If you follow my blog, you likely already know that I am very inspired by apple season this year. Have you gotten in any apple picking yet? If you have tons of apples sitting in your pantry (like I do), it’s time to cook up those apples! If you’re looking for a healthy apple treat, please check out my recent blog post DELICIOUS & HEALTHY KALE APPLE SMOOTHIE. On the flip side, if you want to go for a more indulgent treat, don’t miss my apple pie recipe!

My most prominent apple pie-making memory is associated with my time working at Farmstead Table, a Farm-to-Table restaurant in Newton Center. Our rustic apple tart was always one of the best sellers since the day the restaurant opened. It was also the very first pastry I learned to make with Chef Sharon when I went there for a stage. “Stage” refers to working for a chef for free for one shift when you’re looking for a kitchen job. It’s a good opportunity for the prospective employee to check out the working environment and the supervisor to determine if the candidate will be a good fit. Even today, apple tarts and pies still have very special meaning to me.

 

Now, let me pass on all the skill set and knowledge I’ve learned about apple pies from Chef Sharon to you. Here are the top FAQs of how to make the most luscious apple pies:

Q1. Because apples contain a lot of water, when you bake apples at high temperatures, they release the juices and the pies can become soggy. Is there any way to prevent this from happening?

Yes! Of course! Chef Sharon taught me to make a roux to help solve this problem. Fortunately, roux is very easy to make. You just cook equal parts of butter and flour. Boom! The roux is ready. At Farmstead Table, we also squeeze fresh lemon juice and add it to the roux. The roux will absorb the juice released from apple so the pie crust will not be soggy. The fresh lemon juice provides some acidity to balance the richness of the pie dough. We often add some lemon zest to the pie fillings so the tartness will balance well with the sweetness of the apples.

Q2. There are so many kinds of apples. Does it matter what kind of apple I use?

 

Yes! I suggest you try as many kinds of apples as you can when you go apple picking. Bring a small pairing knife with you so you can cut off slices of an apple to sample them. I think it’s such as waste to bite into one apple and then throw it away. Cooking and baking is all about balance. To create an interesting flavor profile, you want to balance sweetness and tartness. You definitely want some sweet options, such as Jonagold, Fuji or McIntosh. You also want small amount of tart options, as well, such as Granny Smith. You may not be able to find Granny Smith at your farm. If that’s the case, just use the ones that taste more on the tart side to be the counterpart of the sweet ones. Or, you can always go to the local grocery store to supplement.

Q3. What’s the secret to the perfect “flaky” pie dough?

Remember these four words: Cold Butter, Hot Oven. The most important thing to remember when making butter pie dough is to keep the butter cold. Butter has a low melting point which means that the heat from your fingers can soften or melt the butter, allowing it to blend with the flour during the mixing and rolling stages rather than remaining separate. If there is no separation, there are no flakes. Thus, it is best to keep the butter cold.

In fact, temperatures are crucial when it comes to making any perfect pastry. Samin Norat is a well-known chef who I very much admire. Her book “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat” won the 2018 James Beard General Cookbook of the Year. This is how she empathize the importance of handing pastry in the correct temperature in this book.

“…flaky doughs break apart into flakes when you take a bite. Thank of classic American pies and French galettes, with crusts sturdy enough to hold up to a mile-high pile of apples or juicy summer fruits, but delicate enough to produce thin, uneven flakes when sliced. To create that strength, some of the fat is worked into the flour, and a minimal amount of gluten is developed. To achieve the signature flakes of a perfect pie or galette crust, the fat must be very cold so that some of it can remain in distinct pieces. Roll out a properly made pie dough and you will see the chunks of butter. When you slide the pie into a hot oven, the cold pieces of butter, entrapped air, and steam from the water released by the butter, all push apart the layers of dough to create flakes.”

Q4. What kind of butter should I use for my pie dough?

 

When choosing butter, quality counts. Purchase a name brand unsalted butter, which is usually higher quality than the store’s brand. I prefer European style butter, such as Kerrygold Irish butter. Avoid salted butter, which will make your crust too salty. Butter not only adds the best flavor possible to your pie crust, it also browns and crisps the crust better than other fats. Some people swear by using shortening in their crust because its high melting point means there is more time for the dough to set around the flakes of fat, ensuring a very flaky crust. In my opinion, proper technique with the butter dough will produce a flaky crust with a much better flavor. 

