Loin of Pork with Sauerkraut and Apple Chutney

   In honor of National Pork Month I am making a roasted loin of pork with sauerkraut. Oh, yum. I haven't made one of these is a very long time. Seems that years ago I made it and served it to the family. My eldest son, who has always been a little too sharp for his own good gets up to the table and says to me, "I don't want any of that 'salad-crap'. My initial reaction was to backhand him, but I thought twice about it, and said to him, "I don't serve 'salad-crap', as a matter of fact I don't serve ANY crap." He catches on that I am not happy with his decree, so he points to the sauerkraut, and looks at me with those big hazel green eyes and smiles. "I don't like that stuff, whatever its called."

   Sauerkraut--salad crap--I guess it sounds the same to a three year old. In our house we have always subscribed to the "No-Thank-You-Portion Rule" meaning you have to take a spoonful of the food you don't really want, and you have to try it. My husband and me included, so over the years I have acquired the taste for asparagus and Brussels sprouts--at least to the point that I no longer squawk at my 'no-thank-you-portion', and my husband has tried artichokes and squid.

   I reminded my son of the no-thank-you rule and he, at three, tried to negotiate his way out of the requirement. It was comical. In the end, he stuffed the forkful into his mouth, gagging, then quickly followed it with applesauce to choke it down. His entire body shook. I felt bad and refrained from making this very often, since. Today is probably only the third time since that episode that I made this, and both my husband and I are salivating waiting for dinner time.

   I am chuckling to myself, though, because the same child, no longer a child, is the only one of the "children" that will be home for dinner tonight. Payback time, I guess. I wonder if he will take his no-thank-you portion with dignity tonight.

   The roast is boneless, weighing 6 pounds. Yes, it is rather large for the three of us, but I have leftover pork recipes that I can make later in the week, as well. Sweet and sour pork comes to mind. I have a killer easy recipe for that and I promise to share it. I washed the roast and dried it with paper towel. Then made several little slits in the meat and stuffed little slivers of garlic in the slits. Then rubbed the outside with granulated garlic, something I have never tried before; I will give you my report on that if it turns out to not be a good idea.

   I have about a ton and a half of applesauce in my pantry. Why? read the previous postings and you'll get the picture. I decided I needed to make something different. There is just so much applesauce you can serve to one family before they start throwing it at you. I found an apple chutney recipe. I read it and reread it. Hmmm, it sounded so good. I just had to try it. I just so happened to have everything needed on hand. So, try it, I did!

Apple Chutney

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 6 large tart apples-peeled, cored and sliced thin-toss them in lemon juice-water mix to keep them from browning-drain them before putting them in the pot
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4-1/2 cup pecan pieces
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 more teaspoons lemon juice
• 1/2-3/4 cup water, cider or apple juice ( I used the water--I didn't have apple juice?)

In a heavy bottomed saucepan melt the butter, add 3/4 of  the apples, the sugar, then everything else, EXCEPT--hold onto some of the water or juice--like 1/4 cup or so to add if the mixture starts to stick or burn. Just let this simmer on the stove on low for about 10 minutes. Add the rest of the apples and a little more liquid if needed. The liquid is going to cook off and the mixture will get a little gooey. I add the last 1/4 of apples later on because I like to have some of them with a little bite (al dente, I guess).

   I ended up with about 2 cups of chutney and let me tell you, it is mahhhhvelous! 

   At my eldest son's request I have included a picture. Just bear with me, I am new at the photography end of it and at posting them here, but if things work out, I will be adding photos as we go!

   Sniff, sniff...hmmm I can smell the sauerkraut roasting in the pork drippings...OMG! I can't wait until dinner!
   Love to hear how your roast pork came out, or your chutney!

Here's a photo of the finished pork roast!

