Fresh Cherry Pie

Bake an All American Cherry Pie!  That is what we are going to do.  We were lucky enough to get LOTS of cherries on our tree this year.  If you pick the cherries at the height of the season they are more flavorful, require less sugar, and make the most of delicious pie.

Wash the berries, drain well
Pick them over
Remove stems and hulls

Make pastry for Two-Crust Pie. I used, Betty Homes & Gardens: Pastry for Double Crust Pie.

2 cups flour, 2/3 cup shortening & 6-7 Tbs. cold water. Divide the dough in half and the roll each out between 2 pieces of wax paper. Line a pie pan with one.  

Pie Crust Help - See nanarecipes.com

For 9" Cherry Pie

• 1 1/3 cup sugar
• 5 Tbs. flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 4 drops of Almond extract
• 4 cup fresh cherries

1. Mix all together, then add cherries, mix lightly through and pour into pastry lined pie pan.
2. If fruit is dry, sprinkle with 2 Tbs. water over it.  Cover with top crust.
3. Bake 425 degrees, 35 to 45 min.   Bake until crust is nicely  browned and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust.  Serve slightly warm, not hot.

Tupps Tidbits:  Use the small or larger amount of sugar according to the sweetness of the fruit. Very tart fruit may require even more sugar ( up to 1 1/2 cups for 1 qt.).

Never had a cherry pie this good!  Light and flaky crust, and vanilla ice cream to top it all off. KEEPER IN OUR HOUSE!!!!!

Where did we find this recipe? Betty Crocker, first edition cookbook

Bacon Wrapped Pineapple Bites

Pineapple + bacon...Really?  When I read this sweet and salty recipe combination I had to try it! It looked like a quick and easy appetizer to make for guests if you were having them over for a grill out this summer.

Ingredients

• 24 1" inch chucks of pineapple
• 8 strips of thick cut bacon, cut into thirds (or 12 regular bacon, cut in half)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 24 wooden toothpicks

Instructions

1. Cut the pineapple into 1 inch cubes.
2. Line a baking pan with foil (for easy clean up) and place cooling rack onto the lined baking sheet.
3. Wrap each piece of pineapple with piece of bacon and secure with a toothpick.  For thick cut bacon, 1/2 slice is enough.  For regular bacon, us 1/2 of a slice for each piece of pineapple.
4. Dip each bacon wrapped pineapple bit into some brown sugar, patting it on as needed.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25-35 minutes, until bacon is slightly crispy and the sugar has caramelized.
6. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Tupps Tidbits:  Fresh pineapple is always best and for these bites it is no exception. Foil lining the pan is a must!  Check out our picture of the mess you would have had to clean up if you did not do this!

We did cook this about 10 minutes longer than the recipe called for but is all about how crispy you like your bacon.  The pineapple was definitely done in 25 minutes. For a healthier option, we also tried Canadian Bacon, but the brown sugar did not adhere to the Canadian Bacon as well as bacon.   The taste was amazing with sugar caramelizing on the bacon and pineapple.  Is is a keeper? Well it was definitely yummy, but not sure if we would make it again unless we had some leftover pineapple and bacon to use up or something.  But who has left over bacon right?  It was a nice treat!  NOT A KEEPER at our house!

Where did we find this?  www.delishdlites.com