Tuesday, October 18, 2011

A great fall side dish

TOMATILLO APPLESAUCE

6 apples, diced (half sour like Granny Smith, half something like Braeburn or Jonogold or Gala)- use more if they are small
1 lb. tomatillos, peeled and chopped (more if you wish)
1 Tbsp. minced ginger
1 or 2 Tbsp. olive oil
juice of 1 lemon (more to taste, lime is also good), a little zest may be added as well
apple cider vinegar to taste
a few Tbsp. agave, maple syrup, brown or palm sugar (more to taste)
1/2 tsp. chili powder (more to taste)
1 tsp. minced lemongrass
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (more to taste)
pinch nutmeg
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. crushed fennel seed
pinch or two chili flakes or a minced hot pepper (or both!)
salt and black pepper to taste
ground cumin and coriander to taste
1 or 2 minced sage leaves or a little rosemary
2 chopped green onions
chopped cilantro or flat parsley (optional)
* other possible additions: juniper berries, pears, chopped cactus, oranges, dried fruit (particularly cranberries, gold raisins or currants)

Place 4 of the chopped apples, ginger, oil and half of the spices in a large saucepan and saute for two minutes. Add water to cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add tomatillos, lemon juice and the rest of the herbs and spices, except for scallions and parsly/cilantro. Simmer for 15 minutes, adjusting taste with lemon juice, cider vinegar, sweetener, salt and pepper. Mash with a whisk or masher, taste/season again, add water if necessary and cook for 10 more minutes. Add the rest of the apples, even more if you like, and the scallions and cook for 10-20 minutes more or until done to your satisfaction, add cilantro or parsley and season to taste. I like adding the apples for a bit more texture and visual appeal. Serve warm or chilled, it doesn't really matter.
You will want to determine how watery you want it to be. Add more or less water depending on this. Of course, apple juice or fruit juice can be used instead of water and the result will be that far less sugar is needed, if any. Also, this was designed as a sour/savory applesauce so keep that in mind (you'll notice at least 5 sour items on the ingredients list, a depth of sourness will be achieved).
A great side dish to most fall and winter meals.
It was a hit at the LACBC event last month.

3 comments:

JohnP said...

Oh my! Bookmarked to make soon!

Marlan Warren said...

This looks delicious! I never know what to do with tomatillos. I've posted it on my FB page. PS - Great riding with you to San Diego!

Joshua Ploeg said...

Thanks! Great meeting you Marlan and thanks for the ride. Keep in touch!