Holiday Recipes: Apple Squash Casserole, Gratin of Brussels Sprouts, Cranberry Chutney, Holiday Cranberry Carrots
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Throughout November and December, the food section will be running fresh recipes for the holidays -- or anytime. They're compiled on our Holidays page.
Apple Squash Casserole
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This casserole is a delicious side dish in the fall when apples and squash are abundant. I concocted it one November day when asked to bring "some kind of vegetable" for Thanksgiving. That was six years ago and it's been a seasonal favorite in our home ever since .
-- Nancy Anderson
- 1 acorn, dumpling or similar squash
- 2 Stayman or Granny Smith apples
- Two handfuls raisins or dried cranberries
- 2 teaspoons butter
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- Cinnamon
- Toasted pecans
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Microwave squash on high for 3 minutes (doesn't need to be pricked). Let cool a few minutes. Cut in half, then fourths and then eighths (if the pieces still look too big, cut them in half). Cut apples the same way, removing the cores.
Arrange squash and apples in a single layer (very important) in a baking dish (I use an 8-by-10-inch). Scatter raisins around. Put butter and maple syrup in a measuring cup, top with a healthy dose of cinnamon and microwave for 1 minute. Drizzle mixture over every piece.
Cover and bake for 45 minutes. Sprinkle toasted pecans on top before serving. Serves 4 to 6. Can be doubled for a crowd; just use a large baking pan to keep the squash in a single layer.
-- Nancy Anderson
Gratin of Brussels Sprouts (Choux de Bruxelles au Gratin)
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You can't get much more local than your own backyard, which is where each year I grow my own brussels sprouts. They're just getting ready to eat in the fall, and so they've also become a tradition at my Thanksgiving table. And they could be for Christmas; last year's mild autumn and early winter meant I was still harvesting sprouts on New Year's Day.
Even sprout haters might like these, doused as they are in cream and cheese. The cookbook they're from (a favorite of mine, of recipes from the Brittany region of France), notes that the double blanching helps break down fiber and aids digestion. You can also add sauteed apples and/or ham to the sprouts before baking, something I plan to try this year.
-- Bob Batz Jr.
- 1 pound brussels sprouts, washed, trimmed and damaged leaves removed
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons flour
- 1 1/2 cups milk, warmed
- Nutmeg
- 1/2 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup creme fraiche
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Blanch the brussels sprouts in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain and drop into a second pot of boiling water. Add salt and cook rapidly for 7 to 8 minutes. Drain well and dry. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
To prepare a white sauce, melt butter in a small saucepan. Add the flour, stir, and gradually add the milk. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Simmer for at least 10 minutes, stirring to prevent scorching.
Remove the sauce from heat and stir in two thirds of the cheese. Combine the yolk and creme fraiche and stir into the sauce, mixing completely. Butter an oven-proof gratin dish and arrange the brussels sprouts inside. Pour the sauce over the sprouts and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
-- "From a Breton Garden: The Vegetable Cookery of Josephine Araldo" by Josephine Araldo and Robert Reynolds (Aris, 1990)
Cranberry Chutney
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This recipe is based on a recipe from a can of Ocean Spray cranberries. I was living in Africa, where there were no fresh cranberries available, but I found a can of whole berry cranberry sauce in the cupboard. The idea of turning that can into something entirely different intrigued me. I have tweaked the printed recipe by adding some ingredients from an authentic Indian chutney recipe. It is lovely with turkey or roast pork. I normally triple the recipe and give jars to friends. It will keep for months in the refrigerator.
-- Elizabeth Downer
- 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
- 1 tablespoon water
- 16-ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce
- 1/2 cup white raisins
- 1/2 cup peeled and diced Granny Smith apple
- 1/3 cup cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon allspice
- 1/8 teaspoon powdered ginger
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger root
- 1/4 teaspoon black mustard seed
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- Pinch of ground cloves
- Optional: I sometimes add 1/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts
Put diced onion in saucepan with water and cook over medium heat until limp. Add all other ingredients and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until apples are tender and sauce has thickened. Makes 2 1/2 cups.
-- Elizabeth Downer
Holiday Cranberry Carrots
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I found this holiday side dish, by food writer and cookbook author Joanna Pruess, in the new "Yum! Tasty Recipes From Culinary Greats" cookbook. From the contrasting colors of the cranberries and carrots to the tasty Marsala glaze, this will be a hit.
It may be prepared several hours or even a day ahead of time and warmed over low heat.
-- Arlene Burnett
- 2 pounds baby carrots
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange zest
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 cup Marsala wine
- 3/4 cup fresh cranberries
- Salt to taste
Steam carrots until tender, about 5 to 6 minutes. Do not overcook.
Melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, orange zest, and cardamom. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the Marsala and cranberries, turn the heat to high and cook until the liquid has evaporated, about 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently. The cranberries will pop during this time. Season to taste with salt.
Serves 8.
-- "Yum! Tasty Recipes From Culinary Greats" by Jeffrey Spear and Dara Bunjon (Cumberland House, $28.95)
First Published November 15, 2007 12:00 am
