Make-Your-Own Mountain Pies

Leave a reply

Today’s post is not a recipe, but an idea that I’m so excited to share. Fall is the perfect time to have a make-your-own mountain pie get-together!

To start, for those who don’t know what mountain pies are, they are basically pressed sandwiches that are made over a fire. I grew up eating mountain pies, but recently realized that there are lots of people who don’t know what they are. All that you need to make them is your favorite sandwich ingredients, a fire and a mountain pie maker – which are inexpensive and easy to come by.

I grew up eating super traditional mountain pies – it was either pizza (tomato sauce, cheese, pepperoni) or dessert (canned pie filling). Not that there’s anything wrong with those traditional combos, but a couple of years ago, we started having ‘gourmet’ mountain pie parties at my parents house, and my mountain pie experience will never be the same. Instead of sticking to those traditional ingredients, my mom and I prepared a ton of different ingredients, then laid everything out so that it was a make-your-own mountain pie bar. We’ve had these get-togethers several times over the last few years, and although it can be a lot of work (especially for a big group of people), it is always so fun and so delicious. I thought I’d share the idea today, as well as some ingredient ideas and some of our favorite ‘gourmet’ mountain pie combinations!

The key to a make-your-own mountain pie bar is to have a wide variety of ingredients in a few categories of foods – you need a variety of meats, vegetables, cheeses, sauces/condiments and ‘extras.’ It’s nice to have all of the ingredients prepped and in small bowls/containers and then laid out on a table next to the fire. It can take some time and can be a bit of work, but if you set aside enough time, it can be a lot of fun to get everything ready. One other note – the type of bread that you use does make a difference. Use a high quality bread of your choice for the best results. The last time Greg and I made mountain pies, we used homemade sourdough from a local bakery (Gettysburg Baking Company!), and it was amazing.

Here are some mountain pie ingredient ideas:

Meats: pulled chicken or pork, ground beef, bacon, smoked salmon, ham
Vegetables: onions (raw or caramelized), peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, broccoli, spinach
Fruits: peaches, apples, berries, bananas
Cheese: cheddar, swiss, provolone, goat cheese, mozzarella, feta, cream cheese, gouda, parmesan
Sauces/condiments: mustard, pesto, barbecue sauce, hot sauce, tomato sauce, peanut butter, salad dressings, salsa
Extras: capers, olives, banana peppers, artichokes, saurkraut, fresh herbs (basil, thyme, rosemary), chocolate, marshmallows, nuts (like pecans, walnuts, peanuts), brown sugar, fruit jam, lemon curd

And some combination ideas:

Savory:
Bacon, peach, goat cheese (herbs would be good on this too)
Tomato, caramelized onion, olive, caper, mozzarella
Chicken, caramelized onion, saurkraut and cheddar
Chicken, banana peppers, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, hot sauce
Ground beef, mushrooms, banana peppers, tomato sauce, mozzarella, parmesan
Chicken, mushroom, pesto, gouda
Ham, broccoli, mustard, gouda
Smoked salmon, tomato, capers, cream cheese
Pulled pork, onions, peppers, barbecue sauce, provolone
Ham, apple, mustard, cheddar
Chicken, salsa, cheddar
Spinach, caramelized onion, artichoke, parmesan, feta

Sweet:
Cream cheese, berries, brown sugar
Banana, peanut butter, chocolate
Marshmallow, chocolate, banana, peanuts
Cream cheese, peaches, pecans, brown sugar
Cream cheese, lemon curd
Peanut butter, jam, peanuts

So, that’s it! The mountain pie filling ideas are endless, so pick your favorite foods and try it out. Honestly, the craziest combinations are usually the tastiest mountain pies! Another key when you have a big group of people is to have the bread pre-buttered. That way, each person can just grab their bread, place it buttered side down in the mountain pie maker, top it as they please and then put it in the fire until pressed and toasted.

This post has me craving another make-your-own mountain pie night! If you have any awesome mountain pie combination ideas, or any questions about the process, let me know in the comments below!

Grain Free Peach Crisp Bars

Leave a reply

These peach crisp bars were created out of my desire to have a dessert/snack using end-of-summer peaches, and that were free of white sugar and flour. This recipe is for all of you like me, who want dessert, but also want to be healthy. These peach crisp bars:
-are grain free
-have no added sugar (they’re naturally sweetened with dates)
-utilize delicious end of summer peaches
-are tasty and filling
Let’s talk about what makes them so excellent.

