Apple Tart from GARDENING THE AMANA WAY, by Lawrence L. Rettig

Have some apples to use up? Try this delicious apple tart from Gardening the Amana Way, by Lawrence L. Rettig.

Apple Tart

2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup butter
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups peeled, sliced apples
1/3 cup apricot or peach jam, mixed with 1/4 cup sugar
Extra milk and sugar

Combine flour, sugar, and baking powder and cut in butter until crumbly. In another bowl, mix egg with milk and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and mix well. Knead gently on lightly floured surface until smooth. Cover and chill one-third of dough. Pat remainder on bottom and up sides of a 9- or 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Arrange apples over pastry. Top with jam/sugar mixture. Roll remaining dough into ten-inch circle and cut into strips. Arrange lattice-style over apples and tuck in edges. Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for forty-five to fifty minutes.

Badam Burfi (Sweet Almond Confection)—from BITING THROUGH THE SKIN, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau

Looking for a snack? Try this recipe from Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau.

Badam Burfi (Sweet Almond Confection)

Makes 20 pieces

1 cup almonds, finely ground
1/3 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
2 tablespoons butter

Grease a 6 x 6-inch shallow pan with butter. In a medium-sized saucepan, blend the ground almonds with the milk. Add the sugar and stir vigorously for 2 minutes. Place on the stove and cook and stir the almond mixture over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add the 2 tablespoons butter and continue to stir constantly until the mixture thickens and starts to leave the sides of the pan (about 6 minutes). Add the cardamom powder and remove pan from heat. Stir the mixture vigorously with a spoon for 3 minutes until it has the consistency of bread batter.Pour about 1/4 inch of the almond mixture into the prepared greased pan. Smooth the surface with the back of a spoon. Let cool for about 20 minutes. Cut into diamond shapes. Cool completely and store pieces in an airtight container, where they will last 1 week, or 2 months if refrigerated.

Your Own Maple Syrup—from UP A COUNTRY LANE COOKBOOK

Want a taste of the fall colors? Try making your own maple syrup with this recipe from Up a Country Lane Cookbook, by Evelyn Birkby.

Your Own Maple Syrup

2 cups white sugar
2 cups brown sugar, packed
2 cups white corn syrup
2 cups water
2 teaspoons maple flavoring

Combine ingredients and cook, stirring, until sugars are dissolved and mixture boils. Simmer about 5 minutes. Serve hot on pancakes, waffles, or french toast. Store in covered jar in refrigerator. Makes 5 cups.

Moshla Cha (tea with a mixture of spices) recipe—from BITING THROUGH THE SKIN

Have a hot drink in this cooling weather from Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau.

Moshla Cha (Tea with a mixture of spices)

Serves 6

Mixture to make ahead of time and use as needed for tea:
4 tablespoons ground ginger
2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
2 tablespoons green cardamom seeds
1 tablespoon whole cloves

Pot of tea
Milk and sugar to taste

Grind the spices in a clean coffee grinder. Store the mixture in an airtight container and add 1/2 teaspoon to a pot of hot water, add tea leaves, and steep for 3 to 5 minutes. Strain as you pour into cups and serve with milk and sugar.

Apple Tart from GARDENING THE AMANA WAY, by Lawrence L. Rettig

Have some apples to use up? Try this delicious apple tart from Gardening the Amana Way, by Lawrence L. Rettig.

Apple Tart

2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup butter
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups peeled, sliced apples
1/3 cup apricot or peach jam, mixed with 1/4 cup sugar
Extra milk and sugar

Combine flour, sugar, and baking powder and cut in butter until crumbly. In another bowl, mix egg with milk and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and mix well. Knead gently on lightly floured surface until smooth. Cover and chill one-third of dough. Pat remainder on bottom and up sides of a 9- or 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Arrange apples over pastry. Top with jam/sugar mixture. Roll remaining dough into ten-inch circle and cut into strips. Arrange lattice-style over apples and tuck in edges. Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for forty-five to fifty minutes.

Poppy Seed Dressing for Spinach Salad from GARDENING THE AMANA WAY, by Lawrence L. Rettig

Fall is approaching, but that's no matter for hardy greens like spinach. Try your next salad with this dressing from Gardening the Amana Way, by Lawrence L. Rettig.

Poppy Seed Dressing

1 cup salad oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 tablespoon grated onion
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Spinach

In blender at medium speed, blend all dressing ingredients (save the spinach) until mixed. Dressing will be thick. Drizzle on spinach as desired. Store in tightly covered jar in refrigerator. Stir well before using. Makes about one and one-half cups.

