Apple Pie

'Tis the season for apple pie. Plenty of good apples available from local orchards. I went with a lattice pattern (by request) instead of a solid top. It was a bit more work, but I think it was worth it.

Start by preparing the pie dough. Put 9 oz (about 2 cups) flour into a medium-sized bowl, and add 8 oz cold butter, cut into thin slices, and a good pinch of salt. With your hands, rub the butter into the flour with your fingers until only a few large flecks are visible. Now add 1 egg, beaten, made up to 1/2 cup in volume with ice cold water (I use cold water and put the egg-water mix in the freezer for a few minutes while I rub in the butter). Knead the liquid into the flour for no more than a minute. The dough will be wet. Sprinkle over some flour and pat into a rectangle. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour (or as long as a day if you like; you can also freeze the dough for months).

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and cut the rectangle in two. Replace one half in the fridge, and roll the other out into a thin round (use as much flour as needed to avoid it sticking to your work surface). Make sure it is big enough to line your pie pan. I used a 9 inch pan. Grease the pan with butter first, then lay the pastry in it, cutting around the edge to get rid of any overhang. Now put the pan in the refrigerator while you make the filling.

You will need a bunch of apples. I used 3 lb of Gala apples. You can use whatever kind of apple you desire, but you may not need as much as 3 lb - my pie was a little stuffed. I think it would have worked with just over 2 lb of apples.

Peel, core and slice your apples. Work quickly to avoid browning. I put the slices into a bowl and sprinkled them with a little lemon juice, then added about 1 cup brown sugar, 2 tbsp flour, 1 tsp cinnamon and a few grindings of fresh nutmeg (or a shake of ground). You could also add a small pinch of salt. If the apples are too juicy, add more flour; if they are too tart, add more sugar. Pile the apples into the pie crust and set aside. Roll out the rest of your dough (add your scraps from the shell also) to about the same thickness as you did the shell and cut long strips of roughly equal width. Using a finger dipped in water to 'glue' the strips to the pie shell, make your criss-cross lattice over the apples by alternating the directions of the strips. I started by going across the middle and worked my way towards the edges but it doesn't really matter which order you do it in.

Once you are finished assembling the pie, tidy up the edge of the crust and set your pan on a cookie sheet or similar (to collect any juice that might leak from the pie). Bake at 425 F for 25 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 F for another 30 minutes or so, until the pastry is nicely golden and the apples are soft. Allow to cool most of the way to room temperature before serving, with cream or ice cream. Enjoy!

Note 1 - This is my favorite pie dough recipe. It is based on one in 'A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes' by David Tanis. An awesome cookbook.

Note 2 - Metric Info: 9 oz = 260g; 8 oz = 225g; 1/2 cup = 120 ml; 9 inches = 23 cm; 3 lb = 1.4 kg; 2 lb =  900g; 1 cup = 240 ml; 425 F = 220 C; 350 F = 180 C.

Pasta e Fagioli

Now, this is good winter food. Warm and hearty, pasta e fagioli (pronounced 'pasta fashool'), or Italian pasta and bean soup/stew, is perfect for those cold nights that are on the way... I already made it twice in the last month. It is one of my favorite meals, and is pretty easy to make.

Which type of beans you use is up to you. Cranberry beans are ideal, but can be hard to find. I used pinto this time, but cannellini or kidney beans are good too. You can use either dried or canned beans. I like to use dried if I have them, as they tend to hold their shape better - canned beans can get a little mushy. If using dried beans, soak 1 cup in plenty of cold water overnight. The next day, boil them in salted water until tender (beginning to get soft, offering no resistance to your teeth when you bite into them), drain and set aside to cool until needed. If using canned beans, there is no prep to do the night before.

When you are ready to make the soup, start by cutting about 2 tbsp onion (about 1/4 of an average onion) into small dice. Splash a good glug of olive oil into a large heavy saucepan and saute the onion until it starts to color. Then add about 3 tbsp carrot (peeled and diced small) and 2 tbsp celery, diced small. Stir, and add a couple of slices of bacon or pancetta, cut into small dice (this is optional - I did it on one of the two occasions, but not on the time I took the picture above). Saute until the vegetables soften - about 10 minutes. Add 2/3 cup chopped canned tomatoes and juice, and simmer until cooked down. Add either your cooked dried beans or 3 cups of canned beans (you'll probably need more than one 14 oz can). Cook for a few minutes, then add 3 cups of broth (beef, chicken, vegetable or even plain old water). Bring it to a boil. Scoop out 1/2 cup of beans and either mash them or push them through a food mill back into the soup. Taste and adjust seasoning. Bring back to a boil and add 8 oz small tubular pasta (macaroni works, but I like ditalini even better). Keep boiling (stirring as you go) until the pasta is just done (a slight bite to it - don't allow it to get too soft), then switch off the heat and stir in 1 tbsp butter and 2 tbsp hard Italian cheese, grated (parmesan, romano or asiago - I like pecorino romano myself).

