Seven Nights of Autumn Eats
Regardless of the weather where you live, once football hits the airwaves and stores aisles begin to overflow with holiday paraphernalia, certain foods and flavors head to the top of the menu. From apples to pumpkin, from turkey to cranberries, these seve
Sunday:
Apple Orchard Pork Chops
6 pork loin chops, 3/4-inch thick
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 cups apple cider or juice
1/3 cup coarse-grain mustard
3 medium apples, cored, sliced 1/2-inch thick
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup sliced green onions
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup water
Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown pork chops and season with salt and pepper. Combine apple cider and mustard; pour over pork chops. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add apples, raisins and green onions. Cover; cook 5-10 minutes longer. Place pork chops and apples on serving platter; keep warm. Stir combined cornstarch and water into pan juices; cook and stir until thickened. Serve sauce over pork chops and apples. Serves 6
Courtesy National Pork Board
Monday:
Autumn Beef and Cider Stew
2 pounds beef for stew, cut into 1 to 1-1/2-inch pieces
2 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 can (10-1/2 ounces) condensed French onion soup
1 cup apple cider
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
1/3 cup unsweetened dried cranberries
Cook bacon in stockpot over medium heat until crisp; remove with slotted spoon to paper-towel-lined plate. Brown 1/2 of beef in bacon drippings over medium heat; remove from stockpot. Repeat with remaining beef; season with salt and pepper. Return beef and bacon to stockpot. Add soup and cider; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover tightly and simmer 1-3/4 hours. Add sweet potatoes and cranberries to stockpot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; continue simmering, covered, 20 to 30 minutes or until beef and potatoes are fork-tender.
Courtesy National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
Tuesday:
Panko Fried Turkey Croquettes with Mango Salsa
Turkey Croquettes
1 pound ground turkey
1/4 cup cilantro, washed, dried, and chopped
1/4 cup red peppers, fine bruniose
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup egg batter
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
as needed oil for frying
Mango Salsa
2 mangos, skin removed and diced
1 Small red onion, diced fine
1 Teaspoon cilantro, chopped fine
2 Teaspoons honey
1 Teaspoon champagne vinegar
Mix turkey with cilantro and red pepper. Season with salt and pepper. On a sheet pan, form into one-inch balls; cover and chill for about 30 minutes. Dip turkey balls in flour, then in egg batter, then roll in panko breadcrumbs. Deep-fry croquettes to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. and golden brown.
Toss mango with red onion, cilantro, honey and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and hold for service. Serves 4.
Courtesy National Turkey Federation
Wednesday:
Chicken Rolls with Cranberry Filling
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/3 cup orange juice
2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons dried cranberries, divided
5 tablespoons butter, divided
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 cup crushed herb stuffing mix, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground sage
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
3 tablespoons honey mustard
Parsley, for garnish
Between two sheets plastic wrap, place chicken breasts and flatten with mallet or palm of hand. In small saucepan, place orange juice and heat over medium heat. Add cranberries, cover and set aside to soften. In another saucepan, place 2 tablespoons of the butter and melt over medium heat. Add celery and onion and sauté about 2 minutes. To 1/3 cup of the stuffing mix, add sage; stir into celery-onion mixture and add 2/3 cup of the cranberries. Sprinkle chicken with pepper and spread with mustard. Spoon cranberry mixture in center of each piece, roll chicken over filling and fasten with wooden picks. Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter and dip each chicken roll, first in butter and then in remaining 2/3 cup crushed stuffing. Place chicken on baking pan lined with foil and sprayed with vegetable spray. Bake, uncovered, in 350°F. oven about 30 minutes or until fork can be inserted in chicken with ease. Sprinkle chicken with parsley and remaining 2 tablespoons cranberries. Makes 4 servings.
