A FRESH HARVEST and CULINARY TREATS of autumn
Orchards and friends' gardens provide us with an abundance of apples and green tomatoes this time of year, making for some creative culinary fall creations. Here's one from dinner last night that Adam made perfectly by chopping the fruit just right and delicately handling the homemade crust:
Apple and Green Tomato Pie
For filling: combine 3 cups apples peeled and sliced, 3 cups green tomatoes chopped, 1 cup sugar, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 cup tapioca let the fruit sit for about 30 minutes while preparing the pie crust. For the crust: we "eyeball" our proportions until the consistency is just right. It goes something like this: 4 cups flour; 1 tsp salt; 3/4 cup Crisco shortening or lard. Using a pastry cutter, work the shortening into the dry ingredients until pea-sized lumps form and the texture is uniformly moist. Add enough cold water (sprinkling into dough) until it sticks together. Do not handle the dough more than necessary or it will get tough. Divide the dough into two parts, rolling each between sheets of wax paper to make a 9" crust. Place the bottom crust into a pie plate, trim excess edge. Fill the crust with the apple/green tomato mixture. Place the second crust on top, pinch together edges, and slit top crust with knife. Bake on preheated 450 degree oven for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, turn heat down to 375 degrees and continue baking until crust is brown and fruit is tender. (About 45 minutes). Here's what it should look like:
Check back shortly for more of our bounty
including relishes, chutney and spreads!
