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Chef2Chef Recipe Club - Volume 3 Issue 077 - October 15, 2002 Chef2Chef Recipe Club Member Forum: http://forums.chef2chef.net Un/Subscribe: http://chef2chef.net/news/subscribe.htm -------------------------------------------------- Hello Recipe Club, I think autumn is my favorite time of the year in Colorado. The Aspen trees are a brilliant yellow color, the days are generally warm and the evenings have a crisp coolness. Our afternoons are spent getting the gardens ready for next years produce and flowers and I use my grill with a sense of urgency as the thought of the snow looms in the near future. And I welcome the change of menu my gardens have offered. Fresh tomatoes, garlic, onions, beets, carrots, scallions, beans and peppers fill the bottom of my fridge. The smell of apples and pears being canned on the weekend fills the house. Soups, stews, and casserole dishes start showing up on the dinner table and the oven becomes an important appliance once again! The saddest single chore I do in the fall is to break the snow shovels out in anticipation of the coming snow! Oh well! Today Terri Pischoff Wuerthner, CCP will focus on apple tips, facts, quickies and recipes. Read on and Bon Appetit! -------------------------------------------------- APPLES They herald the arrival of fall, and invite us to bite into a juicy, ready-to-serve, beautifully packaged gift of nature called the apple. It is one of the most versatile fruits; you can eat it raw, cook or bake with it, dry it, freeze it, or use it to make apple sauce. Apple Facts: The high content of pectin promotes good digestion and is thought to lower serum cholesterol. Apples provide a great source of dietary fiber and have 15% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C as well as a high content of vitamins and minerals. Its fruit sugar provides quick energy. The large water content, about 85%, is a natural thirst quencher. The acid in apples is a natural mouth freshener, and apples help clean the teeth Apple Tips: Due to the high water content in apples, they are best stored in a reasonably moist atmosphere. Dry storage tends to draw out their moisture. Crispness and flavor are diminished at room temperature, so store apples in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator, in a perforated plastic bag. Plastic prevents moisture loss, slows down the "breathing" of the apples and protects the apples from absorbing the odors of other foods. Leave some room for circulation around the apples, and immediately use any apples that show signs of spoiling. Apples may be kept for several weeks, and up to several months if stored well. If they do lose crispness, they are still good for cooking 1 pound apples = 4 cups chopped apples, 4 cups sliced apples, 1 1/2 cups applesauce. 1 pound apples = 4 small apples, 3 medium apples, 2 large apples. 1 serving of apple = 1 medium apple, 6 ounces juice, 1/2 cup applesauce. 1 apple contains 80 calories and less than 1/2 gram fat. Apple Quickies: For simple baked apples, core apples about 2/3 of the way down. Fill with 1 teaspoon each honey and orange juice and 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice. Mix filling in apple cores. Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees. To 1 cup apple juice, add 1/4 cup pumpkin pie spice and heat, for quick "Spiced Apple Cider," without the usual preservatives and additives. Spread apple slices with herbed cream cheese and wrap in paper thin slices of prosciutto, serve with freshly ground pepper and fresh lemon wedges. Add cinnamon and peeled, chopped apple to pancake or waffle batter. Add chopped apples to Chicken or Tuna Salad for a wonderful flavor and texture. Core apples and slice, crosswise. Sauté in butter, melted with a bit of mint jelly (to serve with lamb) or currant jelly (to serve with poultry) Partially freeze apple juice, insert a Popsicle stick, finish freezing and surprise your kids with "popsicles" for breakfast. -------------------------------------------------- Apple Stuffed Pork Loin with Apple-Shallot Cream Sauce Serves 8 It's hard to believe that this fabulous recipe is quick and easy to make. 1 pork loin, approximately 5 lb. (3 1/2 lb. after boning) Salt and pepper for seasoning 3/4 cup apple slices 1/2 cup Maui or Vidalia onion slices 1 teaspoon thyme 1/2 cup chicken broth Have your butcher remove the bone from roast (ask for some string to tie roast with after stuffing). Lay roast flat and sprinkle inside with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange apple and onion slices, lengthwise, down center of roast. Bring sides of roast together to enclose apple and onion slices. Tie in several places to enclose filling and form a lengthwise (rolled) roast. Sprinkle outside with salt, pepper and thyme. Pour chicken broth in bottom of a roasting pan. Set roast on a rack in pan and place in preheated oven. Immediately turn heat down to 350 degrees and roast for 1 1/2 hours. Begin Sauce while roast is cooking. Sauce: 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons minced shallots 1 1/4 cups peeled and chopped apple 1 cup chicken broth 1 cup cream Heat butter in a skillet set over medium heat. When foam from butter subsides, sauté shallots and apple for 5 minutes. