Recipe: Pork-and-Apple Bedfordshire Clangers

Pork-and-Apple Bedfordshire Clangers
Food and Wine Magazine, Nov 2017, p.54
5 stars

While simple, this took a long time to make as there were many steps.  Start 3 hours before you plan to have dinner.  Note:  The pastry dough is the flakiest dough I've made.  The 4 rolls above have 2 whole sticks of butter in them altogether!

Pastry ingredients:  flour, Kosher salt, unsalted butter, ice water

Sausage ingredients:  ground pork shoulder, fresh breadcrumbs, sage, garlic, sugar, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, Kosher salt, pepper, chicken stock

Apple pie ingredients:  Honeycrisp apples, dark brown sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, granulated sugar

Other ingredients:  egg

Tips:

• Used fresh ginger
• Didn't do 'half-and-half' with each roll having both sausage and fruit per the recipe;  instead created 2 rolls with sausage (the ones on the right in the photo) and 2 rolls with fruit (the 2 on the left with the slits)
• 1 lb of apples is way too much; next time use 1/2 lb
• Serve with a bold red wine

Timing if you plan to eat at 7:15pm:

• 4:15pm:  make pastry
• 4:30pm:  make filling
• 5:00pm:  freeze the filling
• 5:30pm:  roll out the dough and make the clangers
• 5:45pm:  refrigerate the clangers until chilled
• 6:15pm:  bake
• 7:15pm:  eat

Recipe: No-Knead Bread

No-Knead Bread
nytimes.com;  Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
5 stars

Impress your friends and offer to make the bread for your next get together.  Crusty on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside, you'll think you're in Paris!  There are just 5 ingredients (including water), and the recipe is so simple. . .  it just takes time.

Ingredients:  all-purpose or bread flour, instant yeast, salt, cornmeal, water

If you want to have the bread by dinner at 7pm, here's how to time it:

• 9:15pm (the night before):  step 1 - mix the ingredients together
• 3:15pm (the next day): step 2 - fold the dough over itself once or twice
• 3:30pm:  step 3 - shape dough into a ball
• 5:30pm:  step 4 - heat the oven
• 6:00pm:  step 5 - bake

Tips:

• I use all-purpose flour
• Bake time is 45 min altogether (30 and then 15 min)

Recipe: Summer Squash Gratin

Before baking

After baking

Summer Squash Gratin
Food and Wine Magazine, July 2017, p.92
5 stars

Ratatouille-like, this is an impressive and delicious side-dish year round despite the name.  Yes, I know, squash is a summer dish, but this has worked well as a fall side dish in recent months.  It looks complex to make, but isn't, and check out the short ingredient list!

Ingredients:  leeks, zucchini, yellow squash, plum tomato, Gruyere, dry white wine, EVOO, Kosher salt, pepper

Tip:

• After baking and before serving, drain excess water/juice so the bottom of the vegetables don't get soggy.

Recipe: Cheesy Grits with Poached Eggs, Greens and Bacon

Cheesy Grits with Poached Eggs, Greens and Bacon
Bon Appetit Magazine, Feb 2016, p. 28
5 stars

This is one of my favorite dishes -- combining some of my favorite food items including grits, bacon and poached eggs.

Ingredients:  white grits, Fresno or red chile, bacon, Swiss chard leaves, eggs, cheddar cheese, shallot, Sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar, unsalted butter, Kosher salt, black pepper

Tips:

• Used yellow grits instead of white grits since we had yellow grits in the pantry
• Couldn't find a red chile so left that out
• Sauteed mushrooms on the side to top the dish
• Double or triple the amount of Swiss chard