank you Ina Garten! 

To make one 10 inch pie crust or two smaller 6 inch pie crusts (like the pictures shown in this post) you will need:

• 6 Tbs UNSALTED BUTTER
• 1 & 1/2 cup FLOUR
• 1 & 1/2 tsp SUGAR
• 1/2 tsp SALT
• 3 Tbs VEGETABLE SHORTENING
• 1/4 cup ICE WATER

Before you start, make sure that your butter is very cold! I usually cut the butter into cubes and then pop it in into the freezer for a few hours (or overnight)!

Use a food processor and pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. 

Add the cold butter and vegetable shortening to the food processor. Pulse another 6-8 times or until the contents start to look like course meal with pea sized butter chunks.

Start adding the ice water a little bit at a time, pulsing in between. (If you have a food processor you can slowly drizzle the water into the feed tube while pulsing.) When the mixture begins to clump together you have added enough water. Pinch the dough in between your fingers to see if it holds together. The 1/4 cup water specified in the recipe should do the trick, but if it is still crumbly and falls apart in your fingers add a little bit more. Be careful not to add too much water though or else the crust will be tough! 

Once the dough starts to clump together, dump the dough onto a clean and dry surface. Take the heel of your palm and press it down into the dough in order to 'shmoosh' the butter and flatten it into layers. Then carefully shape the dough into a disk. 

Look at all of the butter clumps! This will create an extra flaky crust!

Wrap the dough in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour (up to 2 days).

Once the dough is chilled, unwrap the dough, and place it on a lightly floured surface. Then, roll the dough out into a 12 inch circle. The dough should be about 1/8 inch thick. 

Next, place the dough into a 9 inch pie plate. Carefully press the dough into the corners of the pan so that the dough lines the bottom and sides of the pan. (The picture below is a 6 inch pie plate.)

Then tuck the overhanging dough on the edges under itself and pinch with your fingers. Pour in your pie filling and bake at 400 degrees F for 45 to 50 minutes!

I made a strawberry pie, but you could use any filling you want!

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Pie Crust

Ingredients:

• 6 Tbs UNSALTED BUTTER
• 1 & 1/2 cup FLOUR
• 1 & 1/2 tsp SUGAR
• 1/2 tsp SALT
• 3 Tbs VEGETABLE SHORTENING
• 1/4 cup ICE WATER

Directions:

1. Before you start, make sure that your butter is very cold! I usually cut the butter into cubes and then pop it in into the freezer for a few hours (or overnight)!
2. Use a food processor and pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. 
3. Add the cold butter and vegetable shortening to the food processor. Pulse another 6-8 times or until the contents start to look like course meal with pea sized butter chunks.
4. Start adding the ice water a little bit at a time, pulsing in between. (If you have a food processor you can slowly drizzle the water into the feed tube while pulsing.) When the mixture begins to clump together you have added enough water. 
• Pinch the dough in between your fingers to see if it holds together. The 1/4 cup water specified in the recipe should do the trick, but if it is still crumbly and falls apart in your fingers add a little bit more. Be careful not to add too much water though or else the crust will be tough! 
5. Once the dough starts to clump together, dump the dough onto a clean and dry surface.
6. Take the heel of your palm and press it down into the dough in order to 'shmoosh' the butter and flatten it into layers. This will create an extra flaky crust! Then carefully shape the dough into a disk.
7. Wrap the dough in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour (up to 2 days).
8. Once the dough is chilled, unwrap the dough, and place it on a lightly floured surface. Then, roll the dough out into a 12 inch circle. The dough should be about 1/8 inch thick. 
9. Next, place the dough into a 9 inch pie plate. Carefully press the dough into the corners of the pan so that the dough lines the bottom and sides of the pan. Then tuck the overhanging dough on the edges under itself and pinch with your fingers. 
10. Pour in your pie filling and bake at 400 degrees F for 45 to 50 minutes!

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I found this recipe at the following links: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/perfect-pie-crust.html, http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/fresh-blueberry-pie.html

Famous Dave's Corn Muffins

My family loves to go to Famous Dave's and get some good BBQ. Along with having great BBQ Famous Dave's also has delicious corn muffins! They are sweet, fluffy, and cakey! I made a few small changes to a recipe that I found on a blog (the blog's website is posted at the bottom of this post) and they turned out very close to the muffins Famous Dave's makes!

To make about 16 corn muffins you will need:

• 1 & 3/4 cup CORNMEAL
• 1 & 1/2 cup FLOUR
• 2 tsp BAKING POWDER
• 1/4 tsp BAKING SODA
• 3/4 tsp SALT
• 2 EGGS
• 3/4 cup SUGAR
• 1/4 cup VEGETABLE SHORTENING
• 1/2 tsp VANILLA EXTRACT
• 1 cup MILK (I used 1%)
• 1/4 tsp LEMON JUICE
• 1/3 cup VEGETABLE OIL
• 4 Tbs HONEY
• BUTTER, to spread on the muffins after baking

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Then in a medium sized bowl whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In another bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the eggs, sugar, vegetable shortening, and vanilla. Once the ingredients are well combined add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and continue to mix. It should have a course meal texture and look like the picture below.

Then mix in the milk, lemon juice, oil, and honey. This should make it more like a batter.

Line your muffin pan with paper liners and fill the liners about 3/4 the way full with batter. I didn't have any liners on hand when I made them so I skipped that part. I recommend using the liners though, my corn muffins got dark around the outside edges when I baked them.

