National Coffee Day

Yesterday was National Coffee Day - a day to celebrate our caffeine habit and get a free cup of coffee at selected coffee houses. For many of us, Coffee Day is the way we start each day. My house offers a steaming pot of brew each morning, this week's flavor is Pumpkin Spice, anticipating the fall season. Yesterday's publicity of National Coffee Day reminded me of the coffee farms we toured in Hawaii. It was interesting to see coffee as a red bean on a short tree/shrub instead of a dark ground product in a bag.
Coffee is, and has historically been, one of Hawaii's main crops. The first coffee plant was introduced to Hawaii through King Kamehameha in 1813. In 1821, the first coffee tree was planted in Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii by a missionary. Thus, the exquisite taste of the cup of Kona coffee had begun. Kona coffee is grown in a 20-mile area that offers just the right temperatures, rainfall, and mix of volcanic soil to produce the distinct flavor. Today the largest coffee farm there has 4 million trees.
There are 715 small coffee farms in the state of Hawaii, some on each island. Hawaii is the only state in the U.S. which grows coffee.

Coffee trees grow in rows in rich volcanic soil that reminded us
of Oklahoma red dirt. 

The trees are not large, and are trimmed every other year or every third year. 

Beans, called cherries, grow in clusters along the stem.
They are harvested after about 7 - 9 months. Each cherry contains
two small beans. 

Beans/cherries may be strip picked with a harvester machine such
as this one or selective picked by hand taking only the ripe cherries. 

Coffee beans are sorted and separated then dried. Other processing includes
hulling, polishing, and roasting.

The folks at Eating Well have given tips for brewing the best cup of coffee. It gives us something to think about, maybe a change of the plastic-can-brand to the grind-it-in-the-store (or at home) varieties. What ever  your habits are, there are some tips you can use:
1. Buy fresh beans
2. Keep beans fresh at home. They suggest to buy only a 5-7 day supply at a time and keep them in a glass canning jar with a tight fitting lid.
3. Choose good coffee - 100% arabica beans.
4. Grind your own.
5. Use good water.
6. Avoid cheap filters.
7. Don't skimp on the coffee. Their formula is 2 level tablespoons of ground coffee for 6 ounces of water/coffee.
8. Beware of the heat, best temperature is 200 degrees.
9. Keep your equipment clean.

The simple cup of morning joe - gives us a lot to think about. Enjoy the brew.

Apples - for health and fun

For church coffee time - Apple Nachos
and sliced apples to dip

There are always apples in our refrigerator. A good snack, quick dessert, and available at a reasonable price, no matter the season. But fall is really apple season and a time I like to try new apple recipes. This fall's debuts were Skillet Apple Crumble and Apple Nachos.
Apples are a healthy food - after all, haven't we always heard "An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away"?. An average apple contains just 75 calories, no fat, and many nutrients including Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Thiamin, Niacin, and Pectin, as well as being a good source of fiber.
There are lots of apple facts and trivia to tell. But instead I'll share another bit of Apple trivia - Do you know why the apple logo on my Mac computer has a bite out of it? To make you think Apple, not cherry! Made you look at the Apple logo, didn't I?

Skillet Apple Crumble

Filling:
 10-12 Granny Smith or Johathan apples

(or a combo), peeled, seeded, and sliced
3 Tbs. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
Topping:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place apples into the bottom of a 12-inch seasoned cast iron skillet; toss with flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt.
In a bowl, combine crumble topping ingredients, then sprinkle prepared topping evenly over apples in skillet; top crumble with chopped pecans.
Bake, uncovered, on center rack of preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until apples are fork-tender and crumble topping is golden brown.
Optional: serve topped with vanilla ice cream, drizzled with warm caramel sauce.

Ready to serve - Thanks, Chef Alli for the recipe.

Caramel Apple Nachos     

Ingredients:
Sliced apples
caramel sauce
chopped peanuts
mini chocolate chips
Instructions: Easy, peasy
arrange slice apples on a serving plate (dip in lemon juice to prevent browning). Drizzle caramel sauce (and chocolate sauce too if you like) over the slices. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and mini chocolate chips.

Apple slices always have a place on the fruit platter
with dip made with Greek yogurt, sour cream, and
brown sugar. 

