Thinking about Thanksgiving desserts? Here’s gorgeous recipe from chow.com. It’s a bit of work, but so worth it. Make the dough up to 2 days ahead of time, but bake the galette so it will be warm when you serve it. If you don’t have sanding sugar for the sparkly finish, just use granulated sugar instead.
When the apples start to pile up and you’re thinking about making apple sauce, someone will mention this recipe for apple butter made in a slow cooker. It really works. This version is from “The New Southern Garden Cookbook” by Sheri Castle (The University of North Carolina Press, $35). The bonus is that your house will smell delicious while this is cooking. Sheri notes that you can substitute 2 pounds of sweet potatoes for part of the apples and make apple-sweet potato butter. Interesting.
Do you have one of those $20 apple peelers that sticks the apple on a pronged skewer and slowly rotates it through a peeler and slicer? I thought they were a gimmick until I tried one. Fabulous! Apples, peeled (or not), cored and sliced in 10 seconds. Really.
Leftover cranberry sauce or relish from Thanksgiving? Perfect here. Or use dried cranberries instead. These turnovers are buttery and flaky and go together in a flash. If you buy a box of phyllo especially for this recipe, wrap the remaining phyllo well and refrigerate it for up to a week, or return it to the freezer.
One more recipe from my AJC archives ….
Even in winter I like dinner salads – especially those with cheese and nuts and fruit. This adaptation of a traditional Waldorf salad combines some of my favorite ingredients. The honey mustard dressing is a nice foil for the richness of smoked Gouda and the sweet crunch of the apples. Use all one variety of apple or mix them for contrasting flavors and colors. Substitute Swiss cheese for the Gouda if you’re not fond of smoked cheeses.
For one idea I’ve gone to my favorite source, the New York Times. Just today Martha Rose Shulman presented this recipe for Sweet Potato Soup With Ginger, Leek and Apple. Because I’m not a fan of leeks (too expensive to just have lying around waiting for a recipe), I’ll substitute an onion. Stronger/different flavor, I know … but that’s ok with me. Everything else is something I have on hand. My preferred kind of recipe.
The recipe for Japanese Curry Rice comes from Marc Matsumoto of norecipes.com. He says: “ I make almost everything I post without a recipe. I think cooking is most fun and innovative when you just wing it. I do recognize that not everyone is as adventurous as me, so I post the ingredients and method to give you a starting point.”
So in that spirit, substitute okra for the carrots, thinly sliced green beans for the peas, use applesauce instead of the fresh apple, or make any other substitutions that appeal to you.. You could skip the protein and still have a lovely meal.
In a large saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat; add onion. Saute over heat until translucent and beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add apples; sauté 4 minutes more. Add vinegar, raisins, ginger, mustard, and cayenne. Stir well to combine; cover. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until apples are very tender but hold their shape, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Cool and store in the refrigerator. It should keep for about a month.
I’m looking for a way to use these apples. Some are really the wrong texture for eating out of hand, so I needed inspiration for other uses. Here are two. The first is basically a grilled cheese sandwich fancied up a little by the folks at Martha Stewart with the addition of ham and slices of apple. That’s what I’m having for dinner tonight. Tomorrow I’ll make the apple chutney. I think it would be a great addition to my next apple, ham, cheddar melt.
