Apple Betty

The epitome of comfort food inspired by a dish served at a dude ranch on Lake Sherman in the Adirondacks.

Ridin’ Hy Apple Betty
6 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced
juice of ½ lemon
2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp white granulated sugar
1 box yellow cake mix
2 cups oatmeal
1 cup brown sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 sticks butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix apples and lemon in a large bowl. Toss with the cinnamon and sugar. In another bowl, mix together the cake mix, oatmeal, brown sugar and salt. Stir in the butter.

Distribute apples in an oiled 13x9” baking pan. Crumble topping evenly on top of apples.

Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until apples are bubbly and topping is browned.

Boxing Day Soups

Cold. Tired of Christmas Cheer. Need something warm and soothing. Invite 25 people over and serve them Mexican soups. They’ll smile. You’ll smile.

Pork Posole
Don’t kid yourself, this soup takes time – like the best soups or stews, it should be started the day before to mature flavors and allow you to cool the soup and completely remove all the fat – this is a post-Christmas recipe; it’s supposed to be healthful – so get to work! Posole is corn soaked and softened with alkali (hominy) or, also known as a stew made with pork and, well posole.

1 4-lb pork shoulder roast
1 large onion, diced
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp dried oregano
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb tomatillos, peeled and quartered
1 15-oz can hominy
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, chopped
1 can chopped mild green chilies

Preheat oven to 400F on Christmas afternoon. In a large Dutch oven sear the pork roast in a bit of canola oil, browning all sides. Toss in the onions, cumin and fennel halfway through browning the meat, stirring often. Sprinkle with oregano. Transfer to the oven and bake for 1 hour, skin-side up. Add a bit of water if onions dry out too much.

Now transfer Dutch oven to the stovetop and add the garlic. Sauté 2 to 3 minutes over medium heat, until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add 2 quarts water and the tomatillos and bring to a boil. You may need to cut the roast up a bit to make sure all the meat is submerged in liquid. Cover and cook for another hour or so – stirring often.

Remove the meat and allow to cool enough handle. Pull the pork apart along the grain. Strain the stock and refrigerate for several hours, until the fat solidifies on the surface – don’t worry, you’re gonna get rid of it all! Now scrape all the fat away (use a large sharp metal cooking spoon) from the surface and discard. Return the meat to the stock and add the hominy, chipotle and chilies. Reheat to a simmer and cook at least another half hour – the longer the better. Serve with tortillas.

Mexican Gulf Shrimp Soup
The secret to this soup is roasting the shrimp shells. This is inspired by a wonderful shrimp soup of friends Caren and Eric – but ‘souped’ up with Southwestern flavors. Serves 8.

2 lbs shrimp, peeled (shells well-drained and reserved)
2 quarts water (or chicken stock)
1 red pepper, diced
1 orange pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup rice
1/2 can diced green chilies
2 stalks green onion, finely diced
fresh nutmeg

In a soup pot, sauté shrimp shells in 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat, stirring often, until very fragrant – at least 10-15 minutes. Add water (or stock) and bring to a boil. Return to a simmer, and cook for an hour. Strain and reserve stock.

Meanwhile sauté the peppers in a bit of olive oil, until softened and browned. Add the garlic for the last 1-2 minutes, until fragrant. Return the stock to a large soup pot and add the rice and the peeled shrimp. Salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook another 20 minutes. Add the peppers, chilies, green onions and nutmeg, and cook another minute or two.

Beans, Greens and Grains

These ingredients are great together in a soup, stew or ragout – whatever you want to name it. The beans and grains complement each other to produce complete protein, and the greens pack mega vitamins, minerals and great taste. What more could you ask – especially in winter?

A recurring theme in these dishes is a mix of green lentils with red lentils for body and a grain like wheat berry or barley for texture – this makes for a rich vegetarian ragout.

Cajun Chickpea Stew with Sweet Potato and Okra
1 large onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp Cajun spice mix (such as Emeril’s Essence)
1 quart chicken or vegetable stock
2-3 cups water
¼ cup green lentils
¼ cup red lentils
2 Tbsp pearl barley
1 15-0z can Chickpeas
1 medium sweet potato
½ lb frozen okra

Sauté the onion, pepper, carrot and celery in a bit of olive oil in a soup pot. For about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are softened and beginning to caramelize. Add the garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes. Add the spice mix, stock, water, lentils and barley and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, peel and dice the sweet potato to ¼ to ½ inch pieces. When 20 minutes are up, add the potatoes, along with the chickpeas to the stew. Return to a boil, stir and reduce heat to a simmer. Add more water if necessary. Cook another 20 minutes, or until the sweet potato is tender. Add the okra and cook just enough to heat it through. Salt and pepper to taste.