Nonta Lassie (salty yogurt drink) recipe—from BITING THROUGH THE SKIN

Last week we did a sweet cool yogurt drink, this week we'll do salty. Try this Nonta Lassie recipe from Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau.

Nonta Lassie (salty yogurt drink)

Makes 1 drink

1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup water with ice
salt to taste
fresh cilantro sprig (optional)

Blend the ingredients in an electric blender and serve. Garnish with a sprig of fresh cilantro if desired.

Mishti Lassie (sweet yogurt drink) recipe—from BITING THROUGH THE SKIN

Need something to cool down this summer? Try this Mishti Lassie recipe from Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau.

Mishti Lassie (sweet yogurt drink)

Makes 1-2 drinks

1 ripe mango or banana or papaya, peeled and pureed
2 teaspoons honey or sugar (to taste)
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, steeped in 2 teaspoons hot water (optional)
1 cup water with ice
2 tablespoons lemon juice (to taste)
1 cup plain yogurt

Blend all of the above ingredients in an electric blender, crushing the ice. Lovely served chilled. Optional garnishes for each glass: 1/4 teaspoon crushed pistachio nuts or a sprig of fresh mint.

Robert's Favorite Homemade Ice Cream Recipe

This recipe comes from Up a Country Lane Cookbook, by Evelyn Birkby--just in time for the hottest days of summer!

2 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 cups milk, scalded
6 eggs, beaten
1 quart half-and-half or whipping cream
1 to 2 tablespoons vanilla flavoring

Combine sugar, flour, and salt in a saucepan. Add scalded milk and cook over medium heat, stirring, until thick. Stir a little of this custard mixture into the beaten eggs, then return all to the hot mixture and cook another minute. Remove from heat and cool. Combine half-and-half or whipping cream and flavoring and stir into cooked mixture. Pour into a 1-gallon freezer can. Put ice and rock salt around the freezer can. Turn the crank until the mixture is frozen, replenishing the ice and salt as needed. This can also be made with an electric ice cream freezer. Makes 32 half-cup servings, but no one wants to stop there, so plan on serving about 16.

Amana Pickled Ham recipe

The University of Iowa Press is making Easter preparation easy for you this year by providing an Easter ham recipe from Lawrence L. Rettig's Gardening the Amana Way. Now all that's left to worry about is where to hide the eggs!

Amana Pickled Ham
4 cups cubed ham
1 large sliced onion
2 cups water
1 cup vinegar

Combine all ingredients and let stand at room temperature for four hours, then refrigerate.

Bon appétit!

Interview with Jenifer Angerer of New Pioneer Co-op, pt. 2

New Pioneer Co-op has been providing the Iowa City corridor with fresh, organic, and locally grown food since 1971. For decades, they have paved the way for other Iowa markets interested in providing their own communities with local, organic food. Today, New Pi has expanded to be more than just a grocery store. The market has grown, and New Pi plans to open a new store in Cedar Rapids early next year. The University of Iowa Press asked Jenifer Angerer, the marketing manager, some questions about the expansion, what New Pi offers its members, and the future of buying local and organic.

Alemar Cheese at New Pioneer Co-op, image from Facebook

Why do you think supplying the community with locally and regionally grown food is important?

When you support your local farmers and producers, you are putting your money back in to the community in which you live. You are also reducing the carbon footprint your food consumption leaves on the planet, and local food is about as fresh as you can get (short of growing it yourself). Iowa is one of the world’s largest producers of agricultural crops, yet we import over 90% of the food we eat. In Iowa, we don’t grow many crops for human consumption, and we’d love to see that focus shift.

Why do you think there has been an increase in demand for local and organic foods in the past few years? Do you think the trend will continue or level off?

Community concern and awareness about “where their food comes from” continues to expand into the mainstream and we believe this trend will continue. With global warming and other environmental issues continuing to be a major concern for the world, finding ways to improve our collective carbon footprint will continue to grow.

The dishes on your food blog look delicious! Who writes the posts and makes the dishes? Does everything come from food available at New Pi?

Thank you! Our Catalyst newsletter Editor, Allison Gnade, writes and cooks most of the posts, though other staff members and co-op member-owners contribute to the blog as well. Our Co-op community is deep in food knowledge and, at this time when cooking knowledge is disappearing, it seems like a shame not to share what we know. And yes, the great ingredients come from the Co-op shelves. Flavorful ingredients make it easy to put a delicious meal on the table! We love sharing hidden gems from the store, like our 32-Bean Soup Mix, cooking seasonally, and sharing cooking tips and tricks.

