My grandma’s name is Betty, so this lip-smacking apple treat holds a special place in my heart. And belly. But, as much as I’d like to give my dear sweet granny credit for this traditional dessert, it came about long before her.

No one really knows who the real “Brown Betty” was, as there are a number of stories out there. I like to think of her as a tough and mighty pioneer woman who could wield both knife and saucepan like no other. All while breastfeeding one child, consoling another, cooking supper, laying a table for eight, and building a fire in the corner.

Ah, there’s just something us modern women lack that those tough old gals of yesteryear possessed.

But, thankfully, we have iPhones.

Apple Brown Betty

2 cups coarse day-old bread
6 cups baking apples (e.g. Granny Smith)
½ cup sugar
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup water
2 Tablespoons butter
½ cup raisins, optional

Grease an 11 x 9 baking dish. Sprinkle approximately 1/3 of the breadcrumbs over the bottom of the baking dish. Place ½ of the apples over the bread crumbs.

Mix together the sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Sprinkle half of this sugar mixture over the apples. Add 1/3 of the breadcrumbs, another layer of apples, then sprinkle with the rest of the sugar mixture. Top with the final 1/3 of the breadcrumbs (we also sprinkled a it of oatmeal on top. Not traditional, but good texture).

Splash the lemon juice and water over the top of the Apple Brown Betty. Cut the butter up in small chunks and place around on top of the apple casserole.

Bake covered at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven, cover, and bake an additional 15 minutes.

It wasn’t until I lived in Italy that I truly learned to love and appreciate a good olive oil. Drizzled on tender butter lettuce salads with a pinch of salt, spooned over handmade pastas, dabbed on a chunk of rustic Tuscan bread, and I ashamedly admit, slathered all over myself in lieu of suntan oil. I was twenty, I wasn’t thinking (but my skin sure looked damn good!). Now, many years older, I have nixed the use of olive oil as a tanning accelerant, but continue drizzling, spooning, and dabbing with molto gusto.

In Italy, early November is the time when olives will begin to be harvested for the first batch of olive oil. Gourmands around the world eagerly await this time of year for the season’s new arrival. Now I like me some good fresh olive oil, but I was not about to hop on a jet and queue up with the rest of the oliophiles. So I went local and visited Oil & Vinegar in Bellevue, Washington.

This growing franchise offers a wide and impressive selection of beautiful imported oils and vinegars. Oil & Vinegar’s product line also extends to an exclusive assortment of herbs and spices, pastas, appetizers, cooking tools, and more. Their gift sets are far from the predictable packaged sets because the product is so unique, like personalized oil and vinegar labels. Think Christmas, everyone!

What immediately caught my attention when I walked into Oil & Vinegar was their tap wall (pictured). A stunning display of glass vessels containing an array of olive, nut and seed oils, flavor infused oils and vinegars, as well as balsamic and wine vinegars. One of my favorites, a blood orange oil that nearly brought me to my knees it was so fresh and good.

As the gourmands begin their journey home from Italy carrying their precious cargo, I too, happily returned home with an armful of olive oils and vinegars. Fortunately for me, I didn’t have to use mileage.

Check out our video interview with Matt Stermer, owner of the Oil & Vinegar franchise in the US.

Everyone has their own tastes, politically and culinarily. Some like it sweet, some like it salty. Lots of meat or veggies only.

The beauty of pizza is that it can be a little bit of everything for everyone. The vegetarians can have their corner, the carnivores another. Anchovies can rule the salty roost of one quadrant, and olives can hail from the other. But it’s all piled on top of the same sauce.

And together it works.

Gremolata is a traditional accompaniment to Osso Buco, an Italian dish of braised veal shank. It is simply made of chopped parsley, lemon peel and garlic, which makes it divine on all kinds of meats, poultry, and seafood. Personally, I could put it on top of a good toasted bread and be just fine.

I made a batch of gremolata the other night to go on top of our delicious red wine stewed oxtail. It adds the perfect blend of herb-citrus-lemon flavors to a hearty meat dish.

Gremolata

1 lemon
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Using a vegetable peeler, remove the lemon peel in long strips, then mince the peel. Transfer to small bowl and mix in parsley and garlic.

Some people turn their noses up at the mention of oxtail, but this underrated meat is succulently delicious. When slow cooked for many hours or quickly blasted in a pressure cooker, which we did, the gelatinous meat turns tender and fall-off-the-bone fantastic. Oxtail is also quite inexpensive, making it easy on the pocketbook, which I’m sure we can all appreciate right now. Use up that leftover red wine for stewing and this meal just gets more economical by the minute!

Red Wine Stewed Oxtail

Approximately 2 lbs. oxtail
1 16 oz. can of chopped tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
Red wine
1 Bay leaf
Salt and pepper
Olive oil

In a large stockpot or pressure cooker, brown the onions, garlic and oxtail in a splash of olive oil. After browning, add the red wine (and chicken stock if you need more liquid) until it just covers the oxtail. Toss in the bay leaf, a good pinch of salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer; cover. If you are using a stockpot allow the oxtail to simmer for a few hours, or until the meat starts to fall easily from the bone. If you are using a pressure cooker, cook for about 40 minutes.

