This is one of my favorite desserts to make.  It can also be adapted to make a caramel apple pie, but the rustic aspect of a Crostada appeals to me.

Ingredients

Crostada
6 cups Baking Apples, Thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Lime Juice
3/4 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Flour
1/2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 tablespoons Butter
Pastry for double crust pie
1 tablespoon Demerara Sugar, Can substitute any large crystal sugar.
Topping
1/4 cup Butter
1/2 cup Packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons Heavy cream

Method

1. In a large bowl, toss apples with lime juice.
2. Combine dry ingredients; add to the apples and toss lightly.
3. Combine all pastry dough and roll into large circle (no need to be exact).
4. Place pastry on a heavy bar pan with 1/2″ sides to catch juices, pour apple mixture into the middle of the circle and gently fold the dough toward the center to make the crostada.  This is a rustic crostada so don’t worry about being exact.
5. Wet the outside of the crust with a brush and press Demerara sugar around the outside of the crust.
6. Bake at 400F for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown.

For the topping:
Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Stir in brown sugar and cream.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly Remove from the heat.

When crostada is finished, carefully transfer to a serving dish and pour the caramel over the crostada.

Servings: 8
Source: JD Collier

I LOVE to make this recipe!  It is delicious.  My favorite way to prepare it is with Tofu.

Ingredients

28 ounce Plum Tomatoes (6-8 tomatoes)
2 tbsp Olive oil
1 clove Garlic, roughly chopped
1 Sprig Fresh rosemary, finely chopped
Sea Salt or Fleur de sel
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup Heavy cream
1/4 – 1/2 cup White wine, (good enough to drink)
1 cup Fresh Parmiggiano Reggianito (Parmesan is ok too), Grated
1 tbsp butter
1 lb Penne pasta
Tofu

Method

Use a tall pot for this sauce as it is very bubbly as it’s cooking.

1. Puree tomatoes.
2. Heat the olive oil in the pan along with the garlic and rosemary.
3. When the garlic is just beginning to roast, add the pureed plum tomatoes.
4. Add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
5. Cook puree over high heat, stirring occasionally, until it begins to thicken. Add some white wine and cook down for a few minutes.
6. Add the cream and continue to cook over medium-low heat until sauce is thick enough to coat the pasta.
7. Add 1/2 of the Parmesan.
8. Cook the pasta in salted water until al dente.
9. Add the rest of the cheese, butter, and toss for about a minute.
10. Serve with a few Parmesan sprinkles and perhaps some chopped black olives and crumbled Feta.

Notes

For extra protein and taste, you may want to add fried tofu. Alternatively, sliced up portabella would be yummy! If you use tofu, I suggest you pan fry it and then dry it out in a slow oven so that it’s not soft.

Bonus variations: Sauté a little bit of spinach in a little olive oil and salt and pepper. Mix in the spinach just before serving. I also like to add a little re-hydrated sun-dried tomatoes to this dish. Yummy! Sometimes I substitute Parmesan with Reggianito (a lighter, Argentinean version of Reggiano).
Servings: 6
Source: JD Collier

We splurged a little for Father’s Day today.  I made Grilled Portobello with Marinara and Grilled Tarragon Asparagus.

Portobello:

1. Generously rub olive oil, herb de provence, parsley, and sea salt over the mushroom.
2. Grill to perfection.  It works best if you smoke grill these and not open flame grill.
3. Cover with marinara and parmesan.

Asparagus:

1. Combine 4 tbs melted butter and about 1 tbs of tarragon. If you are going to splurge…why not use European style butter which has higher fat content…you can find it with the other butter. I prefer a brand easily found called Pluegra.
2. Pour the butter over the Asparagus, spead it around.
3. Sprinkle some Parmesan over the asparagus…just a little to bake it in.
4. Grill to perfection.  You can either use a foil lined grill, or a veggie grilling tray.
5. Cover with more tarragon and serve.