Chocolate & Pumpkin Pie Shortbread Squares

So more on what Chris and I baked last week.  We made these totally delicious Chocolate and Pumpkin Pie Shortbread Squares that I found on the Picky Palate blog.  I had planned on doing this particular recipe several weeks ago to bring to a friend's place at Thanksgiving, but with the house being on the market I was so busy preparing for all the visits, that I just didn't have a chance.  I was then eager to make it while Chris was here! 

Here's the finished product....Charlie is pouting in the background because of all the wonderful smells in the kitchen and not being given any!  My leaf sprinkles look kind of cheesy.  I just thought they were fitting for the time of year.

Here's what it looked like on the inside..minus the two pieces Chris and I had to sample.  It was wonderful.  It doesn't look near as good as Jenny's though from Picky Palate.  I just couldn't get my chocolate to smooth out as well on the top and as a result it was a bit too thick in spots.  I didn't think this would matter, but I then had trouble slicing through those spots and instead the chocolate would press down and the pumpkin pie filling would squish out the sides....this also happened a bit when biting into the square.  Not that that would stop me....still yummy!

Curry Phyllo Triangles!

YUM, YUM, YUM!  These were so absolutely yummy and ten times easier than I had expected.  I think I'd always been totally weary of using phyllo dough as it looks so delicate and I thought it would be difficult to work with.  Boy was I wrong!  These little triangles whipped up in a flash!  I found this particular recipe in a Holiday Appetizers magazine from the Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publications (year 2000).  They put out a new magazine every year around the holiday season and I think I've collected at least 10 of their appetizer ones now.  Another good magazine to look out for is their annual Christmas cookies one.

So this particular recipe began with the ground meat filling.  The recipe originally called for ground lamb, but seeing as Chris doesn't particularly care for lamb and it can be fattier, I decided to use extra-lean ground turkey instead...good choice.  I didn't have time to work with it right away, so I just popped it into a container and refrigerated it for a couple of days.  When I was ready to assemble these, I swear it didn't take me longer than a half hour or so.  This was so easy!!!  I think I'm going to make these again and again and again!



Curry Phyllo Triangles

1 Tbsp oil
8 oz ground turkey
1 medium potato, peeled and chopped (1 cup)
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
4 to 5 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups chopped tomato
1/2 cup snipped parsley
1/4 cup oil
1/4 tsp dried thyme
10 sheets frozen phyllo dough thawed

Heat the Tbsp oil in a large skillet.  Add the turkey, potato and onion; cook till turkey is no longer pink.  Drain off fat if any.  Stir in 2 to 3 tsp of the curry powder (I used 2 heaping tsp), 1/2 tsp thyme and 1/2 tsp salt.  Cook for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add tomato, reduce heat and cook covered for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat, stir in parsley and set aside.

Combine the remaining curry powder, the 1/4 cup oil and the 1/4 tsp thyme.  Brush one sheet of phyllo with some of the oil mixture.  Place a second phyllo sheet on top, lightly press sheets together.  (Cover remaining phyllo with a damp towel or plastic wrap to prevent drying out.)  Cut layered phyllo lenghwise into five equal strips.


Spoon a rounded 1 Tbsp of the meat mixture 1 inch from the end of each strip.  Fold a bottom corner of each strip over the filling so the short edge lines up with the side edge to make a triangle.  Fold the triangle shapes along the strips....also known as flag fold.

Arrange filled triangles on a lightly greased baking sheet.  Brush the tops lightly with the remaining oil mixture.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 12 minutes or till golden brown.  The recipe says it makes about 25.  I don't think I had quite that many, but it was my first attempt and I think I may have filled a few too much (not to mention all the different sizes of triangles I had!)

Bacon, chile and cheddar quiche with a shredded potatoe crust.

As I mentioned I've been doing lots of cooking and baking while Chris has been in town this week and this particular recipe I found at the For the Love of Cooking blog.  She posted a recipe last month for the Canadian bacon, green chile and cheddar quiche with a shredded potato crust that looked totally delicious!  I was a bit reluctant at first because it looked a bit time consuming to make (I love the easier the better), but it didn't take me as long as I thought and was it ever worth it!!

Here's my prepared crust.  I think I could have squished a little bit more water out of it..and perhaps baked it just slightly longer, but it was still delicious! It was also extremely garlicky before I added the filling..but once it was all put together it was great.

Here is pre-baking *smile*  It looked so good going into the oven!

And here is post-baking.  YUM!  It was so good and Chris raved about it like mad!  Good thing, because he's getting leftovers for lunch tomorrow!

I can't wait to show you the curry phyllo triangles I made...more on that tomorrow!

I love baking!

So as you guys know, my fiancé is visiting me from England at the moment...and he has a huge sweet tooth! I absolutely love baking, but living on my own right now I don't dare bake as I would want to eat it all up!  How wonderful then to have Chris here (I think I had recipe books open for days before he arrived!!)

The first thing I decided to make was pumpkin scones.  I follow many different cooking blogs and all of them seem to have pumpkin recipes galore these days...so of course I was totally craving pumpkin!

I've been wanting to make scones in general for years (just like my mum!) and found a few great recipes, but just never got around to making any.  OMG! They are soooooo easy!  I will totally be making them again soon..not too soon though Agnieszka! ;-)  These pumpkin scones were so easy and absolutely delicious!  I found this recipe at browneyedbaker.  I've only had a chance to do one of her recipes before (bacon onion cheddar biscuits), but her recipes are always well written and always appear completely delicious...drool!!!

I enjoyed every last bite!!  Luckily I've got a few left...guess what I'm having for breakfast in the morning!!?? *smile*