The Taste of Fall

When I was in high school, one of the best things to find in my sack lunch was Mom's Apple Cake. Don't be mislead, this is not cake. It is more an apple pie bar, and nothing makes a baloney sandwich tolerable like the anticipation of eating the fruity wonder called apple cake.

Today's lack of Packer game broadcast caused me to venture into the kitchen for some fall baking.  I ran across a recipe, in a recent issue of Cook's Country magazine, called Chapel Squares. They are a combination of apple and dried cherry as filling, and it is enclosed in a pastry crust. I wondered if the addition of cherries would give this dessert a flavor even better than my mom's apple cake.

I prepared the pastry crust and prayed rolling it out between parchment paper would make working with it a breeze. This would not be the case. It became clear that my butter had not been incorporated enough, the dough was too wet, and again I would struggle to get the pastry into the pan. Would the final taste be so good that the pastry struggle was worth all the effort? Time would tell.

The dried cherries needed soaking, apples needed to sit in the sugar cinnamon, and pastry need to refrigerate. Time would tell.

After the final assembly was completed, I realized I had failed to put the almond paste on the bottom crust, thus eliminating a whole taste layer. If the final product were tasty enough, I pledged to try the recipe again and get all ingredients into the final product.

While the Chapel Squares, sans almond paste, was tasty, it in no way compares to my mom's apple cake.  The Chapel Squares were more pastry than filling, and that was disappointing. Admittedly, cherries add a fun flavor, as does the almond extract in the icing and this is a good dessert. It is probably even better with the almond paste layer. Made for any event I am sure it would be well received. However, after all the time and work, I decided I would rather stick with the recipe that holds such dear memories, has fabulous taste, and is much quicker to make. (The pastry is easier to handle too)

As soon as the new apple crop arrives, I will make my mom's apple cake and post a picture so you can see the difference. Click the link above to make one for yourself and enjoy the tasty goodness of fall.

Dancing Chicken

When you read cookbooks like a good fiction novel, you run across all sorts of strange things. Cooking a full chicken with a can of beer stuffed up its backside is one of the funniest things I have ever heard of, and I had to give this a try.

Last Monday, I played around with the dancing chicken. (That is what it looks like to me.) The preparation was simple. Rub seasoned salt and pepper on the outside of the whole chicken, drop 5-6 cloves of garlic into the can of beer (which had been half emptied) and perch the chicken on top of the beer can. The most difficult part of preparing this dish was finding a single can of beer to purchase. My normal grocery location doesn't sell singles, and a competing store only sold the beer silos. (20 ouncers) I was fearful my dancing chicken would be too tippy, but careful handling prevented any mishaps.

I removed the top rack of the grill, fired her up, and when it was properly warmed, placed my dancing chicken on the side opposite the flame. (Indirect heat) The work was done. Ninety minutes later we had a juicy chicken dinner.  Did the beer provide a special flavor? Nope, so I plan to try again with just Coca Cola. (a variation I have seen) Did the garlic provide a tasty flavor? Nope, so I plan to put more cloves in the can and a few under the chicken skin. Did the salt and pepper enhance the flavor? Not really, unless you eat the skin, which I tend not to do. I plan to rub the salt and pepper in the cavity of the chicken as well as on the skin.

You can see this was a recipe that earned the honor of being tweeked and tried again. It was fun and might be a good conversation starter if you prepared it for guests, however for flavor, I think our family is fully hooked on Julie's Chicken. The seasoning on the outside of the chicken is the same but produces a bit more flavor. Julie's Chicken is juicy and you don't need to own a grill to get that great taste.

Recent Baking & Cooking

If this blog were the measure of the baking & cooking going on at our house, one would think we are starving by now. This, of course, is not the case. My apologies for the long absence, and I hope to be back on a more regular basis.

I was most recently inspired to reconnect because of dear daughter's labors on Labor Day. She hooked a 21 pound chinook and, with a little help, reeled in that tasty fish. The following day we delighted in a BBQ salmon and crispy fried potato dinner.

Jason prepared the salmon. There was no fancy preparation, just salt and pepper. It was tender, flaky, and delicious. Don't be fooled; this is not like picking up a hunk of fish at the store and plopping it on the grill. Much time was spent properly gutting and cutting the fish, but the reward was well worth the time investment. Nothing like really fresh fish.

As the fish was being prepared a light bulb went on and I pulled out the Hayes Family Cookbook. My brother insisted mom's recipe for Crispy Fried Potatoes be in the cookbook. It isn't much of a recipe. You just need firm leftover potatoes, butter, salt, and pepper. There aren't even any measurements.

The crispy fried potatoes were a last minute addition. We had yellow potatoes that had been baked a few days earlier, and they hadn't attained the flaky center like a true baking potato. Leftovers were put in the fridge, and I assumed they would migrate toward the back, eventually ending up in the garbage.

My mandolin made nice thin, even slices of potato. I dropped two tablespoons of butter into a the frying pan and layered the potatoes on top, trying to get a single layer. The two medium size potatoes filled the fry pan and it was a bit over a single layer. Crispiness was the goal and a golden brown color was also desired. It took about 5 minutes. I went totally on color and crispiness. Since I am not adept at the mid-air flip, I struggled to use my largest spatula to turn the potatoes. Another 5 minutes or so and dinner was ready.

The combination of crispy potato and tender salmon was excellent. There was no need for complicated flavoring because these two staples, in their purest form, were delish.