I love apple crisps, especially when the evenings start cooling off and you have to start turning on the heat inside…then popping an apple crisp in the oven, the house filling with the smell of cinnamon…Mmmm!

Last night, I made the best apple crisp I have ever tasted and have finally found my go-to recipe for this perfect autumn dessert.

The topping:
The toasted pecans are amazing in it! Chunks of crunchy, flavourful nuts, mixed in with ginger, and a nice, strong sweet cinnamon. It’s perfectly crunchy and packed with dynamic flavours. Best.Topping. Ever. I will also try to use the topping on muffins.

The fruit filling:
As equally tasty and exciting in its multitudes of flavours. The tart granny smith apples join well with the dried cranberries, and the crystallized ginger in here adds that extra oomph. After baking, the filling does not get soggy, but the apples retain a bit of their crunch.

I prepared the recipe a bit differently, using a 9″x9″ glass baking dish and adding lemon juice to the apple mixture. The pan choice made no difference to the overall result, and the lemon juice was a good addition.

All together, probably the best crisp you will ever prepare. Honest.

Apple and Cranberry Crisp with Ginger-Pecan Topping
adapted from Bon Appetit

FILLING
4 medium Granny Smith apples (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled, cored, chopped into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
1 tablespoon all purpose flour

TOPPING
1/3 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2/3 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

FILLING
1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Butter four 1 1/4-cup custard cups or soufflé dishes.

3. Mix all ingredients in bowl. Let stand until juicy, about 5 minutes. Divide filling among prepared cups.

4. Bake until bubbling at edges, about 20 minutes.

TOPPING
1. Blend first 7 ingredients in large bowl. Rub in butter with fingertips until coarse meal forms. Mix in pecans with fingertips.

2. Crumble topping over hot apples. Bake until topping is golden brown, apples are tender, and juices are bubbling thickly, about 25 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Test-kitchen tip: To toast pecans, preheat the oven to 350°F. Spread the pecans in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until slightly darkened, about 8 minutes.

This dish, as simple as it sounds, was a big hit and I completely loved it! Packed with flavours, it’s a warm and hearty dish that’s perfect for these fall days. It can be fantastic side dish, and can even be a main dish.

The garlic is not too strong, but is definitely a prime component to the overall flavour. I loved the idea of steeping it all in boiling milk; it made the garlic stand out, but not become overwhelming. Slightly crisp asparagus mixed with a variety of mushrooms, surrounded by creamy bread and topped with melted cheese – can you say delicious? I will be making this over and over.

I found many recipes for this floating around, and ended up using a combo of several. The original seems to stem from Deborah Madison, but Washington Times also put out a recipe for it as well (adapted from Madison’s). My version comes from the two…I’m writing it out as I made it, but feel free to make your own combo. It seems quite versatile.

I halved the recipes that I found, as only three people were eating – however, there still wasn’t enough to go around (it was that tasty!).

Asparagus and Mushroom Bread Pudding
adapted from Deborah Madison
(this recipe is for three people – double these amounts for a 6-serving dish)

5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 cups whole or low-fat milk
3 -4 sandwich loaves, cut into thick slices (preferably stale) (mine were fresh and I toasted them)
Kosher salt
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut on the diagonal into 1/2 inch pieces and soaked in cold water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 spring onions, finely diced (2 to 3 tablespoons)
1 pound mushroom mix – I used fresh shitake, oyster and button, cleaned and coarsely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
2vlarge eggs
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 cups freshly grated Gruyere cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a round gratin dish.

2. Combine the garlic and milk in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then remove from the heat and set aside to steep (5 to 8 minutes).

3. If the bread is not stale, lay it on a large baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes until crisp (but not hard, or the pudding will be mushy). Break the bread into chunks and put it in a large dish.

4. Pour the milk through a strainer over the bread (discarding the garlic) and let it sit while you prepare the vegetables, turning the bread occasionally so that it soaks up as much of the liquid as possible.

5. Fill a large skillet 2/3 of the way with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Lightly salt the water and add the asparagus pieces; cook about 3 minutes or until the vegetables are crisp-tender. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.

