Apple Butter

It's time again for my next Daring Cooks' Challenge-one that I was very excited to try.  It was all about food preservation and how to get the most out of in-season produce. One of the options was to make apple butter.  Now, apple butter is one of those things that I've heard about, tasted only a few times and have never actually made. 

Apple butter also reminds me of my days in high school in Ohio.  When I was in high school, one of the neighboring towns held an Apple Butter Festival every October.  It was one of those old-fashioned, participants-dressing-in-19th-century-clothes, everyone-drinking-hot-apple-cider and sitting-on-hay-bales sort of fest.  The big difference there was that their apple butter was made in big black cauldrons over an open flame, churned mainly by ladies in aprons and bonnets, but they did give everyone a chance to churn the butter.

That was also when I realized there is no actual butter in apple butter.  It's just a consistency thing.  Basically, it's just a spiced and thickened apple sauce. It can be used for many different things.  The most basic is as a spread on toast or a bagel or whatever you'd like.  But you can also use it as a condiment with pork chops, as part of a marinade or in an apple quick bread.

Now, there probably won't be a big black cauldron over a fire in my kitchen in the near future, especially since we're renting right now.  All we've got here is an electric stove and an immersion blender, so that's how I'm going to roll with this.  I do have some notes though about this recipe.

• If you want to be a little more "authentic" about it, you can use the whole apple: core, peel and all that goodness.  Just chop the apples into eighths before softening them.  Once softened, put them in a food mill and mill away (I don't have one, so hence all the peeling and coring).  Add sugars and spices and continue with the rest of step 2.
• This recipe is suitable for canning.  I've never canned before, so I'm just going to freeze or give away what I can't use immediately.  But if you can can, more power to you!  I'll have a canning blog sometime in the future, once I have the equipment and have it figured out.
• I can't recommend which type of apples to use.  I just used the ones I bought from a lady selling them on the side of the road.  Seemed to work out pretty well.  But, from what I understand, if you use a sweet apple like Golden Delicious, you won't need to use as much sugar, tart apples like Granny Smith will require more sugar.

The September 2010 Daring Cooks’ challenge was hosted by John of Eat4Fun. John chose to challenge The Daring Cooks to learn about food preservation, mainly in the form of canning and freezing. He challenged everyone to make a recipe and preserve it. John’s source for food preservation information was from The National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Apple Butter

5 lbs Apples, peeled, cored and cut into eighths
1 C apple juice or cider
1 C sugar
1/2 C brown sugar
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves

1. Combine apples and juice (or cider) in 8-quart pot. Cook slowly and stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Cook until apples are very soft and falling apart.  At this point, you have some pretty tasty apple sauce.  If you want to stop here, you can, but if you continue on, you will be rewarded with tastiness...
2. With a potato masher, mash the soft apples.  Add the sugar and spice (and everything nice).  At this point I used a stick blender to blend to a smoother consistency.  If you would like it a little chunkier, by all means skip this step, but make sure to stir in all the spices well.
3. Bring to a simmer and turn down the heat to keep it at a slow simmer.  Cover with a splatter screen or use 2 wooden spoons to support the lid open.  It is important to let the water evaporate to thicken the butter. Simmer for at least 2 hours, until it is thick and stays mounded on a spoon when it is scooped out.
4. Let it cool a little, then put into the desired storage container or containers.  It will keep for up to 2 weeks in the fridge or up to a year in the freezer.  I would recommend using smaller containers if you don't think you will use up everything in a larger one fast enough.

Yields about 5 cups.

Currant Clafouti

I'm not sure how many of you have read the book Julie and Julia, but to summarize, it's about a woman (named Julie) who cooks everything in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking cookbook.  But ever since reading that book (which was WAY better than the movie BTW), I've had this craving to make clafouti, which Julie raves about in the book.  Now, a clafouti is basically some fruit in a baking dish with a batter poured over it.  As it cooks the batter turns to this silky, flan-y, custard-y texture that goes so well with any fruit, really.  But, I guess to officially be called a Clafouti, it is made with whole cherries (pits included).  If it's made with other fruit it's called a flaugnarde.  But, since I hadn't heard that term until I was reading about clafoutis on Wikipedia, I'm still going to call this clafouti.

