Apple Butter

I can remember a time when I was growing up when my mom and her friends made a very large batch of apple butter in our home, and what stuck with me most was that it took a very long time and that it was scary good. I probably exaggerated in my mind just how labor intensive it was, because 99% of the time it takes to create this delicious treat is spent waiting while the slow cooker does all the work. One thing I did get right is that apple butter is just darn delicious.

I feel bad for apple butter, in the same way I feel bad for oatmeal cookies -- it doesn't look or sound glamorous but when you try it you realize that it's absolutely scrumptious. You can spread it on toast or a fresh baked biscuit (hello extra gym time), eat it with a soft cheese and water crackers, alongside pork or chicken. Or you can eat it with a spoon straight from the jar. That's always a good option.

Ingredients:

• 5 lbs apples (I used 8 Granny Smith and 6 Fuji)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• Juice of one medium lemon
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

Special items for canning:

• Water bath (large stock pot)
• Tongs
• Canning jars, seals, and rings
• Funnel, wide-mouthed

Directions:

1. Peel, slice, and core the apples and place them in your slow cooker. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon over top, then evenly pour the water, lemon juice, and vinegar over the apple slices. Use a large spoon to mix everything up. Cook on low heat for 10-12 hours. 
2. Transfer the apples to a blender and blend the apples until smooth, then return the apple butter to the slow cooker. Place the lid back on off-kilter so the steam can escape, and cook for an additional 4-5 hours, until it the apple butter has thickened (similar to the consistency of a hearty tomato sauce).
3. If you do not want to can the apple butter you can store it in the fridge for 2-3 weeks, or in the freezer for up to one year.

Canning instructions:

1. When the apple butter is almost done, prepare the jars for canning.
2. Place your jars in the bottom of a large pot, then fill the pot with water up to a couple inches past the tops of the jars. 
3. Boil the jars and the lids for 15 minutes, then use tongs to remove them. 
4. Use a funnel to spoon the hot apple butter into the jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headroom. Place the seals and screw on the lids, then return the jars to the water bath and boil them for 15 minutes. 
5. Use tongs to remove the jars of apple butter and place them on a counter top or surface where they won't be disturbed. Leave until the lids pop to seal and the apple butter has cooled, approximately 6-8 hours. Once the lids pop to seal you loosen the rings to prevent rusting. You will hear the seals popping as the contents cool, and you can also test it later by pressing on the center of  the seal - if it doesn't budge it's sealed, if it pops in and out it's not. Any jars that didn't seal can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 weeks.
6. Store your canned apple butter in a cool, dark and dry place for up to one year. Once opened, the apple butter will keep in your fridge for 2-3 weeks.

Simple Potato Salad

As the days grow hotter I try to avoid turning on my oven and instead stick with meals that can be prepared either entirely without heat (hooray for sandwiches!) or with minimal stove-top cooking. I love potato salad because it can be re-purposed into upcoming meals in so many ways. You can mix it with scrambled eggs for brunch, mash it with a little paprika and cumin and serve it with grilled chicken, chop some hard boiled eggs and dill pickles for a classic take on the potato salad, throw it in a wrap with salsa, beans, and veggies, or even eat it the same way as you prepared it for a couple days, it's tasty as is. This particular potato salad is mayo-free, too, which allows you to add other sauces later on without worrying about over-doing the sauciness (think barbeque sauce, salsa, tzaziki, hummus, etc.). That's right. This potato salad not only sets you up with a delicious side for this meal, but other meals to come as well.  And on hot summer nights, it's always a bonus to have dinner ready to grab straight from the fridge. Yep. It's pretty great.

The recipe I used is this German Potato Salad recipe from Bon Appétit. Sometimes I like only the bare bones of a recipe, and other times I come across a gem like this and I stick close to the original. The only deviations I made from the original recipe are as follows:

• I skipped the toasted caraway seeds because I do not have any on hand
• I only used 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh dill. I prepped the called-for 2 tablespoons of dill, mixed 1 tablespoon into the potatoes and tasted it and I felt that that was plenty "dilly". Obviously everyone has their own preferences, so I encourage you to make your own decisions (I hope this is already standard practice for you!). 

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds small waxy potatoes, halved or quartered to even size (I used golden baby potatoes)
• 1/4 cup olive oil  (If you have an infused olive oil such as garlic or oregano this would be a good time to try it!)
• 1/2 chopped yellow onion
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• Salt & Pepper to taste (I used 1/2 tsp smoked salt and 1 tsp cracked pepper)
• 4 scallions (green onions), sliced thinly
• 1+ tablespoons fresh chopped dill

Directions:

1. Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold salted water. Cook until fork tender, roughly 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and set aside in a large bowl. 
2. Meanwhile, heat a medium-size pan over medium heat. Add the oil, then the chopped onion. Cook until onions are translucent and slightly golden, about 5-8 minutes. 
3. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vinegar, then toss in the potatoes. Add the salt, pepper, scallions, and dill, mix gently with a large spoon until all potatoes are evenly coated.You can serve this warm, or cover and refrigerate up to 3 days. 

