Through creative employment strategies (read: five part-time jobs, two on-call jobs, work for trade, 20-plus hour days and seriously shameless self-promotion) I've managed to keep just ahead of the recession for the last year and a half. Sadly, it's finally caught up with me. Due to hourly cuts, I'm going to have to leave one of these jobs.
No disrespect intended to my previous employers, but I'm pretty stoked. Yes, I have a stack of new books to break the spine on. I have an entire spice shelf to rearrange. I have oodles of new recipes to try out. But I also have this seriously awesome opportunity to stop funneling my energy into too many things-it's time to really latch on to what's been inspiring me. And with that, stay tuned for the developing story...
In the meantime, here's a recipe I'm breaking out again to make use of the remaining apples from my very kind neighbor. Whatever misgivings you have about the current economic forecast, they'll go down more smoothly with a warm and sticky treat.
Apple-Filled Popovers with Salty Caramel Sauce
Serves 12
For
the Warm Apple Filling:
·
3 medium apples, cut into medium dice
·
1 Tbsp. sugar
·
1 tsp. lemon juice
·
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
·
1 tsp. five-spice powder
·
½ tsp. cinnamon
Toss
apples in a bowl with sugar and lemon juice.
Let it rest in the bowl several minutes.
Warm a pan over medium-high heat with butter. When it is foamy, add apple mixture and sauté
until golden brown. Sprinkle with
five-spice powder and cinnamon. Stir
well and turn off heat but let pan remain on the burner to keep it warm.
For
the Caramel Sauce:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- pinch kosher salt
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 T cold unsalted butter
- large-flaked grey or lavender
salt, or your favorite flavor
Pour
sugar into the center of a 3 or 4 quart heavy bottomed sauce pan with a
lid. Add water and cover with lid. Over medium-high heat, bring to a boil
without stirring.
In
the meantime, heat cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until small
bubbles appear. Turn the heat down to
low and hold.
When
sugar has begun to boil, remove lid. Let
the sugar change color from white to a light amber color, swirling the pan
gently as it cooks. Take care not to let
sugar syrup splash up the sides of the pan.
When it is a consistently medium-brown color, add half of the
cream. This creates quite a bit of steam
and can be very dangerous, so only add half the cream-more will cause an
overflow. When the bubbling has
subsided, stir with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Add remaining cream and stir well. When it is completely smooth, add butter and
whisk vigorously. Hold over low heat
while making popovers.
For the Popovers:
·
2 eggs
·
1 cup all-purpose flour
·
1 cup milk
·
1/2 teaspoon salt
Preheat
oven to 425 F. Spray a standard muffin
pan with nonstick pan spray and then place a small dot of butter in each
cup. Place in oven and let pan warm
while you’re preparing the batter.
In
a medium bowl beat the eggs slightly with a wire whisk. Gently whisk in flour, milk and salt until
just smooth; do not over mix. Remove pan
from oven and carefully fill cups ½ to ¾ full.
Bake
at 425 degrees F (230 degrees C) for 12-15 minutes or until they have risen
well over the rim and are golden brown.
Immediately
remove from cups and place on cooling rack positioned over waxed paper or
parchment. Popovers, after cooling, should have a
natural indent in their center. If they don't, carefully slit a hole in the
top and fill with apple mixture. With a spoon, drizzle caramel sauce over
popovers. Follow with salt. Eat immediately!