I decided to do a little twist on this and use red currants in stead of cherries.  There are TONS of currants out right now at the market in town and they are dirt cheap!  I haven't done any cooking with currants before, and I figured there was no time like the present to try something new that is in season (and cheap if I screw it up).  I needed to make a few adjustments to the original recipe which called for 3 cups of cherries.  I had planned to just substitute currants for the cherries, but after I started spreading the currants on, I realized using 3 cups was way too much.  I only used about 2-2 1/2 cups, but I feel even that was too much.  The currants have a lot more water in them than cherries, and that made this dish a little soggy.  I think it would be better off with 1 1/2 cups; I made that change in the recipe below. 

I think this dish would be amazing with other fruit.  I've made it before with cherries, plums, and pears.  Adding a little cinnamon is great with the plums and pears.  You could probably use whatever is in season and it would work out well.

Currant Clafouti
Adapted from Julia Child's Clafouti
Serves 6-8

1 1/4 c milk
2/3 c sugar, divided
3 eggs
1 T vanilla
1/8 t salt
1/2 cup flour
1-1 1/2 cups red currants

powdered sugar (for dusting)

Preheat oven to 350F

In a blender, blend together the milk, 1/3 c sugar, vanilla, salt and flour.  Pour a 1/4" layer of batter into a buttered 7 or 8 cup lightly buttered oven-safe baking dish.  Place in the oven until a film of batter sets in the pan, about 10 minutes.

Remove from the heat and spread the currants over the batter.  Sprinkle on the remaining 1/3c of sugar and pour over the rest of the batter.

Bake at 350F for 45 minutes to an hour.  The clafouti is done when puffed and brown and a knife stuck in the center comes out clean.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve warm.

Click here for a printable recipe

Strawberries Marinated in Balsamic Vinegar

So, it's been a while...I've been away and haven't had a chance to get back to blogging.  I'm actually really surprised how much I've missed it.  I've enjoyed posting my recipes and pics, and I really hope you all have enjoyed my posts, too!

The strawberries right now are insane...in season, they are so sweet and fresh and cheap.  Plus they are everywhere.  Whenever I think of strawberries I think summer!  So I've gone searching for a good summertime strawberry recipe and I've found one.  Strawberries marinated with balsamic vinegar with marscarpone cheese is one of my favorites.

Now, strawberries and balsamic vinegar, when I first heard that combination, sounded more than a little off-putting to me.  If it does to you too, hang with me, because it is awesome!  This is one of my stand-by desserts that is great if you want something that is fresh and light-tasting, and truly easy to make.  It would work great for dinner parties, because everything can be made ahead of time (and since you have to marinate the strawberries for a while, you should make it early) and just assemble it table-side.  Or you can make a presentation of it and deliver to your guests and bathe in their praise:).  But most importantly, enjoy it and share with those you love!

A couple of notes on this recipe...Although I have given quantities of the ingredients, they are just to give a general idea of how much to use, I honestly can't remember the last time I measured anything out when I make this, it just seems to work.  Also, it does call for a vanilla pod, but since those tend to be a little spendy, just a splash or 2 of vanilla extract works as well.  Fresh, super-ripe strawberries work the best, I haven't tried frozen ones, but I think that the texture once they are thawed won't be right, so I'm going to have to recommend against it.

Strawberries Marinated in Balsamic Vinegar
From Jamie Oliver's The Return of the Naked Chef
Serves 4

1-ish lbs of strawberries, hulled
~5 tbsp sugar, to taste
10 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 vanilla pod
14 oz mascarpone cheese
4 or 5 leaves of fresh mint or basil, finely sliced


Place strawberries in a bowl and scatter generously with the sugar followed by the balsamic vinegar.  Stir around and allow to marinate for up to 2 hours.