Delighful served over couscous and sprinkled with a tasty herby-citrus gremolata.

Here in Southern California we often suffer with the cold more indoors than out due to lack of insulation and heating methods that, well, don’t. So a one-dish meal that starts on the stove top and then migrates to the oven pays both heating and eating dividends. This particular dish combines two favorites, pork and scalloped potatoes, with the pork fat standing in for butter and milk plus white wine for cream. Definitely from the what’s-not to-like comfort food playbook.

The usual American style rather lean pork works best as the drippings from the meat will mix with the potatoes underneath and there is no real strategy for degreasing once the ingredients are combined. Thick or thin chops work fine, just plan on cooking longer in the final oven stage if the chops are thick. Another bonus is that the dish can be made ahead up to that point, and cooking time is forgiving as the chops are basically braising rather than roasting. So you shouldn’t end up with the pork radial tire that we all remember so well from camp and college dining halls.

I happened to have some dried tomato so I tossed in a few of those, diced, to add some flavor and color to the dish. You could as easily use fresh or dried mushrooms and leeks could replace the onions. I have made a version of this with port replacing white wine and the mushrooms would go handily with that. Similarly with the seasoning rub, I used a NOMA brand seasoning blend theoretically made for lamb but at our house we like rosemary on pretty much anything.  You could easily substitute thyme or sage and the amount is to your taste rather than critical.

The amounts of the ingredients listed below are pretty arbitrary. Basically you want enough sliced onion and potatoes to fill your dish, leaving room for the chops to sit on top. And you want enough liquid just to peek through the vegetables and keep everything moist.

Ingredients:
Pork chops, one per person, trimmed of fat
1 medium onion, sliced
1 large potato, peeled and sliced very thin.
4-5 dried tomato or sun dried tomatoes
1/2 c milk, fat free
1/4 c dry white wine
1-2 TB  seasoning mix of rosemary, cumin, garlic and black pepper, combined to make a rub OR any favorite seasoning
1 T grape seed or other oil for browning meat

Equipment:
You will need a shallow casserole pan which can go from stove top to oven

Technique:
Preheat oven to 375
Mix spices to make a rub and apply to all sides and edges of chops
Heat oil in casserole until  hot, brown chops quickly on each side to a nice brown color
Remove pan from heat, remove chops temporarily to a plate
Pour off any accumulated fat in the pan and discard, being careful to retain any tasty dripping and browned bits
Pour the wine and the milk into the pan and stir to incorporate the juices and drippings
Mix onions, potatoes and tomato bits together, add to the pan and distribute in an even layer. The level of the liquid should be roughly to the top of the vegetables. If not, add more.
Place the browned chops on top of the vegetables, cover with a fitted top or with aluminum foil
Place in middle of oven, lower heat to 350 degrees
Bake for 20-30 minutes approximately, checking the level of the liquid a few times. Timing will vary based on the thickness of the chops.
When the chops are cooked through and the potatoes are tender, remove the top from the pan and bake for another 5 minutes or so to reduce and thicken the liquid.

Serve 1 chop per person with a side of the potatoes and enjoy!

Photo: Dr. Florian

Before sending your little goblins out tonight for trick-or-treats, fill their bellies up with something yummy and warm.

Pumpkin Bisque
10 minutes preparation time
45 minutes cook time

1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Tablespoon butter or margarine
1 16 ounce can pumpkin puree
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 cup half-and-half or light cream
1/4 cup dry sherry
Grated nutmeg

Saute the onion and garlic in the butter until they are soft and transparent.

Add the pumpkin, stock, ground pepper, allspice, sugar, and sherry. Bring to a boil and cover. Simmer the soup for 30 minutes. Place the mixture in a blender and puree until smooth.

Return the soup to the pot, add the half-and-half, and simmer until heated. Garnish with the nutmeg and serve.

Yield: 4 servings

I call these Coconut Shrimp Salad Rolls, but those are only two of the tasty ingredients wrapped up in thin rice paper. Frankly, Coconut Shrimp Ginger Carrot Lime Cilantro And More Rolls was just too long. I could have also called these Mieng Kum Rolls, but I think my title is more “user-friendly.”

But, in fact, that’s just about what these rolls are, mieng kum, all wrapped up in rice paper instead of a leaf. Mieng kum is a delicious Thai dish that packs nearly every flavor in one punch. These wonderful, healthy salad rolls were inspired by that dish.

Coconut Shrimp Salad Rolls

Just wing it with the amounts of each ingredient. Balance the flavors to adjust to you liking. If you want more ginger, add more ginger. Spicier? Toss in a few more chilies.

