I first came up with this recipe for the Cherry Creek Chorale picnic that we had at our house back in August, before I started this blog. I wanted something crisp and refreshing and thought of this combination. Napa cabbage tends to come in huge heads, so two of them were enough for an expected number of 50. People don’t tend to eat a lot of salad at a buffet, I’ve found. I ended up getting someone to help me dice the apples and walnuts at the last minute, but it would work better to do them ahead of time and give the apples a quick dip into some type of acidulated water, with lemon juice or Fruit Fresh, then drain and store in the fridge. Maybe next time!
A Most Unusual Apple Dessert
I first got this recipe from some magazine or other in an article about a dinner planned by Julia Child. When I went online to check the source I found the exact same thing on the Food Network website by some other chef, so I guess it doesn’t belong to any one person. I have changed the assembly to make it easier, as I have very little patience with doing complicated things just for looks. It’s called “Gateau Mont St. Michel” because it’s supposed to be a “mountain” of crepes, apples and almond cream that’s then cut into wedges to serve. But that’s just too much work. So here’s my version, which I have titled:
Labor-Intensive but Worthwhile Muffins
Another one of my badly-composed photographs. I always end up frantically taking a few shots at the very last minute before the hordes pour in the door. We had a very nice retreat breakfast, and the pictured pumpkin muffins were eaten down to the last crumb. I’ve made the recipe a little less complicated. As I’ve mentioned before, the principle for recipes is that you must make three changes in it in order to claim it as your own. I’m giving full credit to America’s Test Kitchen for the original recipe, but I have made three changes: I made muffins instead of bread, I’ve changed the technique for getting water out of the pumpkin, and I’ve taken the butter out of the streusel topping, as the use of butter makes the topping very clumpy. (Also, as you’ll see, there’s another small change I made as I was typing the recipe, so you can note yet another unnecessary step they were making you do!)
Two Savory Cheesecakes
You know what they say: The reward for working hard is to be asked to do more work. In this case, though, the work was a pleasure and being asked to do it was a great compliment. A couple from the Chorale, Barb and John Wollan, asked me if I would be willing to do the reception for the small (ha!) recital that they were planning to give. They’d pay me. Oh no, I said. Being paid makes things very complicated. I’m happy to do it. So above you can see the results. I had been assured that the number attending would be 100 at the very most. Well, there were at least 150, so I’m afraid that I spent much of the performance worrying that there wouldn’t be enough food. It ended up fine, though. We even ended up with a whole gallon of leftover cider.
Company Roast Chicken
This dinner was in honor of my in-laws’ return from a trip to Wisconsin and Minnesota. Hey, you always have to have a reason to celebrate! In contrast to the previous family get-together in September, for which I procrastinated and ultimately missed our morning church service and a rehearsal, this one went pretty smoothly. I made two recipes from Cook’s Country, one of the shows in America’s Test Kitchen lineup, and I feel free to give the recipe for the chicken below because 1) I’m supplying my own pictures, and 2) I made some changes. They say that if you make three changes in a recipe it’s now yours, but they have to be fairly major changes. I don’t know that these are now mine, but I certainly have some advice to give. I had a friend in DC who said once, “Every time I make a recipe from Cook’s Illustrated [the magazine arm of the ATK empire], there’s always a point at which I say, ‘No way!’” That’s sort of what happens to me; there’s usually at least eye-rolling moment.
World’s Most Versatile Breadsticks
Although I am trying to stay away from most refined carbs, that avoidance doesn’t mean that I can’t eat bread. I just eat good bread! I do own a grain mill and grind my own flour for most recipes, but you don’t have to do that.
Breakfast for 75
The first of what I hope will be a weekly series of posts on my excursions into feeding people, usually at our home but sometimes somewhere else. (I’ll hope to develop my abilities as a photographer along the way.)
This past Saturday morning the Cherry Creek Chorale had its usual retreat rehearsal. Once per concert season, usually about every two months, we have this special,