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Carrot and Leek Pie with The Harvest Baker

November 7, 2017 by Erika

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this cookbook in exchange for my honest review.  All photos and opinions contained in this post are my own. Erika Bault is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Before I started to learning about or even caring about local, seasonal food, one of my favorite meals was this chicken in leek cream sauce with a side of asparagus.  WHAT?!  Asparagus and leeks couldn't really be further apart as far as growing seasons go with asparagus being an early spring treat and leeks being a fall and winter crop.

Now I have such a hard time when I'm looking at recipes on Pinterest because I see so many with ingredients that don't come from the same growing season.  But with a supermarket mentality, where everything is available year-round, we as consumers don't usually know what season something should actually be bought and consumed.  This is why I advocate so strongly for people to start growing at least some of their own produce and visit farmers markets or join CSAs.  This is also the biggest reason I am in love with the new cookbook from Ken Haedrich, The Harvest Baker.

In The Harvest Baker you find recipes that keep things seasonal.  No asparagus and leek pairings here.  And as a gardener, I get excited about new ways to use our produce.  Most of the recipes include vegetables or fruits that we already grow or buy locally, so I can feel good about meal planning from this cookbook because I know that it will encourage me to eat more sustainably.

When I was approached by Storey Publishing about this cookbook and trying out the recipes, I was immediately excited about the Carrot and Leek Pie because I knew that we should have both leeks and carrots ready soon.  Unfortunately, before I got the recipe made, something destroyed my leeks.  I was however able to use two different kinds of carrots and parsley from our garden and our own eggs.  I can't tell you how accomplished I feel when I can make a meal with ingredients we have made from scratch or grown.

In this recipe I used the vegetable broth, which is easy to make yourself as well if you don't want to go the store-bought route.  And I chose to use the Monterey Jack cheese because our local grocery didn't have Havarti.

This pie, especially if you grew some of the ingredients yourself, will be a stunner at any Thanksgiving potluck this season.  It is packed with veggies but has a richness that won't make your fellow diners feel like they're being deprived of that delicious home-cooked goodness we all expect at Thanksgiving.

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I hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as we did.  AND as a special bonus, I've partnered with Storey Publishing to give one lucky reader the cookbook, The Harvest Baker by Ken Haedrich!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Carrot and Leek Pie
2017-11-06 16:22:23
Serves 8
Excerpted from The Harvest Baker, © by Ken Haedrich, used with permission from Storey Publishing.
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Ingredients
  1. 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  2. 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
  3. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  4. 1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  5. 1/3 cup ice-cold water
  6. 3 thick leeks, white and pale green parts only
  7. 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
  8. 1 pound carrots, peeled and grated
  9. 1/4 cup chicken stock or vegetable stock
  10. Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  11. 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
  12. 2 large eggs
  13. 1 cup cottage cheese
  14. 1 cup grated Havarti cheese or Monterey Jack cheese
  15. 5 tablespoons Italian-style bread crumbs
  16. 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or dill (or 1 tablespoon of each)
Instructions
  1. Combine the flour, cornstarch, and salt in a food processor. Pulse several times to mix. Remove the lid and scatter the butter over the dry ingredients. Pulse the machine 8 to 10 times, until all of the butter is broken into small pieces, none larger than the size of a split pea.
  2. Add the water through the feed tube in a 5- to 10-second stream, pulsing the machine as you add it. Stop pulsing the machine when the mixture is still fairly crumbly but starting to form larger clumps. Turn the mixture out onto your work surface and shape it into a 3/4- to 1-inch-thick disk. The best way to do this and keep your hands off the dough (the warmth from your hands will make the dough sticky) is to place two long pieces of plastic wrap on your work surface, overlapping them by several inches. Dump the dough mixture in the middle, grasp and scrunch up the edges of the plastic, lift the plastic, and pull the mixture toward the center. When your hands meet in the middle, press down on the dough with your fists, to flatten it out somewhat; then move your hands around the plastic and repeat several times to make a round disk. If this sounds confusing, just remember that all you’re trying to do is form a dough disk without actually touching the dough.
  3. Wrap up the dough in a fresh sheet of plastic, and refrigerate for 11/2 to 2 hours before rolling.
  4. On a sheet of lightly floured waxed paper, roll the dough into a 12- to 12 1/2-inch circle. Invert the pastry over a standard (not deep dish) 9- or 9 1/2-inch pie pan, center it, and peel off the paper. Gently tuck the pastry into the pan without stretching it. Sculpt the overhanging dough into an upstanding ridge; flute the edges, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or place in the freezer for 30 minutes.
  5. Quarter the leeks lengthwise up to the root end, but don’t cut through the end. Fan out the sections and rinse them under running water to wash out any sand and grit. Slice the leeks thinly. Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large sauté pan. Stir in the leeks. Cook over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until wilted, stirring often. Stir in the carrots and cook for another couple of minutes. Add the stock, and salt and pepper the vegetables with a light hand. Cover the pan and cook the vegetables gently for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and stir in the vinegar. Set aside to cool.
  6. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Whisk the eggs and cottage cheese in a large bowl. Whisk in 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add the cooled vegetables, Havarti, 2 tablespoons of the bread crumbs, and parsley. Mix gently but thoroughly.
  7. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the remaining bread crumbs over the pie shell. Turn the filling into the shell and smooth with a spoon. Sprinkle the remaining 3 tablespoons of bread crumbs evenly on top and dot with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the top has developed a rich golden-brown crust. Transfer to a rack and cool for 20 to 30 minutes before serving. Refrigerate leftovers. Reheat individual slices on a baking sheet or in the pan, loosely covered with foil, in a 300°F (150°C) oven for about 12 minutes.
Notes
  1. Excerpt from The Harvest Baker, ©
  2. "I love big flavors and bold seasonings, but some of the most successful dishes happen when ingredients get to speak softly for themselves. That is the case with this one, one of the most popular garden pies I make. First we gently sauté the carrots and leeks in butter to help bring out their sweetness. The remaining ingredients mostly serve to bind everything together, not influence the flavor; we want the carrots and leeks to shine. The pie has a moist, compact texture, and each slice has a gorgeous profile, a mosaic of finely textured carrots and leeks. If you use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock, this pie will please vegetarians immensely. I’ll usually serve it as the main dish with sautéed greens on the side."
By Ken Haedrich
Full & Simple https://fullandsimple.com/