Shrimp, cooked and cut into pieces
Toasted coconut
Grated carrot
Ginger, finely chopped
Lime, sliced into tiny pieces with the rind on
Cilantro, chopped
Shallots or red onion (adds nice color), finely diced
1-2 Thai chili peppers (or any spicy pepper will do), finely chopped
Rice paper sheets

Toss the ingredients in a bowl. Fill a deep, flat dish with about 1/2″ of water. Place one sheet of rice paper in the water until it softens, then gently remove the sheet and place on a paper towel. Pat off excess water. Like you’re making a burrito, place the mixture in row on the sheet, fold in the sides, and roll.

Sprinkle some crushed peanuts and whole cilantro leaves on top and serve with peanut dipping sauce.

We are please to introduce Betsy Dorfman as our newest contributor to the Foodista blog. You can see her regular blog here.

TUGBERT is our 26-foot Nordic Tug recreational trawler, berthed in Marina del Rey, California, otherwise known as the watery part of Los Angeles. We have been enjoying a warm October and there is no better fair weather dinner in our opinion than fish cooked over a grill on a boat. Everything tastes better, for starters, and the propane fueled grills, which you will see everywhere clamped to boat railings, are actually serious cookers, which heat quickly and do a grand job on fish.

Of course the fish has to be fresh. For that we head south to Alamitos Bay (near Long Beach) to the Sunday Farmer’s Market, well worth the investment in gas. Prices are cheaper than the chef-infested markets of Santa Monica and nowhere else has J & P West Coast Seafood. From the side of a chuck wagon style truck this gentleman improbably dispenses some of the freshest fish in the area week after week at, not low, but fair prices for the quality. The white sea bass ran us about $20 per pound, but this is a cut, which is all edible with no waste.

First we cut the sea bass into similar portions of like thickness. Next we generally brush with olive oil before applying a rub. Even though the white sea bass has a high oil content on its own, the oil disperses the rub evenly and helps it adhere rather than scrape off on the grill. Flush from a recent visit to World Spice in Seattle, we had variety of choices but soon settled on a an old favorite - Calico fish rub. This is a blend of sumac, Chinese chilies, whole black sesame seeds, red sea salt, and dill. It adds nice reddish color (that’s the sumac) to a plain white fish like the sea bass, and there is no need for salt or pepper. With the green dill weed the effect before cooking is Christmas on a plate! Grill and eat, couldn’t be simpler. You may encounter some bones but these are typically large and readily identified. This is a mild fish with a creamy finish similar to scallop or crab.

For the side dish we cheated and precooked the potatoes in the microwave to shorten the cook time on the boat. We cut the mostly cooked peeled potatoes into convenient chunks, combined with raw onion and a large shallot, drizzled with Meyer lemon olive oil, dotted with sea salt and pepper and wrapped in foil. Placed on the back side of the grill in its packet the potatoes finished cooking in ten minutes or so, roughly the same time it took to grill the fish. Times will vary widely depending upon the thickness of the fish, whether it is cold or room temperature, and the setting or flame on your grill.

White Sea Bass a la Tugbert

Side dishes:
Foil wrapped potatoes, onions and shallots
Large helping of sunset

Grilled white sea bass
1 lb fish steak or fillet cut into three equal portions (serves 2-3)
2 tsps olive oil
Rub of your choice, or salt & pepper - about 1 tablespoon
Brush olive oil on all sides and surfaces of fish coat with rub
Foil wrapped potatoes
One medium potato per person, microwave whole until fork inserts rather easily — prick potatoes several times with a fork prior to microwaving to avoid explosions!
Peel potatoes, and cut into 2″ cubes
One medium onion, peeled and sliced
One large shallot, peeled and sliced
1 tablespoon Meyer lemon infused olive oil, any flavored olive oil, or plain oil of good quality
Sea salt and pepper to taste
Toss all together and place on oiled square of aluminum foil. Top with a second piece of foil of equal size, seal and crimp edges.

This same dinner could be made on land, but we recommend buying a boat for maximum flavor.

Ron and Betsy and TUGBERT

Normally if someone tells me something is diet food I wrinkle my nose and say, “no, thanks.” But the other day I had this creamy, hearty soup. When I asked my aunt what it was she told me, “Creamy potato cheese soup.” Holy cow! Three of the most fattening things I love most! I immediately felt my thighs growing, but didn’t care one iota, it was that good. Then, what she said next astounded me, “it’s a Weight Watchers recipe.” A what!? Really, it’s diet food. And you’d never know the difference if someone didn’t tell you. By the way, if you are on Weight Watchers it’s 3 points per serving.

Creamy Potato Cheese Soup

1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, coarsely grated
3/4 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 pound red potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
29 oz vegetable broth
1/2 cup fat-free half and half
8 oz low-fat cheddar or colby cheese

Coat a nonstick medium pot with cooking spray and set over medium heat. Cook onions until they just begin to color. Add carrots, salt, pepper, paprika and mustard. Mix well and continue to cook until carrots begin to soften.

Add potatoes, broth and half-and-half. Increase heat and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer. Cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add cheese and stir to melt; puree in batches in a blender. Yields about 6 heaping 1 cup servings.