Strawberry Pie with Rosemary-Orange Crust

Do you know one of the main reasons I love food?

Flavors.

I know.... it sounds stupidly simple. But, here's the thing;

Flavors are why we eat (well, besides the whole maintaining life thing). Flavors entertain us, they please us, they add variety to our lives. Without flavors, why would we love food?

Let's say you have a base flavor that you love. Say...strawberries.

You love the flavor of strawberries. It is a unique taste only owned by a strawberry, and it is delicious and pure in its natural, untouched form.

Then, one day you have an experience where your familiar strawberry flavor meets another, and transforms into an experience.

Say, you were in Spain. An Ecuadorian woman, who is married to a Frenchman, just served you a dessert of the finest french cheeses paired with a strawberry and rosemary salad on the side.

Let's just say.

At that moment, two separate but familiar flavors come together and completely transform each other into more than the sum of their parts. A new flavor is born.

Because of flavor experiences like this (combining familiar yet uncommonly paired tastes together like rosemary and strawberry), you find yourself in a constant search to discover more of them. Not only that, but once these combinations are discovered, it also becomes an on-going challenge to apply them in even more unexpected places.

Like in a pie.

In a series of fortunate events, I found myself at the doorstep of creating this recipe. First, it started in Spain (okay, maybe the hypothetical Ecuadorian woman story a was a true, personal story); A flavor combination was born. Then, a friend moved into a new house; A pie had to be made. After, a conversation was held with a dear friend, coworker, and Baking Empress; Creative genius was piqued. Then, multiple flavor combinations formed into one big harmonious new flavor, in a completely foreign dessert setting; A recipe was born.

Strawberries and rosemary...rosemary and orange...orange and fig balsamic vinegar...fig balsamic vinegar and strawberries...

Yes, it had to be done. And yes, it is good. A homerun, high-fivin', 'no way!', 'what the...', 'this is cool', head back, eyes closed, rockin' good pie. And a one-way ticket to Flavor Town.

Strawberry Pie with Rosemary-Orange Crust

Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (you can use all AP flour)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 ½ teaspoons orange zest

1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh rosemary

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut up into ½” cubes and thoroughly chilled

½ cup ice cold water

Filling:

2 pounds strawberries, hulled and quartered

2/3 cup sugar (or less depending on sweetness of strawberries)

4 tablespoons cornstarch

1 1/2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons fig balsamic vinegar (you can use regular balsamic, but the fig is just that much more sweet and unique)

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

Finish:

1 egg, slightly beaten with a splash of water or milk

Coarse sugar

To make the crust:

Pulse flours, sugar, salt, orange zest, and rosemary in a food processor until combined. Add cold cubed butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Add the ice water, 1-2 tablespoons at a time, until the dough just comes together and you can squeeze it in your hand to form a mold without it falling apart. The amount of water needed will depend on the day.

Turn the dough out onto the counter and press down with your palm, smearing the dough out in a few different directions before bringing it together and forming a loose ball.

Divide the ball in two and form each piece into a flattened dish about 1” thick. Wrap each in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

To make the pie:

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees 10 minutes before taking out your first dough disk. Once chilled, take one dough disk out of the fridge and roll it out with a rolling pin - …or, if you’re me…a wine bottle… - to 1” beyond the edge of your pie pan. Press the dough into the pie pan, making sure it is an even thickness and height all around the pan. Trim any excess dough, leaving a bit on the rim for the top crust to eventually adhere to.

Place a piece of tinfoil over the crust and fill with pie weights, uncooked beans,

- or…if you’re me…rocks that you’ve gathered (and washed and dried) from the patio outside. This is to prevent your crust from puffing up too much and to maintain its shape.

Blind bake (that is what it’s called when you bake your bottom crust before adding a filling) your bottom crust for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce temperature to 375 degrees.

Meanwhile, combine all of the ingredients for the filling and roll out your second pie disk, making sure to keep it cold if there is a time gap. Pour filling into the bottom crust and brush exposed edge with egg wash. Cover with the top rolled out crust. Crimp edges to form crust rim.

Brush egg wash all over top crust and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Cut small slits in middle of pie with a sharp paring knife.

Place the pie back in the oven at reduced temperature of 375 degrees. Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 40 minutes longer. If the outer crust gets too brown in the middle of baking, cover just the edge with thin strips of foil and continue baking.

Let cool almost completely before diving in. This is the most difficult part of the recipe.

