Apple-Pecan Scones With Brown Butter Sauce
The Farmer's Daughter Bakes, by Kelsey Siemens
Ingredients
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 t baking soda
- 2 t baking powder
- ¼ t salt
- ½ t ground cinnamon
- ½ cup unsalted butter, chilled
- 1 cup peeled and chopped tart apple (cook's note: too moist, use ¾ cup!)
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- ½ cup whole milk, plus extra for topping
- 1 large egg
- 1 t vanilla extract
- Course sugar
For the Scones:
Prepare the oven to 400 degrees. Line a 10 x 15-inch baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cream of tartar, salt, cinnamon and brown sugar. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or a fork. Work until the butter pieces are all about the size of a pea. Add the apple and pecan pieces and toss. Place the bowl in the freezer to keep cold.
In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, egg and vanilla extract together until fully mixed. Remove the bowl from the freezer and pour the wet ingredients over top. Gently stir together until a shaggy dough forms. Pour onto a clean counter and gently press the dough together. For large scones, press into an 8-inch wide circle and cut into 8 triangles. For small scones, divide the dough into two 5-inch circles and cut each into 6 scones. Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle with course sugar for some sparkle and texture. Bake until the scone tops are light brown. For large scones, bake for 18 to 20 minutes, and for smaller scones, bake for 16 to 18 minutes. I always recommend bakingh a test scone to make sure the bake time is right.
For the Glaze:
While the scones are baking, make the glaze. In a medium bowl, whisk together the browned butter (cook over medium heat until butter bubbles and takes on a golden brown color), powdered sugar and vanilla. Add 1 to 2 T of milk to thin if necessary. Drizzle the glaze over the hot scones to encourage the glaze to soak in, or wait until the scones have cooled more. Best served slightly warm. These will keep in an airtight container for 1 to 2 days or can be frozen for 2 to 3 months. Thaw and warm to serve.
Chocolate Raspberry Pie
Taste of Home Cookbook
cook's note: this is a time-consuming recipe so don't wait til the last minute to make!
Ingredients
- 1 unbaked pastry shell, 9 inches
- 3 T sugar
- 1 T cornstarch
- 2 cups unsweetened raspberries
- 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 t vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup whipping cream, whipped
- 2 squares (1 ounce each) semisweet chocolate
- 3 T butter or margarine
For the Shell:
Line unpricked pastry shell with a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Bake at 450 degrees for 8 minutes. Remove foil; bake 5 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack. In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir in raspberries; bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; cool for 15 minutes. Spread into pastry shell; refrigerate.
For the Filling:
In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Fold in the whipped cream. Carefully spread over the raspberry layer. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
For the Topping:
Melt chocolate and butter; cool for 4-5 minutes. Pour over the filling. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours. Store in the refrigerator.
Corn Chowder
The Best of Shaker Cooking by Amy Bess Miller and Persis Fuller
Ingredients
- 4 T diced bacon
- 1 T butter
- 1 medium onion, sliced (cook's note: I added one green onion as well)
- 3 potatoes, peeled and finely diced
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 cups corn scraped from cob or 2 cups canned "home style" corn
- 4 cups whole milk (cook's note: I used 3)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 T butter
Fry bacon in butter, remove pieces when crispy and reserve. Add onion to fat and saute until golden. Add potatoes and stock and cook slowly until soft. Add corn and milk, lower heat, and simmer until corn is tender. Young corn takes 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper, bring to a boil and remove from heat. Add cream and butter. Stir up well and pour into soup bowls or tureen. Float bacon on top. (Cook's note: I added 1 carrot and 1 stalk of celery and cooked these in the bacon with the onion. I also added ½ t thyme, ½ t paprika and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese)
Zucchini Sauce Pasta
Half-Baked Harvest Every Day by Tieghan Gerard
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta
- 3 T extra-virgin olive oil
- 2-3 medium zucchini and/or yellow summer squash (about 1 pound), sliced
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 T salted butter
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
- 2 t dried oregano
- Crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup basil pesto (cook's note: I used 1/4 cup)
- 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh basil, roughly chopped, plus more for garnish (cook's note: I used 1/2 cup)
- Fresh lemon juice for serving (cook's note: I used 1/2 a lemon)
Instructions:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook pasta until al dente, according to the package instructions. Reserve 1 cup of hte pasta cooking water then drain teh pasta and add it aback to the hot pot. Menawhile, heat hte olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the zucchini and season with salt and black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, untilthe zucchini is soft and lightly golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in tihe b utter, garlic, oregano, and a punch of red pepper flakes. Coook until the butter is melted and the herbs are fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and dump the zucchini into the pot of pasta. Add the basil peso and parmesan, and toss to melt the cheese, about 2 minutes. Add pasta cooking water, 2 T at a time, as needed to thin the sauce. Stir in teh basil to wilt. Serve immediately, topped with lemon juice if desired and more basil.
