Thursday, October 24, 2019

Teriyaki Chicken Lettuce Wraps

These Teriyaki Chicken Lettuce Wraps are an easy and light weeknight meal. A quick homemade teriyaki sauce makes them way better than takeout!

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These Savory Apple Recipes Are Fabulous for Fall

Kielbasa with Warm Apple Bacon Slaw recipe

Everyone knows apples are fantastic in pies, crisps, fritters, tarts, and robes of caramel, but the classic fruit is just as good in savory dishes too. These savory apple recipes prove that easily, and you’ll want to eat them all fall.

Was There a Granny Smith?How Did the Most Popular Apples Get Their Names?Emblematic of autumn, apples start coming into season in mid-September, and although they’ve become a year-round fruit for most of us, they are best around this time of summer changing into fall (and through the winter). Many grocery stores now stock several varieties of apples, even beyond the familiar Gala, Red Delicious, Fuji, Granny Smith, et al, but you’re likely to find even more interesting specimens at farmer’s markets. There are over 2,500 types of apples grown in the US alone, and there’s been great interest in bringing back heirloom apple varieties from the early days of our culinary history.

When using apples in savory dishes, you can either cook them to varying degrees of softness so they meld more into the other ingredients, or leave them raw to provide a sweet, tangy, crunchy counterpoint (as in gremolata or slaw). You can slip raw apple slices onto sandwiches in lieu of lettuce, or mix them into salad (don’t forget chicken salad, and even tuna), and toss chopped apples in with whatever root vegetables you’re roasting. They add a lovely sweet spark, not to mention extra nutrition, to all sorts of meals. Working them into your repertoire is easy, too.

Tips on using apples in savory dishes

1. Choose the right apple for the dish. Flavor is important, of course—apples range from super tart Granny Smiths to honey-sweet Braeburns and Ambrosias—but if you’re cooking your apples, it’s important to consider their texture too. If you want firmer, more discernible chunks in a cooked dish, be sure to choose a variety that holds up well, like Cortlands and Galas. If you’re indecisive, you can always use a mix of apples to get several different dimensions of the fruit in your finished dish.

Apple Medley, $19.99 at Harry and David (normally $29.99)

This gift includes Braeburn, Empire, Gala, Honeycrisp, Jazz, and Jonagold (though specific contents vary depending on what's available in orchards at the time).
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Related Reading: The Best Apples for Baking

2. When you’re ready to use them, clean them well. Conventional apples are perennially part of the so-called Dirty Dozen, or produce with high pesticide levels, so run them under water (while rubbing the surface of the fruit) for at least 30 seconds. If it makes you feel better, you can use a vinegar and baking soda solution or commercial wash, but water and mechanical action should do it. If your apples are coated in wax, rethink your life choices, while also scrubbing that film off with a brush. Naturally, organic apples are your best bet, but you should still clean them to be safe (because who knows how many hands have touched them).

3. It’s not necessary to peel your apples. You will want to remove the seeds and tough inner core, but this has nothing to do with poisonous compounds, and everything to do with the fact that these parts are just not very palatable. (However, you can also save your scraps and cook with apple cores.)

Related Reading: Are Apple Seeds Actually Poisonous?

4. Cut your apples on the chunkier side if they’ll be cooked. Otherwise, they might disappear. Even hardier varieties will collapse somewhat after long enough in the oven or sauté pan.

5. Store any leftover apples in a cool, dry place. Do that, and they’ll last a remarkably long time—so you can easily set yourself up for quick, healthy snacks and more apple-jacked meals whenever it strikes your fancy.

Savory Apple Recipe Ideas

Put away your pie plate for just a little while, and try one of these savory apple recipes to welcome fall.

Pork Chops with Apples and Mustard Sauce

pork chops with apples and mustard cream sauce

Paige Green

Pork chops go Gallic in this homey dish that’s particularly perfect for fall. Sautéed apples join bacon, white wine, cream, and mustard for a sensational sauce. If you don’t eat pork but do eat chicken, try the French classic Poulet Vallée d’Auge, with very similar flavors. And to up the apple ante, you can use Calvados apple brandy in place of the Cognac or Armagnac in this recipe. Get the Pork Chops with Apples and Mustard Sauce recipe.

