Butternut Buttermilk Apple Soup With Chorizo

Dear Autumn,

Welcome! It's really good to see you again after the steaming heat of summer left me wilted. I yearned for your cool, refreshing nights and golden mornings of dappled light sparkling through leaves of fiery scarlets, regal golds, and pumpkin oranges. 

And your gifts! Apple trees in rows upon the rolling hills of farms, your branches so heavy with fruit they sag downward for easy picking; your giant (and tiny, too) orange orbs dotting the fields waiting patiently for kids and adults to choose the perfect pumpkin for scary carvings or sweet, warmly spiced pies; your wide variety of cruciferous veggies growing low to the ground for picking and sturdy enough to store through fall and winter. 

Your cabbage family bounty easily lends itself to hearty fall dishes that ward off any chill in the air. Stuffed cabbage rolls with (maybe?) homemade sauerkraut, bacon roasted, crispy edged Brussels sprouts or even Mom's old fashioned cheesy cauliflower casserole grace your season's dinner tables. You can't serve that kind of hearty fare in the sizzling heat of summer! 

And you know you're the season of soup! Nothing warms a home like a pot of stock simmering on the stove filled with the possibilities of what it shall become. Chicken stock. Traditional chicken noodle, perhaps? Or spicy black bean, chicken and rice? Sweet corn? Tomato rice? Beef stock. Hearty vegetable? Or mushroom beef barley? Everybody's favorite onion soup crowned with a big, melty, toasty, cheesy crouton?

Of course, Autumn, I sometimes skip the simmering stockpot completely and make an easy fall soup right in my Vitamix. Why not?! There's so much to do and see and enjoy during your glorious season that time in the kitchen is reserved for your cool and rainy days (and there are plenty of those, too!).

This is a smooth, silky, sweet, tart, slightly spicy soup to serve warm with good and yeasty rolls slathered with lots of butter. The chorizo is a spicy contrast in texture, but if you want to keep this vegetarian soup meatless, use some crunchy roasted pumpkin seeds as a garnish instead. 

Of course, Autumn, I know you don't cook so you won't be cooking up any kind of soup or anything else. Well, except for cooking up sweet, sweet days and warm memories. Thanks for those....you're the best!

Love,
Dinner Plan-it

Butternut Buttermilk Apple Soup With Chorizo

• 3 lbs peeled, cubed butternut squash (you know, the pre-peeled kind in plastic tubs in the market), sprayed or drizzled with coconut oil, sprinkled with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, roasted at 425 degrees for 30-40 minutes until lightly browned and caramelized
• 1 medium leek, quartered lengthwise, washed, and sliced across into 1" pieces
• 2 medium tart apples, peeled, cored, diced
• 1/4 C water
• 6 T softened butter
• 1 1/2 t salt
• 1 C buttermilk, plus 1 1/2 C additional
• 1 C apple cider
• 1/2 t chipotle powder (or more if you like it spicier)
• juice of 1 lime
• 2-3 links Mexican-style fresh chorizo sausage, crumbled and fried crisp

Add to your Vitamix the roasted butternut squash, leek, diced apple, water, softened butter, salt, 1 C buttermilk, apple cider, chipotle powder, and lime juice. Process in bursts until all is smooth and then continue processing until the container is good and warm and the soup is cooked. Yikes, I love the convenience of my Vitamix!

Pour the mixture into a large bowl or other container, add the additional buttermilk and refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to meld. Before serving, warm the soup on the stovetop, adding a little more buttermilk and/or apple cider to thin the soup, if necessary. (Don't thin it until it's warm so you don't thin it too much.) 

Garnish with chorizo crumbles. To make this vegetarian, either don't use the chorizo or garnish with roasted pumpkin seeds instead of chorizo.

NOTE: I served this in tiny espresso cups for a party recently. So pretty!

Applejack Braised Shortribs with Butternut & Brussels Sprouts

 

 
What is it about cool, crisp weather and slow braising?  They're positively made for each other!  There just isn't anything better than having a pot of goodness simmering on the stovetop on a lazy, chilly Sunday afternoon just filling the house with a most delicious aroma...nothing better at all.

In my opinion, the bubbling liquid and resultant steam are good for your sinuses and your lungs...I bet that's part of the magic of chicken soup, too. As the steam naturally humidifies dry winter air, it help your feel all better.  It's just supposition, but one never knows...remember you heard it here first.

  
A pot of Applejack Braised Shortribs with Butternut and Brussels Sprouts uses lovely fall vegetables, plus apples and apple cider to accent the flavors - and colors - of the season.  Colors of orange butternut and bright green Brussels sprouts nestled next to the deep, rich brown of beautifully caramelized shortribs look just like a pot full of fall.
  
