Baked apples for the soul

by Kristen Hartke, managing editor of Edible DC

Apple Picking Locally at the Homestead Farm in Poolesville, MD (Photo by Raisa Aziz)

I really love to go apple picking in the fall. It may be a throwback to my childhood in New England, but there is something about going out to the orchard on a crisp autumn afternoon, with fat bumblebees buzzing around the fallen apples on the ground and filling a bushel basket so full of Staymans, Honeycrisps, and Macintosh that it takes at least two people to carry it. For my family, it was Bishop’s Orchard in Guilford, Connecticut, where my dad and I would pick so many apples that we’d feast on them for weeks after, my mom making everything from dumplings to pie to chutney. But the treat that we loved best was baked apples, oozing and caramelized from the oven and then topped with fresh whipped cream or ice cream.

Apple Picking Locally at the Homestead Farm in Poolesville, MD (Photo by Raisa Aziz)

Baked apples are kind of legendary in my family because of my dad’s ancestor, Henry Francisco, or Old Henry. Old Henry purportedly lived to be 134 years old, finally succumbing to old age in 1820 at his farm in upstate New York, having served as a drummer boy at Queen Anne’s coronation and later a soldier in both the French & Indian and Revolutionary Wars. After some years running a pub, he later attributed his longevity to eating bread and butter, black tea, and baked apples for three meals a day.

Apple Crates at Ridgefield Farm in West Virginia (Photo by Kristen Hartke)

A couple of weeks ago I had the chance to visit friends who own Ridgefield Farm in West Virginia — Scott and Alan have told me about their pick-your-own apple orchard for years, but it was hard to imagine living someplace where every weekend throughout the fall there are actually thousands of people in your backyard, picking apples and pumpkins, going on hayrides, or trying to make their way through the corn maze. They told me that people stop by often, just to reminisce about coming there to pick apples when they were kids, kind of like me with Bishop’s Orchard.

While I was visiting, I picked some unbelievably huge Mutsu apples — Alan recommended them as perfect for baked apples, because they hold their shape really well. And so, in honor of Old Henry, and childhood memories, a tasty new twist on baked apples. Live long and prosper.

Baked Apples (Photo by Kristen Hartke)

Old Henry’s Baked Apples with Black Tea Caramel Sauce

for the baked apples:

4 medium to large baking apples — Mutsu, Honeycrisp, or Pink Lady are good options

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped roughly

1/4 cup rum or whiskey

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon fresh orange zest

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

a little olive oil or butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Core the apples, put them in a baking dish, and set aside. Mix together the other ingredients, except the olive oil or butter, and let marinate for about 10 minutes. Spoon the filling into the center of the apples, packing in well, then drizzle a little olive oil or place a pat of butter over the top of each apple. Pour the liquid from the filling mixture into the baking dish and add another 1/4 cup of apple cider or water. Cover the dish very loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the apples are soft. Remove from oven and let cool for about 15 minutes, then serve with Black Tea Caramel Sauce (recipe below).

for the Black Tea Caramel Sauce:

1 cup brown sugar

4 tablespoons of butter

1/2 cup heavy cream, half-and-half, or I have even used coconut milk

2 tablespoons strong brewed tea (I like Earl Grey)

Pinch of salt

Put all ingredients into a small saucepan and whisk together over medium-low heat. Keep whisking for about 6 or 7 minutes as it begins to thicken, then turn off heat and let stand — it should continue thickening. At this point, you can refrigerate it and serve it warm or cold.

A Focus on Fresh and Rustic in the Tuscan Countryside

by Wille Harner writing from Tuscany, special to EdibleDC I’m studying Italian cuisine for several months this fall, in Italy, where the slow food movement was born. My experience is focused at the Villa Borgo Pignano, located in the foothills of Tuscany outside of the town Volterra, where it seems that both cuisine and culture thrive from the gardens. The 750-acre property sources its food from its own fields and its biodynamic garden. Here ancient wheat is ground into flour, farro is grown and harvested on site, and honey is produced from the property’s swarming hives. From the gardens, tomatoes have been in full swing for the summer weeks and have finally started dwindling, as well as copious amounts of salad greens, green beans, potatoes, squash, cucumber, and recently a fresh crop of just-dug Jerusalem artichokes.

Davide, the head farmer in one of the properties greenhouses giving things a good watering.

Although the food has a natural rusticity, it’s the simplicity of the dishes that plays such a crucial role as the heart of the cuisine, and fresh fare is of utmost importance. The Tuscan approach to farm-to-table sharply focuses on the essence of fresh ingredients. Many dishes contain only a few ingredients, but the creativity comes in combining new flavors, ingredients, and vegetables of the highest quality and freshness. Pasta is always served as an option for lunch and dinner, along with a salad and a preparation of vegetables; the contorni.

In Tuscany, a classic pasta preparation is done with Pici, (pronounced “Peachy”), a slightly thicker version of spaghetti. Pici can be found at your local Italian specialty shop, or is typically made fresh by hand from just made pasta dough. If not feeling courageous enough to try fresh made dough, or if you can’t find dried Pici at the market, spaghetti will stand in just as well.

