SAVORING FALL

 

Savoring Fall

          Last couple of weeks, before the rains that changed the landscape, were simply glorious with color of bright reds and yellows everywhere you looked.  It was a time when one agreed with Albert Camus: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower”.  Apparently even this serious writer was not immune to the beauty of fall.

          Our local farmers market is brimming with leeks, four kinds of winter squash, greens of all types, root vegetables and amazingly still tomatoes, eggplant and zucchini. It was tempting to make a rich Provençale quiche for one of those beautiful fall days.

                                      Zucchini quiche Provençale

          Bake a single pie crust from the deli case according to package instructions, using a 9- or 10-inch pie plate. Prepare the following: 1 medium zucchini (~6 in.) sliced in ¼ inch rounds, ½ cup pitted and quartered Kalamata olives, 1/3 cup julienned sundried tomatoes; 1 sliced large shallot.

           Heat 2 tblsp. olive oil in a large pan on medium heat and fry the zucchini and shallot until slightly browned for about 15 minutes. Stir in the Kalamata olives; sundried tomatoes; ½ tsp. each: salt, marjoram, thyme, oregano and savory. Add pepper to taste, stir, heat thoroughly and transfer to the baked pie shell.

          In a bowl beat 3 large eggs, 1 tsp. Dijon mustard and 1 and ¼ cups half and half. Stir in 1 cup coarsely shredded sharp cheddar and pour over the zucchini mixture. Thinly slice 3-4 small Roma tomatoes and layer the slices on top of the pie. Sprinkle all with 2 tblsp. Parmesan cheese. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes until the top is puffed and slightly browned. Remove from the oven and serve warm or at room temperature.

          Apples, the quintessential fall fruit glow in market baskets, just tempting us to savory crisps and pies. It would take a considerable amount of effort to make an apple strudel but fortunately apple quick bread and coffee cake recipes abound. Paging through my old Meta Given’s “Modern Encyclopedia of Cooking” (1957), I came across the unlikely and less than appetizing title of “Apple Grunt”. The humorous implications were a challenge. Challenges are fun and fortunately the results far surpassed its unsavory name.

                                                       Apple Grunt

          Topping: in a small bowl combine 1/3 cup pkd. moist brown sugar, 1 tblsp. flour, ½ tsp. cinnamon and 2 tblsp. cold butter. Cut the ingredients into butter with a pastry cutter or 2 knives until the mixture is coarsely crumbly. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

          Pare, core, quarter and thinly slice 3 large juicy and tart apples. Cover with a whet paper towel while you prepare the batter.

          Sift together 1 and ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp. soda and ½ tsp. salt. In a 2 qt. mixing bowl cream 3 tblsp. soft butter with an electric mixer, add ½ cup sugar, beat in 1 egg and 1 tsp. lemon flavoring. Stir in flour mixture and ½ cup buttermilk in alternate 2-3 portions ending with flour and beating well after each addition. Now fold in the apples.

          Butter well or spray with baking spray an 8x8x2 in. baking dish and turn in the dough spreading the top evenly. Sprinkle with the topping and bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes until cake tests done and top is browned. Serve warm or at room temperature plain or with whipped cream. It is incredibly moist and delicious.

          Fall flavors may continue for some time for tying new apple recipes.  I just may continue with another intriguing recipe from the same volume next time.  

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in coastal Maine and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)