Creamy Corn Chowder

October 1, 2011

   This month full of food celebrations, beginning with World Vegetarian Day and National Homemade Cookie Day, today, and National Apple Month and National Chili Month. I could probably fill volumes with those subjects alone, but that's only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.
   One of the celebrations I will personally have trouble celebrating is the No Salt Week observed the first week of October. As I mentioned before, my house is the salt capital of upstate New York, with my husband and eldest son running neck in neck for using the most salt on the strangest things. Applesauce, yes, they salt applesauce. I don't get it. I am told it enhances the flavor, I say, "stop smoking and let your taste buds come back to life and you won't have to artificially "enhance" any flavors", except, as also previously noted, potatoes, especially fried, and all cuts of beef. But that's a different topic and one I do not care to debate here.
   Maybe I could make things that do not require or call for salt, but they salt watermelon and cantaloupe, as well as applesauce, so I am not sure what I could think up would really be guaranteed not to be salted. Ah ha! Hey, I have never seen either of them salt ice cream! But I also do not see serving ice cream for dinner to fit in with the eat better eat healthier celebration that also is observed in October. And my kids are no longer little kids that would really appreciate getting served ice cream for dinner.  I am going to just let that idea float around in my brain for a while and see what might brew. But I would not count on that one coming to fruition.
   I think I need to clarify the No salt idea. It is not that you do not use ANY salt, salt is a very necessary element to the human body--in moderation--you just had to know THAT would come into play. But we Americans use way too much salt, and some of us (me included) have hypertension which is aggravated with the addition of excess salt. So you know the drill, read the labels don't use canned or processed foods, and put down that salt shaker. I have one little pet peeve with salt addicts. PLEASE TASTE the food BEFORE YOU SALT IT. How do you know it needs salt without tasting it first?
   The people from Mrs. Dash® come up with hundreds of recipes that do not call for the addition of salt and I say, this week lets all give one of them a try. I personally like the Sweet Potato Chicken skillet recipe using the Caribbean Citrus Seasoning Blend and I think I am going to try to sneak it in this week, just have to get that blend, as I only have the original on hand.
   I have included a link to Mrs. Dash® website to help you find some salt free recipe to join in the salt free celebration. Please be sure to let me know how your recipe worked out, and post it so we all can share it.
 

No Salt Cooking ideas from Mrs. Dash

   As a standby I will post my favorite corn chowder recipe. I had never had corn chowder until I made this last year for a vegetarian addition to an office party. I was pleasantly surprised on how good it was, so much so that the omission of any meat was not noticed when I served this dish at home, also. Of course, being carnivorous as we are, I served the soup as one course and there was meat in other courses. Hey, I tried!

Creamy Corn Chowder

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (hey--that counts!)
• 1/2 cup finely diced onion
• 1 stalk celery finely diced
• 2 medium potatoes, diced on the small side
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 2 cans creamed corn
• 1 cup frozen kernel corn (I use Price Chopper Brand frozen corn--it is the sweetest corn out there)
• 2 quarts vegetable stock or broth
• 1/4 cup diced green and/or red pepper
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce- you can add more if you want more zip
• 1 cup heavy cream

   Melt the butter in a stock pot. Add the onions and celery and sweat them for about 6 minutes until they start to soften. Add the potatoes, and toss them around in the mix for a few minutes. Add the flour, (you are making a roux). This one comes out rather dry so it won't get bubbly, just stir it around and let it color a bit to cook the flour. Add the broth, slowly, stirring to avoid lumps. Add the two cans of creamed corn, the kernel corn and the peppers. Bring to a gentle boil, lower temp, and let simmer about 10 minutes for the potatoes to finish. Now here you can either stick in your immersion blender or use a potato masher and mash up some of the soup--not all of it, just to get it a little thicker, leaving most of the corn and potatoes whole. Add the hot sauce (or leave it out--but trust me it ENHANCES the flavor) stir in the heavy cream, simmer about 10 minutes.  Done. Notice there's no additional salt, if you can find low sodium creamed corn, go for it, and if you make your own vegetable stock you can also control the salt in that.
   It makes enough for about 8 lunch or first course servings.

   It is really yummy, but for those of you out there who require meat, well, chicken, here's how to make it into chicken corn chowder:
   Use chicken broth instead of vegetable broth and add 1 cup of diced cooked chicken right after you finish "thickening" the soup. Now you have one recipe that can be converted into two, again, two for the price of one. Who loves a bargain?

   Would love to hear how yours turns out!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

   October 2011

   I guess everyday can't be the best. Was feeling a little out of sorts today, and as a result I have not been very productive. Let's see if I can redeem myself with some insight on the coming month of October.