Pici a Villa Borgo Pignano

An Early Fall Pasta Recipe Straight from the Tuscan Countryside

Serves as a great appetizer for 4-6 or as a main course for 4.

Ingredients:

1 lb. of fresh Pici pasta or spaghetti, or good quality dried

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove sliced thin

2 cups cherry tomatoes halved

1 cup long runner beans chopped and steamed (can substitute green beans or fava beans—make sure to steam or blanch them first so they are softened)

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary minced

1 teaspoon fresh oregano minced

6-7 leaves of fresh basil loosely torn

1 zest of lemon

½ cup fresh grated pecorino or Parmesan

Procedure:

1. Heat olive oil in a medium sized saucepot at medium heat, and toss in the sliced garlic cloves for a quick sauté until fragrant.
2. Add the halved tomatoes and quickly sauté until the juices purge and the tomatoes slightly break down.
3. Add the beans and toss several times to warm through.
4. Add the rosemary and oregano and toss several times until fragrant.
5. Meanwhile, boil your pasta in salted water and cook until just tender. Drain the pasta, and add to your sauce and toss with the lemon zest.
6. Place into a bowl and top with the torn basil leaves, the shredded cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

Note: For a little heat, add a sprinkle or ½ tsp. of red chili flakes with the garlic when sautéing.

Wille Harner is a 2011 graduate of Johnson & Wales. He has worked at Ubuntu in Napa Valley, Route Tomate in New York City, and most recently as sous-chef at Boundary Road in Washington D.C. A culinary nutritionist by training, Willie’s study trip to Italy this fall was designed to both put him in touch with his family roots (Treviso) and learn about daily country Italian life and how to make pasta from the pros.

Gypsy Soul embraces Farm to Fork in Mosaic District

by Hong-Nhu Mai, special to Edible DC

EdibleDC Writer Hong-Nhu Mai with Chef RJ Cooper

Dominated by an elevated open kitchen and wood, metal, and leather décor, Gypsy Soul is chef-owner RJ Cooper’s second restaurant and was, as he put it, two years in the making with the help and collaboration of his wife and children. It focuses on his “devotion to the American farmer through life at the table” and one of the main attractions of opening in Merrifield’s Mosaic District was the weekly farmers’ market nearby.

For his first collaborative event, the recent “From Farm to Fork” Dinner, Cooper “called up some old friends” to create a seven-course dinner which highlighted and illustrated the special relationship between farmers and chefs. The dinner supported Future Harvest CASA, a non-profit whose mission is “to provide education, networking, and advocacy to help build a sustainable Chesapeake foodshed.” A portion of all ticket sales went to Future Harvest, and a live auction took place towards the end of the evening, raising close to $7000 for the charity.

Bourbon Cocktail with Applewood Smoked Nectarines

The reception gave guests the opportunity to walk up to the kitchen, converse with the chefs, sip on farm-inspired cocktails, and taste a variety of canapés. I enjoyed a cocktail which featured bourbon, Applewood-smoked nectarines, honey almond syrup, and fresh lemon. Almost any cocktail with fruit appeals to me, but smoking the nectarines intensified the flavor and caramelized the natural sugars into a delicious combination.

Scallops and Fried Chicken Confit

The atmosphere was lively and loud, and I spoke with many people passionate about local food, sustainability, and farmer-consumer relationships as we ate each course. There was smoked duck leg on top of rye congee (a type of rice porridge), topped with sweet and crunchy Asian pear slices, while yam leaves and shiso made a nice contrast with the thick congee.

A croquette of pig’s head meat was fried “Nashville style” in an homage to Southern fried chicken. Served with pickled cucumber and radish, the spicy breadcrumb coating and savory meat played well with the vegetables. The cut of meat was one unfamiliar to many diners but made completely accessible through a common cooking technique.

Maryland Blue Crab Salad

A personal favorite was Chef Katsuya Fukushima’s first course of Maryland blue crab salad, corn poached in a grilled corn stock, white-soy corn dashi, fire-blistered shishito pepper and sea greens — the salty, creamy crab was cut by the bright crunch of fresh corn, weaving the textural elements together into a fresh cohesive dish. I was seriously tempted to lick the plate clean, but I settled for licking my spoon clean instead.

Roasted Roof Top Squash Soup

Gypsy Soul: 8296 Glass Alley, Merrifield, VA 22031 www.gypsysoul-va.com

Spicy Tomato Pepper Jam

by Kristen Hartke, managing editor of Edible DC

Now that we’ve segued from summer to early fall, my little plot in the local community garden is overflowing with the most prolific fruits of the season — namely, tomatoes and jalapeño peppers, all producing like crazy and sweeter than ever from warm days and cool nights. My favorite thing to do with these beauties is turn them into a spicy-sweet jam that can be enjoyed as the weather turns colder and a reminder is needed of summer days gone by. This jam is delicious on burgers, stirred into stews, or spread on toasted baguette slices with or without goat cheese for a tasty appetizer.

