Mini Apple Pies w/ Salted Caramel

For dessert tonight I decided to try something a little different.

I've been inspired lately by Pinterest (duh) and really wanted to make something special for my husband, especially after all his hard work while moving us in (more on that later).

So I took inspiration from a few recipes I found on Pinterest and whipped up this concoction:

Mini Apple Pies with Salted Caramel (served with Vanilla Bean ice cream)

You'll need (all measurements are approximate b/c I didn't measure anything- just adjusted seasonings to taste):

2 medium apples, chopped

lime (or lemon) Juice

1-2 Tbsp. of unsalted butter

3 Tbsp of brown sugar

1 Tbsp of cinnamon

1 package of crescent rolls (or other puff pastry)

1 jar of caramel ice cream topping

Coarse salt (sea salt)

I first chopped up some apples, added a squirt of lime juice (most recipes say lemon but I just used what I had on hand.  Couldn't tell any difference).

Then I added about 1 1/2 tbsp of butter, 3 tbsp of brown sugar, and 1 tbsp of cinnamon.

The ingredients weren't blending well so I threw them in a small pot and simmered on low until the butter melted.

I like my apples to be real cinnamonny so I added more cinnamon.  Be sure to adjust the seasonings to your taste! (And if your butter is unsalted, add a small pinch of salt to bring all the tastes together.)

Next take your caramel and pour about 1/3-1/2 c. into a small pot. Simmer on the lowest of low or else you risk burning your caramel.

Once the caramel is warmed (you can tell b/c it won't be thick), add a generous pinch of sea salt, but I'd recommend no more than 1 tbsp.

It's near impossible to unsalt something if you add too much.

Trust me, I know.  My salted caramel came out SALT-Y! I added about 2 tbsp. So just be conservative with it.

You can always add more!

Transfer warm, slightly salted caramel to a bowl to rest, stirring occasionally.

Next, take crescent roll and open up one of the triangle pieces.

Put some apples in the middle and wrap it up!

I tried several techniques and the one that worked best was to roll the crescent dough around the apples and then fold up the ends to seal it in.

Once your apples are all rolled up into crescent rolls (or just rolled up in some odd shape), bake for 10-12 minutes at 325 degrees until golden brown.

Serve with Vanilla Bean ice cream and a drizzle of (slightly!) salted caramel.

Enjoy!

Liebster Award Part Deux

My girl Ali Mc at Running With Spatulas has been nominated for the Liebster Award for being such an awesome blogger.

Liebster : a German word that means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome. 

So why am I writing this post?  

Because I was nominated in the past and Ali has tagged EVERYONE so I figured, "Why not?" and decided to participate.

So here's the deal.  You post 11 things about yourself, answer 11 questions from your nominator (is that even a word?), tag 11 bloggers with < 200 followers, and give them 11 questions to answer.  

No tag backs!

So I tagged a few of my new favorite blogs for you to scope out and answered her 11 questions. I'm skipping the 11 Things About Me since I think it's kinda redundant.

Here we go:

Nominated Blogs:

Monica @ Amazing Times to Come

Courtney @ Color Me Camo

Raych @ Marriage By Design

Eden @ Sweet Wahine's Beautiful Life

Casey @ Waffling

Yes, I know that's only 5 blogs.  If you have less than 200 followers, consider yourself nominated!

Here are my questions

1. Who is your hero and why?

2. If you could have any super power what would it be?

3. If you could erase something from your past without it changing who you are today, would you do it?

4. Would you be able to live "off the grid" (no modern technology) for a week? A year? 

5.  What's the craziest trend you've ever tried?

6. Where was your favorite vacation?

7. If you're an only child, did you ever wish for siblings? If you have siblings, did you ever wish to be an only child?

8. What would you do if you won a million dollars?

9. Do you vote?

10. What was your favorite school subject?

11. Why did you start blogging?

And now for Ali's questions....

what are you most afraid of??

Most afraid of?  Well, I do have a fear of dogs.  Little dogs, big dogs, doesn't matter.  Over the span of my 20+ year life I've learned how to keep it in check, most times.  But sometimes I lose it.  I have a physical reaction that I just can't control.  My hands get sweaty, my breathing becomes shallow, and my heart beats faster.  

I hate when people tell me, "Don't be afraid, they can sense it." Oh REALLY? You think I WANT to be afraid? Um, NO.  I try to act normal and for the most part it works out.  Just don't bring your dog up to me or allow them to jump all over me.  I will have a fit.

But I don't think that's what I'm most afraid of.  To get real deep here, I'm most afraid of what life has in store for my son.  Will I be a good parent or screw him up royally?  Will he have to learn tough lessons or can he learn from others' mistakes? Will I be there for him when life gets really tough?  What if something happens to me?  Will he be OK?

Whew- need to stop there b/c I'm getting all emotional and teary-eyed.  But that's what I am afraid of the most- what life has in store for Phillip.

what’s your favourite colour and why?

