Sausage Pie with Apples

Ingredients:

• 1 basic pie dough, rolled out and lining a 9 or 10-inch pie dish, or 8x8 baking dish, chilled (or one frozen pie crust)
• 2 large tart Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped (about half a cup)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3 Tbsp butter
• 3/4 lb sweet Italian sausage (bulk, or removed from casings)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 cups shredded fontina, provalone, and or asiago cheese
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line the inside of a pie shell with heavy aluminum foil, pressing the dough against the side. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove foil, poke the bottom of the pie crust with the tines of a fork to create air vents. Return crust to oven, bake for an additional 4 minutes, or until the crust just begins to brown. Remove from oven and let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
2. Melt butter in a large skillet on medium heat. Add the apples, onions, and sugar, cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. In the last 30 seconds or so, add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Transfer mixture to a separate bowl. Increase the heat to medium high and in the same skillet add the Italian sausage. Cook, stirring only infrequently, until sausage is browned on all sides and is cooked through. Remove from heat. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon to a dish lined with paper towels to absorb the excess fat.
3. In medium sized bowl, mix together the cheeses and beaten eggs.
4. Place sausage on bottom of pre-baked pie crust. Add the cooked apple onion mixture over the sausage. Pour the cheese egg mixture over the apple mixture and spread it so it evenly covers the pie.
5. Bake at 350°F for 35 to 40 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Shish Kebab Adel

Ingredients:

Marinade Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Kebab Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lbs top sirloin steak, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 large bell pepper
• 1-2 medium red onions
• 1/2 to a pound button mushrooms
• About 20 bamboo or wooden skewers

Instructions:

1. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and add the meat. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, preferably several hours or even overnight. (Heck, I've kept the meat marinating for a couple days, still great.)
2. Soak the skewers in water for at least 30 minutes before grilling. This will help prevent them from completely burning up on the grill.
3. Cut the vegetables into chunks roughly the width of the beef pieces. Taking care not to poke yourself, thread the meat and vegetables onto double bamboo skewers. One way to do this safely is to put the piece that you are trying to pierce on a cutting board, and then push the skewers through the piece to the board. Using double skewers will help you turn the kebabs on the grill. If you keep a little space between the pieces, they will grill more evenly. Paint the kebabs with some of the remaining marinade.
4. Prepare your grill for high, direct heat. Grill for 8 to 10 minutes, depending on how hot your grill is, and how done you would like your meat, turning occasionally. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Plum Cobbler

Ingredients:

• 8 or 9 plums or pluots (assorted colors, if possible), pitted and sliced
• 3/4 cup sugar PLUS 1 cup sugar for topping
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour PLUS 2 cups all-purpose flour for topping
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1 stick butter
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup buttermilk

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. In a 9 X 13 baking pan, toss together the plums with the 3/4 cup sugar, the 1/4 cup flour, the cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon zest.
3. To make the topping, melt the butter over low heat. In a separate bowl, whisk together the 2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Pour the melted butter and buttermilk into the dry ingredients and then stir until a sticky, wet dough forms.
4. Then, it’s just a matter of dropping spoonfuls of the dough evenly over the plums, leaving a few plums exposed. Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes, until the crust is light brown, the plums are bubbling, and (as I learned) a knife comes out of the doughy topping clean. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving; will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Turkey and meet Pie, Prepare for thanks giving!

Ingredients:

• 1 roasted turkey from the grocery store
• 1 Premade pie crust…I went with Marie Callendar’s.
• 1/2 -1 can of cream of mushroom soup … I went with the low sodium
• 1/2 cup of frozen organic peas
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup of chopped celery
• 1/2 cup of chopped onion
• 1/2 cup of chopped carrot
• 1-2 chopped and seeded jalapeños
• 3 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon of black pepper
• Pinch of sea salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees
2. Pull all the turkey off the bone and remove skin. Chop turkey.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine turkey and remaining ingredients. Press in to the pie crust. Bake for 20-30 minutes.
4. I had leftover delicata squash, so I layered some in the above pic. You can also top with some shredded cheddar cheese, crispy onions or even crumbled potato chips!

