Quixotic Pixels

I was born into a family of food snobs. The bad side of having so many foodies around meant there was always lots of calorie-rich food available. Whenever we got together, I swear I automatically gained 50 pounds.

In general, though, the familial food snobbery was a good thing. My mother, an exceptional cook, always made sure we had plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. That, in itself, was a feat of ingenuity. Southwestern Wyoming in the seventies wasn’t exactly a mecca for good produce. She cooked wonderful meals, many of which were good old comfort food. Others were like an introduction to exotic parts of the globe. They were full of rich spices and unfamiliar ingredients. They satisfied the stomach and fired up the imagination–we wondered what it would be like to visit the places where those foods were commonplace.

My paternal grandfather, despite an allergy to wheat, ran his own bakery. That man could make the most delectable butterhorns and the tenderest, most flavorful dinner rolls I’ve ever had. I’ve tried and tried for years to replicate the treats he made for us, and while good, they never have measured up to the high standard he set.

Anyway, if you had ever asked any of the cooks in my family to try a recipe calling for cream of mushroom/celery soup or a couple of handfuls of breakfast cereal, they would have looked at you askance. Cooking with pre-packaged foods like those would most likely result in something unappetizingly gloppy or bearing a regrettable after-taste. So, it tickled my funny bone to have discovered that the secret ingredient for a long-time family favorite is corn flakes!

Now’s an especially good time to try this recipe out, since it’s apple season!

DANISH PASTRY APPLE BARS

Pastry Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 cup shortening
1 egg yolk
Enough milk to make 2/3 cup when added to the egg yolk

Filling Ingredients:

2 handfuls of cornflakes, crushed
8-10 small apples **
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Glaze Ingredient:

1 egg white

Frosting Ingredients:

1 cup powdered sugar
1 T water
vanilla, to taste

1. Mix ingredients for pie crust, including milk and egg yolk.
2. Refrigerate dough for a couple of hours.
3. Roll out 1/2 of the dough to fill a 10-1/2 X 15-1/2 inch cookie tray.
4. Sprinkle the bottom of the crust with crushed corn flakes.
5. Peel & slice apples and place over crust.
6. Sprinkle apples with sugar and cinnamon.
7. Roll out the other 1/2 of dough and place on top.
8. Pinch edges of pastry together to seal.
9. Beat egg white and brush over crust.
10. Bake at 350 F for 45-60 minutes.
11. While pastry is still warm, combine ingredients for frosting. You may need to add additional water to make frosting liquid enough to drizzle over the top of the pastry.
12. Drizzle frosting over pastry.

** This quantity seems like a lot to me. I just cut up enough to cover the pie crust.

Tags: Cooking, recipe

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