If only the colors of the braise would stay, but just as bright fall leaves become muted as the season comes to a close, the color of the dish fades during cooking, too. While I miss some of that lovely color when the dish is done, the flavor that remains behind is beefy and rich, sweet with apple, butternut, cider and red wine, earthy sprouts and amazing flavor!  What would you rather have...vibrant color or deep, lush flavor...mmmhhmm...that's what I thought.
 
The combination of butternut and Brussels sprouts in a stew or other slow-cooked dish has been working in my mind for a while now.  I was considering what to use to accent those fall flavors...pork?  Maybe chicken or turkey? Hmmmm. (I'm still working on a similar pork dish...maybe pork shanks....)
 
Then inspiration in the form of Cousin George struck. George mentioned on Facebook that he made Red Wine Braised Shortribs to help ride out Hurricane Sandy there in Maryland.  (He also made a pot of Dark Pot Roast Chili....quite the Renaissance man, eh?!)

I had shortribs in the freezer.  I had red wine.  He sent me the recipe, but naturally I veered off course. Somehow this seemed the appropriate time to set the squash and sprouts to work!
 
Thus today's recipe was born. Here it is:  

Applejack Braised Shortribs with Butternut & Brussels Sprouts

• 2 1/2 pounds short ribs, boneless - 6 large, lean pieces (they were actually labeled as chuck shortribs)
• 2 slices bacon, thick sliced, cut across into 1/2" pieces
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• 1 large red onion, sliced thin
• 2 large garlic cloves, slivered

• 1 large sprig of thyme, separated into smaller pieces
• 1/2 cup Laird's Applejack
• 1 1/2 cups apple cider, you know I use the farm fresh kind from the farm market
• 1 cup red wine

• 1 pound butternut squash, pre-cut, pre-packaged cubes - LOVE the convenience!
• 18 Brussels sprouts, stem ends cut off, cut in half lengthwise
• 1 apple, peeled, cored and diced large

Season the ribs with Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper on all sides.  Set aside.
 

In large enameled cast iron Dutch oven (with a lid), saute bacon until crisp.  Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels and reserve.  Add butter to the bacon fat in the pot and melt. 
 

Raise the heat to high, add half the ribs to the pot and brown well on all sides. Remove to plate and add the rest of the meat - again brown well on all sides.  Remove to plate.
 

Add the onion and garlic to the pot and cook for a few minutes until just beginning to soften a little bit.  Add the Applejack and stir well, getting all the browned bits from the bottom of the pot.  Stir the apple cider and red wine into the liquid.

Add the meat back into the pot, nestle the thyme between the ribs and down into the liquid.  Bring to a boil, cover and immediately lower heat to simmer.  Cook for 1 1/2-2 hours until the meat is tender. 

Veggies in the pot all ready for the final simmer...and still pretty.

Add butternut squash, Brussels sprouts and apple.  Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil again and immediately lower heat to simmer.  Cover pot and continue to cook until the squash and sprouts are tender.
 

Serve over buttered poppyseed noodles (gluten-free to keep this GF - I really like Scharr tagliatelle) & garnish with reserved crisp bacon.

NOTE:  Poppyseed noodles: cook noodles, butter them and add a tablespoon or so of poppyseeds, salt & freshly ground pepper.  Not much of a recipe...I like those easy ones!

An Evening of Art at Paint Monkey....And Captain Apple Rum-aritas!

  

Thank you Living Social!  Talk about leaving your comfort zone!  Mark and I met up with mixology class friends, Gail and Dave, for an evening that sure was different from how we'd normally spend a Saturday night.  Well, as far as the painting goes anyway.  The Paint Monkey class (yes, that's the real name of the business) was BYOB...so that part wasn't all that far from the norm.

(The four of us pregamed the class at Industry Public House - awesome food and cocktails...more about Industry in another post, folks.)

Heading into class, we didn't know what to expect...none of us had any real experience with a brush and a canvas.  We set up our BYOB items (Gail brought horseradish cheddar, fontina & crackers along with vodka and cran, I brought Captain Apple Rum-aritas and Black Bottom Macaroon Cupcakes...we'd had an early nosh at Industry so I figured dessert would be appropriate.  

The magic about to begin....

Then over to the line of canvasses just waiting to be turned magically into our very own works of art.  Could we actually do this?  Joe Groom, Artist-in-Residence, believed we could...and coached us along the way.

Coach/Artist Joe offering helpful advice.

Armed with steely fortitude and a damned good cocktail (the proverbial "creative juice?", we set to work.  The canvas came imprinted with a light outline, we provided our own spin...some spins were a little wilder than others.

Marilyn Before - Notice the Cocktail!

As the evening progressed, so did our canvasses.  Magically, each one of our blank slates started to come to life.   

Mark feeling those creative juices

Although we each had identical paints and tools to begin with, each "artist" brought something unique to his or her own painting.  Oh...that Marilyn at the very top of today's post?  Mine. Yep, I'm proud.

