Thanksgiving: Endives, Apples and Grapes on the Side

Thanksgiving: Endives, Apples and Grapes on the Side

ENDIVES, APPLES AND GRAPES

From Around My French Table

Makes 4 starter or side-dish servings or 2 main-course servings

2 plump endives, trimmed

1 tart-sweet apple, such as Fuji or Gala

1½ tablespoons salted butter (if you can find butter with sea salt crystals, use it)

4 small clusters white or green grapes (in France, I like to use Muscat grapes)

4 small rosemary sprigs

Salt, preferably fleur de sel, and freshly ground pepper

Cut the endives lengthwise in half. Cut the apple into quarters and remove the core. Peel off a thin strip of skin down the center of each quarter.

Put a large skillet (nonstick is best) over low heat and toss in the butter. When it’s melted, put the endive into the pan cut side down and the apples skin side up. Add the grapes, scatter over the rosemary, and cook, undisturbed, for 20 minutes, at which point the underside of the endives will have caramelized and the apples and grapes will be soft and perhaps browned. Gently turn everything over, baste with any liquid in the pan, and cook for 20 minutes more.

Transfer the ingredients to a warm serving platter or to individual plates and, using a sturdy wooden or silicone spoon, scrape up the cooking sugars sticking to the bottom of the pan. You might want to pour a few spoonfuls of water into the pan to help you nab the sugars and make a spare amount of sauce. Season the endive with salt and pepper, spoon over the jus, and serve.

Serving

You can serve this as a first course or as a side dish to chicken or fish that isn’t heavily sauced; something grilled would be just right. It is also a great main course (if you want to double the recipe, make it in two skillets) followed by bread and cheese — think blue cheese.

Storing

This really should be served as soon as it’s cooked. I’ve reheated leftovers briefly in the microwave oven, and they’ve been okay, but not nearly as good as they were the day before; endive has a tendency to become more bitter when it’s reheated.

Bonne idée

Thanksgiving Squash and Apples. A squash or pumpkin rendition is splendid for the holidays. Here’s the combination I make most often: 4 thin (1- to 1½-inch-thick) wedges pumpkin or squash (I use Red Kuri squash, which doesn’t need to be peeled), 12 to 16 cooked chestnuts (I use jarred), 1 apple (or pear), 4 clusters grapes, and sprigs of rosemary, thyme, or, best of all, sage for the herb. You can drizzle warm maple syrup over this — and it’s also good topped with toasted pecans, with a spoonful of a cranberry-orange relish alongside.

Grandma's Apple Pie

I found this blog when I do research as usual, I saw this apple pie, it look so delicious and great, here is the recipe of Lily. Feel free to visit the blog for more detail instruction for this great recipe.

Foolproof Pie Dough
Cooks Illustrated,

Makes enough for one 9-inch double-crust pie

2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons sugar
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/2 cup cold vegetable shortening, cut into small bits
1/4 cup cold vodka
1/4 cup cold water

1. Process 1 1/2 cups flour, salt, and sugar in food processor until combined, about 2 one-second pulses. Add butter and shortening and process until homogeneous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 15 seconds (dough will resemble cottage cheese curds and there should be no uncoated flour). Scrape bowl with rubber spatula and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade. Add remaining cup flour and pulse until mixture is evenly distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up, 4 to 6 quick pulses. Empty mixture into medium bowl.

2. Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. With rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix, pressing down on dough until dough is slightly tacky and sticks together. Divide dough into two even balls and flatten each into 4-inch disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days.

* Note: I was making a double recipe, because, well, I make a lot of pie and wanted a stash of dough, so don’t freak out if your dough is smaller than mine. It’s supposed to be.

Baked Apples

I found these three recipe from Produce Of NewZealand .

Baked Apples

Ingredients
8 apples / 150g sultanas / 3 tbsp honey / pinch of cinnamon/ 2 tbsp soft brown sugar / 50g unsalted butter
SAUCE   200g creme fraiche / 2 tbsp soft brown sugar / a pinch of allspice

Method
Preheat the oven to 180^oC. Peel the apples and remove the cores with an apple corer. Put the sultanas in a bowl and mix with the honey and cinnamon. Fill the cavity of the apples with the sultana mixture. Any extra can just go into the roasting dish with the apples. Wet the tops of the apples with water, then sprinkle with the sugar and dot with the butter. Place in a roasting dish. Bake for 40 minutes until the apples softem amd the tops are golden brown. To make the sauce, warm the creme fraiche with the sugar and spice in a small saucepan. Serve with the apples. Serves 4-6.

Pear Slaw Salad

Ingredients

1 bag of coleslaw mix / 3 ripe pears, peeled, cored and diced small / 1/2 cup of seedless grapes, cut in half / 4 x spring onions finely chopped / 3/4 cup Ginger Salad Dressing / 

Method

Combine coleslaw, pears and spring onions in medium bowl. Add dressing and toss well.

Super Simple Apple Salad

Ingredients
1 handful of mixed salad greens / 1 large apple / 1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped (or add your favorite nut) / 1/4 cup blue cheese, crumbled / Balsamic Vinegar Dressing / 5 tbsp good quality olive oil / 1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar

Method
For dressing whisk oil and vinegar in small bowl and season. To toast hazelnuts preheat the over to 180°C. Put nuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until lightly browned and fragrant. Set aside to cool and then chop coarsely. Combine the greens and crumbled blue cheese in a bowl. Toss with enough dressing to lightly coat the leaves. Cut the apple into thin slices and nestle them among the greens. Sprinkle the toasted hazelnuts on top.