November 23, 2011: Sweet Potato, Cheddar and Cider Gratin Recipe

I’m not a fan of gooey, super sweet yams with marshmallows on top. There, I’ve said it.

Unfortunately, my husband loves my DMIL’s recipe for yams in a buttery, sugary sauce. At least there’s no marshmallows on top, but for my tastes it is just too sweet.

If you’re like me, you’re going to love this savory sweet potato casserole for your Thanksgiving meal.

Sweet Potato, Cheddar and Cider Gratin

4 T. olive oil

2 large onions (sweet Vidalia or white), peeled and thinly sliced

2 – 2 ½ lbs. sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and thinly sliced

½ pound cheddar cheese (extra sharp or smoked)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Ground nutmeg to taste

1 ½ cups apple cider

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush one tablespoon of olive oil over bottom and sides of a 13x9 inch baking pan.

Heat remaining oil in large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until soft, about 15 minutes.

To make the gratin, make alternating layers of onion, sweet potatoes and cheese in prepared pan. Sprinkle each layer with salt, pepper and nutmeg. End layers with sweet potatoes on top and reserve last t bit of cheese. Pour cider over all.

Cover pan and bake for ½ to one hour, until vegetables are quite tender when pierced with a knife. Uncover and bake another half hour. During final 15 minutes of baking, add reserved cheese.

Serves 8 to 10

October 22, 2011: Cheddar Puffs With Apple Filling Recipe

Today we’ve got a high tea event planned for the women of our church. We did this last year and held the event at Kathy’s house, which is decorated like a very feminine, floral B&B so it’s perfect for this type of ladies’ event.

I was tasked with making dessert. As usual, I wanted something different and I’d clipped this recipe recently from The Arizona Republic. Since October is National Apple Month, I thought it would perfect.

Apple Cheddar Puffs

For the puffs:

1 cup water

6 T. butter (or 6 T. butter plus 1 t. salt)

1 1/3 cups flour

5 eggs

1 cup grated extra sharp cheddar cheese

For the filling:

4 sweet apples, such as Golden Delicious (I used Fiji)

¼ cup sugar

1 t. freshly grated ginger (I used minced jarred ginger)

1 T. lemon juice

Pinch of salt

½ cup water divided

1 T. cornstarch

Heave oven to 425 degrees. Line one large or two smaller baking sheets with parchment (the puff recipe will make 1 ½ - 2 dozen, depending on how large you make each one).

In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, bring the water and butter to a boil. Add the flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a ball of dough, about 1 minute.

Transfer the dough to the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix with paddle attachment for one minute. Add the eggs, one at a time, waiting until fully incorporated before adding the next. When all the eggs have been added, mix in the cheese on low speed.

Spoon the mixture into a gallon size sealable plastic bag or pastry bag. Cut off the corner if using a storage bag and seal the top. Gently squeeze the bag to create walnut-size mounds on the prepared baking sheets, leaving at least one inch between each. Note: I made mine bigger and they were just fine; easier to fill.

Bake for 10 minutes, then lower the oven to 375 degrees and bake for another 15 minutes, until golden brown.

Remove puffs from the oven and pierce the side of each to let the steam escape. Cool completely, then use or store in an airtight container up to 24 hours. Note: you need to allow them to cool completely before storing so they don’t get soggy.

Meanwhile, make the filling by combining the apples, sugar, ginger, lemon juice, salt and 2 tablespoons of the water in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until apples are tender, about 15 minutes. In a small bowl, combine remaining water and cornstarch; add to the apple mixture. Bring to a gentle boil to thicken the mixture, then remove from heat.

To fill the puffs, you can either cut them in half and spoon filling inside or use a pastry bag to pipe the apple mixture in through a small hole (the latter looks nicest; the former is much easier and requires less cleanup/effort).

Makes between 18 – 24 puffs.

June 3, 2011: Pea Salad Recipe

Looking for a cool side dish to serve with your barbecue dishes this summer? A pea salad fits the bill! I’ve had several versions of this before and this one is a good conglomeration of some of the best. Not only does it taste good, but it looks colorful on the plate, too!

I made this version of pea salad without the red onions in deference to my niece Kira's preference.

Pea Salad

1 lb. package frozen green peas, thawed
¼ cup diced red onion
½ cup cubed sharp cheddar cheese
1/3 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sweet pickle relish
1 t. dill weed
Salt and pepper to taste
4 slices bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled

Combine all ingredients (up to bacon) in a bowl. Refrigerate for several hours to allow flavors to meld. Just before serving, top with bacon crumbles.

Serves 4 – 6

May 18, 2011: Ham and Cheese Frittata Recipe

Looking for a breakfast recipe that is easy to prepare and feeds several people? A frittata is a wonderful way to feed your family before church or treat overnight guests with a morning meal sure to please anyone.

This recipe is based on a Lorraine Frittata, which uses bacon and Swiss cheese. My version, with ham and cheddar, is a bit lower in calories since it uses less fat and olive oil is a healthier alternative to bacon grease.

Ham and Cheese Frittata served with garlic cheddar biscuits and heirloom tomato slices

Ham and Cheese Frittata

½ pound sliced ham, diced (luncheon meat works great)
2 T. olive oil
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
Freshly ground black pepper
8 eggs, beaten with a generous splash of half-and-half
1 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, grated.