Related Reading: The 9 Best Skillets of 2019

Tangy Apple and Beet Salad

Tangy Apple and Beet Salad

Chowhound

Sweet, juicy, and crunchy apples meet earthy beets, bitter radicchio, and creamy blue cheese in this cold-weather salad. There’s also apple cider vinegar in the dressing. Get our Tangy Apple and Beet Salad recipe. (Or if you prefer greens, try our Kale Apple Salad with Poppyseed Dressing.)

Kielbasa with Warm Apple-Bacon Slaw

Kielbasa with Warm Apple Bacon Slaw recipe

Chowhound

A warm red cabbage slaw with bacon and browned kielbasa is full of savor, with sweet-tangy sparks from sliced apples and apple cider vinegar in the dressing. Finely sliced bell pepper, onion, and carrots add even more flavor and natural sweetness to the hearty dish. Get our Kielbasa with Warm Apple-Bacon Slaw recipe.

Bacon, Apple, and Blue Cheese Omelet

bacon apple omelet recipe

Chowhound

This may sound odd, but the combo of sweet apples, savory eggs, smoky bacon, and pungent blue cheese is eye-openingly delicious. This also tastes great with cheddar if you’re not a fan of blue cheese’s funk. Get our Bacon, Apple, and Blue Cheese Omelet recipe.

Sauerkraut and Sausages with Apples

Sauerkraut and apples beautifully demonstrate the “opposites attract” theory: the one’s sweet complements the other’s sour, and vice versa. This dish adds kielbasa for heartiness, but you can substitute your favorite sausage, like chicken-apple, or even go meatless. And if you want to dress it up, this Sauerkraut Sausage Casserole recipe combines the same flavors with sliced potatoes shingling the top; you could totally overlap sliced apples instead. Get the Sauerkraut and Sausages with Apples recipe.

Sheet Pan Chicken with Roasted Vegetables and Apples

Sheet pan dinners are wonderful in every way—chop up your ingredients (here, chicken thighs, apples, and vegetables), toss everything with your seasoning (classic lemon, garlic, and thyme in this case), and pop it in the oven to roast until crispy, juicy, and caramelized. We’re also eyeing this rosemary-balsamic sheet pan chicken with apples and bacon, but you can customize to your heart’s content. Foil-lined pans make clean up easy too. Serve with simple mashed potatoes or wild rice on the side. Get the Sheet Pan Chicken with Roasted Vegetables and Apples recipe.

Related Reading: What’s the Difference Between Sheet Pans and Cookie Sheets? | How to Make Dingy Baking Sheets Look Brand New

Baked Apples with Savory Pork Stuffing

You may have put apples in your stuffing, but have you ever stuffed the apples themselves? Clearly, whether you try them on the grill, with a vegan walnut-herb stuffing, or with goat cheese and bacon, it’s a great idea. This version uses a pork and breadcrumb stuffing with sage and onions, and would obviously be great at Thanksgiving, but also makes a nice meal by itself, maybe with a salad on the side. It’s basically the autumn answer to the stuffed tomatoes of summer. Get the Baked Apples with Savory Pork Stuffing recipe.

Salted Honey and Apple Gouda Toast

Apples and cheese get along famously, so it’s no wonder you can find tons of grilled cheese recipes containing the fruit (like a version with caramelized onions and tart green apples, one with brie and roasted chicken in addition to the apples, or an apple, ham, and cheddar melt), but this open-faced version lets you really appreciate the beauty of the pairing. Gooey, nutty smoked gouda pairs perfectly with the sweet apples and honey, and the hit of extra salt makes everything more piquant. Leave off the bacon if you must, but don’t skip the fresh thyme if you can help it. Get the Salted Honey and Apple Gouda Toast recipe.

Related Reading: 11 Reasons to Always Have Honey in Your Pantry

Persian Apple Stew

This Persian dish has everything you love about beef stew in general (mainly, tender hunks of meat and thick, savory sauce), but dried apricots and fresh apples take the place of carrots and potatoes—which the French happen to call pommes de terre, or apples from the earth, in case that makes you feel any less hesitant about adding fruit to stew. Make sure you use apples that retain their shape during cooking, and cut them into large chunks so they don’t disintegrate. Turmeric, cinnamon, rose petals, cardamom, nutmeg, and cloves lend a gorgeous warm fragrance to this delicious dish. Get the Persian Apple Stew recipe. (Or try the lamb and apple variation linked to via the Instagram post above.)