6. Melt half the butter in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook for 1 minute, stirring, then add the mushrooms. Increase the heat to high and cook for several minutes, stirring, until the mushrooms brown in places and exude their liquid. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.

7. Break the eggs into a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Add the parsley, oregano, 1/2 – 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. Add the soaked bread and any liquid left in the dish, the asparagus-mushroom mixture and its juices and 2/3 of the cheese, mixing well.

8. Pour into the prepared baking or gratin dish and use a spatula to even it out. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and dot with the remaining butter. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until puffed and golden brown. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

After spending 3 nights on the southern part of Kauai, on Poipu, we headed up to the northern tip of the island for our next spot, 3 nights near Hanalei. Before setting out, Soli made a smoothie with fresh papaya, mango and coconut ice cream, and we stopped by an outdoor shopping area for some infamous puka dogs and freshly squeezed lemonade that we may or may not have spiked with vodka. Puka dogs are not necessarily the most delicious hot dog I’ve eaten, but they are interesting – a hot dog stuck into a pocket of a bun, and you choose what kind of “filling” you would like…I think I had a banana relish and Soli might have gone the coconut route.

The trip to Hanalei isn’t a long one (probably takes about 1 ½ hours, but we made lots of stops along the way. We made a quick stop to play in some pretty strong waves at Lydgate Park, but they were just a little too powerful for us to stay for long.

Back on the road, we quickly stopped again to check out the stores and markets in Kapaa. Lots of touristy stuff, but this is where Soli finally got his tikki. Since everything’s made in China and shipped over, he had yet to choose one, but he finally found one that had been carved there by a local with local wood. Oh, and there was also a quick stop for some (expensive) uni snacks!

On the way to Hanalei, we stopped by a fish market right across from some taro fields, and it quickly became one of our favourite fish stops, the Dolphin Fish Market. We were even invited in the back fridge to check out the enormous catches of the day! Our favourites there was a heavenly ono salad that we ate in avocado halves and of course, the poke. We also picked up some fish to grill, and some amazing sushi rolls.

While we were in there, a flash downpour began – unfortunately for us, we had left our Jeep roof down, and the thing FILLED with water. It was pretty damp and smelly for the next few days.

And then we were at Hanalei! This was our favourite area of the island, stunning! Massive green lush mountains rise up, with waterfalls trickling down the sides. It rains quite a bit up there, and it’s often cloudy, but there are sunny moments. We explored the beach a bit while we waited for the owners of the condo we had rented to arrive.

Our home in Hanalei for the next 3 days was the best yet! A whole floor, with a big balcony overlooking the beach and gorgeous sunsets, a full kitchen and a bedroom window with a view of a waterfall pouring down the side of the mountains…We wished we could spend the rest of our time there! Our first evening there, a big rainbow arched across the sky, right as we sat on the balcony.

We settled in, and took a fast drive up the the northernest tip, Ke’e beach. This quickly became Soli’s favourite beach, nestled in between big-rooted trees, mountains, and a reef filled with coral and brightly coloured fish. Hardly any waves, but a strong current…we spent many hours lounging and swimming here! It was also the starting point for our hike the next morning…

I spent way too much time and posted way too many photos of our 6 days on Big Island in Hawaii. Even though we followed those 6 days with 14 days on Kauai, I will try to keep that recap briefer. I mean, we’ve been back for 6 months now! Besides, as beautiful Kauai was, it wasn’t as adventurous as Big Island, and definitely more relaxing, so who knows? Maybe I’ll actually have less to say!

We arrived at the Lihue airport in the early evening, after a very quick plane ride. The airport was so small – we had to get out on the runway and walk across the tarmac. As we were walking across, a light rain started, and a bright rainbow appeared, like a warm welcome for us. This was to be the first of many, many rainbows. Unfortunately, the rain increased, and it was pouring by the time we got our rental Jeep. While there were a few rainy moments while we were there, it was definitely sunny most of the time.

The first place we were staying on Kauai was a condo rental near Poipu beach. We had no idea what to expect, but we were extremely pleased. The rain stopped on the drive down, and the condo was a two-minute walk from Poipu beachpark. We loved the condo itself – clean, big, gorgeous kitchen, and best of all, a patio and a hot tub right outside. Our first night, we walked down to the beach and watched massive waves roar in, in the dark. Scary, exciting, and we couldn’t wait for the next morning. One beer at the bar, and we headed home to sleep.

