photo credit: Lee Virden Geurkink

Asian Fish and Vegetables en Papillote

This is a fish that your child will eat. Promise! My younger, who is rather picky, loves it. And it’s full of good things to counter all that sugar!

Ingredients

• Mild, white fish like cod, catfish, mahi mahi, or grouper, approximately 4 ounces per person
• Grated or julienned carrots, approximately ½ carrot per person
• Baby broccoli, thinly sliced on the bias, 1 to 2 stalks per person (you can substitute thinly sliced asparagus or shredded zucchini)
• Fresh ginger, peeled and grated, approximately 1/8 to ¼ teaspoon per person (to choose good ginger, look for a hand that is smooth and heavy for its size; just like in people, wrinkles indicate age)
• Shallot, peeled and sliced into thin rings, 3 to 4 rings per person
• Cilantro, stems removed, approximately 10 leaves per person
• Lime, juice of approximately ¼ per person
• Soy sauce or tamari, a couple of dashes per person
• Toasted sesame oil, a couple of dashes per person (be sure to get the toasted, which is a lovely dark brown; the untoasted doesn’t really have any flavor, and we’re going for flavor here)
• Noodles, cooked al denteaccording to package directions, ½ cup cooked per person (were I making this for guests, I would have used rice noodles, but the Girlchildren aren’t real fans, so we used some whole wheat angel hair)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Okay, I hear you all saying, “Wait a minute, what’s with this “per person” thing? Just wait. All will be revealed…

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375°.

Bring a pot of water to the boil, and prepare the noodles to al dente, according to the package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.

While the water is coming to the boil, prepare your ingredients. Grate the carrots and ginger. Slice the baby broccoli and shallots. Quarter the limes and pick off the cilantro leaves. Portion out the cod. Put each of these into their own bowl or on their own plate, and line them up. This is going to be assembly line cooking here, and the kids will love to help.

Prepare the parchment paper or foil. In the interest of this post about family meals, I’m going describe the foil method. If you want to learn how to use parchment paper for cooking en papillote, there are some great YouTube videos out there.

You will need a piece of foil approximately 12 inches by 15 inches per person. Either use the nonstick foil, or the middle of one side of each sheet with nonstick cooking spray.

And now, the assembly line! Put 1 portion of noodles in the middle of the foil, followed by the cod, the carrots, the baby broccoli, the ginger, the shallots, and the cilantro leaves. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and with the soy sauce or tamari and the toasted sesame oil. Pull up the edges of the foil and fold over several times, allowing some space for the steam to expand. Fold the sides as well, making sure that the seals are tight.

Place the foil packets on a baking sheet and cook in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes. The great thing about cooking en papillote is that even if you overcook the fish a little, the steam keeps it from drying out!

To serve, place a packet on everyone’s plate. Moms and dads, you should probably open the packets for your littlest ones because steam burns are awful.

Sheet Pan Chicken and Root Vegetables

This is one of our favorites. It’s savory and hearty without being heavy.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• 1 large onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
• 4 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 bulb fennel, stems removed and cut into quarters
• 1 pound Brussels sprouts, outer leaves removed and cut in half
• Half a bunch each of fresh thyme and rosemary
• 1 large lemon, cut into thin slices
• Salt and pepper to tastes

Directions

Preheat oven to 400°.

Scatter the onion, garlic, carrots, fennel, and Brussels sprouts over a large sheet pan. Place the chicken thighs over the vegetables. Scatter the lemon slices and herbs over everything and season with salt and pepper

Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted into the meat reaches 165°. Serves 4.

Autumn Kale Salad

If you need a little sweetness to help with the sugar crash, this is a great salad.

Ingredients

For the salad

• 2 bunches kale, washed, tough stems removed, and torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1 large fennel bulb, stems removed and thinly sliced (or shaved on a mandoline)
• ½ red onion, cut into thin slices
• 2 apples (Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, or Braeburn are what I like), cut into bite-sized pieces
• ½ cup dried cherries or dried cranberries
• ½ cup nuts and/or seeds (I like pepitas, sunflower seeds, or almonds)
• 6 ounces goat cheese or gorgonzola, crumbled

For the dressing

• Juice and zest of 1 large lemon
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons whole-grained or Creole mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste
• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

For the dressing:

Place all ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake well until the salt is dissolved.

For the salad:

Combine all the ingredients except the cheese in a large bowl. Add in about half the dressing and toss well. Taste to see if you need more dressing. (If you have any left over, it keeps in the fridge for up to a week.) Serve topped with the goat cheese or gorgonzola crumbles. Makes 4 entrée salads.

