Chex Scotcheroos

Answer..... "Just Because!"
Question... "Why do you make the yummy looking goodies that your hubby posts on your Facebook page?" 

Chex Scotcheroos

6 cups rice or corn chex
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups butterscotch chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

grease a large round bowl and pour the cereal in set aside.

grease a 9x13 inch pan set aside.

in a pan on the stove, combine the corn syrup and sugar, and stir over medium high heat until it comes to a boil.

immediately remove from heat and stir in 1 1/2 cups of peanut butter and then immediately pour this mixture over the cereal and fold in pour into the 9x13 pan.

in a microwaveable 4 cup measuring cup, combine the butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, 1/2 cup of peanut butter and vanilla microwave for 30 seconds at a time.

Make sure you stir very well after each interval until it is completely melted and smooth

it should take about 1 minute and 30 seconds

pour over the bars allow to cool completely at room temperature before cutting

TWD: "Baking With Julia" - Torte Milanse

Feeling all "PUFFED" up today... our "Baking With Julia" challenge today was TORTE MILANSE. We made our's without the ham and served it as a side dish to compliment our pork roast. iT was beautiful and if you have ever wanted to trying making your own puff pastry dough, this is this recipe to use. iT is very easy and very yummy. There is a great video found here... http://video.pbs.org/video/1174110297/ showing you how to make the whole thing.

Butternut Squash Soup & Charity...

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 
  
• 2 cloves garlic diced 
• 1 celery stalk , diced 
• 1 onion , diced 
• 6 cups cubed butternut squash , fresh or frozen 
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth 
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley

Heat oil in a large soup pot. Add garlic, celery and onion. Cook until vegetables have begun to soften and onion turns translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in butternut squash, thyme, chicken broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until squash is fork-tender, about 30 minutes. Use an immersion blender to purée soup or you can let the soup cool slightly and carefully purée in batches in an upright blender. This recipe is also good made with sweet potatoes. 

Monte Cristos

feeling very spoiled... Spent Another great day watching General Conference and then was served Homemade Monte Cristos (dinner) in bed by my favorite boyfriend...

A Monte Cristo is a fried ham and cheese sandwich, a variation of the French croque-monsieur and is Rumored to have first been served in Los Angeles in the 1950s, the Monte Cristo sandwich is still a staple on the lunch menu at Disneyland Blue Bayou Restaurant. 

Ingredients to make 3 Sandwiches...
9 slices of sturdy white bread
3 slices deli thick sliced turkey
3 slices deli thick sliced ham
3 slices of American or Cheddar cheese

3 slices of Swiss Cheese

For Batter...
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Vegetable oil for frying

1. Place turkey and Swiss cheese on one slice of bread and ham and American cheese on another slice of bread.
2. Place third slice in-between and secure the triple-decker sandwich in the corners with tooth picks.
3. Place egg in mixing bowl, add water and beat together. Add salt, sugar, flour, and baking powder. Beat batter until smooth.
4. Dip sandwich in batter and carefully cover all the sides and surface. Carefully place in hot oil and fry until golden. When sandwich has turned a warm gold color remove from hot oil and place on paper towel.
5. Let cool for a few minutes before removing the tooth picks. Before serving slice into fourths and sprinkle with powder sugar. Serve with Grape or Red Current jam.

Bottling Pears

We kept the traditions going today for our Super Saturday... Watching General Conference, bottling pears, talking Genealogy and playing with Grandma! Only this year... I am the GRANDMA, my how time flies. 