The next day, we were awoken with the loud rooster calls. There are chickens and roosters everywhere on this island, and we even had a little family of birds that hung out on our patio. They wander across the streets, peck at food in the sand on the beaches, strut their stuff in parking lots. And they make noise all the time – morning, afternoon, night. But especially the morning, and they were a great alarm clock the whole two weeks.

We started with a great omelet breakfast that Soli made in our kitchen, with a fantastic avocado salad to go with it (and this whole bowl of avocado comes from just ½ of a Hawaiian avocado!)

After breakfast, we decided to check out Poipu in the light of day; turns out it was one of our favourite beaches! The snorkeling was fun, the beach was gorgeous, it had this amazing sandbar that waves would come crashing in on either side, so lying around on it was like visiting a waterpark, and it was connected to quite the resort, complete with a bar, and a saltwater pool that we snuck into more than once.

Waimea Canyon, Kauai

We made the drive to Waimea Canyon, which is supposed to resemble the Grand Canyon, just smaller (10 miles long, 1 mile wide and very, very deep). It’s actually just one canyon of many, many, many canyons in Kauai; an earthquake had made half the island drop into the water, and the consequent carving of the land by water created these vast canyons all along one coast. This coast, the Na Pali, is inaccessible by anything other than boat and helicopter (both of which we did!). Waimea Canyon is a hikeable canyon, which is why we were off to visit it. I had read about it being a somewhat…difficult…hike, but I don’t think I was prepared for how difficult it was! It was entirely worth it though.

The drive into the canyon:

The hike into the canyon! We started with a fruit salad Soli had made with fresh mango, coconut and pineapple and headed out to do the next 3 miles on foot. The initial part this hike had some pretty exhausting moments, as it was so hot out, and most of it was all uphill:

It was soon worth it though, as we ended up on a point that narrowed into an overlook that terrifyingly gave us a view of an entire valley. It felt as though one strong gust of wind would blow us right off:

The hike continued down towards a small pond and waterfall, where we relaxed for a bit and replenished our lost energy with beer, and then we hit the trail again in search of the real waterfall. When we found it, we were able to clim right to its edge, and dangle our feet into the stream that was thousands of feet above the ground. Pretty scary for anyone afraid of heights, that’s for sure! We got wet, refreshed, and admired the view:

The hike back was not as difficult, and in about 3 hours time, we were back in our Jeep and driving on to the end of Kauai’s one road to get our first glimpse of the amazing Na Pali coast (of Jurassic Park fame!). You can only go so far and see just the very edge of this coast this way – the Na Pali coast actually takes up 1/3 of the island’s entire coastline. It’s an awesome, striking thing to see, like massive mountains all wrinkled together, covered in green.

On the drive back home, we stopped for what was pretty much one of our favourite meals at Shrimp Station. They coconut shrimp were the best I’ve ever had! Light – crispy – sweet – amazing! We also had some shrimp tacos that also filled our hungry selves up nicely after the long, long, long day.

I was put in charge of baking one of the desserts for the family’s Thanksgiving dinner, so obviously, I used this as an excuse to bake my favourite pie ever – the pecan pie. Amazingly sweet, rich and packed with pecans, I can never say no to a slice of pecan pie.

I had never made a pecan pie, so I didn’t have a favourite recipe for it on hand. So when in doubt, I always know I can trust Dorie Greenspan. She has a recipe for her favourite pecan pie in her book Baking: From My Home to Yours, so that’s what I used.

As usual, it was a perfect choice! Her recipe is different from the standard pecan pie in that it has chocolate chunks in it and is nicely flavoured with cinnamon. I loved these variations – the cinnamon really stands out and combines perfectly with the sweetness, as well as with the chocolate and pecans. The consistency was perfect. The taste was perfect. This is absolutely a “favourite” pecan pie.

She recommends a pie crust recipe, but since I was short on time and ingredients, I went *gasp* the crust mix route. I know my own homemade crust would’ve been better, but if a pie can still be delicious with a store-bought one, then you know you have a winner.