The crisp
The crisp part of this dessert is made simply out of five main ingredients: whole pecans, almond flour, (unsweetened) coconut, coconut oil (you can use butter, too) and dates. There’s also a bit of salt and vanilla in there. It’s extremely easy to prepare – all of the ingredients are added to a food processor and mixed until crumbly.
A note on the dates – here are the dates that I use and highly recommend. These dates are perfectly textured and the pits are easy to remove. They blend up into a perfect date paste which is what I use in this dessert. To make the date paste, you simply place the dates in your food processor and process until they come together to form a ball of paste. That is the only sweetener used in this recipe.

The peaches
I kept the peaches super simple for this – they are diced and then mixed with just a bit of arrowroot starch, in order for the peach layer to thicken while baking. I use arrowroot starch but you could just as easily use another starch, like corn starch. You don’t have to do this, but I like smashing the peaches up a bit with the back of my spoon while mixing together the peaches and arrowroot. 

I love this dessert because it’s wholesome, it’s healthy and I can eat it without consuming lots of sugar. It’s a great dessert but would also make a wonderful snack, or even breakfast!










Print

Grain Free Peach Crisp Bars

Ingredients

Peaches

  • 4 cups peaches, diced
  • 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch

Crust/Crisp

  • 6-8 dates, depending on your preferred sweetness
  • 1 cup pecans
  • 1 cup almond flour
  • 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 6 tablespoons coconut oil, or butter

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare an 8x8 baking dish by lining with parchment paper or greasing well. Set aside.

  2. Add the diced peaches to a bowl and sprinkle the arrowroot starch on top. Mix well, even smashing some of the peaches with the back of your spoon. Set aside.

  3. Add dates to a food processor and process until they form a ball of paste. Remove and set aside.

  4. Add pecans, almond flour and coconut to the food processor. Pulse a few times. Add the salt, vanilla extract, coconut oil and date paste and process until mixture is well combined and crumbly.

  5. Add about 2/3 of the crisp mixture to the bottom of prepared baking dish. With a spoon, smooth out the crust evenly. Top the crust with the peaches. Crumble remaining crisp mixture over peaches.

  6. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until peach layer is bubbling and the top is slightly browned. I recommend letting it cool completely before serving.

Five End of Summer Recipes

Leave a reply

I’m trying my best to make the most of the end of my favorite season. For me that looks like spending as much time outside as possible, taking extra moments to be grateful for warm weather, and cooking with as much fresh produce as I can. In case you’re looking for a bit of end of summer cooking inspiration, here are five recipes from my site that are perfect for this time of year!

This peach + cucumber fresh lemonade. I haven’t made this lemonade in years, but looking back on the post has me craving it like crazy. This combination of peach, cucumber and lemon is so, so delicious and refreshing.

This peach + blueberry pico de gallo. This is an awesome appetizer, is so easy to make and would be so good right now with end of summer produce. Use this as a dip with tortilla chips or top your favorite tacos with it!

This late summer pasta: homemade noodles with pesto + tomatoes. This would be the perfect dish to cook on a summer day when all that you want to do is stay at home and cook a wonderful meal. There is something so special about making noodles from scratch and then adding fresh, seasonal produce to them. This is definitely on my end of summer cooking bucket list.

These herbed zucchini noodles with grilled shrimp and tomatoes. We’ve got lots of tomatoes right now in south central Pennsylvania, and they would be perfect in this light and summery dish. We are also trying to grill as much as possible right now, and this light and healthy dish is cooked completely on the grill.

This blueberry crisp. This recipe is not mine – it is from Shauna Niequist’s book Bread and Wine. I love this recipe so much that I shared it a few years ago on my blog, and I still love it the same. This crisp is made with olive oil, almond flour and nuts and makes a perfect snack, dessert or even breakfast. It’s wonderful with summertime blueberries – either fresh or frozen.

Happy end of summer cooking and eating!