YOU WILL NEED:

• 8-12 lb ripe but firm pears, peeled, cored, halved, treated to prevent browning and drained (about 24-36 medium)
• 1 batch hot light or medium syrup
• 8 Ball® (16 oz) pint glass preserving jars with lids and bands

DIRECTIONS:

1. PREPARE pears by peeling, coring and halving them. To prevent browning, use Ball® Fruit-Fresh® or submerge pears in a mixture of 1/4 cup lemon juice and 4 cups water and drain. To prepare syrup, combine 2-1/4 cups granulated sugar and 5-1/4 cups water for light and 3-1/4 cups granulated sugar and 5 cups water for medium in a stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat to low and keep warm until needed, taking care not to boil the syrup down.
2. PREPARE boiling water canner. Heat jars in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil.  Wash lids in warm soapy water and set bands aside.
3. WARM pears, one layer at a time, in a large stainless steel saucepan, over medium-low heat, in syrup until heated through, about 5 minutes.
4. PACK hot pears , using a slotted spoon, cavity side down and overlapping layers, into hot jars to within a generous 1/2 inch of top of jar. Ladle hot syrup into hot jar to cover pears, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding hot syrup. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until fit is fingertip tight.
5. PROCESS pint jars in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes and quarts for 25 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

Steamed Persimmion Pudding

Persimmions... Who has tried them?

Our "Beekman's 1802 Heirloom Dessert" challenge was to make Steamed Persimmon Pudding. Where we live they look at you like you are crazy when you ask for Persimmions. I have eaten them before while I lived in South Carolina. They are okay... not my favorite fruit.

Anyway, since we couldn't get any Persimmions here, we decided to use the little Asian Apple pears in the recipe instead. They were very tasty, We really enjoyed them. I would love to try the recipe again with Persimmions.

Checkerboard Tangzhong Rolls

Artisan "Bread of the Month" challenge...

This was an interesting recipe for us here at the Pantry, because in our chef world the beginning is known as a "RUE", a base for gravies and cream sauces. I was very intrigued and very surprised... We loved them! Best Rolls in a long time. We were out of all black style seeds so we chose to use a roasted garlic and parsley dry herb mix on top of ours along with the sesame seeds. We are adding this recipe to our stack for sure... 😀

CHECKERBOARD TANGZHONG ROLLS

Ingredients
Tangzhong
90 grams (6 T) water
18 grams (2 T) bread flour

Final Dough
345 grams bread flour
30 grams sugar
7 grams instant yeast
15 grams milk powder (optional, I used King Arthur Flour's Special Dry Milk)
All of the tangzhong
75 to 90 grams whole milk
30 grams heavy whipping cream
one egg
30 grams unsalted butter at room temperature
5 grams salt

Topping
Milk
Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, bran, or other seed or topping of your choice

Instructions
To make the tangzhong:
Whisk the water and flour together in a small saucepan until blended.
Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens reaches 149 degrees F, or if you don't have a thermometer, until your spoon forms lines in the mixture. Do not walk away as this happens really fast.
Immediately scrape the mixture into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap onto the mixture and let it cool to room temperature.
To make the final dough:
Add the dry ingredients except the salt to the bowl of a stand mixer.
In a medium bowl, whisk the tangzhong with the the milk and cream..
Add the mixture to the dry ingredients and mix on low with the dough hook. Add the salt.
Add the butter, a little bit at a time, continuing to mix on low. If the dough gets too slippery, switch to the paddle for a minute or two to incorporate the ingredients.
Once the butter is incorporated, knead with the dough hook for about 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
Transfer the dough to an oiled boil, cover, and let rise for one to two hours, until doubled. You can also let it rise in the refrigerator overnight, up to 24 hours.
Line a 9 inch by 9 inch cake pan with parchment and spray with spray oil.
Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and shape the pieces into rolls.
Dip each roll into milk and then into the seeds of your choice. Or, for better seed placement than I got, sprinkle the seeds over the top of the milk dipped roll. Arrange the rolls in the pan in a pattern of your choice.
Cover and let rise 1 to 2 hours, until doubled.
Preheat the oven to 355 degrees F.
Bake the rolls for about 20 minutes, until golden. Lift the parchment out of the pan and place the rolls on a wire rack. Remove the parchment and let cool a bit before serving.
Store extras in a plastic bag.
Adapted from a recipe contributed by Dave W, a member of the Facebook group, Artisan Bread Bakers.

