Holiday dishes | Ski Boots in the Kitchen

Happy 1 Year Blogiversary, Ski Boots in the Kitchen! It seems crazy to me that a year has gone by since I decided to start this blog. My first post was one of my favorite childhood fall recipes- Stew in a Pumpkin… I never thought a year later I’d be posting my 74th recipe! Stew in a pumpkin was a recipe my mom always made for us as kids and she still makes it for my nieces and nephew- we were always so excited to see the whole pumpkin on the table filled with stew! It’s usually a good excuse to carve pumpkins too!

My niece dressed up for Halloween and ready to eat Stew!

Stew in a Pumpkin

Carving pumkins with friends

Nothing says fall better than a Sunday afternoon watching football and eating some hearty stew or chili. One pot wonders, crock pot magic- whatever you like to call it soups are easy, cheap and feed all the hungry boys that have come over to your house, taken over your couch and drink all the beer! But serving chili without cornbread is like serving lamb without tuna fish… wait I think I meant to say, its like serving spaghetti with out meatballs (that was for all you Big Daddy movie fans…) anyways, you get the idea.What is worse than chili without cornbread? Dry, boring, stale cornbread that tastes like sawdust. That is kind of how I feel about a lot of cornbread, ohhh but not this recipe. The secret ingredients? Well not that secret because I’m going to tell you… Crushed pineapple, creamed corn and pepper Jack cheese!

Spread mixture into a baking dish

Don’t worry if the mixture looks curlded, thats normal!

Dry ingredients

Cream the butter and sugar together

This recipe was one my mother got out of Blanchard’s Cookbook but it was also one of the recipes I got at my bridal shower! Everyone that came to my bridal shower was asked to bring a copy of their favorite recipe for me to add to my collection! (that way I’ll always know your favorite dish when you come over for dinner!) This was the recipe Diane S. brought for me! So thank you Diane and mom for the recipe because it has become one of my favorites too! You’ll never think of cornbread the same after eating this deliciously moist and yummy treat! It would also make a great addition to your holiday meal and it freezes well too! So make up a big ol’ pot of chili, a big ol’ batch of cornbread and get the best spot on the couch. Enjoy!

Caribbean Cornbread (click for printer friendly)

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups canned cream-style corn
1/2 cup canned crushed pineapple, drained (small can)
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack or mild white Cheddar cheese (definitely use Jack cheese!)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Butter and flour a 9-inch square glass cake pan. (You can use a metal cake pan, but glass works best).
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, corn meal, baking powder, and salt, and set aside. (You can use gluten free all purpose flour from King Arthur for GF option).
In a mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs on at a time, beating after each addition. If the mixture starts to look curdled at this point its OK.
Add the corn, pineapple, and cheese, and mix to blend. On a low speed, add the dry ingredients and mix until blended well.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until golden brown around the edges and a tester stuck in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.

*to freeze- let cornbread cool completely before cutting and removing it from the pan. Double wrapping in plastic and freeze.

Recipe from Blanchard’s Table Cookbook.

We had another day of weird snow/rain/sleet- it was cool and crisp and all the tops of the mountains were dusted white. It makes for beautiful views and photos- but not so great when you’re leaving the store in the middle of a freak rain/snow downpour. Hopefully everyone enjoyed their Columbus Day- the state of Utah apparently doesn’t recognize this holiday, kids were in school and most businesses where open – unless of course you’re the state liquor store which uses any excuse to close. As I posted a few weeks ago, I’ve decided to post some great Thanksgiving recipes in the month of October! Over the weekend I asked people to post to Facebook what their favorite side veggie is and I got an overwhelming response for BRUSSELS SPROUTS – which are also one of my all-time favorites! If you haven’t seen my recipe for Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Rutabaga and Toasted Hazelnuts its also a winner! As promised here is an amazing recipe for Brussels Sprouts and thank you to everyone that gave their input for their favorite veggie! These Brussels sprouts are so delicious, the Beurre Noisette (which is just fancy French for browned butter- but sounds so much better) gives the recipe a wonderful nutty flavor that is balanced by the apple cider and nutmeg. The best part about cooking with fresh apple cider? Cocktails! I know you can see that little bottle of Myers’s Rum peeking out from behind the jug of cider. It always seems to find its way out of the liquor cabinet when there’s cider around, plus cooking is always better when you’re sipping on wine or my favorite fall cocktail, Rum & Cider. Thanks to the unwavering recipes from Food52 this rich, creamy and delicious dish is one of the better Brussels Sprouts recipes I’ve tried! Enjoy!

Glazed Brussels Sprouts and Apples in Browned Butter and Cream (Serves 4)

Ingredients:

1 pound Brussels sprouts
1/8 teaspoon celery salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 ounces heavy cream
2 pieces bacon, chopped
1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped
4 teaspoons apple cider
1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg; more to sprinkle at the end

Directions:

Wash and trim the stems from the brussels sprouts. Cut in half, discarding any discolored leaves. Steam brussels sprouts over salted water until fork tender (7-10minutes). Drain and lightly sprinkle and toss with celery salt. Set aside.
In a separate pan, cook bacon until crisp- transfer bacon to paper towels to drain, then chop coarsely.
Over low heat, melt butter in a heavy pot. Once the butter is completely melted, turn heat to medium high. It will quickly begin to foam. Keep stirring the butter and moving around the pan. Once it hits the color and flavor you want (don’t let it turn black and burn- medium to dark brown is good), immediate reduce the heat to low and add the cream. Stir to completely incorporate the cream. Immediately add the apple pieces, bacon and brussels sprouts. Don’t worry if the sauce looks like its starting to separate- continue stirring!
With a large spoon, keep turning the brussels sprouts mixture in the cream/noisette sauce while the sauce thickens and the brussels sprouts mixture becomes glazed with the sauce (5-10 minutes). The apple pieces should be just cooked, not mushy. Add the apple cider and nutmeg. Continue to carefully turn the mixture in the glaze for another 2-3 minutes.
Turn out in a serving dish or the individual plates and add a pinch of nutmeg over the dish.

Recipe from Food52