Chocolate Pecan Pie
adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours

3/4 cup light corn syrup (I used 1 cup)
1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (about 7 ounces) pecan halves or pieces
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 9-inch single crust made with Good for Almost Everything Dough, partially baked and cooled (I used a mix for pie crust)

1. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Put the pie plate on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

2. In a large bowl, whisk the corn syrup and brown sugar together until smooth.. Whisk in the melted butter, then add the eggs one at a time, beating until you have a smooth, foamy mixture. Add the espresso powder, vanilla, cinnamon and salt and give the batter a good mix. Rap the bowl against the counter a couple of times to pop any bubbles that might have formed, then stir in the pecans and chocolate. Turn the filling into the crust.

3. Bake the pie for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make a foil shield for the crust by cutting a 9-inch circle out of the center of an 11-or 12-inch square of aluminum foil.

4. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Place the foil shield on top of the pie—the filling will be exposed, the crust covered by the foil. Bake the pie for another 15 to 20 minutes (total baking time is 30 to 35 minutes), or until it has puffed (the middle and the edges should be fairly evenly puffed), is beautifully browned and no longer jiggles when tapped. Transfer the pie plate to a rack, remove the shield and cool to room temperature.

Serving: Pecan pie is good at any temperature, and different at each one. It’s softest and most puddingish eaten warm (about 45 minutes out of the oven), most flavorful eaten at room temperature and most candy-like when it is chilled. At any temperature, it’s good with ice cream—vanilla, chocolate or coffee would be my choices.

Storing: Once cooled to room temperature, the pie can be covered and refrigerated for 1 day.

Playing Around: If all you want is a great plain pecan pie, omit the cinnamon, espresso and chocolate. If you want a sweeter pie, increase the amount of corn syrup to 1 cup.

Okay! The last post about Big Island – this one will be more photo, less talk. I think Volcano National Park and Mauna Kea speaks for itself.

Before driving to the park, we took a small detour to check out one of the beaches near where we were staying, and to hunt down one of the lava hot tubs that was hidden in the forest. The waves there were massive, and were being enjoyed by lots of surfers. After a brief foray into the woods, we found the sweltering hot tub and took a swim.

Then, off to Volcano! The day started out a bit grey and dreary, but by the end, it got hot and steamy.

Volcano steaming off in the distance

Steam Vents

Exploring the lava tubes

The hike down, across and back up took hours, but it wasn’t very difficult, and being in the crater was absolutely breath-taking. It was dry, hot, and windy down there. The volcanic rock crunched like crystals. It was like being surrounded by the end of the world.

After, we drove the Chain of Craters, right to the end, where the land hits ocean. It was a gorgeous ride down, where you could see old lava flows that had destroyed the land, where the ocean glittered from up high, where you were surrounded by nothing by black rock. Just amazing!

The next day, we woke up early to make the long drive back to Kona, as we were catching our plane out to Kauai in the early afternoon. There are two ways we could’ve taken to get to Kona. The first, the way we came, around the southern tip, which probably would’ve taken about 3-4 hours. Then there was the Saddle Road, a road that runs through the centre of the island, right from Hilo to Kona. It takes about 1 ½ hours, and there’s absolutely nothing on the road, except for the majestic Mauna Kea, the highest mountain in the world at 14,000 feet (from sea level).

We weren’t sure if we would drive right up to the summit. We were concerned about time and all. However, once we got to the wait station (due to the altitude, you are obligated to stop at this station for at least 30 minutes to adjust), we knew we had to keep going to the top. Driving along thin dirt and gravel paths to the summit of a MOUNTAIN was terrifying and exhilarating.

It was freezing up there, so windy, and we could barely walk without feeling dizzy or faint – the altitude is just too much! There are lots of telescopes up there, as this is apparently the closest thing earth has to a space-like environment; Apollo did all their tests prior to going to the moon here. It did feel like another world.

Loco Moco to get ready for the trip

The Drive up Mauna Kea

After the terrifying drive back down, Soli thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns of Saddle Road, and we made it to the Kona airport with time to spare, which turned out to be a very good thing, as we were not allowed to take all the food we had packed, so we had to say goodbye to our pet pineapple, among other mangos and delicious fruit. We boarded the plane to Kauai, and spent the next two weeks exploring a much different island.

