Apple Sauce

Peel and core apples
Sugar to taste (only needed with apples
that are too tart once cooked)
Cinnamon

Place all apples in a crock pot or on stove top and cook on low (with lid on) until apples are soft. Use stick blender or hand mixer to mash up cooked apples until desired consistency. You may add cinnamon to taste.

Buttermilk Pancakes

1 cup flour
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 egg (beaten)
1 cup buttermilk
2 Tablespoons Butter (melted)

Add all ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir with wire whip until batter is slightly lumpy. Do not over mix. Cook in skillet or on griddle.  Instead of syrup, use applesauce!

Compound Butter for Grilled Corn

4 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves
1 medium clove garlic , pressed through garlic press or minced to puree (about 1 teaspoon)
1/2 teaspoon table salt
Ground black pepper

Soften the butter in a bowl (don't melt it!), then stir in salt and flavorings (for other flavors, see below) to taste.

Once the ingredients have been combined, place the butter mixture in the center of a piece of plastic wrap. Fold one edge of the plastic wrap over the butter. Glide your hands back and forth over the butter to shape it into a cylinder. Twist the ends of the plastic wrap shut and refrigerate until firm.

Compound butter can be kept refrigerated for several days or frozen for up to a month. To use, simply slice off the desired amount and continue to store the rest.

Other Mix-ins

• Chopped fresh herbs, any kind!

• Citrus zest and cracked black pepper

• Chopped roasted red bell peppers and smoked paprika

• Chopped fresh rosemary and grated Parmesan cheese

• Crumbled Roquefort and ground black pepper

• Chopped chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced garlic, minced fresh cilantro leaves, and lime juice

• Minced shallot and chopped fresh thyme leaves

• Curry powder, minced shallot, and chopped fresh mint and cilantro leaves

• Minced sage leaves and finely chopped toasted walnuts

• Honey, fresh orange juice, and grated orange zest

• Roasted garlic and minced caramelized onions

• Minced sun-dried tomatoes, pesto, or tapenade

• Anything other flavor combinations that you like or are willing to try!

Adapted from www.cooksillustrated.com

Baba Ghanoush

Baba Ghanoush is a traditional Levantine spread made from roasted, mashed eggplants, tahini (sesame paste) and various other flavors. It is wonderfully simple, can be made ahead of time because it keeps well, and a large batch is nearly as easy to make as a small batch.

Even people who typcially don't like eggplant will enjoy this Middle Eastern "dip". This dish, paired with some chips or bread or pita or julienned vegetables, makes a lovely and unusual potluck dish.

2 pounds eggplant (about 2 large globe, 5 medium Italian, or 12 medium Japanese), each poked uniformly over surface with fork to prevent bursting
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 small clove garlic , minced
2 tablespoons tahini paste
Table salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil , plus extra for serving
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Turn all burners on gas grill to high, close lid, and heat grill until hot, 10 to 15 minutes. Set eggplants on grill rack in a clock-like pattern. Grill until skins darken and wrinkle on all sides and eggplants are uniformly soft when pressed with tongs , about 25 minutes for large globe eggplants, 20 minutes for Italian eggplants, and 15 minutes for Japanese eggplants, turning every 5 minutes and reversing direction of eggplants on grill with each turn. Transfer eggplants to rimmed baking sheet and cool 5 minutes.

Set small colander over bowl or in sink. Trim top and bottom off each eggplant. Slit eggplants lengthwise and use spoon to scoop hot pulp from skins and place pulp in colander (you should have about 2 cups packed pulp); discard skins. Let pulp drain 3 minutes.

Transfer pulp to workbowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Add lemon juice, garlic, tahini, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; process until mixture has coarse, choppy texture, about eight 1-second pulses. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper; transfer to serving bowl, cover with plastic wrap flush with surface of dip, and refrigerate 45 to 60 minutes.

