Oh my goodness, it’s October 1st. Toot-a-loo, September! (I’ll miss you month dearest to my heart…that’s kind of creepy. Moving on.)
The town is recovering from the flooding last week and the Riverwalk Market Fair is entering its last month of operation. I know I haven’t said much about it but to be honest, I was fairly busy and didn’t get to the weekly Saturday event as much as I originally planned. While it was nice and if you went once, you pretty much got a glimpse into what most visits would include (except the produce changing….there were more homemade sweets than fresh produce though and I bought only one pastry the entire summer from the fair).
Little Luna, a young chihuahua, whom we met along our picture-snapping walk.
I stuck with the farmers market not associated with the event because I have established relationships and they have more produce. Most of the vendors aren’t “playing farmer/gardener,” they are one. The other is a cute fair and draws in a crowd but as you can probably tell, I was disappointed but still looking forward to the following year…if we’re here. My guess is that, with the St. Olaf College Homecoming weekend, the town will be busy and maybe I’ll see the best of the fair and my opinion changed.
On this “fond of” Friday, I would like to share the last pictures in my Northfield, Minnesota collection on flickr. I shot these two days before the high water flowed through parts of town in late September. Have a splendid weekend-see you Monday!
Downtown Northfield
To the Contented Cow Pub
For the Defeat of Jesse James Days Festival-I think my neighbor made this for Sisters Ugly clothing store
I began writing this post as a dialogue between two people about cabbage. It was idiotic and I scrapped the whole thing, wasted an hour and am now just going to hand this recipe over to you.
It’s a dish that will make you crave cabbage. No joke. You should make this as soon as you can. Greg and I dined on the creamy baked cabbage with white wine, fresh thyme and garlic last night. Both of us gave it rave reviews. I’m going to serve it at least once a week while cabbage flourishes. All 7 ingredients I usually have on hand (I bet you have most of them in your kitchen too).
Amazingly tasty: Creamy Baked Cabbage with Garlic, Fresh Thyme and White Wine
Everything about this is perfect as a side dish for fall and winter. Plus, you can easily turn it into an entire meal with a few additions (see below).
With the cream, wine and the savory flavor, to the hint of sweetness from the onion and tender cabbage, topped with everyone’s favorite, butter, then sprinkle in some fresh thyme and you’ll be extremely happy that cabbage is both a thrifty buy and in season at this very moment (through winter). Maybe it’s in your garden. Bonus!
Thank the blog site Daily Unadventures In Cooking for this recipe. Katerina, the writer of that wonderful blog, suggested placing it with pasta or tossing in bacon while sautéing the onion and my other suggestion is to add breadcrumbs with a smidge more butter to help brown the top. I think adding smoked sausage would take it from side dish to main dish…I’ve convinced myself that that is what I’ll be doing for the next time.
Creamy Baked Cabbage with Garlic, Thyme and White Wine from Daily Unadventures In Cooking
Serves 2 to 4
Print Recipe
Ingredients:
1 large head of green cabbage, outer leaves removed, cut in half, core removed and cut into bite-sized slices
1 tbsp butter
½ cup white onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
¼ cup white wine
1/3 cup heavy cream
Preheat the oven to 375F.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil with a large pinch of salt. Drop the cabbage slices into the water and boil for 2 to 4 minutes, until it begins to soften. Drain and place in cold water and set aside.
In a large skillet (very large and ovenproof is better but not required), melt the butter on medium low. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Add the garlic and fresh thyme with a generous amount of coarse salt and freshly ground pepper. Sauté for 5 more minutes and then add the drained cabbage, turning the heat to medium. Toss and cook for 5 more minutes, then add the wine. Simmer until reduced and add the cream, stir all of the ingredients together and either place in a dish or directly place the ovenproof skillet in the oven to bake for 30 minutes.
Russian Cuisine is _________ and Beef Stroganoff with Yogurt-Dill Sauce
As promised by me, more talk about food versus personal thoughts since I feel I’ve crossed that line again. This may be a dish you just don’t want to wrap your mind around though. Maybe it was just me.
