Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts

Sunday, November 30, 2025

The Grateful Season



“I am grateful for what I am and have.
My Thanksgiving is perpetual.”
~ Henry David Thoreau

Thanksgiving may be over but being grateful is never over!

We had a bountiful Thanksgiving Day, full of feasting and family fun! 

Our family consisted of fifteen people this year as our son's in-laws were all invited.  

Pre-dinner appetizers were plentiful!



I do all the cooking and spent three days ahead of time preparing as much as I could to be reheated, with slow cookers helping to keep things warm. I serve buffet style as it saves table space,
For dessert, we had pumpkin and apple pie, almond and lemon gluten-free cake, pumpkin mini cakes, and a chocolate birthday cake for our daughter!

Everyone takes home trays of leftovers, so nothing goes to waste.



I cooked a 24-pound turkey and made turkey stock from the carcass the next day. 

Turkey Stock

1 leftover carcass from a roasted turkey, preferably including neck, wing, and leg bones
4 or 5 onions, quartered 
2 large or 3 small carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
4 large or 5 small celery ribs, cut into chunks
2 large or 3 small garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
Sprigs of fresh thyme and sage, if available; otherwise, use a tablespoon each of dried.
3 dried bay leaves
Leftover parsley stems
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
 Salt to taste


Add the roasted turkey carcass to a large stockpot with vegetables and herbs, and add 6 quarts of water. and place over medium-high heat just until the mixture comes to a boil.

Immediately reduce the heat to low, skim any foam floating on top, and simmer, skimming as needed, for 3 hours. 

Add 1 teaspoon of salt and taste. If the stock tastes watery, keep simmering until the stock is flavorful. Taste the stock for salt again and add more if needed.

Strain stock through a sieve into a large container or containers. Discard solids. Let stock cool slightly, then refrigerate. Skim off any fat from the top of the stock when it is cooled

 Use within 4 days or freeze. This stock makes delicious soups!




 I made a big tray of sausage, chestnut, and sourdough bread stuffing for Thanksgiving, and tried a new way to use some of the leftover stuffing as a waffle mixture. My husband was a bit doubtful whether he'd like it,  but after pouring maple syrup over his serving, he did! Your could malso serve the waffle with leftover cranberry sauce.

 Leftover Stuffing Waffle

For each waffle:

To one beaten egg, add two cups of stuffing mixture
 and two tablespoons of turkey stock
Mix together and place the mixture in a well-greased and hot waffle iron. 
Cook until crispy, and the egg is cooked, around 10 minutes. You may need to adjust cooking time according to the size of your waffle maker




A happy event occured the day after Thanksgiving as the Denver area finally had its first snowfall! We have been in a drought, and the snowpack in Colorado has been low for this time of the year. It wasn't much, but my backyard deer visitors seemed to enjoy it!

Now it is December, and time for Christmas decorating, cookie baking, and enjoying the many celebrations of the season!




"The fall air grows colder, winter is soon deep upon us. 
But, no matter the weather, we have Christmas coming with all its goodness."
 ~ Byron Pulsifer


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Monday, November 25, 2024

Apple Frangipane Tart


I'm sure almost everyone in America is busy this week preparing for Thanksgiving dinner!

 One of my favorite desserts to make on Thanksgiving, to go along with the traditional pumpkin pie, is an Apple Frangipane Tart. It begins with a shortcrust pastry, then a layer of frangipane, which is an almond custard-like filling, and then thinly sliced apples placed on top.

 I first learned to make frangipane from participating in an old blog challenge called "Daring Bakers" in 2009 where each month a baking challenge would be posted and participating blogs would make the suggested product and post their results on their blog. Two British bakers challenged us to make a delicious Strawberry Bakewell Tart. I really liked the frangipane layer and felt it was a wonderfully elegant addition to a fruit tart.



 Apple Frangipane Tart

 
I use my favorite shortcrust pastry as it can easily be made in a food processor:

Pasta Frolla (Tender Crostata Pastry)

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

Grated zest of 1 lemon or 1 small orange—or a little of both (about 1 tablespoon)

1 stick plus 3 tablespoons (11 tablespoons total) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and zest in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse briefly to combine. Distribute the butter around the bowl and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. Add the egg and egg yolk and process until the dough begins to clump together.

Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and gather it together into a ball. Form the dough into two disks, one slightly larger than the other. Wrap each disk tightly in reusable or plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until well chilled (overnight is fine). Remove the dough from the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before rolling it out

Roll out the dough and place in well greased tart pan that has a removable bottom. Line the tart shell with parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Bake the tart shell in a 400-degree oven until the edges are beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment and weights and continue baking until the center is golden, about 10 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack and let the tart shell cool completely.

Frangipane layer:

6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup (99g) granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon table salt

1 cup (96g) Almond flour

3 tablespoons (23g) all-purpose flour

1 large egg, at room temperature

2 teaspoons almond extract

In a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and salt until pale and fluffy, about 1 minute on medium speed.

Stir in the two flours, egg, and almond flavoring. Mix until just combined.

Apple Layer:

3 to 4 tart firm apples  I like Honeycrisp or Granny Smith
2 Tablespoons sugar

Peel, core, and slice the apples into thin half-rounds, and toss with a tablespoon of lemon juice. 

Assemble the Tart:

Make the crust, blind bake, and cool as described above. Then lower the oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the frangipane filling and spread it into the cooled crust.

Place the sliced apples over the frangipane filling in a circular design overlapping to fill the entire top of the tart pan. Sprinkle sugar over the apples.

Place tart in a 350-degree oven and bake until apples are soft and edges are slightly browned -- 45 minutes to an hour.

Remove and allow the tart to cool. Shake powdered sugar on top or brush with heated apricot jam for a glazed appearance.

Store the tart in the refrigerator between servings.



Some scenes of Thanksgiving at my house from the past!


Enjoy the preparations and your family gathering on Thursday and give thanks with a happy heart!


"To make a glorious day complete,

To make each hour full and sweet,

To thank the Lord for a life worth living--

That is the real and true Thanksgiving."

~ Abigail Falk



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Sunday, July 28, 2024

Peach Custard Tart, Smokey Skies and a Moose on the Loose!


Peach and Cream Tart

 It's fresh peach season!  I never miss the opportunity to buy fresh peaches this time of year as they are among my favorite fruits. 



If you've followed my blog over the years you might remember that I've shared many peach recipes, which you can scroll through on this Peach tab on my blog.

I also have a Pinterest Peach Board devoted to both sweet and savory peach recipes--right now there are 621 pins of peach recipes on that board and I'm sure I'll be adding more as I come across them




Special friends will visit us this week and I wanted to make a dessert they would enjoy. A Land of Lakes recipe for a Peach Custard Tart caught my eye while browsing Facebook this morning. You can read their recipe at the link above, but I made a few modifications which I'll share here.  

I hope you will try either recipe during sweet peach season!


Peach Custard Tart

Tart Crust:

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

Grated zest of 1 lemon or 1 small orange—or a little of both (about 1 tablespoon)

1 stick plus 3 tablespoons (11 tablespoons total) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and zest in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse briefly to combine. Distribute the butter around the bowl and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. Add the egg and egg yolk and process until the dough begins to clump together.
Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and gather it together into a ball. Form the dough into two disks, one slightly larger than the other--the smaller dough will be for the top of the tart. Wrap each disk tightly in reusable or plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until well chilled (overnight is fine). Remove the dough from the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before rolling it out.


The Filling:

6 large peaches, peeled, sliced

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons of Fiori di Sicilia flavoring (or 2 teaspoons of vanilla flavoring)

*You can substitute frozen sliced peaches, thawed, well-drained. Pat frozen peach slices dry with paper towels thoroughly before placing them in your tart.


Make and assemble the tart crust: Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Have ready a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.

1. Lightly dust a work surface and rolling-pin with flour. Roll the larger disk of tart dough into an 11-inch circle, lifting and turning the dough as you roll to prevent sticking and create an even round. Gently wrap the dough around the rolling pin and unroll it over the tart pan. Gently press the dough into the pan without stretching it. Use the palm of your hand or the rolling pin to trim off the excess. Refrigerate while you roll out the second piece of dough.

2. Roll the smaller piece into a 10-inch circle and use a fluted or smooth pastry wheel or a knife to cut it into strips from 1/2 inch to 1 inch wide and reserve for the top.