Hm. Easy recipe; first you take the sauce and you put it on the dough.

That is how the recipe for Poutine Pizza was described to me and that is how I’ll describe this. I think this recipe is ridiculous – I love it, actually…

First, dice and soften an onion in a high heat pan with some butter, take some leftover rotisserie chicken, fry it in a dab more butter for 3 – 5 minutes, throw in a tomato and some garlic, 5 more minutes, the add a can for baked beans. Reduce to a “sauce”… :/

Blind bake your olive oil brushed pizza dough as this pie is a bit of a weight-er.

Spread the sauce, add the cheese, some dried oregano, and done.

The chewy crust and meaty chicken blend perfectly
with the chewy cheese and meaty beans!

I am not a formally trained chef. Actually, I think the only things I’ve formally learned regarding food came from a Home Economics class back in High School. Would you like to eat a firm scone in crookedly collared sweatshirt? I learned out of necessity (no surprise if you know me at all). I remember… hungry, young, broke or lazy or both… and all I’ve got is a zucchini and a tomato. What to do?

Each and every “hungry, young, broke or lazy or both” challenge brought me closer to understanding the nature of flavor locked inside every morsel of complied energy available in and around my kitchen (um i.e. zucchini).

Enter the sandwich… a complication of the “now”:

Fancy Sandwich
1 French baguette
1 zucchini
1 bunch asparagus
1 tomato
4 eggs
2 green (spring) onions
½ cup of cheese (your choice)
butter
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
1 tbs hot mustard
1 tbs polish mayo (sweeter than regular)
salt
pepper

Ok, take the zucchini and asparagus and slice, snap, and roast (350F 10 minutes). Take the tomato and onions, slice and dice, and mix with mustard, mayo, salt and pepper (add salt and pepper everywhere as you move through all these ingredients). Crack and whisk your eggs, add the cheese (grated), and cook in melted butter. Rremember, less in more when it comes to heat and eggs (I understand that an egg can be slow poached for hour or more!).

Cut the baguette in half, brush with the olive, and toast at 225F for 5-7 minutes (I slightly over baked mine – crispity crush). Remove from the over and rub with a garlic glove.

The flavors of this sandwich were exquisite. Very delicate and moist. The zucchini and asparagus marry very well. The “salad” bridges the profile by refreshing the palate and carrying the flavor of the rich, cheesy egg across the entire spectrum… t’was impossible to stop eating

Plate it on a tea towel as one big bad-ass sandwich; take a picture; write a post.

I hate eggs. Can’t stand them, especially perfectly poached, atop a crispy French baked starch, delicate, slightly sweet, partial to the moment, and often impossible to resurrect. Who wants that?

No, no, love them…

I only recently learned that you can take a pound of mushrooms, cook them, and eat them, so mushroom duxelle is becoming my Marmite, only delicious (kidding, actually sorta like Marmite).

Mushroom Duxelle
1 lbs mushrooms (your choice)
2 tbs butter
salt
pepper
¼ cup wine or 2 ounces of vodka (optional as this is breakfast)

Heat skillet; add very clean, finely chopped mushrooms, salt, and butter (the butter, seeing as the mushrooms won’t stick in the beginning, can be added at the end). Give it 10 -15 with some good heat behind it. Add a good splash of wine and move it around until it reduces.

I’ve reviewed poaching eggs before, try Eggs if you need to follow up.

The croutons… don’t know what happened, by a stroke of tasty genius hit me. These are, by far, the best crouton ever! But they are somewhat rich, so maybe they won’t fly in all crouton-ish applications.

Fried Croutons
French Baguette (in France them just call them baguettes)
2 tbs butter
1 tbs olive oil
salt to taste
pepper to taste

So cut up your fresh baguette into pieces the size you like, but not too small. We are going to need a bit of moisture and a small piece would dry out too quickly. Melt the butter in a bowl large enough to hold all your croutons. Add the oil, salt, and pepper, and whisk it up. Toss your croutons in the quasi-emulsion. Bake in an toaster over (or oven) at 350F for about 15 minutes.

