October 20, 2011: Slow Cooker Rathskeller Pork Recipe

Today’s recipe comes from an old cookbook called Crockery Cookery by Mabel Hoffman. The name rathskeller refers to a German bar or restaurant selling beer. I could easily imagine this dish being one served in a traditional German setting. I’ve made some adjustments, as usual, to not only include ingredients I had on hand, but to make it lighter and brighter. Use my homemade cream of asparagus soup recipe for the best flavor, color and texture.

Slow Cooker Rathskeller Pork

1 t. vegetable oil

4 bone-in pork chops

Garlic salt and pepper

2 cups cream of asparagus soup (preferably fresh but you can substitute one can)

4 green onions, white and green parts chopped

1 T. finely chopped fresh dill weed

4 small potatoes, thinly sliced

½ head of green or Napa (Chinese) cabbage, thinly sliced or shredded

1/3 cup heavy cream

Sprinkle pork chops on both sides with garlic salt and pepper. Brown pork chops in oil (do this in your slow cooker if it has a high setting or in a skillet if not). Make two layers of the pork chops, potatoes, green onions, dill and cabbage. Pour cream of asparagus soup over all. Cover and cook on low 5 – 6 hours. A half hour before serving, add the cream and increase heat to high. Leave uncovered and cook for an additional half hour.

Serves 4

Rathskeller Pork served with pickled okra and biscuits (dumplings would be a traditional German side).

October 9, 2011: Cream of Squash Soup Recipe

Earlier this month I shared with you a picture of how I used my unusual squashes as an autumn table decoration. Well…I just couldn’t allow all those good gourds to go to waste. I selected the acorn squash and whipped up this tasty soup one night for dinner. Because the texture is not indicative of squash, even my picky husband ate it without complaint.

Cream of Squash Soup

1 acorn squash (or other type of firm fleshed squash such as butternut)

1 cup cauliflower florets

3 sprigs fresh dill weed

3 – 4 cups chicken broth, divided

2 T. butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ t. nutmeg

½ t. cayenne

½ cup heavy cream

Cut the squash in half; scoop out seeds. Cut into large chunks. Add squash, cauliflower and dill to a sauce pot. Cover with chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and boil gently for about 20 minutes, until squash and cauliflower are soft. Remove from heat. When cool enough to handle, remove peel from squash. Add squash and cauliflower in the broth to a blender or food processor; puree.

Meanwhile, in the same pot melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute, just until garlic is softened. Add the pureed squash mixture, nutmeg and cayenne. Heat through. Add cream and cook over low just until heated all the way through. Garnish with sprigs of dill, cracked black pepper and swirls of cream.

Tip: To make a design with the cream, gently dribble cream in circles across the top of the soup in a bowl. Use the tip of a knife or a toothpick to run through the cream, making a design.

For a bit of crunch, top soup with freshly made croutons.

August 22, 2011: Crunchy Kosher Style Dill Pickle Recipe

I just learned how to can foods last year. My dear friend Margaret patiently showed me how to do it. That one time was all it took for me to become passionate about canning fresh foods. I made pickles from some big, fat cucumbers our friend Darrell shared with us but they turned out awful! The flavor was good, but they weren’t crisp and the skin was tough.

So this year I decided I’d try again. Armed with the knowledge of what went wrong last time, I bought the proper type of cucumbers from the farmer’s market, and made sure that I processed the cans for the minimal amount of time in a boiling water bath. It’s going to be a few weeks before all the flavors are absorbed into the cukes, so I can’t tell you for sure whether these are better than last year’s batch, but they already look better and I’m sure they’re going to be flavorful thanks to all the extra spices I added.

Crunchy Kosher Style Dill Pickles

2 ½ pounds pickle cucumbers (the kind with spiny knobs on the skin)

3 cups water

2 ½ cups vinegar

2 ½ ounces kosher dill pickle spice mix (I used Ball brand and it contains salt so you don't need to add extra)

10 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

20 black peppercorns

10 sprigs dill weed

10 small sprigs fennel

Clean and slice cucumbers into spears or chips. Place in a large bowl and cover with ice water. Put in the refrigerator overnight.

The next day, sterilize 10 pint-sized jars. Place the water, vinegar, dill pickle mix, and garlic cloves in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

In each jar, place as many of the cold cucumber spears as will fit. Add one garlic clove (strained from the vinegar mixture), two peppercorns, one sprig dill and one tiny sprig fennel. Pour in the boiled vinegar mixture to one-half inch from the top of the jars.

Prepare a large canning pot with bottom tray by adding water to the halfway mark and bringing to a boil.

Clean the rims of each jar and top with a lid; screw a band on each to finger tightness.

Using a jar vice, carefully place the jars of pickles in your canning pot. Make sure the boiling water covers the lids by half an inch; if necessary add more boiling water. Cover the pot and process for 10 to 20 minutes (10 minutes at low altitudes, 20 minutes for altitudes above 6,000 feet). When processing is complete, turn off the heat and uncover the canning pot. Use your jar vice to remove the pickle jars. Set them on a cloth on a table and let rest for at least 12 hours before moving.

Allow 3 to 4 weeks for flavors to penetrate the cucumbers before eating.