Apple Cake

As I was scrolling through my Google Reader I came upon a recipe for Easy Apple Cake from one of my favorite baking blogs Bakerella. I am not much of a baker at all but when I saw this recipe I knew it was something I could pull off. Besides, I still have about 50 lbs of apples left!

Let me give you some fair warning that this cake is rich. Very rich. I love my sweets and could easily devour half of a cake on my own but even I had to stop at one piece.

I am quite sure that this cake would be just as delicious without the topping if you should so desire. I happen to love butter so I totally went for it and poured every last drop all over the cake. Was that necessary? Probably not.



But look at that cake. I wish that I was a better photographer because my lame-o pictures don't do this cake justice. You can see the bits of apples and dates....yum! You can even see how the yummy buttery topping glistens on the top and seeps down into the cake. Bakerella has better pictures. I'm just helping to spread the word!

Easy Apple Cake

3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups oil
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups diced apples
1 cup chopped dates rolled in flour
1 cup chopped walnuts

Topping
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and cinnamon with a wire whisk and set aside.
3. Combine sugar and oil using a mixer until blended.
4. Add eggs and vanilla, mixing until combined.
5. Add flour mixture and mix well.
6. Stir in nuts, dates and apples. The batter will be very thick.
7. Pour into a greased and floured 9 X 13 pan and bake for 40-45 minutes or until done.
8. Cool cake and using a skewer, poke holes in cake.
9. Cook topping ingredients on stove until mixture bubbles.
10. Pour topping over cake letting some seep into the cake.

Crock Pot Apple Sauce

With so many apples from our recent trip apple picking I was looking for some yummy ways to use up about 100 lbs of apples! LOL!!

All 3 of my girls love apple sauce so I knew that this was definitely something that I wanted to make. I also knew that I wanted to use my crock pot. I found a few recipes and finally decided to combine a few elements from each of them and am pleasantly surprised how well it turned it out.

Everyone really liked the way it turned out. I am even eating a bowl as I type this out. I wish I knew what kind of apples we picked. It ended up being a bit tart so I sprinkled a bit of white sugar after it was done cooking. My oldest daughter and I agreed that it tasted better the next day.

Crock Pot Apple Sauce

• 5 medium sized apples, peeled, cored and quartered
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• juice of one lemon (about 3 tbsp)

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Cook on low 4 - 6 hours. Mash apples with potato masher. Check for sweetness. Enjoy!

Apple Picking

I love beautiful fall days. I love it even more when my husband has the day off and we can do something outside with the girls like apple picking. This is the first time that we went and we all had a great time. Both of the girls behaved beautifully and I'm pleasantly surprised how much Stephanie enjoyed it.

Stephanie getting a lift from daddy


Now it's Eva's turn


I thought it was a pretty picture :-)


Stephanie making sure that the apples tasted good.


My baby girl


So, how does your apple taste?


It's good. Try it, Eva.


Pretty baby


Don't worry, mom, that's what washer machines are for!


Yay! I got a pumpkin!!



I have so many apples now that I don't know what to do with them. I'm going to look up some recipes and post them later on in the week.

OK...so I lied

I swore that I was going to give FanFiction a rest until I read a real book. I really, really had no intention of reading What Happens at Charlie's Wedding yet. Really, I didn't. I was only bringing it up on my Kindle so that it would be ready to read once I had finished reading a real book. But then my curiosity got the better of me and I read the first chapter.

Big mistake.

HUGE.

I read 9 chapters that night and finished it the next day. I loved this story. The characters are the same, of course, but the pairing of couples is different. That may bother some Twilight fans but it didn't bother me at all. It was refreshing to see how mixing up the couples would turn out.

I also have a new appreciation for Carlisle. Alright, I'll admit that I'm seriously crushing on Peter Facinelli now. Read the story and I know that you will, too.

Last Day of Summer

I can't believe that summer is over :-(

Soon I will have to trade in my flip flops for Uggs and start dressing the kids in layers.

Summer is Alberto's busiest time at work so we didn't get to do too much with the kids but I'm hoping that we'll be able to do some fun fall activities with the girls.

This was a particularly lovely and rare day off for my husband. We went to IHOP for breakfast with the babies. Stephanie actually ate food while we were there. This kid never eats. So I had to take a picture to document this momentous event.

Stephanie enjoying her breakfast


Mmmmmm....pancakes


Eva enjoying her toast


I couldn't resist adding this picture of Alberto shoveling food into his mouth.


After breakfast we decided to go to my father's house so that he can spend time with Stephanie and Eva.

My daddy and Eva


Alberto trying to figure out the bubble gun.


Yay! He got it to work!!


Love that face!


While I'm sad to see summer go I am looking forward to cozy sweaters, crocheting some hats for the babies (even though they probably won't wear them) and cooking some comfort food. Oh and how could I forget the thing that I look forward to the most in the fall......Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks!!!

Chicken Stew

I was craving chicken stew today. Not just any stew but the kind that Alberto would bring home for me from a place that is now closed.

I had limited items on hand since I am in need of going to the supermarket but I did what I could and it wasn't too bad. I would definitely like to revisit this dish on a day when I am well prepared with ingredients. But this was a good start.



Chicken Stew

• 4 chicken breasts cut up into large bite sized pieces
• potatoes (about 6) peeled and cut into large bite sized pieces
• small chopped onion
• 3-4 cloves of chopped garlic
• frozen or canned peas
• about 16 oz of tomato sauce
  
• 2 tbsp flour
• Goya Adobo
• 2 cups of water
  
• salt & pepper to taste

1. Sautee onions and garlic in olive oil until soft.
2. Meanwhile add about a tbsp of Adobo and flour to chicken and mix well.
3. Add chicken and brown.
4. Once chicken has been brown add water, sauce, potatoes and peas. Bring to a boil then cover and cook on low for about 30 - 40 minutes.
   

Check that potatoes and chicken are cooked through and adjust your seasonings if needed.

More FanFiction

I have three real books that I borrowed from the library and yet they've been sitting there collecting dust and I will have to renew them because I didn't get a chance to read them.

Fan Fiction is incredibly addicting. I finish one story and I swear to myself that I will start a real book but then I decide to go on my message board. Oooh....someone's recommending fan fiction. Let me open up the post. Hmmm...let me put it on my kindle so that it will be ready once I finish these books. I'll just read the first chapter or two to see what it's about. Then, as usual I get sucked into another story about Edward and Bella and my poor library books are forgotten.

Right now I am reading Reunion and I'm enjoying it so far.

One of my faves so far is Master of the Universe. It is for mature readers only. If you are easily offended than this story is not for you. It is kinky and twisted and I loved every dirty word that I read. I am so excited that the author is working on a sequel. Once it has about 20+ chapters I'll start reading it. I am seriously missing Fifty!!

How To Save a Life is another nice story. Not my favorite but still enjoyed reading it.

I also read The Office. Loved BB!! I can't seem to find it on fanfiction.net, though. It was sent to me as a document and I then forwarded it to my kindle. If you'd like me to send you the document please leave a comment. I also have Master of the Universe and How To Save a Life on docs.

OK...that's all for now. I'm hoping to quickly read The Reunion and then I m going to force myself to pick up The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

Happy Reading!