Apple Dumplings

I'd never tried to make apple dumplings before and this recipe sounded interesting. It involved refrigerated crescent roll dough and Mountain Dew. It sounded like a weird combination, but I decided to give it a try. This is another recipe from Our Best Bites.

Apple Dumplings
2 medium apples
2 cans crescent rolls
2 sticks butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
cinnamon (for sprinkling)
12 oz. (1 can) Mountain Dew or Sprite

1. Spray a 9×13 pan with non-stick cooking spray. Peel apples and cut into 8ths.

2. Open a can of crescent roll dough and separate the dough along the perforations. Place 1/8 of an apple on one segment of dough. Wrap the apple in the dough and place in the prepared pan. Repeat with remaining apples and dough. Set aside.

3. In a medium saucepan, melt butter and add sugar and vanilla. Stir to combine. Pour butter/sugar mixture over the apples, then pour the can of Mountain Dew or Sprite on top of everything. Sprinkle the pan with cinnamon.

4. Bake for 40 minutes at 350.

These seemed easy enough, but I don't know if I did a good enough job on wrapping the dough. Also, there seemed to be a lot of juice that ended up congealing in the pan after I refrigerated it, so maybe these work best straight out of the oven? They tasted pretty good (although kind of sweet) freshly baked, but after that I didn't like them as much. But I've never actually tried apple dumplings before so I don't really know how they're supposed to taste! This is definitely a recipe I'll try again sometime and see if I can improve on my first attempt.

Ease: 3/5
Taste: 3/5
Total: 6/10

RED

I had to drive back to Richmond this weekend to work (ugh) but at least it gave me a chance to listen to the entire new Taylor Swift album!

These are my favorite songs so far:

1. Begin Again - I think this is my absolute favorite of the whole bunch. This sounds the most like an old-school Taylor Swift song. The lyrics and music are poignant and beautiful.

"You throw your head back laughing like a little kid
I think it's strange that you think I’m funny cause he never did
I've been spending the last 8 months
Thinking all love ever does
Is break and burn and end
But on a Wednesday in a cafe
I watched it begin again"


2. I Knew You Were Trouble - Sounds a little different from Taylor's usual songs, but I love it.

"I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places I’d never been
Till you put me down"

"No apologies, he'll never see you cry
Pretends he doesn't know that he's the reason why
You're drowning, you’re drowning, you’re drowning…"

3. All Too Well - These are the kind of lyrics I love from T. Swift!

"We're singing in the car, getting lost upstate
autumn leaves falling down like pieces into place
and I can picture it after all these days"

"and you call me up again
just to break me like a promise
so casually cruel in the name of being honest"


4. 22 - This song is just so fun, and it makes me think of all my girlfriends.

"Yeah we're happy, free, confused, and lonely at the same time
It’s miserable and magical, oh yeah
Tonight’s the night when we forget about the deadlines
It's time-
I don't know about you
But I'm feeling 22
Everything will be all right if you keep me next to you"

5. Everything Has Changed - I like this collaboration that Taylor Swift did with Ed Sheeran. It's beautiful and sweet and honest. I think it's really relatable too.

"All I feel in my stomach is butterflies
The beautiful kind
Making up for lost time,
Taking flight, making me feel like
I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now"

Runner-ups:
State of Grace - I didn't like it at first, but it's growing on me.
The Moment I Knew - best one of the bonus tracks.
We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together - Catchy, but since it was the first single released, I've heard it too much.
I Almost Do - I like this one, but it's not as catchy.

Failures:
Treacherous - boring
Stay Stay Stay - annoyingly repetitive
Starlight - terrible lyrics
Sad Beautiful Tragic - utterly forgettable

The Target saga

Today I decided I was going to go to Target after my clinical to get Taylor Swift's new cd. (yay!) It turned into quite a little adventure. (This is going to be complete rambling and stream of consciousness type stuff. You've been warned.)

 

First of all, of course today when I had to run 8 miles and go to Target after clinic, I ended up getting off late. I didn't get out until 5pm and by the time I took the shuttle back to my car and started my run it was 5:30. Which meant it was dark by the time I finished my run. Luckily I've found some well-lit roads to run on by the UVA campus, but there were still sections that were kind of dark and I did get lost for a little bit. The roads in Charlottesville are crazy and they change names about 5 times within 5 miles. Elliott turns into Cherry, Main turns into University which turns into Ivy, Barracks turns into Rugby which turns into Prescott. Wow, I actually just did that from memory! Running does have its advantages -  I learn the street names a lot quicker!