Bake the corn muffins for 13-16 minutes. After the muffins have baked and are still hot, rub some butter over the top of the muffins! Then eat them!

Yum!

I know the edges are dark, but they still tasted good. Only the very outside of the muffin was slightly overcooked. Use paper liners to prevent the outside of the muffin overcooking!

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Famous Dave's Corn Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 & 3/4 cup CORNMEAL
• 1 & 1/2 cup FLOUR
• 2 tsp BAKING POWDER
• 1/4 tsp BAKING SODA
• 3/4 tsp SALT
• 2 EGGS
• 3/4 cup SUGAR
• 1/4 cup VEGETABLE SHORTENING
• 1/2 tsp VANILLA EXTRACT
• 1 cup MILK (I used 1%)
• 1/4 tsp LEMON JUICE
• 1/3 cup VEGETABLE OIL
• 4 Tbs HONEY
• BUTTER, to spread on the muffins after baking

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Then in a medium sized bowl whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
2. In another bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the eggs, sugar, vegetable shortening, and vanilla. Once the ingredients are well combined add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and continue to mix. It should have a course meal texture.
3. Then mix in the milk, lemon juice, oil, and honey. 
4. Line your muffin pan with paper liners and fill the liners to about 3/4 the way full with batter. 
5. Bake the corn muffins for 13-16 minutes. After the muffins have baked and are still hot, rub some butter over the top of the muffin! Then eat them!

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I found this recipe from the following website: http://www.eatcakefordinner.net/2011/11/famous-daves-cornbread-muffins-copycat.html

Flour Tortillas

I have made these tortilla a few times and they are great! I like making them when I make enchiladas because I can role the dough out to be thinner than tortilla that you buy in the store which I think makes for better enchiladas. They are also super easy to make!

To make these flour tortilla you will need the following ingredients:

• 4 cups FLOUR
• pinch BAKING POWDER
• 1/2 cup LARD or VEGETABLE SHORTENING
• 2 tsp SALT
• 1 cup WARM WATER

Start off by whisking together 4 cups of flour and a pinch of baking powder in a large bowl. Then add 1/2 cup of shortening and mix it into the flour mixture using your hand until a coarse meal forms.

Dissolve 2 teaspoons of salt in 1 cup of warm water and then add it into the flour mixture. Mix the salt water into the flour mixture with your hands until a ball forms.



Separate the ball of dough into 12 small balls that will then become 12 tortillas.



Roll each small ball out as thin as you can with a rolling pin.

Then throw it into a skillet that has been preheated over medium heat. Cook the tortilla on both sides until it starts to turn golden brown.

Then eat up!

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Flour Tortillas

Ingredients:

• 4 cups FLOUR
• pinch BAKING POWDER
• 1/2 cup LARD or VEGETABLE SHORTENING
• 2 tsp SALT
• 1 cup WARM WATER

Directions:

1. Start off by whisking together 4 cups of flour and a pinch of baking powder in a large bowl. Then add 1/2 cup of shortening and mix it into the flour mixture using your hand until a coarse meal forms.
2. Dissolve 2 teaspoons of salt in 1 cup of warm water and then add it into the flour mixture. Mix the salt water into the flour mixture with your hands until a ball forms.
3. Separate the ball of dough into 12 small balls that will then become 12 tortillas.
4. Roll each small ball out as thin as you can with a rolling pin.
5. Throw it into a skillet that has been preheated over medium heat. Cook the tortilla on both sides until it starts to turn golden brown.

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I found this recipe on the following website: http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Flour-Tortillas

Red Velvet Cake Taste Test!

So last week I decided to have a little red velvet taste testing session. I compared three cake recipes and two icing recipes. This is what it did to my kitchen... and I cleaned as I went! :/

One thing you definitely need with red velvet cake is plenty of red food coloring!

The batters all turned out so pretty and bright!

Ok, now to the point. The comparison! I cut three different recipe by four so I didn't have bazillions of cupcakes. 

                                          Batter #1:                                 Batter 2:

Batter 3:

And here is how they cooked up!

Ok, now onto the icings!

The first one I tried was a flour icing and can be seen below....and I uhhh...didn't make it right and it was uhhh...pretty bad. I'll have to try that one again sometime and see if it turns out better...

Next I made a vanilla icing with a vegetable shortening base and it was delicious! Definitely a keeper! Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the recipe!

Cupcake #1:

Cupcake #2:

Cupcake #3:

After they were all iced, it was time for the taste test! The best part!

After tasting all of them this is what I decided:

Cupcake 1: Very moist! Maybe too moist for a cupcake because it was hard to get out of the paper, but would be perfect for a cake. Also had great flavor! It didn't fluff up very much though.

Cupcake 2: A little dry. Easy to get out of the paper. Didn't rise very much. Overall, not great...

Cupcake 3: Beautiful, rose nicely. Came out of the paper easily.  Great texture. (And just so happen to be my mom's recipe! I guess mother really does know best!) Could use a little bit of a flavor boost compared to cupcake 1 though...sorry mom!

What I decided was that I basically want to cross the 1st and 3rd cupcake to get the flavor and moistness of the 1st, but the texture and looks from the 3rd. I also decided that chocolate cake is better than red velvet cake. Sorry, I know this is supposed to be about red velvet cake, but I like my chocolate cake better!