Easy Apple Turnover Pie

Easy Apple Turnover Pie

I love those big flaky bakery-style apple turnovers made with puff pastry and with a cripsy layer of demerara sugar baked onto the surface....mmmmmm. This simple pie is virtually foolfroof homage to those turnovers, making use of frozen puff pastry for the pastry challenged and a simple toss-together filling. The hardest thing about making this pie is peeling the apples! This makes a great go-to recipe for the summer barbeque season. Don't forget the ice-cream!

1 pkg (2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, thawed in the refrigerator

Roll out the dough if necessary to be able to cut out 10 inch circles of pastry out of the sheets of pastry. Work quickly with puff pastry keeping it as cold as possible. Place one sheet of the pastry into the bottom of a 9 or 10 inch pie plate. Hold pastry in the fridge while the filling is being prepared.

12 medium sized apples; peeled, cored and sliced to 1/2 inch thickness

Toss together:

2 tbsp flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp chinese five spice

pinch salt

Toss the dry ingredient mix with the apples and spread evenly into the bottom pie crust. Top with the remaining round of puff pastry. Tuck the edges of the pastry under the bottom layer of pastry and pinch together with your fingers to seal. Brush the top of the pastry with an egg wash made from whisking together

1 egg

2 tbsp water

Cover the entire surface of the egg washed pastry with a speinkle of

demerara sugar

Place the pie in the refrigerator for about an hour before baking because puff pastry needs to be very cold before hitting a hot oven in order to puff up properly.Bake for aproximately 45 minutes at 350 degrees F or until the middle is bubbling and the crust is evenly golden brown. Let stand for at least a half hour before serving with a scoop of good vanilla ice-cream.

Chocolate Kahlua Tiramisu Cake

Chocolate Kahlua Tiramisu Cake

Well it's certainly been a busy month for me with schoolwork but I'm back to the blog this morning with a great and pretty easy dessert recipe. I served this last night at a dinner party to celebrate a friend's birthday and it was a big hit. A simple chocolate scratch cake gets a little soak in Kahlua liqueur before being frosted with a tiramisu-like espresso cream and topped with a drizzle of chocolate ganache. Irresistable!

Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup soured milk
1 cup black coffee
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla flavouring

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat with electric mixer for 2 minutes.

Pour into 2 greased and floured 9 inch cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Tiramisu Cream Frosting

2 1/2 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup icing sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tablespoons instant espresso powder

Whip together until stiff peaks form. Remove about 2/3 of the whipped cream to a large bowl. Into the remaining whipped cream, beat in until smooth

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

Fold the mascarpone mixture into the tiramisu cream.

Chocolate Ganache

1/4 cup whipping cream
1 cup dark chocolate chips

Scald the cream in the microwave until almost boiling. pour over the chocolate chips and let stand for 5 minutes before stirring until smooth.

Using a fork, stab holes all over the surface of both cake layers and pour over each layer:

2 to 3 ounces Kahlua liqueur (cold sweetened espresso is also a good substitute)

Frost with the tiramisu cream and drizzle the cake with the chocolate ganache using a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off.