A prefect snowy weekend dessert, Baked Apples

This pre-holiday weekend is a very snowy one here in the Eastern Sierras. We’ve had about a foot and half of snow in 2 days. This means using what you have in the frig and cupboard for meals. I had some apples, walnuts, raisins and immediately thought of the easy and delicious American classic baked apple. The results were yummy and eaten beside the fire, after we earned the calories shoveling the driveway and hanging the Christmas lights. Happy seasonal holiday eating!

Baked Apples

Use an ovenproof skillet. If you don’t have one them transfer the apples to a Pyrex baking dish when you put them in oven. Serve the apples with vanilla ice cream, if desired. Feel free to substitute pecans for the walnuts, and cranberry juice for the cider.

Ingredients

3	large (about 6 ounces each) Granny Smith apples
3	tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
2	Tbsp packed brown sugar
2	Tbsp dried cranberries or raisins , coarsely chopped
2	Tbsp coarsely chopped walnuts
1/2	teaspoon finely grated zest from 1 orange
1/4	teaspoon ground cinnamon
	Pinch table salt
2	Tbsp Triple Sec
1/3+	cup apple cider

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Peel the apples. Cut off the tops about ½ “ down from the top, save the tops. Core the apples. Dice the apple from the tops, removing the stem area. Combine 2 tablespoons of butter, brown sugar, cranberries/raisins, nuts, orange zest, cinnamon, diced apple, Triple Sec and salt in large bowl; set aside.

3. Shave thin slice off bottom (blossom end) of apples to allow them to sit flat. Be careful not to cut through bottom of apple.

4. Melt remaining tablespoon butter in 10 to 12-inch nonstick oven safe skillet over medium heat. Once foaming subsides, add apples, stem-side down, and cook until cut surface is golden brown, about 3 minutes.

5. Flip apples, reduce heat to low, and spoon filling inside, mounding excess filling over cavities. Add the cider to skillet. Transfer skillet to oven, and bake until skewer inserted into apples meets little resistance, 35 to 40 minutes, basting every 10 minutes with maple syrup mixture in skillet.

6. Serve apples individually, pouring any sauce over the top. Top with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Fuyu Persimmon Bundt Cake

This is a wonderful old fashion winter cake, dark, filled with fruit and yummy. It was originally a Sunset magazine recipe, and deserves to be made if you have 6 Fuyu persimmons in your possession. As it turns out I have many more than just 6, so I peel, slice and dry several pounds, and also make several sizes of this wonderful cake to give to my farmer friends. The Seasonal Table class made this at our December session and it was a big hit. Fuyu persimmons are the ones that are shaped like a tomato and can be eaten raw. I have a regular full size bundt pan, 2 half size pans and 2 mini pans. This recipe will make 1 large, or 2 med, or 2 med and 2 mini cakes. It is a wonderful way to share the bounty of persimmons, as well as this years walnuts and raisins.

Fuyu Bundt Cake serves 10+

2 tsp. baking soda

3 cups of chopped firm Fuyu persimmons

8 Tbsp soft butter

1 2/3 cups sugar (can be reduced to 1 ¼ cup)

2 eggs

2 tsp. lemon juice, and 1 tsp of fresh grated lemon peel

2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

¾ tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cup raisins

1. Grease and flour a bundt cake pan.
2. Preheat oven to 350°.
3. Blend 2 tsp. baking soda into 3 cups of chopped firm Fuyu persimmons. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, beat the soft butter with 1 2/3 cups sugar.
5. Add the eggs, 2 tsp. lemon juice, and 2 tsp. vanilla and beat until fluffy.
6. Stir in Fuyu mix.
7. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, ground cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
8. Stir flour into Fuyu mixture just until blended.
9. Add chopped walnuts and raisins.

10.Pour into prepared bundt pan.

11.Bake at 350° for 55 - 60 minutes or until toothpick tests clean.

12. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Turn onto rack.

Swiss Chard and Pumpkin Lasagna

This weekend I tackled a very large kabocha pumpkin that had grace my festive fall table décor. I decide to make this very elegant but easy vegetarian main dish. I served it at a friend’s 60^th birthday party last Sunday and it was a hit. It’s definitely not low calorie but so delicious that I think the cream is warranted. I was going to make a batch of batch of fresh lasagna noodles but found an 8 oz package of fresh Italian noodles at the Grocery Outlet. No boil lasagna noodles could be used but the texture will be more chewy, and not as creamy. If you don’t have a pumpkin to steam and puree, you could used butternut squash or acorn squash, or in a pinch a 28oz can of pumpkin. After removing the ribs from the Swiss Chard, chopped these ribs finely and sautéed them with onions and before adding the chopped chard leaves. Two pounds of chard is quite a lot but it does cook down, so sauté it all even if you need to do it in batches. If you do not have Swiss chard, you can substitute Russian Red Kale or spinach. Make sure you have large enough pan, I suggest 9 x 13 x 2.