Curried Sweet Potato Pie with Veggie Crust

Whenever I am stuck for what to make myself for dinner, I always default to a 'vegetable medley' (as I like to refer to it).  I chop up whatever veggies my fridge and pantry have to offer, throw them in a skillet, saute them up, season it somehow, probably add some vinegar or citrus juice in the end, an herb of some sort, and voila, dinner in a bowl.  Thrilling, I know.

But it's always good to make sure veggies make it onto your meal plate, and the more often they appear as a starring role the better.  I like to incorporate spinach whenever I can, or whichever hearty green for that matter, since they are packed with nutrients.  Adding a starch adds a nice balance, and sweet potatoes are bursting with color, flavor, and not to mention Vitamin A, C, E, iron, and beta carotene.  These are two of my 'go-to's' for Vegetable Medleys, and I am always trying to find ways to spice them up.

That's why I became so excited as I was looking over a friend's collection of Moosewood Cookbooks one day and saw their different flavor combinations and applications of certain wholesome ingredients.  After piecing different ideas together, I came up with this Curried Sweet Potato Pie with a Veggie Crust recipe concoction.  It takes a Vegetable Medley from a mundane saute to a sophisticated dish without much more effort, but lightyears more satisfaction.

The curry pairs beautifully with the sweetness of the sweet potato, and the creaminess of the coconut milk adds body and just enough richness to the filling, along with the two eggs that make it part-souffle.  The fresh lime juice adds the necessary brightness to it all, and the toppings of what will come out as toasted pecans and coconut flakes just put it over the top.  And the crust?  Earthy spinach, carrot, and parsnip, ground the spicy and exotic filling so well that you'll never miss a buttery crust of a quiche.

This dish is so incredibly flavorful and satisfying, you'll never think of it as 'just vegetables'.




Curried Sweet Potato Pie with Veggie Crust

Ingredients

1 3/4 lb sweet potatoes
1/3 lb green beans, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1-2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup chopped leeks
1/2 cup diced Anaheim chiles
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (juice of one big lime)
1 Veggie Crust, baked (recipe below)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped pecans
3 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut
Minced scallion or chives for garnish

Method


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Roughly chop the sweet potatoes into large chunks (peel them first if you desire, though I never do).  Place them in a large pot and cover with water.  Bring to a boil and cook until very soft, then drain and place in a medium sized bowl.  Mash well and set aside.

Cook the green beans for 1 minute in boiling salted water until bright green.  Drain and run them under very cold water or place in a bowl full of water and ice to maintain their color and crunch.  Set aside.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the leeks and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes.  Add the Anaheim peppers, curry, and salt and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add to sweet potatoes.

Beat together the eggs and coconut milk.  Add this to the sweet potato mixture, along with the green beans.  Add the fresh lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well, and spread the filling evenly over the cooked veggie pie crust.

Bake for 30 minutes, then sprinkle with the chopped pecans and coconut if desired.  Bake for an additional 15 minutes after adding the toppings.  Once out of the oven, sprinkle with a garnish of thinly sliced scallions.  Serves 4-5.



Veggie Crust


Ingredients 

2 ten-ounce packages of frozen spinach, thawed
3/4 cup grated carrot
3/4 cup grated parsnip
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash of nutmeg

Method

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a 9- or 10- inch pie pan, or equivalent baking vessel.

Squeeze out all of the excess water from the spinach.  Transfer to a medium bowl and add remaining ingredients.  Mix well.

Transfer veggie mixture to the pie pan and push the mixture onto the sides and bottom of the dish to form a crust shape (fingers or spoon or fork work well).

Bake for 40 minutes, brushing the crust with oil or melted butter half way through the baking time.  You do not need to cool the crust before filling it.

Asparagus Dip

There is only a small window of time in the year in which we can all enjoy the wonders of fresh asparagus. Yes, I know, it is one of those food items we can find in a regular grocery store all year round – I get it. But it is also one of those food items that, when harvested and eaten fresh and in-season, completely blows the always-available version out of the water. I want you all to experience this difference. And now is our window.

First, find local asparagus at your nearest Farmers’ Market. Buy a double amount that you think you want or need. Then, prepare the first half so simply it seems silly. Olive oil, salt, pepper, in the oven or on the grill only long enough until it just turns bright green. Munch. Devour. Be blown away.