Roasted Salmon with Apple Cider Glaze

maple mustard glazed salmon recipe

Chowhound

Fish with apples isn’t something you see too often, but it makes perfect sense. A pan sauce of apple cider and bourbon is a great contrast to meaty salmon, and would be good served with a simple warm apple slaw (just skip the kielbasa—and the bacon, if you wish). This is how pescatarians do fall. Get the Roasted Salmon with Apple Cider Glaze recipe.

Curried Cream of Cauliflower and Apple Soup

French Provencal garlic soup

Chowhound

For a cold soup you can enjoy before summer’s over, try this intriguing ajo blanco that adds apples to the classic almond and garlic formula, but when the nights get chillier, tuck into this curried cauliflower and apple soup from Daniel Boulud. The chef suggests adding shrimp to make it more of a meal, but we also like the idea of toasting slices of our Apple and Cheddar Quick Bread and serving them on the side. Get the Curried Cream of Cauliflower and Apple Soup recipe.

Sri Lankan Spicy Green Apple Curry

And now for something completely different: apple curry! This vegan Sri Lankan dish lets the apples shine, and perks them up with mustard seeds, bay leaves, jalapeños or serranos, dried chiles, curry powder, and garlic. It’s really spicy, but brown sugar and coconut milk smooth out a little of the spikiness, and using apple juice or apple cider in place of water is inspired. You’ll actually be better off using slightly unripe apples here, and can choose to leave in some of the core to help the apple pieces hold together. Get the Sri Lankan Spicy Green Apple Curry recipe.

Apple and Cheddar Breakfast-Sausage Sandwich

apple cheddar breakfast sausage sandwich

Chowhound

Apples are great on-the-go food and we’ve all grabbed one for breakfast at some point, but if you’ve got more time in the morning, try making these grilled breakfast sandwiches with maple-glazed breakfast sausage patties (the apple slices get the same treatment). Sharp cheddar cheese caps it off, and toasty English muffins hold it all together. Honestly, these are great for lunch or dinner too, or even a midnight snack if you need one. Get our Apple and Cheddar Breakfast-Sausage Sandwich recipe. (And try our Pork and Apple Burger recipe too.)

Maple Apple, Bacon, and Blue Cheese Pizza

Apples on pizza may be old hat by now, but that doesn’t make the phenomenon any less tasty. Add bacon and blue cheese and you have a flawless flavor combo, but this version also adds roasted garlic and coats the apples in maple syrup for something extra special. Bringing caramelized onions to the mix would amp up the sweet, savory, melty goodness even further, but maybe that would push it over the top? The only way to know is to try it! Get the Maple Apple, Bacon, and Blue Cheese Pizza recipe.

Related Video: How to Make Easy Apple Sage Stuffing



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Dorie Greenspan Invites Us Into Her Kitchen to Talk Cookies & Favorite Tools

It should come as no surprise that Dorie Greenspan—acclaimed cookbook author (of beloved imprints like “Everyday Dorie” and “Dorie’s Cookies,” to name a few) and baking fiend—is at her most comfortable in her kitchen.

“Sometimes people will say: ‘Oh, you have three houses,’” Dorie tells us in the debut episode of Chowhound’s Open Kitchen video series. “And I think: I have three kitchens. Everywhere I am, the kitchen is the most important place for me.” 

Although Dorie splits her time among her three kitchens in New York City, Connecticut, and Paris, she admits that at least a part of every cookbook she’s worked on has been written (13 to date) in her Connecticut kitchen, her bona fide space for inspiration. Which makes sense: Her stainless steel desk straddles the edge of her kitchen, a jumping-off point for both her writing and her baking. Even when she’s not working on a book, she can often be found baking in this kitchen, whipping up rounds of butter sablés or wedges of lemon cake.

Related Reading: What Is the Difference Between Sheet Pans, Cookie Sheets, and Baking Pans?

But for Dorie, high-quality tools are equally as important as the ingredients she uses. “Do you know when you’re working, and you grab the right tool for the right job?” she says. “I sometimes just take a moment and think: This is really nice.” From the simple, oft-overlooked gadget to the innocuous utensil, these are a few of Dorie Greenspan’s favorite tools, straight out of her Connecticut kitchen.