Mustard Potato Salad

Leave a reply

I know that potato salad does not sound overly exciting, but to me, this recipe makes it exciting. I love the idea of potato salad, but I’m just not in love with traditional mayo-based versions. This one is everything I’d want in a potato salad and satisfies that craving – it’s full of tangy, mustardy flavor and is still creamy but with no mayo. Here’s what makes it so great:

The potatoes
The potatoes are roasted for this dish rather than boiled like a lot of other potato salads. Roasted potatoes are sturdy and slightly crispy so they make a great base, and they just take potato salad to a whole new level. To add even more flavor to this dish, the potatoes are tossed with a bit of oil, salt, pepper and fresh rosemary before roasting. I used a combination of mini purple and gold potatoes for this, but you could really use any potatoes that you would like.

The dressing
The dressing is a simple but flavorful mixture of grainy Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, lemon and a bit of salt, pepper and oil. Everything is added to a jar and shaken until well combined. I used this mustard and think it worked just perfectly.

The extras
We decided to add hard boiled eggs and thinly sliced red onions to our potato salad and could not have been happier with that combination. The eggs add great flavor and almost a creaminess to the potato salad once everything is mixed together. The red onions – if sliced thin enough – add amazing flavor and just a bit of crunch. 






Print

Mustard Potato Salad

Ingredients

Potatoes

  • 2 pounds potatoes, diced
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil, or oil of your choice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 4-5 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped

Dressing

  • 1/4 cup avocado oil, or oil of your choice
  • 2 tablespoons grainy Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

For the salad

  • 5 hard boiled eggs, chopped
  • 1/4 of a red onion, thinly sliced

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

  2. Toss potatoes with avocado oil, salt, pepper and fresh rosemary.

  3. Arrange potatoes on baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, or until soft on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside.

  4. For the dressing, combine avocado oil, mustard, lemon, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper in a jar and shake until well combined.

  5. Once potatoes are roasted, let cool slightly. Toss potatoes with chopped hard boiled eggs, sliced red onion and dressing.

  6. Enjoy warm, at room temperature or cold.

Herb + Garlic + Lemon Baked Chicken

Leave a reply

When I first started cooking meat back in January, I definitely did not know what I was doing. I didn’t think there would be any way that I’d be coming up with my own recipes any time soon, but after lots of time in the kitchen, this chicken recipe came to be and is one of our new favorite things that I’ve made.

It’s so easy to make and is so incredibly tasty – all that you do is rub the chicken with salt, pepper and a little homemade rub, and then bake it until cooked through.

The rub
The rub is a mixture of fresh herbs – basil, sage and rosemary – fresh lemon juice and zest, fresh garlic and just a bit of oil. You could definitely mix up the herb mixture depending on what you like/have, but this combination is just so delicious. And a note on the lemon – the end result of this recipe is not overly lemony, but if you aren’t a huge lemon fan, you could definitely use less. I use avocado oil in this but I think that most oils would work just fine.

The chicken
I have been getting all of our chicken locally, and I buy whatever is available that day. Usually, it’s a whole chicken, chicken quarters, or like in these photos, chicken legs – always skin on. You can definitely use any type of chicken that you like, using the same rub and method and just adjusting the cooking time depending on what you’re baking. The amount of rub that this recipe makes is enough for about 6-8 average servings of chicken, no matter the cut. While this recipe is very easily modified depending on what you have, made as is, the flavor and texture of the chicken is just so delicious.

One other note – the side dish that is shown in these photos is worth mentioning – it’s something that Greg and I make all of the time and is so delicious. It’s collard greens and kale, cooked in butter with fresh garlic, salt, pepper and lots of fresh lemon juice. For this batch, we added fresh Romanesco cauliflower because we had some that needed to be used.  I will think about sharing the recipe at some point :).







Print

Herb + Garlic + Lemon Baked Chicken

Ingredients

  • 4 large garlic cloves minced
  • 1 bunch fresh basil chopped
  • 1 bunch fresh sage chopped
  • 1 bunch fresh rosemary chopped
  • Zest from one lemon
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • 6-8 servings chicken, about 3-4 pounds

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

  2. In a small bowl, combine minced garlic, chopped herbs, lemon zest, lemon juice and avocado oil. Stir well to combine.

  3. In a large bowl, toss the chicken with salt and pepper. I usually use about 1/4 teaspoon of both salt and pepper per serving of chicken. Add garlic, herb and lemon mixture and toss to completely coat the chicken.

  4. Arrange chicken on a baking sheet and cook until internal temperature reads 165 degrees, about 20-30 minutes.