Recipe is what I made, not what’s in the book.

• 6 tablespoons margarine (I would have used butter, but that’s what they have)
• 1 medium leek
• ¾ teaspoon fresh ginger
• ¾ cup unsweetened almond butter
• 1 medium carrot
• ½ cup frozen peas
• 1½ cup frozen cooked chicken
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 1 cup cream

1. Melt the margarine in a dutch oven kind of pan
2. Chop the leek
3. Chop the ginger
4. Sauté the leek and ginger until it turns soft
5. Lower heat
6. Chop the carrot
7. Add almond butter, carrot, peas, and chicken, and ½ cup of water
8. Cook until everything is cooked/not frozen
9. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes
10. Transfer mixture to blender
11. Add 1½ cups water
12. Process for about 90 seconds
13. Pour back into pan
14. Bring to boil while stirring
15. Lower heat
16. Stir in cream
17. Stir in chopped cilantro

This was super super tasty.

• 2 cups long grain white rice
• 1 medium onion
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 2 large tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 bay leaf

1. Rinse the rice several times in cold water
2. Let rice drain in strainer
3. Chop the onion
4. Cut the tomato up
5. Put tomato, onion, garlic and oregano in a blender
6. Puree
7. Remove mixture from blender when the blade just spins through the tomato chunks
8. Put mixture in food processor and/or chop stuff by hand until the chunks are much smaller
9. Put mixture back into blender
10. Puree vegetables until they are liquefied
11. Add water to make 4 cups total liquid
12. Pour vegetable liquid into 3 quart saucepan
13. Add salt and bay leaf
14. Bring liquid to boil
15. Add rice to saucepan
16. Reduce heat to low and cover
17. Simmer 20 to 30 minutes until liquid is absorbed
18. Remove lid, stir, and let stand

• Single shell pie crust
• 1 egg white
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 6 medium sweet onions
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 3 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
• ½ ounce Gruyère cheese
• pitted Manzanilla olives

1. Pre-bake the pie crust
2. Lightly beat egg white
3. While still warm, brush the crust with egg white
4. Peel and thinly slice onions
5. In skillet, heat the olive oil and butter over low heat
6. Add onions
7. Sprinkle onions with sugar, salt, and pepper
8. Cover and cook without stirring on lowest possible heat 45 minutes
9. Shred Gruyère cheese finely
10. Preheat oven to 400°
11. Raise heat on onions to medium
12. Stir and cook onions until all liquid has evaporated and they are golden
13. Turn heat to low
14. Add garlic and thyme
15. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes
16. Fill pie shell with onion mixture
17. Sprinkle with Gruyère cheese
18. Place olives on top
19. Bake for 20 minutes or so (until cheese is melted and top is brown)

The result was heavenly. Several folks told me it was the best of the 20 or so pies we had at the last Pie Night. It might become one of my staple pies. Easy to make and so very very tasty.

As always, recipe is how I made it, not exactly how it appears in the cookbook.

• unbaked 9 inch pie shell
• 4 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups sifted confectioners sugar
• 1½ cups flaked coconut
• 2 cups milk
• 2 tablespoons butter

1. Combine 2 egg whites, nutmeg, salt, vanilla, sugar, coconut, milk, and butter.
2. Cook over hot (not boiling) water in a double boiler for 5 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly.
3. Let cool to room temperature.
4. Beat 2 egg whites just until stiff (but not too stiff). I’ve never been able to beat egg whites to stiffness anyway, so this wasn’t a problem.
5. Fold beaten egg whites into coconut mixture.
6. Pour into pie shell.
7. Bake at 450° for 30 to 40 minutes, or until filling is firm in the center.
8. Cool and let it set.
9. Put pie in refrigerator overnight and serve cold.

No pictures of my finished work this time.

The following is my attempt.