To serve, use spoon to make trough in center of dip and spoon olive oil into it; sprinkle with parsley and serve.  Makes 2 cups

Cantaloupe Sorbet

2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 cups – 1 inch pieces peeled, seeded cantaloupe (about ½ of a cantaloupe)

Combine sugar and water in medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil. Transfer to 9 x 11 glass pan and chill until cold, about 2 hours.

Puree cantaloupe in blender until smooth. Add to sugar syrup in dish and stir until well blended. Freeze until almost firm, stirring occasionally, at least 3 hours to overnight.

Cantaloupe Granita

4 cups chopped cantaloupe
1 1/3 cups Asti Spumante (Italian sparkling wine) or water
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Puree cantaloupe in processor and then transfer into a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir until the sugar dissolves. Pour mixture into a 9 inch square metal baking pan.

Freeze mixture until partially set, whisking twice, about 2 hours. Freeze uncovered without whisking until completely set, at least 3 hours or overnight.

Run tines of fork across surface of granita to form icy flakes. Cover with foil; freeze until ready to serve or up to 2 days. Mound granita in 6 ice-cold Martini glasses. Serve immediately.

A dash of curry powder transforms this cool fruit soup into a sweetly savory first course.
Active time: 10 min start to finish: 10 min
Servings: Makes 4 first-course servings.

Cantaloupe Soup

2 lb ripe cantaloupe, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces (3 cups)
3 to 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup chilled sparkling apple cider (nonalcoholic)
1/8 teaspoon Madras curry powder
Garnish: Madras curry powder; lemon slices

Purée cantaloupe with 3 tablespoons lemon juice in a blender until very smooth approximately 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and stir in cider and curry. Season with salt and additional lemon juice to taste. Serve immediately, at room temperature.

6 ears of fresh sweet corn, husked
5 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon finely chopped garlic
½ cup packed thinly sliced fresh basil
5 plum or two large tomatoes, seeded, chopped
1 red pepper seeded and chopped
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Using large knife, cut corn kernels from cob. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and red peppers; sauté 1 minute. Add corn; sauté until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add half of basil.

Transfer corn mixture to large bowl. Cool slightly, stirring occasionally. Stir in tomatoes, vinegar, 3 tablespoons oil and remaining basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover; chill 3 hours or up to 8 hours.

• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter

• 1 strip of bacon or 1 teaspoon of bacon fat (substitute 1/2 Tbsp of butter for vegetarian option)

• 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 large carrot, chopped (about 1/3 cup)

• 1/2 celery stalk, chopped (about 1/3 cup)

• 3 ears of sweet corn, kernels removed from the cobs (about 2 cups), cobs reserved (see steps for taking corn off the cob)

• 1 bay leaf

• 3 1/2 cups milk, whole or low fat

• 1 medium Yukon Gold potato, or Russet, peeled and diced

• 1/4 red bell pepper, chopped (about 1/4 cup)

• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

• 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the bacon strip (skip this step for vegetarian option, just add more butter) and fry until the bacon renders its fat, but doesn't begin to brown, 3 or 4 minutes. Add the onion and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, until soft. Add the carrot and celery and cook for 4 or 5 more minutes.

Break the corn cobs in half and add them to the saucepan. Add the milk and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a bare simmer. Cover the pot and cook for 30 minutes. Make sure the heat is as low as can be and still maintain a gentle simmer (on our stove we had to use the "warm" setting) to prevent scalding the milk on the bottom of the pan.

Discard the cobs, the bacon strip, and the bay leaf. Raise the heat, add the potatoes, red pepper, 1 teaspoon of salt, fresh ground pepper to taste, bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to maintain a simmer for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are almost fork tender.

Raise the heat, add the corn kernels and the thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.

Serves 4.

Cucumber Soup

3 medium cucumbers
3 cups chicken broth
3 cups sour cream
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 clove garlic, minced

TOPPINGS:
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
3/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley

Peel cucumbers; halve lengthwise and remove seeds. Cut into chunks. In a blender, cover and puree cucumbers and broth in small batches. Transfer to a large bowl; stir in the sour cream, vinegar, salt if desired and garlic until well blended. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Stir before serving. Garnish with tomatoes, almonds, onions and parsley.

