SEASONAL COOKING

[chef mark hayes]

Crisp breeze in the air,(at least in Chicago) that means fall is just around the corner! My personal favorite time to cook.
From Butternut Squash to Venison, a very bountiful time of year. I was just wondering if there were any other "fall buffs" out there; and if so, what are some of your favorite ingredients and/or preparations?

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M.W.H.

 

[m brown]

warm apple, roasted pear, baked quince, late peaches, citrus, coconut caramels and sweet figs.
fall is a wonderful time for dessert!!!!!!!!

 

[isa]

One thing I love about autumn is the abundance of food available at the market. Always hard to decide what to choose.


I love butternut squash soup. it feels like liquid velvet on the tongue.

I love apple and make lots of applesauce to freeze so I can have some all year around. I often use it to replace some of the fat in baked good recipes and it does work.

One of my favourite dish is duck stuffed with apple. Nothing goes so well with duck. Can't wait to make it again.


Sisi

 

[mezzaluna]

All that talk of apples took my palate back to Normandy. Pork or veal braised in hard cider, sauce finished with cream... mmmm..... I'm a fall lover, too. Here in Wisconsin it means football tailgating (brats, etc. while wearing a Cheesehead hat) as well as the yummy produce you mentioned. A favorite outing is to head to the Dane County farmers' market in Madison on the Capitol Square and cruise for the best of the season- Saturday mornings, April through November. Makes a nice day trip from the Chicago area. And don't miss the Mustard Museum in nearby Mount Horeb! The leaves will turn here in about 3-4 weeks, so plan ahead.

 

[chef mark hayes]

I've ALWAYS wanted to go to the Mustard Museum! Do you know how to get there from the Interstate? Thanks for the tip.

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M.W.H.

 

[cookm]

Delicata squash. Figs. We get oysters back with our months with R. Mushrooms! Pomegranates. Persimmons. 'Nuff said.

 

[layjo]

I get excited about the Fall and winter months also! I like doing braises and roasts and cooking with root vegetables, greens, mushrooms, squash, (compotes and chutneys w/) cranberries, apples, raisins, grapes, pecans, walnuts ect.... It will still be hot for a while longer done here in Texas, can't wait till the end of october or begining of November for it to start cooling down.

[This message has been edited by layjo (edited September 17, 2000).]

 

[cookm]

Oh yeah, I forgot roasted root vegetables. How something so deceptively simple can be so alluring. But then, that's the kind of food that I like. Carrot, parsnip, fennel, and zucchini is my fave.
This is also a good time for me to make double cut pork chops with pear chutney. Mmmm.

 

[shroomgirl]

UMMMM~persimmons, butternut risotto, pecan tarts and cookies and anything.Roasted
parsnips, turnips, beets.Lamb sausages with bitter greens. roasted pork with jonathon apples. Apple pie! Wish we had figs.
not excited about black walnuts.

 

[mezzaluna]

Mark, it's just west of Madison on Business Route 18/151. If you take I-90 to Madison from Chicagoland, that's it. The website address is: mustardweb.com. Here's some info from the site:

"The Mount Horeb Mustard Museum is located at 109 East Main Street in Mount Horeb,
Wisconsin, about 20 miles west of Madison. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week. We suggest you call ahead for any changes in our hours and for any mustard information. The Museum's toll-free number is 1-800-438-6878."

There are also great restaurants in the area. I haven't eaten at Quivey's Grove or L'Etoile, but they're both supposed to be superb. Enjoy!


[This message has been edited by Mezzaluna (edited September 18, 2000).]

 

[shroomgirl]

I've wanted to check out L'Etoile, Odessa Piper buys from local farmers and freezes or cans to use local throughout the Wisconsin winters. Amazing woman. Madison is supposed to be the Berkley of the mid-west...
I have not made it there yet almost afraid too....I might like it too much and not want to leave...

 

[pete]

Fall and winter are my favorite times of the year for cooking. Hearty foods, hearty cooking methods. With fall coming on my mind is back to root vegs, squashes, game meats. And don't forget mushrooms! ****, Im making myself hungry just thinking about all the good things starting to appear on the market!!

 

[shroomgirl]

Ok guys everyone is talking about Fall and Winter mushrooms.What varieties?????
Dried???
Our mushroom seasons are mainly Morels in the Spring and Others throughout the Summer and early Fall.

 

[cookm]

Mushrooms that I saw at the market yestrday:
chanterelles, black trumpet, hedgehog, lobster, hen of the woods, maitake...
All sound good to me.

 

[unichef]

I miss New Mexico at this time of year- Hatch Green Chiles!

Everywhere you go, even in front of the mainstream supermarkets, there are folks selling sacks of fresh Hatch, NM green chiles. You pick out a sack, and while you are shopping, they roast them in a tumbler.
The locals then spend the rest of the day peeling and freezing the chiles to last the rest of the year. Great aromas and flavors!

 

[shroomgirl]

I had forgotten the Bay area has Chanterelles in Janurary....I have a couple of friends in the Myc group there....We have chicken and hen of the woods now, that's about it....some boletes noone can ID and that's from our PHD mycologists (pretty scary stuff when they can't tell you what's edible)> But our Black trumpets, chanterelles, most oysters, some wood ears are now gone.......mushrooming makes you appreciate the season, either you get them when they are out or you miss out until next year. I heard a Myc. talk about truffle cultivating....pretty interesting (8-12 years before the first harvest)