Lucky Leaf GIVEAWAY and Cherry Coconut Squares

.  So, all you Midwesterners.  Anyone else as sick of this never-going-to-see-Spring-weather we've been having?  As I'm typing out this post, it is currently mid-30s [so freezing], raining, and beyond windy.  Oh, did we forget it's May?  Okay, just wanted to make sure we all knew that.

And that's enough of my crabbing because we have some fun things to get to.  Am I right or am I right?!

What better way to make us forget about the dreary weather than a creative giveaway by Lucky Leaf?!  'Good Things Come to Those Who Pin' is the name of this contest and it's sure to get you in the Spring mood [for those of you who haven't seen it yet!].

So how does it work exactly?  Well it's pretty easy peasy and totally worth it seeing as the grand prize is $500!  But why stop there?  Two additional winners will receive $200 and ten (10) more finalists will win Lucky Leaf gift packs!  So here are the rules:

1. Create a Pinterest board named 'Good Things. Spring' and repin the contest entry image from Lucky Leaf's Pinterest board.
2. Pin three (3) Lucky Leaf recipes directly from LuckyLeaf.com along with three (3) springtime baking inspirations images.  Be sure to tag each of the images with #luckyleafluckyme.
3. Next, follow the Lucky Leaf Pinterest board (link above).
4. Finally, register for the contest through Lucky Leaf's Promotions page for a chance to win those high dollar prizes!

Sounds like a good ol' fashion time, huh?!  So get pinning, since you only have until May 15, to enter!

And to give you some inspiration of my own, I'm leaving you with my experience of Lucky Leaf's Coconut Cherry Squares recipe and cherry pie filling they sent to me [along with some other great stuff] to spur my involvement in this awesome giveaway.

First, cherry pie filling is my absolute favorite.  So even though Lucky Leaf sent me two additional recipes and pie fillings, I just had to go with cherry.  And these bars are super simple, so who's going to pass that up?  And when I mean simple, I mean one bowl simple.  Yep, one bowl.

And for those of you with picky eaters, these bars are for them.  They are one classic dessert, with a crust and sprinkled topping of buttery, sweet, and salty goodness, sandwiching a sweet cherry filling.  Throw in a little coconut for an added crunch and element of flavor and we have one winning Spring-filled recipe.  And Lucky Leaf didn't tell me to say that.  I really did love this treat.

So to get you in gear for Spring, bake up a batch of Cherry Coconut Squares [check my link above for the recipe!] while browsing the Web for Spring time goodies.  A quick pin or two could win you some big time cash!  .

Musselman's Giveaway Winner, a Lucky Leaf Pie Filling Giveaway, and Cherry Cheesecake Pie

.  One giveaway ends and another begins. 

But who's complainin'?!

Can you believe this?  LSM has NEVER had one giveaway.  Not even one in it's almost two years of existance.  Yet in the past month, we've had three!  Weird how things work, huh?

So first things first.  The Musselman's Apple Butter Package giveaway winner!

Drum rolllllll, please...

Cyndi Hamm!

Congratulations, Ms. Hamm, you are officially LSM's second giveaway winner!  You should be receiving [or already received] an e-mail from myself to get some of the info I'll need to get you your Apple Butter package, which I can't wait for you to get because I had such an amazing time with it!



And now on to some more exciting news!

I have for you both another giveaway and a stupidly [outrageously delicious] festive holiday pie that you will not want to pass up.  I kid you not.

So let's get into the details for this giveaway.  Like the Musselman's giveaway, I was contacted to see if I would like to test out some Lucky Leaf Premium Pie Fillings and offer up a package to one of my readers.  And like Musselman's, I said heck yes! 

My BFF.  She makes me proud.

If you've read any LSM pie posts, you know that I adore pies pretty much more than anything.  Seriously.  Flaky, buttery crusts and sweet fillings will never be passed over by me.  No, sirree.  So there was no way I was skipping this opportunity.

After my acceptance, I received a substantial package in the mail a few days later filled with ALL sorts of goodies, including peach, blueberry, and cherry pie filling, a [SUPER ADORABLE] handmade warming towel, and three recipes demonstrating the various ways you can use the filling!  Hmm...AWESOME.