Nutritional Analysis: One 3/4-cup serving (prepared with reduced-sodium broth and fat-free sour cream and without salt) equals 95 calories, 3 g fat (trace saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 239 mg sodium, 11 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 5 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 1 reduced-fat milk.

Cucumber Peanut Salad

1 large cucumber - peeled, seeded, and diced
salt to taste
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 dried red chili pepper
3 tablespoons coarsely chopped peanuts
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 teaspoon minced fresh cilantro

Mix together salt and cucumber, and allow to drain in a colander for ten minutes to release water. Pat dry, and place in a medium size bowl. Melt butter in a small saucepan, and stir in cumin and chili pepper. Add peanuts, lemon juice, sugar, and melted butter to cucumber, and stir together. Garnish with cilantro.

Easy Refrigerator Pickles

7 cups sliced cucumbers
2 cups sugar
1 cup sliced sweet onions
1 cup White vinegar
1 bell pepper, finely sliced
1 Tablespoon Salt
1 teaspoon Celery seed

Combine cucumbers, onion, and bell pepper in a large bowl. Add the sugar, vinegar, salt and celery seed. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate at least 24 hours before serving. For a different taste, add garlic, dill, oregano, or hot pepper sauce.

Source: Rock Springs Sweet Onion Festival Cook Book 1992

Apricot Chicken Salad 

4 cups of cooked chicken, diced.
1 stalk of celery, finely diced.
2 tablespoons of white onion, finely chopped.
3 large sweet apricots, pitted and finely diced.
Mayonnaise.
Salt and pepper 

Cook and dice the chicken. Combine the chicken, celery, onion and apricots, using mayonnaise to bind. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with crackers, in pita, on bread, or on a leaf of butter crunch or romaine lettuce leaves! YUM!

Apricot Pie

1 (9-inch) double pie crust, store-bought or homemade
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
6 cups apricot halves
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 Tablespoons butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 teaspoon granulated white sugar

Preheat oven to 425 F.  Place half of the pie crust into a pie pan.

Whisk together white sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small bowl.

Place apricots in a separate large bowl and stir in lemon juice. Add sugar mixture to apricots and toss gently to mix.

Pour apricots into partially-baked pie crust. Evenly distribute the tiny butter cubes on top of the apricot mixture. Top with remaining pie crust and crimp to seal to the bottom pie crust. Cut slits in the top for vents.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until golden and apricot filling just begins to bubble through the slits. Sprinkle the top of the pie with 1 teaspoon white sugar as soon as it comes out of the oven.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings

No Sugar Almond Apricot Jam

2 1/2 cups unsweetened apple juice
1 cup diced apricots (can use dried – cook longer for dried apricots)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a saucepan, combine the apple juice and apricots; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes or until apricots are tender.  Remove from heat. Mash until desired consistency.  Stir in almond extract and cinnamon.  Pour into a pint jar.  Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.  Yield: 2 cups. 

Nutritional Analysis: One tablespoon equals 29 calories, trace fat (0 saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 1 mg sodium, 7 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, trace protein. Diabetic exchange: 1/2 fruit.

Fava Bean Breakfast Spread 

1 (15 ounce can) fava beans (or use fresh)
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 large tomato, diced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Ground red pepper, to taste 

Pour the beans into a pot and bring to a boil. Mix them well and add onion, tomato, olive oil, cumin, parsley, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and red pepper. Bring the mixture back to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Let the mixture cook 5 minutes. Serve warm with grilled pita.

Here is a wonderful alternative to breakfast!  This is a traditional breakfast in Egypt and is served with pita bread. 

Homemade Pitas

Here’s a great recipe for making your own pita!   

