Apple Bruschetta with Pumpkin Butter

I like this dish. As an appetizer, it satisfies your sweet tooth. As a dessert, it's a refreshing change from very sweet recipes we are used to and would go well with a little port. You can also swap out the caramel sauce with goat cheese, as an example, to inject a little savoury in with the sweet.  If you're wondering what to do with the leftover pumpkin butter, milkshakes and ice cream sundaes come to mind, but there are a number of other great ideas here:  http://www.foodandwine.com

Pumpkin butter

From: http://www.blendtec.com

• 2 cups pureed pumpkin
• 2 T apple juice
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 T ground cinnamon
• 1/4 T ground nutmeg
• 1/2 t vanilla
• 2 T maple syrup
• dash of salt

Apple Bruschetta

From: http://www.justusfourblog.com

• 1 baguette, sliced
• 3 granny smith apples
• 1/2 t cinnamon
• 1/8 t nutmeg
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 T butter
• 1/2 cup caramel sauce 

Pumpkin Butter

Combine all ingredients in your blender. If you have a Vitamix, run the ingredients through the smoothie setting once, then with a spoon, stir the ingredients and run it through the smoothie setting again. If you're working with a traditional blender, blend for 30 seconds on low speed, another 30 seconds on medium and 30 seconds on high speed for two rounds. Pour the blended ingredients into a pot and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for ten minutes with the lid ajar. Remove from heat and let cool.

Apple Bruschetta

Preheat oven to 350F. Place the baguette slices on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Peel, core and dice the apples. In a bowl, combine the apples with the cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar, ensuring the apples are well coated with the other ingredients. In a small pot, melt the butter and add the apple mixture. Sauté the apples for about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. The apples should be cooked, but not mushy.

Spread a thin layer of the pumpkin butter on the baguette slices. Add a spoonful of the apples on top and drizzle with caramel. 

Oh-So-Wholesome Muesli

Why make muesli? For starters, muesli is just about the easiest kind of food prep there is so you'll be patting yourself on the back for weeks to come over having fed yourself wholesomely.  Second, making bulk batches will save you money over the store bought varieties. And finally, it gives you the freedom and control to choose your ingredients. If you've got nut allergies for example, or other food sensitivities, this is a must. 

Consider the recipe below as your baseline and expand your ingredients list from there. I eventually added dried cherries and hazelnuts to this batch because I found them loitering in the pantry. I top my muesli with chopped or grated apples and bananas as a way of getting fruit into my diet. Fruit typically isn't of interest to me unless it's battered and fried, paired with cheese or coated in chocolate. I have however, found other, less obnoxious ways to enjoy fruit and muesli is one example.

Adapted from: http://www.gatheranddine.com

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 cup rolled oats 
• 1/2 cup barley flakes
• 1/2 cup rye flakes
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds (I used whole)
• 2 T sunflower seeds
• 2 T pumpkin seeds

For Serving

• 2-3 cups of yoghurt (1/2 cup per serving)
• fresh fruit of choice
• honey or jam to top

Method

Combine dry ingredients and store in an airtight container. To prepare, combine the yoghurt and muesli in a bowl and mix well to ensure the yoghurt coats all of the muesli. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve the following morning with fruit. and top with either jam or honey as desired.

Winter Panzanella & Roasted Red Pepper & Lentil Soup

A belated happy new year to you! May your pots not stick and your belly be full. That is as wise a saying as I could come up with.

I am, like everybody else, back on the good-for-you-food bandwagon. I have traded my party shoes for runners and swapped trips to the wine bar with trips to the yoga studio. Actually I still hit the bar, but after yoga.

This year however, my partner in crime, Ruedi has gone walkabout for six months and while I'm excited for him,  I am missing my food Hoover. Nobody can suck back leftovers like Ruedi. In my haste to get groceries this week, I neglected to downsize these first recipes of the year in consideration of his absence. I should have known when the original recipe for the salad below called for six, count 'em, six freaking beets that I would wind up with way too much food!

So...while I was able to freeze the soup, I will never make the panzanella again. I ate this dish a total of eight times this week. It was great the first time, lovely the second time and doable the third time. After that, I felt like I was just choking it down to rid myself of the leftovers. I know Ruedi will be surprised that I ate all of the leftovers, because I rarely eat an item more than three times after I've made it. Well Ruedi, I did it. 

So, enjoy these lovely dishes, because despite the fact that I'm over them, they are great recipes and healthy ones at that. The panzanella has so many options for variation. If I was to make it again, I'd play around with different kind of vegetables, throw in some roasted cashews or seeds and cheese would of course make a good addition too. When doesn't it?

As for the soup, the tanginess of the peppers combined with pesto gives it a zing I really enjoyed. The original recipe calls for basil, but I couldn't find any nearby. I had loads of pesto on hand, so I opted to throw that into the soup instead.

