TWD Russian Grandmother’s Apple Pie Cake

This week and next; my posts will be on the shorter side. It's restaurant week here in Boston, and that means I'll be working many extra hours. The upside of restaurant week is that Joe and I will be eating dinner at Excelsior on Friday night. I can't wait for that!

This apple pie cake was fantastic. I found the dough fun to work with and quite tasty. I loved the way the dough hugged the apples as it was baking, revealing the fruit within. I baked this cake with Cortland apples, and I found the flavor of them worked well with the dough.

Luckily, there isn't much to say about this cake/pie other than I will make it again!

TWD Snickery Squares

I can't think of anything more exciting than a bar or cookie that might taste even remotely like a snickers bar. I make pastries for a living, but give me a snickers bar over crème Brule any day! When I saw that Erin of Dinner and Desserts had chosen the Snickery Squares I was delighted. So happy in fact, that I made them for a dinner party on Friday.

These squares were super easy to make. First I made short dough in the food processor, and baked it off. Next, I candied some salted peanuts. Finally I melted some chocolate with some butter. After a quick assembly, you have an absolutely addicting treat. Now, that being said; production wise there are some things I will do differently next time I make these. First, I will line my square baking pan with parchment paper going up and over the sides. Even though I buttered my dish, the short dough still stuck to my pan. It wasn't a huge problem, but it made my squares slightly less picture worthy. Second, I will add a tiny bit of melted butter to the nuts after I caramelize them (when they're still in the pan), just to get the caramel coating the nuts a little more evenly. Last, I will make two times the recipe because these were so good. I am not lying when I say that I almost got into a fight with my husband when I came home from work on Sunday night and (gasp!) he had eaten the rest of the squares! I was so disappointed, but I guess it's for the best. Swimsuit season is just a few months away J

One note about the Dulche De Leche called for in this recipe. I used the brand La Salamandra Farmhouse Dulce De Leche. I purchased it at Whole Foods for $6.99, which I thought was a bit expensive. After opening the jar, I realized I had struck gold. The flavor of the dulce de leche was the perfect balance of caramel and vanilla. I will buy this brand again if I don't have time to make the dulce de leche myself. The only downside of using this brand is that the caramel never really sets up when you refrigerate it. Personally, I love gooey desserts, so it was perfect for me. It just made them a bit messy.

I promise pictures will be up soon. Somewhere between California and Massachusetts lies a USB cord to connect my camera to my computer. If anyone finds it please let me know J I hope to get a cord by the end of this week, so hopefully pictures will be up by Sunday latest.