Fall is all about apples and pumpkin and sweet potatoes to me. I broke down and bought a couple cans of pumpkin to make gnocchi with ricotta. I may also try a second batch with sweet potato, and do a comparative analysis post for you? Things to consider! I planned one for jasmine v basmati, but haven't gotten around to turning that draft into a published post as of yet. I'm working on it, though! Captured the idea and images, anyway, and that's step one, isn't it?
Definitely gonna make this recipe for sweet potato fries and sriracha sour cream at some point this month, as well. Caught the local produce stand on its last day open for the season, scored some lemons and peppers (3 for $1! None of this buck a piece bullshit!) and apples and sweet potatoes for pennies. Seriously, three plastic bags crammed full of produce for ten bucks. You can't beat that!
I grated all the lemons (nearly a dozen of them) into a quart mason jar and filled it with vodka, screwed on the lid and gave it a good shake before sticking it in my kitchen cabinet. This is phase one of the limoncello I'm making for a friend of mine for the holidays. He digs vodka. Here's hoping he digs lemons.
Regarding apples, I kept seeing this recipe pop up on my Facebook feed, as trending recipes tend to do, and couldn't take it anymore. I had to have it. Looking at it, it's super straightforward, and I was surprised at how fast this dish was executed, from first apple slice to first serving slice.
Always start your recipes with preheating the oven, or you'll hate yourself when it's time to bake and you're stuck waiting for 20 minutes for the machine to temp. Inefficient and amateurish, if you ask me. Were you to ask my eight year old what step one is for any recipe, she will not hesitate. "Preheat the oven," she will say, "then get out all your ingredients and bowls and measuring stuff." The little miss grips miz already! So freaking proud of you, Fishers :)
Once you're set up and warming, mix the flour and sugar and cut in the butter. This is your crust, press it into a pan lined with aluminum foil so none of your crust sticks to the pan (note: i did not foil my pan, and they came out fine, but it's better with the foil) and bake for 15m, until nice and browned.
As the crust bakes, beat the cream cheese with some sugar and eggs and a little vanilla. Use an electric mixer and room-temp cheese and eggs. I did this by hand. I do not recommend it, but make sure your cream cheese is soft but not warm, or you will scramble your eggs and your cake will suck city with big chunks of cooked egg in it. This has happened to me before, when I made Gabe a new york-style cheesecake for his birthday (with cherry pie filling, as I do every year, it's a fucking two day cake) and I was devastated.
Pour your filling over your warm crust and set aside. Chop some apples and mix with sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. I add allspice, as well, because it's MAGIC. Spread this over the filling. Mix equal parts brown sugar and flour with some oatmeal and a stick of butter and sprinkle over the apples. This is streusel, and it's ridiculously delicious, I promise. Bake for a half an hour and drizzle caramel over it before letting it set in the fridge. Caramel is easy, sugar and heavy cream, that's it.
Be sure to let it chill, or you'll get mushy slices versus clean-cut ones. I would likely make this again, it was stupid fast and was a big hit with the kiddo. Making this dish made me want to make lemon bars again, though, which were NUTS, and I loved them obscenely. I'll do a post on those sooner or later (have I already? What's happening here? Who are you? Get out of my house! No? Well, shit. You want some cake and coffee? Yes? Great! Pull up a chair! Happy to have you, stranger!)
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