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Stir well, then set sauce aside. When roast is done, remove from pan and allow roast to set before carving. Add sauce to the roasting pan placed over medium-high heat on burners. Deglaze pan with the sauce, incorporating browned bits on bottom of roasting pan into Sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add cream, reduce heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Slice roast and serve with sauce. -------------------------------------------------- Jerky of the Month Club The perfect gift for the hunter or fisherman in your family. Enjoy a healthy lean treat while watching your favorite football team. Gourmet handcrafted beef jerky in your favorite flavors, like Teriyaki or Barbecue delivered to your door for six months. Jerky-of-the-month.com is giving away three six-month memberships to lucky Chef2Chef visitors this month! Everyone loves great beef jerky! Register for a chance to win gourmet beef jerky or give your winnings to the jerky lover in your family. http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=229 -------------------------------------------------- Apple Tart Serves 8 This simple tart, with its cinnamon-sugar topping, studded with chopped apples and pecans, can be prepared in minutes if a ready-made piecrust is on hand. 1 single piecrust, homemade or purchased* 2 medium apples (appx. 12 oz. total), peeled, cored and thinly sliced 2/3 cup chopped pecans 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon cardamom 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 2 tablespoons cold butter, cut in small pieces Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place piecrust on pizza pan or baking sheet and prick all over with a fork. Fold edge inward to make a slight rim. Bake in pre-heated oven for 10 minutes. Arrange apple slices over baked piecrust, covering the top completely. Combine pecans with sugar and spices and sprinkle evenly over apples. Place pieces of butter on top of tart. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Allow to set for 10 minutes before cutting. *Ready-made piecrusts may be purchased in the refrigerator section of your market (near refrigerator biscuits) or with frozen food. -------------------------------------------------- Recipe Club, looking for unique, one-of-a-kind salsa, sauce and marinade recipes to wow your family and friends? Try "Banditos Quick Treat", a package of cream cheese softened, a 16 oz. Jar of medium or habanero salsa and whip together until fluffy. Delicious! You can find this recipe and many more at Bandana Bandito: http://www.bandito.com Check out their new recipe ebook "Appetizers - Recipes from the Bandit's Wife." http://www.bandito.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=230 The bandit's wife offers 23 great Bandana Bandito appetizer recipes that are unique, secret and tasty. Order it now for only $5.95 http://www.bandito.com/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=230. As you read this, the bandit's wife is in the kitchen secretly preparing other e-recipe-books, filled with great twists to old favorites and unique recipes only the bandit's wife knows about! She'd love to hear your ideas too! Recipe Club, Register to WIN a Chip and Dip Bowl and an exciting selection of gourmet salsas by clicking here: http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=238 -------------------------------------------------- Apple-Squash Soup with Chive-Sour Cream Serves 8 This soup pulls in some of the best foods autumn has to offer. 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup chopped onion 1 clove garlic, minced 2 10 ounce packages pureed squash, defrosted 4 cups chicken stock 12 ounces apples (apx. 1 1/2 apples), peeled and finely chopped 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice 1 teaspoon thyme 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon white pepper 1 cup cream Chive sour cream 1/2 cup sour cream 2 tablespoons fresh minced chives 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Heat olive oil in a medium-sized soup pot set over medium-low heat and sauté onion and garlic for 10 minutes. Add squash, stock, apples, lemon juice, thyme, salt and white pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Purée soup. Stir in cream and heat for 10 minutes longer over low heat. Combine sour cream with the chives and pepper. Top each serving of soup with a spoonful of the chive-sour cream. -------------------------------------------------- Lost Yankee Winter Morels. Why wait till spring when you can enjoy Morels any month of the year? Winter Morels: frozen, bite sized wild Morel caps (no stems), in a low salt, no MSG, chicken, vegetable or beef stock. Recipe developed over five years with advice from two very fine restaurants. Designed to be a versatile Morel product allowing a chef to explore the world of Morel recipes. http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=237 NOTE: I've had these delicious morels recently and they are every bit as good as this company claims them to be. All of the aroma, flavor, texture of fresh picked wild Morels can now be had year round. -------------------------------------------------- Shopping Lists: 1 pork loin, approximately 5 lb. (3 1/2 lb. after boning) Salt and pepper 3/4-cup apple slices 1/2 cup Maui or Vidalia onion Thyme Butter Shallots 1 1/4 cups peeled and chopped apple Chicken broth Cream 1 single piecrust, homemade or purchased* 2 medium apples Pecans Brown sugar Cardamom Cinnamon Nutmeg Butter Olive oil Onion 1 clove garlic 2 10 ounce packages pureed squash 4 cups chicken stock 12 ounces apples (apx. 1 1/2 apples) Fresh lemon juice Thyme Salt White pepper Cream Sour cream Fresh minced chives Freshly ground black pepper -------------------------------------------------- QUESTIONS, Comments, Technical Support: http://forums.chef2chef.net -------------------------------------------------- ARCHIVE: All Club e-mails are archived each Friday at: http://chef2chef.net/news/club/ -------------------------------------------------- |