So what to do with all of these options?!  Well, make a pie, of course!  And that I did.  But not just any ol' pie.  Nah, I had to go for something a bit more creative.  A bit more sinful.  And, of course, holiday-ish.

And here's what I [a.k.a Woman's Day] came up with: Cherry Cheesecake Pie.

Yes, it's as good as it sounds.  And probably more decadent.

So what we have is exactly what you think.  The easiest, butteriest [word?], flakey crust you'll ever meet encasing an outrageously smooth, almond cheesecake, topped with the thick and creamy Lucky Leaf Cherry Pie Filling [seriously, it's impressive], and finished with a stunning pie crust lattice.

And even with all of those layers, this pie is actually quite simple.  And to make your life even easier, you can always use a store brought crust.  Though [like I'll say time and time again], it will never get any easier than this pie crust right here.

So what do you have to do to get the chance to make this very pie free of charge?  Leave a comment below, silly! Just tell me what creative recipes you'd try using the Lucky Leaf Pie Filling.  And to get some additional entries, follow Lucky Leaf on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest and leave an extra comment below for each one telling me you did so.  Sweet and simple.  You have until November 24, 2012, so get commenting!

And just to recap, the winner will win the following:

1 (21 oz.) can Lucky Leaf Cherry Pie Filling

1 Seasonal Towel

1 Recipe Card

And lastly, I leave with you the recipe for this mouthwatering pie I made with the Lucky Leaf Filling.  Fo reals, it's pretty dyaaaaamn good.  That is all  .

 Adapted from Woman's Day

Ingredients:

1 recipe Easy Peasy Crust

1/2 c. sugar

1 tbsp. cornstarch

2 (8 oz. each) packages cream cheese, softened

1 large egg

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1 (21 oz.) can Lucky Leaf Premium Pie Filling

1 egg white

1/3 c. sliced almonds

Directions:

1. Prepare crust.  Roll one half of dough to fit a 9-inch pie pan and place into pan.  Crimp as desired.  With second half of dough, roll to fit a 9-inch pie pan.  Cut strips of dough for lattice.  Place pan and strips into refrigerator while preparing filling.
2. Mix sugar and cornstarch in a medium bowl.  Add cream cheese and beat on medium speed until smooth.  On low speed, beat in egg and almond extract just until blended.
3. Spread batter evenly into crust; spoon pie filling evenly over top. 
4. Beat egg white with fork until foamy.  Brush pastry strips with egg white and arrange strips across pie as desired.  Trim and press ends to bottom crust.  Brush rim with egg white; press on almonds.
5. Bake 55 to 65 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cherries bubble (you may need to place foil or a pie crust shield on crust to keep from burning for the 15 minutes or so).  Remove to wire rack to cool for several hours or over night.

Yield: 8 servings

Cherry Hand Pies

.  As you may have read, Robbie and I just got back from an exciting [and exhausting] weekend with my relatives.  I really can't explain the feeling I have when I'm around them, except for the fact that I don't think I could love any others more than I do those people.  Regardless that I live halfway across the country from many of them, they are truly the most accepting and genuine people I have had the pleasure to meet.  And I'm lucky enough to call them my family.

But all good things must come to an end and unfortunately I had to come back to the 'real world.'  But I was anticipating this return a little more than most because...

I'm starting a new job!

Don't freak.  Same company, and even though I had a wonderful time in my previous position, I'm overly eager to begin this new one.   I think the idea of starting something new and getting to learn a whole lot is [nerdily] exciting to me.  Don't get me wrong, I had a unique experience in my very first job, learned oh-so-much, and met some amazing people [most of which I will keep in touch with for the rest of the my life] but new is always intriguing.  Right?!  Right.

So needless to say, this week has been nuts-o.  And to boot, there's some important birthdays and multiple wedding events coming up this weekend.  It never seems to stop.  But I can't and won't complain.  Busy is good ☺

So to lead you into the weekend [this will be my last post for the week], I thought this would be a perfect time to share a nostalgic treat [well, at least for me].  Something that reminds of my childhood growing up in Washington State and the wonderful memories I have with my relatives.

Cherry Hand Pies.

