Cinnamon Poached Pears w/ Carmel Sauce

I LOVE anything that has to do with pears. They are my fruit of choice in almost every scenario, certainly as my go-to for a healthy snack. When I see a recipe that includes a pear, I put it onto my "gotta try that" list. I got the idea for this recipe from the Real Simple magazine. I didn't follow the recipe exactly... so for the original recipe you'll have to go here. I made some of it up, and I didn't make my own caramel (cheating, I know) I could not get it to work. But it was absolutely divine all the same!

{ingredients}
8 firm Anjou, Barlett, or Bosc pears- stems attached (for pretty display)
2 cinnamon sticks
1 two inch piece fresh ginger- peeled and sliced
2 c. sugar
8 c. water
your favorite caramel sauce
2 pints vanilla ice cream
cinnamon to sprinkle for display (optional)

{directions}

1. Peel the pears. Using a melon baller, scoop out the core of each pear, starting from the bottom (leave the stem end intact).
2. In a large pot, combine the cinnamon sticks, ginger, 2 cups of the sugar, and 8 cups water. Add the pears and bring to a boil, stirring gently to dissolve the sugar. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer gently until the pears just begin to soften, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool in the cooking liquid (the pears will continue to cook as they cool).- {I let it cool for about 20 minutes... they were still warm when I served them, but it made for a delicious contrast to the ice cream we served it with.}
3. Serve the pears with the ice cream, drizzled with the caramel.

**Quick Tip**

these can be made up to 2 days in advance; refrigerate, covered. Bring the pears to room temp before serving.

Carmel Apple Bites

Saw this on Pinterest. It was ridiculously easy and my husband loved it!

Take an apple. (really, any kind that you would like to eat raw...)
Using a melon baller, core the apple, leaving the apple as in-tact as possible, fill hole with Vanilla Bean ice cream & drizzle with Carmel sauce. DE-lish! :)

Halloween 2011

Here's our Halloween dinner this year. Everyone actually ate what we cooked this year.

Maggot Sliders

ground turkey or beef

favorite seasoning (we like montreal steak seasoning)

cooked white rice

small, slider sized buns

Mix the ground beef and seasonings and form into small patties. Roll the edges of the patties in a plate full of rice. Carefully cook so all of the rice doesn't fall off. (Some of it will) Cook to your liking. Serve on buns with ketchup for that bloody look!

Deviled Eyeballs

check out this post

and for dessert . . . .

Worm Covered Rotten Apple Bars

CRUST:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 tsp cinnamon

FILLING:

8 apples, peeled, cored and sliced (we used 5 and thought it was plenty)
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 TBSP ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp nutmeg

TOPPING:

1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 box (15 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crusts

Heat oven to 425°F (400°F for dark or nonstick pan).
In large bowl, beat flour, brown sugar, butter and cinnamon with an electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. It will be crumbly.
Press mixture in the bottom of ungreased 13x9-inch pan.

Combine the dry ingredients for the filling in a bowl. Toss the apples with the dry stuff--coat them well. Carefully spread the filling over the crust.
Bake 10 minutes.

While that bakes, in large bowl, mix granulated sugar and cinnamon.
Cut 1 cold unrolled crust lengthwise in half (keep remaining crust refrigerated).
Cut into 1/4-inch slices. Repeat with remaining crust.
Separate pieces, and toss with sugar mixture.
After the 10 minutes, sprinkle cut-up crust mixture evenly over filling.
Bake 18 to 22 minutes more, or until crust is golden brown. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Halloween: Deviled eyeballs

This year was the first annual Witch's Tea Party. We had a "best dressed" witch contest and we voted on the best witch's hat. Everyone was also asked to bring a Halloween treat to compete in one of three categories. Cutest, Creepiest, and Tastiest. It was fun to see what everyone brought and they were all tasty. While there are plenty of things that I am going to tweak for next year's event, it was a lot of fun to have a break from busy life to just enjoy some girl time.

My party contribution came as inspiration from a magazine in my mom's pile of Halloween recipe ideas... I just can't remember which one. The recipe was originally for deviled eggs, but I took the idea and ran with it a little. I also found a delicious deviled egg recipe that I thought I'd try... So here it goes. My own little twist...

sorry... not the best of pictures... but the best my camera can do...

 Deviled Eyeballs.
{ingredients} I doubled this recipe for the yolk stuffing...

6  eggs

1-2 tsp gel food coloring {the original recipe called for black, which I used for our annual Halloween dinner, but for the Tea Party I used red to create the "eyeball" look.}

4 Tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp mustard 

¼ cup mashed cocktail shrimp (rinse and drain very well before mashing)

1 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced fine {I used parsley flakes and they worked fine}

1/2 tsp lemon juice

Salt & pepper to taste

Sliced olives for garnish

{directions}

1. place eggs in one layer in a pot and cover with water (barely cover them) add food coloring and bring to a rolling boil. Once the water reaches a rolling boil, take the pot off the heat and set aside (covered) for 15 minutes. {This is how you make the perfect hard boiled eggs.}

2. After 15 minutes use a slotted spoon to fish out each egg (they are still hot) and tap each egg a few times with the handle of a wooden spoon to crack the shell. When all are cracked, place in a bowl and cover with the colored cooking water. Place in the refrigerator and let cool for at least 2 hours. 

3. When you are ready to assemble, peel the eggs carefully and cut in half lengthwise. Pop out the yolks and mix it with the rest of the ingredients. Add the shrimp last and do not mash further. Fill the empty egg white shells with the mixture and garnish with a sliced black olive.

Serve chilled or store covered in refrigerator for up to one day before serving. Yum!