Then, you can get a bit more creative with your second half since you’ll be hooked. Enter: Asparagus Dip. This involves a similar very quick cooking process as it was with your first batch. Only here, the asparagus is placed in boiling water and cooked just until bright green and then dunked into ice water to stop the cooking process and retain that beautiful color (this is called ‘blanching’). Then, you add that and a lot of other easy and delicious ingredients into a food processor, turn it on, and voila; Dip.

At the market (see the Spiced Rhubarb Chutney post for more details about my Farmers' Market season) I was describing this dip as a “lighter, cheaper, and local guacamole”. It’s delicate, but still bright with flavor, and would be a star on an appetizer plate with veggies and crackers. I myself was craving it on a burger with lettuce, tomato, and cheddar cheese. But that’s just me. Give it a taste and your tongue will tell you what it wants to pair it with.

Do whatever you see fit with this dip, but at least do me the favor of making it and serving it up for Memorial Day celebrations. Seasonal Eating Haven has arrived, and we have to kick it off right.

Asparagus Dip

I fancied adding a bit of herbage to this base recipe - cilantro and chive. Parsley would work great here too.

Ingredients:

2 cups asparagus, about 1 lb. (my asparagus came from Thistle Whistle farm in Paonia, CO! I've written about Mark's amazing farm and vegetables in my 'An Unbeetable Meal' post both here, and on Local in Season)

2 tsp. lemon juice

3 tsp. onion chopped

1 clove garlic minced

1 tomato chopped

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp ground pepper

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1/3 cup sour cream

dash hot sauce

Method:

1. Blanch and shock asparagus.

2. Combine all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth.

3. Transfer into another bowl and chill overnight.

4. Serve cold and enjoy.

Spiced Rhubarb Chutney

I have always thought of rhubarb as an exotic and mysterious food. Why, you ask? Well, first there's the often tomato-centered conundrum: fruit or vegetable? I know what youre feeling - the word fruit is on the tip of your tongue, but something stopped you from officially categorizing it as such. But is it a...vegetable?

Although it may feel strange to say...yes, yes it is! Go on, say it with confidence now. Rhubarb = vegetable. Although we often pair rhubarb with fruit, or apply it to fruit-like applications in cooking, it is actually a good 'ol veg. It's a beautiful, large-leafed plant that sprawls far and wide with the ruby sweet-tart stalks that we put in pies and jams.

Some people love it. Hooray for rhubarb! It signals the coming of summer and is versatile in its culinary applications. Some people, on the other hand, in the reaction to hearing the word 'rhubarb', or when presented with it's long, red stalk in front of their face, will only respond with; "What the...?" and feel slightly afraid. My conclusion? It's time to spread the word of rhubarb. Tis the season for it, and I'm here to tell you all about it's multifaceted - mysterious and exotic - personality.

That's right, I'm pushing your Rhubarb comfort zone. Although we love this fruit-disguised vegetable in our pies, muffins, cobblers, and preserves, it's savory side is too often ignored...or never even addressed! This recipe responds to Rhubarb's Other Side, and I think you will be delighted to get to know each other. Here it is made into a chutney; a sweet and savory condiment that hits your tongue on so many levels that you'll be thoroughly entertained with every bite. From fresh ginger to cloves to red onion to crushed red pepper and golden raisins...no flavor sensation is left behind.

I was able to share this recipe and chutney with the Longmont Market-goers last weekend, as I have the special opportunity to run the Farmers' Market booth for the Culinary School of the Rockies this season in both Boulder and Longmont, CO. We offer seasonal recipes every week to market shoppers, with one in particular that we make and of which we give out samples. The featured recipe always centers around a peak produce item that is shooting out of the soil at that moment, and is therefore flowing off of the farmers' booths at the market that week. Our visitors can therefore taste our dish, take the recipe with them, and continue to shop for the freshest ingredients right there to make the dish and wow their friends at home. It's seasonal cooking and eating at it's finest.

So go on, head to the next market nearest you and grab a double handful of rhubarb. You're allowed to make your pie, don't worry, but reserve some for a savory treat too.

All-Star Tasters!

