Celebrate a bountiful harvest by cooking with flavors of fall.
By Janet Groene, F47166
November 2017
This time of year we take to the open road for leaf-peeping by day and roaring bonfires by night. We stop at roadside farm stands that are aglow with golden pears; scarlet apples; iridescent scuppernong grapes; and nut-brown almonds, walnuts, and pecans. The fall harvest provides perfect ingredients for the recipes we love for cold campground mornings and chilly campfire evenings. Cook indoors or outside with these smart, shortcut autumn recipes.
Cut this crumble the night before for quicker assembly in the morning. The baking aroma alone is worth the work. The proof is in the eating.
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter, softened
1 15-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin
3 eggs
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup broken walnuts
Maple syrup (optional)
Caramel yogurt (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the flour, oats, and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Press the mixture into a lightly greased 9-inch-by-13-inch baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Whisk together the pumpkin, eggs, spice, and the other 1/3 cup brown sugar. Pour the mixture over the crustand bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
In a small skillet, melt the butter and stir in the walnuts. Spoon this mixture over the filling and bake until the top is toasty and the filling is set. Cut in squares. Serve plain or sauced with maple syrup or caramel yogurt. Makes four servings as a main dish or six to eight servings as a breakfast side dish.
When you make your own sausage, you can adjust ingredients to taste, cut down on salt, and try different types of apples each time.
1 pound ground turkey or lean ground pork
1/4 cup bread or cracker crumbs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground sage
1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup shredded fresh apple
Mix the ingredients well and use at once or refrigerate the mixture overnight while the flavors blend. Form the mixture into patties and fry them until golden brown on both sides. Makes eight patties.
This easy, versatile sauce comes from Big Sky Country out west, where the snow is already flying. Spread the sauce sparingly over any meat or poultry from the skillet or grill.
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 stick butter
4 ounces blue cheese
Mix the Worcestershire sauce and garlic in a small bowl, and then use a fork to mash in the softened butter and crumbled blue cheese. Serve at once.
This piquant dressing keeps well in the refrigerator. Drizzle it on autumn salads and fall vegetables such as steamed hard squash or rutabagas. It’s also good for marinating mushrooms or canned baby corn to serve as an appetizer. Anise flavoring can be very strong, so use it sparingly.
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon dry mustard, such as Coleman’s
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon dried lemon peel
1/2 to 1 teaspoon anise flavoring
Whisk everything together, adding the anise last and to taste. Refrigerate. Stir before using. Makes 2 cups.
Note that this vegetable side dish is not highly sugared like most sweet potato casseroles. Butter and freshly pressed apple cider bring out the natural sweetness of the season’s yams.
4 cups canned sweet potatoes
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup apple cider
1 stick butter, melted
In a heavy saucepan, mash the sweet potatoes with the spice, salt, cider, and melted butter, and then heat gently over a low flame until it’s heated through. Makes eight 1/2-cup servings.
One skillet does the job. Serve this saucy seafood over rice, noodles, potatoes, pasta, toast, or garlic croutons.
1 20-ounce package of cooked, tail-off, deveined shrimp
1 5-ounce can flaked crabmeat
1 small onion, finely diced
1 small green pepper, finely diced
2 tablespoons butter
1 can condensed cream of tomato soup
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup light cream
Salt, freshly ground pepper to taste
Thaw and drain the shrimp. Drain and pick over the crabmeat to remove any bits of shell. Saute the onion and pepper in the melted butter until the onion is tender. Add the soup and stir. In a separate bowl, whisk the cornstarch into the cream and pour it into the soup mixture, stirring over medium heat until it thickens. Stir in the shrimp and crab to heat through. Makes six servings.
Try this one-pot dish over rice, especially jasmine rice.
1 16-ounce package fully cooked grilled chicken bites (not breaded)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small red sweet pepper, seeded and diced
1 small green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 and 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup sherry
1 cup water
1/2 cup walnut halves
In a large skillet or wok, sizzle the chicken bites in hot oil, gradually stirring in the peppers and onion and cooking until they are crisp-tender. In a separate bowl, stir the cornstarch and ginger into the sherry and water, and then quickly stir them into the chicken mixture over high heat. Stir until the sauce thickens. Fold in the walnuts. Makes four to six servings.
Flavors of the Middle East give an exotic taste to chicken sizzled over the campfire or in a skillet. Traditionally, this dish is served with rice. For a quicker meal, serve it as a saucy sandwich filling in big, puffy onion buns.
1/4 cup flour
Salt, pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 portions boneless, skinless chicken breast
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 to 3 tablespoons sliced black olives, drained
1/4 cup water, white wine, broth, or orange juice
1/2 cup orange marmalade
Spread the flour on a paper plate and lightly sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Mix in the cinnamon. Pat the chicken dry and coat it on both sides with the flour mixture. Brown it in hot oil. Add the onions. Turn the mixture to brown the onions.
Sprinkle the chicken with sliced ripe olives and drizzle with the 1/4 cup liquid. Cover and cook over low-medium heat until the chicken is done through and the onions are tender. Move the chicken and onions to the side. Stir marmalade into the hot pan drippings; boil until a sauce forms. Makes four servings.
This moist dessert differs from the usual apple dishes.
1 10-count tube of biscuits
3 to 4 cups chopped, fresh apples
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 stick butter
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 teaspoon maple flavoring
Set the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9-inch-by-13-inch pan with nonstick spray and press the biscuits into the bottom to make an even layer. Top with the apples. Sprinkle with the cinnamon. In a saucepan, heat the butter, sugar, and water until the sugar dissolves. Remove the liquid from the heat and stir in the maple flavoring. Pour the liquid evenly over the apples. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until it’s golden around the edges.
Whisk this batter to smoothness in a bowl, pour it into a pie pan, and create a different version of the popular “impossible” pie.
Butter
3 eggs
1 15-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin
1 12-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
Set the oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9-inch pie plate. Whisk the eggs, pumpkin, condensed milk, salt, and spice until smooth. Mix in the crumbs. Bake for 45 minutes or until set, as for custard. Serve warm or chilled, plain or with whipped cream. Makes eight servings.
Moist and toothsome, these simple cookie snacks showcase the new crop of pecans. They’re easy to mix in a saucepan.
1 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup self-rising flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup broken pecans
Set the oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter and remove from heat. Stir in the brown sugar, self-rising flour, and vanilla. Fold in the pecans and place the mixture in a buttered 8-inch-by-8-inch baking pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until it’s set and the edges shrink slightly away from the pan edges. Allow it to cool. Use a serrated knife to cut it into 16 to 20 squares.