German Heritage Red Cabbage and Apples

Since we are in such an apple mood (Great since apples are not very juicy this year), I thought of one of my grandmother’s special dishes: Cooked Red Cabbage and Apples.

Now, Max, this wasn’t the “alcohol enhanced” grandmother, but the one who learned to cook from her German mother-in-law. She spent the first year of her marriage living with the mother-in-law (not me, baby) and learning how to fix all my grandfather’s favorite dishes. This was one of them. Most Germans around home only used the red cabbage, but Grandmother insisted that her mother-in-law “insisted” (read demanded) that this dish must have the sweetness of apples. Note that this recipe is for 12 servings. Grandmother only cooked in large quantities.

This is a staple winter dish in homes of German heritage. Usually served with mashed potatoes or dumplings, and a beef roast that has lots of rich, brown gravy.

Red Cabbage with Apples:

1 head red cabbage
2 apples
½ cup onion
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup red wine vinegar
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt

Using the slicing attachment of your food processor, but the cabbage in to 1/8 inch strips. Peel and core the apple and also cut into 1/8 inch slices. Chop the onion in the processor.

In a large skillet or a Dutch oven, cook the cabbage, apples, and onion in the butter for bout 5 minutes.

Add vinegar, bay leaf, sugar and salt. Cover. Bring mixture to a boil; then reduce the heat and simmer 35 minutes until the cabbage is tender. Remove the bay leaf before serving.

Makes 12 servings.

Washington State Apple Brownies

I LOVE Aebleskivers!! I loved Solvang too. It is one of the cute little villages that still retains its charm.

Yes, Erma, I remember our first visit with the Republican Women’s Club. We both wanted to buy so much, and we couldn’t afford hardly anything. So we bought aebleskiver pans which were a lot more practical than silver and linens when you come down to it.

You might want to try this Apple Brownies recipe I picked up in Washington State a few years ago. Being the Apple Capital of the World, cooks there put apples in everything.

I’m not sure that this is really a Brownie. Borwnies have CHOCOLATE. I would call this more of a apple bread, but it is very good. These are really moist so you have to store them in a air tight container. Of course, usually there aren’t enough left to worry about storing them.

Apple Brownies:

½ cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 tablespoons hot water
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup nuts
6 medium apples, coarsely chopped

Cream the butter, sugar and eggs with a mixer. Add soda dissolved in hot water. Mix the dry ingredients in small mixing bowl. Fold into the creamed mixture. Fold in the nuts and apples.

Spray a large cookie sheet with sides (same pan you would use for a jelly roll). Spoon in the dough and smooth the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. Cut into squares and serve.

Makes 30 brownies.

Keep in a tight container like the as these are very moist.

Danish Aebleskivers

Max, dear, we have been talking about apple recipes and that brought to mind Danish Aebleskivers.

Remember the first time we had them in Solvang in California? We were on a day trip to the Danish village and we saw them in every pastry shop in town? I ws looking for hand made linens and you were hunting for their famous china.

As I recall the only thing we came away with (so, we were so poor we couldn’t afford all the lovely imported items in the shops) was a Aebleskiver Pan for each of us.

I don’t know about you, but I had a few disasters–raw in the middle–aebleskivers before I mastered the trick of flipping them over with a wooden skewer. The first few kind of half turned and ran all over the pan. Now, that was back in my very novice cooking days, and everything was a potential cooking disaster.

We were back in Solvang a couple of years ago and I hesitated to order aebleskivers as I remembered how wonderful they were. I was afraid that they would not be a good as I remembered them, but they were.

What a shame that so few people have every eaten them. Everyone is always so impressed when I serve them. They think that I picked up this recipe when we lived in Europe. I wouldn’t want to disappoint them, so I let them think my pan and recipe came directly from Denmark.

Danish Aebleskiver:

Baked in a special pan, these light pancake balls are often served on Christmas Eve. This recipe came from Denmark in the 1890s.

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted
2 cups buttermilk
3 eggs, separated
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

In medium bowl beat egg whites until stiff peaks form; set aside. In large bowl beat egg yolks and sugar until well blended. Add all remaining ingredients except egg whites. Beat until smooth. Fold in egg whites until well blended.

Heat aebleskiver pan over medium heat until drops of water sizzle. Using about 1 tablespoon batter fill greased cups in aebleskiver pan about half full. Cook until lightly browned on bottom (2 to 3 minutes); turn with fork or knitting needle. Continue cooking until browned on bottom (2 to 3 minutes). Balls are done when wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Roll in sugar; serve hot. 35 pancake balls

Can add a dab of jam or fruit just before turning the aebleskiver over.

Unusual Apple Pie for Calorie Counters

Since all of us seasoned senior citizens seem to be counting our calories, I came across this slightly lower than usual caloried apple pie. It’s for calorie counters because you can make it with out the crust which saves a couple of calories. But in that case, Erma, I think it is not really a pie, but more of a pudding?

Strangely enough, this bakes up stiff enough that you don’t have to have a crust, and it cuts in nice wedges. Of course, to me, a perfect apple pie is one that when you cut it, the liquid runs all over the place and you have to spoon the extra over the cut pie.

That kind of runny, sweet mess also means that you had ALWAYS better put an old cookie sheet with foil under the baking pie to catch the spill overs. Nothing like trying to clean up burned-on apple pie liquid!!

Grated Apple Pie:

2 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons butter
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ cup cream or evaporated milk
5 large juicy apples
9 inch pie shell, unbaked (optional)

Blend all ingredients except apples in a blender for a few seconds. Slice the apples and blend again. When apples are cut fine, pour into an unbaked pie shell in a 9 inch pie pan, or into a 9 inch tart pan that has been lightly sprayed with Pam.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes until ingredients are set.

This will hold its shape without a crust.

Unusual Fall Apple Salad

Max, dear, you are so right about the fresh apples and fresh spices. I could not live without my nutmeg grater.

If you are looking for an unusual salad for the ladies, try this one. It is easy and blends some of my favorite foods: apples, peanut butter, and cream cheese. You can dress this up with a lettuce leaf as the base for the salad, or you can place a few purple, seedless grapes on the side, or some mandarin orange segments. Just about any fruit will work.

The Bretton Woods Dressing (wasn’t that a World War I battle? Or was it one of those arms reductions treaties that lead to WWII?) is good on most fruit salads and very nice on tossed lettuce ones too.

The leftover cream cheese-peanut butter bland makes a nice dip for apples and other fresh fruit.

Apple, Peanut Butter, and Cheese Salad:

2 Red Delicious Apples
6 ounces of cream cheese–room temp
½ cup chunky peanut butter

Blend peanut butter and cream cheese well, and form into small balls.

Polish and core the apples and slice into ½ inch thick slices just before serving.

Place apple slices on salad plate (lettuce leaf underneath is optional). Place peanut butter balls in center of apple slices. Drizzle Bretton Wood Dressing over.

Bretton Woods Dressing:

1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
½ cup apple juice (or another other fruit juice. If very sweet cut out sugar)
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup olive oil
3 tablespoons sugar

Place all in a small mixing bowl. Chill and let set for several hours. Just before serving, beat dressing hard with a hand whisk.

Dressing is good on most fresh fruit salads and lettuce salads. The dressing helps keep the apple slices from turning dark.

Serves 4 generously

Celebrate Fall Apples

Erma, you are right. It certainly doesn’t feel like fall yet. And unfortunately, there is not a lot of fall produce to work with either. Usually by now there are bushels of apples and piles of pumpkins everywhere you look. But not this year. That late freeze did a big number on all the fruit trees, and especially the apples. The few apples showing up in the grocery appear to be left over from last year as they just don’t have that fresh snap and juiciness.

My daughter has been begging for my French Apple Pie With Nutmeg Sauce, and it really needs tart and juicy apples to be any good. This is a recipe from the 1920’s and the addition of graham cracker crumbs and the nutmeg sauce make it a welcome change from the more traditional apple pie.

As always, the fresher the fruit, and the fresher the spices, the better the pie. Rome Beauties or MacIntosh apples are good here, and nothing tops fresh grated nutmeg that you grate right there with a spice mill or a hand nutmeg grater.

French Apple Pie With Nutmeg Sauce:

8 cups of tart apples
½ cup water
1 ½ cups white sugar
1 unbaked pie crust
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
½ cup flour
½ cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
¼ teaspoon vanilla

Peel and slice apples and place in a saucepan with water. Bring to a boil and cook until tender which will be about 5 minutes. Stir in the sugar gently so apples hold their shape. Using a large slotted spoon, arrange the apples in the crust.

In small mixing bowl, stir in the graham cracker crumbs, flour, and sugar. Add room temperature butter and vanilla and mix with a fork until you have coarse crumbs. Sprinkle this topping evenly over the apples.

Place in a 425 degree oven for 10 minutes and then reduce temperature to 350 and continue baking for another 30 minutes until pastry turns light brown.

Nutmeg Sauce:

1 egg yolk
½ cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon nutmeg

In small saucepan, beat the egg yolk, sugar, and milk together with a hand whisk. Heat to just boiling and remove from heat immediately. Add the nutmeg and stir thoroughly.

Serve the pie warm with hot Nutmeg Sauce.

Fall Pumpkin Cake

After all I said Max about my lack of cake decorating skills, I hesitate to pass on this great Fall Pumpkin Cake recipe. It came originally with directions for that Seven Minute Frosting which I can not make. When I make it in layers, I use a brown sugar carmel type frosting which is good and anyone can make. It is also nice baked in a big cake pan and topped with a frosting with coconuts and walnuts like what goes on a German Chocolate Cake.

Can anything be more Fall than Pumpkin?

Fall Pumpkin Cake:

½ cup solid shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 beaten eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin or winter squash
3 cups cake flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup milk
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon maple flavoring

Cream the shortening in a mixer and slowly add the sugars, eggs, and pumpkin.

Mix the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add alternately with the milk. Finally with a spatula, fold in the walnuts and maple flavoring.

Pour into 3 8” round cake pans that have been greased. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Cool on a cooling rack. Frost with your favorite frosting, but a caramel brown sugar seems to be best.