Tuesday, October 22, 2024

October Cookouts

You would expect mid October t have a bit of a nip in the air. That would mean hot chocolate and warm , hearty meals. Not so. Many of the areas around the country are experiencing a second summer? WHat to do? Barbecue  but with a fall twist.

With temps in the almost eighties, many home chefs just don't want to cook or bake. yet fall has some of the tastiest ingredients and recipes out there. What to do? Incorporate them into easy to grill, easy to cook and easy to bake recipes. Pork chops with apples have always been a popular  October dish.It can easily be put on the grill and till deliver the same rich taste/There is a slight problem with pork.It can dry out quickly when cooked on a high heat/Baste the chops with a barbecue sauce or marinade. To keep the fall themed try an apple cider marinade.The is a blend of apple cider, brown sugar and such spices as dry mustard and garlic powder. To give it some silkiness and body add a teaspoon or two of olive oil. Brush the pork chop with this every fifteen minutes. To maintain the juiciness let the pork chops sit for about five minutes before cutting into them. This allows the meat to bathe in the juices a bit more. You can serve with grilled apple halves. This is just putting them on the grill for six to eight minutes , then flipping them over for another five. You can also whip up a potato salad but add a small diced apple for texture and flavor.

Baking is a big part of the fall canon. You can easily bake an apple or pear galette on the grill.You will need those cheap foil pie pans.The fruit filled dough is placed in it and then on top of an inverted foil roasting pan.Doing such will prevent the  pies' bottom from burning. The grill's temperature should be the same as your oven. Bake at 350 to 400 degrees Farenheit for about twenty to thirty minutes. as with any pie , keep an eye on it, making sure it doesn't burn. Serve with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of caramel.If you made ice cream over the summer, don;t stop because it is autumn. It's a hot autumn and that means the cooling relief of a frosty dessert. Try a salted caramel ice cream to go with those apples. You will need to use your stovetop to create the caramel.It's cooking a cup and a quarter of granulated sugar until it becomes a syrup.whole cream is then added to this to create the caramel. it's cooled and then the sea salt (try Malden's flaky sea salt) and vanilla are added. while this cools make the ice cream base. This is eggs being whisked with a blend of cooked milk ,and cream.The caramel is added to this then strained through a fine mesh sieve. This is chilled  for three to six hours and then you can put the mixture through an ice cream maker. Freeze until solid. Serve with cinnamon coated apple slices.

THis is a rare October heat wave. Cook like it's summer ,using fall ingredients. You can still get a taste of autumn but with a hot weather twist.