The other thing about running in Charlottesville is that it's HILLY! You would think that the uphill would be the worst part, but actually the downhill kinda freaks me out more. My number one concern now is getting injured before the marathon. I've worked WAY too hard not to be able to run if anything should happen. So I was trying to be really careful on the downhill sections and some of those puppies were steep! I must have looked like an idiot as I carefully shuffled my way down the hills, but I felt like I really took off on the flatter parts.

I actually have really enjoyed running in Charlottesville these past two days, despite all the hills. I was feeling good after my run. Normally I might have nixed Target since it was already getting late but I really wanted to go, so why not? I didn't realize quite how far away Target was though. With all the stores that are crammed into such a small area near UVA, you'd think there'd be a Target. I mean, I passed 3 Krogers and 3 Bodo Bagels on the way to Target. (Why are there so many Bodo Bagels? I have to try a bagel from there sometime!)

So I finally got to Target (it was a HUGE Target, I wish I would've had more time to look around, but it's probably good for my budget that I didn't). I didn't have to look far to find T.Swift's cd because they had a huge display with not only her cd, but t-shirts, make-up, perfume, posters, cards, and a Taylor Swift blanket. Girl knows how to market her stuff. She must be making bank on this one. I avoided most of the extra merch, but I did end up buying one tinylittleextrathing, just a cute card that was too adorable to pass up!

But just as I was making my way to the register with only about $17 worth of purchases, I got sideswiped by the DOLLAR SECTION. I mean seriously, they have some good stuff in there and it's just so dang cheap. I can never pass up dollar candy, especially if it's Scooby Doo gummies. And how about the cute little box of tissues to keep in my car? And the bag clips that I never have enough of? And oh yeah I definitely need more elastics! So $25 later, I was rolling out of Target with a whole bag of little items, thinking "Target got me again," but not feeling too bad because really everything was a great deal! (How does Target do that? They have some kind of magic in there that makes you happy to spend money on things you never intended to buy!)

 

By now I was starving, but being as great at planning ahead as I am, I had spotted a Chick-fil-A on the way there and knew where to stop. I've been trying to eat a little healthier, so I decided just to get the chicken sandwich and a soda and not get any fries. But later as I was still driving back (Target was really far away!), I was still hungry. And I thought, What the heck? I just ran 8 flipping miles, so I'm going to get some fries if I darn well please (but still just a small cuz I don't want to get fat). So I stopped at McDonalds (they have better fries than Chick-fil-A anyway) and got the most delicious HOT, salty fries. You know how sometimes McDonalds has really great fries and other times they're disappointing? I'm glad this was a time McD's did not let me down!

As I was looking at the menu in the drive-thru, I noticed McDonald's has some new holiday things that I'm dying to try! They have some new coffees: Peppermint Mocha and Salted caramel apple. They have a Holiday Peppermint McFlurry, and they have their EggNog milkshake (love!). I held off on getting anything else tonight but now I seriously can't wait to go back to McDonald's for some of that good stuff.

I finally made it back to my house (or rather Bettina and Paul's house) and now it's nearly my bedtime. I just realized that this entire post sounds like a big endorsement for fast food and candy- I guess I'm a fatty. I do have a huge sweet tooth and will always love McDonald's despite what anyone tries to tell me about how unhealthy it is. I guess it's a good thing I run; otherwise I would be about 300 pounds.

There's really no point to this post, other than the fact that I can obviously take one evening of my life where all I did was go to Target and get fast food and turn it into pages of mindless reading. :)

Apple Crisp

To me, apple crisp is the quintessential fall dish. In a perfect world, I'd be eating it on a slightly chilly October evening at a state fair. There's something about hot apple crisp when it's cold outside - just the smell of it warms me up. Of course it's pretty good when eaten indoors too, especially right out of the oven.

Homemade apple crisp is easy to make, yet still so yummy. I wish every dessert this good required so little effort! I love this recipe that I got from Betty Crocker.

Apple Crisp

4 medium tart cooking apples, sliced (4 cups)

3/4 C brown sugar

1/2 C flour

1/2 C quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats

1/3 C butter, softened

3/4 t ground cinnamon

3/4 t ground nutmeg

 

1. Heat oven to 375º. Grease bottom and sides of 8-inch square pan with shortening.

2. Spread apples in pan. In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients until well mixed; sprinkle over apples.

3. Bake about 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown.

Ease: 5/5 (1= difficult to make, 5=easy)

Taste: 5/5

Total: 10/10

Apple Pie - Lattice Top

Ugh. In my last post, I mentioned how I always thought pies were difficult? They are! That is, if you decide to make your own traditional pie crust. The crumble topping was easy, but this crust? not so much. I pretty much hate any dough that you need to roll out. Inevitably (at least for me), one corner gets too thin, or I don't use enough flour and the dough starts to get sticky, or the dough starts to fall apart when I try to transfer it. Next time, I'm all for refrigerated pie crusts!