Score the vanilla pod length-wise and remove the seeds by running a knife along the inside, scraping the seeds away.  Mix the seeds with the mascarpone cheese and sweeten to taste with a little sugar.

 

Place a scoop of marscapone on a dish, cover with strawberries and balsamic juice, and finish with a sprinkle of mint or basil.

Puffed Apple Pancakes

This recipe is one of my favorite breakfast recipes ever for many reasons.  First, it tastes awesome, which is key.  The second is it's just so dang pretty as it comes out of the oven, all puffy and golden yumminess, that I feel like a kitchen genius every time I make it.  And last, but definitely not least, is that it is super easy.  Once I discovered this recipe I've made it pretty much every weekend since.  It is the staple Saturday morning breakfast for my husband and me every week.

My husband had to work this past Saturday, but did it stop me from making it?  Nope (sorry you missed out, Babe).  I biked on over to my friend Ashley's house and we made a little brunch ourselves with it.  I was so excited to share it with a new friend and she was excited about making it for her husband when he gets back.  That is what cooking is about to me, sharing the love.  And now I get to share it with all of you!

Just some quick notes about this recipe...It serves 4, but since it's just my husband and me, I always make half a recipe and it turns out great (the pictures here are also of a half-recipe).  You can use whatever kind of apple you have on hand.  I've used Gala, Pink Lady, Honey Crunch and Granny Smith (I think I used Ida Red in this recipe, but the sticker was in German so I'm not sure) they all work just as well.  I also just discovered when I was making this yesterday that it says to peel the apples first--totally missed that all the times I've made this recipe (which is A LOT).  So I guess what I'm saying, is that you don't actually have to peel them (although I think that it would make slicing it up a little neater). 

Puffed Apple Pancakes
    Adapted from Bon Appetit's Fast, Easy, Fresh Cookbook
    Click here for printable version

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
12 ounces Golden Delicious apples (about 2), peeled, cored, thinly sliced

1 cup whole milk
4 large eggs
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2/3 cup all purpose flour

3 tablespoons (packed) golden brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425°F.   While oven is heating, place butter in 13"x9" glass baking dish (if you're making a half-recipe, 8"x8" or a round baker works well, too).  Place dish in oven until butter melts, about 5 minutes.  Remove dish from oven.  Place apple slices in overlapping rows atop melted butter in baking dish.  Return to oven and bake until apples begin to soften slightly and butter is bubbling and beginning to brown around edges of dish, about 10 minutes (I also do this while the oven is still pre-heating, although it usually takes a bit longer).

Meanwhile, whisk milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon in large bowl until well blended.  Add flour and whisk until batter is smooth.

Pour batter over apples in dish and sprinkle with brown sugar.  Bake pancake until puffed and brown, about 20 minutes.  Gather family around to admire your puffy golden creation and dig in while it's still warm!

This is awesome with just a drizzle of real maple syrup or you can sprinkle with powdered sugar.  I think next time I may fry up some bacon or breakfast sausages, too!

Mmm...Blueberry Pie

My husband's grandmother is famous for her pies. Every time we go to visit, there is always at least one (usually three) waiting for us when we get there. I haven't had a chance to make a pie along with her to learn her secret, but I did ask her once how she made the crust. She's a very modest lady, and her reply was "oh, it's nothing special, you just mix it all together until it looks right". Her recipe is so much a part of her, she needs no recipe, and the "looking right" part is what I really want to understand.

I think I may have found a crust recipe that rivals that of my grandmother-in-law. It's a little unorthodox, but I've tried it and it works like a champ, so I'm sold. The secret ingredient is...vodka. I'm not sure why it works, something to do with the alcohol to water ratio in the vodka allowing for the optimal amount of gluten formation in the dough. The alcohol does evaporate in the oven, so don't worry about your pie crust tasting like booze (I also tried some dough raw, and even then I could barely taste the vodka).
So all this talk about crust, I haven't even mentioned the filling. Grandma-in-law always has at least a blueberry, cherry and a chocolate pie waiting for us upon our arrival. So when I found this recipe for blueberry pie, this was just calling my name. It is almost as good as hers...