Winter Panzanella

From: http://blog.kj.com


Ingredients

• 6 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
• 6 medium beets. peeled and cubed
• 2 fennel bulbs, chopped
• 2 cups butternut squash chopped
• 1 shallot minced
• 4 cups bread, cubed
• 2 cups kale, finely chopped
• 1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 apple, thinly sliced
• balsamic vinegar
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 350F. Toss the bread cubes with a generous amount of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Place them on a cookie sheet and bake them for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Combine the carrots, fennel, beets and squash in a bowl and toss with more olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Place the vegetables on another baking sheet and roast them for about 30 minutes or until the edges are browned.

In a large bowl, combine the bread and roasted vegetables with the kale, shallots, parsley and apple and pour a generous amount of balsamic vinegar and olive oil over the mix. Add some coarse salt and fresh ground pepper and toss the salad well. Serve immediately.





Roasted Red Pepper & Lentil Soup

Note that you'll need to prepare the roasted red pepper sauce as part of this soup recipe. It can be made a day in advance if needed.

Adapted From: http://cali-zona.com


Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

• 4 large bell peppers
• 2 large tomatoes
• 1/2 white onion, diced
• 1 small shallot, diced
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 T pesto
• 2 T lemon juice
• 1/4 t cayenne pepper
• 1/2 t paprika

Method

Preheat oven to 400F. Cut the peppers in half and remove their seeds. Place them face down on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 25 minutes or until the skin begins to blacken and bubble. When cooled, peel the skin off of the peppers.

Blanch the tomatoes by dropping them in a pot of boiling water for about a minute. Once removed and cooled, peel the skins from the flesh.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a saucepan on medium heat. Add the garlic and let it flavour the oil for a few seconds. Follow with the onion and shallots, sautéing until translucent. Add the wine and simmer until reduced and syrupy in texture.

In a food processor or blender, combine the peppers, tomatoes, onion mixture and pesto and puree the ingredients. Pour the mixture back into the pan and add the lemon juice, pepper and paprika. Allow the sauce to simmer for about ten minutes and season to taste with coarse salt.

The Soup

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups red lentils
• 1 batch roasted pepper sauce (recipe above) 
• 8 cups water
• 2 large tomatoes, diced
• 1 T balsamic vinegar
• 1 T Worcestershire sauce
• 1 t hot paprika
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a strainer, rinse the lentils well. Add them to a large pot with the eight cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium to allow the lentils to cook for 25 minutes. Once the lentils are soft add the remaining ingredients and allow to cook on medium heat for another 5-10 minutes.

Hard Cider Braised Chicken

Apples and thick cut bacon trim chicken thighs along with a creamy cider-dijon sauce. It is rich to be sure, but you just can't be good all the time. For this recipe I ended up having to buy much more chicken than required and didn't have enough other ingredients to double the recipe. With the remaining chicken, I used some leftover wine to create a version of coq au vin and I was impressed with the results. That recipe will need a little refining, but I will attempt to get that out soon. This hard cider braised chicken is a delicious Sunday meal and makes for great leftover too!

From: http://stripedspatula.com

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4-6 bone-in chicken thighs
• 2 T vegetable oil
• 2 apples peeled, cored and cut into slices
• 2 large shallots cut
• 3 slices thick cut bacon, chopped
• 2 cups hard apple cider
• 2 T dijon mustard
• 1 t stone ground mustard
• 1 large sprig fresh sage
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1/4 heavy cream
• kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 350F. Heat the oil in a large saucepan or dutch oven and then add the chicken, skin side down and brown for five minutes each side until golden. Transfer the chicken to a plate. Pour off all but two tablespoons of fat from the pan and return pan or dutch oven to the heat. Add apple wedges and sauté over medium heat until just the apples begin to brown. Remove the apples from the saucepan and set them aside. Add shallots and bacon to the saucepan until the bacon is cooked through and the shallots are soft. Slowly pour in the cider, whisking as it's being added in order to release the bacon bits at the bottom of the pan. Add the dijon, ground mustard, salt and pepper and blend it in with the existing ingredients. Add the chicken, sage and thyme to the liquid. Cover the pan and bake for 25 minutes.  Add apples to the pan and return to the oven for 10-15 minutes. Remove chicken and apples and tent with foil. Discard the thyme and sage from the mix. Return the dutch oven to the stove and bring the liquid to a simmer. Whisk in the cream and simmer until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and then place the apples and chicken on a bed of egg noodles to serve.

Cinnamon Apple Quinoa Parfait

To stay or....

One of very few breakfast recipes I've made in the last year, but if you're on the go a lot, this breakfast is worth a try. It's easy to carry with you and keeps for a week. I just ate the last of them yesterday and it tasted as good as the first.

I pulled this recipe from www.PreventionRd.com because of its use of quinoa; the super grain. Packed with amino acids, fiber, protein and magnesium, this little gem will help you stay in the game. Magnesium-rich foods help your muscles relax and I've been honing in on this mineral to help my muscles do just that. Kids will love the layered simplicity of this dish, and if plain yoghurt doesn't cut it for you, throw in a flavoured yoghurt of your choice. This isn't just food, this is high-octane fuel.

To go!