Cut right from the soil of Grant Family Farms and Miller Farms

Spiced Rhubarb Chutney
This chutney is fantastic on grilled meats, my favorite being grilled or roasted pork. I also love it simply as a condiment, either in sandwiches, mixed into yogurt, or for breakfast as you'll see below; on toast over a good smear of creamy goat cheese.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Sugar (feel free to adjust sugar levels to your liking)
1/3 cup Cider vinegar
1 Tb. Minced peeled fresh ginger
1 Tb. Minced garlic
1 tsp. Ground cumin
1/2 tsp. Ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Ground cloves
1/4 tsp. Dried crushed red pepper
4 cups Fresh rhubarb (about 1 ½ lbs.) cut into ½ inch cubes
1/2 cup Chopped red onion
1/3 cup Dried tart cherries or golden raisins (or both!)


Method:

Combine first 8 ingredients in a large heavy pot with lid. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add rhubarb, onion and dried cherries or raisins. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook until rhubarb is tender and mixture is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Let mixture cool completely.


Can be refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Homemade English Muffins

Today was one of my favorite types of days. It was a day of discovery - food discovery to be specific - and nothing gives me more joy and excitement as do these moments. I get to experience something new, something delicious, and I feel that much more knowledgeable about the world around me than before. The food world is infinitely full of these moments. Each one builds upon the next, and I get to continuously experience them every day. I'll never get over how lucky I am for that.


But guess what? It's actually the fact that I get to share these discoveries with you that means the most to me. Yes, you! If I can do it, you can do it. And since I need to eat, and you need to eat, there's no reason I should be more informed about this human necessity than you are. I therefore feel an obligation to pass along this knowledge to as many people as possible, and I do it both gladly and eagerly. "Food is our common ground, a universal experience" after all... right, James Beard?


I felt similarly on the day I got to tell you that you can make your own Nut Butter at home, since it is something that is commonly only thought to be accessible in a store. But alas, it's not true! And today I feel the same way. Only today I'm telling you that you can make your own English Muffins. Standing there, in your PJ's, in your own home, makin' muffins. Yes, it's true!


This recipe has been on my 'must make' list for a while, and when I came across it recently on one of my favorite blogs Smitten Kitchen, I knew I had to finally check it off the list. It uses a cooking technique similar to an English Muffin recipe by Alton Brown (using tuna cans as molding rings to shape the muffins) but the ingredients are adopted from a Ruth Reichl recipe. The only ingredient I wanted to add but unfortunately forgot to buy at the store was cornmeal. My plan was to sprinkle it on each side of the muffin before cooking them on the griddle to get that nice, crunchy, hint of toasted corn flavor with every bite. But oh well, there's always next time, and now I know they are perfectly delicious without it too.


All I can really say is: sorry Thomas', but we've got your number now. I will pass by you at the store and give you a glance and a slight grin, but nothing more, and simply continue in stride.

Homemade English Muffins
Makes about 15 muffins

1/3 cup warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 2/3 cup milk

1 egg

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice

5 cups all-purpose flour

Mix 1/3 cup warm water with 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 package active dry yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in 1 2/3 cups milk. When cool, add to yeast mixture along with 1 egg, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 tablespoon white vinegar. Add 2 1/2 cups flour and mix, at medium speed, 5 minutes. Add 2 1/2 cups more flour and mix well. Cover and let rise 1 hour.*

Preheat a griddle to 300 degrees F, or a heavy duty skillet to medium low heat.

Place metal rings or tuna cans (both tops and bottoms removed) onto the griddle and coat lightly with vegetable spray. Using #20 ice cream scoop**, place 2 scoops into each ring and cover with a pot lid or cookie sheet and cook for 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the lid and flip rings using tongs. Cover with the lid and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes or until golden brown. Place on a cooling rack, remove rings and cool. Split with fork and serve.

* You can also mix this by hand, adding all of the flour at once and not for five minutes.
** Unable to figure out what size scoop this was, I can only caution you to not fill the ring more than halfway. It puffs plenty while cooking.

Fluffy, steamy centers...

...turn into those nook and cranny crags you crave after a run in the toaster. More like butter capsules really.

Inspiration for a brunch to remember: Homemade english muffins smeared with butter, and topped with fresh radish slices, scallions, sea salt and lemon juice. An uncanny combination.

Swiss chard-goat cheese eggs and purple potato garlic hashbrowns to round it all out. Happy Easter! holy food coma

Simple, wholesome ingredients

Big discoveries

Beer Bread

Beer. Bread. Together. As one.