Courtesy National Chicken Council
Thursday:
Halibut Fillets with Curry, Herb, and Almond Crust
4 6-ounce pieces of halibut fillet, without skin
2 tsp. curry powder
Salt and pepper
1/4 c. fresh bread crumbs
1/4 c. shelled almonds with skin
1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves or ? tsp. dried
Melted unsalted butter or olive oil
For the curry sauce (optional)
2 tsp. good-quality curry powder
1 T. unsalted butter
1/2 c. fish broth or chicken broth
1/2 c. heavy cream
2T finely chopped fresh cilantro, parsley, or chives
Salt and pepper
1 to 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
Preparing the Fish: Sprinkle the most attractive side of the halibut fillets with curry powder, salt, and pepper. Process the bread crumbs, almonds and thyme together in a food processor for about 1 minutes. Press the fillets, attractive side down, into this mixture so the tops of the fillets are coated with an even layer. If necessary, press additional nut mixture onto the fish so that it’s well coated. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to 2 hours.
Preparing the Sauce: Cook the curry powder in butter in a small saucepan over low heat until the curry starts to smell fragrant, about 2 minutes. (Be careful; curry burns quickly.) Whisk in the broth and boil until the broth reduces by about half, about 5 minutes. Add the cream and simmer until the sauce has the consistency you like.
Baking and Serving: Preheat the over to 450 degrees and carefully transfer the fillets to a buttered or oiled baking sheet. Bake the fillets for about 6 minutes (assuming they’re about an inch thick) and transfer them to hot plates. Spoon the sauce around—not over—and serve.
Makes 4 light main-courses or first-course servings.
Courtesy Halibut Association of North America
Friday:
Broccoli-Cheddar Frittata
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped broccoli
1 small carrot, diced, OPTIONAL
¼ cup water
8 eggs
¼ cup milk
2 tsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
¾ cup shredded Cheddar cheese (3 oz.)
1 Tbsp. chopped green onion
Combine broccoli, carrot, if desired, and water in 10-inch nonstick skillet. Cook over medium heat until tender, stirring occasionally to break up broccoli, about 10 minutes; drain well.
Beat eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper in large bowl until blended. Add broccoli mixture, cheese and green onion; mix well.
Coat same skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium heat until hot. Pour in egg mixture; cook over low to medium heat until eggs are almost set, 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove from heat. Cover and Let stand until eggs are completely set and no visible liquid egg remains, 8 to 10 minutes. Cut into wedges.
Courtesy American Egg Board
Saturday:
Polenta Gratin with Braised Fall Greens, Goat Cheese and Roasted Bell Peppers
4-1/4 cups water
1 tsp. sea salt
1-1/2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal
2 Tbs. olive oil
¼ cup fine grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tbs. chopped fresh thyme or rosemary
1 large bunch fall greens (swiss chard/collard greens/kale), steamed and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 6 cups)
½ small white onion, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
½ tsp. sea salt
3 roasted red bell peppers, peeled, seeded and cut into thin strips
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
Salsa
1. Make the polenta at least 1 hour ahead of time. Bring 4 cups of the water to boil, add the salt and slowly whisk in the cornmeal. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often. The polenta will be very thick.
2. Brush a 11x9-inch baking with some of the olive oil. Spread the polenta evenly into the dish. Sprinkle the Parmesan and herbs evenly over the surface of the hot polenta. Cool completely and chill, unwrapped, until firm.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use a sharp knife to cut the polenta into 6 squares, then cut each square diagonally to form a triangle. Lightly oil a large baking sheet, set the polenta triangles on it in rows and bake for 30 minutes.
4. While the polenta is baking, wash the greens in several changes of water and drain thoroughly.
5. In a 10-inch sauté pan, heat the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Add the greens, season with the salt and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until the greens start to wilt.
6. Add the remaining ¼ cup of water to the pan and cover. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes, or until the greens are quite soft. Keep warm.
7. Remove the polenta from the oven and transfer 2 triangles to each of 6 warmed plates. Lay several strips of roasted peppers on the polenta and set the greens on top. Crumble a little goat cheese over the peppers and greens. Return to the oven for 5 minutes, and then serve with warmed salsa on the side. Serves 6.
Courtesy “Cooking with the Seasons at Rancho La Puerta” by Deborah Szekely and Deborah M. Schneider (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2008)
Matthew M. F. Miller, author of “Maybe Baby: An Infertile Love Story” (HCI, 2008), is a syndicated fatherhood blogger
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