   October has many food celebrations. First of all it is National Apple Month. Hmmm, apples, huh? Well I'm all about that and I have been all over apples for the past few weeks due to the bumper crop I have right in my own  backyard. Then there's National Applejack Month, National Caramel Month (oh, yeah); National Chili Month, National Dessert Month, National Cookie Month, although I would think December should be that one, myself, but I digress. It's also Eat Better, Eat Healthier Month, National Seafood Month, Vegetarian Awareness Month, I guess that goes along with the eat better, eat healthier idea.  Let's not forget National Pickled Pepper Month,  National Pizza Festival Month, National Pork Month, National Popcorn Popin' Month, and National Pretzel Month.

   Wow, that's just the celebrations for the month, then we have the first week is No Salt Week AND National Chili Week, what a combo, and a tough one for my house, the salt capital of upstate New York, at least when we're talking about my husband and eldest son.

    The second week gives us four separate celebrations, besides the daily celebrations, that are: American Beer Week, I'm sure to get some feedback from friends on that one, National School Lunch Week, National Food Bank Week, and National Pasta Week. Geez, Jesse's birthday is this month, and he's my Chili and Pasta Champion, I wonder if there is any correlation? And the Second Thursday is National Dessert Day--remember you spell it with two esses (s) because you want two desserts but can do with only one desert, or something like that.

   The Third week brings us Pickled Peppers Week and National Kraut Sandwich Week. It will be interesting to examine those celebrations. The third Saturday brings us Sweetest Day, which I would have thought was more like February 14, but I am not the one who designated these days, I only report them.

   Finally the fourth week is Chicken Soup for the Soul Week, and we have all month to get ready for that week, chicken soup is good for the body and soul, that one should be fun

   The only thing I see is that, like last month, the celebrations run the gamut, from the really common to the well, borderline weird, with the pickled peppers, but I am sure Peter Piper will appreciate our look at the fare.

   October 1st opens with World Vegetarian Day, so in celebration we'll look at some different, or updated ways to prepare vegetables. What comes to mind immediately is the roasted Brussels sprouts we had a few months back. I am not a very big fan of Brussels sprouts, but get me really small ones and roast them to bring out an underlying, and quite understated, sweetness and they can be rather tasty.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

• 1-2 lbs. fresh Brussels sprouts (I usually look for the smallest heads I can find, as they tend to be milder and more tender)
• 3-4 tablespoons good olive oil--leave the extra virgin out of this 
• 3/4 teaspoon salt and pepper to suit your own taste

   Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare the sprouts by cutting off the stem edge and remove any outer leaves that are yellowing or look funky. Split the sprouts in half vertically--that's up and down, not across. Toss them with the olive oil and salt and pepper. spread the sprouts on a jelly roll pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Slip the pan in the oven and roast for about 40 minutes shaking the pan every 10 minutes or so to evenly brown the sprouts. When they are fork tender they are ready. Sprinkle them with salt, and serve immediately.  I think you will be surprised.

   Oh, I guess this is not a recipe for the first week of October, with all that salt. Some things just need the addition of salt: beef, potatoes, macaroni water, and roasted Brussels sprouts. Okay, so we'll wait for week two to make them.

I am looking forward to your review!

Easy Tortellini Soup

   A cold front moved through the area today, bringing a wicked thunderstorm complete with heavy rain, high wind and  much cooler temperatures. Brrr....fall is really here.

   Sitting in my kitchen contemplating what to make for dinner I thought about one of my sons who works on the railroad. No, really, he literally works on the railroad tracks. Today would be the third consecutive day he will be coming in drenched to the bone; even with his rain gear, he somehow manages to get soaked to the skin. Soup, I thought, soup will warm him up, after his hot shower, I'll have some nice hot chicken soup for him to warm up his insides. Okay, but let's make this chicken soup really something he won't be able to say, "no thanks, Mom."

   Jesse is a pasta hound, put pasta in it, on it, under it, and he's in. Ah, I have some cheese tortellini in the freezer; and some leftover chicken fingers. The gears started turning and I turned out a soup that I was very proud of, and a soup that all the men ate. Jesse even ate his BEFORE his shower. Wow.

   Okay, to start off with I decided the soup needed to have some body, but not as thick as a chowder, but heavier than a plain broth. I need a roux. Okay, a thin roux would put just enough 'Umprh' to make it stick to your ribs.

