"Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger. Stir into melted butter, brown sugar and molasses. Mix well. Pure, simple ingredients blend together to produce a delicious spicy-sweet aroma when baking and the most charming gingerbread house.
My aunt and I started making a gingerbread house together over 10 years ago, and it is now a yearly tradition – one of the highlights of my holiday season." I was honored to be able to write about this special ritual, featured in Storied Dishes: What Our Family Recipes Tell Us About Who We Are and Where We've Been,  a collection of "50 short essays and recipes by women from multicultural backgrounds and dissimilar walks of life." As I mention in my essay, entitled "Gingerbread Memories," spending this time with my aunt has been a wonderful learning experience. Much of what is involved in the gingerbread house process was new to me. I had baked gingerbread before, but never built a house out of it! The decorating part is fun, and now I have my daughter to help with this step - she is very artistic and does a fabulous job using the pastry bag. 
This year she also helped me with the actual construction which is not easy. We worked together to spread the frosting mortar along the edges and corners of the side and front pieces and hold it in place while it dries. Once these four pieces are together, she helped me place the roof on top.  If the roof pieces are too heavy, they will slide right off – a fact I have learned from experience - but this year was probably the smoothest ever. So it has now become a three-generation activity!
One thing I had always particularly liked about this house is its modest design – the recipe is Swedish (from a friend of my aunt’s) - the Swedish name is PEPPARKAKSHUS. Some simple hearts, curlicues and flowers drawn with white icing are finished with a dusting of powdered sugar to simulate a light layer of snow.  It looks just like a darling winter cottage in the country.  
I have included the recipe and directions below.
(Adapted from "Gingerbread Memories" essay in Storied Dishes: What Our Family Recipes Tell Us About Who We Are and Where We've Been, edited by Linda Murray Berzok). 

PEPPARKAKSHUS (Gingerbread House)
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup molasses
1 cup butter
5 cups sifted flour
1 Tbsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. ginger

1. Place brown sugar, molasses and butter in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until well blended.
2. Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger. Stir into warm molasses mixture until well blended.
3. While dough is still warm, remove about one quarter of the dough; knead by hand to shape into a fine grained ball.
4. Roll out on lightly floured surface to a rectangle about 1/8 inch thick and large enough to cut out pieces needed.
5. Repeat with remaining dough until all pieces of the house are cut out.
6. Place carefully on greased or parchment paper lined baking sheets.
7. Bake at 375 until edges barely begin to brown and surface is no longer puffy. This takes about 5-8 minutes. A tip: Remove at 6 minutes and trim the pieces that have expanded in baking, using your patterns as a guide. Use a sharp paring knife as your trimming tool.
8. Remove carefully to racks. Cool.

Frosting
1 egg white
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 Tsp. lemon juice
Beat ingredients at high speed until firm. It should be of a soft enough consistency to flow through a fine pastry tube in order to make the decorations but stiff enough to hold its shape. While mixing add a few more drops of lemon juice or a tablespoon water to obtain this consistency.

To make gingerbread house:
Cut out the following pieces and bake:
• 2 pieces (3” x 7”) for side walls. Cut out windows as indicated in drawing
• 2 pieces (4” x 8”) for roof
• 2 pieces (4” x 5”) for front and back. Cut out door and window as shown in drawing
• 4 pieces (1” x 3”, 1” x 2” and 2 pieces 1” x 3”) for chimney
1. Cover a rectangular piece of cardboard with aluminum foil (the size of a shirt box works fine) – this will be the base for the house to sit on. 
2. Decorate sides and roof pieces with frosting to outline windows, doors, roof tiles, window boxes, etc. Let dry.
3. Spread frosting on ends of sides and on roof pieces where they meet; assemble chimney.
4. Put house together; place chimney on top. Let stand firm.

The recipe makes plenty of dough to make cookies with the rest. Gingerbread people, snowmen and Christmas trees make nice additions to place around the outside of the house, and a reindeer can be “glued” on the roof with frosting. A simple rectangle can become a sign outside – just draw on your name with the pastry bag. Also, cotton batting as snow around the house adds an authentic touch. 