1 1/8 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Place all ingredients in bread pan of your bread machine, select dough setting and start. When dough has risen long enough, machine will beep. If you do not have a bread maker, simply mix up dough and place dough ball in a lightly greased pie plate and cover lightly with saran wrap until it has doubled in size.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently roll and stretch dough into a 12 inch rope. With a sharp knife, divide dough into 8 pieces. Roll each into a smooth ball. With a rolling pin, roll each ball into a 6 to 7 inch circle. Set aside on a lightly floured countertop. Cover with a towel. Let pitas rise about 30 minutes until slightly puffy.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Place 2 or 3 pitas on a wire cake rack. Place cake rack directly on oven rack. Bake pitas 4 to 5 minutes until puffed and tops begin to brown. Remove from oven and immediately place pitas in a sealed brown paper bag or cover them with a damp kitchen towel until soft. Once pitas are softened, either cut in half or split top edge for half or whole pitas. They can be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for 1 or 2 months.

Fresh Fava Beans

boiling water
salt
ice
tap water
2 lbs fresh fava beans, in the pod (yields about 1 1/2 to 2 cups shelled beans)
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced, to taste
salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

First, shell the beans from the fava pods (I found it’s sometimes easier - especially if you're new to fava beans - to open the pods when you run the edge of a knife along the seam, cutting away the tough edge so that the pod halves come apart).

In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil, then add salt – the amount depends on how much water you have, but it should be very salty, like seawater.

In a bowl, combine ice and tap water to make ice water; set aside.

Add the shelled beans to the boiling water and let cook for about 3 minutes, then remove from saucepan and immediately plunge into the ice water to halt the cooking.

Let the beans cool, then peel the outer skin from each of them.

Over medium heat in a skillet, melt together the butter and olive oil, then add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute.

Add the peeled fava beans and sauté for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are done to your preference.

Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper, serve, and enjoy!

Note: in choosing your fava beans, get the pods that are firm and fresh looking

Note 2: once you've made these basic fava beans, you can add other delicious items such as caramelized onions or fennel, chunky fresh tomatoes, and/or a bit of chopped prosciutto.
Note 3: Fava beans can be frozen by blanching them for 1 minute, then freeze them in a single layer on a sheet in the freezer before putting them into bags; great bright green color and no mushiness in texture; thaw, peel, and use as usual.

Pickled Beets

Prep Time: 24 hours
Cook Time: 40 minutes

2 bunches beets with tops (2 pounds)
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp pickling spices

Trim all but 1 inch of stems from beets. In 5-quart Dutch oven, combine beets and enough water to cover; heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain, reserving 2 cups beet liquid. When cool enough to handle, cut beets into 1/4-inch thick slices. Place in medium bowl.

In non-reactive 1-quart saucepan, heat reserved beet liquid, vinegar, sugar, and pickling spices over medium heat, stirring frequently, just until sugar has dissolved; pour over beets, and refrigerate overnight or up to 1 week.

Yield: 8 servings

Harvard Beets Recipe

2 bunches beets with tops (2 pounds)
3 small red onions (1 pound), not peeled
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1 Tbsp fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Trim all but 1 inch of stems from beets. Place beets and onions in nonstick oven-safe 10-inch skillet, (if skillet is not oven-safe wrap handle with double layer of foil) or in 9 x 13 inch baking pan; drizzle with oil. Roast, shaking skillet occasionally, until onions have softened and beets are tender, about 1 hour 30 minutes, transferring vegetables to plate as they are done.

In same skillet, combine broth, vinegar, brown sugar, and thyme; heat to boiling over high heat. Boil, stirring and scraping bottom of skillet, until vinegar mixture is dark brown and syrupy and has reduced to about 1/4 cup, 5 to 7 minutes; stir in salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

When cool enough to handle, peel beets and onions. Cut beets into 1/4-inch-wide matchstick strips and onions into thin rounds; place in bowl. Pour vinegar mixture over vegetables and toss until coated. Sprinkle with parsley.

Yield: 6 servings

Per serving: about 103 calories, 2 g protein, 14 g carbohydrates, 5 g total fat (1 g saturated), 0 mg cholesterol, 203 mg sodium.

Strawberry Shortcut Cake