Silicone spatulas

Dorie owns a host of Mastrad’s non-stick silicone spatulas in a rainbow of colors and sizes. Their seamless, one-piece design and round, narrow handle means they stay clean, and are comfortable in your hand. Perfect for scraping bowls, stirring, and gently folding in ingredients.

Mastrad Silicone Spoon Spatulas, $19.99 for three on Amazon

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Cooling racks

One of Dorie’s kitchen cabinets is stacked with a tower of cooling racks, because she insists that you can’t have too many (three is the minimum, magic number). Each is used for a different product: round ones with wider grids are excellent for cakes; lengthy, rectangular racks with smaller grids are ideal for rows of cookies.

Mrs. Anderson’s Baking Half Sheet Baking and Cooling Rack, $9.49 on Amazon

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Rolling pins

Dorie’s favorite rolling pin is a French Mafter Bourgeat pin. It lacks handles, it’s rounded at the edges, and it’s made out of nylon (which means it can go in the dishwasher). She goes to great lengths to protect her prized rolling pin, as you’ll soon find out in the video below.

Mafter Bourgeat Nylon Rolling Pin, $129.99 on Amazon

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Muffin tins

There are plenty of alternative uses to muffin tins than simply the vessel for muffins and cupcakes, Dorie has discovered. She actually finds them exceptionally useful for baking her sablés. The bottoms of each tin prevent sablés from spreading—uniforming each cookie—while still giving each one height, a golden-brown color, and a gloriously sandy, crumbly texture.

Wilton Premium Non-Stick Bakeware Muffin and Cupcake Pan, $9.54 on Amazon

Buy Now

Related Reading: 15 Muffin Pan Recipes That Aren’t Muffins

Unsurprisingly, Dorie’s kitchen is wonderfully welcoming. It’s neither stuffy nor ostentatious, neither over-the-top nor understated. Her kitchen resembles that of a home cook and baker, peppered with funky tchotchkes, enormous tins of flour and sugar, and a heaping of Dorie’s affable personality. To her, this kitchen is simply warm. “If this kitchen could talk,” she says, “it might say: I’m glad you’re here.”

Dorie with her favorite rolling pin.

Chowhound’s new series Open Kitchen brings viewers directly into our adored chefs’, bakers’, and friends’ kitchens, allowing them to introduce us to their space through a recipe and a story (or two). Check out the first episode, and then take a crack at her delicious sablés recipe below.

French Vanilla Sablés from Dorie's Cookies

Makes: Approximately 30 cookies
Ingredients
  • 2 sticks (16 tablespoons; 8 ounces; 226 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
  • 1/4 cup (30 grams) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 cups (272 grams) all-purpose flour Sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
  1. Working in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter, both sugars and the salt on medium speed for about 3 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed. The mixture should be smooth, but not fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to low and, one by one, beat in the yolks followed by the vanilla. Turn off the mixer, pour in the flour all at once and pulse the mixer until the risk of flying flour has passed. With the machine on low, mix just until the flour disappears into the dough. Give the dough a couple of turns with a sturdy flexible spatula.
  2. Turn the dough out onto the counter, divide it in half, gather each piece into a ball and shape into a disk.
  3. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll the dough 1/4-inch thick between sheets of parchment. Slide the parchment-sandwiched dough onto a baking sheet (you can stack the slabs of dough) and freeze for at least 1 hour or refrigerate for at least 2 hours. (Wrapped airtight, the dough can be frozen for up to 2 months or refrigerated for up to 2 days.)
  4. When you’re ready to bake, center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter (or spray) the molds of a regular-size muffin tin (or use nonstick)—if you’ve got two tins, use both of them—and have a 2-inch cookie cutter at hand.
  5. Working with one sheet of dough at a time, peel away both sheets of paper (it’s hard to cut the dough otherwise); put the dough back on one sheet. Cut the dough and drop the rounds into the muffin tin. The rounds might not fill the muffin tins completely now, but they will once they bake. Save the scraps. Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with sanding sugar.
  6. Bake the cookies for 16 to 19 minutes, or until they feel firm to the touch and are golden brown around the rims. Transfer the muffin tin(s) to a rack and let the cookies rest for about 10 minutes before carefully lifting them out and onto the rack to cool to room temperature.
  7. Continue with the remainder of the dough. Gather the scraps together, re-roll, chill, cut and bake, always using cool tins.