Here's a link to my version. http://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2015/0

Award Winning Chili....

The Tradition Continues....

Our oldest son / chef Brady's chili took 1st place in the Grand Canyon "Annual Chili Cook Off". Cash and prizes were duly awarded. It was really good, but if we shared the secret recipe, then would be winners.

He even made the papers... 

GRAND CANYON NEWS

"TBHD" - Oatmeal Cream Pies with Ginger Cream

      As we come to the close of a very heartfelt somber day, filled with moments of silent prayers and reflections of who and where we were 14 years ago today, I can't help but get a small chuckle out of the recipe pairing of the day.

       Oatmeal Cream Pies have got to be one of our family's all time favorite. If we don't have time to make them from scratch then you can always find a box of Little Dibbie's in someone's stash and if you are a fan of Little Debbie's Oatmeal Creme Pies then you will love these.

         The cookie part of the recipe is a very simple and tradional style recipe, but the ginger cream brings about a whole new flavor. Some of us liked it and some of us didn't... You will just have to make them to decide for your self. Please post a comment and let us know.

TWD: "Baking Chez Moi" - Jam Filled Sandwich Cookies

These little gems are not new to the pantry and I love them with just about anything you want to fill them with. My favorite is sour cream raisin filled, but my family like boysenberry jam from Knott's Berry Farm.

There is an art to getting them sealed so that all the jam doesn't leak out while baking. My grandmother use to dip her finger in a little bit of cream and rub it around the edge of the bottom cookie before placing the other one on top.

If you would like to bake a long with our group.... Check us out at Tuesday's At Dorie.

"TBHD" - Pancake Cake with Maple Cream Frosting

Fall is in the air here in the Canyon and after dealing with some technical issues with our Friday Dessert Challenges from our current cookbook "The Beekman's 1802 Heirloom Dessert Cookbook" I am pleased and excited to announce we are back on track and would like to kick off the fall festivities with "Pancake Cake with Maple Cream Frosting", page 186.

This dessert was surprisingly rich and very tasty. It is a great, quick, yummy treat that you can make using leftover pancakes. Several of the kids suggested making the traditional buttermilk pancakes and then adding fresh strawberries and cream in the layers. For others they thought bananas and Nutella would be yummy, as for me I think warms apples and caramel sauce would be good. 

We added...

1/2 teaspoon of dried ginger to the pancake mix and grated some milk chocolate over the top for decorative garnish. 

Wild Rice and Cheddar Dumplings

Thrifty Thursday....

Fall is in the air here in the Canyon and with that comes our need for thick, rich, saucy, comfort style foods. So, we would like to kick-off September with a hearty, yummy soup. We really like this soup because it is made with leftovers and can be put together a couple of days ahead and added too as you gain the leftovers. The dumplings can either be added to the soup or baked as biscuits.

Ingredients

• 8 cups water
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 2 cups diced potatoes
• 2 cups diced carrots
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cups Beef Stock
• 3 cups cubed cooked roast beef
• 2 cups cooked wild rice
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 cups half & half
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
• 3 teaspoons kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon fresh chopped basil
• 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
• DUMPLINGS:
• 2 cups biscuit/baking mix
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 3/4 cup half & half

Directions

• 1. Place the first seven ingredients in a stockpot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add beef and rice.
• 2. In a small bowl, combine flour and milk until smooth. Stir into the soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the butter and seasonings.
• 3. Combine the baking mix, cheese and milk. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto simmering soup. Cover and simmer for 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in a dumpling comes out clean (do not lift the cover while simmering). Yield: 14 servings (about 5 quarts). 

"TBHD" - Fall Line-Up & Group Information

Now that we have been able to work out a few small details:
(WE can only choose a few recipes and share our thoughts and feelings about them.)