NOTE: If you prefer a smoother sauce, you can give yoru succhini a blast in the food processor or hit it with an immersion blender.
Beet Soup
Asparagus to Zucchini by The Fairshare CSA Coalition
Ingredients
- 4 large beets
- 1 large potato
- other vegetables: celery, spinach , carrots, kale, chard, etc., as desired
- 1 large onion
- salt and pepper to taste
- plain yogurt for garnish
Wash all vegetables and cut into chunks. Place in alarge steamer over boiling water; steam until very soft. Using the water from teh steamer, and any other stock or water as needed, blend cooked vegetables until very smooth and thick. Return to pot; heat gently to avoid sticking. Add salt and pepper. Serve each bowl with a generous poertion of yogurt in the center of the soup.
Caramelized Ratatouille
The Dane County Farmers' Market Cookbook by Terese Allen
Ingredients
- 8 T olive oil, divided
- 3 medium globe eggplants (peeled or unpeeled)
- 3 medium sweet red peppers, seeded
- 3 medium zucchini (a mix of yellow oand green is nice)
- 4 medium tomatoes, cored
- 2-3 medium yellow onions
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1/2 cup finely minced basil leaves (parsely and dill can also be nice additions)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Use 2 T of the olive oil to oil 2 large baking sheets, Cut eggplant, peppers, zucchini and tomatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. Finely chop hte onions and mince the garlic. Gently toss the vegetables, agarlic, herbs and remaining 6 T olive oil in an extra-large bowl until well coated.
Spread mixture out evenly in a single layer on the two baking sheets. Bake 30 minutes then remove pan from oven and gently toss mixture. Bake for another 30 minutes. Transfer to a large serving dish and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.
Persian Tomato and Cucumber Salad (Shirazi Salad)
Milk Street by Christopher Kimball
Ingredients
- 1 English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into 1-inch pieces
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced on toeh diagonal, white and green parts reserved separately
- 1 medium garlic clove, finely grated
- 1 T dried mint
- 1 t grated lime zest, plus 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 T extra-virgin olive oil (optional)
In a large colander, combine the cucumber andtomatoes, then set in the sink. Sprinkle with 1 t salt and gently toss to combine. Let stand for 20 minutes, tossing once or twice to encourage the liquid to drain. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the scallion whites and 1/4 t salt, then use your hands to gently rub the salt into the scallions until slightly softened and wilted. Stir in the garlic, mint and lime zest and juice; set aside until the cucumbers and tomatoes are ready. Transfer the cucumbers and tomatoes to teh bowl with the scallion whites. Add 1/2 t pepper, the scallion greens and cilantro and toss. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Then drizzle with the oil (if using).
Feta-Dill Zucchini Bread
Everyday Bread: 100 Recipes for Baking Bread on Your Schedule by America's Test Kitchen
Ingredients
- 1 pound zucchini, shredded
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup whole-wheat flour
- 2 t baking powder
- 1 t baking soda
- ½ t pepper
- ½ t salt
- 3 large eggs
- 7 T unsalted butter, melted, divided
- 6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
- ½ cup chopped fresh dill
Instructions:
Adjust rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 8½ by 4½ inch loaf pan.
Place zucchini in a dish towel. Gather ends together and twist tightly over sink to drain as much liquid as possible.
Whisk all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, pepper an dsalt together in large bowl. Whisk eggs and 5 T melted butter together in medium bowl then add zucchini, feta, and dill. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold zucchini mixture into flour mixture then lightly knead batter, using oiled hands, until no dry spots remain (batter will be very thick). Transfer to a prepared pan, smooth top with rubber spatula, and brush with remaining 1 T melted butter.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, approximately 1 hour, rotating halfway through baking. Cool on a wire rack at least 30 minutes then remove bread from pan and let cool completely on rack for about 1½ hours. Slice and serve.
Cook's note: This is delicious with "feta butter" which can be made by whipping together equal parts room temperature butter with feta cheese.