Q5. What kind of flour should I use for my pie dough?

For the perfect pie dough, the two key attributes of flour are protein and water absorption. Protein, when combined with liquid (such as water in pie dough) and agitation (such as stirring, kneading and rolling) forms strands of gluten. In pie dough, you want just enough gluten in the dough to provide shape, flakiness and strength to your dough without making it tough.

Types of flour: Cake Flour has very low protein content and will not produce enough gluten to form sufficient structure. Bread flour, which contains a high level of protein, forms strong gluten strands too quickly to be of value in pie making as it produces dry, tough pie crusts. The most recommended flour for pie dough is unbleached all-purpose flour. It is easy to use and is readily available and it produces pie dough which is full of flavor.

Here is the recipe of Sharon’s signature Apple Pie. Happy baking!

 

To Make Sharon’s Pie Dough:

Ingredients

• 3 C All purpose flour
• 12 oz cold butter
• 1t salt
• 1 egg
• 1t red wine vinegar
• 5T water

Directions

1. Place flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor or large mixing bowl. By pulsing or using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour until the butter is the size of small peas.
2. Sprinkle ice water and wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon at a time, over the flour mixture.
3. Pulse or stir mixture until large clumps form. When enough water has been added to allow the dough to hold together, transfer to a lightly floured work surface.
4. Gather the dough together to form a ball. Flatten the dough into a disk about 6 inches wide, cover in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes before using.

To Complete Sharon’s Apple Pie:

Ingredients

• pie dough
• roux
• apples
• coarse sugar
• one lemon juice + zest

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F hi-fan.
2. Roux is almost equal parts flour + butter, slightly excess of flour
3. Pull out roux early in the day
4. Pie dough 85 g each, roll out + chill
5. About 1 apple per tart. Peel and chop thin slice for apple. Set aside.
6. Scatter coarse sugar on table and roll chilled dough round into it until it’s about 8″ (20 cm) diameter. Roll the edges loosely into a crumpled tube — do not over pinch or flatten. It helps to keep the dough chilled so that it stands up.
7. Put a few lumps of soft roux in a container and work it smooth with a spoon handle. Add lemon juice a few drops at a time until tasty.
8. Add any remaining lemon juice to the fruit
9. Add roux paste, sugar and cinnamon to coat the fruit.
10. Spoon the fruit into prepared tart shell.
11. Sprinkle coarse sugar on top. No egg wash needed.
12. Bake 375F in oven until the pies are golden. Rotate the sheet pan once during last third of baking time.
13. If there is a lot of juice that bubbled out, grander tarts to a clean pan with parchment paper.

 Yes! It all sounds easy to make, if you prefer to have a professional to guide you step by step, make an appointment with me! 

What ingredients do you associate with fall? Do you immediately jump to apples, cranberries, or pumpkins? In the past, I’ve shared several blog posts about where to harvest seasonal fruits in the Boston area. Today, I would like to talk about another ingredient that is also in season in New England – the mushroom!

Have you ever been mushroom hunting? If not, you should definitely give it a try. Tyler Akabane, a knowledgeable mushroom hunter/educator and founder of Mushroom for My Friends along with Justin Schoults, the chef of Oak and Rowan, organized a “Mushroom Walk + Greenhouse Dinner” event on Oct 20^th. I have to tell you, it was the most fun and informative tour I have ever done in my life. I know that I must share this experience with you, and I hope it will be inspiring for you when you create your fall holiday dinner menu!

First, let’s briefly talk about foraging. The term “foraging” means to search in a wide area for something, especially food. When we talk about foraging, we have to mention René Redzepi. René Redzepi is a Danish chef and co-owner of the two-Michelin star restaurant Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark. His restaurant was voted the best restaurant in the world by Restaurant Magazine’s World’s Best Restaurants in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. Redzepi is noted for his work on the reinvention and refinement of a new Nordic cuisine and food that is characterized by inventiveness and clean flavors. According to Chef Rene, foraging is important because that’s how we get connected to food we eat and the place we live. Through foraging, we learn from the food that grows in our region – the soil, the climate. Foraging inspires us to think more about the food we consume, especially after you realize some of what we find can be right outside your door. When we forage our food and enjoy it’s original flavor, we pay more respect to the food and the nature. If you’re interested in foraging, download this free app called VILD MAD. Even though it’s tailored for educators in Denmark, I still find it very inspiring. To learn more about VILD MAD, please read Noma’s René Redzepi Has Launched a Mobile Foraging App — It’s like Pokémon Go, but with lingonberries. 