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 large onion
• 8 ounce can tomato sauce
• ¼ cup sherry
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• 8 ounces uncooked penne pasta
• 4 eggs
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¹/₈ teaspoon black pepper
• 1½ cups milk
• 1 cup shredded Romano cheese

1. Chop onion
2. Cook beef and onion until meat is browned and onion is tender
3. Drain
4. Add tomato sauce, sherry, and cinnamon to meat and onions
5. Heat until bubbling
6. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes
7. Cook penne pasta according to directions
8. Lightly beat 2 eggs
9. Toss cooked pasta with eggs and 2 tablespoons of butter
10. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat
11. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until smooth
12. Add milk (slowly)
13. Cook until mixture is thick
14. Lightly beat 2 eggs
15. Stir mixture into the eggs
16. (make sure meat, pasta, and sauce are all finished)
17. Preheat oven to 350°
18. Grease a 3 quart casserole dish
19. Spread half the pasta in dish
20. Spread half the meat sauce over the pasta
21. Spread ¹/₃ of the cheese over the pasta
22. Spread remaining pasta on top of cheese
23. Spread remaining meat sauce over the pasta
24. Spread ¹/₃ of the cheese over the pasta
25. Pour white sauce evenly over cheese
26. Spread remaining cheese on top
27. Cover and bake for 20 minutes
28. Remove cover and bake for additional 15 minutes
29. Let stand for 15 minutes to cool and set

So here’s the recipe as I’ve adapted it. In particular, I left out the saffron because that stuff is expensive. For the original, follow the link. Pictures follow.

Ingredients

• 2 large leeks
• 2 large Granny Smith apples
• ¼ pound celery root
• 1½ pounds bulk sausage (mixture of bulk breakfast sausage and leftover mild Italian bulk)
• 4 tablespoons fine gauge tapioca
• dry sherry
• 4 tablespoons butter
• all purpose flour
• salt
• top and bottom crusts for pie (however you like to make/buy these)

Prep work

• Peel and core apples
• Slice apples to even ¼ inch thickness
• Wash leeks (I actually found it easier to wash the leek after cutting lengthwise in next steps)
• Cut leeks lengthwise, then into ⅓ inch pieces
• Pare celery root
• Slice finely

Cooking

1. Preheat oven to 425 °
2. Brown sausage, breaking it apart into small pieces
3. Set aside
4. Put leek and celery root in just enough water to cover the vegetables
5. Bring to a boil and cook just until vegetables are wilted
6. Drain, reserving broth
7. Toss 3 tablespoons of tapioca with vegetables
8. Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a saucepan
9. Add 4 tablespoons flour
10. Stir until thick/done (i.e., make a roux)
11. Add in vegetable broth, a splash of sherry, and salt to taste
12. Give it a quick stir
13. Add in vegetables
14. Set aside to cool a bit

Assembling the pie

1. Lay bottom crust in pie plate
2. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons tapioca on bottom crust
3. Dredge apples in flour
4. Layer apples in compact circles, two levels for my deep pie
5. Layer half the leek mixture on top
6. Put in the sausage next
7. Put remaining leek mixture on top
8. Add top crust
9. Vent the crust

Baking

1. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes
2. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or it appears done
3. Let cool to solidify a bit

As always, what I did is somewhat adapted from the cookbook. If you want the official recipe, buy the book.

• ½ stick unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion
• 1 head iceberg lettuce
• 2+ cups chicken broth
• 1½ pounds frozen green peas
• 6 ounces bacon
• ½ cup breadcrumbs

1. Cut bacon into small pieces
2. Fry bacon until crispy
3. Drain fat and dampen bacon on a paper towel
4. Mix bacon and breadcrumbs
5. Peel and thinly slice onion
6. Wash and shred lettuce
7. Heat butter in large soup pot over medium high heat
8. Cook the onion until tender
9. Add lettuce
10. Cook just until wilted
11. Add chicken broth
12. Wait for boiling
13. Add peas
14. Cook about 10 to 15 minutes until peas are tender
15. Purée soup in blender a couple cupfuls at a time
16. Salt and pepper soup to taste
17. Sprinkle breadcrumb/bacon stuff on top of served soup

This time the soup was pretty tasty. I think the addition of onion and bacon helped quite a bit. I don’t remember exactly what was in the last recipe, but I’m pretty sure those weren’t in it.