After a lot of laughs and some very good-natured ribbing (and those cocktails), our creative evening slowly came to a close.  

Gail putting the finishing touches on her masterpiece!

Dave's Marilyn is perfection...but we'd expect nothing less from Dave.

Turned out there actually was a hidden Renoir, Andy Warhol or Monet in each one of us.  Who knew.  Well, what I do know is that we ended the night looking at sample canvasses on the wall, trying to decide which painting we'd do next.  Hmmmmm...Starry Night?  Georgia O'Keefe's Poppy?  That lovely Monet?  How about the Christmas Tree painting to grace the living room for the holidays?  Decisions, decisions.....

Gail overlooking the payload of "fine" art

Just in case you want to head over to Paint Monkey to create your own work of art, let me leave you with the "how to" on that Rum-arita.

Captain Apple Rum-arita

Serves 8

 

• 2 1/4 cups rum, Captain Morgan or other spiced rum
• 6 ounces Triple Sec
• 1 cup apple butter
• 2 cups apple cider
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup simple Sugar Syrup, cinnamon stick simple syrup
• lime wedges

 

In a pitcher, mix apple cider and apple butter until smooth.  Add the rest of the ingredients (except the lime wedges, of course) and stir well.  Serve over ice garnished with a lime wedge.  Or if you need a warming drink, heat the mixture gently on the stovetop and serve in mugs.

 Paint Monkey
100 43rd Street
Ste 212
Lawrenceville
Pittsburgh, PA 15201
412 770-4923 

Apple Baked Navy Beans With Smoked Pork

Frugal alert!  By this time, you all know I like to make the most of menu-planning and budget-stretching.  Just yesterday, I struck gold. It was a rich vein of mahogany, made-from-scratch, beautiful navy beans, sweet with flecks of smoked pork (yep, from the Spiced Apple Balsamic Smoked Pork Loin I made last week!) and accented with fresh apple, apple butter, apple cider and then made zippy with mustard and onion in a sweet and savory counter-tempo.

What's frugal about that?  For starters, navy beans are cheap, cheap, cheap and I already had the cider and apple butter from the smoked pork roast!  Apples?  I've always got apples on hand from Shenot's at this time of year, especially when my favorite Stayman Winesaps are in season.  

Back when I was a kid (and dinosaurs roamed the earth), Winesaps were my dad's favorite...he KNEW his apple varieties!  To this day, I don't think there is a crisper, juicier, more flavorful apple out there. The kids crave this late season variety, too, so the autumn tradition of looking forward to - and buying - Winesaps continues.

Now don't go thinking these pork n beans are just like the canned ones.  Nope.  Not even close.  These aren't your typical tomato-y, mushy, overly sweet, tinny tasting things you find on grocery store shelves. These have character!  Campbell's and Bush's, eat your heart out!

Not that I have anything against canned beans....they make a fine, quick casserole when doctored, bacon covered and baked.  Just don't ask me to eat them plain out of the can and heated up on top of the stove.  Those things aren't even close to acceptable in this house!

High in protein and with the addition of the pork, these beans are hearty enough to be served just with a salad and maybe some buttered cornbread, too.  Want something more substantial?  Serve them as a side dish like in the photo above with grilled chicken and a veggie.

What?  You still have apple butter and cider left after making the pork loin AND the beans?  Maybe you have just enough left (and a little tequila, too) to make a Margarita.  Sound good?  You're in luck!  There just happens to be a recipe for our Apple Cider Margarita right here on Dinner Plan-it!  Cheers!

Apple Baked Navy Beans With Smoked Pork

• 1 pound dried navy beans, soaked overnight according to package directions

• 1/2 large onion, diced small
• 1 1/2 cups apple cider, the good farm fresh stuff!
• 1/3 cup apple butter
• 1/3 cup molasses, unsulphured
• 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 tablespoon Kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup ketchup
• 3 tablespoons yellow mustard
• 1 cup pork, leftover smoked or roasted pork (or ham)
• 1 large apple, peeled, cored and diced

Drain beans and mix with the remaining ingredients.  Pour into a deep casserole dish or a bean pot with a lid, if you have one.  If you don't have a lid, cover the dish with aluminum foil.
 
Bake in a 325 degree preheated oven for about 3 hours (more or less) until the beans are tender and most of the liquid is absorbed, but not dry.  Moisten, if necessary, while they're baking with a little apple cider.    

 

Spiced Apple Balsamic Smoked Pork Loin

Apples and pork go together like...well, apples and pork!  Here it is October already and as the days grow shorter and darkness falls earlier, so are the prime days of smoking coming to a close.  Well, here in the north anyway...you fortunate warm-weather-all-year peeps can luckily smoke all year.  A word of advice to those who are not so warm-weather-advantaged: Smoke while the days are still warm enough to easily maintain the temperature in your smoker...strike while the smoker stays hot!

