January 2021

I haven’t had Apple Butter in ages!  Now that Fall is officially here, our tastes change to cook and bake with all the warm spices of Autumn.  Here in Jersey, there is only one – just one Cracker Barrel Restaurant where you can get an Apple Butter fix any time of the day.  The restaurant is a few hours away, so I’m on my own here! Apple Butter is very easy to make with the help of a CrockPot.  When it comes to filling your house with yummy scents and filling your tummy with warm, spicy, goodness, nothing beats homemade Apple Butter. I thought I had thrown away my canning pot.  When I went up to the attic for Fall decorations, there it was – all dusty and lonely and forgotten.  I would have made this without the canning pot and just gave away most of it – but now I can keep it all to myself!!!! (I may give one or two away). I searched several CrockPot Apple Butter recipes for the one that appealed to me most.  I was NOT about to peel 4 lbs. of apples, and I found a recipe that didn’t require peeling or coring (much of the pectin is in the cores and flavor and vitamins in the peels) so I chose this method.

Apple Butter

• 4 lbs. of good cooking apples, about 16 (I used Gala and Fuji and two Granny Smith)
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups water
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Prepare the fruit:  Cut the apples into eight pieces, without peeling or coring them.  Cut out any damaged parts. Put them into a large pot, add the vinegar and water, cover, bring to a boil, reduced heat to simmer and cook until the apples are soft, about 20-30 minutes.  Remove from heat.

Ladle apple mixture in small batches into a food mill.

This was taking too long.  I decided to puree the apple mixture in the blender and then pass through the food mill.  This took much less time and much less effort.

Beautiful apple puree underneath.

Place apple puree into CrockPot.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Cook on HIGH setting, UNCOVERED for 5-6 hours; stirring every 20-30 minutes or so.  Cook until thick and smooth and the apple butter mounds up on your spoon.

Now, if you would like to can it (which I suggest) it’s easy, you’ll see.

1. Wash and dry jars and lids.
2. While you’re filling your jars (to within 1/2″ of top) with your warm apple butter you should have your water bath heating up.
3. Once the jars are filled, wipe the rims with a damp cloth and screw on the lid (don’t over tighten).
4. Place jars in the water canning rack, lower into the canner, make sure they are covered with water by at least 1″ and turn up the heat.
5. Once you reach a boil, boil for 15 minutes.
6. Carefully remove jars from the canner and sit on a dry towel.
7. Sit and listen.  Plink, Plink, Plink – the jars will seal as they cool on the towel.  Wipe jars clean and store or add your own special touches to give away as gifts.

Country recipe cards, labels and gift tags free to print at Country Clip Art.  Free labels for jams and jellies from Pick Your Own.

This soup is wonderful on a chilly evening as a first course to a Fall or Winter dinner, or alone (with bread, of course) for lunch.  Serve piping hot, this soup really warms you from head to toe!  Use broccoli instead and you will think you were at Panera’s!

•   4Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 Tbsp. all purpose flour
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 lb. cauliflower florets
• 1 small carrot, julienned
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. dry mustard
• 1/4 c. white wine
• 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (optional)
• 2 cups half and half or light cream
• 8 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (use the sharpest cheddar you can find)
• Chives for garnish

 In a deep saucepan, cook the onion in the butter until softened and beginning to brown.  Stir in the flour and cook for about 1 minute.  Add broth, cauliflower, carrot, salt, mustard and wine.  Simmer about 15-20 minutes until cauliflower is tender. You can puree all or half of the soup in the blender, but I left the pieces of cauliflower and served it without blending the soup – your preference!  Return soup to the pot and stir in the half & half, Worcestershire and the cheese.  Bring to a gentle simmer and stir until cheese melts.  Serve piping hot with a grating of additonal cheese and fresh chives.

