Canada in my Heart - Homemade Apple Butter
Ever since my trip to the Maritimes, fall brings back sweet memories of Canada. Its kind and hospitable people, the breathtaking nature, and the food we enjoyed - scallops on Prince Edward Island, blueberry beer in Saint John, clam chowder on Cape Breton Island, and lobsters in Halifax. We were lucky enough to visit during fall when the trees were on fire. All those colors! What a beautiful region it is. I left a piece of my heart right there at the shores. One day, I'll come back to look how it's doing.
It was in Nova Scotia, in the small town of Baddeck, that I tasted apple butter for the first time in my life. Here in Scandinavia we aren't aware of its existence. Such a shame! I still remember the lovely young shop owner (?) couple. He was totally into hockey and beyond excited when he heard we were from Finland - "the Koivu brothers!". She couldn't stand maple syrup which I though was totally weird. Living in the promised land of maple syrup and not liking it? What a crazy world we're living in.
This is for you, New Brunswick, P.E.I., and Nova Scotia.
Homemade Apple Butter
yields about 1 liter of apple butter
2,5 kg (5.5 lbs) slightly tangy apples, peeled, cored, & coarsely chopped
250 ml (1 cup) hard cider
1 dl 1 tbsp (½ cup) packed light muscovado {or light brown} sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
⅛ tsp ground cloves
Put all the ingredients into a large ovenproof pot. Mix well and cover with a lid. Bring the liquid at the bottom of the pot to a boil and let simmer for 30 minutes, or until the apples are soft and falling apart. Remember to stir occasionally.
Meanwhile preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F). Place an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven.
Remove the pot from the heat and discard the cinnamon sticks. Pour the applesauce into a blender or use an immersion blender and blend until lump free. {At this stage you have a delicious applesauce. Feel free to stop here and enjoy!} If you used a blender, pour the applesauce and the discarded cinnamon sticks back into the pot.
Place the pot in the preheated oven. Cook, uncovered, for 1 hour. Remember to stir occasionally to prevent any scorching. Discard the cinnamon sticks. Continue cooking the applesauce, stirring every half an hour, for 3-4 more hours, or until it has the desired consistency. As it cooks, the applesauce will slowly thicken and turn into a gorgeous deep red-brown color.
Remove from the oven and store in jars. The apple butter will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks or longer if you decide to can it. {For canning instructions, look at my Queen Jam post.}
Note: The recipe can easily be halved. The cooking time in the oven will reduce to 2-3 hours.
The first snow was sighted yesterday. Wait, what!?! I'm sure the poor cloud just lost its way. I'm definitely not expecting more snow until November.
>> Sunday Still Life <<
Chocolate, Almond & Fleur De Sel Pots de Crème
When I crave chocolate, a chocolate bar from the nearby grocery store won't do. When I crave chocolate, I need something homemade {and heavenly good}. Like a rich chocolate cake, chewy chocolate chip cookies, or, like last time, sophisticated pots de crème.
Aran Goyoaga's cookbook Small Plates & Sweet Treats, which was published in October 2012, is one of my most favorite cookbooks. It's full of delicious recipes arranged by season, lovely memories & stories, and gorgeous photography & food styling.
These pots de crème caught my attention immediately. The original recipe calls for hazelnuts and hazelnut butter but I used almonds and almond butter because that was what I had on hand. I also sprinkled some blueberries on top and liked the flavor combination a lot. Next time I may serve them with some vanilla-flavored sautéed apple cubes.
This is a wonderful, rich chocolate dessert for any occasion. I'm sure you too will fall in love with it.