Easy Tortellini Soup

Serves 4

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 rib celery diced small --the smaller the better, so it will just kind of disappear into the broth
• 1 small carrot shredded on the largest hole of a box grater
• 1 tablespoon dehydrated onion
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 48 ounces of chicken broth- I used Progresso® in the box about 1-1/2 boxes
• salt and pepper to taste-- or leave out if you have to watch your sodium intake
• 4 cooked chicken fingers, diced--I removed any of the breading that came loose
• 1 cup cheese tortellini

   In a 3 quart saucepan melt the butter, add the celery and carrot and sweat for about 5 minutes to start to soften the vegetables. Whisk in the flour and cook until smooth, and bubbly. Stir in the dehydrated onion.. Whisk in the broth, being sure to stir the roux up into the broth. It will still look rather thin, broth-like at this point, but just keep going. Simmer the soup for 10 minutes to finish cooking the vegetables and marry the flavors. Add the diced cooked chicken and the tortellini. Cook over low heat until the tortellini is done. Cooking it without a cover will evaporate some of the broth, concentrating the flavors, and by cooking the tortellini  in the broth adds to the heartiness of the broth because of the the retained starch. It takes about 10 minutes to cook the tortellini, and of course that is al dente. Done!

   See, didn't I tell you it was easy? And you also learned how to make a roux at the same time! Two for the price of one. Now, how's that for a bargain?

   Would love to hear your take on this recipe!

Easy Breezy Lasagna Sept 28, 2011

   Went apple picking again, with my oldest son, thanks, Eddie, couldn't reach the top of the trees without you!

   Made a few quarts of unsweetened applesauce for a family friend who is diabetic; just followed the regular stove top instructions, peeling, coring, and slicing about 4 different types of apples, a little lemon juice and water to keep it from browning and burning. I stuck a whole cinnamon stick in this pot, and ground up some fresh allspice. It was perfect, of course, just not sweet enough for my family's taste--so Richie, I hope you enjoy it!

   I bought a new cookbook last month; The Stocked Kitchen, by Sarah Kallio and Stacey Krastins. It is a system of stocking your kitchen with one grocery list and then having over 300 recipes using only those items you have stocked in your pantry. Sounded very intriguing and as it turned out I already stocked about 90% of the required items anyway.

  Over the course of the following weeks I have systematically picked up the items from the shopping list I didn't normally stock, because there were quite a few recipes I felt would work in my house. As for those items, its not that I didn't ever use them, but I don't usually have slaw mix on hand unless I planned on making cole slaw. I also didn't always have fresh ginger, but I bought a tube of it, so it will stay well in between uses.

   Finally I had enough on hand to try out a few of the recipes, and let me tell you, I was not disappointed. Although a few of the recipes had what I deemed "unusual" mixtures the final outcome was awesome! I tried the Moo Shoo Stir Fry Shrimp, serving them wrapped in flour tortillas. EVERYBODY  raved, and I got "permission" to make it again. Now that is a hands down home run in my house.

   I next tried the Kidney Bean Tortilla Lasagna, but, you know me, I had to tweak it just a bit. I added browned and drained chopped beef to the mixture,  and I omitted the mushrooms, as I do from every recipe--no one here likes them-- and once again: HOME RUN!

   That recipe gave me an idea to make regular lasagna using flour tortillas instead of the lasagna noodles. Holy cow--it was by far much easier to make and it stood up better than any lasagna I have EVER made. I haven't mentioned this here yet, but I make homemade ricotta and mozzarella, and later we will delve into those techniques, but for now, just use the best ricotta and mozzarella you can find (the fewest ingredients and no chemicals on the labels).

Easy Breezy Lasagna

• 1 lb. lean ground round
• 1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
• 6 flour tortillas
• 15 oz.ricotta, drained for at least 30 minutes
• Spaghetti sauce--Jarred,  canned, homemade--whatever you prefer --you'll need about 64 ounces,but don't dump it all in at once--use as much or as little as you prefer, but reserve about 1 cup for the top
• 1 lb mozzarella shredded, divided
• 1/2 lb. cheddar cheese, shredded
• 3/4 cup good grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup freshly chopped flat leaf parsley
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic, divided
• salt and pepper

   Spray a 13 x 9 baking dish with cooking spray.