Blueberry Pie
From Cook's Illustrated All-Time Best Recipes

Pie Dough (for one 9" double crust pie)
2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour (plus extra for work surface)
1 tsp table salt
2 Tbsp sugar
12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut int0 1/4" slices
1/2 cup cold vegetable shortening, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup cold vodka
1/4 cup cold water

Process 1 1/2 c flour, salt and sugar in food processor until combined, about two 1-second pulses. Add butter and shortening and process until homogeneous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 15 seconds (dough will resemble cottage cheese curds and there should be no uncoated flour). Scrape bowl with rubber spatula and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade. Add remaining cup of flour and pulse until mixture is even distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up, 4-6 quick pulses. Empty mixture into medium bowl (I actually don't have a food processor right now, so just used a dough blender thing and hand mixed the dough together. It worked well, but my arm was sore the next day).

Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. With rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix, pressing down on dough until dough is slightly tacky and sticks together. Divide dough into 2 even balls and flatten each into 4" disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days.

The Rest of the Pie
Also from Cooks Illustrated

1 recipe of the pie dough
6 cups (about 30 oz) fresh blueberries (if you want to use frozen ones, just cook half of them over med-high heat in step 2 without mashing until they are reduced to 1 1/4 cups, 12-15 minutes)
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and grated on large holes of a box grater
2 tsp grated zest and 2 tsp juice from 1 lemon
3/4 cups (5 1/4 oz) sugar
2 Tbsp instant tapioca, ground in a spice grinder (or 5 tsp pearl tapioca)
Pinch table salt
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1/4" pieces
1 large egg, lightly beaten with 1 tsp water

Remove 1 disk of dough from the refrigerator and roll out on generously floured work surface to 12" circle about 1/8" thick. Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll into pie plate, leaving at least 1" overhang on each side. Working around circumference, ease dough with one hand while pressing into plate bottom with other hand. Leave dough that overhangs in place; refrigerate while preparing filling until dough is firm, about 30 minutes.

Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place rimmed baking sheet on oven rack, and heat oven to 400 degrees. Place 3 cups berries in medium sauce pan and set over medium heat. Using potato masher, mash berries several times to release juices. Continue to cook, stirring frequently and mashing occasionally, until about half of the berries have broken down and mixture is thickened and reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 8 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Place grated apple in clean kitchen towel and wring dry. Transfer apple to large bowl. Add cooked berries, remaining 3 cups uncooked berries, lemon zest, juice, sugar, tapioca and salt; toss to combine. Transfer mixture to dough-lined pie plate and scatter butter pieces over filling.

Roll out second disk of dough on generously floured (up to 1/4 cup) work surface to 11" circle. Using 1 1/4" round biscuit cutter (or a shot glass like I did, because, hey, there's vodka in the dough and I don't have a biscuit cutter), cut round from center of dough. Cut another 6 rounds from dough, 1 1/2" from edge of center hole and equally spaced around the center hole (this is much easier than trying to do a lattice top). This will allow the steam to vent from the filling as it bakes. Roll dough loosely around rolling pin and unroll over pie, leaving at least 1/2" overhang on each side.
Using kitchen shears, trim bottom layer of overhanging dough, leaving 1/2"overhang. Fold dough underitself so that edge of fold is flush with outer rim of pie plate. Flute edges using thumb and forefinger or press with tines of fork fork to seal top crust to bottom. Brush top and edges of pie with egg mixture. If dough is very soft, chill in freezer for 10 minutes.
Place pie on heated baking sheet and bake 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and continue to bake until juices bubble anc crust is deep golden brown, 30-40 minutes longer. transfer pie to wire rack; cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. Cut into wedges and serve.