3. Add the sliced peaches to the tart crust and spread them as evenly as possible.

4. Make the Custard Combine all remaining filling ingredients in a bowl and mix well with a whisk. Pour the filling mixture over the peach slices and criss cross the top with the reserved pastry strips.

Bake 32-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is set. Cool completely. Store refrigerated. Enjoy!



I dusted the tart with some powdered sugar and I'm sure it would be extra nice served with a scoop of ice cream!




Sadly, the wildfires in California, Oregon, and Western Canada have sent much smoke to our skies along the Front Range of Colorado! We had many days of hazardous air quality alerts.  We had some improvement this weekend, but the local news told us a return of hotter weather this week will trap the smoke again in our skies.

 I have kept my windows closed, and my air conditioner on, and we used our two HEPA-filtered air cleaning machines non-stop, all of which have helped when the air quality was bad.

If you are in the US and would like to check your air quality go to Airnow.gov and enter your zip code.




A surprise in our neighborhood last week was the appearance of a young moose!  Our area is not their natural habitat and this one was obviously lost. Residents were excited to see him but were also worried, as an angry or scared moose could be dangerous.  He wandered out of our neighborhood by that evening, but I read a few days later that he moved into an even more populated area so Colorado Parks and Wildlife had to sedate him and transport him back to the wilderness in a higher elevation. I'm glad he is safe. and that so are we!


Enjoy the end of July--on to August!


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Monday, September 25, 2023

Tomato Cheddar Dill Pie



 Happy Fall! Have you been blessed with an end-of-summer harvest of green and red tomatoes from your garden that you would like to cook deliciously?  With just a bit of preparation, you can make this savory Tomato Cheddar Dill Pie.




Our son has a "green thumb" and grew an abundance of heirloom-style tomatoes in his garden this summer. His family has been enjoying them in soups, sandwiches, sauces, and salads, but when he gifted me with the basketful above I decided to turn them into one of my favorite recipes: Tomato Cheddar Dill Pie!  
Although I used this assortment of colorful tomatoes, the original recipe can be made with a combination of green and red tomatoes. 



You can use your favorite pie crust or buy a pre-made pie crust, but this one is a perfect one for this pie, and easy to make:

PIE CRUST:

1¾ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup plus 1 teaspoon plain yellow cornmeal, divided
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
½ cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 large egg, beaten
¼ cup whole buttermilk

In the work bowl of a food processor, place flour, ¼ cup cornmeal, and salt. Add cold butter, and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. With the processor running, add egg and buttermilk in a slow, steady stream just until the dough comes together. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and shape it into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Let dough stand at room temperature until slightly softened, about 10 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 14-inch circle. Transfer to a pie pan or cast iron skillet. First, sprinkle the one tablespoon of reserved cornmeal over the bottom of the pan

Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Fold edges under, and crimp as desired.


I had lots of fresh dill growing in my garden so I used fresh dill in this recipe, but you can also use dried dill.  I also buy cheddar cheese by the block and self-grate it but you can buy pre-grated cheese to make it simpler.

Tomato Cheddar Dill  Pie

INGREDIENTS:

CRUST: prepare your favorite pie crust or see the recipe above. 

FILLING:

2½ pounds red tomatoes
1 pound green tomatoes (I used a variety of homegrown heirloom tomatoes this time)
2½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill, divided
1 tablespoon grated onion
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1¼ cups shredded sharp white Cheddar cheese
¼ cup shredded sharp yellow Cheddar cheese

Instructions

Line 2 baking sheets with paper towels. Cut an ¼ -inch slice from the top of each tomato. Using a small spoon, scoop out tomato seeds. Cut tomatoes into ¼-inch-thick slices. Arrange tomato slices in a single layer on prepared pans. Sprinkle both sides with 2 teaspoons salt. Let stand for 1 hour. Pat dry with paper towels. This removes excess water from the tomatoes so your pie will not be soggy.

In a small bowl, stir together mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons dill, onion, pepper, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt. In another small bowl, combine cheeses.

Preheat your oven to 375° F

Arrange green tomato slices, overlapping slightly, in the bottom of the prepared crust. Spread with 1⁄3 cup mayonnaise mixture, and sprinkle with ⅓ cup cheese. 

