Good Things - Early Winter

Good things from the past few weeks...


The return of fondue dinners with my roommate.
We bust out an electric fondue pot for the Trader Joe's fondue mix and assemble an assortment of dipping vehicles.  This time, we've got toasted bread cubes (pumpernickel and sourdough), raw broccoli, and roasted brussels sprouts.  Unsurprisingly, melted cheese made my initial taste of raw broccoli delicious. Cheese works its magic yet again.

Don't worry, the bunny isn't for dipping. He's supervising our fondue feast, spread across the coffee table that functions as our storage device/dining room table. Yup, we're heathens. But happy ones, at least!

Southern Tier Imperial Choklat Stout.
"A stout brewed with chocolate" is on its label. It's amazing. I must get another bottle (or four) very soon. Rich without being heavy, flavorful without being an in-your-face brew, I couldn't get enough of it.  It's also easy and delicious to use in baked goods, like bread puddings or brownies or cupcakes.

More Apple Cheddar Scones.

I told you, they're thoroughly addictive.  I can't have them enough, fresh out of the oven or for breakfast the following morning. 

Cardamom Ice Cream.

As much as I am a loyal fan of Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams (who makes a fantastic lime cardamom frozen yogurt, by the way), I've been loving this intensely cardamom ice cream from Three Twins.  Equally cozy with chocolate or caramel sauce as it is with roasted fruit (especially roasted plums).

Pumpkin, Maple, Bacon, Pecan Oatmeal.

Yeah, I did it. I put bacon in my morning oats. And it was delicious. A salty-smoky-sweet flavor bomb.  Just cook your favorite package of instant oatmeal with a mixture of pumpkin puree and milk, then top with cooked bacon, pecans, and a generous drizzle of real maple syrup. Wintry luxury that's good for you!

Spaghetti Squash, Black Bean, and Cotija Cheese Tacos.

From The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook.

Holy cow, I've never been more in love with a vegetable filled taco than I am for this. It's incredibly easy to make - just one night's prep offered 4 dinners' worth of food.  And it's a welcome change from my usual spaghetti squash meal, where I top the squash with tomato sauce and pretend it's spaghetti.  

Roast your spaghetti squash with chile powder and cayenne powder.  Assemble your tacos (or, if you're me, on a giant sized chile tortilla from Trader Joe's. So good.) with roasted spaghetti squash, black beans from a can, cotija cheese, extra hot sauce (because you can never have too much), and lime juice.  Make a hot mess over your plate and call it a night. Bonus points for a cold beer to wash it down.

Thoroughly Addicitive Apple and Cheddar Scones

I can admit to you that, as a youth, I did not like cheese.  I ate hamburgers, not cheeseburgers, even from McDonald's.  At family parties, I avoided those strange-smelling cubes of cheese as scrupulously as I avoided the raw veggie tray.  I bemoaned the stench of the blue cheese ever present on my mother's salads.  The only cheese format acceptable to my decidedly finicky (i.e. frustratingly picky) palate was thoroughly melted in either grilled cheeses or mac and cheese, which I maintained was only edible if it was made:  A) from the blue box and B) by my mother.  I can't even fathom how crazy and how annoying my food preferences must have been to my parents.  I apologize, Mom and Dad and all my relatives.  I'll make up for lost time, I promise!

Since my anti-cheese attitude lasted far too long (all the way through college), you can understand why I'd never tried the classic combination of apples + cheddar.  Never. Even as my interest in food and cooking developed, even as I was curious about all the flavors I'd never tasted, even as I started to eat cheese by itself, I still resisted apples + cheddar.  It must've been a remnant of my anti-cheese days.

Then I met Smitten Kitchen. Deb promised these apple and cheddar scones would be addictive.  Plus, I wasn't going to the extreme of having unmelted cheddar and apple...so it stood a better chance of success.

It turns out, these scones are addictive. Even if you've never had apple and cheddar before in your life.  They're addictive enough that you make a few batches in a row, because you can't get enough.  And you start to wonder if there are other combinations of apple and cheddar that could pass muster...  Perhaps a pie crust a la Alton Brown?

Apple and Cheddar Scones
from Smitten Kitchen (get the original recipe with Deb's marvelous writing and photography here) 
Makes 6 large scones, which are at their very best directly out of the oven and quite good for 1-2 days after.

Ingredients:
2 firm tart apples (I prefer Honeycrisp and Braeburn, which aren't exactly tart. Oh well.)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading dough
1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 1/2 tbsp. for sprinkling
1/2 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt, plus a pinch for the egg wash
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (please shred your own, it is so worth it here) (white is recommended for aesthetics)
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 large eggs

Preparation:
Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees Farenheit.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Peel and core your apples, then cut into 1/16th-inch chunks.  Place in a single layer on the lined baking sheet and bake about 20 minutes, until they take on a little bit of light brown coloring and feel dry to the touch.  I know, this sounds finicky, but you're reducing the overall moisture content of the scone, so it will turn out crumbly and perfect instead of gloppy.  Gloppy doesn't sound good, does it?  So gently dry out your apples!

Meanwhile...

Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.  Sprinkle your chilled butter chunks on top and use either a pastry blender, forks, two knives, or your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour mixture.  You want a shaggy consistency, with a few larger pieces of butter (pea-sized or smaller) and many more small pieces of butter.  I find it best to pinch a quantity of dry goods + butter between my fingers and thumb, then drag my thumb across the row of my fingers.  

Add the baked apple chunks, shredded cheddar, cream, and 1 egg to your shaggy flour + butter mixture.  Stir until just combined.  Don't overmix.

Generously flour your countertop and place your dough on top of it.  Sprinkle with more flour.  Using your hands to gently pat or a rolling pin to gently roll your dough out into a 6-inch circle, about 1 1/4-inches thick. Cut into 6 wedges and transfer each to a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving at least 2 inches between scones.

Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl and brush on top of each scone.  Sprinkle liberally with granulated sugar; it'll bake into a crunchy crust.  Bake until firm and golden, about 30 minutes.  Transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool for at least 10 minutes before eating.  If you can wait that long.

Notes:

As I mentioned, these are at their absolute best directly out of the oven.  Well, if you can wait 10-15 minutes for them to cool a bit, that's probably better, but it will be challenging.  If you'd like to reheat your scone before enjoying, I'd suggest a toaster oven or oven to preserve the crisp crust of sugar and egg wash.

I've found that after 2 days, regardless of storage method, these scones lose a lot of their winning points - they're much less crunchy and their interiors are turning mushy (especially the apples).  So eat them quickly. And make more soon.