Autumn for cooks is a relief. Gone are the incessant salads and grilled-everything of summer — nice memories, but we need to get back to the kitchen. We rediscover the oven, cool for the past three months.
Summer appetites are fickle and, you know, “light.” Cooks hate that word. Light means lacking. Autumn appetites are reawakened and sharp, requiring far more than a plate of green leaves.
The season offers its own flavours. Vegetable gardens are waning, but we always get the best stuff in autumn. The cool weather sweetens carrots, beets and other root crops. The Brussel sprouts finally are heading up. Peppers absolutely star in autumn, turning red and orange and mellowing out on the plants.
Those of us of the garlic persuasion know the local crops now are harvested and sweet.
The same is true of autumn fruits. They’ve spent the summer building sugar and flavour. You cannot beat an autumn apple still warm from the sun.
Autumn lacks the formality of the holidays. Dust off your casual recipes and ask friends over. “Casual” is comfort food, old favourites from a mother’s recipe box, tasty cuisine all the way.
Chilli returns to our thoughts and bowls. Nobody eats it in summer (just what we need, sweat-inducing food). In the autumn a robust chilli bowl with cornbread is perfect.
So we’re thinking pork roast simmered in sauerkraut with onions and pear slices, slow-simmered beef stew with fresh basil, tomato-vegetable soup with rice cleaning out the remainders of the garden. Short ribs braised four hours in beer and onions on a rainy, chilly Sunday. We salute the return of warm dinner rolls with big globs of butter and homemade berry jam.
Autumn touches each meal. For breakfast, try made-ahead crepes filled with scrambled eggs topped with maple syrup and grapes on the side. Lunch is panini-style (toasted) sandwiches with tomato soup. Supper is butterflied pork chops with mustard and sweet potatoes.
So here we go, our kitchen dances into autumn. All this is comfort food, and we need that, considering winter is approaching fast.
APPLE SCHNITZ
Your German heritage is showing if you call apple wedges “schnitz.” This is a finger-food take on the baked apples.
Core apples in a slicer or with a knife. Do not peel. Place on a baking sheet in one layer (you might want to line it with parchment paper). Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Bake in middle of a 300-degree oven 20 minutes and transfer immediately to racks to cool. These are great for dessert with vanilla ice cream or as finger-food on a party table.
SCRAMBLED CREPES
1 cup flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Place ingredients in a blender and pulse until batter forms. Refrigerate batter at least an hour to form gluten.
Heat an oiled crepe pan or a skillet. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into the centre and roll pan around to cover in a circle. Cook over medium heat, pulling up an edge to check on browning. Flip crepe with a turner and cook other side for a few minutes. May be made ahead and refrigerated in a plastic food bag.
Makes 6-8 crepes
Filling:
Sauté 1/2 cup of fresh, sliced mushrooms and 1/4 cup diced onion in butter. Add 2 whisked eggs and cook gently until firm. Chop and divide among four crepes, folding each in a roll. Serve with maple syrup or jam.
ITALIAN PANINI SANDWICHES
2 slices Italian bread
2 slices fresh tomato
1/2 teaspoon Italian dressing, bottled is fine
2 slices ounce prosciutto or ham
2 slices sandwich pepperoni salami
2 slices smoked mozzarella or provolone cheese
1 teaspoon butter, softened
Coat tomato slices with dressing. Stack meats, tomato and cheese on bread slice. Cover with second slice and butter top and bottom. Grill 3 minutes to a side, pressing down with spatula. Serves 1.
BUTTERFLIED PORK CHOPS WITH SWEET POTATOES
6 cups water
5 tablespoons kosher or sea salt
2 pork chops, butterflied
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons brown or coarse-seeded mustard
Dissolve salt in water, pour in bowl and add chops. Cover and allow it to stand for at least two hours.
Peel and cube potatoes. Drain chops and wash under tap. Pat dry with paper towels.
Heat oil in skillet, brown chops. Coat tops with mustard. Place potatoes around chops, cover and cook 40 minutes or until done. Serves 2.
Canton Repository
author: Jim Hillibish