Apple Cranberry Crostata

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Who says you can't have a fabulous dessert in minutes?

Well... it's minutes if your frozen puff pastry is already thawed, otherwise you do have to plan a bit.

I planned a bit.

But it really was simple and came together in minutes.

Once the pastry is thawed, preheat oven to 400°.

Lay out pastry on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Spread a layer of cranberry sauce to within an inch of the edges. Into a bowl, mix 2 sliced apples - I used a granny smith and a cortland - with 2 tbsp melted butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and 2 tbsp flour - and some nutmeg and cinnamon.

Pile into the center of the pastry and fold the sides up, pinching the pastry here and there to keep it over the filling. Place into the hot oven and bake about 30 minutes.

Cool and enjoy.

The beauty of crostatas is they're supposed to be rustic. They're hand-formed and can take on any shape you want - they are not perfect round machine-made-mass-produced.

And regardless of shape - they are delicious

I had leftover homemade cranberry sauce but any would work - and any apple that will hold its shape would work, as well. I didn't peel them because I was feeling lazy. Your call.

Have fun with it - and remember that the beauty is in the eating!

 

 


Ravioli with Butternut Squash

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A butternut squash is the gift that keeps on giving.

You get a lot of bang for your buck with a butternut squash - and with only three of us in the house, one squash is more than one meal. I used half of one for the gratin on Friday and had another half staring at me in the 'fridge when I opened it to start dinner.

The dinner plan was cheese ravioli with Italian sausage and some sauce pulled out of the freezer - a typical 20-minute meal for a Saturday. Without thinking, my hand grabbed the squash. I peeled it and cubed it - and into the sauce it went.

I covered the pot and let it simmer while cooking the sausage under the broiler. I would have grilled them but the grill area is the holding place for our new doors!  Sharpe Builders is creating and installing a brand-new 8' x 16' front window, new doors, crown molding, and insulation in our 1950 rancher. Stellar work and custom quality beyond reproach. I'll post the final results when they're done!

But I digress...

Under the broiler for the sausages, and then into the sauce to simmer a bit more.

I judge my food successes by how much Nonna leaves on her plate. She licked this one clean!

The squash added body and a mellow sweetness to the sauce and it all played perfectly against a plain cheese ravioli. At the same time, I think it would work well with a stronger pasta - like a pesto tortellini or even a gorgonzola pasta. It just worked.

Or maybe a baked pasta dish...

Hmmmmmmmmm... 

 

 


Butternut Squash Gratin

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After torrential rains and wind, this morning, it is a balmy 70° outside. We went from a storm of biblical proportions to blue skies - on November 1st. Thank goodness global warming is only a liberal myth.

The weather may not say it but the calendar is calling for fall - and that means apples, pears, and butternut squash. I decided to work on a gratin that could possibly adorn the Thanksgiving table, this year. I actually have no problem dropping a completely new and untested recipe on a crowd - it works or it doesn't, ya like it or ya don't - but it's also fun to serve something you know is going to work. I wasn't thinking Thanksgiving when I started, but after eating it, I thought it could work with a few revisions...

What I did was thinly-slice about a pound of butternut squash, 1 apple, and 1 pear and layered them in a casserole with salt, pepper, rubbed sage, and gorgonzola cheese. I poured about a cup and a half of heavy cream over it, covered it all, and then baked it at 350° for about an hour.

The concept is good, but it's more sweet than savory. I need to up the cheese and sage, maybe add paper-thin sliced onions, and cut way back on the cream. That being said, all three of us all but licked our plates - it was really good the way it came out, but I still think I'd like to see it a bit more savory.

I did a homemade cranberry sauce to go along with it. We have LOTS of Cranberry Sauce recipes on the site. Choose one or twelve...

In the meantime, I'll work on the gratin and get back to ya!