Embedded photos courtesy of Guillermo Riveros.



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How to Incorporate Your Fall Produce Into Salads

Roasted Delicata Squash Salad

Why does summer get all the glory where beautiful vegetable dishes are concerned? Frankly, it’s spring and fall when all of the really showstopping crops come to fruition, and yet summer gets all the fun for being the season of salads. And why’s that? Because, bathing suit season? Because, lettuce? Really, lettuce?

Not this year. Just because the weather is getting cooler is no reason not to enjoy some of the brightest stars of the fall harvest in their most simple but glorious presentation: salads. Pair any of these fall harvest compositions with a nice soup if you crave the warmth. Or, better yet, red wine.

Fennel Bulbs

Fennel Jicama Salad with Lemon-Pink Peppercorn Dressing

Matt Armendariz/Chowhound

While it might be difficult to prove empirically, I believe fennel is the most underrated of vegetables. Crunchier than even celery, nearly as herbaceous as a bunch of basil, capable of participating as beautifully raw as caramelized, and providing its own dainty garnish, it is past time to get more fennel in your life. Begin with this briny, savory crunchfest, which is as much a meal as it is a conversation piece. Get the Fennel Jicama Salad with Lemon-Pink Peppercorn Dressing recipe.

Sweet Potatoes

Warm Spinach Salad with Smoky Pecans and Sweet Potato

Chowhound

Before you give in to the lure of sweatpants and relegate sweet potatoes to soups and marshmallow-topped casseroles, give it a little love somewhere that’s green. Here, roasted sweet potatoes and smoked paprika-spiced pecans take the place of bacon in a spinach salad that’s even served warm. Get our Warm Spinach Salad with Smoky Pecans and Sweet Potato recipe.

Beets

Roasted Beet Tzatziki Salad

Egg Shop/Nick Korbee

At once sweet and earthy, if you have never found a beet dish to convince you of its purple majesty, dig this—the beets here are in the sauce. Not beets with tzatziki; beets in tzatziki. Try pickling your own beets for an extra tangy, creamy dressing to apply to a host of other vegetables. Get the Roasted Beet Tzatziki Salad recipe.

Pears

Poached Pear and Blue Cheese Salad

Chowhound

Not all the stunners of fall have been incubating below the soil. Some beauties are literally low-hanging fruit, waiting for the precise autumnal chill in which to be plucked to achieve their gently poached destiny. Did I mention the poaching liquid includes red wine? You’ll know what to do with the rest of the bottle. Get our Poached Pear and Blue Cheese Salad recipe.

Brussels Sprouts

Brussels Sprouts Caesar Salad

Burcu Avsar and Zach Desart

Brussels have become so ubiquitous, what with their appearances in everything from slaw to risotto, that we’ve forgotten they have a natural season: now. Here they make kale seem positively antiquated as a base for a Caesar. Get the Brussels Sprouts Caesar Salad recipe.

Figs

Fig and Arugula Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

Chowhound

Sure, you can enjoy dried figs all year long, but now is the time to be seduced by plump, juicy, fresh figs. Their freshness is highlighted by a simple setting of peppery arugula and a sweet and tangy honey mustard dressing. Fall in the Garden of Eden is a glorious time, indeed. Get our Fig and Arugula Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing recipe.

Winter Squash

Roasted Delicata Squash Salad

Chowhound

Delicata squash is technically a summer squash, though it is traditionally treated as a winter squash, hence: autumn squash. If you have limited your squash intake solely to butternut, acorn, and spaghetti varieties, then you have limited yourself. Get on board with this lovely—and dare I say, delicate—salad with pepitas and ricotta salata. Get our Roasted Delicata Squash Salad recipe.

Parsnips

Parsnip Salad with Grapes, Blue Cheese, and Spiced Pecans

S.K.Y.

When I was a child I thought parsnips were merely haunted carrots. As an adult, I still feel that way, so what better vegetable to usher in Halloween season? And since bathing suit weather has kinda officially ended, I’m not one to turn away from recipes with more blue cheese. Get the Parsnip Salad with Grapes, Blue Cheese, and Spiced Pecans recipe.



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