A Night of Surprises

Ahhhh....it's autumn.  Today's rainy weather set the tone perfectly for my October menu packed with comfort foods.  Autumn Sangria, Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip, Chicken Pot Pie Soup with Gruyere Pie Crust Dunks, and....

Deep Dish. Salted Caramel. Apple Pie.

I started the class by serving up my personal favorite -- Autumn Sangria.  It is so smooth, while not being overly sweet or boozy.

For my first surprise of the night...da-da-da-daaaaaa!  Aimee celebrated her sixth Crème de la Crème class and was inducted into the ever so honorary, and official, Crème Club!  She has been such a joy to have in class and I can't wait to see her rock her new "Crème Club" apron from now on.

The Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip is really pretty painless.  I had another tiny little surprise for my students tonight...warm pretzel bowls.  It is the perfect pairing.  After my students tried it, they were brainstorming a million ways to incorporate this dip into every meal imaginable.  I can't say I blame them...it's that good.

Next, we threw together the Chicken Pot Pie Soup.  I have a couple of secrets to make it juicy, creamy, and flavorful.  A simple pie crust dunk with gruyere cheese is a quick, pretty way to elevate the dish.  I received the sweetest compliment from a student.  She said that she doesn't even like chicken pot pie but the soup was delicious.  I love that this is a more deconstructed way to approach a classic.

This is when the magic happens.  The Deep Dish Salted Caramel Apple Pie came together...fabulously.  I love to take a little bit from here and a little bit from there to create my own recipes.  For the egg wash, I took a tip from my husband's Grandma Hattie.  She had the most delicious way of topping her rhubarb pies.  

For my final surprise of the night...I'm so excited to share something that I have been secretly working on!  E-Creamery, an online ice cream shop based out of Omaha, Nebraska, recently contacted me to create my own ice cream flavor.  I had so. much. fun!  I decided to treat my October "Autumn Comfort" classes to the perfect pie and ice cream pairing: Deep Dish Salted Caramel Apple Pie with "Cinnamon Cream de la Crème".  

You can recreate my recipe at https://www.ecreamery.com/create-your-own-flavor#.  Thank you E-Creamery for treating my cooking classes this month!  It got RAVE reviews from all of my students.

Cheers! XOXO Paula

P.S. Interested in taking a cooking class in my kitchen?  Join my e-mail list to get the scoop.  See what I did there -- ice cream, scoop...