Blackberry Pie

Ingredients
1 pie dough recipe for top and bottom crust
5-6 cups blackberries, rinsed, picked clean, patted dry (if you use frozen berries, defrost and drain them)
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup sugar (depending on how sweet your berries are)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3 Tbsp quick cooking instant tapioca (can usually find in the baking aisle of your local supermarket)
Method

1 Place blackberries, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, cinnamon, almond extract, and quick cooking instant tapioca in a large bowl. Gently fold the berries until they are all well coated with sugar. Let sit for 30 minutes.

2 Preheat oven to 400°F. You should have two balls of pie dough, one for the bottom crust, one for the top crust. Roll out one of the balls of pie dough on a lightly floured surface to 12-inch diameter if you are using a 9-inch pie pan, or 13-inch diameter if you are using a 10-inch pan. Line the bottom of your pie pan with the dough. Chill in refrigerator while you roll out the bottom crust.

3 Roll out the second ball of pie dough for the top crust. If you would like to do a lattice top, weave the dough strips as described in How to Make a Lattice Top for a Pie Crust.

4 Spoon the berry mixture into the dough-lined pie dish. For a lattice top, weave strips of pie dough over the top of the fruit-filled pie dish. For a solid top, place the second rolled-out pie dough crust on top of the pie. Press ends of strips into the rim of the bottom crust. Use scissors to trim the edges to 1/2-inch from the outer edge of the pie pan. Fold the edges back over themselves and use your fingers to crimp to seal the edges. If you are using a solid top crust, score the top with a sharp knife to create air vents for the steam to escape.

5 Place the pie on the middle rack of the oven. Put a baking sheet on the lower rack to catch any juices that might bubble out of the pie while it's cooking. Bake the pie in two stages. First bake it at 400°F for 30 minutes. Then place a sheet of aluminum foil over the pie to protect the edges and tops from getting too burnt. (A pie protector is quite useful here.) Reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for an additional 30 minutes, until crust has browned and filling is bubbly.

Remove from oven and place on a wire rack. Cool completely before serving.

Baked Apples

Ingredients

4 large good baking apples, such as Rome Beauty, Golden Delicious, or Jonagold (see cooking apple varieties)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup currants or chopped raisins
1 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup boiling water

Method:

1 Preheat oven to 375°F. Wash apples. Remove cores to 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apples. It helps if you have an apple corer, but if not, you can use a paring knife to cut out first the stem area, and then the core. Use a spoon to dig out the seeds. Make the holes about 3/4-inch to an inch wide.

2 In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, currants/raisins, and pecans. Place apples in a 8-inch-by-8-inch square baking pan. Stuff each apple with this mixture. Top with a dot of butter (1/4 of the Tbps).

3 Add boiling water to the baking pan. Bake 30-40 minutes, until tender, but not mushy. Remove from the oven and baste the apples several times with the pan juices.

Serve warm with vanilla icecream on the side.

Ingredients
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup chopped green onions, including green ends
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound baby bok choy, rinsed, larger leaves separated from base, base trimmed but still present, holding the smaller leaves together
1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil
Salt
1/2 cup chopped, roasted, salted cashews

Method:
1 Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan on medium high heat. Add onions, then garlic, then bok choy. Sprinkle with sesame oil and salt. Cover, and let the baby bok choy cook down for approximately 3 minutes. (Like spinach, when cooked, the bok choy will wilt a bit.)

2 Remove cover. Lower heat to low. Stir and let cook for a minute or two longer, until the bok choy is just cooked.

3 Gently mix in cashews.

Chicken Marinara

Ingredients:
8 Tbsp olive oil
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 shallots, peeled, chopped
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 large eggs, beaten
9 boneless chicken thighs (skinless or skin-on, your preference), if large pieces, then cut in half
3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
Method

1 Heat 4 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and shallots and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, oregano, and crushed red pepper. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Mix in basil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

2 Blend breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese in small bowl. Place flour and eggs in separate shallow bowls. Coat chicken with flour, then eggs, then breadcrumb mixture.

3 Preheat oven to 350°. Heat remaining oil in heavy large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary, add chicken and sauté until golden brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Place chicken pieces on an oven-proof serving dish. Spoon sauce over chicken pieces. Sprinkle with Mozzarella cheese. Bake for 10 minutes, or microwave on high heat for 10-20 seconds, just until the cheese has melted.

Cod Fish Cakes Recipe

Ingredients
1 lb of cod fillets
2 medium-sized russett potatoes
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Grapeseed oil, or other high smoke point oil such as canola oil, for frying
Method

1 Boil and mash the potatoes, set them aside.

2 Boil the codfish until it flakes easkly. Drain and flake the fish with a fork. Be sure to remove all bones.

3 Mix the flaked fish, the potatoes and the rest of the ingredients together well by hand. If the mixture is too crumbly, add another egg. If too sticky, add some more bread crumbs.

4 Form the mixture into cakes and fry them on medium high heat in a skillet coated with oil, until nice browned on one side, then flip them over and continue to cook until well browned on the other side.

Pasta with Turkey Sausage and Smoked Mozzarella

Ingredients
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 14-ounce cans whole peeled tomatoes
1 pound Italian turkey sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices*
Pinch red pepper flakes
3/4 pound rotini pasta (corkscrew pasta)
Salt
3 ounces smoked Mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

*If you put the turkey sausage in the freezer first for a half hour, it will be easier to slice.

Method

1 Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook a minute more.

2 Add the tomatoes to the pan, shredding them with your fingers as you add them to the pan. Include the juices. Add the sausage and red pepper flakes. Cover and cook on medium high for 20 minutes, until the sauce is thickened.

3 While the sauce is cooking, cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a teaspoon and a half of salt for every quart of water. Cook the pasta according to pasta package instructions, until al dente, or cooked through, but still a bit firm. Drain the water from the pasta. Combine the pasta and the sauce in a large serving bowl.

4 Stir in the cubed smoked mozzarella cheese. Continue to stir until the cheese has softened and is a bit melty. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Cheddar Cheese Puffs

Ingredients
1 stick butter (8 Tbsp or 4 ounces)
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 cup (4 ounces) grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme (or rosemary)
Freshly ground pepper

Method:

1 In a medium sized saucepan, add the water, butter, and salt, and bring to a boil over high heat.

2 Reduce the heat to medium and add the flour all at once. Stir rapidly. The mixture will form a dough ball that will pull away from the sides of the pan. It helps to use a wooden spoon to stir as the dough will be rather thick. Continue to cook for a couple minutes

3 Remove the pan from the heat and let cool for a couple of minutes. Stir so that the dough cools more evenly. You want the dough to be warm, just not so hot that when you start adding eggs they cook as they hit the dough. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition until the eggs are incorporated into the dough. (Do this part in a mixer if you want, or by hand with a wooden spoon.) The dough should become rather creamy.

4 Stir in the grated cheese, thyme, and a few grinds of pepper.

5 Preheat oven to 425°F. Spoon out small balls (about a heaping tablespoon) of the dough onto a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet, with at least an inch separating the spoonfuls. Place in oven and cook for 10 minutes at 425°F. Lower heat to 350°F and cook for another 15-20 minutes, until puffed up and lightly golden.