Curry Bean and Collard Green Stew
2 stalks celery
2 carrots, sliced
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
¼ cup green lentils
¼ cup red lentils
¼ cup soft winter wheat berries
2 tsp hot curry powder
1 tsp chili powder
1 quart chicken stock
1-2 cups water
1 large can beans (mixed)
1 potato, diced
1 bunch collard greens, stems removed and chopped

In a soup pot, sauté the celery, carrot and onions in a bit of olive oil until vegetables begin to brown and soften, about 8-10 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin and fennel and cook another 1-2 minutes. Add the lentils, wheat berries, curry and chili powder. Pour in the stock and water, and cook for 30 minutes. Add the beans, potato and the collard greens and cook for another 20 minutes.


Kidney Bean and Mustard Green Ragout
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, sliced
¼ cup frozen corn kernels
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried sage
½ tsp red pepper flakes
1 14½-oz can diced tomatoes, strained and juices reserved
1 quart good low-salt chicken stock
1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
1 bunch mustard greens, trimmed of thick stalks, and coarsely chopped
1 15-oz can light red kidney beans
1/3 cup rice

In a soup pot, sauté the onions, garlic and corn in a bit of olive oil until corn begins to brown and onions soften, about 8 minutes. Add the oregano, sage and red pepper flakes and cook another 1-2 minutes. Add the strained diced tomatoes and another 1-2 tablespoons of good olive oil to be sure the tomatoes bronze rather than boil! Cook another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have dried out and have left a nice tasty bronzed glaze in corners of the pot – this is flavor! Add the chicken stock, reserved tomato juice and vinegar, and bring to a boil. Add the mustard greens and beans. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until greens wilt, about 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the rice, stir well and cook another 20 minutes until the rice is tender.

The Allure of Rotisserie Chicken

I am sure at one point or another you have walked into your local grocery store and have gotten hit by the inticing smell of grilling rotisserie chickens. Enough is enough. I got my own home rotisserie unit (a small George Foreman unit) and have developed several nice dry rubs to prepare rotisserie chickens. And it works beautifully.

If you can, cover the chicken with the dry rub the day before, although an hour is very effective. No matter what, a small (3.5-4 lb.) chicken is ready in an hour or so, and your kitchen will smell out-of-this world!

Rotisserie Chicken
1 3-4 lb whole chicken

Dry rub mix:
1 rounded Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp onion powder
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp chili powder
½ tsp Cayenne pepper
2 Tbsp coarse salt
2 tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp Allspice

Mix the dry rub together in a very large bowl. Rinse and dry the chicken, and truss with string tightly so the bird does not flop while turning in the rotisserie. Toss the chicken generously with the rub, making sure that rub mix gets into all the nooks and crannies of the whole bird. Let it stand at least one hour – or overnight – as much as you can. Skewer chicken onto rack of your rotisserie device and rotisserie for about 1-1½ hrs. depending on the size. Let sit for 15 minutes before carving to let juices redistribute.

This roasted acorn squash goes very well with broiled or rotisserie chicken. The skin is so tender you can eat it as well.

Roasted Acorn Squash
1 whole acorn squash
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp coarse salt
1 Tbsp dried crushed rosemary
1 Tbsp brown sugar

Preheat oven to 450F. Slice acorn squash in half and scoop out and discard the seeds. Slice into serving-sized chunks. Turn into a large bowl and mix with oil, rosemary, salt and sugar. Tip into jelly-roll pan. Roast for about 20 minutes, until brown and bubbling.

A Monster Tofu Quiche

Quiche Loraine - move over!
Munster Quiche Tofu
1 9-inch pie crust*
1 14-oz brick tofu, drained, and cut to ½-¾ inch dice
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
6 eggs
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 cup milk
½ tsp dried dill weed
1 tsp dried tarragon
¼ lb Munster cheese, grated, about 1 cup
4 green onions, sliced

Preheat oven to 425F. Lay the crust into a 9-inch pie plate. Meanwhile sauté the tofu in a large non-stick skillet in a bit of olive oil, over medium-high heat. Sprinkle with the onion and garlic powder as you stir fry, for about 10 minutes, until the tofu gets really browned and a bit crispy. Salt and pepper to taste.

Whisk in the eggs, mustard, milk, dill and tarragon together. Tip the tofu into the pie crust. Sprinkle the cheese evenly on top. Pour the eggs evenly on top of the tofu-cheese mixture. Top with the green onion.

Bake for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 and cook another 30 minutes.






* for pie crust use half of this recipe: http://cuisineici.blogspot.com/2008/11/apple-pie.html.