Orchard Talk

Ingredients

Nutritional Information

One serving contains the following:
Calories (kcal) 284.77
% Calorie from Fat 62.5
Fat (g) 19.78
Saturated Fat (g) 2.01
Cholesterol (mg) 0
Carbohydrates (g) 24.75
Dietary Fiber (g) 6.09
Total Sugars (g) 14.37
Net Carbs (g) 18.66
Protein (g) 4.51

Tags: dried cherries, gala apples, Recipes

Ingredients:

Dough:
• 1 pound, plus 2 ounces all-purpose flour
• 8 ounces butter, cubed
• 2 ½ ounces pork fat
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• Cold water
  
  Apples:
• 4 Honeycrisp apples
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup cider
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of black pepper
• ¼ cup caramel (recipe follows)
• 2 pinches of corn starch or arrow root
  
  Streusel:
• 4 ounces butter, chilled and cubed
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup light brown sugar
• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of cinnamon

  Smokey Roasted Apple Puree:

• 4 apples, such as Pink Lady, Golden Delicious, Mutsu, or Fiji
• 1 cup cider
• ½ cup caramel
• 1 ounce butter
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of pepper
• 2 ounces raw bacon

  Ice Cream Base:

• 25 egg yolks
• 14 ounces sugar
• 1 quart cream
• 1 quart milk

  Caramel:
  24 ounces sugar

• 7 ounces corn syrup or glucose
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of pepper
• 1 quart cream

Method:

For the Dough:
In a KitchenAid with a paddle attachment, work the flour, butter, pork fat, sugar, and salt until the butter is the size of tiny peas. Add the egg and about ¼ cup water, and work until the dough comes together. Form into a ball and refrigerate for 2-24 hours.

For the Apples:
Peel apples and cut them into ¼-inch cubes. Place apples in a large bowl and toss with all the other ingredients. Set aside.

For the Streusel:
Combine all of the ingredients in a Cuisinart and work until the mixture “crumbles.” Chill the mixture.

For the Smokey Roasted Apple Puree:
Quarter the apples. Toss with the rest of the ingredients and roast at 350°F until the apples are broken down and caramelized. Remove the bacon and discard. Puree remaining mixture in a Cuisinart until smooth.

For the Ice Cream Base:
Mix the yolks and sugar completely. Bring the cream and the milk to a boil; pour it over the yolks and mix completely. Put the mixture back on the stove, mixing constantly, until the custard is thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Place in an ice bath and allow to cool. Once cooled, add the apple puree to taste. Freeze and process in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

For the Caramel:
In a heavy pot, combine half of the sugar with the corn syrup, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is dark amber in color.
Add the remaining sugar, ¼ cup at a time. Mix well after each addition. In another pot, heat the cream just until it comes to a boil. Slowly add the cream to the caramel, and let the mixture reduce after each addition.

To Assemble and Serve:
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Trim and fit the dough into a pie tin or tart mold. Fill the Honeycrisp apple cubes to the top of the pie shell; pour some of the juice from the bottom of the bowl on top of the apples. Cover with the streusel. Bake for about 30-45 minutes, or until the streusel is golden brown and the liquid is bubbling.

Serve with smoky roasted apple ice cream and caramel sauce.

Yield: 6 Servings

recipe courtesy of
Chef Mindy Segal of HOTCHOCOLATE – Chicago, IL
Adapted by StarChefs.com

Tags: honeycrisp apple pie, honeycrisp apple recipe, honeycrisp apples

2 cups sugar
1 cup canola oil
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 cup sour milk (add 1 teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice to fresh milk)
1 teaspoon soda
4 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups chopped Honeycrisp apples
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Mix together all ingredients. Divide batter between 2 greased loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees (at times I have to bake the loaves for 10 or 15 minutes more until they feel set when tapped).  Note: Batter will be stiff.

This Honeycrisp Apple Bread recipe courtesy Thunder Bay Grille

Tags: honey crisp apples, honeycrisp apple bread, honeycrisp apple recipes

Winning Recipe 2009 Michigan Apples Pie Contest: Caramel Apple Pie

Tags: caramel apple pie, michigan apples, pie recipes, Recipes

This quick sandwich can be made with a Panini press or George Foreman grill. Equally delicious if you choose to omit the turkey.

Ingredients:

Preheat the panini press or grill. Spread the honey mustard evenly over each slice of bread. Layer apple slices, cheese and turkey over 4 slices of the bread. Top each with the remaining bread slices.

Lightly coat the press or grill with vegetable cooking spray. Grill each sandwich for approx. 3 to 5 minutes or until bread is golden brown and cheese has melted. Remove from pan and cut in half.

Serve with a green salad for a quick and healthy lunch or dinner. Makes 4 servings.

In Susan Selasky’s Detroit Free Press article, she wrote, “Some people wouldn’t dream of cooking with Honeycrisp apples because they are best eaten out of hand. But for this recipe I wanted to capture those sweet Honeycrisp juices to add moisture and flavor to the stuffing and sweetness to the cream sauce.”

The only thing I would try differently with this recipe is to substitute dried cherries for the optional golden raisins. Dried cherries are an excellent complement to both pork and stuffing, and impart much more flavor than raisins. As John likes to say, “they make ordinary stuffing an event!”