Chocolate, Almond & Fleur de Sel Pots de Crème
recipe
adapted from Small Plates & Sweet Treats by Aran Goyoaga, p. 62
recipe can
also be found on her blog
30 g (¼ cup)
almonds
500 ml (2
cups) unsweetened coconut milk
1 vanilla
bean, split lengthwise & seeds scraped out
1 egg (L)
2 egg yolks
(L)
50 g (¼
cup) coconut palm sugar
2 tbsp
almond butter
60 g (2 oz)
milk chocolate, finely chopped
60 g (2 oz)
bittersweet dark chocolate (70 % cocoa), finely chopped
½ tsp fleur
de sel
whipped cream, to serve
optional: blueberries or other berries or fruit, to serve
Preheat the
oven to 180°C (350°F). Roast the almonds on a baking sheet for 5 to 7 minutes, or
until fragrant. Let them cool and chop coarsely. Reduce the oven temperature to
150°C (300°F).
In a medium-sized pot, combine the coconut milk, vanilla bean, and seeds. Over moderate heat, bring to a low simmer.
In the meantime, in a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and almond butter until (at least almost) lump-free.
When the coconut milk has come to a simmer, remove the pan from the heat. Remove the vanilla bean pod. Add both chocolates to the warm coconut milk and stir until the chocolates have melted.
Pour a little bit of the hot coconut milk mixture over the eggs while whisking. Slowly add the rest of the milk mixture and whisk until homogenous. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot or bowl. Add the fleur the sel and stir.
Pour the custard into 6 (4-ounce) oven-safe ramekins. Place the ramekins in a deep baking pan and place it on the oven rack. To create a water bath, carefully pour hot water into the baking pan to come half-way up the sides of the ramekins.
Bake the custards for 30 to 40 minutes. The custards are ready when the cream is set. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature, allowing them to set completely.
The custards can be enjoyed at room temperature or chilled. Personally, I prefer mine chilled. To serve, top with whipped cream, roasted almonds, and blueberries.
Oh and I have approximately 30 kilos of apples on my balcony… Recipe suggestions, anyone?
Like Gold Nuggets - Chanterelle Potato Gratin
In this week’s newspapers they were guessing the date of the first snowfall. Seriously? Calm down, everyone. It's fall. FALL! Let’s not freak out, okay? So no talking about snow, snowstorms, ice, or ice cold winds from the North Pole. Thank you. I appreciate it.
They sit on
my kitchen countertop like gold nuggets. Fragile and beautiful. Only hours
before they were hiding in the woods, living with their best friends, the birch
trees. It's called symbiosis.
For me the chanterelle is the queen of mushrooms. They don't even need a crown - they are the crown.
I decided to make a chanterelle potato gratin. A fall favorite. I think it’s at its best as a side for a Sunday roast beef. But feel free to enjoy it at any day of the week. You won't be disappointed.
As cheese I used another royal - Västerbotten cheese. It's one of Sweden’s oldest and best-known brands. A very flavorful and versatile hard cheese.
Feel free to use any other wild mushroom or flavorful cheese variety.
Chanterelle Potato Gratin
Adapted from Leilas
guldkant på vardagen by Leila Lindholm, p. 55
Serves 4-6
1 kg
(2 pounds 3.5 oz) potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced {use a mandolin if you
have one}
¼ (about 140
g; 5 oz) celeriac, peeled and thinly sliced
1 onion,
thinly sliced
2 garlic
gloves, thinly sliced
4 dl (1.7 cups) light
cream
1 tbsp chopped
thyme
½ tbsp fine
sea salt
freshly ground
black pepper
200 g
(7 oz) chanterelles, cleaned and halved/quartered {depending on the size}
butter
60 g (2 oz;
1 dl) grated cheese {I used Västerbotten cheese but a Swiss-type cheese like Emmentaler would be great too}
fine sea
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the
oven to 200°C (400°F). Butter a 28-by-24-cm (11-by-9-inch) baking dish and set
aside.
In a medium-sized pot, combine the cream, thyme, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Add the sliced potatoes, celeriac, onion, and garlic. Simmer for 15 minutes.
In a frying pan, sauté the chanterelles in butter. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the mushrooms and cheese to the potato mixture. Pour into the buttered baking dish.
Bake on the middle rack for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.
