Apple Cake

We bought so many Granny Smith Apples that I made this healthy cake for the boys. It disappeared so fast that I made it again a few days later. This cake, even though it's baked in a pie pan, is made up of mostly sliced apples with a little sprinkle of cinnamon on the top. What little batter there is, is mixed in with more slices of apples and poured into the pan.

Afterschool Pretzels

When it's cold and icy rain is pelting you all the way home, it's best to recover by making some nice, warm pretzels. The boys shaped them into "snakes" among other things.

Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

Chocolate Chip Cookies With and Without Nuts

I baked these for a potluck Christmas in July Party. I know not everyone is a fan of nuts so I made half of them with and half of them without walnuts. It was a good thing too since one of the boys at the party has a nut allergy.

 It is so cold here that I had to melt the butter to measure it, this was before I went out and bought a scale. The cookie dough was too soft so the first batch I made spread a lot. In subsequent batches, I rolled the dough into balls and put them in the freezer. The longer they were in the freezer, the better they held their shape. I didn't have chocolate chips so I cut a huge Whitaker's bar into chunks.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Lemon Custard Pie

This was the first thing I baked in New Zealand. Most of my baking supplies (and all my recipes)  are in boxes in St. Louis so I went out and bought a few new things. This ceramic pie plate is one of them. I like how it's more stylish than just the glass type I've had in the past. Sage has been begging me to make lemon custard pie for him for over two months (since we first arrived in Hawaii).

One thing I  miss is my zester. I left Sage alone with the box grater to zest the lemon. When I came back, the whole lemon was shredded. We took a few tablespoons of lemon zest/pith/flesh and added them in for flavor. The pie was the best on the third day. It was wet on the first day and the crust was hard. The second day was better. And third day, we rated it an A! The custard had solidified and  the crust was softer and easier to eat.

So glad to be baking again! The oven is in Celsius so I always need to convert. There is a ton of counter space and kitchen storage space. Much better than the tiny apartment kitchen. And now the boys are in school. Can't wait to try some new recipes.