Besides the pie crusts, the rest of the baking wasn't too hard. The filling was delicious even before I put the pie in the oven. This pie filling wasn't quite as runny as the other. The crust tasted good, even though I didn't make it look pretty. I got this recipe from Our Best Bites. They seriously have the best recipes!

Traditional Apple Pie
2 pie crusts (one for bottom, one for top). Our Best Bites has a great recipe for homemade pie crusts.
6 cups peeled, sliced apples (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 T. lemon juice
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 T. all-purpose flour
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
2 T. butter, chopped

1. Combine lemon juice and apples in a large bowl. Combine 1/2 c. sugar and next four ingredients, mixing well. Spoon over apple mixture, tossing gently. Spoon filling evenly into pie crust and dot with chopped butter.

2. Top with remaining pie crust. Be sure to make vents in the pie crust to allow steam to escape, or you can make a lattice top like I did.

3. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake 50 minutes more. Keep an eye on the pie while it's baking. If necessary, cover the edges with aluminum foil to prevent the crust from getting too brown.

Ease: 3/5
Taste: 4/5
Total: 7/10

I really liked the filling of this pie, although I liked the crumble topping of the other pie. Maybe in the future I'll try to combine the recipes and make the ultimate apple pie!

Apple Pie - Crumble Topping

I always thought pies were hard to make, especially if I was going to attempt to make my own crust. However, this apple pie with a crumble topping is definitely the easiest pie I've ever made! And it tasted pretty darn good too. My one issue was that the bottom layer of crust stuck to the dish, so it was really hard to get the pieces of pie out of the pan intact.

My other complaint about apple pie is that you can't really eat it right out of the oven. The pie filling is too runny at first and it needs time to thicken. It's one of those times food is actually better reheated. That said, I enjoyed this apple pie both reheated and stone cold. I couldn't get enough of it! I got the recipe from Our Best Bites.

Apple Pie with Crumble Topping

 2 c. all-purpose flour

 2/3 c. brown sugar

 1/2 c. uncooked regular oats

 1/2 t. salt

 3/4 c. butter, melted

Filling:

 4 c. tart, thinly sliced apples (about 3 apples)

 1/3 c. white sugar

 1 1/2 t. cornstarch

 1/8 t. salt

 1/4 c. water

 1/2 t. vanilla

 

1. Combine flour, brown sugar, oats, salt, and melted butter in a medium bowl. Pack 1 cup of the mixture into a measuring cup and set it aside; gently press remaining mixture into a 9″ pie plate. Be sure not to pack it in there too tightly or it will be too hard to slice the pie when it’s baked. (My mistake!)

 

2. Place sliced apples in pie crust.

 

3. In a small saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, water, and vanilla and bring to a boil. After sugar/water mixture has come to a boil, pour the hot mixture over the apples.

 

4. Sprinkle reserved crumb topping over apples and then place the pie plate on a baking sheet.

 

5. Bake for 43-45 minutes at 350°.

 

Ease: 4/5

Taste: 5/5

Total: 9/10

Apple Desserts

My parents came to visit this weekend! On Sunday we went to Carter Mountain Orchard and picked a TON of apples (okay, not a literal ton, but 19 pounds worth).

I love apple desserts and I can't wait to start baking some apple goodies! I have a hard time deciding on a favorite apple dessert, so I thought it would be fun to try a variety of recipes and rate them on my blog.

Here's what I'm planning to bake:

• Apple Crisp (Result: 10/10 - Winner!)
• Apple Pie with a crumble topping (9/10)
• Traditional Apple Pie (7/10)
• Apple Dumplings (6/10)
• Apple Donuts (I nixed these when I realized they didn't actually contain any apples!)

Any other ideas? I'm not a fan of caramel apples because they're too hard to eat. I might add in a recipe for an apple cake or apple muffins, but I have to say I prefer apple desserts where the apples are hot and gooey. In a cake or muffin, the apples tend to be much more dry and not as delicious.

I'm excited to try some new apple recipes. Hopefully I'll discover some keepers!

Addition: Caramel Apple Bars - I made these the weekend I moved out of my apartment. I ran out of a bunch of ingredients and didn't feel like buying more, so I substituted like crazy! The bars turned out just okay. I want to try this one again and actually follow the recipe.

Pumpkin Milkshake

It finally feels like Fall in Richmond! I celebrated by wearing my boots for the first time this year and baking pumpkin goodies. You may remember from last year that I love all things pumpkin. Last night I made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and they were good, but today I made a pumpkin milkshake and it was DELICIOUS! It's definitely my favorite "Fall" treat so far this year.

