A Dutch/Canadian and a German-American attempt Apfel Dumplings

After our last class today, I wandered home with one of my friends for supper.  With the prospect of a free evening, she suggested we bake something, so I proceeded to page through one of her French cookbooks.  After passing a number of good looking recipes (but ones that would require a trip to the store), she said, "You know, I haven't made an American dessert in a really long time."  I remembered that I had a number of apples at home, and asked if she'd want to try apple dumplings.

"Dumplings? Qu'est-ce que c'est?"

Bake them we did, using this recipe for the pie crust and this for the dumplings.

And thus a (legitimately) Dutch citizen was able to make and enjoy a popular Pennsylvania Dutch* dessert.  All credit goes to her for the artistically decorated crusts inspired by the fine pommiers** currently in bloom.





*the Pennsylvania Dutch actually being German (a corruption of "Deutsch")
**"Canadian for apple tree," she says.  A little bird tells me that it's French...

Culinary adventures

Given the vast (read "slightly more than usual") amount of free time we have this summer, a couple friends and I decided to spend a leisurely Saturday afternoon in the kitchen. We were interested in trying out this recipe for homemade ricotta, and, also anxious to use up a pound of CSA chard, decided to cook up a Swiss Chard Lasagna with Ricotta and Mushroom.  For dessert we had Apfelstrudel, which I learned to make from an Austrian friend whose grandmother taught her.  I've vowed not to write down a recipe (and I don't even know know specific ingredient amounts), always relying on my learning experience.  Let me know if you'd like me to pass it on to you!

Making the ricotta cheese was very easy.  You boil milk and cream to a certain temperature, stir in lemon juice, let it sit, and then strain.  After an hour or two we were left with about 16 oz. of cheese and a few cups of whey.  We used some of the whey in place of water in a loaf of white bread, but it has many culinary uses, and even as the basis for a soda in the cheese-making-and-thus-whey-overload-having country of Switzerland.




















The  lasagna turned out quite well though incredibly rich (especially with the homemade ricotta).  I actually like and recommend this other (and lighter) vegetable lasagna just as much.  The new recipe had the very interesting addition of nutmeg to the sauce, and I think that would work quite well in either recipe.  One could also replace the spinach with chard in the latter and add mushrooms.

Thanks friends for your hard work!!

Baklava

I've read that many ethnic groups lay claim to the development of baklava, the most legitimate probably being the Turkics.  I'm particularly attached to the Greeks' claim, though, having often ordered baklava at Christo's, a tiny restaurant frequented by my friends and I on sojourns into Pittsburgh during college.  Get out of a symphony concert and not want to abandon the allure of the city quite yet?  Need a location for some good conversation, and perhaps a little caffeine for the return drive up north?  Christo's it was.

Here's the version I make, tweaked from one on allrecipes.com.

Baklava

• 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough, thawed in refrigerator
• 1 pound nuts roasted and chopped finely (use a mix of pistachios, walnuts, almonds, and/or pecans)
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3/4 cup honey

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
2. In medium saucepan, boil sugar and water until sugar is melted.  Add vanilla and honey and simmer for 20 minutes.  Place in refrigerator to cool.
3. Toss nuts with cinnamon and set aside. Unroll phyllo dough, and if necessary cut stack in half to fit pan.  Place two sheets of dough in pan and brush with melted butter. Repeat three more times and sprinkle 1/4 to 1/3 c. nuts on last layer.
4. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, and nuts, layering as you go.  Repeat approx. six more times.
5.  End with a top layer of about 6-8 sheets phyllo and brush with butter.
6. Using a sharp knife cut diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan.  Bake for about 45-50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp. (You may need to cover with tin foil after approx. 20-30 minutes to prevent burning.)
8.  Remove baklava from oven and immediately pour sauce over it. Let cool.