We have 25 Fall Recipes and only 13 Friday's during our Fall Quarter, some of the recipes we have already completed in the past and some are very similar, so do to the new agreed upon agenda.

Here is our Fall Line-up...

Sept. 4 - Pancake Cake with Maple Cream Frosting
Sept. 11 - Oatmeal Cream Pies with Ginger Cream
Sept. 18 - Choose Indian Pudding or Buttermilk Corn Pudding
Sept. 25 - Buttermilk Pie with Pecan Crust or Cranberry-Apple Custard Pie

Oct. 2 - Steamed Persimmon Pudding
Oct. 9 - Choose Honey Burbon Cake or Walnut Cake
Oct. 16 - Blackberry Betty
Oct. 23 - Roasted Caramel Pears
Oct. 30 - Sour Cream Cutout And Cowboy Cookies for Halloween

Nov. 6 - Maple Granola
Nov. 13 - Puff Pastry Apple Strudel with Carmel Apples on the side
Nov. 20 - Pumpkin Jelly Roll
Nov. 27 - Thanksgving Pies (Choose any Pie from the Fall Line-up)

TWD: "Baking with Julia" - Brioche Tart with White Secret Sauce

 I have been intrigued with the art of making a good Brioche for a couple of years now and today's challenge gave me the little shove I needed....

We decided to make them into individual size for better serving and presentation for a larger group of people. We also choose to add wet walnuts as the topping. Even though they were a little time consuming, they were fantastic and we will be making these again.

Our little brioche loaf at the end was very tasty, it had great crumb and texture. This recipe is one of those that Julia also baked with Nancy Silverton and the video can be seen on YouTube at www.youtube.com/watch?v=er5uqAfZpLg. 

Tomatoes - (Bottled, Sauce & Stuffed Shells)

For 12 quarts YOU WILL NEED:

• About 36 - 40 pounds ripe tomatoes (I use 6 - 7 medium tomatoes per quart)
  
• Water
• 1/2 teaspoon bottled lemon juice
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon canning salt
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon sugar
• Glass jars with new lids and bands 

DIRECTIONS: 

We use the cold pack method for our tomatoes, so there is some prep that has the happen before we begin. Like... make sure your bottles are clean and without chips, cracks or breaks. Make sure your lids are new and your bands are not bent.

1. Fill stock pot or canning pot with hot water and turn on medium heat. In another pan Heat jars, lids and bands in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil.  
2. WASH tomatoes. Dip in boiling water 30 to 60 seconds, only leave in boiling water long enough for skins to start cracking, do not over cook. Immediately dip in cold water. Slip off skins. Place skins in another bowl and save for later use in making the sauce. Trim away any green areas and cut out core. Leave tomatoes whole or cut into halves or quarters. Squish tomatoes into jar tight. Juice will come out around a fill the jar. Fill the jar leaving about one inch of space from top of jar. 
3. Add 2 Tbsp lemon juice to each full quart jar or 1 Tbsp lemon juice to each hot pint jar. Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon sugar to each quart jar or a 1/2 teaspoon of each to each pint jar, if desired. Fill the jar full with hot water.
4. Wipe rim with damp cloth. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight. Place in stock pot full of hot water. Make sure water covers the jars by at least 1 inch above jars. PROCESS filled jars in a boiling water canner 30minutes for pints and 35 minutes for quarts, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed. 

now for the sauce.... 

You will need the bowl full of tomato skins that you saved. Place them in a sauce pan with the following items. 