When my Mom asked me to bring an apple pie for Thanksgiving this year, I once again turned to Greg Patent's wonderful Baking in America cookbook to find the version I thought I'd try. I had already used his "flaky piecrust" recipe when I made Mrs. Goodfellow's apple pudding a couple weeks ago, and wanted to see what type of traditional apple pie recipe he suggested since I so love this cookbook. With the title, "$25,000 Apple Pie," I was intrigued - I knew it had to be a winner, and it was! 
The title comes from the  $25,000 scholarship won by Meri Jo Leach in 1998 to attend the Culinary Institute of America's Baccalaureate Program in Hyde Park, N.Y. when a panel of five judges awarded her apple pie the top prize in the All-American Apple Pie Academic Scholarship Contest. The key is to use a mixture of at least two or three varieties of apples - selecting for sweetness, tartness and texture. Meri Jo had chosen five different varieties from the nearby Hudson Valley orchard visited by the contestants: Cortland, McIntosch, Cripsin, Empire and Ginger Gold. 
I used four varieties for mine, all locally grown in Pennsylvania and New Jersey: gala, honey crisp, golden delicious and granny smith. I also tweaked Meri Jo's recipe by adding my two new secret weapon ingredients taken from Mrs Goodfellow's larder - nutmeg and rosewater. The rosewater added a little bit of a delicate flavor and the nutmeg was a spicy (but not overbearing) complementary touch. For best results, be sure to let the pie cool for several hours before serving. The filling sets up better if it gets a good long rest after coming out of the oven.

Flaky piecrust
(I prefer all butter pie crusts to those that use vegetable shortening - I think they have more flavor for one thing. This one is very easy to work with and works very well in a food processor. In his cookbook, Patent also gives directions for how to mix by hand. Another reason I really like this recipe - I think the cake flour makes the dough a little softer and the resulting pie crust more tender).

2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cake flour
½ tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter 
½ cup ice water
1 tsp cider vinegar
1 large egg yolk

Place the flour in a food processor with the salt and pulse. Cut the butter into 1-inch chunks and add them to the flour. Pulse 4 to 6 times to break them up.
Combine the vinegar and egg yolk in a measuring cup and add enough ice water to bring the volume up to ½ cup. (You may not need to use all of the liquid, unless your flour is very dry.) While pulsing, add the liquid in a steady stream until the flour looks crumbly and damp. Between 25 and 30 pulses should be enough. Don’t let the dough form a ball. The crumbs should adhere when you gather them in your hand. If not, add a few more drops of ice water.
Turn out the dough and divide it into 2 pieces, one slightly larger than the other. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and press it into a disk. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour before rolling.

$25,000 Apple Pie

Filling:

3 pounds apples, quartered, cored and peeled, each quarter cut crosswise into thin slices (7 cups prepared)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Adjust two oven racks with one rack in the lowest position and the second in the center of the oven. Set a heavy baking sheet on the lower rack and preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the larger piece of dough into a 12-inch circle. Place the dough into an 9-inch ovenproof glass pie plate without stretching the dough. Lift and nudge the dough from its edge going all the way around the pie plate to be sure the dough fits snugly on the bottom and sides of the pan. Leave the excess dough hanging over the edge of the plate. Refrigerate.
For the filling, prepare the apples and have them ready. In a large bowl, combine both sugars, the cinnamon, flour and salt. Break up any lumps of brown sugar with your fingertips. Add the apples and lemon juice and combine them well with the dry ingredients. Using a folding motion with your hands works best.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the second piece of dough out to an 11-inch circle. Don't worry about rough edges at this point.
Spoon the apple mixture into the bottom crust, mounding it slightly in the center. Distribute the pieces of butter over the apples and brush the edges of the overhanging pastry lightly with water.
Carefully place the second circle of pastry on top of the apples, centering it as best you can. Press the edges of the two pieces of dough together firmly, and use kitchen shears to trim away the excess dough, leaving 1/2 inch of overhang. Fold this double thickness of pastry under itself to form a standing rim, and flute. Cut 4 to 6 slits in the top of the pastry in a spoke pattern with the tip of a small, sharp knife. Brush the top of the pie and edge of the crust with the cream and sprinkle with the 1 tablespoon sugar.
Place the pie on the preheated baking sheet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Transfer the pie and its baking sheet to the center shelf and reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. Continue baking for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown, the juices bubble up through the slits and the apples are tender when tested with the tip of a small, sharp knife. Cool several hours on a wire rack before serving.

Makes 8 servings.