Repeat with half of red tomato slices, 1⁄3 cup mayonnaise mixture,1/2 cup cheese, and remaining tomato slices.

Bake for 25 minutes. 

Spread the top of the pie with the remaining 1⁄3 cup mayonnaise mixture, and sprinkle with the remaining ⅓ cup cheese.

 Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes more, covering crust with foil to prevent excess browning, if necessary. 

Let cool on a wire rack for 45 minutes. 

Sprinkle with the remaining 2 teaspoons dill.

Serve warm


My pie fresh out of the oven

 

A delicious slice of Tomato Cheddar Dill Pie!

We enjoyed slices of this pie as a lunch entree and as a side for dinner along with a piece of meat or fish.  I hope you will also enjoy it!




I captured this stunning photograph during a recent drive with my husband and daughter that I shared on my personal Facebook page. However, I wanted to share it here as well. As we were driving westward, we witnessed the sun slowly setting beyond the Rocky Mountains in the distance. A large cloud bank loomed above the mountains, and suddenly the sun shone through, illuminating the clouds with a breathtaking golden hue. It was an absolutely beautiful moment worth sharing! 

I hope all our days will be full of golden color as fall advances.
 I wish you a wonderful season ahead!

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Monday, September 4, 2023

September Joys: Peaches, Tomatoes and Football!



A beautiful sky over the foothills near Boulder, Colorado

Happy September! 

Colorado experiences an early autumn due to its high elevation, however, there are still a few weeks of summer remaining to enjoy.




One of the joys at this time of the year is Palisade Peaches from the western slope of Colorado. They are juicy and sweet freestone peaches and every year I look forward to them. Last year our daughter had a business trip to Palisade and purchased a box of peaches for us.  I made many delicious dishes with them which you can see on this post.  

This year, our oldest grandson entered high school and his school orchestra has a fundraiser where Palisade Peaches, and honey from peach grove bee hives, could be purchased.  We bought 20 pounds of peaches and a jar of honey-- both so wonderful!




I recently made a lifestyle change to eat a low carbohydrate diet from now on--see why on this post--but, happily, peaches are one of the healthier fruits that I can consume in moderation.  The first meal I made was a Tomato Peach Fig and Burrata Salad, with arugula, basil, and prosciutto added and a balsamic glaze on top.  We enjoyed it on our deck as we watched the sunset.   It was the perfect meal for a warm evening!




This year I tried a Peach Quick Bread recipe from the blog "Sally's Baking Recipes" for my husband.  It was delicious!  It had a cinnamon crumb topping and as well as cinnamon-swirled peaches inside the cake's interior.  




I had less success with attempting a low-carb version of a peach loaf using almond flour, coconut flour, and monk fruit sugar substitute. It did not rise too high despite having both baking powder and baking soda added. It may have been because of my area's high elevation as I live at 6,200 feet (1889.76 meters) and baking is often a challenge here.  It did taste good, and I hope to get better at baking with substitutions so that I can also enjoy some low-carb treats. Does anyone have any low-carb baking hints for me?





A savory dinner with peaches was this one called Balsamic Peach Pork Chops with Blue Cheese from the blog "Closet Cooking."  

It was fabulous!




I used extra peaches since I had more pork chops than the recipe called for. I doubled the recipe and served them separately so I could regulate my portion size. 

Additionally, I still have an abundance of zucchini and zucchini blossoms growing in my garden this September, so I made zucchini fritters for my husband to enjoy.



As far as gardens go, a disaster hit my patio tomato plants!

 If you look at the collage above you can see the photo in the lower left corner of my plants a week ago. I was picking many red tomatoes every day, as you can see by the basket of ripe ones. I came out this week to find that a deer somehow squeezed past the chicken wire fence around my plants and ate all the tops and tomatoes it could reach!  AGH!!!  I lost so many tomatoes.  Knowing it would probably come back I pulled all the remaining tomatoes and will allow them to ripen inside by a window.  The season for tomatoes was coming to an end, but it was sad to lose so many.

Finally, another September joy is watching our oldest grandson play football on his high school freshman team. It is nice to see the team learn sportsmanship and for them to be kept busy in the afternoons after school with practices.  He also hopes to play lacrosse in the spring.



Fall's here soon. Let's enjoy these last days of summer!


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