Not familiar with smoking?  Then let me explain that the meat in the picture above is not burned.  Nope, that's the beautiful bark that develops over low and slow smoking.  It is prized!  It is flavorful!  It is heaven.  You probably can't tell from the picture, but the pork roast is a bone-in center cut loin.  Bone-in equals flavor.  Bone-in equals juiciness and tenderness.  Do you get the idea that I only recommend a bone-in roast for smoking?  Yes, you do.  

Another tip to smoke the best doggone pork every time...be SURE the roast is well marbled with fat to keep it moist.  The fat will melt and as it melts, will infuse the pork with flavor while keeping it from drying out.  Of course, keeping it juicy is also the reason for the marinade.  Therefore, marinade + fat = an extra tender and succulent cut of smoked meat.  MmmmMmmm.

The roast was marinated overnight in a brew of farm-fresh apple cider, mustard, garlic, balsamic vinegar and some lovely fall spices.  Before smoking, I slathered the roast with an apple butter glaze that echoed the mood of the marinade.  Did you notice I said "farm-fresh cider" and  not cider-from-the-grocery-store-shelf?  Cider from the farm is less filtered and has more apple-y flavor, body, color and character...the same for the apple butter.  It makes a difference, believe me.  Love my local farms!  (That means YOU Shenot's, Soergel's and Kaelin's!)

While it's sad to see the waning days of warmth, there ARE advantages to the days of fall.  Let me list a few:

#1.  While tending the smoker, your beer stays colder longer and the ice in your cocktail doesn't melt as quickly.

#2.  Crisp, cool nights make for wonderful sleeping with the windows open.

#3.  Hay rides!

#4.  It's not long until little ghoulies and goblins knock at the front door for tricks and treats.

#5.  Shopping at favorite local farm markets for apples, pears, pumpkins, winter squash, beets, cabbages...the bounty of the field, fresh and fabulous.

What?  You don't have a favorite farm store?  Check the newspapers and the internet and FIND A FARM STORE NEAR YOU!  

Spiced Apple Balsamic Smoked Pork Loin

• 3 1/2 pound center cut pork loin roast, bone-in

• 1 pint apple cider
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons granulated garlic
• 2 tablespoons stoneground mustard
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt

• 3/4 cup apple butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard, Colman's
• 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

The day before you intend to smoke the roast, mix the apple cider, balsamic vinegar and 2 T EACH of granulated garlic, stoneground mustard and Kosher salt in a STURDY zip lock plastic bag.  Once the marinade is mixed completely, put the roast carefully into the marinade, squeeze out all the air and seal.  Place the bagged roast into a deep bowl and refrigerate. (The bowl is to keep any leaking marinade from making a mess in your fridge.)
 
Early the next day start your smoker using soaked applewood chips. 
 
Once you've started the smoker, make the glaze mixing the apple butter, Colman's mustard, granulated garlic, balsamic vinegar 1/2 t. each of cinnamon, ginger and cayenne, the salt & pepper.  Mix well.  Slather the glaze all over the roast thickly.  You'll have some glaze left - save that to apply part way through the smoking if you wish.
 
Smoke, replenishing charcoal and soaked wood chips as necessary until done.  The roast took about 6 hours for ours to smoke - yours may take more or less time depending on the temp of your smoker, the size of your roast, etc.- so plan accordingly to get the meat on the table in time for dinner!  Remove the roast to a platter and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.
 
NOTE:  If you don't own a smoker or just don't feel like doing it outside, you can roast this in the oven as you would normally - no smoke flavor, but still delish.  

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and roast the pork for 30 minutes.  Reduce the temp to 350 degrees and continue roasting until tender and cooked through the way you like your pork.

Apple Cider Margarita

Apple Cider Margarita

When I visit my Mom in Pittsburgh, we often stop places for good drinks and good food. One of the places we frequent is Mad Mex, because who can turn down an awesome margarita?! Last fall we tried their special Margarita of the month, the Apple Cider Margarita. OMG, it ended up being one of our favorite fall drinks! On our way home after our Mad Mex trip and a little shopping at the mall, we picked up some ingredients to recreate this awesome fall time drink...here it is!

Ingredients:

• 4 1/2 oz tequila
• 1 1/2 oz triple sec
• 1/2 c. Apple Butter
• 1/2 c. Apple Cider
• 3/4-1 c. ice
• 1/4 c. Brown sugar and 1/2 t. cinnamon mixed together to rim the margarita glass

Directions:

Mix apple cider and apple butter together until smooth. Put tequila and triple sec in a cocktail shaker, ice, and apple cider mixture. Either shake for a margarita on the rocks or blend for a frozen margarita. Wet the rim of your margarita glass in cider and rim the glass with the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture. Pour your margarita in the glass and enjoy!