Cozy Chocolate Chippy Pumpkin Bread

I'm glad to be off work today, for I woke up to rumbles of thunder and a nice rain shower.  The bedroom was very chilly, indicating that the temperature had dropped last night!  It was one of those mornings that would've been difficult to pop out of bed.  So, over to the coffee I went and I decided to make some delicious pumpkin bread to warm me up!  Here's a few quick pics of my cozy little kitchen today...

These blustery, chilly autumn mornings seem to cry out for some heartwarming pumpkin bread to get you going!  This is a wonderful recipe that always seem to turn out perfect!  I like making them into the mini loaves so that I can share with friends or freeze a couple for later when I want a quick, homemade breakfast or snack.  (They freeze beautifully, really!)

I hope you enjoy all that this beautiful season has to offer, in the kitchen and outside with hayrides, bonfires, and raking leaves!  We'll all miss the beauty of fall in a few months when the grass has dried and the trees are bare.  (Then, we will have snow to look forward to--Hooray!)  

Happy Fall Ya'll!!!

Chocolate Chippy Pumpkin Bread

3 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

4 eggs

2 c. sugar

15 oz. can pumpkin

1 c. oil

1/4 c. applesauce, no sugar added

1 c. chocolate chips

1/2c. butterscotch chips

Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl; set aside.

Beat together eggs, sugar, pumpkin, oil, and applesauce in a large mixing bowl; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.  

Fold in chocolate and butterscotch chips.

Pour into 2-8x4 in. loaf pans, or 5 mini loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes for large pans or 40-50 min. for mini pans.

Test with toothpicks to ensure they are done.

Cool for 10 minutes before removing to finish cooling.  

These would be delicious with a simple glaze or also delicious without! :)

{You all may have seen a new, beautiful addition to my kitchen!  I am so excited to share with ya'll about getting my "dream" kitchen appliance...but I'll leave that for the next blog.  It's a story you will not want to miss out on.  God is so good!!!}

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*Nana's Best Loved Apple Pie! *

So, this is it...  

This is the day I reveal the recipe to the best apple pie-- ever!!!  (Well, at least it is in this family!)  This is Nana's apple pie, and it's basically the best dessert in my husband's family!  This Apple Pie was one of the very first posts I put up on The Cozy Little Kitchen, and I didn't share the recipe.  Now I am. :}

Starting 10 yrs. ago when Mr. Cozy and I began our committed dating relationship, I swiftly found out that Nana's apple pie was his very favorite dessert, understandably so, and he said that nobody can make it like Nana.

Well, my goal was to someday make it just as well as she does!

The first time I made it was for his 18th birthday. You have to realize that I had not even had the pleasure of  having this apple pie to eat yet! I thought I would surprise him by calling up Nana and getting her recipe for it and baking it for a special birthday surprise. 

Little did I know that no one else makes this pie in the family.  It's like a sacred recipe or something--others are afraid to touch it!

I was thrilled to present the pie to him, and the first thing he says is...

"It doesn't look like Nana's."

Can you believe it??  You have to realize that my husband is a very kind person, and usually sensitive to my feelings.

Not that day, Ha!

(I can laugh about it now.)

I didn't realize what I was up against, trying to make this famous dessert!  Don't worry, he ate it and of course said that he liked it and how thoughtful it was for me to make it.

But I could tell, that it wasn't like Nana's.

After her mentoring me on the art of baking family pies and cakes, several times making it, and 10 years later....I can almost say, I think it tastes like Nana's!!!  I have actually heard my sweet Mr. Cozy also say those words! :)

Some basic requirements for this delicious pie are two simple things.

1. Jonathan apples:  they are the perfect blend of tart and sweet and melt like buhtta!  My sad attempt of an SNL impression. Too bad these apples are only around in the autumn months!

2. Very thinly sliced apples.  I couldn't achieve such thin slices when I first started cooking, but lots of practice and a better knife has allowed me to make them very thin!  A kitchen mandolin also works, but does take away a bit of nostalgia that I like when making apple pie.

