The Apple Lover's Cookbook (Weekend Reads)

When my oldest daughter decides she likes something she develops obsessions. Not fads, but all-out her world revolves around them fixations on the topic. Like stripes, learning about the human anatomy (the insides, folks), tigers (see stripes obsession), and now, Bigfoot and apples.

Oh, the apples. I've endured tears when I wouldn't buy them over the summer in favour of peaches and sweet melons. She nearly lost her mind when her first teeth started losing their grip in her mouth and she thought she would never bite into an apple again. When she sees the apple stand at the market she pretty much acts like a lunatic, or ravenous dog, literally drooling over the apples.

Weird kid.

So when I saw The Apple Lover's Cookbook by Amy Traverso a while back I knew I had to get it for her. We've pored over the text, learning about the amazing variety of apples out there. We dream about apples our Canadian Prairies will never see. And she picks out recipes for me to try. So far we've tried Apple Brownies, this Pork and Apple Pie with Cheddar Sage Crust, and the Classic Applesauce for the baby. And there are dozens more on the list for getting us through an apple obsessed winter.

I do like this book for a few reasons. One, for all the descriptions of the apples. So many varieties I've never even heard of, and not a Red Delicious in the bunch! Two, the recipes run the gamut from apple pie to apple gingersnap ice cream, from Welsh Rarebit to cocktails. I feel like I could cook a recipe from this book at least once a week and live in an apple scented heaven all winter.

Finally, the writing in this book is engaging, entertaining, and informative.  Yes, I read cookbooks. And bad writing, or none at all, does not grab me. The tone of the writer's voice is crisp, sweet, and refreshing, not unlike an apple.

Now, to find me a tree, a quilt, and a cup of hot apple cider to warm the rest of my weekend.

Avenue Magazine (Weekend Reads)

When we're home on a Sunday morning with nowhere to go the family always has a pretty lazy routine. Hubby sleeps in (made so much easier with a quiet room in the basement). Baby Boy plays on the floor and whines every time he spies his Mama. The girls colour. I flip through magazines. We all watch Bake with Anna Olson. Then I get pressured to spend the rest of my day baking. Um... okay.

This morning brought us hot cocoa made with almond milk and scones. I use many recipes for scones, but this morning I tried my friend Julie's recipe, with a swap for whole wheat flour from our grain CSA and using grated apples and cardamom instead of the chocolate and coconut. Oh so tender...

I also flipped through the latest issue of Avenue magazine, a local lifestyle magazine.

Speaking of both Julie and Avenue, I never told you about this great article she wrote about me for the last issue. That's me, in my Baba's apron, making pyrohy. And wow, you should go and congratulate Julie. Her latest cookbook, Spilling the Beans, just won the Taste Canada Food Writing Awards for best single subject cookbook! And that is a cookbook worthy of a Sunday morning.

Summer Party Salad (Recipe: Potato, Tomato, and Green Bean Salad)

It was time for a party.

I've avoided having people at the house for well over a year now. We are simply living in too much chaos. No matter how much I clean there is simply too much crap around, there is nowhere for anyone to be without staring at the detritus of our daily existence. And I find it infuriating. Oh, then there is that whole three kids and incontinent dog thing.

That being said, it was time we celebrated. Business is going well for Hubby. It was our 10th anniversary. The book is doing well. We're surrounded by a wonderful community of friends. Name the reason, we had an excuse for a party. So we invited our community of friends and all their kids over for a party. They deserved a solid thank-you for all the support, chearleading, and playdates they've given me over the last year. And I know that they don't care about the pile of laundry in the hallway or the ironing board in the dining room.

I made salads, a lot of salads. One of the salads I made was this potato, tomato, and green bean salad. It is a summer staple for our family. Really very simple, a good use of the CSA staple potatoes and the green beans from one of said friend's aunt's garden.