Spray an ovenproof skillet (cast iron is ideal) with cooking spray, such as Pam and heat to medium. Add the ham and cook for about 2 minutes, until the ham starts to brown. Remove ham from the pan. Add the olive oil. When hot, add the onion slices. Fry for about 5 minutes on medium heat, then reduce heat to low and cook about 15 minutes longer, until the onions are caramelized. Grind pepper over the onions. Add the cooked ham back to the skillet.

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Slowly pour the beaten eggs into the pan. Cook, stirring often with a spatula, until almost set. Remove from heat and sprinkle the grated cheese over the top.

Place the pan in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes, just until cheese is melted and eggs are set.

Serves 4.

May 12, 2011: Garlic Cheddar Biscuits Recipe

If you love the Cheddar Bay Biscuits they serve at Red Lobster, then you are going to love this homemade version. These are as close as you can get to the restaurant’s biscuits – and some say they are even better!

Biscuits are a great addition to your summer picnic of fried chicken and cold dishes. They are delicious either hot or cold. If you find that you have any leftovers (hard to believe you would but you never know…) use them to make fresh bread crumbs.

Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

2 cups flour
2 t. baking powder
¼ t. baking soda
1 t. sugar
½ t. salt
8 T. butter (1 stick), divided
1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup buttermilk
Garlic salt

Combine the dry ingredients; add 6 tablespoons butter. There are two ways to do this: 1) Freeze the butter and grate it into the flour mixture; combine with your fingers; 2) Chop the butter into small pieces and incorporate into flour mixture with a pastry blender. Either way works great.

Mix in the cheese. Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork just until combined. Do not over mix or your biscuits will be tough.

Grease a round cake pan. Drop the biscuit dough by heaping tablespoons into the pan. Bake at 425 degrees for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately spread the remaining two tablespoons of butter over the hot biscuits (you can also melt the butter and brush it over the tops of the biscuits – but why make another dish dirty?). Sprinkle with garlic salt.

Makes 6 - 8 biscuits

Tip: Don’t have buttermilk on hand? Add a teaspoon of vinegar to a cup of plain milk and let it sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes.

May 7, 2011: Wine Burger Recipe

There’s a neat restaurant/bar up here in the White Mountain that calls itself famous for its wine burger. I’ve had it before, and it really is good – but not something I’d go out of my way to get.

Because my husband’s favorite meal is hamburgers but he doesn’t enjoy experimenting with the recipe – he’s all for plain burgers with McCormick steak seasoning and that’s it – I decided that from now on, I’d doctor up my burger a bit. I started with this concoction, based on what I tasted in the wine burger from The Lion’s Den in Pinetop.

Tip: Since Memorial Day is the official start of grilling season, this recipe is one to keep in mind for the holiday weekend.

Wine Burger Recipe

1 pound lean (93%) ground beef
¼ cup butter, melted
¼ cup dry red wine
1 T. minced dried onions
2 cloves garlic, smashed and coarsely chopped
Coarsely ground black pepper
Salt, to taste
Sharp cheddar cheese
Condiments of your choice

Mix together all ingredients except the cheese and condiments. Form into patties and let rest for half an hour.

Grill over medium-high heat until done to your liking, topping with a thick slice of cheddar cheese and condiments of your choice (I like French fried onions, ketchup with a splash of fish sauce, and fresh lettuce, as shown in the photo here).

May 2, 2011: Cheddar Apple Caramelized Onion Crostini Recipe

We were invited to a barbecue recently at the home of some of our friends. They planned to grill salmon and serve it with a salad and steamed asparagus.

While they were generous enough to supply everything, I just couldn’t show up without bringing something. I gave my friend a call and asked her what I could bring. “Cheese and crackers,” was her reply. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any crackers and not enough cheese to slice. What I did have, however, was lots of onions and apples and a leftover hunk of homemade French bread. I figured those flavors would meld nicely, producing something that was slightly sweet, slightly tangy.

Imagining I was a contestant on The Food Network’s show, Chopped, I thought of how I could put these ingredients together. The result is this recipe:

I added a few more slices of apple in the center of this platter and drizzled them with just a bit of honey.

Cheddar, Apple, and Caramelized Onion Crostini

12 thin slices of French bread (or a baguette, sourdough bread, or other artisan-style bread)
Butter for spreading
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 T. butter, softened
2 t. olive oil
½ large white onion, thinly sliced
Balsamic vinegar
1 apple (gala, fuji, or other sweet)
1 t. lemon juice

Butter the slices of bread and place them on a large, ungreased baking pan. Toast them in a 350 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until crisp on the edges.

Meanwhile, add the cheese, mayo, and butter to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse just until combined; set aside.

Heat the olive oil over low heat in a saucepan. Add the onion slices and sauté low and slow for about 20 minutes, until caramelized. Add a splash of balsamic vinegar and mix with the onions.

Slice the apple into 12 thin pieces. Toss the apple slices with the lemon juice immediately after cutting to prevent them from browning.

Take the toasted bread and spread each slice with about 1 tablespoon of the cheese mixture. Top with about 1 tablespoon of the caramelized and an apple slice. Arrange on a platter and serve at room temperature.