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

   Spray a large skillet with cooking spray. Brown ground beef and sausage meat until no longer pink. DRAIN fat from skillet. Stir in 1 teaspoon of the granulated garlic and as much of the spaghetti sauce you need to make a nice gloppy mixture, not runny, but not stiff. You want to still have about 1 cup of sauce left. Salt & pepper to taste if you want.

   In a separate bowl mix the ricotta with the parsley, the rest of the granulated garlic, 1/2 of the mozzarella, and 1/2 cup of the Pecorino, salt and pepper to your liking.

   Spread 1/2 cup (about) of the meat/tomato sauce mixture in the prepared dish. Layer two tortillas, 1/2 of the cheese, 1/2 of the balance of the meat mixture, two more tortillas, the rest of the cheese mixture, the rest of the meat, two more tortillas, spread the reserved spaghetti sauce over the top. (I usually then add about 1/4 cup of water to the dish--not on top--and sprinkle the remaining mozzarella, and Parmesan and all of the cheddar cheese on top. Cover with foil and cook for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and cook an additional 15 minutes until it is bubbly and the cheeses are browned and melted. Remove from oven and let stand 15 minutes before cutting.

   I always serve Italian dishes with a salad of lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, garlic, oil and vinegar. Black olives are optional, as are croutons, and Italian bread--okay, yes I usually make it from scratch, too, but that's only if I have time..

   I found this recipe easy enough to make for not only special occasions--maybe not an after work meal, so a Saturday and definitely on a Sunday.

   Let me know how yours turns out!

Apple Spice Bread with Amish Friendship Bread Starter

 September 2011

    While the Amish Friendship bread starter thawed out on the counter I added 1 teaspoon of sugar, just to make sure it would have plenty of food to come back to life. This morning it was bubbly and smelled just perfect. I searched around and found an Apple Spice version of the Friendship bread, but, of course, you know me, I just had to alter it some more. Here's what I did:

• 1 cup Amish FB Starter 
• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (okay, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves, you can use them separately and yes, freshly grate the nutmeg, or leave out the cloves, its your bread, you know?)
• 3/4 cup chunky applesauce (my homemade)
• 1/4 cup apple butter (my homemade)
• 1 cup Quaker® Natural Granola Cereal (Oats, honey & Raisin)
• 1 large apple, peeled, cored and diced

Preheat oven to 325 °F. Spray 2 loaf pans with cooking spray, then dust with sugar for a real good heavy coating.  Split batter between the two pans. Bake for 40 minutes. Test with toothpick in center, comes out clean.

   Well, it was just a little damp at 40 minutes and the sides had not started to pull away from the sides, so I just shut off the oven and left the little beauties in there for 15 minutes. The original recipe stated that it tended to be on the dry side, so I watched it carefully. When after 15 minutes sitting in the cooling oven the toothpick finally came out clean and the sides just started to pull away from the sides I pulled it out of the oven.  Please note the top was flat, not raised up in the middle like other ones have come out, but, I didn't care about that if it tastes good.  I let it cool about 15 minutes and tried a sample piece. OMG!

   It was delicious! and moist, not dry at all, and yes, it was cooked through! So there's my tip on this one. Just get it close to being done and turn the oven off, let it sit in there and check every 5 minutes until you get it to the "doneness" (don't think that is a word, but in cooking, you know what I mean) you're looking for.

   Okay, I would be remiss if I didn't remind you that in all Friendship bread preparations it is recommended to not use metal bowls or spoons. It does not, however, say anything about the loaf pans. So I used one glass and one metal, and there was no difference between the two results. Maybe someone out there with a real degree in chemistry could explain the reasoning behind the non-metal rule. Or explain why using a metal loaf pan is different than using a metal bowl or spoon. Maybe the heat has something to do with it. I don't know. Any thoughts?

Welcome! Apples Apples Apples!

 Hi, Food Fans! My name is Barbara and I will be your guide through the wonderful world of cooking:  foods, flavors, and techniques. We will experiment with all sorts of techniques, old and new, for your pleasure. We will check out new cookbooks and, well, lets just see where this takes us. Ready? Here goes.

