Sunday, October 30, 2011

The Noblest of Fruits

Apple Butter


Henry David Thoreau wrote “Surely the apple is the noblest of fruits.”  Who am I to argue with Thoreau?  I have tasted nothing that would contradict this brilliant American naturalist, philosopher and author's view, so I will instead concentrate on preserving this noble fruit.  Early American colonists preserved this pomaceous fruit by making apple butter.  My first experience tasting apple butter was at the Liberty Tree Tavern in Disney World when I was about nine years old – and I still remember it.  It was positively delicious with its sweet, deep flavor combined with aromatic spices.  It was noble apple heaven spread on a piece of bread.  In more recent years, I have tried my hand at apple butter using a couple of difference methods.  It can be made in a crock pot over a 12 – 24 hour period or roasted in the oven for 3 – 6 hours.  This autumn, my mom and I decided to use the stove method to make some for ourselves.  We canned it using the basic canning methods printed on the box of jars, but it can also be frozen (I have done this in the past quite successfully).

To preserve this noble fruit, you will need:

Ingredients
4 – 5 Pounds of apples (a mix of apple varieties makes for a more interesting flavor)
½ Teaspoon allspice
¼ Teaspoon cloves
¼ Teaspoon nutmeg
1 ½ Teaspoons cinnamon
3-4 Cups of sugar (depending on the sweetness of the apples and your preference)
Pinch of salt
2 Cups of apple cider

Step 1


You begin to make apple butter by making applesauce.  Wash the apples and then slice them into quarters (or sixths if your apples are larger).  Place the quarters in a large pot and add the apple cider. 


Simmer the apples on medium-low heat for about 7 – 10 minutes, or until the apples are very soft.  Make sure you stir the apples occasionally so they do not burn on the bottom!

Step 2


When the apples are soft, use a food mill or other applesauce apparatus to turn the apples into sauce. 


My mom had borrowed this nifty gadget that separated the peels and seeds from the pulp.  It made the job so fast!  If you don’t have an applesauce gadget, you can use a potato masher to break up the apples and then push the pulp through a colander. 


You want to include the apple cider in the apple pulp.

Step 3


Add the allspice, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar and salt to the apple pulp after returning it to a large pot.  Now you’re in it for the long haul because you will need to simmer the mixture, stirring every few minutes to prevent burning, for 1 ½ - 2 hours, or until it is brown and thick. 

Sorry for the yellow lighting; I forgot a picture of this step and had to do in in terrible lighting conditions!

When you put a spoonful on a plate, it should stay together, with no liquid oozing from it.  When it reaches this point, you have successfully created apple butter!  (Yes, it is a long process, but it is oh so worth it!)

Step 4


If you are canning, you should get your jars, lids and rings ready while the apple butter finishes.  Then add the hot apple butter to the jars, secure the lids with the rings, and wait for them to give you the “pop” that signals success! J  If you are freezing, freezer bags work really well.  You will want to cool the apple butter before bagging it though.

Enjoy your apple butter on toast, biscuits or mixed into pumpkin pie!  I am planning to experiment with pear butter next year, so stay tuned!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Unexpected Guests?!

Pumpkin Gingersnap Sundae

We are rapidly approaching the holiday season!  I’ve been running around telling everyone because I absolutely love this time of year!  It will begin for me at the start of November and continue through til the New Year.  I must admit though, my absolute favorite part of the whole two months is Thanksgiving.  Obviously, I love cooking and love eating…so it makes sense.  But you may not quite understand how much I love the food aspect of this wonderful holiday.  I have been searching the internet for weeks already for the perfect recipes.  This past weekend, I made a pre-pre-Thanksgiving turkey to test out a recipe (yes, the pre-pre means it was a practice for the practice turkey).  I am just that weird.  And just that into food.  But for me, there is no better holiday than one that revolves around a beautiful meal shared with family.  It makes me feel sort of squishy inside thinking about family and how much I have to be thankful for while sharing a lovely meal with them.

Anyway, I am rambling (this is what happens when I think about Thanksgiving!).  I really wanted to share a dessert with you.  With the holiday season comes lots of guests – some expected and some unexpected.  This is the perfect treat to share with all of your guests because you can assemble it quickly, everything will keep for the month perfectly fine and it is oh so delicious!!!

All you need is:


Yes, that’s all you need!  Pumpkin ice cream, caramel sauce and ginger snaps.

To assemble the sundae, simply crumble some ginger snaps (two per sundae works for me) over some pumpkin ice cream.  Then top the ice cream with some caramel sauce.  Finish the sundae by placing a whole cookie on top.  It allows the tasters to know what the cookie crumbs are and let’s face it…it just looks pretty.


