Tagged: brunch

Dec 14

Cranberry Brie Bites

Ingredients:

  • 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, from 1 (17 oz) box
  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • 7-8oz Brie cheese
  • 1/2 cup cranberry sauce, homemade or canned
  • 1/4 cup chopped pecans or pistachios
  • Optional garnishes: flakey sea salt, ground black pepper, sprigs of rosemary

Preparation:

  1. Thaw the puff pastry according to package directions.
  2. Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a 24-well mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place the brie in the freezer for 20 minutes or until firm to the touch.
  3. On a well floured surface, roll the sheet of puff pastry into a 10×15″ rectangle. Cut the pastry into 4 strips lengthwise. Then, cut the pastry crosswise into 6 strips, creating 24 squares. Press the pastry squares into each well of the muffin pan, letting excess stick up over the edges.
  4. Cut the firm Brie into 24 cubes/slices. Please a piece in the center of each pastry square. Top each with about 1 teaspoon of cranberry sauce. Sprinkle with chopped pecans.

Bake 15 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden brown on the edges and the cheese is bubbly. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove the bites from the pan and garnish with sea salt and pepper, or a sprig of rosemary, if desired.

Yield: 24 “bites”

From the Kitchen of: Andrew Buckman

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Posted in Appetizers

Mar 24

Apple Butter

Ingredients:

  • 12-14 apples (preferably Jonathan or winesap)
  • 2 cups apple juice
  • sugar
  • cinnamon
  • allspice
  • cloves
  • 1/2 cup sauterne (optional)

Preparation: Wash, core, and quarter apples (do not peel). Combine apples and apple juice in lightly oiled crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 10-18 hours or on high for 2-4 hours.

When fruit is tender, put through a food mill to remove peel. Measure cooked fruit and return to crock pot.

For each pint of sieved cooked fruit, add: 1 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp allspice, 1/2 tsp cloves. Stir well.

Cover and cook on high for 6-8 hours, stirring about every 2 hours. Remove cover after 3 hours to allow fruit and juice to cook down. Add sauterne (optional) for the last hour of cooking.

Spoon into hot sterilized jars and process according to standard canning methods.

Yield: About 5 half-pint jars.

From the kitchen of: Bonnie de Arteaga

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Posted in Canning

Mar 24

Spinach Quiche

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup finely chopped onions
  • 1 can mushrooms
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 10 oz cooked spinach, drained
  • 3/4 cup shredded swiss cheese
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup milk or cream
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp pepper
  • dash nutmeg
  • 9″ pie shell (hand-made or pre-made pastry)

Preparation: Prepare 9″ pie shell if needed. Saute mushrooms and onions slowly in butter. Combine them with spinach, swiss cheese, and eggs. Add milk and seasonings. Stir and pour into pastry shell.

Bake 40 minutes at 350 degrees.

From the kitchen of: Becky Bieri

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Posted in Main Dishes