Strawberry Tart with Vanilla Cream

Strawberries are the perfect accompaniment to a summer dessert, and this recipe makes for an easy treat so you can spend your evening relaxing on the patio with a cool drink rather than fussing over a dessert inside. The hardest part of the whole recipe is to keep yourself from eating the vanilla cream with a spoon. So as long as you have a little self-control you're all good.

Vanilla Cream

• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened

Vanilla Cream Directions:

1. Blend the vanilla, sugar, and cream cheese until smooth. Add more vanilla extract if it is too thick (should not form peaks when stirred). Set aside until you're ready to serve the tart.

StrawberryTart Ingredients:

• 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed according to directions on the package
• 1 pint fresh strawberries, rinsed and sliced
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup cream cheese, softened
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Strawberry Tart Directions:

1. Preheat the oven 400 F. 
2. Beat the egg, cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla with a whisk until smooth and almost pillowy, about 3 minutes.
3. Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle about 1/2" thick (roughly 10x16"). Prick the dough with a fork every three inches or so.
4. Blind bake for 4 minutes, then remove the puff pastry from the oven. Spoon and spread the cream cheese mixture over the pastry, leaving about 1 inch border un-touched (like a pizza). Bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, until the pastry is golden around the edges.
5. Top with the sliced strawberry wedges and let it cool to room temp before drizzling on the vanilla cream. Use a pizza cutter to slice up the tart into squares before serving, as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's been a while since I last shared a recipe, and I hope that this delightful cookie recipe will make up for the wait. I am always intrigued when I find a recipe with a twist on a classic recipe, and when I came across this recipe for Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies from Plain Chicken I knew I had to try it. I love coconut flavors in both savory and sweet foods, and fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your point of view) I had all the ingredients on hand. To those who do not use coconut oil, you're missing out. You can cook with it like other oils, make your own chocolates like these, heck you can even use it as a hair mask. Basically, it's pretty darn handy.

The coconut flavor in these cookies is not overwhelming, but more a subtle hint in these pillowy-chocolate-chippy morsels.

I know you're not supposed to trust people when they say Trust me. But trust me on this one, these will change the way you look at those jars of coconut oil at the grocery store. Seriously.

I halved the recipe and made jumbo-sized cookies (8 total, so I'll give y'all the regular amounts in case you have a party or a bake sale to attend), but other than that I stayed true to the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 c. flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. In a large bowl, mix the coconut oil and sugar until smooth. Mix in the egg and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt, mix until combined. 
3. Fold in the chocolate chips, then divide the batter into golf ball-sized pieces of dough. This should yield roughly 3 dozen cookies, but if you want to make jumbo cookies, divide the batter into larger pieces so you make 16 large cookies
4. Bake in the center of the oven for 10-12 minutes. For jumbo cookies, the baking time increases to closer to 15-17 minutes.

Cool completely before storing in an air-tight container. Or if you're like me, wait until the chocolate is not molten so you can scarf one down and then regret not savoring the chewy, soft, coconutty flavors, rationalize that you really must experience that taste again and eat another one much slower. Then feel really full and delay making dinner for another 3 hours. 

Homemade Pizza

I have been wanting to try a new pizza dough recipe for some time and recently I had enough free time to make it happen without feeling overwhelmed.

There is something mistakenly daunting about dough. We hear "kneading" and "rising" and suddenly we act like we have to slay a dragon to get to the good part. That's not true! Yes, the dough takes time to rise (in this recipe, it takes an hour all in one go). Yes you will have to do a little kneading (in this recipe, twice, quickly). But it's not difficult or complicated to do, so get over it and just make the darn dough. Alright?!

I used this recipe from Food Republic because of the simplicity of the recipe, and also because after many Google searches and Pinterest scouring, this seemed match most generally agreed-upon basic pizza dough recipes. The only thing I tweaked was the baking temperature, which I increased to 500 F. 

For the toppings I kept it simple: roasted garlic and olive oil topped with a variety of sliced meats and melty cheeses from a local delicatessen, Choux Choux Charcuterie (for all the Victoria folks out there, I highly recommend trying at least one thing here -- it's all good), but really anything can go on your pizza: arugula, feta, sauteed mushrooms, chicken, roasted veggies, tomatoes and basil... dang it. Now I'm hungry for pizza all over again.

Makes two 12" pizzas
Ingredients:

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 packet active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil plus extra for greasing the dough and rising bowl  (Note: I used an infused Tuscan Herb olive oil for extra flavor)
• 3 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for dusting the work surface

Directions:

1. Pour the warm water into a large bowl, then sprinkle the yeast on top. Let it sit for about 5 minutes, until creamy and lightly foamy.
2. Mix in the the sugar, salt, and olive oil. Lightly dust a separate work surface with flour. You will want to do this now before your hands are covered in dough. Trust me, you'll be so glad you don't have to think about the logistics in about 5 minutes.
3. Gradually mix in the flour. If you have a stand mixer, you can use a dough hook and mix on low until a dough ball forms. Otherwise, get in there with clean hands and mix the dough until a ball forms. Turn the dough out onto your flour-dusted work surface and knead until the dough is smooth, about 3-5 minutes.
4. Lightly grease a large bowl then place the dough inside. Brush a little oil on top, cover the bowl with a clean towel or plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm, breeze-free place for one hour or until doubled in size. Basically don't put it by an open window, leave it somewhere it won't be disturbed while it rises.
5. When there is about 15 minutes of rising left preheat your oven to 500 F. 
6. Once the dough is ready turn it out onto your work surface again (top up on flour if you need to). Use a dough-cutter or a large knife to cut the dough in half. Gently knead one half, form into a ball again, then roll it out into a 12-inch round. Transfer the dough gently to a pizza stone or non-stick (or lightly greased) baking sheet. Repeat for the second ball of dough. 