Recipe from Baking in America by Greg Patent

I have now made this cake a number of times, and every time it gets rave reviews for its unique texture and flavor. It is unusual not only in its use of cornmeal, (which provides a nice "bite"), but also in the addition of brandy and rose-water. These ingredients tenderize the cake and give it a delicious flavor. 
I baked this particular one to bring to the Harrisburg Book Festival at the Midtown Scholar bookstore this past weekend, along with some jumbles (cookies) and an apple pudding, and this time was no exception - everyone loved it! The idea was to give folks a taste of authentic recipes featured in Mrs. Goodfellow: The Story of America's First Cooking School. Indian Pound Cake was one of Mrs. Goodfellow's signature dishes, and was definitely taught in her school. We know this because it appears frequently in nineteenth-century Philadelphia manuscript cookbooks with her name as the source credit - it was transcribed by the young women who took her classes and then passed down to family and friends. A little known but very important culinary figure, we have Mrs. Goodfellow to thank for many aspects of cooking that we take for granted today. For example, she was a huge advocate for the use of “American” ingredients – helping introduce a variety of New World foods that were formerly only locally available, such as the cornmeal used in this recipe (formerly as Indian meal at the time, hence the recipe's name).  Her influence was a contributing factor leading to the establishment of an “American style of cooking.”
Mrs. Goodfellow's famous student Eliza Leslie even published a whole cookbook based on this concept - The Indian Meal Book, first published in 1846 in London. In this cookbook, Leslie provides recipes that feature cornmeal as a main ingredient, designed to be a nutritious and less expensive substitute for wheat flour during the time of the potato famine in Ireland. The idea was to educate the Irish and British about the versatility of maize, or Indian corn, as it was called, thus helping them survive the potato crop failure.

Here's the original version of Mrs. Goodfellow's Indian Pound Cake that I found in a manuscript cookbook housed in Philadelphia's Independence National Historic Park Library:

Indian Pound Cake (Original)
Eight eggs; the weight of 8 in sugar-the weight of 6 in Indian meal sifted, 1/2 lb of butter, one nutmeg grated or one teaspoonful of cinnamon, stir the butter and sugar to a cream, then put the meal and eggs alternately into the butter and sugar, grate in the nutmeg and stir all well; butter a tin pan put in the mixture and bake in a moderate oven.
(Source: Bellah, Manuscript Recipe Book, 40, Independence National Historic Park Library)

These directions require a set of scales to equalize the weight of the eggs, sugar and cornmeal - not a cooking tool found in too many modern U.S. kitchens! Luckily food historian William Woys Weaver reproduced Mrs. Goodfellow’s recipe as she taught it, and Greg Patent adapted it for his 2002 cookbook Baking in America. It is essential to use a fine-textured cornmeal or corn flour, or you can process cornmeal in the food processor. Make the cake a day before serving, since its texture improves on standing. 

Indian Pound Cake (Modern)
(Makes one 10-inch Bundt cake or two 9-inch loaf cakes, 12 to 16 servings)
2 cups fine yellow cornmeal or white corn flour
1 cup sifted cake flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 whole nutmeg, grated (2-2 ½ teaspoons)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
7 large eggs
2 tablespoons rose-water
2 tablespoons brandy

1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter a Bundt pan (or loaf pans), or coat with cooking spray, and dust the inside, including the tube, with fine dry bread crumbs. Knock out the excess crumbs and set aside.
2. Sift the cornmeal or corn flour, cake flour, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon together; set aside.
3. Beat the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. On medium-high speed, beat in the sugar about ¼ cup at a time, beating for 20 to 30 seconds after each addition. Beat for 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Scrape the bowl and beaters. 
4. Combine the rose-water and brandy in a measuring cup. On low speed, add the flour mixture to the butter in 3 additions, alternating with the liquid, beginning and ending with the flour, and beating after each addition only until incorporated. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
5. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the cake is well browned and a toothpick inserted into the thickest part comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Run a thin-bladed knife around the central tube to release the cake, cover with a wire rack, and invert the two. Carefully lift of the pan and let the cake cool completely.
6. Wrap the cake airtight with plastic wrap and let stand overnight before serving. Cut into thin slices with a serrated knife.

Source:  Baking in America: Traditional and Contemporary Favorites from the Past 200 Years by Greg Patent, 2002

This recipe's definitely a keeper - Spanish Spaghetti with Olives. Yum! Not only is a quick and easy, but it is a delicious melding of flavors worthy of a special or "company" dinner.
I made it the other night when my parents came over to help with some cleanup from the storm - namely a tree that fell in our yard and going through the spoiled contents of my freezer. It was a perfect meal to make and share with family (and a way to thank them for their help!) My Mom and I were a great team - chopping and prepping ingredients - it was so nice to work together like that in the kitchen. I did tweak the recipe a bit, using chicken sausage instead of ground beef and adding a chopped green pepper - the results were fabulous. We also made the Pear, Date, and Manchego Salad from the same Cooking Light issue, and again I changed it a bit by using goat cheese instead and my own yogurt-mustard dressing - they were both fine swaps.
We rounded out the meal with some edamame and fresh rye bread from our local Cranmer's Bakery. My mom brought some chocolate cake for dessert and we also had sugar cookies from the bakery - a perfect ending to a really nice, comforting meal.