The combination of the thinly sliced Jonathan apple produces a beautiful blend of all the butter from the crumble top and cinnamon to cook down the apples, making each bite melt in your mouth!

 If you want a new to you, old fashioned apple pie recipe to try please consider this one.

It's really that good!!  It sums up the feeling of a brisk fall day, colorful leaves, gathering pumpkins and a hayride all into one bite, if that makes sense!  It will fill your kitchen with the best aroma and hopefully your heart with a simple joy!

I share with you a family heirloom of a recipe.....

Nana's Best Loved Apple Pie

Filling

1 refrigerated pie crust

4 c. thinly sliced Jonathan apples

1/2 c. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg 

(This is optional! I added this myself just to try it out.  It tastes great with or without!)

Topping

2/3 c. butter

3/4 c. all purpose flour

1/2 c. sugar

Enough cinnamon to lightly dust over the top.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel your apples.

Thinly slice.

Toss the apples with sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg, if using until evenly coated.

Cut the cold butter into the four and sugar until crumbly.

Prepare your crust and I like to give it a egg or milk wash and shower the edges with sugar so they'll glisten!

Pour in the apples.

Pour the filling over the top and spread around evenly.  Dust with cinnamon.

Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Hot out of the oven!  See what I mean by crumbly, buttery topping and a glistening crust? :)

Delicious!

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Our Day in Amish Country

A couple of weeks ago, on one of the first beautiful days of autumn Mr. Cozy and I took a wonderful drive into the country.  Waaayyy, into the country to visit the Amish community around Marion, Ky.  

Before leaving town, we decided to stop at this sweet, little diner to fill our tummies with some greasy spoon food!  (Me in the car on an empty stomach means motion sickness!! :o/ )

Mr. Cozy got the delicious (!) cheeseburger and french fries.

Simple goodness.

I didn't take a picture of my taco salad because I didn't think to until I had already started digging in, and it already looked like a mess, but it was so tasty!

As we were leaving, I tried to sneak in a very quick picture of how "dinky" this diner really is!  There are about  3 1/2 tables in here with a very small counter with bar stools.  In my opinion, adorable!  The regulars were back there chatting it up with the cooks.  :)  Kinda neat and old fashioned in a way.

Full tummy and beautiful day with my husband....I'm one happy girl!

We passed a huge field of sunflowers!  This picture doesn't do them justice!!

I love God's creation.  

Here are just a few snapshots of the western Ky. countryside.  It was two weeks ago, so the leaves hadn't changed colors at this point.

We are in the Amish country right now.  We got stuck behind a (non-Amish) tractor on a narrow road in the middle of nowhere.  We couldn't drive any faster than about 15 mph, so we just rolled down the windows and enjoyed the breeze.

Here's the large home and property of the vegetables we bought. As we pulled up, there was an enormous clothesline coming off the second floor of the house.  Such a classic snapshot of "the olden days"...

Here is their large garden the fruit and veggies come out if.  It was so perfect and beautiful!  We bought fresh okra, beautiful little sweet potatoes, and yellow squash.  

I didn't take any pictures out of the car here, just in respect to the Amish.  I never want to make them feel uncomfortable...so that's why you won't see pics of the actually vegetable stand.  Take my word for it, it was  great--They practically sell them out of their home! Baskets of lovely fruit and vegetables from there own beautiful garden.  The 15ish year old boy that helped us was barefoot and had the biggest blue eyes.  He was quiet, but very kind.

More beautiful country scenery.  This particular one is quintessential autumn in the country.

No, this isn't a drive way, it's a road!  Very narrow!  Oh, and up ahead here we had to cross a random flowing creek!!!  Good thing we drive a Jeep!

I love this bakery.  These women sure know how to cook!

In front of the bakery, ready to eat some homemade oatmeal cream pie!

This was a wonderful afternoon for us to enjoy the weather, scenery and each other!  One of our favorite things to do is find the "hidden jewels" of places close to home and discover what they are all about.  I think part of a joyful living is appreciating everything, even the small things!  God has always instilled in me a love for the simple things in life!

Have a wonderful Autumn day!!!

~Leslie

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