I thought stroganoff sounded…Russian (because it is and partially French) and by that I mean didn’t sound appetizing….even as a partial contribution from France in the 19th century and maybe named after an important Russian family member, Alexander or Pavel Stroganov. Not to be offensive but Russia has never held a reputation for phenomenal cuisine to the average Joe and Jane. Cold and sour soups, unattractive fish dishes, cabbage soups (I enjoy them but mass appeal is missing, I will admit that), boiled meat and soup (that culture makes a lot of soup).
Beef Stroganoff with Yogurt-Dill Topping
I’m choosing to ignore the delicious concoctions for the sake of my argument about Russian food not being popular in the proverbial cuisine high school. (It’s not a cheerleader, quarterback, rock star or the fat guy that’s hilarious.) I think the beverages of Russia (ahem vodka and beer) beat the food in popularity in the minds of most citizens.
However, when you glance at the list of ingredients in this adaptation: noodles, steak, mushrooms, shallots (or onion), white wine with a dill-infused yogurt sauce, you notice that stroganoff must be delicious, if that list sounded appetizing to you that is and it does to me.
My (meaning Real Simple’s version) recipe for chicken stroganoff, from last week, didn’t escape my memory. This is the post that should have accompanied that meal. That version is quite different from today’s recipe so if this one doesn’t do it for you, check out that link for the chicken style.
Today’s dish, adapted again from Real Simple, contains the authentic meat for stroganoff-beef. Instead of topping it with yogurt and dill alone, I placed a dipping sauce on top with yogurt, dill, garlic and lemon juice for a fresh, slightly sour taste that actually goes well with the egg noodles, mushrooms and steak in a white wine reduction.
Beef Stroganoff with Yogurt-Dill Sauce
Serves 4
Print Recipe
Ingredients:
16 oz. egg noodles
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb. sirloin steak, thinly sliced
salt/pepper
1 lb. button mushrooms, sliced (or you choice of mushroom)
4 shallots (or 2 onions), sliced
½ cup dry white wine
Yogurt-Dill Topping:
Ingredients:
1 cup Greek yogurt
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1 tsp lemon juice
salt/pepper
Cook the noodles as directed on the package. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the steak pieces with salt and pepper (generously). Cook, in batches, the steak until browned on each side and transfer to a plate. When noodles are finished cooking, drain and toss with 2 tbsp of butter; cover to keep warm.
Turn the heat to medium and the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the mushrooms and shallots or onions, stirring occasionally about 5 to 6 minutes, until tender. Add the wine, simmer until reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes and return the beef to the skillet. Cook until heated through, a few more minutes. Serve over the noodles and top with the yogurt-dill sauce and more dill (recipe below).
Yogurt-Dill Topping:
Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl and serve with the stroganoff.
No blabber today. You deserve it with all of my recent ramblings. Are you happy now (smirkingly I say this)?
After I watch my friend Beckie’s adorable 1 year old daughter, I am lunching with her today. I don’t think I’ve ever used that phrase.
Flood 2010 Northfield, MN
2 days before the flood
This post contains even more pictures of Northfield along the lines of what I shared yesterday. Read that post for more info. Eat this recipe to make your tummy happy.
The Archer House
Maple Baked Beans
Maple Baked Beans
Serves 4 to 6
Print Recipe
Ingredients:
16 oz. dried navy or great northern beans
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp molasses
1/3 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
3 strips of thick cut bacon, cut into pieces and cooked until just crisp
water
In a large pot (with a lid…Dutch oven works), cover the dried beans with water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender. The original said for an hour but mine took much longer to become tender. Preheat the oven to 300F.
In a bowl, mix the brown sugar, salt, pepper, mustard, molasses, tomato sauce and maple syrup. Add this to the beans and stir in the bacon. Add enough water to the pot just to cover the mixture and top with aluminum foil then the lid. Bake for 3 hours, checking each hour to be sure it’s not too dry in the pot (add more water if needed). This process could take 5 hours of baking but once the beans begin to tenderize more, uncover for the last half hour of cooking to help deepen the color , if you wish.