Not gonna lie, I didn't eat much Cherry Pie growing up [even though it's my favorite!] but you can bet I ate my fair share of cherries!  I mean c'mon, cherry trees are everywhere in the good ol' state of Washington.  If I do remember right, my grandparents even had a cherry tree in their yard...

Anywho, these Cherry Hand Pies are a wonderful breakfast goodie.  I know it's wierd to hear [or read] that but surprisingly these little pockets of fruity yummyness are not overly sweet.  In fact, the pastry itself really lends itself to the wonderful sweetness of the cherries [so make sure you get good ones] and so much so, that I decided to make a simple icing to drizzle over the hand pies.  Perfect touch, too, if I do say so ☺

Well I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, Robbie and I will be on the go basically the entire time.  So see you next week!  .

My Notes:

• The original recipe called for strawberries, so feel free to switch out the fruit in the filling for whatever your hear desires.  I'm itching to try some blueberries...
• Next time around I may try the pie crust from my Bumbleberry Pie.  That was one dang good pie crust and I can imagine the buttery, flakey crust would be perfect with this recipe!

Adapted from Barbara Bakes

Ingredients:

Cherry Filling:

2 lbs. (4 c.) cherries, pitted and chopped

1/4 c. all purpose flour

1/4 c. sugar

Pinch of salt

Pastry Dough:

2 c. all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

6 tbsp. shortening

3/4 c. milk

1 egg

1 to 2 tsp. water

Simple Icing:

1/4 c. powdered Sugar

2 tbsp. water

Directions:

1. For filling, in a small bowl, mix cherries with flour, sugar and salt (increase the sugar depending on how sweet the cherries are).  Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350º.  For pastry dough, in a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.  Add shortening and cut into flour mixture with pastry blender or mix with hands until crumbly.
3. Add milk and mix with spatula until  pastry begins to come together.
4. Lightly flour your hands and countertop and turn the dough out onto the countertop. Knead the dough, folding over 10 to 20 times.  Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to 1/3 to 1/2-inch thickness.  Cut into rounds using a 2 1/4-inch ring.  Roll each round as thinly as possible (about 5 to 6 inches in diameter).
5. Combine the egg and water to make an egg wash; set aside until ready to use.
6. Spoon 1 to 2 tablespoons of filling onto the dough. Brush the edges of half of the dough lightly with egg wash, fold over, and seal edges together with tines of a fork. Gently press down to flatten and evenly distribute the filling and cut 3 slits in the top of the pie.  Place pie onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Repeat with remaining rounds.
7. Brush tops of pies with egg wash and sprinkle with decorating sugar.
8. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool 5 minutes before removing to wire rack.
9. For icing, mix powdered sugar and water until smooth (add additional water by teaspoonfuls until desired consistency).  Drizzle icing over pies.

Yield: 2 dozen hand pies

White Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies

.  1-0, my friends.  1-0.

But did you really expect anything less from The Foamers?  I sure hope not.  But I'll admit, last week's game was not an easy win, we ended up going into extra innings (I know, it's intense) but ultimately came off the field as victors.  Good thing, too, otherwise I probably wouldn't have handed out the most delicious oatmeal cookies I've ever laid my hands on.  Just kidding about not handing these out though.  Well...kind of.

But true statement about these White Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies being the best oatmeal cookie I've ever taken a bite [or 28] out of.  Seriously.  First things first, I will never again not plump cherries before using in any goodie [unless the directions specifically say not to.  Sorry, I'm a rule follower].  I've now realized all of the delicious, tart, juiceness I've been missing out on by using non-plumped cherries.  And yes, non-plumped is a valid word.  At least now it is.  Anywho, I think they completely took this already out-of-this-world cookie straight over the edge.  Completely over and never looked back. 

But aside from the succulent cherries, we have a cookie dough that is pure quality.  The cookie alone would be enough to satisfy me: a brown sugary, oatmeal base that lends itself to the most soft, yet chewy, cookie I've had in quite some time.  It's making my mouth water even thinking about them!  And you all know I love those classic recipes that allows for adaptation, and this is a clear cut winner, winner.

I really can't rave about these cookies much more.  Well, I can.  But you would probably tell me to shut up already and get to the recipe so you can make these ASAP.

As you wish  .

