Baked Apples With Chestnut Puree & Cocoa Nibs

How exciting to find chestnuts at the Main Street Farmer's Market!  The Chattanooga Chestnut Tree Project is lead by UTC agriculture researchers who are working to restore the American Chestnut to the lower Appalachian region, while also supporting farmers who are looking for improved cultivars to grow in local chestnut orchards. These local beauties inspired a delicious afternoon snack or light dessert when paired with  this season's apple harvest.  You can use the chestnut puree as a dip for freshly sliced apples, or dress it up as a baked dessert. Either way, they pair well as a tasty seasonal treat.

Chestnut Puree: 1 lb fresh chestnuts 1-2 teaspoons local honey 1 1/2 cups milk, cream or coconut milk Juice from 1/2 lemon Freshly grated nutmeg (about 1/8 of a nut) Dash of ground ginger Dash of cloves Pinch of salt

Cut the chestnuts in half across the widest part and place in a saucepan.  Cover with water and boil for about 20 minutes.  The skins should slip off or peel easily.  Once the skins are removed, place the chestnuts in a blender or food processor, along with the other ingredients.  Puree until smooth.  Adjust spices, honey or lemon to taste.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice the apples (peel if desired) and place in a lightly oiled or buttered glass baking dish.  Bake until tender (about 15-20 minutes).  Serve warm with chestnut puree, drizzled honey and a sprinkle of cocoa nibs (can be found at Greenlife or Earth Fare).

Moroccan Spiced Butternut Squash & Red Lentil Soup

This soup is an absolute staple for fall.  I have had the most basic version of butternut squash soup, which is essentially boiled squash, onions and broth, pureed until smooth.  That soup is satisfying and delicious, But when you spice it up, toss in some fresh aromatics, and add some red lentils for protein, the whole thing goes to another level. This is a delicious, warm, and filling soup.

Ingredients:

One large butternut squash

Moroccan spice blend (see below)

1 1/2 cups red lentils

3 leeks

3 cubes of Rapunzel vegan vegetable bouillon with sea salt and herbs

a 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated 1-2 stalks of fresh lemongrass (optional) Chop if tender, or leave whole and remove before pureeing if it's woody and tough

5-6 cloves of garlic, minced

1-2 cups of diced tomato

1 bunch of fresh cilantro

Juice from 1-2 lemons

 

Moroccan Spices:

This is basically the same as the Ras-El-Hanout blend on Epicurious.com, with a few minor changes. Whisk together spices that are already ground, or use whole and grind in a clean coffee grinder or spice grinder. Keep in mind that you may need less of the spice blend if the spices are freshly ground. The Neo Masala Indian Spice Blend by Alchemy Spice is very similar to this one, and can be used as a substitute if you don't have time to blend your own. 1/2 tsp each of the following:

Cumin

Sea salt

Black pepper

Fenugreek

Turmeric 1/4 tsp each of the following:

Cinnamon

Coriander

Cayenne

Allspice

Cloves

 

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Peel, seed and cut the butternut squash into cubes and place on a baking sheet. Toss with some oil and sprinkle some of the Moroccan spices over the cubes and roast in the oven until the tips begin to turn dark brown.

 

Meanwhile, trim the green parts from the leeks and chop the tender white parts. Place in a large stock pot with some oil. Saute on medium-high heat until tender. Add the lemongrass, garlic, ginger, stock cubes, lentils, and 2 tablespoons of the spice blend. Stir until combined, then add 8-10 cups of water. Stir occasionally. Allow to boil a few minutes, then reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are very tender. When the lentils are cooked completely, add the cooked butternut squash. Remove from heat and let cool enough to puree safely. Remove the lemongrass stalks if they are whole. Either with an immersion blender or standard blender, puree the soup until smooth.

 

After the soup is pureed, warm through on low heat. Stir in the diced tomato, chopped cilantro and lemon juice. Add water if too thick. Season with more salt or spices to taste.

Fall Market Salad With Caramelized Onions, Bacon & Blue Cheese

This selection of salad greens are all in a bitter/sour flavor family. Alone, they might be challenging for some to enjoy.  But when they share a plate with sweet onions and apples, and rich and salty bacon and blue cheese, the flavors are perfectly balanced.  There is no need for a fussy salad dressing when your mouth lights up with all of this flavor.  A good oil and vinegar drizzle before serving is all it needs.

Ingredients: One head of pac choi, stems and greens chopped 2 cups of arugula 1 bunch of radish greens 1 bunch of radishes, sliced 1 golden delicious apple, sliced 1 lb link 41 bacon, cooked crispy 3-4 sweet onions, sliced and caramelized until golden brown. (See recipe for Caramelized Onions) Roquefort or Stilton blue cheese Olive oil Golden balsamic vinegar, or your favorite sweet light vinegar

Method: Slice and caramelize the onions.  See recipe for Caramelized Onions for instructions. Let cool. Cook the bacon until crispy and let rest on a paper towel to blot the grease. Wash the greens, arugula and pac choi.  Chop or tear the leaves to the desired size.  Chop or slice the pac choi stems, the radishes and the apples.  Assemble the vegetables and apples, then top with caramelized onions, crumbled bacon and blue cheese.  Drizzle a little olive oil and golden balsamic vinegar on top and serve.

