Apple Pie Pull-Apart Bread and Baby Birds

Since my epic Apple pandowdy failure, I have been looking for a way to redeem myself.  I found this terrific Apple Pie Pull-Apart Bread to serve at our Easter family breakfast.

Easter weekend, I cleaned up our porch and started some spring decorating to give it a little life.  You know, because I felt it was important to bring out all the pretty things...for the next snow storm!

As I went to get on our step stool to hang the sign and wreath, a bird came out of nowhere at me...and now I know why.

Over the past few weeks, we have been hearing a lot of commotion at our front door.  My husband said the birds were tearing apart my wreath and flying off with pieces to build a nest somewhere.  There has been much too much noise in the mornings from them, I told him, I thought they might be building a nest "in" the wreath...a mother always knows!

So, as the world waits for the Royal's Baby Sussex, we are awaiting our own little babies here at our front porch.  Until then, the porch and front door are off limits to everyone and we are all garage bound for the time being.

This apple bread was awesome (thank goodness!).  The recipe called for a loaf pan, but since it was Easter morning and everything was closed in our little town, I had to improvise with one of my bundt pans...no worries, it was perfect!

Apple Pie Pull-Apart Bread

Courtesy of Pillsbury.com

1 tube of Pillsbury Biscuits (I used Grands Flaky Layers)

1 medium apple, cored, and thinly sliced

cinnamon-sugar mixture (1/3 cup sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg)

Line a bread pan with parchment paper.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Toss the apple slices in the cinnamon sugar and set aside.  Slice each biscuit in half - creating 16 rounds.  Coat each biscuit round in the cinnamon sugar.

Layer the biscuits alternating with the apple slices (begin and end with a biscuit) in the bread pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Remove from oven.  Let cool and remove from pan.

One Year Ago: The Applebees Oriental Chicken Salad

Two Years Ago: Bundt Pan Chicken

Three Years Ago: Alabama White Sauce

Four Years Ago: Mayan Chocolate Cookies

Five Years Ago: Alouette Pizzette

Lemon Lush Dessert

For this year's Lenten season, among a few other things, I gave up sweets/dessert/treats.  Let me tell you, this was a tough one.  Not even a taste of chocolate at all (except for that one frozen Moccachino coffee drink, not sure if that counted or not...), it was after all, one of our hot fake Spring days earlier this month.  Okay, then if I am confessing here, there was a maple bar during my traveling in March, right after Ash Wednesday.  Since that was technically breakfast, does that really count?  Really?

Each year since birth, I have always given the girls a new swimsuit in their Easter baskets, to launch the beginning of a new summer season, but since they just got new ones at Christmas, I decided to change it up this year...and yes, they are twenty years old and still getting baskets from me.  I know!

As they are graduating from one college next month and moving on to new universities in the fall, they both got a set of tee shirt sheets for their upcoming new residences.

Since I was not baking desserts for the past six months, which gave me a little more time, I have been having so much fun with my stamps that my Grandmother passed down to me.  I also received another whole set from a mom friend.  I had to buy a drawer organizer for everything....I could open my own stamp classes and studio with all these goodies now!

When Easter did come around I jumped on this new lemon dessert.  It was so perfect at our Easter dinner.  It is so luscious and creamy!  I am all about anything shortbread, so this salty crust with the sweet filling and topping was wonderful.

One comment from my critics though....(a.k.a. the family), it wasn't tart enough.  Next time, I think I will add some lemon zest to the shortbread crust and also add a bit of fresh squeezed lemon juice to the pudding mixture and see if that will make them pucker up enough for their tastes!

Lemon Lush Dessert

Courtesy of Cooks Home

1-1/4 cup flour

3/4 cup butter

1/4 cup pecans, chopped, plus extra for topping

8 ounce cream cheese, softened

16 ounces, Cool Whip

1 cup powdered sugar

4 small (3.4 ounce) boxes lemon instant pudding

5 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut butter into flour with a pastry cutter.  Mix well and add pecans.  Pat into the bottom of a prepared 9x13 baking dish and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool.

Whip together cream cheese and the powdered sugar.  Fold in half of the cool whip (8 ounces).  Spread over cooled crust.

Combine lemon pudding and milk.  Beat until thick.  Spread over cream cheese layer.

Spoon and swirl the remaining cool whip on top of pudding.  Sprinkle with pecans.

Cover and chill at least 4 hours.

One Year Ago: Loaded Baked Potato Salad

Two Years Ago: Bundt Pan Chicken

Three Years Ago: Alabama White Barbecue Sauce

Four Years Ago: Derby Day Delights

Five Years Ago: Alouette Pizzette