Fall Flavors - Pork & Sweet Potatoes

   

 Some recipes just say "Fall" and make us think of golden leaves, foggy mornings, and crisp weather. In Kansas fall likes to play 'hide and seek' with us, so although the day I planned this menu was fall-like, the day I made and served it seemed more like summer. But the calendar tells us fall, so we turn our thoughts and tastes to fall dishes...
     Pork Tenderloin is a surprisingly easy cut to prepare. It differs from pork loin and sometimes the two are confused as the names are similar. The tenderloin is a boneless cut from a muscle along the backbone of the hog, it is a thin long cut of meat, making nice medallion-like servings. This cut is very tender (as the name implies) and best cooked at a high temperature for a shorter time. The Loin cut is from the animal's back and can be bone-in or boneless. It is more like a roast and usually in a 3-5 pound cut. It is better cooked in a lower temperature for a longer time to tenderize the meat.
     My recipe was a slow cooker prep that I adapted to the oven, which I thought was more suitable for the tenderloin. I did precook the sweet potatoes to assure they were done when the meat was ready. I also doubled the recipe for a family sized meal and leftovers.

Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Potatoes and Apples

Ingredients:
2 pork tenderloins (about 1.5 pounds each)
3 large sweet potatoes
3 medium apples
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
1/4 cup water

Directions:
1. Peel and cut sweet potatoes into chunks. Cook in boiling water until fork tender.
2. Peel and slice apples.
3. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, thyme, salt, black pepper, cinnamon, ginger, and cayenne pepper.
4. Arrange sweet potatoes in baking pan. Add minced onion and sprinkle with half of spice mixture.
5. Coat pork with remaining spice mixture. Place on top of sweet potatoes in baking pan. Top pork with apples, cranberries, and water.
6. Cook at 425 degrees for 1 1/2 hours, or until pork internal temperature is 145 degrees (medium rare) to 160 degrees (medium).
7. Optional - glaze with a mixture of 2 tablespoons soy sauce and 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and broil for an additional 5 minutes.

Ready to go into the oven

After roasting 1 1/2 hours

We served the sweet potatoes and apples
on the side

Sweet Potato Hash

Sweet Potato Hash by any other name would probably sound sweeter! Why is it that 'Hash" doesn't sound appealing to some of us? When I told my husband the name of this dish, he turned up his nose but later admitted "it was pretty good in spite of the name". Maybe the reputation of being a dish you could throw all the leftovers in is hard to forget.
The definition of 'hash' is diced or chopped meat and potatoes with spices cooked together. Maybe it will help to know the word 'hash' is from the French verb hacher - to chop. If it is French, it must be gourmet! But hash is making a trendy comeback in many modern ways. This recipe doesn't have meat, but has a healthy combination of sweet potatoes, edamame, and corn. It is low in calories and high in nutrition. Sweet potatoes have twice the fiber, twice the calcium and 1300 times more vitamin A than white potatoes. They also have anti-inflammatory characteristics. Edamame is another food that has arrived to be popular now. Edamame beans are immature soybeans in the pod (this recipe uses shelled ones). Often found in cuisine of China, Japan, Korea and Hawaii. They are a different variety than grown in Kansas so don't raid the field of lush green beans we're seeing now!  This legume is full of fiber, vitamins and minerals and low in calories. It also makes a good snack, usually you can buy them fresh or frozen. However, our smaller grocery store didn't have either, so without time for a trip to a larger town, I used Lima beans in my preparation. This worked well also and I think you could substitute some other veggies as you like but the sweet potato really gives good color and flavor.

This recipe was one Chef Alli demonstrated on our cruise, "Friends and Family of Kansas Farm Bureau". It was fun to meet Chef Alli and learn more about her Farm Fresh Kitchen, food programs and website.     https://chefallisfarmfreshkitchen.com

The sweet potato provided by
the ship's kitchen for the demo
was HUGE!

Chef Alli's hash cooking

Sweet Potato Hash with Crispy Bacon and Edamame and Corn  

3-6 slices, bacon

½ tsp. dried thyme

1 yellow onion, diced

1 sweet bell pepper, diced

1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced into 1/4 –inch cubes

2 cloves garlic, minced

12 oz. package frozen sweet corn, thawed

12 oz. package frozen shelled edamame

½ - 1 cup chicken broth

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook bacon until browned and crispy, then remove to paper towels to drain; reserve.

Remove all but 1 T. of bocon drippings from pan; add thyme, onionm bell pepper and sweet potatoes and sauté 5-6 minuts.

Stir in garlic and cook an additional minute; add corn, edamame and chicken broth to ban; reduce heat to medium and cover pan.

Continue to cook, stirring ofte, 12-15 mintues or until sweet potatoes are fork-tender. Add reserved bacon; season with salt and pepper to taste.

The first few ingredients are in the pan

The dish is ready to serve

When serving a new food, it is a good idea
to pair it with an old favorite - meatloaf,
tossed salad, and fresh baked rolls.