Tacos With Cooked Greens & Smokey Sofrito Sauce

Ingredients 1 package of soft corn tortillas 1 lb chicken breasts, tenders or thighs 1 bunch lacinato or red kale, washed and sliced thinly. 3-4 banana peppers, sliced 1 tomato, diced 1 bunch cilantro, chopped 3-4 green onions, chopped Sliced avocado, or 1 recipe for Auntie's Guacamole (optional) 2 limes Sea salt & Pepper

Smokey Sofrito Sauce: 1 large sweet red pepper 1 small sweet onion 1 medium tomato 6 cloves of garlic 1 Tbs vinegar 1 tsp local honey 1 Tbs smoked serano chili powder, or another smoked chili powder Sea salt

Method: Prepare the Smokey Sofrito Sauce first.  You can do this a day or two in advance if necessary.  Cut the sweet pepper in half, and remove the stem and seeds.  Cut the onion in half and peel the dry outer layers.  Cut the tomato in half, remove the hard core from the stem end.  Place the pepper halves, onion halves and tomato halves on a hot barbecue grill or under a broiler.  Cook until the skins begin to blister and turn black. Turn and cook the other side the same way.  Remove from the grill and let cool.  Place the vegetables in a blender with the peeled cloves of garlic, vinegar, honey, and chili powder.  Puree until smooth, and adjust seasonings to taste. Refrigerate unused portions.

To prepare the chicken, rinse and pat dry with paper towel. Season with salt and pepper.  Heat some oil in the bottom of a heavy skillet and brown the chicken until it is golden and crispy on the outside.  Remove from the pan and let cool. Meanwhile, put the chopped kale in the same skillet where the chicken cooked and saute until it wilts, while also dislodging the chicken fond that is stuck to the pan.  Add a little salt and some good apple cider vinegar to the kale.  Cook for one minute more, then remove from the pan. Shred the chicken with a fork.  Place in a bowl and toss with the chopped cilantro, juice from two limes and a little olive oil if the chicken seems dry.  You can also add some of the sofrito sauce if you want more flavor.

Brush the corn tortillas with a little oil and heat in a clean skillet, one or two at a time, and on both sides.  Layer the ingredients on the tortillas and serve with warm or cold smokey sofrito sauce.

Hearty Homemade Pot Stickers

I should preface this post with saying that I'm not a professional pot sticker-maker.  Actually, this was my first time.  I was staring at a bag of frozen pot stickers from Costco, and looking at my bag of freshly milled flour from Sonrisa Farm, and thought to myself, "I could do this...and I bet it would be better because it's fresh, whole-wheat, and full of local goodies." So I gave it a whirl.  I was surprised at how easy it is to make homemade pot stickers, and in case I miss the convenience of pulling them out of the freezer for a quick meal: This recipe made enough for filling our bellies and the freezer.

Filling: 1 lb ground pork, chicken, or pressed tofu 1 head of napa cabbage 1 bunch green onions, chopped 1-2 tbs grated fresh ginger 6 garlic cloves, minced 1 Tbs toasted sesame oil 1 Tbs soy sauce 1 Tbs Mirin (or can use honey and rice vinegar) 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Dough: 1 lb (3 cups) Sonrisa Farm stone ground whole wheat flour 1 tsp salt (optional) 1 cup warm water

Sauce: 1 recipe for Teriyaki Marinade and Stir Fry Sauce (or make a simple dipping sauce with rice vinegar, honey, soy sauce and garlic)

Method: Wash and thinly slice the napa cabbage.  Place in a bowl and salt generously to draw out the moisture.  Let stand for about 15 minutes. When the cabbage has wilted, squeeze out the moisture (you can use your hands or wrap it in cheesecloth or strong paper towels).  Place the cabbage in a large bowl with the ground meat or tofu and the remaining ingredients.  Mix well with your hands so the ingredients are thoroughly combined.  If you want to test the mixture for flavor balance beforehand (which I recommend, because the strength of your ginger and garlic can vary), cook a spoonful of the mixture in oil or water for about 5 minutes.  Adjust seasonings to the filling as necessary. Cover and refrigerate until the dough is ready.

To prepare the dough, mix the salt into the flour and slowly add the warm water while stirring with a fork.  When the ingredients are combined the dough will feel quite firm (harder than a pizza dough, softer than pasta dough).  Let rest for 10 minutes.  Then begin to knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until the texture is uniform.  Pinch off one-inch cube pieces of dough (or less if you want smaller pot stickers), roll into a firm ball and set aside until you have portioned out all of the dough.  With a rolling pin, flatten and turn the dough until you have made a circle a bit larger than the palm of your hand.  It may stick to your rolling pin a bit, but should peel off easily.  You can use a little flour for dusting the board and pin, but be careful to not use too much or the pot stickers may not seal easily.  If you have someone to help with the filling and sealing, the process can go quite quickly.

Put a spoon or two of the filling in the center of the disc of dough and stretch the dough around the filling and pinch the sides together across the top.  Place the pot stickers in a heated, well-oiled, non-stick skillet with enough water to cover the bottoms of the pot stickers by about 1/3.  Cover with a lid and steam for 15 minutes. Serve with Teriyaki sauce or a simple dipping sauce.  If you want to freeze extras, place the uncooked pot stickers on a baking sheet covered with waxed or parchment paper and freeze.  Once frozen, place in a freezer-proof bag or container.  Cook as directed above.