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As the squash got closer to being done, I heated a large pot of water for the pasta. When it boiled, I add a generous tablespoon of kosher salt to the water and began cooking the pasta. Just before the pasta was done, I removed some water and added to the onions. After removing the squash from the oven, I mashed it and added to the onion mixture. Next, it was time for the blue cheese to be incorporated into the sauce. After draining the pasta, I returned it to the pot and added the sauce and began mixing. The pasta was topped with some reserved blue cheese crumbles, toasted walnuts and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Well, it wasn’t quite what we expected. The blue cheese gave the sauce a sharpness and the onions and squash mixture didn’t make for a creamy sauce. However, there were leftovers, which we had several days later and found the sharpness of the sauce had dissipated and became more enjoyable. If I were to make this again, I would purée the onion and squash mixture, melt the blue cheese into the sauce, then pour over the pasta. I would go with Gorgonzola, which is mild and creamy. I think I picked up a Danish blue which has a slightly sharp flavor and may be better suited for something other than pasta dishes. My son and daughter had Thanksgiving dinner with their in-laws. Since my son lives closest to us, I invited his family to brunch. As I was feeding a two-year-old, I had to select something he would eat. I chose French Toast Soufflé, a recipe from an old issue of “Cooking Light” magazine, by Maureen Callahan. This one pan casserole is made the day before so that the bread absorbs all the liquid. For the recipe you’ll need 10 cups of sturdy white bread cubed, 8-ounces of Neufchâtel (low fat) cream cheese (softened), 8 eggs, half and half, maple syrup (use the real thing), vanilla extract and powdered sugar. I purchased a one-pound loaf of Pepperidge Farm Sandwich bread. The bread is cubed and placed in a 9-x13-inch baking dish that is coated with baking spray. The cream cheese is placed in a medium bowl and with a hand-held mixer, beaten until smooth. The eggs are added one at a time and mixed after each addition. Lastly, the liquids are added and mixed until smooth, then poured over the bread and covered before refrigerating overnight. Now my son-in-law snickered the other day when I told him this was light and it was. In fact, you may want to say this is a type of bread pudding, but whatever you call it, it was delicious. The addition of the vanilla highlighted the taste of the maple syrup in the dish. I also served chicken breakfast sausage and sliced fresh strawberries as accompaniments. If you have guests coming over the holidays, I’m sure they’ll enjoy the simplicity of this dish. As it was just my husband and I for Thanksgiving, he requested ham. It just so happened that my local Wegmans offered “Boneless Celebration Ham.” The pork is raised in Pennsylvania, is naturally smoked and fully cooked. I was able to purchase a small ham, just over 3 pounds. To gussy up the ham a bit, I glazed it with Dr. Pete’s Praline Glaze. For side dishes I had Scalloped Potatoes, a recipe by Lidy Heuck from The New York Times/NYT Cooking. These were divine. While I normally make a recipe from my “Betty Crocker Cookbook,” these were a notch above in flavor and taste. The potatoes are sliced 1/8-inch thick. Next you prepare a white sauce with sautéed onion and fresh thyme added for nuance. The potatoes go into a 9-x13-inch baking dish that is coated with cooking spray. A layer of potatoes goes down first seasoned with salt and pepper and half the sauce is spread on top; followed by another layer. The sauce is smoothed out, making sure that potatoes are submerged in the sauce. The casserole bakes for 45 minutes covered and another 30 minutes uncovered until tender and browned. The potatoes are placed under the broiler to get the topped browned. Yum, these potatoes were tender, creamy and had a nice flavor with the