---- 1/4 cup diced onions

---- 3 cloves diced garlic

---- 1 tablespoon olive oil

---- 1 tablespoon fresh mixed chopped basil 
leaves, oregano, thyme bay leaves, parsley 

---- 1/2 cup chicken stock
---- 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Bring everything to a simmer and cook on low for 5 minutes, stirring often. Next pour tomato skin mixture into a colander or fine mesh strainer. Push through with the back side of a tablespoon. Repeat until skins become very dry and stringy. Discard skins and what is leftover in bottle bowl is your sauce.                                                                                       
                                                                           

Then for my favorite part... THE STUFFED SHELLS 
1. Prepare Pasta Shells as directed on the back of the package. 
2. Next mix together 1 cup Ricotta cheese with 1 cup grated mozzarella and 1 cup cheddar cheese.
3. Spoon cheese mixture  into cooled pasta shells and place stuffed shells in baking dish filled with 1/2 of homemade pasta sauce. 
4. Cover shells with rest of pasta sauce and more grated mozzarella. 
5. Bake on 350 until shells are hot and bubbling.

Spinach & Artichoke Alfredo Pizza

Was feeling creative today.. So for dinner, we made homemade Spinach & Artichoke Dip pizza with chicken and caramelized onions. SOOOOO.... YUMMY!

This is one of those recipes that you need to start early in the day, because you need to let

your dough rise or proof three times through the afternoon. 

For Pizza Crust: (makes enough for 3 large pizzas)

2 1/2 cups hot water
1/2 cup buttermilk
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 teaspoons salt
3 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon dry yeast
8 cups flour + plus 1 cup

Mix all together, knead well, dusting counter with a little bit of flour at a time. Knead until dough is not sticky. Cover with 1 teaspoon olive oil, rub olive oil around until the whole dough ball is covered. Place dough back into mixing bowl and cover with baking cloth and let rise until double in size. Knock down and repeat three times. Next make into pizza bases and let rise for 15 minutes, cover with sauce, toppings and cheese. Bake on 450 for 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. ( I pre-bake my crust bases for 5-10 minutes before adding any sauce or toppings, this creates a crispier crust. 

For the Alfredo sauce: (you can make this ahead)

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon chopped chives
2 cups Heavy Cream
1 cup milk
1/2 cup parmasesan cheese
Melt butter and oil together add garlic and flour, stir until thick, will look like the start of rue. Slowly pour in heavy cream while consistently stirring. Let cook for 5 minutes. Next stir in milk, chives and cheese, cook for another 5 minutes stirring consistently. Set aside to let cool.

For Toppings and Assembly: (for each pizza use the following)
1 cup of Alfredo sauce
1/2 cup fresh or frozen spinach
1/2 cup canned artichoke heart
1/2 cup carmelized onions
1/2 cup grilled chicken
1 cup mozzarella grated cheese

Cover pizza base with sauce and then randomly place all the following around on top of the sauce, making sure the mozzerella cheese is placed on last. Bake on 450 for 15-20 minutes.

TWD: "Baking with Julia" - Swedish Oatmeal Hardtack

Our "Tuesday's with Dorie" challenge today was all about hardtack! And I am not talking about the little pretty ribboned candies that your grandma use to hide in her candy dish... I am referring to good old fashioned "Swedish Oatmeal Hardtack" or oatmeal crackers. They are sooooooo yummy and easy to make. I wish I would have tried this recipe six months ago when I was sick and craving crackers, but couldn't have all the salt, plus they are momma approved for my granddaughter, being low salt and sugar.

Sourdough Blueberry Muffins

So our Monday Inspirational Sourdough Blueberry Monkey Bread turned into muffins. I am a moody mom today and so was my dough... So I thinned out the mixture and made muffins.

 Much better I think.... Lol! 

2 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sourdough start or buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil or melted butter
3 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cup sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup blueberries, rinsed, or fresh or frozen

Beat egg slightly; stir in sour dough, milk and oil. Sift together flour, salt, sugar and baking powders and baking soda.
Combine both mixtures and blueberries, fold only until mixture is wet and lumpy, about 15 to 20 folds. The key to good muffins is not to over mix the batter.
Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Sprinkle tops with coarse granulated sugar (such as turbinado) if desired.
Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or less.