It was a glorious night that called for little cooking and loads of kidlets screaming while we parents drank beer. So I chopped, roasted some chickens, someone brought a poached salmon, and we ate. The kids ran around like maniacs and most likely caused my neighbour to drop the price on her house a little more. All the more room for kids and late nights with friends.

Potato, Tomato, and Green Bean Salad

2 shallots or 1/6 of a red onion

2 tbsp red wine or sherry vinegar

6 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp grainy or Dijon mustard

1 tsp honey

1 pint cherry tomatoes

12 small red skinned potatoes, cut in half or quarters
small bundle green beans

Finely chop the shallots or onions. Top with vinegar and let sit while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Halve the cherry tomatoes and place in a large bowl. Trim the string end off the green beans.

Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water.  Bring to the boil. Once boiling, cook the potatoes for XXXX minutes.  Check your potatoes for doneness. They should be firm, with a fork wanting to not quite go through it easily. At this time, add the green beans. Cook for another 2 minutes. Drain and add to the tomatoes.

While the potatoes are cooking, finish the vinaigrette by adding the oil, mustard, and honey to the vinegar and shallots/onions.

As soon as you drain the potatoes and green beans toss with the vinaigrette. Season with salt and pepper. Toss with chopped fresh parsley if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Smooth Move (Recipe: Toasted Almond Ice Cream)

When we moved into our home nine years ago we joked that we needed a giant painting of an almond to represent our kitchen. The walls, appliances, floor, countertops, backsplash, and even the 80s reno of the 50s kitchen cabinets were all almond coloured. It was like cooking inside an almond. In nine years the only things that have changed are the appliances and the wall colour. Frankly, it still feels like we live in a almond.

Good thing I like nuts.

I promised to post this recipe after tweeting about it a few weeks back. I like my almond milk, often making it from scratch. I like it warm with a bit of honey in it before bed. I use it to make hot cocoa so that I feel like I'm having something slightly healthier. It is great for dunking with fresh chocolate chip cookies. In fact, it is this last combo that inspired this almond ice cream.

I played around and got a flavour for the almond ice cream which is tasty, smooth, and not saccharine. It is rich and full of almond flavour, not unlike my kitchen. We ate it straight, right off the spoon fresh out of the ice cream maker. I sandwiched it between the best chocolate chip cookies ever and shared it with our neighbours as a birthday treat. I even had a smidge of it next to the last slice of peach pie one morning. I also think it would make a great sundae with some in season peaches or cherries cooked a little bit for a sauce.

Of course, it would be nice of me to share a photo of said ice cream. And I would have. But Hubby was moving the deep freeze and we lost the ice cream. And the leftover ice cream sandwiches (And a tray of Saskatoon berries. Sigh). Alas, no pictures. Just those almonds.

Almond Ice Cream
Makes 4 cups

1 cup slivered or chopped almonds
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tonka Bean* (optional)
1/4 tsp Fleur de Sel
1/2 tsp almond extract
4 egg yolks

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Once to temperature toast the almonds on a baking sheet for 6 minutes. They should take on colour, but not get too brown.

While the almonds are toasting (but still keep an eye on them) combine the rest of the ingredients, save the egg yolks in a medium pot. When the almonds are toasted add them to the cream/milk mixture. Bring to a simmer on medium heat. Turn off the heat and let it sit for 15-30 minutes. Strain out the almonds. (You can chop the almonds and add them back in to the ice cream once it is churned if you like.)

Whisk together the 4 egg yolks in a bowl. Pour in about 1/2 cup of the warm cream/milk mixture and whisk. This tempers the eggs. Pour all of this back in the pot with the remaining cream/milk. Cook the custard over medium heat, watching constantly and stirring frequently until the custard is thick and cooked. It should coat the back of a spoon when dipped into the custard. Strain again through a fine sieve. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the custard and chill for 2-4 hours or overnight.

Churn in your ice cream maker, according to manufacturers' instructions.

*Tonka Bean is a hard pod that, when grated, adds a vanilla/almond like flavour to the dish at hand. Here, it accentuates the almond in the ice cream.