Cooking seasonally and eating well in the Hudson Valley.

Lovely Deb Puchalla of Everyday Food was kind enough to single out my recent article about pressure-cooker comfort food (via her Twitter identity, everydayfooddeb,) and I see by my many new visitors that others are inclined, as I am, to follow her (excellent) advice.

So, welcome to The Bountiful Harvest–while the focus is on eating seasonally and well in New York’s beautiful Hudson Valley, I have recipes and ideas that work no matter where you live–hope you’ll be back for more seasonal deliciousness to come…next up, butternut squash risotto (and yes, I’ll be making in my pressure cooker.)

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This is one of my favorite desserts for this time of year: super simple, gently flavored, every bit as good as what you put into it. (In other words, a strong, sweet-tart apple with no mealiness or mush.) And how can you resist something with the French name Gateau aux Pommes de la Reine des Pommes? (in French, the Apple Lady is promoted to the Queen of Apples–good for her!) It’s almost a cross between cake and clafoutis, with an eggy batter just enveloping sliced and peeled apples. You could dress it up with a homemade caramel sauce and some whipped cream, or enjoy it warm from the oven a la mode; it’s great cold, too.

Patricia Wells’ “The Apple Lady’s Apple Cake” from The Paris Cookbook

1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 T baking powder
1/8 t fine sea salt
1/2 t vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 T vegetable oil (I use canola or grapeseed)
1/2 cup whole milk (if you only have lowfat around, that’s fine)
4 large or 6 medium apples, peeled, cored and cut into thin wedges (about 2 lbs. total)

The topping:

1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 T unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Butter a 9 inch springform pan and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and sea salt, and stir to blend. Add the vanilla, eggs, oil and milk and stir until well blended. Add the apples and toss to coat thoroughly with the butter.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan and bake in the center of the oven until fairly firm and golden, about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping by combining all ingredients in a small bowl, and stirring to blend. Set aside.

When you remove the cake from the oven, pour the topping mixture over it and return to the oven for another ten minutes, or until the top is a deep golden brown. The cake should feel quite firm when pressed with a finger.

Cool in pan on a rack for ten minutes. Then run a knife around the edge of the pan, and release and remove the springform side, leaving the cake on the pan base. Serve warm (not hot) or at room temperature in thin wedges.

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This week’s haul: 2 huge butternut squash, 2 bunches arugula, onions, potatoes, kale, field greens, and braising greens, too, plus my absolute favorite: rapini, or broccoli rabe. Tonight I’m going to try making risotto with some of that squash in my new pressure cooker. Maybe I’ve been watching too much Mad Men and I’m going all retro? Entirely possible. Stay tuned for the recipe and the results. And tomorrow, it’s apple madness with A Way to Garden and Dinner Tonight,
so watch for a couple of pomme-y favorites.

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Check out my latest post on Rural Intelligence–thanks to the divine Mark Bittman, a wonderful, comforting, Chinese take on poached chicken.

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I’ve noticed a fair number of new, albeit invisible, faces around here, thanks to my dear friend Margaret Roach, she of the incredible gardening blog A Way to Garden. So, to you all, welcome! Though gardening is not my strong suit (just ask Margaret–she’ll tell you!) I do raise some lovely chickens (see the fruits of their labor on the left.) And I’m pretty good at helping you figure out what to do with your lovely garden haul (or if you’re like me, your farm share.) So look around, say hello,and do tell me what your recipe needs are–even as we head into fall, the harvest and the creative ways to enjoy it in the kitchen are still bountiful.

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These weeks of silence just crept up on me. A week of missing share day here, a family visit there, and before I knew it, this blog had been sorely neglected. The good news is, I have been doing some foodie writing work. Check out my Rural Intelligence articles, here, and here, and here, and here, and here!

And stay tuned for updates–at my house this week, it’s all about turning summer into winter, that is: making tomato sauce and pesto to freeze. Mine is truly tomato sauce for the lazy, and even so–it’s delicious. I use it as is on pasta, or as the base for a meaty sauce for lasagne.

Lazy Girl Tomato Sauce

2 T extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 onion, chopped
1 t dried oregano
2 t dried basil
4 lbs. tomatoes, very ripe, chopped into 1-1/2 inch or so chunks
1 t kosher salt
1/2 t freshly ground pepper

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat and add the garlic. Allow it to soften and grow slightly golden, and then add the onion. Saute five or so minutes, until beginning to soften, and add the dried herbs. Stir a minute or two to allow their flavors to seep in, then add the remaining ingredients. Keep over medium heat, stirring to keep anything from scorching on the bottom. When it’s good and juicy, turn the heat down to a very slow simmer, partially cover, and allow to cook for up to two hours–checking it occasionally so that it doesn’t dry or burn. When it’s reached a consistency you like, turn off the heat and allow to cool. Run through a food mill if you like (to remove most of the seeds and skins) and then freeze–for a taste of summer mid-winter.

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I have a new article up today on Rural Intelligence, a profile of the lovely new Chatham, NY bakery, Mado. Check it out!

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In trying to plan for today’s tomato party, I came to a realization: I can’t play favorites when it comes to the love apple. I have never turned up my nose at a tomato, save a really mealy, really big-agriculture-mass-market tasteless and sad specimen decorating a salad at a bad restaurant. Anything farm grown, ripe and lovely, I like, and always have. In my family, the taste isn’t so developed, perhaps. My husband only really loves tomatoes in a caprese salad, and everything, as it should be, must be just so: the mozzarella warmed slightly in water before slicing, so that its flavor is optimal; the tomato and basil both absolutely fresh; the extra virgin olive oil bright and fruity. No vinegar to mar these flavors, but a bit of coarse salt makes them sing. My kids confine their tomato appreciation to catsup and pizza, but they’re young. They have time.

The rest of us, we don’t have so much. Time, that is. Did you feel the cool air last night? Fall is coming. Eat tomatoes while you can. Don’t waste a moment playing favorites. Eat them every which way. Try my corn and tomato salad, my potato and tomato gratin, my squash gratin with a simple salad of chopped tomatoes served alongside, and you’ll savor this moment.

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I made it to the pickup yesterday, after missing two weeks in a row, the first due to absentmindedness, and second due to a detour to Maine. But we’re back, and so’s the glory of the farm. Romaine lettuce, eggplant, cucumbers, bell peppers, garlic, carrots and ah, tomatoes. The carrots were well-timed, as my son’s seventh birthday was today and his favorite cake? You guessed it. The recipe for my favorite version is here. And tomorrow, in honor of Margaret and Deb–some ideas for those tomatoes, ripening on my counter as I type. Lovely.

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