My Notes:

• The original recipe called for white chocolate chips, but I used bars and cut them into rather large chunks.  I absolutely loved the big bites of white chocolate, but like always, it's your call!
• Be careful to not over mix your dough!  This is stressed several times throughout the recipe because over mixing them will give the cookies a lousy, dry texture.
• Make sure to leave a good amount of space in between your cookies on the baking sheet. If the dough isn't fairly cold, the cookies will spread quite a bit and you could end up with one big monster cookie.  Actually, is that bad...?

Adapted from Milk and Cookies

Ingredients:

1 c. orange juice

2 c. dried cherries

1-1/2 c. all purpose flour

1 tbsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1-1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 c. light brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 c. sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

3 c. old fashioned oats

9 oz. white chocolate, chopped into chunks

Directions:

1. Put orange juice in small saucepan over medium heat and bring to boil.  Immediately remove from heat and put in cherries.  Set aside to plump for 30 minutes.  Once plumped, drain cherries thoroughly.
2. Heat oven to 350°F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Set aside.
3. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.  Set aside.
4. In large bowl, beat butter on low speed.  Add brown sugar and sugar and increase speed to medium, beating for 4 minutes or until light and creamy.  Add eggs, one at a time, and beat to incorporate.  Beat in vanilla extract until blended.  Slowly beat in dry ingredients and oatmeal.  DO NOT OVER MIX.
5. While the dough is still streaky, lightly flour work surface and remove dough from bowl.  With lightly floured hands, finish mixing dough by using a gentle kneading motion until just blended.  Put dough back into bowl.
6. With a wooden spoon, gently stir in white chocolate and cherries.  Place bowl into freezer for about 10 minutes or until dough has hardened slightly but still pliable.
7. Using a tablespoon or small scoop, scoop out mounds of dough.  Gently form the dough into cylinders and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet.  
8. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges (centers should be slightly soft to the touch).  Remove from oven and let cool for 1 minute before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.  

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

Secret Recipe Club: {Cherry Walnut} Fudge

.  Hey, hey, hey!  Let the count down begin {if it hasn't already}.  Less than one week from Christmas!  And what better time for an SRC post than...NOW!

This December I was given the honored assignment of That Skinny Chick Can Bake by Liz Berg.  First off, what a great blog name, huh?  Absolutely love it.  And to boot, Liz's blog is ah-mazing.  Beautifully designed and filled with outrageous recipes, both savory and sweet.  Since Liz is an avid baker, there was an endless number of possibilities for me to choose from, which is good but also made my decision that much harder.  Thanks, Liz {wink, wink}.  

Some of Liz's sweets that made my 'possibly make' list included Baked Cake Donuts with Chocolate Glaze, Chocolate Truffles and Chocolate Covered Caramels, Cinnamon Roll Danish, and Triple Layer Cocoa Cake {please note my chocolate theme, I was looking for something Christmas-sy, give me a break}.  But don't forget about those savory dishes I mentioned, there's an equal number of them on her blog and all are mouthwatering.  If I cooked, I would have hit some of those up.

But what I finally decided on making was based on a number of things.  I wanted something Christmas-sy, as I mentioned.  But I also wanted to try something out that I could use this coming Friday because my family is coming into town and we're also having some old softball friends over for a little get together.  Party time!  Just kidding, but I wouldn't doubt it getting a little rowdy over here on 56th Street.

So these few things landed me on Liz's Fudge Redux.  Honestly, I don't know what 'redux' means or how you even correctly pronounce it.  And I haven't taken the time to Google it either {yes, I'm that lazy}.  Sorry.  All I do know is that though my fudge expertise is quite limited, this is the best homemade fudge I have ever had.  I will even go out on a limb and say it compares to bakery fudge.  It's that delish.  And Robbie completely agreed after taking two {extra} huge chunks of this stuff.  

The funny thing about this recipe though is how stinkin' easy it was.  Yes, you have to be a little careful in the beginning using the candy thermometer and making sure you reach the right temp, but guys, I'm not good with a candy thermometer AND I don't think I have a great one at that.  But everything still turned out fantastic.  Beyond my expectations.  