Stuffing
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/3 cup diced onion
• 1/3 cup diced celery
• 2 cups dried bread cubes (or small croutons)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup diced apple
• 1/4 cup golden raisins (or dried cherries), optional
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped sage leaves or 2 teaspoons rubbed sage
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth

Pork
• 4 bone-in pork chops (at least 1-inch-thick), about 2 pounds trimmed of fat
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped pecans
• 1 large apple (such as Honeycrisp), peeled, diced
• 1/2 cup fat-free or regular half-and-half mixed with 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
To make the stuffing: In a large skillet, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Scrape into a bowl and add the bread cubes, salt and pepper, apple, raisins if using, and sage.
Lightly moisten with the broth, mix thoroughly and set aside.
To prepare the pork: Cut a 2-inch-wide slit in the side of the chop opposite the bone, cutting almost but not all the way through, making a pocket. Evenly divide the stuffing mixture and stuff it in each chop. Do not overstuff the chops or the stuffing will fall out. You may have some left over that you can serve on the side. You can secure the pocket closed with toothpicks if needed.
Season both sides of the pork chops with salt and pepper.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chops and brown on one side, about 3 minutes. Carefully turn and brown on the other side. Transfer pork chops (set skillet aside) to a baking dish and cover with foil. Bake about 40 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chops, or until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 155 degrees. Remove from oven and keep covered.
In the same skillet the chops were browned in, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the pecans and saute 2 minutes. Add the diced apple and saute until it caramelizes. Reduce the heat slightly and slowly whisk in the half-and-half and maple syrup.
Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the sauce with some of the diced apples and pecans over each pork chop and serve.

Per serving: 398 calories (57 percent from fat ), 25 g fat (6 g saturated fat ), 25 g carbohydrates , 19 g protein , 396 mg sodium , 61 mg cholesterol ,3 g fiber.

recipe courtesy of Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press.

Ingredients:

Cake
* 3 cup all-purpose flour
* 2 1/4 cup granulated sugar, divided use
* 1 Tbsp. baking powder
* 1/2 tsp. salt
* 4 large eggs, beaten
* 1 cup vegetable oil
* 1/2 cup orange juice
* 2 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
* 7 medium Honeycrisp baking apples, peeled and chopped
* 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
* 18-oz. package cream cheese

Topping:
* 1/2 cup butter or margarine
* 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
* 1/3 cup whipping cream
* 1 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan.

To make Cake: In a mixing bowl, combine flour, 2 cups of the granulated sugar, the baking powder and the salt. Set flour mixture aside.

In a second bowl, combine beaten eggs, oil, orange juice and vanilla. Pour egg mixture into flour mixture and mix well, but just until combined, with electric mixer. Do not over mix.

In a third bowl, toss chopped apples, cinnamon and remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Separately, cube the cream cheese and divide into thirds.

Spread 1/3 of batter in prepared tube pan. Sprinkle with 1/3 of apples and 1/3 of cream cheese. Repeat until all batter, apples and cream cheese are used; a layer of apples and cream cheese will be on top, not covered by batter. Bake 50 to 55 minutes, at which point cake should be not quite done.

While cake is baking, make Topping. Place the butter, brown sugar, whipping cream and pecans in a small saucepan. Stirring constantly, bring mixture to a boil. Remove mixture from heat and pour over the almost-done cake. Bake 5 to 10 minutes more until wooden toothpick or skewer inserted in cake comes out clean. Cool cake in pan 15 to 20 minutes, then remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Note: Cake should be served with the nut-topping side up. Cake is better the day after it is baked.

Courtesy of the State of Minnesota

Ingredients:
1 c. apple juice
1/2 c. fresh apple chunks
1/2 c. Michigan Montmorency Dried Tart Cherries
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
2 tbsp. croutons
1 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. dry white wine
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
6 pork loin chops, cut 1-inch thick
2 tbsp. cooking oil

In saucepan combine apple juice and apples; simmer, covered, for 25 minutes. Remove from heat. Add Michigan Dried Cherries and let stand 5 minutes; drain, reserving liquid.Combine cooked fruit mixture, walnuts and croutons. Stir together sugar, wine, lemon juice and ginger. Add to crouton mixture, tossing lightly to moisten. Cut pockets in fat side of chops, cutting lengthwise to bone.

Spoon about 1/3 cup of the stuffing mixture into each pocket. If necessary, use wooden picks to hold pockets closed. In large skillet brown chops in hot oil. Place chops in a 13×9x2-inch baking pan. Sprinkle chops with a little salt and pepper. Add 1/4 cup reserved apple liquid to pan, adding water if necessary.

Bake chops, covered, in 350 degree oven for 1 hour. Serves 6.

Tags: cherry recipes, dried cherries

Nuts About Cherries Chicken Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

4 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, diced
1 cup King Orchards Nuts About Cherries, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup diced apples (we like Mutsu for this, but Cortland, Galas and Honeycrisp would be good choices too)
1/3 cup low-fat yogurt
1/3 cup low-fat mayonnaise
1 tbl. buttermilk
salt and pepper to taste

In large bowl, combine chicken, Nuts About Cherries, celery and apple. After well combined, add the yogurt, mayo and buttermilk. Salt and/or pepper if desired. Toss together well and refrigerate until chilled.

Serve by itself, on wheat bread, croissant or pita.

For an added twist, add the zest of an orange or two.

Tags: apple salad recipe, dried cherries, nuts about cherries, Recipes