Allow the soup to cool a little before serving. This recipe will serve 2-4 people, depending on how hungry they are. Enjoy!

Note 1 - Recipe adapted from one in 'Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking' by Marcella Hazan.

Note 2 - Metric Info: 1 cup = 240 ml; 2/3 cup = 160 ml; 3 cups = 700 ml; 14 oz = 400 g; 1/2 cup = 120 ml; 8 oz = 225 g.

Baked Beans (Boston-style)

Baked beans were a staple for me, growing up in England. They were not quite like these ones, which are more popular here in the U.S. The beans that I used to eat were simpler, with sugar, salt and a tomato-based sauce. No bacon or molasses. These ones are, however, very good. The recipe is adapted from 'The River Cottage Meat Book' by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

Start with 1 cup of dried navy beans. I would not recommend using canned beans - they would turn to mush. You could use a different kind of bean, I suppose, but the navy bean is more authentic. Soak the beans overnight in plenty of cold water, in the fridge.

The next day, drain and rinse the beans. Place in an oven-proof pan or casserole (with lid) with enough water to cover by almost an inch. Bring to a boil, add a little salt, then reduce the heat and simmer until the beans are tender but not mushy (this will probably take at least an hour). Remove them from the heat. Stir in 5 oz bacon, diced, 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1.5 tbsp molasses and 1 tsp mustard. Quarter 2 smallish onions, and press 4 cloves into them. Add to the beans, season with a little pepper (no salt yet, as the bacon is salty), and add some hot water if necessary to cover the beans.

Put the lid on the pan and return to a simmer, then transfer into a 275 F oven. Bake for 3 hours, then remove the lid and bake for another hour. Adjust seasoning (taste, and add salt now if necessary) and serve or cool and store in your fridge for up to a week. Enjoy!

Note 1 - Enjoy the English way, on toast, or the American way, as a side with barbecued food.

Note 2 - Metric Info: 1 cup = 240 ml; 5 oz = 140 g; 275 F = 135 C.

Shepherd's Pie

OK, so it's back to my roots for this one. Had a lamb leg roast the other night, resulting in... leftover roast lamb. For some reason it didn't occur to me at first (maybe I have lost some of my English...), but the perfect use for leftover roast lamb is... Shepherd's Pie! For those of you rubbing your heads thinking 'lamb?' yes, Shepherd's Pie is traditionally made with lamb. Think about it... Not beef - that would be a 'cottage pie'.

This recipe is an amalgam of a few different ones, with a couple of adjustments of my own. It is not completely authentic, but it is good.

Start by boiling your potatoes for the mash. My pie was baked in a 9x5 inch pyrex loaf pan. I used between 1-1.5lb potatoes. I ended up with a thicker layer of mash than I needed so I would suggest that 1 lb potatoes is plenty for this recipe. I would recommend russets or chef potatoes (or any other kind of 'floury' potato). Peel them, cut them into roughly even-sized chunks and boil in salted water until cooked through. Drain in a colander, and allow to sit for a few minutes to lose some moisture. As they are sitting, heat up 1/4 -1/2 cup cream or milk until hot, and cut into small pieces 2 tbsp butter. Either mash your potatoes with a hand-held masher (or fork) - this will result in a chunky mash - or push through a food mill - this will result in a smooth mash. Incorporate your cream or milk, butter and a little salt and pepper to taste. I also stirred in a small amount of grated cheddar.

While the potatoes are boiling, you can make your filling. Chop your leftover roast lamb (I used about 10 oz, but the amount does not have to be precise) into pea-sized chunks and set aside. Chop 1 onion finely, and sweat in vegetable oil with 1 clove of garlic, minced and 1 carrot, peeled and diced very small. Add a little salt and cook gently until the carrot is soft. Add the lamb, turn up the heat a little, and make sure it browns all over. Stir in any leftover gravy or stock from your roast (or use water), 1/4 cup wine (I used white, but red is even better), 1 tbsp tomato ketchup, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce and 1/4 - 1/2 cup frozen corn. Simmer until the liquid thickens a little and develops a nice flavor (add salt and pepper as needed). Tip into the bottom of your pie dish.

Spread your mash over your filling. Rough up the surface with a fork and cut up 1 tbsp butter into 'dots', sprinkling them over the top. Either bake now at 450 F for about 20 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and the mash browned, or refrigerate and bake later, at the same temperature, but for longer - up to 40 minutes. Enjoy!

Note - Metric Info: 9 in = 23cm; 5 in = 13cm; 1 lb  = 450g; 1/4 cup = 60ml; 1/2 cup = 120ml; 450 F = 230 C.