That’s it!  All you need for a delicious holiday treat!  It can easily be adapted too.  If you want to go the peppermint route closer to Christmas, use some mint chip ice cream with grasshopper cookies and hot fudge!  So many possibilities!!!  Tell me what you think would be most delicious!

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Pumpkin Ravioli

Before we get to the good stuff, I wanted to let my lovely readers know I have finally figured out how to make commenting easier (whew, sigh, relief evident).  Now you can just type your comment.  Then in the drop down “Comment as” select “Name/URL.”  You can put any form of your name that you would like; the URL is optional, but if you have your own blog, you can put it in the box.  Just click “Continue” when you are finished and then you will be able to click “Post Comment.”  This means you no longer need to be logged into a Google account to post!  Three cheers!  Hip hip hooray!  Hip hip hooray!  Hip hip hooray!

Pumpkin Ravioli in a Sage Butter Sauce

Sorry about the steam!  It fogged my lens!

That’s enough of the boring stuff.  Time for the start of autumn!  I like apples, but for me, the cool, crisp air and the shorter days mean PUMPKIN!  Last year, my mom and I roasted and pureed sugar pie pumpkins and then froze our puree.  I still have some left in my freezer and decided to use it to make some ravioli!  I was craving it last week when it was cool and dreary and decided to concoct a recipe to satisfy my craving.  Many recipes for pumpkin ravioli (and there aren’t many out there on that vast resource we call the Internet) have no ricotta in the filling.  I, however, love some ricotta in my ravioli filling, so I chose to create my own recipe and use ricotta in addition to the pumpkin.  I also used a shortcut by using wonton wrappers for my pasta.  Sometime, I will post a how-to for making pasta, but it was a weeknight, so I did not have the time.  Wontons are a perfect little alternative!  As for the sauce, I decided to go with a Sage Butter sauce…seemed to compliment the pumpkin well.  When I tasted it…I knew it was success…or in autumn terms in this household…we had a touchdown!  I loved it, and I hope you will too!

Ingredients

Ravioli
Wonton wrappers (I bought a 60 square pack, but 2 packs could be used because I had a lot of filling leftover)
15 oz. Ricotta
1 Cup pumpkin, you may want more
¾ Cup parmesan
1 Teaspoon pepper
1 ½ Teaspoons salt
2 Eggs

Sauce
1 ½ Sticks butter
3 Tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
¾ Teaspoon salt

Step 1
Begin the ravioli making process by preparing your filling.  You will need to combine the ricotta, pumpkin, parmesan, pepper and salt. 


At this point, go ahead and taste the filling.  If you want a stronger pumpkin flavor, go ahead and add it.  You can add more salt and pepper if you like as well.  Just adjust to your own taste.  When you are happy with the flavor, add 1 of the eggs and stir it into the filling.


Step 2


We now need to fill our little pillows of pumpkin pasta (how’s that for alliteration?)!  Mix the remaining egg with a little water to make an egg wash.  Then lay a couple of wonton wrappers down and spoon ¾ - 1 teaspoon of filling into the center of each wrapper.  Make sure you don’t overfill, or the pasta will not seal properly.  Now brush some egg wash around the edges of the wrapper and lay another wonton on top.  Use your fingers to press lightly starting from the area directly around the filling and working your way out.  The goal here is first to remove the air pockets and then to seal the edges.  Set finished ravioli to the side (separate layers with plastic wrap) and continue the process until you are finished.


Step 3


To cook the ravioli, you will need to boil some water in a large pot.  You will only be able to cook 4 – 5 raviolis at a time, so I put the oven on warm at this point too.   When the water is boiling, add the ravioli and cook the batch for 3 minutes.  Then remove them to a baking dish and drizzle a little olive oil on top to prevent sticking.  Put the cooked ravioli in the oven and continue with your next batch…

Step 4


When you are on your last batch of ravioli, it is time for the sauce.  In a skillet, over medium heat, melt your butter.  By this time, your final batch of ravioli is most likely done, so add that to the rest.  You will want to cook the butter for about three minutes, until it just begins to color.  When it colors, add the sage and continue cooking for about 1 minute, until it is golden brown.  Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the salt.  Pour it over the ravioli and wa la!  You have made homemade pillows of pumpkin perfection!  Enjoy!

Gastronome's Note:  Wonton wrappers are a wonderful vehicle for any variety of ravioli.  Try a wild mushroom filling, which would be delicious with this same sauce!