Adapted From: http://www.preventionrd.com

Ingredients

Oat Crumble

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1 T sunflower oil
• 2 t granulated sugar
• 1 t ground cinnamon

Apple Compote

• 4 apples, cored and chopped
• 1 t ground cinnamon
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1 T granulated sugar
• Handful of nuts (walnut pieces & almonds went in mine)
• 1 T water or more for cooking

Quinoa

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 1/2 t ground cinnamon
• 2 cups greek yoghurt (I used plain 2% greek yoghurt, but feel free to get a richer or leaner yoghurt if you prefer)

Method

Cook the quinoa according to package instructions adding the cinnamon to the quinoa after it has cooked. 

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine all the ingredients for the apple compote, mixing well. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Partially cover the mixture until apples are soft and any liquid in the pan becomes syrupy, approximately 10 minutes. Add more water if necessary. When cooked, remove from heat and let cool completely.

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine all ingredients for the oat crumble and distributed on a baking sheet. Bake in oven for approximately 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

To assemble, place a 1/4 cup of the yoghurt, 1/4 cup of the quinoa and a 1/4 cup of the apple compote in layers in a bowl or jar. Repeat the layers and top with the oat crumble. Serve! 

Cider Roasted Carrots & Apples

I did it again! I managed to make a meal from odds and ends around the house! Man, this should become a reality show cooking challenge. I am on to something.


I am a meal planner and enjoy looking forward to my next meal. Perhaps this is a little unhealthy at times, but this is my thing. Last night I couldn't think of what to eat or where to go to eat if all else failed. I just wasn't inspired. We had a little leftover chicken, some salami, a few old vegetables and some herbs remaining from past menus. My leftover cabbage was sautéed with butter, a few greens onions, salt and ground pepper. The chicken was cut into smaller pieces and thrown in our cast iron skillet with slices of salami to spice things up. The carrots I forgot to take to lunch this week were tossed with apple slices in a mix of olive oil, cider vinegar, honey, rosemary and roasted to round out the meal. They were a delicious and modernized take on the orange-glazed carrots my mom used to make for us as kids. Hooray for scraps!


From: http://munchinwithmunchkin.com

• 1 lb baby carrots, peeled and tops removed
• 1 apple, cored and sliced
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 t fresh rosemary
• ¼ cup apple cider
• 1 T honey
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 F

In a large bowl toss carrots and apples in olive oil and rosemary. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Transfer carrots and apples to a medium roasting dish and pour apple cider over top. Cover with foil and roast for 15 minutes. Remove foil and drizzle carrots with honey. Cook uncovered for 30 minutes, until carrots are tender and liquid has reduced. Serve warm, drizzled with sauce.

Curried Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Maple-Ginger Sweet Potatoes and Apple

Serves 6

Adapted from http://www.ouichefnetwork.com

Ingredients:

For the pork:

• 1 large pork tenderloin, cut into 6 medallions
• 2 T curry powder
• 2 T canola oil

For the apple cider sauce:

• 2 cups apple cider
• 1/2 T apple cider vinegar
• 1 T of cold unsalted butter
• 1 t chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 t cornstarch mixed with 1/2 teaspoon water

Roasted sweet potatoes and apples:

• 2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces (about 8 cups)
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 3 T unsalted butter, (2 T melted, 1 not)
• 3 T lemon juice, divided
• 2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and cubed
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 3 t grated fresh ginger
• 1/2 t ground cinnamon
• 1/4 t ground nutmeg
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

Method:

Roasted sweet potatoes and apples:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Toss cubed sweet potatoes with the melted butter, the grated ginger, 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg and some fresh ground pepper and arrange them in an even layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. 
• Place sheet in the oven and cook for 15 minutes, give them a quick stir and then continue roasting them for another 15 minutes.
• Pull the sheet from the oven, drizzle the potatoes with the maple syrup, add the cranberries, and give them another stir.  Place back in the oven and roast for a final 10 minutes.
• While the potatoes are roasting, heat 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter and the other 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in a small frying pan and throw in the cubed apples and chopped nuts. Cook until the apples have softened some, but still have a little crunch. Place in a bowl to reserve.
• When the potatoes have finished roasting, add them to the bowl of apples and stir to combine.  Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature, with chopped scallions and cilantro sprinkled over the top.

Apple cider sauce:

• Place the 2 cups of apple cider and the 1/2 tablesoon of apple cider vinegar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and reduce to 1/2 cup.  Lower the heat and add the cornstarch slurry, whisking constantly until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
• Remove from heat and whisk in the tablespoon of butter until it is fully emulsified with the cider. Toss in the thyme leaves, and season to taste with freshly ground pepper.  Cover and reserve in a warm place.

Pork tenderloin:

• Season the pork medallions with the curry powder and let stand for at about 30 minutes.
• In a large, heavy skillet, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 8 to 10 minutes total. Depending on the size of your tenderloin and thickness of your medallions, they may be fully cooked at this point, if not, transfer the skillet to the 400℉ oven and continue cooking until the center of the pork registers 150-155 ℉.   Remove the meat from the skillet and tent with foil to rest for about 5 minutes before serving.