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Apple and Celery Root Salad
Celery root, or celeriac, is a woefully neglected vegetable. While it is not pretty, it is quite delicious and pairs beautifully with tart apples in this wonderful salad.
Ingredients
• 2 celery roots (look for firm roots with no soft spots), peeled and julienned either with a mandoline or a sharp knife
• 1 large or 2 small mildly tart apples (look for Braeburn, Cameos, or Cripps Pink), cored and julienned either with a mandoline or a sharp knife
• Juice of 1 lemon
• ½ bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped
• Handful toasted pecan halves (optional)
• 2 tablespoons whole-grained mustard
• 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
Toss the celery root and apple juliennes with the lemon juice and flat leaf parsley in a large, non-reactive bowl.
In glass jar with a tight lid, combine the whole-grained mustard, apple cider vinegar, minced shallot, dried tarragon, and salt and pepper, shaking to combine and to melt the salt. Add the extra-virgin olive oil, and shake to combine.
Toss the celery root and apples with just enough vinaigrette to moisten. (The leftover vinaigrette will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator and is wonderful on an arugula salad.) Toss in the toasted pecans if using.
Serves 4 as a side or top with grilled chicken, pork, or fish as an entrée for 2.

Apple Cider Brine for Pork or Poultry
If you haven’t started brining your pork and poultry, you need to try this! Brines add so much flavor and juiciness to meats that you will never again grill or roast without first brining.
Ingredients
• 2 cups cold water
• 1 cup kosher salt – please use kosher salt for this as table salt will leave a funny taste
• 1 packed cup light brown sugar
• 2 to 3 sprigs fresh sage
• 2 to 3 springs fresh rosemary
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 4 cups unfiltered apple cider
• 1 orange
• 2 cups ice cubes
Directions
In a large pan or pot over medium-high heat, bring the water, salt, light brown sugar, sage, rosemary, bay leaves, and peppercorns to a boil. Stir occasionally for 3 to 5 minutes, then remove from the heat. Add the apple cider, squeeze the orange and throw in the squeezed fruit, and the ice cubes and stir until the ice cubes have melted.
Place the meat in a large (and I mean large!) non-reactive container or a 2-gallon zippered plastic bag and cover with the brine. Brine chicken breasts for about 6 hours, duck breasts for about 8 hours, and pork chops can go for up to 12 hours. If you want to use this brine for a whole turkey, double the recipe and brine that baby for up to 12 hours. Before cooking, remove the meat from the brine and dry with paper towels. Discard the brine after use.
This make approximately 2 quarts of brine, enough for 6 to 8 pork chops, 6 chicken breasts, or 8 duck breasts.

Apple Dumplings for a Gang
Sorry! Couldn’t resist!
Ingredients
• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed and rolled into 12-inch squares
• 8 small baking apples, such as Cortlands, Winesaps, or Jonathans, peeled and cored
• ½ packed cup dark brown sugar
• ¼ cup raisins, dried cranberries, or (my favorite) dried cherries
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 8 thin pats of butter, plus 2 tablespoons
• Confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°. Cut the sheets of puff pastry into four quarters each. Combine the brown sugar, raisins/cranberries/cherries, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and the lemon zest and juice in a small bowl. Place an apple in the center of a square of puff pastry and fill the cored-out hollow with the brown sugar mixture. Top each apple with a pat of butter and bring the corners of the puff pastry up and over the apple, sealing the edges together, so you form a dumpling. Melt the remaining two tablespoons of butter and brush over the pastry.
Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the puff pastry is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for at least 10 minutes before serving – the inside is molten! Serve with your favorite vanilla ice cream and sift some confectioners’ sugar over the top. Any leftovers are great the next morning for breakfast!
Makes 8 dumplings.

So there you have it. Three recipes which celebrate all things apple. And remember, if you’re not in the mood to cook, Central Market has apple goodies throughout the store. Bring home a smoked gouda and apple quiche or a smoked apple-spiced rotisserie chicken! Even though it doesn’t feel like fall, you can still pretend it is with all of the apple delights available at Central Market through October 3!

Lee Virden is a jack of all trades, master of none. She has been a bank teller, a chef and caterer (both in restaurants and in private service), a bookkeeper, a trainer, a legal assistant, and a writer. She is a proud graduate of the University of the South with a degree in Early European History. (She planned to be a professor but realized in the nick of time that professors have homework, which she never did when she was a student, so what made her think that she would do it as a professor?) While she has not used her degree in her, er, varied employment history, she is fabulous at cocktail parties. Most importantly, Lee is the proud mother of two absolutely amazing girls, to whom she refers in social media as the Girlchildren.

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