Apple Tart

With the crisp fall air comes those deliciously fresh and juicy apples... the ones you wait all year for... the varieties only available in the fall! Who wouldn't be tempted to purchase gobs of these beautiful fruits with their many varied hues... I keep coming home with bags of these from the last days of the farmer's market, and I simply cannot eat them all! I made an apple pie, which was good, but... something a little more creative was in order. Hence, the Apple Tart...

1 pie crust (make according to your favorite recipe!)

3-4 apples, peeled and sliced thin

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cardamom

4 Tbsp butter

1 cup pecans or walnuts

1/3 cup maple syrup

1 cup apple cider

1 cinnamon stick

1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350

Press crust into an 8" tart pan with removable bottom. Prick with a fork and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Melt 1 Tbsp butter in a large pan. Add nuts and saute over medium low heat until fragrant, about 10 minutes. Let cool. Melt remaining butter in a smal

l saucepan.

In a food processor, process nuts until crumbling. Add melted butter and maple syrup. Process until the consistency of a chunky nut butter.

Combine apples with brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom.

Spread nut mixture into the prepared tart crust. Arrange apples on top of nut mixture in a circular fashion.

Bake for 25 minutes or until apples are soft.

While tart is baking, simmer 1 cup of apple cider over medium heat with a cinnamon stick, until reduced to about 1/4 cup. In a small bowl, combine cider reduction with powdered sugar. Drizzle over cooled tart.

Also great served with fresh whipped cream!

Spinach Pie

A request from Allie!

I really cannot take credit for this one... although I DO think I remember the first time my mom made this for us... So many memories of making this for my mom's famous parties... the kitchen was always crowded as most people knew that in order to get a taste of something, they had to get it while it was hot!

This recipe actually came from my Aunt Margie-- Maybe someday I will find out where she found it!

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 package croutons, crushed

1 (10 oz) package frozen spinach, chopped, thawed and drained

1/2 cup (4 oz) cubed monterrey jack cheese

3 eggs

1 cup small curd cottage cheese

2 Tbsp sour cream

1 clove crushed garlic

1/2 finely chopped medium onion

Preheat oven to 375.

Mix melted butter with crushed croutons and press into a pie dish to form a crust.

in a large bowl, combine spinach and all remaining ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.

Pour on top of crust.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until middle is set.

(The amounts of most ingredients are estimates... we don't really have the original recipe... we just make this by rote... feel free to adjust for your taste!)

Shef’s Carrot Soup

I first made carrot soup in 2003 when I was visiting my sister Diana in California while she was in college at UC Santa Barbara. She was in the midst of finals week, and I was in walking distance of a wonderful co-op market that had beautiful organic vegetables... I was a little over zealous and my first attempt had way too many carrots! It was more like carrot puree... Oh well, Diana didn't mind! There must be something about me and organic vegetables... I hadn't thought about carrot soup for the longest time when I came across delicious bags of knobby bright orange carrots with bits of earth still clinging to them at the farmer's market... a bit of fresh dill and... voila! Inspiration!

1 medium onion, sliced thin
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil

About 5 cups of thinly sliced carrots (organic preferable, roughly 2 pounds)
8 cups organic chicken broth
½ cup half and half
¼ cup fresh chopped dill
Salt and pepper

In a large stock pot, melt butter and add olive oil. Sautee onions until soft. Add carrots and sautee for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Add broth, cover and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 30 minutes.
In batches, puree soup in a food processor until smooth. Return to pan.

Gently stir in half and half, then dill.
Season to taste.

The Silver Plum Cake

I have been making variations on this cake for several years now, but I think this one is the final version! My mom has an Italian Plum Tree on her land in Montana, and one year brought home, oh, about 100 plums! (when Mom does something, she goes all out!) They needed to get used, and for some reason plum cake sounded absolutely delicious! Through all the deviations of this recipe, there have always been plums, nuts and marscapone cheese...

Combine in medium bowl:

3 Italian Plums, diced

1 Tbsp sugar

1/3 cup Muscat or another sweet dessert wine

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

zest of 1 lemon

-Let above mixture sit for 30 minutes to allow flavors to absorb

Combine in small bowl:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Beat together in large bowl:

1 stick of butter, room temp

4 oz cream cheese (or marscapone cheese)

3/4 cup sugar

Add 1 egg and beat well. (I replace the egg with 1 Tbsp ground flax mixed with 3 Tbsp water- it works wonderfully and gives a deep n

utty flavor and texture!)

Mix in half of flour mixture, then 1 cup buttermilk, then the rest of flour mixture.

Fold in the plum mixture.

Pour into a buttered 9" springform pan lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, or until center is set.