I Love My Brother!!!

My big brother came home, said he was sorry for being late and handed me this.

Brother, you can be late anytime you want!

Easy Skillet Apple Pie

Once in awhile a recipe comes along that is simply out of this world.  And today I have one of those recipes for you.

I mentioned on Friday that I would have an Apple Pie recipe for y'all this week, but this is no ordinary apple pie recipe.  This is the BEST recipe ever!!! 

Mom found this recipe in the September issue of Southern Living (a great magazine btw).  I don't know if they give a Nobel prize for the "Culinary Arts" but if they did I would nominate the person that created this recipe.

Oh, and just a quick warning, I have lots of photos in this post, after the recipe.  When I say "the recipe" does anyone else think of the Baldwin sisters on The Waltons?  Those two sweet spinsters, making moonshine thinking it was "Papa's secret recipe".  Oh well back to "the recipe".

Easy Skillet Apple Pie
2 lb. Granny Smith Apples
2 lb. Braeburn Apples
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 14oz package refrigerated piecrusts
1 egg white
2 Tbsp. sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Peel apples, and cut 1/2-inch thick wedges.  Toss apples with cinnamon and 3/4 cup sugar.

Melt butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat; add brown sugar, and cook, stirring constantly, 1 to 2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat, and place 1 piecrust in skillet over brown sugar mixture.  Spoon apple mixture over piecrust, and top with remaining piecrust.  Whisk egg white until foamy.  Brush top of piecrust with egg white; sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. sugar. Cut 4 or 5 slits in top for steam to escape.

Bake at 350 for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.  Cool on wire rack 30 minutes before serving.

Now for all the pics!

I could eat these alone.  Alone as in just the apples, and alone as in just me.

And yes we did use our apple corer, peeler, slicer.

A cast-iron skillet is very southern.  But what makes it more southern?

Butter!

I could eat this by myself too!

Starting to look like a pie

Looking more like a pie

 Some detail of those delicious apples

Now it really looks like a pie

And there it is hot from the oven, delectable, delicious goodness!

Fabulous Friday Find

Today I have a great kitchen tool to share with y'all.  I mean this is the best!

photo credit-williams-sonoma.com

The Back to Basic Apple Peeler, Corer and Slicer!

Now to be honest I wasn't sure about this at first.  I'm a bit old fashioned, and don't like having a gadget for everything.  But since we are going to make apple pie filling this fall, Mom said she didn't want to spend days on end peeling apples.  And after using it I agree!  This makes any apple recipe a breeze.

The day after we got this we made a brand-new apple pie recipe.  It worked great and the pie was out-of-this-world!  I'll have that recipe for you soon, promise!

We ordered ours from King Arthur Flour. 

It also availiable from Amazon & Williams-Sonoma.

This is also one of those tools that is cool enough the guys want to try it.  Whenever we need apples, we call my brother.  It's great to have family with you in the kitchen.  Well most of the time anyway!

Super-Easy Sloppy Joe

Don't you love easy one-pot recipes?  Well I know I do!

Today I'm going to share one of our easiest recipes.  But here is the great part, its easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy, (ok inner Brit coming out there) and DELICIOUS!

All right, get your paper and pencils ready for the long detailed shopping list.

Ground Beef and Chili Sauce

Did you get all that or did I go to fast?

Super-Easy Sloppy Joe
1lb Ground Beef
1 12oz bottle Heinz Chili Sauce

Brown meat over medium heat and cook throughly (I like to season my meat with dried onions).  Add Chili Sauce and cook approx. 15 min, until the sauce bubbles. 

Serve on hamburger buns with potato salad, 5 cup salad (recipe coming soon), chips and lemonade.

Now is that easy or what?

Fabulous Friday Find

I love homes!  When I have some spare time (which is rare) I love to go online and look at home listings.  Sometimes I look at home decorating blogs, or just pick up a Pottery Barn catalog (don't you love that place!).  It is always the little touches that get my attention, the flowers, napkin rings, pictures frames, etc.

Since I don't have a home of my own, I like to watch my mother and observe how she has made our house a home.  One of her "signature touches" if you will, is how she incorporates Scripture into our homes decor. 

I could write an entire post on all of the wonderful ways she displays Scripture in our home.  Would you like that?  Just leave me a comment and I'll get to work.

Today I just want to show you one, and share a great resource.

These beautiful hand towels come in a set of 9, and feature all of the Fruit of the Spirit.  Whether we are washing our hands, or in my case folding the laundry, we are reminded of the character qualities we should be exemplifying. 

And that is what makes them a "Fabulous Friday Find".

You can find them here, and be sure to check out all of the great items at Christian Gifts Place.

Favorite Pumpkin Bread

October is here, there is a nip in the air and pumpkins are everywhere!
We love pumpkin in our family.  Most people only make pumpkin bread/muffins in the fall months.  We make it all year long.  That can be difficult since canned pumpkin is only in stores around the holidays.  Simple solution, buy 30 cans.  We actually did that last year and we only have 2 left.

There are so many different ways to make pumpkin bread.  We had been looking for a recipe that had the perfect combination of flavor and texture.  Then one day it showed up on our doorstep, literally.

We received this recipe from the gas company of all people, by way of allrecipes.com.  So thanks to Georgia Natural Gas we found the pumpkin bread of our dreams.  It is amazing what adding a few spices can do.

Pumpkin Gingerbread

3 cups of sugar
1 cup of vegetable oil
4 eggs
2/3 cup water
1 (15oz) can of pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease 2 9x5 loaf pans.

In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, oil and eggs; beat until smooth.  Add water and beat until well blended.  Stir in pumpkin, ginger, allspice, cinnamon and clove.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder.  Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and blend just until all ingredients are mixed.  Divide batter between prepared pans.

Bake for about 1 hour, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

I love All-Clad!

Spicing things up

Mixing things up

My mouth is watering

Pure perfection!

Williams-Sonoma All-Clad Giveaway Winner!

Before I tell y'all who the winner is I just want to say two things. 

Thank you and WOW!

I am absolutely thrilled by the response to our latest giveaway.  Because of you September was the best month in the history of 'Southern Homemaking", and for that I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

But now the important stuff, the winner!

With the help of Random.org we selected our winner.

Congratulations to Dottie!

Dottie, if you will please e-mail me your shipping information (southernhomemaking@gmail.com) I will order your prizes and have them heading your way pronto!

Thanks again to everyone who entered.

Have a great weekend!