Apple, apples and more apples

It's been a while since I posted my last blog entry and I am finally making my return into the blog-sphere. I took a longer a hiatus from writing than I actually planned to (and wanted to), with life seeming to have got a little bit more hectic than I anticipated. The good news is, in the last few months I have successfully completed my Culinary Arts Certificate at the Le Cordon Bleu in Cambridge by finishing my classes and completing an internship at the end of September. At the same time, I have had the opportunity to continue to work professionally at the catering company where I took my internship. So far, 2013 has really been quite a whirlwind with acquiring lots of new knowledge and positive experiences for me. And while I originally set up this blog to share my learning experience at college with you, I have now decided to expand the scope and keep talking about food and cooking in the kitchen in the hope that you will benefit from my expanding knowledge as much as I do. So, “turning pro in the kitchen” perhaps does not mean professional but increased proficiency for you.

Because of my seasonal and currently somewhat unpredictable work schedule, I am hoping to post new articles once or twice a month rather than on a weekly basis. 

One of my favorite seasons in New England is the fall. From a catering perspective that means the wedding season is over and at work we are moving on to smaller events and indoor venues. From a food perspective it’s all about the use of autumn fruits and vegetables. This year for me that means apples, apple and more apples. Over the last couple of months I have re-discovered and become totally infatuated with apples in all of my dishes, sweet or savory. My obsession started with our visit to Nashoba Valley winery on a gorgeous late summer day in September where we took part in a wine tasting and picked apples from the orchards, something that I hadn’t done since I was a child. The taste of an apple fresh from the orchard reminded me of what apples are supposed to taste like.

I started cooking and baking with the ones we brought home from the orchard - apple compote with vanilla sauce, mini apple tartlets, pork with apples in a cream sauce, dried apple rings, etc. And of course, I couldn't let the season go by without an apple-themed dinner party. Every course had to have some apple component to it.

Apple cider spiced peanuts

The spiced pecan nuts, I prepared were sauteed in a little apple cider. The butternut squash soup, I served as first course, was based on a recipe from the New York Times and included a tart apple pureed in the soup. It gave it a nice contrast to the roasted and slightly sweet butternut squash. For the main course I prepared a center cut pork loin roast that I brined in apple cider and roasted with onions, potatoes and apple pieces. The meat was moist, flavorsome and very delicious.
Last but by no means least, for dessert I chose an easy but very tasty apple bake. The meal made for happy guests and great conversation.

Butternut Squash soup with apple and sage

Cider-brined pork roast with roasted apples

Apple Clafoutis

Following the dinner party, I thought I had somewhat exhausted the subject of apples for this season, until I saw “The Apple Lovers Cookbook” by Amy Traverso.  With the help of the very consumer friendly “1-Click” button of a big online bookstore it took me less than 30 seconds (how scary is that?) to be the proud new owner of my very own copy which since has become my new favorite fall cookbook. If you love apples and you want to expand your knowledge beyond the boring and somewhat watery tastes of the 4-5 common varieties of apples we can now buy year-round in the supermarkets, than this book is a must-have for you! Did you know that there are about 150 different varieties of apples grown in the New England region? Many varieties I had never heard of and most of which I had never seen in the supermarkets. Until last week that is. To my pleasant surprise, I found some of them at my local market the other day. 

My fruitbowl

You can see in the picture, every variety in the bowl is labelled so that I would be able to study them and use them in accordance to their flavor, texture and baking/cooking characteristics. My husband didn't believe it when I asked for pen & paper in the store. The great thing about the apple cookbook is, that Amy Traverso categorizes approx. 60 varieties of apples into four categories - Firm-tart;Firm-sweet; Tender-tart; Tender-sweet. Each of her recipes than refers you back to the appropriate category and leaves you the option to use any of the apple varieties listed in the four categories. For me this approach has proven a fantastic way to learn more about various apple varieties available. And you probably know by now, I am always up for learning something new about cooking.

Pork baby back ribs braised in dry apple cider

Well, while I have been writing this post, the first snowflakes have been dancing in the air and I felt I needed some comfort food to go with that. And what could be better than cider braised pork baby back ribs with caramelized onions, carrots and apple slices. 

 Happy eating everybody. :-)