Cinnamon - October 2010

Diva: Aven

Drinks:  Erin
Glogg

2 bottles red wine
2 oz dried orange zest
2 oz cinnamon sticks
20 whole cardamom seeds
25 whole cloves
1 pound blanched almonds
1 pound raisins
1 pound sugar cubes
5 fluid ounces brandy

Pour wine into a large pot.  Bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Wrap orange zest, cinnamon sticks, cardamom and cloves in cheesecloth, tie with kitchen string and put into pot.  Let boil for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in almonds and raisins and continue to boil for 15 more minutes.  Remove from heat. 

Place a wire grill over the pot and cover with sugar cubes.  Slowly pour on brandy, making sure to completely saturate the sugar.  Light sugar with a match and let it flame.   When sugar has melted, cover pot with lid to extinguish flame.

Stir and remove spice bag.  Serve hot in cups with a few almonds and raisins.

Erin’s Note: Don’t add as many raisins/nuts, definitely take the spice bag out prior to flaming the brandied sugar, and don’t add as much sugar as it calls for

(From allrecipes.com)

Appetizer:  Mariah
Crostini with Roasted Garlic, Goat Cheese and Apple Chutney

1 c (packed) golden brown sugar
¾ c rice vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
1 cinnamon stick
1 ½ pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into -inch pieces (about 4 cups)
1 c golden raisins
1 French-bread baguette, cut into 1/3-inch-thick slices
Olive oil
Roasted Garlic
12 ounces soft fresh goat cheese room temperature

Stir sugar and vinegar in heavy large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add next 4 ingredients and simmer until mixture is syrupy and reduced to 1/2 cup, about 8 minutes. Mix in apples and raisins. Increase heat to high and boil until apples are tender, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature. (Chutney can be made 3 days ahead; cover and refrigerate.)

Preheat oven to 450°F. Arrange baguette slices on baking sheet and brush with olive oil. Bake until golden and crisp, about 8 minutes. Spread each toast with roasted garlic; top with goat cheese and chutney.

(Adapted from Bon Appétit October 1999)


Salad:  Aven
Fall Salad with Cinnamon Vinaigrette

Mixed Greens (lettuce, mizuna, arugula)
1 Pear, sliced thin
1 Fennel Bulb, sliced very thin

¼  pound dry Gouda, grated 


Toss greens, top with pears, fennel, cheese, and dressing



Cinnamon Vinaigrette



¼ c white balsamic vinegar

¼ c olive oil

1 T lemon juice
2 T agave syrup
½ tsp cinnamon, cumin, coriander, cardamom
¼ tsp cayenne

Side Dish:  Colleen
Corn on the Cob with Cinnamon Honey Butter



Place corn in pot with cold water.  Bring water to a boilover medium-high heat.  When water boils, corn is done.

Cinnamon Honey Butter



1.5 sticks of butter, softened
¼ c honey

1 tsp cinnamon



Whip butter, honey and cinnamon until smooth.



This butter recipe yields a large batch - enough for many ears of corn and leftovers for toast or rolls or anything else you'd like to eat buttery and sweet!

Entrée:  Sara
Cider Brined Pork Loin with Dijon-Brown Sugar Glaze served with Apple Compote

1 center cut half boneless pork loin (4.5-5.5 lbs)
4 c apple cider
1 c apple cider vinegar
1 c light brown sugar
3 T orange juice concentrate
1 T honey
2 tsp cinnamon

Whisk together the ingredients in a heated sauce pan, then allow the marinade to cool.
Take a gallon slide lock freezer bag and stick your pork loin inside it. Make sure you can zip it shut before you pour in any liquid. If necessary, cut the pork loin into two parts so that it fits in your freezer bag (or use two). Pour in the liquid, squeeze out the air and zip the bag shut. Refrigerate 2-3 hours.

Take the pork out of the refrigerator, pour out the marinade, pat the pork dry and let sit for 30 minutes.  At this time preheat the oven to 350.

Place the pork loin on a rack fat side up. Cook 25 minutes per pound and check with a meat thermometer.

At 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours, glaze the top of the loin (see below).  When internal temperature reaches 155 degrees, pull it out, cover it with foil and let it rest for 10-15 minutes.

Glaze

1 ½ c light brown sugar, packed
2 T flour
2 tsp Dijon mustard
3 T cider vinegar

Heat the ingredients in a sauce pan and allow to cool (5 mins).

(From baorao.blogspot.com)

Lentil Loaf
3 ½ c water or vegetable broth
2 onions, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 T olive oil
2 c pre-cooked rice
½ tsp salt
¼ c ketchup or barbecue sauce
½ tsp sage
½ tsp Italian seasoning

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large soup or stockpot, simmer the lentils in water or vegetable broth until cooked, about 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly then mash the lentils until they are half mashed.
Sautee the onions and garlic in olive oil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until soft.
Combine the onions, garlic and olive oil with the mashed lentils and add the rice, salt, ketchup or barbecue sauce, sage, and Italian seasoning.
Gently press the mixture into a lightly greased loaf pan.  Drizzle a bit of extra ketchup on top if desired.

Bake for 1 hour.  Allow to cool slightly before serving, as this will help the lentil loaf to firm up.

(From about.com)

Apple Compote

2 c water
⅓ c sugar
½ vanilla bean, split in half
1 T Calvados or brandy
½ tsp ground cinnamon
⅛ tsp ground cloves
⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
Pinch salt
8 large Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and cubed

In a large saucepan, combine the water, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds, Calvados, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt and bring to a boil. Boil gently until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add the apples and return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the apples are very tender and the mixture thickens, about 20 minutes.

Remove from the heat and remove the vanilla bean pods. Let cool to room temperature before serving.  (The mixture will thicken as it cools.)

(From foodnetwork.com)

Dessert:  Tamara
Baked Pears with Cinnamon Soy Ice Cream and Cinnamon Sugar Tortilla Points

Pears

6 pears, peeled, halved and cored
melted butter
1 T cinnamon
¼ c brown sugar

Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat and stir in cinnamon and sugar.  Baste both sides of pears with butter mixture.  Bake in baking dish, 350 degrees until desired tenderness.

Cinnamon Soy Ice Cream

2 c vanilla soy creamer (or any non-dairy milk)
2 c vanilla soy milk (or any non-dairy milk)
¾ c sugar
2 T arrowroot
2 T cinnamon


Mix 1/4 cup of soy milk with the 2 tablespoons of arrowroot and set aside.
Mix the soy creamer, soy milk, and sugar together in a saucepan. When the mixture has just started to boil, take off the heat and stir in the arrowroot slurry. This should immediately cause the liquid to thicken (not a lot, but a noticeable amount; it will be thicker when it cools).  Mix in cinnamon.

Set the ice cream mixture aside to cool. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.

(Adapted from veganicecream.blogspot.com)

Cinnamon Tortilla Points

2 whole wheat flour tortillas
cinnamon
sugar
spray oil

Lightly spray tortillas with oil on both sides.  Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture.  Bake in oven at 350 until desired crispiness.

Serve pears with ice cream on top and a tortilla point.

Lottery:  Ashley