Swiss Chard and Pumpkin Lasagna

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 onions, chopped

2 pounds Swiss chard, tough ribs/stems removed and chopped fine, leaves washed well and roughed chopped

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried sage

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

3 cups pureed pumpkin OR one 28-ounce can of pureed pumpkin)

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan

1/2 cup milk

Fresh lasagna noodles , about 8 oz, OR 9 no-boil lasagna noodles

Directions

1. In a large nonstick frying pan, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onions, chards stems and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Increase the heat to moderately high and add the chard leaves , 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon sage, and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg. Cook, stirring, until the chard is wilted and no liquid remains in the pan, 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 350°.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together 2 cups of the pumpkin, 3/4 cup cream, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and the remaining 3/4 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon sage, and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg.
4. Pour the milk into an 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Top the milk with one third of the noodles, then spread half the pumpkin mixture over the noodles. Layer half the Swiss chard over the pumpkin and top with a second layer of noodles. Repeat with another layer of pumpkin, Swiss chard, and noodles.
5. Combine the remaining 1 cup of pumpkin and 3/4 cup of cream. Spread the mixture evenly over the top of the lasagna, sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of Parmesan.
6. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake until golden, about 10-15 minutes more.

Seasonal Thanksgiving Appetizers

Thanksgiving came early this year when Max came home from Japan in early October. And I celebrated early again, when last week I hosted wine and appetizers with another family. They usually join us a few hours before our Thanksgiving feast, but this year, they came a week early. Along with the delicious wines from Tablas Creek of California Central Coast, I served 2 seasonal appetizers. My favorite and beautiful persimmon goat cheese wedges with balsamic vinegar. For a very fancy look, boil down the balsamic vinegar until it is syrup and drizzle it over the top. This appetizer is quickly becoming a chef Debb fall season tradition. The lower appetizer is Prosciutto wrapped Fuji apples slices which was a new twist on the summer appetizer: Prosciutto e melone. These can also be made with still firm but ripe fall Bartlett pears. Both trays have been garnished with fresh pomegranate seeds.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Persimmon-Goat Cheese Wedges

SERVES: 12

ingredients

1/2 cup salted roasted almonds, very finely chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

4 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened

4 Fuyu persimmons, sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick

Aged balsamic vinegar, for serving

directions

1. Using a mandolin, slice the persimmons crosswise into ¼ “ slices

2. Optional: Using a 2-inch round biscuit cutter, stamp out 12 rounds from the persimmon slices.

3. In a small bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of the almonds and the parsley with the goat cheese.

4. Divide the mixture into 6 equal pieces and roll each into a ball.

5. Sandwich each goat cheese ball between 2 persimmon slices, pressing to flatten slightly.

6. Roll the edges in the remaining almonds and refrigerate until firm, at least 10 minutes or overnight.

7. Cut each round into quarters and transfer to a plate. Drizzle lightly with balsamic vinegar and serve.

Sweet Potato and Apple Praline

This week, I did a demonstration/cooking lesson at the Tulare County Employee health and wellness fair. I was asked to show a healthy/nutritious, low cost and easy dish, which I call the perfect recipe! Well this might not be perfect but it fits the bill, and it’s even a dessert. The first sweet potatoes of the season have arrived at farmers market and the Granny Smith apples are in full swing too, so this was a match made in heaven. It was well received by those in the audience and I hope you enjoy it as well. A savory variation of this beautiful and tasty combination that would go well with turkey or pork, is to toss the apple and potato chunks with olive oil and fresh thyme then roast in a hot oven 450 ° for about 15-20 mins or until knife tender, Add salt and pepper to taste and toss in a handful ot toasted nuts if desired.

Sweet Potato and Apple Praline

Serves 6-8

2 to 2 ½ lbs of orange fleshed sweet potatoes/yams, peeled and cut into chunks or slices, all of similar size

2-3 Tbsp butter

2 to 2 ½ lbs tart apples, i.e. Granny Smiths, peeled and cut into 1 “ chunks

1/3 cup brown sugar

Zest of 1 lemon

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp cinnamon

1/3+ cup of toasted coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans

Toss the sweet potatoes and apples with the lemon juice, lemon zest and cinnamon in a large bowl. Sauté this mixture in a large skillet with the melted butter.

When the sweet potatoes are tender, to check pierced with a knife, sprinkle the apples and potatoes with the brown sugar. Cook until the brown sugar melts and begins to bubble.

Add the toasted walnuts and serve.

Can be topped with a dollop of plain yogurt or vanilla ice cream.