September 2011:

    Apples...holy moly, am I up to my eyeballs in apples! When my husband and I relocated to upstate rural New York 25 years ago we began planting semi-dwarf fruit trees: apples, cherries, apricots, plums, pears, peaches, only to learn, the hard way, that our climate is not conducive for growing stone fruits. So the cherries, apricots, plums and peaches have not fared well. However, the apples and pears have gone WILD! Well, sorta.
   We had an exceptionally good spring and summer in 2011, weather wise, so we have a bumper crop of apples and pears from the 15 apple trees and four pear trees. What to do with all these apples? 
   First thing you need to know is that the trees have NEVER been sprayed with any kind of insecticide--ever. Fertilizer? Well, maybe the first few years we tended to the trees we might have, and neither of us actually remembers, used Miracle-Gro®, you know, the stuff they use to grow thousand pound pumpkins and what-not. We probably haven't fed the trees for the last 15 years--minimum. 
   We have apples of almost every type--except Granny Smith--the brother-in-law mowed the 2 trees down not once, but twice, and I admit I am not a fan of the Delicious varieties, I find them to be not-so delicious, but we do have a tree each of both red and yellow.
   I have made apple pie, applesauce, apple butter, and dried apples so far. I have just taken my Amish Friendship Bread starter out of the freezer...I will try to make one with some apples.
    I guess we'll start with The All-American Apple Pie
    The easiest apple pie I have ever made is accomplished by utilizing those nifty rolled pie crusts you buy in the dairy section of your local supermarket-- hey I never said this was going to be all homemade stuff--if you want to make your own crust, go right ahead, its your decision and your pie. If you don't have an apple-peeler-corer-slicer machine my advice is to GET ONE! Or you can do it the old fashioned way, peel the apples--use at least 2 different varieties for the best flavor.

• 6-8 cups peeled apples, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice--prefer freshly squeezed, but don't fret if you use the bottled stuff
• 1 cup of white sugar OR 1/4 cup packed brown and 3/4 cup white sugar
• 2 more tablespoons of sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon--yes you can grind that fresh, if you must
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg*
• 1/2 tablespoon butter cut into little tabs
• 1 9-inch 2 crust pie crust
• 9-inch pie tin, plate, pan -- I usually spray it lightly with cooking spray--just to be sure it comes out

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare your crusts and ease the bottom into the pie plate. I add the apples to the lemon juice as I am peeling them to prevent them from getting too dark. Toss the 1 cup of sugar, flour, and spices with the apples. Pour into your pie crust. Put the tabs of butter around the top of the apple filling (that prevents the apples from foaming--something fruits do when they're getting cooked). Cover with the second crust, seal and flute**, poke the top of the crust with a fork 3 or 4 times in a spoke fashion, toward the middle, sprinkle top with the 2 tablespoons of sugar. Here you can either use a pie ring or cover the edge with foil to prevent over browning, but I usually just let it ride. Place pie on a cookie sheet to catch the drippings and put in oven. It takes about 50 minutes, sometime longer. this is not an exact science. You'll smell the apples and it will be bubbling up through the vents. If you used a glass pie dish you can look to see that the crust is browned on the bottom. If not...well next time you'll know to keep it cooking a little longer. Sorry, that's the best I can tell you. but most cooking is just one experiment after another, that's where the fun comes in!
   Let the pie cool at least 30 minutes, and longer will be even better, so the juices can tighten up a bit. I serve mine with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, while it is still quite warm, and even reheat it in a warm oven the next day for the same effect.


 

Okay, now let's address the *'rd items:

* 1/8 freshly ground nutmeg--okay you can use the ground stuff you have hiding in the back of your pantry, but trust me, freshly grinding whole nutmeg is by far superior to even a brand new can of the store bought ground stuff. I use a rasp and just rub the whole nutmeg over the bowl, the aroma is divine, and just eyeball the measurement. Its all good.


** seal and flute: To seal the pie, gently fold the top crust over the edge of the bottom crust, and press together. Yes there will be a double layer of crust, all the more to flute! As for fluting I use my fingers this way: with the pie in front of me, I use my right index finger to push the dough gently between my left thumb and index finger, into a point. Viola! that's all there is to it. See simple. I told you!


Let me know how yours comes out!