Sweet and Sour Maple Coleslaw

This is one of those recipes that's become a family classic. My mom makes for nearly every family gathering - no matter the time of year. It's great for summer picnics because it won't spoil like a mayonnaise based coleslaw. It's almost always guaranteed to be gobbled up - we've learned to make nothing less than a double batch. 

Maple Coleslaw

 Adapted from Pamela Anderson's "A Perfect Recipe"

1 ½ lbs (1/2 a head) red or green cabbage finely shredded

1 large carrot peeled and grated

½ cup granulated maple sugar

2 tsp kosher salt

¼ tsp celery seed

½ cup olive oil

¼ cup maple, rice wine or apple cider vinegar

Black pepper to taste

1. In a colander set over a medium bowl,  toss cabbage and carrot with sugar, salt and celery seed. Let stand until the cabbage has wilted (between 1 and 4 hours). 
2. Drain the liquid from the bowl. Rinsing the cabbage and drying
3. Transfer the cabbage and carrot mixture to a bowl and add oil and vinegar. Mix to coat and season to taste. Add a little more maple sugar if necessary. 
4. Cover and refrigerate until you're ready to serve. It can be made up to 5 days in advance. 

Maple Pork Medallions

Simple, quick and easy - those are our kind of meals and this is our kind of recipe. Simple enough to cook on a week night, but special enough to serve friends and family. With only six ingredients and a cooking time of less than 15 minute and a prep time under 10 this recipe is tough to beat. 

Maple Pork Medallions

 adapted from Cooks Illustrated

2lbs pork tenderloin cut into 1 ½” rounds

12-14 slices of bacon cooked for approximately 5 minutes (fat removed but neither brown nor crisp)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion chopped

1 cup apple cider (or chicken broth or water)

1/3 cup maple syrup

3 tbsp cider vinegar

3 tbsp maple mustard

Wrap a slice of bacon around the pork and fasten with a  toothpick. Place the oil in pan on medium high heat. Add pork cut side down. Cook for 3-5 minutes, making sure top not move the pork while it is cooking. Flip pork and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes. Finally, place pork on edge turning as necessary to cook the bacon. Total cooking time should be between 8 and 15 minutes for the meat. Place pork pieces on plate and cover with tin foil. 

While the pork is resting, remove most of the any excess oil/grease from  the pan.Decrease pan temperature to medium and add onions. Cook onions for 3-5 minutes until softened and browned.

Add the liquid to the pan and deglaze. Making sure to loosen cooked on pieces. Cook the liquid until it  is reduced by half  to two-thirds, or about 5 minutes. Then, add maple syrup, vinegar, mustard and any juices from resting meat. Cook until the sauce is thick, an additional 3 -5 minutes (there will be about a cup of sauce). If the sauce gets thicker than desired add slightly more liquid.

Place meat on plate, drizzle sauce over each medallion, and serve

Pasta with Winter Squash, Sweet Italian Sausage & Maple Sugar

Inspired by some local sweet "Italian" sausage we'd picked up at the farmer's market and some winter squash from the garden, I pulled onions, some dried sage and of course maple sugar from the pantry and began cooking. I tend to cook on the fly, and well, this was one of those recipes. I can't give you any exact measurements - but a rough ingredients list is below. It just kind of came together, a wonderful hearty blend of sweet and savory that was too good not to share. 

The flavors are bold and warm. It's a quick and wonderful dish for a cool fall day. Give it a try and make it your own - I'm sure you could easily substitute pure maple syrup for maple sugar. 

The Rough Recipe:

2 Sweet Italian Sausage 

Onions 

Granulated Maple Sugar

1 Box Pasta (Bow Ties)

2 Small Winter Squash thinly sliced

8 Whole Dried Sage Leaves Crushed

1 Cup Apple Cider 

Salt and Pepper To Taste

To start, place a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. 

Slice the sausages into 1/2" rounds and lightly sprinkled with maple sugar. Cook on medium heat in a skillet for about 5 minutes. Removed the sausage and added the onions to caramelize. To speed the process add a bit of maple sugar to them. Cook about 10 minutes or until suitably caramelized.

While the onions are cooking add the pasta to the pot of boiling water. When the pasta is nearly done (with 3 or 4 minutes left to cook) add the sliced winter squash. When pasta is cooked, drain the squash and pasta.

Finally, add a bit of apple cider to the onions to deglaze the pan. Then almost immediately add a bit of the dried sage and let the cider reduce for a few minutes. Then return the sausage pieces to the pan, as well as any of the squash that need longer to cook. Finally, add the remaining squash and pasta to the pan. Season with salt and pepper, mix throughly, and serve.