Back to the topic of mushroom hunting. So, where would be a good place to do mushroom hunting in Massachusetts? Tyler and Justin took us to Lynn Reservation, one hour north to Boston. We have harvested good amount of mushrooms and other interesting herbs. Mushrooms grow throughout the year but are most plentiful in the fall. While cultivated mushrooms may be available anytime, most wild mushrooms only appear in autumn. Here is a brief list what you need when you go mushroom hunting:

• Footwear (light to medium hiking)
• Weather appropriate clothing
• Basket, bag and knife
• Bug spray

Another benefit of going mushroom hunting during fall is that there are not as many mosquitoes. I would also suggest you also bring a professional mushroom hunter with you if you are still learning about mushrooms.

​​I found this tour so fascinating because I learned so much about not only the delicious mushrooms but also the deadly mushrooms. For example, one of the most iconic mushrooms, the one with a red cap with white polka dots that you can probably easily find it from your emoji in your I-phone, is poisonous. When you type mushroom, that emoji will come up right away. That’s also the mushroom that Smurfs live. That kind of mushroom is Amanita muscaria, a muscimol mushroom. You should absolutely avoid eating it. We found two other kind of deadly mushroom during the tour, one was called the Angel of Death. Tyler helped us to identify the Angel of Death mushroom from infant stages to the adult stage. According to those who have survived eating Angel of Death, the symptoms are worse than being dead. So, never eat them! Another mushroom we found had a beautiful lavender color, and it is poisonous according to Tyler. Have you heard the expression, “never judge a book from its cover?” This would definitely apply to mushrooms. Many mushrooms that have beautiful colors or shapes are either deadly or poisonous.

Here are some guidelines for wild mushroom hunting and cooking:

1. Never taste raw mushrooms. Always have the professional mushroom hunter to check if all the mushrooms you harvested are safe to eat. Since there could be worms or other creatures live in the mushroom, never eat them raw.
2. When you cook wild mushrooms, start with small amount. Even though some of mushrooms, such as honey mushroom and hen of the woods, are save to eat, each individual will react differently to different mushrooms. It’s better to start with smaller amount.
3. When you try wild mushrooms for the first time, don’t combine multiple species. Start with one specie of mushroom so you can see how your body react to it.
4. When you collect the wild mushrooms in the woods, try to clean out the dirt or sand. If you place the mushroom full of dirt or sand in your basket, the dirt will get into all the mushrooms.
5. Try to look for young mushrooms. The younger the mushroom is, the more delicious it is. The old mushroom is also more likely to have other worms and creatures living in them.
6. Do not soak your mushrooms in water to wash them. Try to do a dry clean instead. For more information, read The Secret to Crispy Mushrooms? Don’t Wash ‘Em from Bon Appetit Magazine  

Besides poisonous mushrooms, did we find any delicious mushroom after hours of hunting? Of course! We found a cluster of hen of the woods. Hen of the woods is a polypore mushroom that grows in clusters at the base of trees, particularly oaks. The mushroom is commonly known among English speakers as hen of the woods, ram’s head or sheep’s head. It is typically found in late summer to early autumn. In the United States’ supplement market, as well as in Asian grocery stores, the mushroom is known by its Japanese name maitake (舞茸, “dancing mushroom”). Maitake is one of the most promising medicinal mushrooms. Like other polypores, maitake contains polysaccharides that stimulate the immune system. Hen of the woods usually grow against the base of oak trees. If you’re looking for hen of the woods, look for oak tree leaves first! Here is a picture of oak tree leaf. 

When I was working at Blue Ginger, I used to love our house coffee because Chef Ming blended maitake mushrooms with the ground coffee powder. It was very aromatic and delicious. Chef Ming also demonstrated how to make a super easy stir-fry dish using maitake mushrooms on one of his Simply Ming series. Since I happened to have most of the ingredients at home, I decided to make it for my breakfast using the hen of the woods mushrooms that I just harvested. I found this dish to be very easy to make. The key for success is to get the high quality ingredients. I used orange E.VO.O. from Ravida (to learn more about Ravida E.V.O.O, read my blog post ZUCCHINI 3 WAYS | RECIPE 2&3: ZUCCHINI FRITTATA AND ZUCCHINI GALETTE). If you like oyster mushrooms, you will LOVE hen of the woods. It has the meaty texture and abundance of umami. Here is my recipe of Quick Orange Maitake Stir Fry. Happy foraging and cooking!