I cannot tell you how happy I am that I was finally introduced this epic culinary creation. Seeing that beer and bread are two of my favorite things, it seems as though I would have anxiously anticipated making this recipe after extensive research and taste tests. But the reality is, this recipe was actually the farthest from premeditated as you can get. It came about in an unanticipated moment; a type of moment when culinary creativity can reach its utmost potential.

It's the type of moment when you know you want to make something, but the inspiration comes so quickly that there was no prior preparation for it (and that includes shopping). Due to this spontaneity, you are therefore left to the already existing stock of the closest pantry to see what seemingly unrelated ingredients can come together to create something fantastic. It's a test to see if you can make something work, and work well, using only the things you already have.
It’s kind of like as if you were trying to survive on a desert island. Only there's no island. Or SOS calls. Hopefully.

I had decided that I wanted to make bread (...shocking, I know). But after a failed attempt to locate any yeast, I was left to dig deeper into my archives of culinary know-how. Luckily my friend chimed in during my active brainstorm throughout the kitchen. "What about beer?" he suggested.

Beer....beer....ah, yes, beer! Brilliant, I say. Yeast is a pivotal ingredient in beer production just as it is in most breads - therefore basically making beer a liquid form of bread in many ways.

In very basic terms, yeast plays an important role in the chemical processes of both beer production and bread making to enhance flavor, produce alcohol, and release carbon dioxide. In beer the alcohol is contained, but in yeast breads it is mainly cooked away, but with no loss of that yeasty fermented flavor that makes us all swoon at the smell and taste of freshly baking bread. And the carbon dioxide? In beer, if carbonated naturally, creates that bubbly efferrvesence to your pint, and in bread, the gas is released into the flour in the dough, filling your bread with delicious, chewy air bubbles in between the strands of gluten.

Bottom line: Yeast is behind everything that is awesome about both beer and bread. Be sure to thank it over your next brew or sandwich, since yeast is why both will be so tasty.

So after reaching this brilliant yeast epiphany, it was clear that Beer Bread was the decided creation on the horizon. And besides this recipe being a conglomeration of so many incredible ingredients all in one loaf (beer, bread, cheese, ground mustard, aromatics...), it is so easy to put together that it's almost silly. It has the steps and time appeal of a quick bread (the baking powder assists with the rising), but has the flavor and aroma of a yeasted bread that would normally take much more time to rise and develop.

And when you take it out of the oven, a loaf scented with a hint of beer that is encapsulated in a buttery, crunchy crust awaits you. It sits there, teasing you, and once slightly cooled, it is ready to be sliced into to reveal the scattered pieces of caramelized shallots, fragrant garlic, and melted savory cheese.
It is impossible for me to read that sentence and not have my mouth water.

You can certainly enjoy this bread on it's own, but once you bite into it your mind will instantly know it's undoubted potential for other applications. It practically begs to be dipped into a chili or soup, or put in a toaster, or to be bookends for a healthily sized barbecue pulled pork sandwich.

I've already started to imagine versions with corn flour or corn meal, perhaps some whole wheat flour, fresh herbs (cheddar/dill, sundried tomato basil), even different cheeses... and not to mention all of the different types of beer you could test out with each loaf! You could get quite a different outcome making this bread with a Guinness vs. a light lager. Maybe try an oatmeal stout with some oats scattered within the bread...or a porter with a hint of chocolate or coffee...
Here we go with the mouth watering again.


Clearly I need to get cooking. And so do you.

Beer Bread

Ingredients

Olive oil

1 small shallot, cut into a small dice

1 clove garlic, minced

3 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon ground mustard

1 cup grated cheese (I used a cheddar/smoked gouda combo)

12 oz of your favorite beer (yes, that is one can's worth)

2-3 tablespoons butter, melted

Method

Heat the oven to 375 degrees and grease a bread loaf pan with butter and flour or nonstick cooking spray.

Heat a splash of olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook until soft, and slightly brown if desired (caramelized). Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute until fragrant (you do not want the garlic to brown or else it will be bitter). Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and ground mustard. Mix in the cheese and shallot/garlic mixture. Add the beer and stir to combine. The dough will be sticky.

Transfer dough into greased loaf pan. Pour melted butter over the dough. Place loaf into middle of oven followed by a baking sheet below it to catch any butter that falls out of the pan as the bread rises. Bake for 60-75 minutes, or until the bread has risen and formed a golden brown, cragged crust and a toothpick inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean or with only a few crumbs attached. Let cool - for as long as you can stand it - on a wire rack.

Slice, crack a beer, enjoy.