I have been waiting to make this recipe ever since I visited Felidia’s in NYC for my birthday in June.  We ordered a family style “tasting menu” and this was one of the pasta courses.  We were teased with only two of these delicious ravioli simply served in a butter sauce.  As soon as we tasted them…we stopped…looked at each and everyone said – “you have to try and make these” (meaning me, of course).  This recipe is not in any of Lidia’s cookbooks I have, but my research brought me to an adaption that I am making here.
I made the fresh egg pasta yesterday as it can stay in the refrigerator for 1 day.  If you make the dough the day before, let it stand at room temperature for about an hour before rolling.  I would not go past Number 5 on the pasta machine or the pasta will be too thin.

Fresh egg pasta:

• 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour, or as needed
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt 

Spoon 2-2/3 cups of the flour into your stand mixer bowl.  Beat the eggs, olive oil and salt together in a small bowl until blended.  With dough hook in place on medium speed, add egg mixture into flour and mix until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  Add more flour if necessary. You can knead the dough by hand, the old-fashioned way, but I let the machine do the work.  After about 8 minutes I had a beautiful, soft, smooth dough.  Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rest at least one hour at room temperature, or up to 1 day in the refrigerator.

For ravioli filling:

• 3-4 Bartlett pears, peeled and cored (approx. l pound)
• 3 Tbsp. mascarpone
• 1 cup grated fresh Pecorino Romano cheese (plus for finishing)
• 6 oz. unsalted butter
• Black peppercorn, coarsely ground, to taste

Grate the pears and pecorino cheese using the large side of the grater.  Mix together with the mascarpone.
Divide dough into three equal pieces.  Working with one piece at a time, put thru pasta machine until dough measures approximately 10 x 30 inches.  Dust the work surface lightly with flour as you are working.  Let the pasta sheets rest, covered with a kitchen towel at least 15 minutes.  Arrange mounds of the pear filling about 2-1/2 inches from each other.  Lightly brush dough with water in-between filling.  Fold the bottom of the dough over the mounds of filling, squeezing out any air pockets as you work. With a pastry wheel or knife, cut between the filling into ravioli.  Pinch edges to seal.  Bring a large pot of boiling salted water to a boil.  In a saute pan, melt the butter with 1/2 cup water.  Cook the ravioli in boiling water for 3 to 4 minutes.  Drain and then toss together with the melted butter and saute for a few seconds.  Remove from heat and finish with the Pecorino cheese and coarsely ground peppercorn.

Grazie Chef Fortunato for inspiring me!

Recommend Wine Pairing:  A rich Italian White Wine such as Colterenzio.

I brought my cookbook with me when we went to the restaurant “just in case” Lidia was there.  She was in town and the management was kind enough to take my book and leave it for Lidia to sign for me.  What a groupie huh? ~Adapted from Star Chefs

These sandwiches originated from a Jewish Deli nearby. We would only get them on special occasions, because they were very expensive. I can make a whole tray of these for about $20.00. I usually would make them for New Year’s Eve and everyone would look forward to having them. Now, they seem to be requested for any old thing going on. Like my son is moving and asked for them to feed his “helpers”. They are officially known as “those sandwiches”. I’m very fussy about the ingredients though.  For some reason, the store brand rye bread works the best, has to be Thumann’s coleslaw from the deli, and the best turkey and corned beef you can buy.

• 1 lb. turkey breast
• 1 lb. corned beef – sliced very thin
• 1/2 lb. good swiss cheese
• 1 lb. cole slaw
• 2 loaves Rye Bread with seeds (optional)
• Thousand Island Dressing
• Sweet pickles for garnish (optional – you can garnish with grape tomatoes, olives, etc.

Spread first slice of bread with Thousand Island Dressing.  Top with corned beef and some slaw.
Top with second slice of bread and more dressing.  Add turkey and swiss on next layer and more cole slaw. Top with third slice of bread with dressing.  Cut into four sandwiches, secure with fancy toothpicks with pickles. These sandwiches are better if made a little bit in advance or even the day before.