 

Orange Maitake Stir Fry Ingredients

• Minced ginger
• Two oranges (prefer blood orange)
• Scallions (optional)
• Hen of the woods (Maitake mushroom)

5-Step Quick Orange Maitake Stir Fry

1. Tear the hen of the woods. Julianne the huge stem of the mushrooms.
2. Juice one orange. Cut one orange.
3. Heat the oil and cook some minced ginger. Add scallions
4. Cook the stem of the mushroom, and then add the rest of the mushroom.
5. Pour the orange juice. Cook until it gets thick. Finally add the orange! Viola!

Mushroom hunting is not as hard as you might think. You just need to bring in a professional! Contact Tyler Akabane http://mushroomsformyfriends.com/ (tylerakabane@gmail.com) for any private class or mushroom hunting tour.

Want to learn how to cook savory and sweet dishes using the mushrooms you harvested? Book an in-home cooking lesson with me. I am going to share an amazing mushroom ice cream recipe in the coming blog post. Stay tuned!

It’s officially well into apple season here in the Northeast. Have you done any apple picking yet this fall? If you have and you’re like me, you’ve got quite an abundance of apples now! Don’t know what to do with all of them? That’s why I am here to help. Let me share some good recipes with you!

Apple picking is an important experience for me and my children every fall. I recently discovered a lovely farm out in the Metro West area that I must share with you. It’s Tougus Family Farm in Northborough. This farm is perfect for people with or without children. It’s very family friendly. Many young couples go for an apple picking date, too. For those who have children: they offer hay ride and face painting. There are two playgrounds. One for younger children and one for older children. There are also some cute animals and a wooden bridge for the goats to walk around. My children always have a blast there. There are burger shack for lunch and Snack shack (selling apple cider donuts) next to the apple trees. So you don’t need to worry if your children will ever get hungry. The price is very reasonable as compared to Belkin Family Lookout Farm. My advice is to get there as early as possible, though. This farm gets extremely crowded in the afternoon.

As I mentioned in STAY BEAUTIFUL. STAY HEALTHY: 5 SECRETS TO KEEPING YOUR BODY TONED WHILE ENJOYING GOOD FOOD & WINE!, a balanced “nice” and “naughty” diet is very important for establishing long-term health and wellness. With that in mind, let me share the “nice” recipe with you first!

This apple kale smoothie is absolutely delicious. Personally, I need to have it every week.

As you may know, apples are very rich in fiber. One single, medium-sized apple contains about 4 grams of fiber, about 17% of the recommended daily intake. Kale is loaded with powerful antioxidants like Quercetin and Kaempferol. This smoothie is a healthy and tasty treat that brightens my morning!

I usually pre-make enough smoothie for two days and place it in a huge glass bottle. In the morning, I usually have my hands full with my children. Since I have no time to have breakfast for myself, I can just bring it to the car and drink it when I drive both kids to school.

If you’re trying to grow some lean muscle, I would suggest you add some hemp protein powder into the smoothie. The protein will also keep you feel full longer. You can enjoy the smoothie after the workout.

 ​​

This past summer, I went to Russo’s at Watertown. I really like this super market because they have a good selection of both Asian and Western ingredients. Their prices are mostly quite reasonable and the quality is good. They also have an amazing herb collection. I purchased a pot of pineapple sage and the aroma is absolutely heavenly. I add it into my apple kale smoothies – so delicious and refreshing! This is the must-try smoothie recipe if you have so many apples at home after apple picking!! 

 

Apple Kale Smoothie Recipe:

• ½ Cup Water
• 1 Cup Grapes
• ½ Orange
• ½ Apple
• 2 Cups Kale
• 2 Cups ice cubes

Add all the ingredients to the juice blender.

Looking for more apple-inspired recipes this fall? Book an in-home lesson and master cooking with apples!