Pea Soup

One recipe I did like was his meat loaf recipe, and I got a hankering for meat load this week. So I made it last night.

This is my adapted version. For the real version, you’ll need to find your own copy.

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound mild Italian style bulk pork sausage
• 1 onion
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• ¼ cup mushroom broth
• ¼ cup ketchup
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• bacon

1. Preheat oven to 375°
2. Grease a 2 quart casserole pan
3. Chop the onion in a food processor
4. Add eggs, bread crumbs, broth, ketchup, salt, pepper, thyme, and nutmeg.
5. Pulse food processor until everything is mixed well
6. Combine beef, sausage, and onion mixture in a mixing bowl
7. Mix meat and onion by hand (spoon sucks for this)
8. Press into an (artisan bread) shape in the casserole pan
9. Lay bacon slices over the top
10. Bake for approximately 1 hour

What really makes this is the addition of sausage as well as the abundance of onion. Also, it’s very easy, though that’s not unusual for a meat loaf.

As always, recipe below is what I made, not exactly what was in the cookbook.

• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 4 boneless chicken breast halves
• olive oil
• 2 sweet onions
• 3 granny smith apples
• 1 teaspoon marjoram
• 1+ cups apple cider

1. Cut onion vertically, into thin wedges.
2. Core and slice apples
3. Mix flour, salt, and pepper in a freezer bag.
4. Add chicken and shake to coat.
5. Brown chicken on medium high head in olive oil, then set aside.
6. Sauté onion in olive oil until lightly brown.
7. Add apples and marjoram.
8. Sauté 5 more minutes.
9. Add chicken and cider.
10. Bring to a boil.
11. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked.

This was flavorless and mushy. I think where I went wrong was a) using mayan sweet onions instead of regular yellow onions, b) using too much cider, and c) not paying attention until it had been boiling for a while.

I think it’s the first time I’ve ever cooked with marjoram too.

No picture, because the fail was just too much. It doesn’t even look tasty.

Recipe is what I made, and does not exactly match what’s in the cookbook.

• 1½ pounds bulk sweet Italian sausage
• 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
• ½ chopped sweet onion
• 6 teaspoons minced garlic from jar
• 16 ounce package hot roll mix
• 5 eggs
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• ½ of a 15 ounce carton ricotta cheese
• ½ of a 10 ounce package of frozen chopped spinach
• 2 4 ounce cans sliced mushrooms
• 1 more egg
• shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Thaw spinach and drain
2. Preheat oven to 350°
3. Cook sausage, pepper, onion, and garlic in large skillet over medium heat until sausage is browned
4. Prepare hot roll mix according to package directions through the kneading step (my hot roll package mix required another egg, as well as margarine)
5. In a large bowl, beat five eggs
6. Stir in 1 cup of the mozzarella
7. Stir in ricotta
8. Stir in spinach (I forgot this step, and had to sorta mix it in later)
9. Stir in sausage/pepper/onion/garlic mixture
10. Stir in drained mushrooms
11. Grease a 9 inch springform pan
12. Roll ¾ of the dough into a 15 inch circle on a heavily floured surface
13. Lay it into the springform pan, pressing the dough into the sides
14. Sprinkle bottom of pie with ½ cup of the mozzarella
15. Add sausage/cheese/egg/etc. mixture into pie
16. Add remaining mozzarella to the top of the pie
17. Roll the rest of the dough into a top pie crust
18. Place top crust on top, then fold edges over and pinch to seal
19. Beat last egg slightly
20. Combine 1 tablespoon of water with egg
21. Brush egg on top of pie and let dry for 5+ minutes
22. Score the top of the pie in a diamond shape, but don’t cut all the way through the crust
23. Sprinkle with Parmesan
24. Bake uncovered for 40 to 45 minutes, remembering first to take your oven off pre-heat
25. Cool on a wire rack for 20+ minutes
26. Remove springform pan side, cut into wedges, and eat

Overall the pie worked out pretty good, though it was a bit soupier than I expected. I forgot to take the oven off pre-heat status (I have an older range), so that may have affected this. It probably could have used a spice or two added, though I’m not really sure what spices go well with sausage.