Using this method, the croutons fry while toasting. I can’t say I’m sure, but it seems the butter adds a light nutty flavor and nice kind of crispy browning while the olive oil goes the distance in adding a firm chewiness.

Plate up! and DO NOT go back to bed; common problem I have – rich sleepy weekend breakfasts that insist Monday race itself back. This dish is light and breezy. Out the door and off to market

ADD: Omitted from this post was the drizzle of truffle oil to finish. Truffle oil is the best money you can spend, if you think you like truffles. Dizzle here, teaspoon there, infusions, finisher, starter, star and support, pfft… anyway. I hate to know there is none in the kitch.

Sigh… the marvels of flesh, and thusly protein. I lived a vegetarian from the ages of 18 – 28. I was in San Fran summer of 2003 and met my first pork rib – ever. I was raised not eating pork – never. Needless to say, my pork-free-vivre-veg-libre body did not quite understand what had happened.

Like a culinary pork-bomb fell… didn’t sleep or eat for 2 days.

Anyhow, that to say I now take meat very very seriously, so that when I’m being good or bad, I know it. Organic free range best-you-can-get for the money type of thing and sometimes foie gras

En tout cas…

…can’t cook if you’re hungry, so one fresh East Coast oyster each… and let’s get started…

I found (1 week, 7 visits, and 5 phone calls) a 3.5 lbs piece of organic Alberta filet – the tops. We were only 3 diners, so I trimmed it down to something gorgeous and generous. I removed the silver skin and anything that might be chewy.

Oyster to keep us going… and some scallop sashimi…

Now, grab a pot, one as narrow as possible, but still large enough to hold the whole filet. Place your trimmed filet inside and make a note of the highest point. Remove the filet and replace with olive oil, just covering the noted high point.

In another pot, any size, but – you are going to heat the measured oil in this pot (to 80C) and then pour it over the filet, which will later be place back in the narrow pot, so find something that’s easy to handle. Again, 80C! Note: Narrow = Less Oil = Less $$$ and waste.

Oyster to keep us going… and some scallop sashimi…

Heat a cast iron skillet to YEAH! and sear the whole filet to your liking. Go nuts because this is your only chance to add color (I was a bit too fragile and thought it lacked some color; would’ve liked to see a small fire in pan instead – inexperience to blame).

Heat the oil to 80C. Not sure if it’s me (I don’t often heat 1.5 liters of olive oil to a low number) but it shot past – and that’s not good. I added colder oil and brought the temp down, but Oil = $$$, so

Once there, pour over the now narrowly nestle meat and wait 15 minutes, rest, and slice. That’s it. Nuts. I got the “recipe” by hearing the words “lamb poached in duck fat”. Really? No. Way.

I also prepared a mushroom duxelle to top the acorn squash and new potato mash.

Oyster to keep us going… and some scallop sashimi…

Cast iron still hot? Good. Sear one perfect U-10 scallop per person. Pick you poison for flavor, but I used fresh cracked black pepper and Cloés Vanilla Butter. The butter is… butter, so it works well with the scallops, only trouble is I can’t lick the fry pan after the scallop leaves behind its buttery wet spot (?)

Oyster to keep us going… and some extra seared scallop…

Foie Gras. No. Do not discuss. My first and possibly last time buying it (at home and maybe anywhere). $6 and 50 grams.

Score. Sear. Serve.

Lastly, oyster to keep see us off, open the truffles. Slice. Serve.
Slice more; fry in butter; serve. Serve truffle kissed butter… no wet
spot left behind (?)

Red wine. Done.

Acorn and New Potato Mash
1 acorn squash
1 lbs new potatoes
1 tsp olive oil
4 tbs butter
cream
salt and pepper

Boil water and cook peeled and diced potatoes until tender. Half the squash, clean it, rub it with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast at 370F for 30 minutes. Combine roasted peeled squash and potatoes, cream and butter, salt and pepper to taste. Mash!

Mushroom Duxelle
2 lbs mushrooms (your choice)
2 tbs butter
salt
½ cup wine or 2 ounces of vodka (both of which you should be enjoying already)

Heat skillet; add very clean, finely chopped mushrooms, salt, and butter. Give it 10 -15 with some good heat behind it. Add a good splash of wine and move it around until it reduces.