Red.  I don't know why. I've always loved red.  Maybe because in my small hometown red is the team color for our Pop Warner football league and high school.  But I also love blue, green, and purple.

do you care about politics?? why or why not?

Yes, I care about politics but I'm not psycho about it.  I care because in the US my representatives are making decisions for me and my family.  I want those representatives to be people who share my same values.

do you think we are going to die on dec 21st 2012??

No.

do you like the body you were given?? why, why not?

Yes.  My body is strong.  When my mind thinks I can't do something (like help my husband move a couch up 2 flights of stairs) my body surprises me with abilities I didn't even know I had.  

I don't treat my body the way I should- I don't eat as healthy or move as much as I should but it still functions well.  

do you wear glasses?? for distance or close up? or both??

Yes.  For computer use, driving, and reading.  So pretty much everything.  I'm nearsighted in my left eye and have astigmatism.

favourite wild animal??

Giraffe.

what change have you made in yourself that you hope others will follow?

I've learned that it's OK to feel the way you feel when someone hurts you: anger, hurt, resentment, betrayal.  But it's not OK to act out on it.  It's not OK to hurt people because of the way you feel.  It is extremely important to stand up for yourself and communicate your feelings but definitely not OK to hurt someone because you have been hurt.

if you could only do one form of exercise for the rest of your life what would you pick??

Strength training.  However I did see an infomercial for the Brazilian Buttlift workouts and that may be a close second.

do you tan your skin? (fake, real or bottle) why or why not?

No.  I live in Hawaii but I don't purposely go out and tan.  I swim and play at the beach so tanning is an indirect result but rarely on purpose.  I just don't see the point.    

what are your religious beliefs and are you open to others or not?? why?

I am a Christian.  I believe Jesus Christ suffered and died for my sins.

Am I open to others? Other beliefs? Or other people with other beliefs?

Well, I like to learn what others believe and why they believe what they believe; for me, my faith is rooted in Jesus Christ. 

When meeting others who believe differently than I do, I try to be very sensitive and respectful to their faith since I would want to be treated the same way.  I don't share my beliefs with strangers or people that I just met unless I'm asked.  

My faith is multi-faceted and can't be thoroughly explained in one blog post. It is a conversation that needs to take place over and over and over.  

It is more than a religion for me.

It's a way of life. 

Inspire Me: Healthy

I'm kinda late on this but I'm posting anyway because the timing for this link up couldn't be more perfect!

This link up is hosted by All in My Twenties and A Momma's Desires and Pacifiers.  It's for all of us to share our weight loss/healthy living journeys- whatever that may be.

We all have our unique stories to tell, our own unique goals.

Since this is the first day, I thought I'd share a little bit about where I've been and what my goals are for weight loss.

Because I'm lazy and don't want to retell the whole story, here are some excerpts from is the exact copy of my "Why Running" page, which explains why I chose a sport that I had no experience in as a way to get healthy.

Here is me at my lightest, 170 lbs (yikes! can't believe I just wrote that...)

AXO Bid Day 2007 @ USD... waiting for the newbies!

AXO Formal 2007

And here is me at my heaviest, 218, both pictures taken in Feb/Mar 2011:

UPDATE:
Since starting this blog, I am now the proud momma of a beautiful baby boy.  My weight has fluctuated so much since I gave birth.

I lost 10 pounds before finding out I was pregnant.  I gained almost 23 pounds but because of gestational diabetes I drastically changed my eating habits and netted about a 12 pound gain.  A couple weeks after arriving home from the hospital I had lost a total of 28 lbs since giving birth.

For those of us who are mathematically challenged:
Starting weight: 218
Pre pregnancy weight: 208
Highest pregnancy weight: 231
Ending pregnancy weight: 220
Post pregnancy weight (2 weeks at home): 192

But I have now gained about 20 lbs back- currently at 213.

Not where I want to be, to say the least.

But I know it's time for a change.

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love a good plan.  So what's my plan to dropping these pounds and getting back in shape?

Baby steps.

Say it with me, people.

Baby steps.

2 days ago I stopped eating processed sugar.

Cold turkey.

It's been tough, but I am taking it one day at a time.  My goal was to get through Wed-Fri at work and I did!

I gave myself permission to have sugar this weekend, if I want.

But now I'm learning how to hold off the cravings, either by distracting myself or by eating a piece of fruit.

It's not easy, but I reached my goal! I said no thank you to cookies, doughnuts, and ice cream at work.  Of course the days I give up sugar are the days my co-workers bring goodies to the office.

I also plan to walk during my lunch break.  I've done it a couple times but not enough to be consistent or to see any results.  Work usually gets super busy or I forget to prep my bags the night before.  My mornings are too packed for me to try and get it together.

But once I get a handle on my sugar addiction, I'll add in the lunch time walks.

Once that becomes a habit, I'll have to add in another healthy habit to work on.

One step at a time.