Can you tell us more about the Earth Source Gardens? What's growing there now?

Earth Source Gardens is a community garden offering over 60 garden plots to New Pioneer member-owners, who have the opportunity to sign up annually for a plot to grow annual vegetables and flowers organically (plot registration is available through March 25!). New Pioneer has planted orchards, berry bushes, and annual demonstration plots in the garden for community enjoyment and education as well. Everyone’s welcome to community Garden Parties during the summer – stay tuned for our Equinox party in June – we’d love to see you there!

Elegant Strawberry Pie recipe

Happy Valentine's Day! If you haven't eaten yourself into a sugar coma yet, here's a dessert recipe for a night with your loved one.

Elegant Strawberry Pie
4 cups whole strawberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup strawberry gelatin
1 pie crust, baked

Mix cornstarch, sugar, and water. Heat until thickened, stirring constantly. Add gelatin. Cool until lukewarm. Gently stir in berries and chill until set.

Gardening the Amana Way, by Lawrence L. Rettig

Potato Rolls recipe

There's nothing quite as satisfying as warm bread in the dead of winter. Today, we're sharing one of our favorite bread recipes from Gardening the Amana Way. Enjoy!

Potato Rolls
3 to 4 cups flour
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
3 tablespoons sugar
2 packages quick-rise yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups water (tap or reserved from cooking potatoes)
3 tablespoons butter

Combine two cups flour, mashed potatoes, sugar, yeast, and salt in large bowl. Heat water and butter to 130 degrees. Stir into yeast mix. Add enough flour to make soft dough. Knead until smooth and elastic. Cover and let rest ten minutes. Divide dough into sixteen pieces and shape into balls. Place into two greased 9-inch cake pans. Cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 400 degrees for about twenty minutes. Can also be shaped into a bread loaf.

Gardening the Amana Way, by Lawrence L. Rettig

Mom's Tomato Soup recipe

It's cold, and spring is nowhere in sight here in Iowa City, Iowa. In an effort to keep us a little warmer, here's a great tomato soup recipe from Lawrence L. Rettig, author of Gardening the Amana Way.

Mom's Tomato Soup
1 quart tomatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
1 large sprig parsley
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 tablespoon flour, dissolved in tomato juice

Combine first five ingredients and simmer, stirring occasionally, until all vegetables are soft. Transfer to ricer and rice. Pour riced vegetables and tomato juice into saucepan. Add flour–tomato juice mixture. Add sugar and salt to taste. Heat, stirring occasionally.

Gardening the Amana Way, by Lawrence L. Rettig

New Year's Eve Pizza recipe

New Year's might be over, but for those of you who aren't quite ready to head back to work, here's one of our favorite New Year's recipes!

New Year's Eve Pizza

Crust
1 package yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 egg, beaten
3 1/2 cups flour

Stir yeast into 1/4 cup lukewarm water. Add sugar and let dissolve. In a bowl combine the rest of the water, salt, olive oil, and egg. Stir in the yeast mixture. Add enough flour to make a dough which can be kneaded. Knead well. Put in greased bowl and cover with a damp towel. Let rise until double. Punch down and refrigerate while you prepare the topping. Remove dough from refrigerator and cut into two parts. Pat each part into a pizza pan, stretching and spreading to cover. Fill and bake immediately. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes. Makes 2 large pizzas.

Pizza Filling
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 4-ounce can mushrooms, stems and pieces, drained
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon pepper
salt to taste
1/2 pound mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Brown ground beef and onion in olive oil. Drain off excess fat. Stir in mushrooms, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and seasonings. Remove from fire. Put slices of mozzarella cheese over dough in pizza pans. Spoon half the meat mixture into each pan, covering the cheese. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the top. Other meats can be used besides the one given. Freezes well unbaked, tightly wrapped in freezer plastic wrap. Bake, unthawed, until done.

Bon appétit!

Up a Country Lane Cookbook, by Evelyn Birkby

Mangsho (Aromatic Lamb Curry with Potatoes) recipe

Happy New Year! To celebrate, why not try a new Indian dish from Biting through the Skin by Nina Furstenau?

Mangsho (Aromatic Lamb Curry with Potatoes)

Serves 6–8

8 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1/2 to 1 green chili, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds lamb (beef can be substituted), boned and cut into  1-inch cubes
2 tomatoes, chopped, or (1) 14-ounce can of tomatoes
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1 pound medium potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
2 1/2 cups water
1 bunch cilantro, chopped, stems discarded

Heat the oil in a large, heavy stockpot over high heat. When hot, put in the onion and stir-fry until the onions begin to brown. Add the green chili and garlic. Put in the meat and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Put in the tomatoes, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cayenne pepper, and salt. Continue to cook on high heat for 10–15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the potatoes and the water. Add the cilantro. Cover, leaving the lid slightly ajar, and cook on low heat for about 1 hour and 10 minutes (1 1/2 hours for beef).

Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland, by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau

Give an Iowa Cookbook this Season!

Still holiday shopping? The University of Iowa Press is currently holding our annual holiday sale. We've got great books covering a wide range of topics and interests for up to 65% off. Buy some for your loved ones or buy some for yourself!

Here are just a few of the books that are on sale now…

Gardening the Amana Way
by Lawrence L. Rettig
Bur Oak Book

As a child of parents who were part of the communal life of the Amana Society, Larry Rettig pays homage to the Amana gardening tradition and extends it into the twenty-first century and extends his gardening advice into the kitchen. He shares family recipes for radish salad, dumpling soup, Amana pickled ham, apple bread, and more!

Regular Price: $27.50
Sale Price: $15.00

A Cook's Tour of Iowa
by Susan Puckett
Bur Oak Book

"This book may shock the food snobs of America because Iowa's down-home cuisine is not dull after all."--Des Moines Register

"…a combination oral history and cookbook which should delight aficionados of Americana."--Cookbook Digest

"Puckett tapped into the culture of America's Middle West and the result is a book that will give Iowans cause for pride."--World of Cookbooks

Regular Price: $23.00
Sale Price: $5.00

Interview with Nina Furstenau: part 2

Nina Mukerjee Furstenau is the author of Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America’s Heartland, just published this month. University of Iowa Press editor Catherine Cocks asked her a few questions about the book and her experience growing up in Pittsburg, Kansas, in the 1960s and 1970s.

CC: You note in the book that it was hard to find the basic ingredients for Indian food in small-town Kansas in the 1960s. Today a far wider range of foods appears in grocery stores and there are restaurants specializing in many different cuisines. Do you think this greater variety affects the way immigrants and native-born Americans interact with each other now?

NF: I like to think so. As people are exposed to cultures through food, perhaps the avenues to greater understanding are widened. It’s hard to be completely alienated from a culture when you love its food.

CC: Why did you decide to join the Peace Corps after college?

NF: I wanted to help people. I feel strongly that this drive stemmed from watching a young boy in India begging for food. I was six, he was younger than me and had such a different life. The memory of how he reached out to catch a banana I threw him and how, in order to eat it before the older children could take it away, he bit through bitter peel, was the catalyst for so many things in my life, including the book. Of course, I also joined Peace Corps because it sounded fun and I wanted to see and explore the world.

CC: Of the recipes you include in the book, which one would you recommend as a good place to start for someone who’s never made Indian food before?

NF: I would try chicken curry. It’s easy, delicious, and incorporates all the traditional flavors of Bengal: cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, and bay. Be patient, let it simmer in its spices, and the aroma will enfold your kitchen, maybe your heart.

Murgi (Chicken Curry)
Serves 4

Take 1 whole chicken, skin, cut into pieces, and set aside (or use boneless, skinless chicken pieces, cut into approximately 1 x 2-inch pieces). One pound cubed lamb or beef can also be used.

2–3 tablespoons oil
4 whole cloves
1/2 stick cinnamon
4 whole cardamom pods
1 bay leaf
1 dried red chili pepper
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 medium onions, chopped
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger, or about 1 inch of fresh ginger root, mashed
1/4–1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon turmeric salt to taste
1/4 teaspoon fresh garlic, mashed
1/2 cup yogurt or sour cream or 1/2 of a medium tomato
1/4 teaspoon garam masala (optional)

Cover the bottom of a heavy pan with vegetable oil and heat. When hot, drop in the whole spices and let sizzle for about 30 seconds. Add the onions and stir-fry until the onions begin to brown at the edges. Push them to the side and add the sugar. Stir the sugar in the hot oil until it begins to caramelize and is mostly dissolved. Put in the cut-up chicken pieces. Stir-fry the chicken with the onions until the chicken begins to turn brown. Add the ginger, cayenne, garlic, and salt. Lower heat, add a little water if necessary, and fry until the meat is well coated with the spices (20–25 minutes—this long simmer is essential to bring out the flavor of the finished dish). Add about 1 cup water. Loosely cover the pan and simmer until heated through (5 minutes). Add yogurt, sprinkle a little garam masala into  the pan if you have it, and simmer an additional 5–10 minutes. Serve hot.

Biting through the Skin: An Indian Kitchen in America's Heartland by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau