It's Fun to Fondue!

My wife's family has a tradition of serving fondue on New Year's Eve and we have been continuing the tradition along with my family's tradition of going to bed early that night. I changed the traditional wine to hard cider simply because I like it better. The arrowroot helps keep the fondue smooth- I used to use cornstarch but swapped it out now that I don't eat grains. Lastly the cider vinegar helps cut down the cheese strings.

 

Swiss Fondue

 

  1 clove garlic, halved

  1 (12-ounce) bottle hard apple cider

  2 tablespoons cider vinegar

  Pinch kosher salt

  1 pound Swiss cheese- grated

  2 tablespoons arrowroot starch

  Several grinds fresh ground black pepper

 

Rub inside of fondue pot or heavy small saucepan with garlic. Pour cider into pot. Add 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar and salt and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Meanwhile, grate the cheese and toss well with the arrowroot in a large bowl. When the cider just begins to simmer, gradually add the cheese a handful at a time, allowing each addition to melt completely before adding the next.

  Continue adding cheese and stirring until all cheese is incorporated. If mixture starts to bubble, reduce heat to low. The mixture is ready when creamy and easily coats the back of a spoon. Lastly, stir in pepper. If cheese seems stringy, add some or all of the remaining cider vinegar. Move fondue pot to alcohol warmer and keep stirring during service.

  We dip apple chunks, kosher dill pickles, cherry tomatoes, chunks of smoked sausage or blanched vegetables like carrots, broccoli or cauliflower. Feel free to dip bread cubes as well.

 

Happy New Year!

Yankee Doodle Dandy

Tonight is Pot Roast! The greatest use for cheap cuts of beef in existence, pot roast -or Yankee pot roast as it is sometimes called- is quintessential 'Home Cookin'.
  The true beauty of Pot Roast is its use of cheap cuts of beef. Rump roasts, chuck roasts and arm roasts are some of the cheapest cuts per pound and all make great pot roasts. Bone is good- it adds flavor, connective tissue is good- connective tissue is made from collagen and collagen breaks down to gelatin during cooking and gelatin is finger-lickin good.
  Now that you know what roast to use, all you need now is your pot. You need a pot that can take the high heat to brown the meat and heavy enough to absorb the fluctuating heat of a low oven and radiate it constantly to the meat inside. There is only one vessel I know of that can handle that; a cast iron dutch oven.
  Now on to process. First put your dutch oven over medium-high heat and add a bit of oil, canola and peanut are good but coconut oil or beef tallow is best. Try to stay away from olive oils and butter. These have low smoke points and can't handle the high heat.
  Next crack a window and turn on the stove's hood blower if you have one. If not take the batteries out of you smoke alarm for a bit. Season all the sides of the roast with salt and when the dutch oven is hot add the meat. Brown well on all sides- it will improve the flavor of not only the meat but the gravy as well. After your meat is brown you need to add a braising liquid. There are many things you can use. Wine or beer if you are feeling European, possibly beef broth or tomato juice. I go with the no frills approach and use about 2-3 cups water. Though if your tap water tastes like it came out of the public pool I would recommend bottled water for that. After adding the liquid, slap on the lid and put it in a 300° oven for about 2 hours.
  After time's up add 6-8 potatoes- halved, plus a few skinned onions and a small bag of baby carrots. Return the pot to the oven for another hour to hour and a half. After it is finished cooking evacuated the contents to a platter and put the pot on a stove over medium heat. Mix about a quarter cup of flour with a cup of water and stir well in a glass. Using a whisk stir small amounts of the flour/water slurry to the juices in the dutch oven until it is thickened to your liking. Slice the meat and serve with the vegetables and gravy. Viola- Home Cookin'!

The Dark Side

At risk of my mother killing me over the holiday season I will share with you how I modified one of her chocolate Christmas candy recipes. The recipe is called Critters and the closest I can come to explaining it is fudge drops but that isn't exactly it either. After cutting sweets and eliminating anything containing high-fructose corn syrup from my diet- my sweet tooth has become very sensitive. Additionally the healthy part of chocolate is the cacao so I decided to replace the traditional chocolate chips in this recipe with bakers chocolate (100% Cacao). The finished product isn't as smooth as traditional critters but its texture and taste is akin to that of a dark chocolate brownie.

Dark Critters
  16 oz baker chocolate- chopped
  14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
  1/2 cup butter
  1/8 tsp salt
  2 tsp vanilla extract
  2 cups chopped walnuts

In a dry saucepan over low heat mix the chocolate, condensed milk, butter and salt until completely melted and smooth.  Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and nuts. Drop small spoonfuls of the mixture onto wax paper and allow to solidify in a cool place. One cooled completely store in an airtight container.
 

Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut Again.

It is the Holiday Season and for many that means baking. I enjoy baking with my son but how does one bake without grains? I have managed with a few recipes and one is an entirely flourless cookie using almond butter. Feel free to replace the almond butter with peanut butter for variation.

Flourless Almond Butter Cookies

  1 cup natural almond butter

  1 cup sugar

  1 large egg, lightly beaten

  1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  Coarse sea salt

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place racks in the upper and lower third of the oven.

In a medium bowl, mix the almond butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until well combined. Spoon 1 tablespoon of mixture about 1 inch apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Flatten the mounds with the tines of a fork, making a crosshatch pattern on the cookies. Sprinkle coarse salt on top of the cookies.

Bake until golden around edges, about 10 minutes, switching the position of the pans halfway thorough baking. Transfer to racks to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough.

 

Happy Holidays!