I found the recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Our Best Bites.
The following is my version of their pumpkin milkshake.

Pumpkin Milkshake
1/3 C canned pumpkin
1/4 C milk
1/4 t vanilla
1/2 t cinnamon
1/16 t (pinch) nutmeg
2 T brown sugar
2 C vanilla ice cream (I didn't actually measure the ice cream, I just used what I had left, which was maybe 1.5 cups? You can modify the amount of ice cream based on how thick you like your milkshake).

I added the first 6 ingredients together and blended them until smooth. Then I added the ice cream a few small scoops at a time, blending it together as I went. I've found that my ancient blender can't handle several huge scoops of ice cream. It gets too thick and the blender can't process it. Adding smaller spoonfuls of ice cream keeps my blender from conking out and ensures a smoother, creamier texture. Like I said before, DELICIOUS.

Lynchburg 10 Miler

It's a week later and I'm just now writing about the race I ran in Lynchburg last weekend. This week has been a bit of a crazy ride... but last weekend was awesome. The Genworth Virginia 10 miler was a great race! I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would.

Tristan had told me to expect hills, so I was prepared for it to be a tough race. We started out the race going downhill for about a mile and since it was an out-and-back course, I kept thinking about how we were going to have to go back up that hill at the end. There were several up and downs throughout the course, but Tristan and I actually passed a lot of people going up hills. We didn't over-exert ourselves on the hills, but tried to keep a nice easy pace. When we got to the long hill at the end, it actually wasn't that bad. It was about a mile uphill, but it was a gradual incline. I had been expecting that hill to be the worst, but some of the hills in the middle part of the course were steeper and more difficult, so by the time we got to the end, it wasn't that bad!

The weather was perfect for the race. It was overcast, breezy, and not too hot. I've learned that the weather can be a HUGE factor in any race, so I'm always thankful for clouds and cool weather on race day. I've learned that it's a good thing if I'm a little cold before the race because I warm up as soon as I start running. Tristan and I ran the whole thing together. We weren't trying to PR, we were trying to keep a good pace and use this race as part of our marathon training.

Our splits are variable because of the hills, but we averaged a 9:37 pace. Here are the splits I recorded:

Mile 1: 9:09 (downhill)
Mile 2: 9:55
Mile 3: 10:02
Mile 4: 9:58
Mile 5: 9:29
Mile 6: 9:42
Mile 7: 9:27
Mile 8: 9:26
Mile 9: 9:56
Mile 10: Missed it, but just over 9 minutes. 9:02? (calculated).
I sprinted the last 0.3 miles!

Official time: 1:36:06

I came in 39th in my age group. Also interesting to note, my five mile split was 48:33, which means I ran the final five miles in 47:33, which means I negative split for the first time ever (even if it was only by one minute)!

After the race, Tristan and I got pizza and other goodies, then we realized free massages were available for the runners. As we were waiting in line for massages, I mentioned to Tristan that we should run two more miles to get in our 12 for marathon training (haha). But Tristan actually wanted to do it- and being the crazy people we are, we went back on the course and ran an additional two miles! It was hilarious because people driving by thought we were still running the race. They were shouting out words of encouragement and cheering us on! I didn't know how to explain that we had actually finished 30 minutes ago, so we just smiled and laughed it off.

We got back to the finish area, finally got our massages, and we got to see the last competitor finish. He was an 84 year old guy who's run the Genworth Virginia 10 Miler every year since the race first started in 1974. It took him over three hours this year, but he finished amidst a crowd of support. It was really inspiring to see him chugging along to the finish, slowly but surely, and to witness all the support and encouragement from everyone. Nobody understands the determination, dedication, and perseverance required for the sport better than fellow runners.

It's always a good time

I spent the past weekend in Lynchburg running races, celebrating birthdays, and catching up with friends. This weekend I got to see De and Doug, Tristan, Joanna, and Audrey (Joanna's sister).

Tristan's birthday was on Saturday. We started off her birthday celebration with a 10 mile race together. After the race we got pizza, snacks, and a medal of course. Then we decided to run two more miles to get a full 12 miles in for marathon training. We're crazy like that.

We did some shopping, like always, then headed to Olive Garden for Tristan's birthday dinner. Olive Garden was delicious. It's definitely one of my fave restaurants. We stayed there for over two hours chatting and eating. We got free wine samples, an appetizer to share, endless pasta bowls, and tons of breadsticks. SO MUCH food. But it was totally worth it for Tristy's b-day.

No matter what we do, whenever we get together it's always a good time. And we don't even have to try. (Thank you Carly Rae Jepsen and Owl City for the theme song of the weekend)!