If you don’t want to go to the trouble of canning (which is actually pretty easy, but not everyone has room for storing all those jars), you can also place the jam into a quart-sized freezer bag or other freezer-safe container (I like to freeze in one-cup quantities) and then defrost whenever you are ready to use; after that, it will keep well in the refrigerator for up to three weeks.

3 cups chopped fresh tomatoes

3 jalapeño peppers, roughly chopped -- you can remove the seeds, use all the seeds, or retain just some of the seeds, depending on how spicy you want the jam to be

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

2 TB balsamic vinegar

1 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp fresh chopped tarragon, or 1/4 tsp dried tarragon

salt and pepper to taste

Put first three ingredients in a food processor or blender and process until somewhat smooth but still slightly chunky, then spoon into a 2-quart saucepan. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the salt and pepper, and mix together well. Bring to a low boil, then reduce heat to very low and allow to simmer for about 45 minutes or until reduced to the texture of a thick jam. Add salt and pepper to taste and allow to cool completely. At this point, you can simply store in the refrigerator for up to three weeks, or can or freeze it for later consumption. Makes about 1.5 cups of jam.

True Food Kitchen Brings Anti-Inflammatory Cuisine to Fairfax

by Rachael Bender, special to Edible DC

Outdoor Seating at True Food Kitchen in the Mosaic District

As I wandered down District Avenue, window shopping at neighboring stores Ah Love Oil & Vinegar and Capital Teas, loud clapping and roaring cheers emanated from the new restaurant on the corner that was about to open its doors to one of its first crops of patrons. I can only imagine it was the staff – ready to get the party started.

The Peacemaker Bourbon & Thai Basil Martini

Next week, True Food Kitchen officially opens their tenth location in Fairfax’s Mosaic District. The restaurant’s concept is based on the anti-inflammatory diet from Dr. Andrew Weil, which seeks to help your body avoid a state of chronic inflammation that has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, stroke and cancer. The menu features items that range from gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian to sustainably caught seafood and grass-fed bison, while using locally sourced and fresh ingredients whenever possible. So fresh, in fact, that some tables sit right next to the potted herbs that will eventually land on their plates.

The restaurant goes all out on decor, sporting a wooded accent wall and eco-friendly chairs that are each made from 111 recycled plastic soda bottles. But sitting on the heated outdoor patio, what really stands out is the array of choices on the menu. From Asian-inspired albacore tataki to pizza and gluten-free street tacos, the options make you salivate while staying true to health and wellness.

Take the kale and avocado dip, for instance. The first notes you expect in a guacamole riff are lime and salt. Instead, here you have hints of pink grapefruit. The unconventional citrus invigorates the smooth and creamy avocado with a tang that harmonizes perfectly with the rest of the appetizer’s ingredients.

Follow that up with the chicken tandoori, where the meat is so moist it falls off the bone and the accompanying beluga lentils fill you up without letting you down. Finish your meal with the squash pie that’s topped with such an airy, delicate coconut whipped cream that there is no way you’ll believe it’s a vegan dessert. The view to the open kitchen shows its chefs working furiously to prepare many more satisfying dishes.

True Food Kitchen Salmon with Quinoa and Salad

And it’s not just the food that adheres to the True Food philosophy; many of the wines on the list come from organic or sustainably farmed grapes. Plus, numerous beers that round out the menu are from local breweries we already know and love.

A meal here makes you feel indulgent, but without the guilt. What could be better? As their website notes, you don’t have to be a die-hard Yogi to dine at True Food Kitchen.

True Food Kitchen: 2910 District Ave #170 Mosaic District, Fairfax, Virginia 22031 www.truefoodkitchen.com

Cooking up a new date night experience

by Giacomo Abruzzi

If typical date nights are starting to get stale, here's another option: get cooking. I recently went on what was, for me, a perfect date night outing at a DC-area cooking school. There are several cooking schools and independent cooking instructors throughout the area, where you can take classes in everything from classic French cooking to sushi techniques, for everyone from novice to experienced cooks. For our evening out, we attended a class in molecular gastronomy, which included instruction, dinner, and wine.

I walked in not knowing what to expect and walked out completely mesmerized with a handful of new cooking techniques and at least one recipe I am planning on repeating very soon. In a nutshell, I learned how to use the basic molecular gastronomy toolkit, which includes gelatin, soy lecithin, tapioca maltodextrin, agar, xanthan gum, sodium alginate and calcium; from these handful of ingredients, you can make gels, thicken liquids, make powders and foams, and, yes, even do a little spherification.

During the course of the evening, we made a Modern Caprese Salad with basil foam and olive oil powder; an Umami Bomb, featuring roasted mushrooms in a parmesan brown butter sage gel with tomato bacon beads over greens with umami dressing; and, for dessert, a Coconut Gel with honey almonds and sweet basil. It was a delicious, everyone walked out with their bellies full, and, honestly, just a little tipsy. So, the next time you're looking for date night inspiration, just have your search engine look for "cooking classes" in your area and see what you can find!