Makes 24 standard size muffins.

Homemade S'Mores Ice Cream (National Ice Cream Day)

Tomorrow is National Ice Cream Day and we always try something new in celebration. So this year we decided to combine both our Saturday Cooking School challenge and National Ice Cream Day to bring you... Homemade S'Mores Ice Cream.

First you will need to make your custard base...

For 4 QUARTS:

4 eggs
2 1/4 c. sugar
2 cans evaporated milk
5 c. Heavy cream
4 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 can Eagle Brand milk (optional) 

Beat eggs until foamy. Add sugar and evaporated milk, stir until sugar is dissolved. Cook on medium heat until thick like pudding. Cool to at least room tempeture, not less than two hours, we try to make ours the night before and chill overnight in the fridge. 

Next, stir in remaining ingredients and mix extremely well. Pour into your ice cream maker and follow manifactures instructions, using the rock salt and ice method. While ice cream is freezing you can get the S'More toppings ready for the fun.

For Individual Servings... (We prep this ahead of time if we are serving a lot of guests or friends)

1 graham cracker (crumbs)

1 tablespoon mini chocolate chips

6-8 mini marshmallows

Serve with cracker crumbs, chocolate chip and marshmallows.

"TBHD" - Pistachio Chip Ice Cream

National Ice Cream Day is in a couple of days, so we decided that we would feature a couple of our favorite ice creams and we were so excited to discover that Pistachio Chip was one of the Desserts among our challenge recipes.

We loved this recipe... The butter roasted Pistachio nuts were a big part of the yummy flavor for us.


Pantry Sidenote Tip: 
When roasting Nuts Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Toss nuts in 2 - 3 tablespoons of butter or olive oil and any sugars or spices that you desire. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet in a single layer. Place the baking sheet in the oven, and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the nuts are fragrant and lightly browned. Remove from the oven, transfer to a plate, and cool.

 For hazelnuts, roast for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the skins are lightly browned and start to crack. Remove from the oven and immediately wrap in a clean kitchen towel. Leave for 1 minute to steam, then rub the hazelnuts in the towel to loosen and remove the skins. (It's fine if some of the skins don't rub off.) Cool completely before using.

Sourdough Zucchini Banana Bread

We love this time of year when both the zucchini and the banana are at their freshest. 

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 3/4 cup sugar 2 eggs, beaten 2 - 3 overripe bananas 1 cup sourdough start 1 cup fresh grated zucchini Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 2 regular sized loaf pan or 4 mini loaf pans. 2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Stir in eggs, mashed bananas, sourdough and zucchini until well blended. Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, add to egg mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans. 3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

TWD: "Baking Chez Moi" - Apricot Raspberry Tart

       The recipe challenge for this week was "Apricot Raspberry Tart" found on page 145 of "Baking Chez Moi" , by Dorie Greenspan. This is one recipe where I truly still like mine better.... I love the richness of this dessert and I thought this particular recipe lacked flavor and was not a good blend of ingredients.  It looked very pretty when finished tough. I also love to add fresh chopped pecans to mine, I think they add just that right touch of fall nuttiness that makes the dessert complete.

I think I would like to add my own recipe here this time... just in case anyone would love to try them and compare them both.  I would love to read some honest feedback about what you think....

Here is my recipe...
Ingredients:
* 1 cup raspberries
* 3 cups apricots (peeled, cored & thin sliced)
* 1 cup granulated sugar
* 1 teaspoon lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
* 1 cup quick cooking oats
* 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 5 tablespoons butter, room temperature
* 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Preparation:
Mix together raspberries, apricots, granulated sugar, lemon juice, vanilla and salt; pour into a buttered 9 X 13 baking dish. Combine brown sugar, oats, pecans and flour. cut in butter until well blended, it will be crumbly. Spoon over cranberry-apple mixture. Bake at 325° for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until topping is light brown and crispy. The fruit should be tender but not mushy.