addition of fresh thyme. This will be the recipe I prepare going forward. For another side, I finished up my carrots from my Dreyer’s CSA box and made Bourbon Glazed Carrots. Dessert was a recipe I found on the “Serious Eats” website by Tim Chin for Gâteau Invisible aux Pommes (Invisible Apple Cake). For the recipe you’ll need cooking spray for the pan (I prefer Pam Spray for Baking), all-purpose flour, baking powder, white miso, unsalted butter, whole milk, eggs, granulated sugar and apples (Fuji or Pink Lady) that are peeled cored and cut into 1/16- to 1/8-inch-thick slices. I was intrigued by the addition of white miso paste in the recipe which adds a savory component to the cake. Instead of adding salt to the batter, the miso, which is salty, provides the balance to the sweetness. There is also an accompanying recipe for caramel sauce with the inclusion of white miso, however, I chose to serve the cake on its own adding a small scoop of vanilla ice cream. I would recommend using a mandoline or apple peeler to achieve uniform thickness in the slices. The apples are peeled and cut into quarters to make half-moon. The batter and 2-1/2 pounds of apples, fill an 8-1/2x4-1/2 loaf pan. Attention must be paid in how the apples are laid out in the pan. Chef Chin suggests arranging apples in an overlapping pattern with flat sides flush against the edge of the pan. The layers should end about 1/4-inch from the top of the pan. You also want to arrange the final layer in a horizontal, shingled pattern. In order to aid in removing the cake from the pan, a piece of parchment, 8-x13-inches is placed in the pan to work as a sling in removing the baked cake. Once baked, the cake cools in the pan for two hours with another hour rest time to completely cool. Was it worth the work and wait, you bet it was! The cake had a slight custard texture, the apples practically disappeared. The cake had a lovely balance of flavors and was light tasting; a lovely change from apple pie. I wouldn’t hesitate to make this again. Autumn Pasta with Blue Cheese and Nuts By Donal Skehan “House and Garden” (UK version) erves: 4 Ingredients 1 pumpkin or autumn squash (about 1kg/2lb 4oz), peeled, deseeded and sliced 3–4 sprigs of thyme 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp salted butter 2 onions, thinly sliced 350g (12oz) pasta shapes, such as conchiglie or rigatoni 100g (3½oz) blue cheese 75g (3oz) walnuts, toasted and roughly crushed Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper Best-quality extra virgin olive oil, to serve 1 pumpkin or autumn squash (about 1kg/2lb 4oz), peeled, deseeded and sliced 3–4 sprigs of thyme 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp salted butter 2 onions, thinly sliced 350g (12oz) pasta shapes, such as conchiglie or rigatoni 100g (3½oz) blue cheese 75g (3oz) walnuts, toasted and roughly crushed Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper Best-quality extra virgin olive oil, to serve
French Toast Soufflé Recipe by Maureen Callahan, M.S. R.D. From Cooking Light Magazine Date Unknown Prep Time: 20 Minutes Cooking Time: 30 Minutes Additional Time: 8 hours, 30 minutes Total Time: 9 hours, 20 minutes Servings: 12 Yield: 1 9-inchx13-inch soufflé Ingredients cooking spray 10 cups white bread cubes 1 (8 ounce) package low-fat cream cheese, softened 8 eggs 1 ½ cups milk, 2% reduced-fat ⅔ cup half-and-half cream ½ cup maple syrup ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar 3/4 maple syrup Directions Place Bread cubes in a 13x9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Beat cream cheese at medium speed of mixer until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add milk, half-and-half, 1/2 cup maple syrup and vanilla, and mix until smooth. Pour cream cheese mixture over top of bread, cover and refrigerate over night. Preheat oven to 375°. Remove bread mixture from refrigerator, let stand on counter for 30 minutes. Bake at 375° for 50 minutes or until set. Sprinkle the soufflé with powdered sugar and serve with maple syrup.
