recipe: cranberry sauce (T-Day 3 of 3)

taken from: Serious Eats 

changes: skipped the cinnamon stick in place of 1 tsp of cinnamon, added 1-2 tbsp triple sec

result: it came out really well, BUT (in my taste) it was a little tart -- i think i'd prefer cranberry sauce to have a bit of tangy & sweet all at the same time. it's a great, reliable base recipe though - next time i will add a touch more sugar, or even brown sugar to help round out the tart.


ingredients:
- 1 (12-oz) bag fresh cranberries
- 1+ cups sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- zest from 1 orange
- 2 tbsp juice from 1 orange
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1-2 tbsp triple sec or Grand Marnier 
- pinch kosher salt

to make: combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan. bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a simmer. cook, stirring occasionally, until berries start to pop. press berries against side of pan with a large flat spoon (or wooden spoon, though this may stain it) and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until berries are complete broken down and take on a jam-like consistency, about 10-15 minutes total. 

remove from heat and allow to cool about 30 minutes. add water in 1-tbsp increments to adjust to desired consistency, if needed. sauce can be serviced immediately or stored in the fridge several month.

recipe: apple galette with salted maple caramel drizzle (T-Day 2 of 3)

original recipe from: Live Eat Learn

changes: none to the original recipe, other than sprinkling some sliced almonds over top before baking

result: SO good. the crust tasted good on its own -- the sprinkle of sugar over top was perfect. this was pretty easy to put together (even more so than a pie) and looked so beautiful. would definitely make again.

ingredients: 

photo from Live Eat Learn

filling: 
- 2-3 granny smith apples - peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp flour
- 2 tbsp almond paste 
- dab of butter

dough:
- 1 & 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp sugar + more for sprinkling on top
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup cold, unsalted butter, cubed
- 2 tbsp ice water
- 2 tbsp cold apple or apricot brandy
- 1 egg white

salted maple caramel: 
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp water
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 to 1/2 tsp flaky sea salt

recipes: cauliflower goat cheese gratin (T-Day 1 of 3)

original recipe from: New York Times

changes: none to the ingredients, but prepped it the night before and left it in the fridge up until 1 hour before baking

result: flavor was really good and i love the idea of the this dish, but there was a lot of extra liquid in the dish after it was baked -- maybe this was a result of prepping it the day before, maybe there was too much moisture left in the cauliflower before i prepped it, i don't know. i'd try this again but will cut back on the milk and really drain the cauli before assembling it to see if that fixes the issue

picture from New York Times

ingredients: 
- 1 large cauliflower, broken into florets
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- salt
- fresh ground black pepper
- 6 oz goat cheese
- 1 large garlic clove
- 5 tbsp milk
- 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs