Another Birthday Dinner

We are having a dinner party for my husband's friend Joe. In his honor, I am cooking. The menu is garlic and peppercorn pork loin, sunchoke gratin with thyme and parmesan cheese, and green beans. For dessert we are having an apple/backberry pie with nutmeg.


I am excited to try the sunchokes. Recently a new grocery store opened in my town with an expanded produce department and I purchased the sunchokes there. I was not sure what to do with them but after a bit of investigation I found this recipe from Jamie Oliver:


INGREDIENTS
½ Crème Fraiche (Or Double Cream)
1 Lemon (Juiced)
2 Garlic Cloves (Peeled And Finely Chopped)
1 handful Fresh Thyme (Picked And Chopped)
Grated Parmesan (1 - 2 Handfuls)
3 handfuls Jerusalem Artichokes (Peeled And Sliced)
2 handfuls Stale Breadcrumbs
Sea Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Olive Oil


Method
Preheat your oven to 230C/450F.Gas 8.
In a bowl mix together your creme fraiche, lemon juice, garlic, half the thyme and most of the Parmesan, and season well to taste.
Thin out with around 6 to 8 tablespoons of water and throw in the sliced Jerusalem artichokes.
Mix well and place everything in an ovenproof baking dish. Cover with tin foil and bake for 35 minutes.
Mix the bread crumbs, the remaining thyme and some salt and pepper with a touch of olive oil.
Remove the artichokes from the oven, discard the foil and sprinkle the remaining Parmesan over the top.
Then sprinkle the flavored bread crumbs over the Parmesan. Use up all the bread crumbs.
Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes until the bread crumbs are golden. (If you're in a pokey pokey kind of mood, you can poke the artichokes about a bit - so some of the bread crumbs fall underneath them).
This makes it look more rustic instead of like a crumble

An Eating Dilemma

Last nights dinner was really good and the conversation great. We had the 40 clove garlic chicken, lentils, a simple salad with fig in marscarpone cheese, fresh homemade bread and 3 desserts. I made an apple tatin. Megan brought a pumpkin roll from Nunas Bakery and Jenn made a cinnamon cake. We all talked about the Omnivore's Dilemma and tried to come up with way sto change our own behaviors and eating habits to be heathier and better for the planet and environment ( no high frucose corn syrup). The hardest part -including our kids in the process. We all felt like we would like to make an effert to eat more locally and fresher and not prepare 3 seperate meals everynight tailored to each persons food preferences.

Apple Cake Tatin

from Ina Garten

6 T (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3 small apples, peeled and sliced

1 3/4 cups sugar, divided

2 extra large eggs, at room temperature

1/3 cup sour cream

1/2 t grated lemon zest

1/2 t pure vanilla extract

1 c plus 2T all-purpose flour

1/2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Generously butter a 9-inch glass pie dish and arrnage apples in the dish.

Combine 1 cup sugar and 1/3 cup water in a small soucepan and cook ove high heat until it turns a warm amber color, about 360 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Swirl the pan but don't stir. Pour evenly over the apple slices.

Meanwhile, cream the 6 T of butter and the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Lower speed and beat in the eggs one at a time. Add sour cream, zest, and vanilla. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and with the mixer on low, add to the butter mixture.. Mix only till combined.

Pour cake better evenly over aplle slices and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until teater comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes, then invert the cake onto a flat plate. Dust with powdered sugar to serve.