1. Top with whatever toppings you choose, then bake for 12-15 minutes. Try not to open the oven while it's baking as you don't want to loose any heat while it's crisping up.
2. Remove from the oven when the crust is golden, let it sit for 3-5 minutes so the cheese can set up a bit before slicing and serving. 

If you want to make calzones you can use this dough recipe as well. Rather than cutting the dough into two portions you can quarter it and roll out 4 rounds for easy homemade calzones. Baking time would remain about the same, although depending on how much you stuff your calzones you may need a few extra minutes. Golden crust = cooked crust.

Whole Roasted Cauliflower

I kept seeing recipes for whole roasted cauliflower cropping up on Pinterest and other food sites I frequent (like this one from Bon Appétit), so when I was perusing the produce section at the grocery store last weekend I snagged a big head of cauliflower. It's all about preparation, people! The amount of times I am craving something I've seen all week and yet didn't get the ingredients to make is just too high to count, so I try to make up for that by doing things like buying the cauliflower when I know I want to eventually make it.

There are a lot of recipes out there and after making it just once I finally understand why. It's really really really easy to make. Plus, if you've had roasted cauliflower with just salt and pepper you know that it lends it's own caramelized veggie umami flavor without much coaxing. Wins upon wins, my friends!

To be honest it, I kind of winged it, and this was a success in my books as in nothing I would have changed. Next time I will try this recipe just because the pictures are so dang tantalizing. And because as soon as I was finished I wanted to make a million more.

Ingredients:

• 1 head cauliflower
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons green curry paste
• 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili flakes

Note:  You are going to first boil the cauliflower so if you don't have a gigantic stock pot, just use a pot large enough to at least fit the cauliflower and cover it halfway up with water.

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 475 F. 
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil and add the bay leaf. Place the cauliflower head in the water, and boil for a total of 10 minutes, rotating the cauliflower halfway through.
3. Drain, and rinse gently with cold water until cool enough to handle.
4. In a small bowl, mix the remaining ingredients. 
5. Place the cauliflower stem-side down in a pie dish or casserole dish wide enough to hold the cauliflower. Rub the seasoning mix all over the cauliflower.
6. Roast in the center of the oven for 50-60 minutes, until it is a deep golden color. 
7. Remove carefully with a large spatula and serve it warm on a plate. You can gently slice wedges of the cauliflower to serve, similar to how you'd cut a cake.  Serve it hot as veggie side dish with dips/spreads such as baba ganoush or tzaziki. We ate this with roasted chicken and it was perfecto.

Simple Banana Bread

 

Banana bread is one of those things that I really love but rarely make for myself. I remember to buy bananas like 3 times a year, and when I do remember to buy bananas I usually end up eating them all during the week instead of waiting for that perfect overripe state. But not this time! No! I was super prepared and I bought enough bananas to cover both breakfasts and bread making for the upcoming week. I purchased a slightly under-ripe bunch of bananas on Sunday and on Wednesday I had bananas that were just starting to speckle with brown. And so begins my tale of how to make banana bread.

Makes one 9x5" loaf

Ingredients:

• 3 medium ripe bananas
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 c. all purpose flour
• Optional: 1 cup chopped pecans or 1 1/2 c. large chocolate chips (you can use regular ones, but I swear by the jumbo babies because I like the size better in a loaf -- regular chips tend to melt away and lose their shape). Heck if you really want you can add 3/4 c. pecans and 3/4 c. chocolate chips. It's your world.

Directions:

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 F and position the rack into the middle of the oven.
2. In a large mixing bowl mash your bananas. You can use a fork, a pastry cutter, a potato masher... Really anything. Just mash those nanners up until there are no pieces bigger than a big pea. Or a bean. Or a Junior Mint. You see, this is clearly an exact science. You may proceed.
3. Mix in the melted butter, then add the sugar, egg, and vanilla until thoroughly combined.
4. Next add the baking soda and salt, mix again to combine. Then add the flour and mix.
5. If you decided to add nuggets of goodness (aka pecans or chocolate chips), now is the time to fold them in.
6. Pour the batter into a greased 9x5" loaf pan. Bake for 55-65 minutes, or until a toothpick entered in the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Let it rest in the pan uncovered for at least 15 minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool completely, another 45 minutes.
7. Store in an airtight container or covered in foil for 3-5 days.