The fuge is dense, uber rich, and oh-so-flavorful.  The only thing I changed about the recipe was adding in toasted walnuts and dried cherries.  I wanted a couple of add-ins and this combination just sounded so Christmas-sy to me {Christmas theme?  Check}.  The wonderful nuttiness and crunch from the walnuts complements the tart dried cherries and creamy fudge so perfectly.  I was a little worried that my fudge would turn out crumbly, as can happen a lot to homemade fudge, but Liz has that covered.  In her original post, she explains that the addition of the marshmallow creme prohibits the sugar from recrystallizing {absolutely no clue what that means} but after this recipe, I will blindly follow anything Liz says.

Oh how I love SRC.  Yes, yes, I do.  And thanks so much, Liz, for another fabulous addition to my SRC posts.  I absolutely fell in love with this recipe and many of your others, glad to be your newest follower!  .

My Notes:

• Like most recipes when chocolate is the star, I suggest using the best quality you can find/afford.  For this fudge, I used Ghirardelli Semisweet Chocolate Chips, which is one of my go-to's.
• After I placed the fudge in the pan to set, I did notice a little collection of some juices.  I'm still not positive why this happened, but my only guess is that the juices from the cherries were brought out.  But it didn't effect anything, nothing a little paper towel can't soak up!

Adapted from That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Ingredients:

3 c. sugar

3/4 c. butter

2/3 c. evaporated milk

2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

1 (7 oz.) jar marshmallow creme

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 c. chopped dried cherries

1/2 c. toasted chopped walnuts

Directions:

1.  Heat oven to 350°F.  To toast walnuts, place walnuts evenly on baking sheet and bake 10 minutes or until fragrant.  Set aside.  Line an 8x8-inch square pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang (this will allow you to easily pick the fudge block out of the pan).  Set aside.

2.  Meanwhile, combine sugar, butter and evaporated milk in a heavy saucepan.  Bring to boil (cover with a lid for about 1 minute to make sure sugar is dissolved).

3.  Remove lid.  Insert candy thermometer into liquid.  Continue boiling for 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently until thermometer reaches 234°F.  

4.  Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips until melted.

5.  Stir in marshmallow creme and vanilla extract until there are no white streaks.

6.  Fold in cherries and walnuts until evenly distributed.

7.  Pour fudge mixture into prepared pan to let set completely.  Use the parchment paper to lift the fudge out of the pan and cut into squares.

Yield: 24 servings

Tried & True Tuesday: The Debut

As we all know, finding time to for yourself is rather hard during the week.  Work just really gets in the way sometimes!

Since I don't have the time I'd like to dedicate to baking, I thought up a way to still be able to share the recipes I've tested out since I began churning out desserts.  And I have to say, I've tried out A LOT of goodies, way too many for me to catch up on here.  So this seems like the perfect solution!  Please welcome....

Tried & True Tuesdays!

I've decided that every Tuesday, I'll post a recipe that I've made in the past.  Ones that have left a mark on my ♥.  Ones that will give you that have-to urge to get in the kitchen!  Well...hopefully.

So for my first Tried & True recipe, I'm dishing out a super simple, quick, and unbelievably tasty treat:  Cherry Pecan Bread from Awful Annie's Restaurant recipe collection.  As I mentioned before, most of us might not have the time during the week to whip up some extravagant dessert but we all have those cravings that we can't ignore.  This bread isn't exactly a 'dessert' per say, but it's a great snack to have on the counter for everyone (and yourself, duh).  The loaf itself is moist, buttery and studded with yummy cherries and pecans.  Store it in an airtight container and the bread will last all week (unless you find yourself snagging bites here and there, not that I know from experience or anything).

Lastly, if there are ANY goodies that you've seen from my Facebook pictures and would like the recipe, leave a comment here and I will get it up ASAP.  It's what this blog is all about, right?!

And now for Cherry Pecan Bread.  Don't enjoy it too much...

Cherry Pecan Bread

Ingredients:

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. butter

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 c. buttermilk

1 c. pecans, chopped

1 c. Maraschino or dried cherries, chopped

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Grease a 9x5 loaf pan.  Stir together flour, baking soda and salt in medium-sized bowl.
2. In large bowl, beat together sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.  
3. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk to wet ingredients.  Beat just until blended after each addition.  Fold in pecans and cherries.
4. Turn batter into pan.  Bake 55 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  

Yield: 1 loaf