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Filed Under: Recipes Tagged With: book, book review, carrot, gardening, Ken Haedrich, leek, local food, Main Dish, Main Dishes, pie, recipe, seasonal eating, The Harvest Baker

Home Cooked

May 9, 2016 by Erika

Full & Simple Book Review Home Cooked

Simplicity in food seems to be the "it" thing today.  We (Americans) all seem to want to get back to real, local ingredients when we cook.  We're tired of processed food and counting calories.  That's why I was so excited to read through and review Home Cooked by Anya Fernald.

Fernald got a fellowship immediately following her college education that allowed her to spend a year working at cheese dairies in Europe and northern Africa.  She says that this is where she "learned to eat."  I think that it is quite humorous that Fernald's methods are said to be that of cucina povera, or that of the frugal Italian peasant.  

In Italy, McDonald's is a place to be seen because it means that you have the extra money to spend on eating out.  It is the less wealthy Italian that has to eat organic or locally grown food.  Isn't that incredible?!  Here in America, McDonald's Dollar Menu is what you eat from when you barely have anything left for food.  But it seems that life is slower in Europe, and oh how I long for that.

I have talked before about how meal planning is the only way to go to save on groceries around here, but I my favorite story in the cookbook was when Fernald and friends were casually discussing the desire to eat urchin and within a few hours they had a plan and were diving for urchin and then made spaghetti ai ricci on the beach.  Doesn't that sound AMAZING?!  To just decide you want to eat something and go out and catch it?  I love that!

The Italians as described by Fernald made a habit of canning and preserving food while it was in season so that it could be enjoyed later, which is what we are trying to do more of.  There is also very little waste as even bones are used to make broths.  I've also been trying to do this with our chicken bones.  I rarely buy broth any more.

Home Cooked Large

The single most life changing recipe that I found in the book so far would have to be the sofritto.  It is mixture of olive oil, onions, carrots and celery stalks that is cooked ahead and then frozen to be used later in soups and sauces.  So many soups and even many tomato sauces call for these ingredients to be sauteed first, but by making a large batch ahead of time, while ingredients are in season, you save yourself time and get the best flavor.  Now, I'm making mine with ingredients from the store this time, but plan to make much more this summer when our carrots are fresh and I can get onions at the farmers market.

If you long for simple, good food then I highly recommend checking out Fernald's Home Cooked.

For more information on this cookbook go here.

For more information about the author go here.

Disclosure:  I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.  This post also contains affiliate link, which mean that if you purchase any item after using the link the blog receives compensation to keep things running at no extra cost to you.  Thank you for the support.

Sofritto
2016-05-06 19:34:58
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Ingredients
  1. 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  2. 4 large white onions, coarsely diced
  3. 4 large carrots, peeled and coarsely diced
  4. 4 celery stalks, coarsely diced
Instructions
  1. In a large heavy frying pan, heat the olive oil over low heat.
  2. Add the onions, carrots and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened and caramelized, about 90 minutes.
  3. Let cool, then transfer to the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth.
  4. Spoon the sofritto into ice cube trays and freeze.
  5. Once frozen, transfer the cubes to a plastic freezer storage bag. Keep in the freezer until ready to use; the sofritto will keep, frozen, for up to 6 months
By Anya Fernald
Full & Simple https://fullandsimple.com/

Erika
Influence Network
Food Lovers Devotional

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Recipes, Reviews Tagged With: Anya Fernald, book review, canning, cookbook, foundation recipe, Home Cooked, recipe, seasonal eating, simple food, sofritto

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