Sample Menu: 

Braised Chicken with Cider, Apples and Cream, and Caramel Apple Tartlets 

 

 

Starting this month, I am going to share with you one reasonably healthy recipe with exotic spin each month. So, where should we start? How about Thailand! I’ve taught two Thai cooking classes this summer and the feedback has been very positive. I have been to Thailand once, and I will definitely go back again. But, why I love Thai food so much? Good question. First, it’s a cuisine with strong aromatic components and a spicy edge. Some of the ingredients contribute mainly for aroma, such as lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime leaves. Second, Thai food is well balanced. Classic Thai cuisine often combines different flavors: spicy (chili), sour (Vinegar, lime), salty (fish sauce), and, last but not least, sweet (palm sugar).

 

So, here is my favorite banana smoothie recipe…with Thai spin. First, in terms of the base, I choose coconut milk rather than almond, cashew, or soy milk. That’s because coconut milk is very common in Thailand. In the beginning, I tried to use the coconut milk from a can that I bought at an Asian supermarket. But, I found that this type of coconut milk contains too much fat, so I switched to the fresh coconut milk in the paperboard carton. The texture came out so much nicer with this type of milk, and it’s also fewer calories. Here is the unsweetened coconut milk I use. You can easily find this in Wegman’s or Whole Foods.

One important ingredient in this recipe is kaffir lime leaves. The leaves of the kaffir lime tree have a distinctive citrus fragrance and flavor with a floral accent. The flavor and aroma of the leaves is quite different from those provided by other citrus plants. It can be described as being a combination of lemon, lime and mandarin orange. The flavor is so pronounced and unusual that I suggest omitting the leaves if you cannot find them, rather than try to replace them. In addition to their flavor being unique, kaffir lime leaves are also very potent. They can easily overpower other less assertive flavors, so I suggest you only use one leaf for the smoothie. The good news is that kaffir lime leaves freeze well. I bought a small bag (about 12 leaves) and placed them it a sealed Ziploc. Every time I make the smoothie, I just take one leave out from the Ziploc. (To learn more about the health benefit of kaffir lime leaves, read Kaffir Lime Leaves: A Controversial Name For A Flavorful Herb ). If you’re looking to purchase them, you can find Kaffir Lime leaves at H-mart or Formosa Asian Marketplace. 

 

Entering fall, it is very important to consume some root vegetables that will warm your body. So, consider adding some ginger to the smoothie. Ginger makes the smoothie tastes so refreshing and also increases circulation for tissue healing. It’s perfect to drink after a challenging workout. Turmeric is another important spice. Turmeric contains curcumin, a substance with powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Most studies used turmeric extracts that are standardized to include large amounts of curcumin. (To learn more about turmeric, read 10 Proven Health Benefits of Turmeric and Curcumin). Lastly, another important ingredient is chia seeds, I talked about its health benefit in my blog post POWER BREAKFAST INSPIRED BY A POWER COUPLE – MEGHAN AND HARRY )

 

So far, this has been my favorite smoothie recipe of the fall. I hope you will love it, too! Bon Appetite! Just to remind you, even though it’s a healthy smoothie, the calories count in this recipe is 530 per serving. So, don’t drink a full one both before and after every work out! I usually drink one third before work out, and then I finish the rest after workout. The protein power is also helpful if you want to build some muscle. 

Melissa’s Thai Coconut Banana Smoothie Recipe (530 Calories per serving)

 

INGREDIENTS FOR THAI COCONUT BANANA SMOOTHIE

• 1 banana
• 2 Tbs almond butter
• 1 Tbs. chia seeds
• 2″ piece fresh ginger
• 1/8 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
• 1½ cups almond milk
• 2 ice cubes
• 1 date
• 1 scoop protein powder (optional) 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THAI COCONUT BANANA SMOOTHIE

1. In a high-speed blender, blend all ingredients on medium until smooth.

Loving this taste of Thailand?

Book an in-home lesson with me and learn how to cook Thai food.

Choose one appetizer, one entrée and one dessert from the menu listed below.

 

Appetizer: Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce /Curried Corn Fritters/Green Mango Salad

Entrée: Red Curry Chicken / Chicken with Holly Basil/Pad See Ew with Chicken/Pad Thai

Dessert: Grilled Pineapple with Caramel Sauce/Grilled Bananas with Sesame Seeds/Jasmine Rice Pudding/Coconut Pudding with Seasonal Fruit