Sharing with Everyday Sisters

This is one of those traditional Polish meals that has to be made in certain pots or pans.  You know what I mean don’t you?  Certain things HAVE to be cooked in certain pots.  I think that’s part of why it tastes so good – but mostly because its tradition and cooked with love.  There are sooo many names for stuffed cabbage.  Golabki, Holubki…as long as it has an “ki” at the end, it all boils down to stuffed cabbage – Eastern European cooking.  We always called it “gawumpki”.  From start to finish it takes about an hour to prepare and 3 hours to simmer or bake.  Tastes better the next day and freezes beautifully. Every family has there own version – this is how I remember my mom making them.
You will need:

• 1 large head of cabbage
• 1-1/2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 lb. ground pork
• 1 cup rice
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 tsp. paprika (or to taste)
• 2 cups good quality tomato juice (or enough to cover cabbage rolls by at least 1″)
• 2 cans condensed tomato soup

Parboil cabbage in a large pot of simmering water, cutting leaves against the core and pull them off into the water and cook until pliable; about 5 minutes.

Let leaves cool slightly.

With a sharp knife, cut the thick membrane or stem off the back of each leaf, being careful not to cut through the leaf.  Lay the leaf down flat and keep your knife horizontal to slice off the thick part of the leaf.

Continue simmering the cabbage and removing leaves.

Any leaves that cannot be used at the end, reserve for later.

Reserve cooking water (yes, we are being very frugal here!)

Prepare Filling:

Saute onions in 4 Tbsp. butter until golden.
Cook 1 cup of rice in 1 cup of water with 1 tsp. salt for about 7-8 minutes.  Just parboil the rice.
Mix ground meats with sauteed onions and add rice.  Add Worcestershire, salt and pepper and paprika.  Add cooled rice and beaten eggs and mix well.  Hands come in handy.
Now we can roll:

Depending how big the leaves are, place about 1/2 cup of filling towards the end of the cabbage leaf.

Roll leaf up and over meat, fold in both sides and continue to roll into a bundle.

Arrange stuffed cabbage snugly in the pot.
Add any leftover cabbage leaves to the bottom of the pot.

If there is any meat leftover, just form them into meatballs and add to the pot. 

  Mix the tomato soup as directed.  Pour the tomato sauce over the cabbage.  Add tomato juice to cover.  Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer.  Simmer, covered 2 to 2-1/2 hours.  If you want to bake them, bake at 325 degrees F. covered, for the same amount of time

Get Grandma’s Sauerkraut recipe here!
You can add sauerkraut to this recipe.

Grandma always served her stuffed cabbage rolls with home made mashed potatoes, adding the liquid from the stuffed cabbage rolls to the potatoes! YUMM! Small Batch Potato & Cheese Pierogi Melt in your Mouth Monday Blog Hop – Lots of great recipes!  

A Waldorf Salad is traditionally made with fresh apples, celery and walnuts, dressed with mayonnaise and served on a bed of lettuce as an appetizer. The salad was first created between 1893 and 1896 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City.  It was the maitre d’hotel who created this recipe.  The salad became so popular that Cole Porter featured it in his song “You’re the Top”. This a version of the original salad.  Everyone seems so anxious for the warm weather to come, yours truly included!  This is a cool, crisp, salad, perfect for your first BBQ.

• 6 cups white cabbage, cored and chopped (or shredded, whatever you prefer)
• 2 Granny Smith Apples, cut into julienne strips, plus apple slices for garnish
• 2 ribs of celery, sliced thinly diagonally
• l/2 cup walnuts
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp. Dijon Mustard
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
• Salt and Pepper to taste

In a large bowl, stir together the cabbage, apple strips, celery and walnuts.  In a smaller bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, sugar, oil and the vinegar until the dressing is smooth and combined.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss well.  Chill, covered for 2 hours.
~Wikepedia
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