Pumpkin Praline Pie

Taylor gets cravings, and whether for cake or curry or pumpkin pie, they need to be filled. I’ve learned this from past experiences, like when he ‘snuck’ a grocery store pumpkin pie into our shopping cart without me noticing (I made quite an embarrassment of myself when I proclaimed to the checker that she had made a mistake and the pie was not mine, only to have Taylor grin and say that indeed it was). Needless to say, when this most recent pie craving hit, I knew I had to make him one to avoid another store-bought pie situation.

This recipe is a great one, especially if you’re both a pumpkin and a pecan pie lover. Can’t decide which to make? This pie will solve all your problems.

I easily made this pie dairy free. Simply simmer 2 cups soymilk over low heat for 15-20 minutes until reduced by half. Presto! Evaporated (soy)milk.

Pumpkin Praline Pie

Makes 8-10 servings.

Ingredients
1 (9-inch) pie shell
1 15oz. can pumpkin puree
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
pinch ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup evaporated milk
3 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
pinch salt
2 tsp dark corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp granulated sugar

Directions
For the pie shell: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line pie shell with foil, cover with 2 cups pie weights (pennies or dried beans are fine, too), and bake until dough under foil dries out, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove foil and weights, poke crust several times with fork, and continue to bake until firmly set and lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove pie shell from oven (keep oven on) and set aside. (Shell can be cooled, wrapped tightly in plastic, and stored at room temperature for 1 day.)

For the filling: Puree pumpkin, brown sugar, spices, and salt in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute. Cook mixture in large saucepan over medium-high heat until sputtering and thickened, about 4 minutes, and remove from heat. Meanwhile, put pie shell back in oven to warm.

Whisk evaporated milk into pumpkin mixture, then whisk in eggs and vanilla. Pour filling into warmed pie shell and bake until filling is puffed and cracked around edges and center barely jiggles when pie is shaken, about 35 minutes.

For the topping: While pie is baking, toss pecans, brown sugar, and salt in bowl. Add corn syrup and vanilla, using fingers to ensure that ingredients are well blended.

Scatter topping evenly over puffed filling and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake until pecans are fragrant and topping is bubbling around edges, about 10 minutes. Cool pie completely on wire rack, at least 2 hours. (Pie can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.) Serve pie at room temperature.

Salmon with Soy-Honey Glaze and Wasabi

This was a decent salmon recipe, not the best, but easy and flavorful. I don’t think we let our soy sauce reduce enough, it may have been a little ‘stickier’ had we done so, but the combination of honey and the soy sauce was quite delightful. If you taste it on its own it seems overly sweet/sour/salty (yes, all at once!) but paired with the salmon it’s just right.

You also might want to triple the sauce recipe… it really doesn’t make nearly enough!

Salmon with Soy-Honey Glaze and Wasabi

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from Epicurious.

Ingredients
For salmon
1/2 cup mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar (not seasoned)
1 tablespoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
4 (6-oz) pieces salmon fillet

For sauces
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons wasabi powder
1 tablespoon water

Directions
Marinate salmon:, Stir together mirin, soy sauce, vinegar, and ginger in a shallow dish. Add fish, skin sides up, and marinate, covered, at room temperature 10 minutes.

Preheat broiler.

Make sauces: Boil soy sauce, honey, and lime juice in a small saucepan, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 4 minutes.

Stir together wasabi powder and water in a small bowl.

Broil fish, skin sides down, on oiled rack of a broiler pan 5 to 7 inches from heat until fish is just cooked through, about 6 minutes.

Serve salmon drizzled with sauces.

Homemade Fettuccine with Garlic and Oil

Well, after the ravioli, we had the paster maker dusted off and were ready to use it again. We ditched the idea of more ravioli, as they are not the quickest things in the world, and went with a plain fettuccine. The difference between fresh pasta and dried is huge… once you’ve made some you’ll have a hard time going back. Trust me.

This recipe was very simple, and quite good. Sometimes you don’t need gobs of sauce with tons of spices and flavors, and such is the case with this pasta.

Homemade Fettuccine with Garlic and Oil

Makes 4-6 servings.

Ingredients
For pasta:
4 eggs
3-3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil

For sauce:
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4-6 garlic cloves, peeled & chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Freshly ground pepper
smoked paprika & parmesan for garnish

Directions
To make pasta, either build a well out of flour and slowly stir in eggs (more info here) or mix in a food processor or stand mixer. You want the dough to just barely stick together into a smooth ball, but do not add any more liquid than necessary. Split into two, form into balls, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. Roll out with a pasta roller until thin, then cut into fettuccine (follow manufacturers directions for whatever pasta roller you have.) Add pasta to a pot of salted, boiling water and stir to break up. Cook until al-dente, about 4-5 minutes.

For sauce, heat the oil and garlic over medium heat in a heavy saucepan until the garlic begins to turn pale gold, about 1-2 minutes (Do not burn!). Remove the pan from the heat and add 3/4 of the parsley, salt & pepper to taste.

Drain the pasta and combine with the sauce in a separate bowl and toss until all the pasta is coated.

Serve and sprinkle with the remaining parsley, Parmesan, and smoked paprika. Serve immediately.

Ugly Ravioli (aka Roasted Vegetable & Pancetta Ravioli)

Ugly, maybe, but good? Definitely! We found this recipe for Roasted Veggie Ravioli with Crispy Pancetta on Jaden’s blog.

I tried (somewhat unsuccessfully) to capture the sheer scale of the mess I made while making this pasta. Homemade pasta is fun and delicious, but oh so messy. Which makes it even more fun in my opinion. :)

Our raviolis were ugly. I think we made them too big and they broke and had to be patched and weren’t square by any means. Not nearly as nice-looking as Jaden’s. But once you got beyond their looks, they really were quite delicious. The sauce is light and flavorful, which in our experience is hard to do in a pasta sauce.

Want to try your hand at these? Hopefully yours will be prettier than ours!
Check out the recipe here.