Pork Pizza With Jalapenos and Mango Salsa

Ingredients:

For the Pizza Crust
• 4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 tsp highly active dry yeast
• 1/3 cup olive oil
For the Mango Salsa
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1/2 mango, diced
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp salt (or to taste)
For the Pork and Etc.
• This Recipe for Ribs - but DOUBLE the sauce ingredients - you'll need it for your pizza sauce.
• 1 lb. sliced Muenster cheese
• 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup pickled jalapeno slices

Instructions:

• 1. To make the pizza dough, combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle yeast over the water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes or so.
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• 2.  Turn the mixer on low and add the olive oil, followed by the yeast/water mixture.
• Mix until combined and pulling away from the bowl.
• Drizzle with olive oil, turn to coat, cover and refrigerate. (It actually gets better the longer it's in the fridge).
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• 3.  Make the ribs (mine were leftover, I made mine the day before for dinner). Make sure to save half of the sauce in a separate container - you should only use half of it for marinating and basting. Pull the meat off with your fingers and shred using two forks. Set aside.
• Make the salsa by combining all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until pizza is done.
• Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
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• 4.  Drizzle olive oil in a 10" cast iron skillet (a cookie sheet or flat pan would work as well)
• Spread half of the dough in the pan, using your fingers to stretch it. Use a little less dough if you want a thin crust, more if you want a deep pan pizza.
• Spread some of the rib sauce on the dough, followed by shredded pork, cheese and jalapenos.
• Bake for 8-10 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and the crust is slightly brown.
• Serve with mango salsa.

Ratatouille Grilled Cheese

Ingredients:

• 2 cups each of diced zucchini, eggplant, and onion
• 3 cups cherry tomatoes
• ¼ cup olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 sun-dried tomatoes, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons dried Italian herb seasoning
• salt and fresh black pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
• 1 teaspoon Balsamic vinegar
• 6 oz. cream cheese, cut into ½ inch cubes
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 8 slices Italian bread
• 1 1/3 cup grated Gruyère cheese (or whatever you have on hand)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2.  In a large bowl, combine the zucchini, eggplant, onion, and cherry tomatoes with ¼ cup olive oil, minced garlic, minced sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, dried herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. Use your hands to mix everything together until very well combined. 

3.  Line a sheet pan with non-stick foil or parchment paper. Spread the vegetables evenly on the pan. Roast in the oven for about 40 minutes, stirring the vegetables once halfway through baking. Transfer to bowl and set aside. This roasted ratatouille mixture can be made in advance!

4. In a small bowl, combine the chopped basil, parsley, balsamic vinegar, and another tablespoon of olive oil. Toss the cooked ratatouille with the cubed cream cheese. Butter each slice of bread on both sides. In a large skillet, lightly brown each slice on one side. Flip the bread and spoon some of the ratatouille cream cheese mixture on four of the bread slices. Spread a couple teaspoons of the fresh herb mixture on the other four slices. 

5. Finally top the ratatouille halves with 1/3 cup grated Gruyère cheese and cover with the herbed bread.

Bon Appétit!

Lemon Glazed Pork Chop

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 pork chops, trimmed (keep the left overs)
• 1 sprigs rosemary
• 1 sprigs thyme
• knob of butter
• 1/2 lemon, juice and rind (thinly sliced)
• 1 tbsp honey
• 550 ml malt vinegar
• 550 g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp crushed juniper berries
• 4 parsnips, peeled and thinly sliced on a mandoline

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.

2. Heat the olive oil in an ovenproof frying pan and fry the pork chops with the herbs and trimmings for 1-2 minutes on both sides, or until golden-brown all over. Place into the oven and roast for 7-8 minutes, or until the pork is cooked through. Remove from the oven and transfer the pork chops to a warm place to rest.

3. Return the pan to the heat and add the butter and a squeeze of lemon juice. Stir in the honey and cook for a few minutes, or until reduced to a sauce consistency. Remove the trimmings before serving.

4. Place the malt vinegar, sugar and juniper berries into a non-reactive pan and bring to the boil. Cook for a few minutes, or until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add the sliced parsnips and simmer until the parsnips are tender with a little bite.

5. Serve the pork chop with the parsnips alongside and the pork juices drizzled over.