Spanish Spaghetti with Olives

8 ounces thin spaghetti
1 tablespoon olive oil 
2 cups chopped onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic 
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
1/4 teaspoon crushed saffron threads (optional)
8 ounces extra-lean ground beef 
1 2/3 cups lower-sodium marinara sauce (such as Amy's)
2 ounces pimiento-stuffed olives, sliced (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 tablespoon capers
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, divided

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Stir in oregano, celery salt, red pepper, black pepper, and saffron, if desired. Crumble beef into pan; cook 5 minutes or until beef is browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in marinara sauce, olives, sherry, capers, and 3 tablespoons parsley. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.
3. Add spaghetti to sauce mixture. Cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley.
Note: This recipe originally ran in Cooking Light December, 2009 and was updated for the November, 2012 25th anniversary issue.

Recipe Time: 37 Minutes 
Nutritional Information
Amount per serving
Calories: 407
Fat: 9.3g
Saturated fat: 2g
Monounsaturated fat: 4.6g
Polyunsaturated fat: 0.8g
Protein: 21g
Carbohydrate: 57.1g
Fiber: 4.6g
Cholesterol: 30mg
Iron: 4.9mg
Sodium: 606mg
Calcium: 69mg

David Joachim, Cooking Light 
NOVEMBER 2012

Pear, Date, and Manchego Salad

1 cup gourmet salad greens
2 ripe Bosc pears
2 teaspoons lemon juice
6 pitted dates, finely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 ounce shaved Manchego cheese

Arrange salad greens on each of 4 plates. Finely chop pears; toss with lemon juice. Divide pear, chopped dates, and chopped walnuts evenly among salads. Combine olive oil, vinegar, salt, and black pepper, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle evenly over salads. Top each salad with 1/4 ounce shaved Manchego cheese.

Nutritional Information
Amount per serving
Calories: 182
Fat: 10.3g
Saturated fat: 2.8g
Monounsaturated fat: 0.0g
Polyunsaturated fat: 0.0g
Protein: 0.0g
Carbohydrate: 0.0g
Fiber: 0.0g
Cholesterol: 0.0mg
Iron: 0.0mg
Sodium: 212mg
Calcium: 0.0mg

David Joachim, Cooking Light 
NOVEMBER 2012

Last Saturday before Sandy hit (was it really just a week ago? ... it seems so much longer), my husband and I were able to celebrate our 15th anniversary with a wonderful meal at Brothers Moon restaurant in Hopewell, NJ.  (Between losing power for several days and catching up I just haven't had a chance to blog about it)! 
It was one of the best meals I've had in awhile. I was very optimistic even before we arrived as I loved the way the restaurant was described on the website: "a seasonally changing menu as well as daily specials.... Health-conscious and vegetarian foods are always available." 
A Culinary Institute of America—CIA graduate, Chef Will Mooney is co-owner and Executive Chef  - hence the name. I appreciate and admire his philosophies, including a  pledge to use the finest ingredients and support of local products and sustainable farming. The ambiance was pleasant with its moon and star theme, and the waiter was cheerful and knowledgeable. We were started with a complimentary custardy timbale topped with fresh sweet corn (not sure the other ingredients) - but was very good. My salad was just ok - baby arugula with beets, and was supposed to have goat cheese, but did not - I could have said something but it really was no big deal. My husband liked his appetizer - it was on the extensive specials menu with the intriguing name  "chicken of the forest" (really locally foraged mushrooms) in a barbecue sauce. It was very tasty - the mushrooms really did have a similar taste and consistency to chicken. I was also intrigued by this ingredient and got the main dish that had these gems - but mine was adorably packaged in the sweet pumpkin (see above), mixed into a risotto with pumpkin puree and some greens on the side. I simply adore pumpkin in any shape or form (to me it is one of the best parts of autumn), so this was perfection. My husband also liked his main dish- mussels in a creamy sauce. 
For dessert I got the Nutella and Chocolate Bombe (Crisp chocolate shell, filled with creamy chocolate mousse and nutella and chocolate chip cookie  with whipped cream & marinated berries) - so many of my favorites all together in one dish - who could ask for more? I was "over the moon" for this! My husband isn't really a dessert person unless it is chocolate ice cream or occasionally apple pie, so he didn't order anything. Brothers Moon does offer ice creams and sorbets from the Bent Spoon in Princeton, but chocolate wasn't one of them that evening. I told the waiter he would have ordered it if it had been available. When he brought out my coffee, he also gave us each a spoon, which I just assumed he meant for us to share my dessert. However, when my dessert came, the waiter also brought my husband a dish of chocolate ice cream (which must have mysteriously materialized in the kitchen) - Very Nice!!! Can't wait for a return visit. I wish we lived closer to Brothers Moon - on one side of the restaurant  a daily take-out section of salads, soups, sandwiches/panini, desserts/pastries, cheeses, specialty meats, olives, and bread is offered, as well as coffee, tea and espresso drinks. Maybe next time I'll just come for lunch or a coffee break. So many options!