Gâteau Invisible (Invisible Apple Cake) By Tim Chin “Serious Eats” website Prep: 35 minutes Cook: 85 minutes Active: 40 minutes Cooling Time: 3 hours Total Time: 5 hours Serves: 8 slices Yield: 1 loaf Ingredients For the Cake: Vegetable oil or cooking spray, for greasing the pan 1 cup all-purpose flour (5 ounces; 142g), plus more for dusting the pan 1 teaspoon baking powder 3 tablespoons (54g) white miso (see note) 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted 1/2 cup whole milk (120ml) 3 large eggs 2/3 cup (4 3/4 ounces; 133g) sugar 2 1/2 pounds (1.1kg) apples, such as Fuji or Pink Lady, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/16- to 1/8-inch thick slices (see note) For the Caramel Sauce: 1/4 cup (60ml) water 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (4 1/4 ounces; 120g) sugar 3/4 cup (180ml) heavy cream 2 tablespoons (36g) white miso Directions For the Cake: Grease an 8 1/2- by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan and line with a 8- by 13-inch sheet of parchment paper so that parchment hangs over long sides of pan, forming a sling. Grease exposed sides of parchment paper, then dust with flour, making sure to lightly coat bottom and sides; carefully tap out excess flour. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 375°F (190°C). In a small bowl, whisk flour and baking powder until well combined, at least 30 seconds; set bowl aside. In a medium bowl, whisk miso and butter until miso is broken up. Whisk in roughly 2 tablespoons of milk until mixture is smooth and no lumps remain, about 30 seconds. Whisk in remaining milk until smooth; set aside. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whisk eggs and sugar at medium speed until pale and glossy, 60 to 90 seconds. (Alternatively, beat eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl using an electric handheld mixer or a whisk, about 90 seconds for the electric mixer and 2 minutes for the whisk.) Whisk in half of flour mixture until just combined. Whisk in milk mixture, followed by remaining flour mixture, until no lumps remain. Using a large rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir apples into batter until evenly coated. Arrange apple slices in prepared loaf pan in an overlapping pattern, making sure flat sides of apples are flush with edges of pan (as you work, reserve largest, nicest apple slices for top layer; you'll need roughly 40 to 50 slices for it). Continue arranging apples in even layers until apples are 1/2 inch from top; press apples down to evenly distribute. Arrange final layer of apples in horizontal, shingled pattern. Scrape remaining batter into pan, making sure to leave 1/4 inch space from top; gently tap pan to knock out air pockets and distribute batter. Set loaf pan on middle rack of oven and slide a rimmed baking sheet on rack underneath to catch any drips. Bake until top is golden brown and domed and a cake tester or toothpick inserted into center meets little resistance and comes out clean, 65 to 75 minutes; rotate pan one time halfway through baking. Transfer cake to wire rack and cool for 10 minutes; loosen sides with butter knife or offset spatula. Cool cake in pan to about 140°F (60°C), about 2 hours. Then lift loaf using overhanging parchment and transfer to a cutting board. Let cake cool completely before slicing, about 1 hour longer. Meanwhile, for the Caramel: In a 3-quart stainless steel saucier, combine water and sugar over medium heat. Stir with a fork until syrup comes to a boil, about 4 minutes, then simmer without stirring until syrup is honey-colored, roughly 5 minutes, shaking and swirling as needed to ensure even caramelization. Continue cooking until syrup is light to medium amber, about 1 minute longer. Immediately add cream and reduce heat to medium-low. Stirring constantly with a heat-resistant spatula to knock back the foam, simmer until caramel registers 225°F (107°C) on a digital thermometer, about 3 minutes. Off heat, whisk in miso until smooth and combined. Transfer sauce to a heat-safe container. To serve, using a serrated knife, cut cake into 1-inch thick slices and serve with warm or room temperature caramel. Special Equipment 8 1/2- by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan Notes: White (shiro) miso works best with this recipe; darker misos such as red miso, awase miso, or barley miso will yield a more savory cake, and could yield a darker caramel sauce. I tested this recipe with Fuji apples, Pink Lady apples, Lady Alice apples, Granny Smith apples, and Golden Delicious apples; I prefer Fuji, Pink Lady, or Lady Alice, but different apples may produce slightly different textures and flavors. When assembling the cake, you can quickly pour in all of the apples and batter, but the resulting cake will not be as uniform in appearance. Because of variation in the shape of the apples, the amount of apples that will fit into the pan may vary. When purchasing apples, buy a few extra in order to fill the pan if necessary. You can slice the apples between 1/16 of an inch up to 1/8 of an inch; the thinner you slice the apples, the more layers you will get in the cake and the more cohesive the baked cake will be, though you have to weigh that against the more tedious layering process of thinner slices. Make-Ahead and Storage The cake can be stored, covered, at room temperature for up to 1 day. The caramel can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 7 days; gently rewarm to a pourable consistency before using.
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