Butternut Apple Tart

Be sure to brush the top with olive oil before baking and sprinkle with a bit of sea salt.

I know fall is here when my CSA starts to brim with apples and squash. This savory tart is very comforting when the weather starts to cool. I used a pre-made pie crust, but you can certainly make your own. It works for breakfast, lunch or dinner and is great with an herb side salad. This recipe concludes my guest recipe series at Anthology Magazine, please click here for more pictures and details. Bon Appetit!

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

Pomegranate Challah

The Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur is this week, which continues the season of the Jewish New Year. To celebrate this annual cycle, challah is often formed into a round (instead of being braided) and harvest type foods, like pomegranate, are often eaten. I combined these ideas into a sweet bread, baked with lots of honey and pomegranate seeds. You can work the pom seeds into the dough itself, or just sprinkle them on the top, or both!

I have tried a million challah recipes and came up with this combo of ingredients that I like best. Bread is not that hard, you can do it! Here’s how:

Put one packet of yeast in a bowl with ¾ cup warm water and let it sit for 5 min until it gets a little bubbly. Then toss in an egg, 1/3 honey, 2T brown sugar, a big pinch of coarse salt and a half stick melted butter. Mix it all by hand or using a mixer. Then add flour, little by little until it’s no longer sticking to the side of the bowl and is thick and doughy and doesn’t seem to absorb any more flour (you’ll know…). You usually need about 4 cups of flour.

Knead it for a couple minutes (or just let it go around in the mixer with the dough hook) then throw that lump of dough into a big bowl you’ve coated in oil, and cover the top of the bowl with saran wrap. It’ll rise to about twice the size in a couple hours. Then take it out, roll it into a snake, then coil it into a round. Sprinkle with pom seeds and brush with egg (optional, but makes it feel more official!). Let it rise on a cookie sheet for another 45 min or so, then pop it in the oven for about 25 min at 350 degrees. Check it once in a while to see how brown it’s getting, and tap it on the bottom to see if it’s done (it should sound kind of hollow). Enjoy!

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

Pesto Deviled Eggs

Pesto Deviled Eggs! A fun appetizer when entertaining (or on your own while cooking dinner with a martini!). The avocado replaces some of the mayo and yolk in the filling so they are creamier and lighter. More photos and the full recipe are in my Guest Recipes post in Anthology Magazine this week.

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

L'Shanah Tovah

The Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana starts today which marks the beginning of the New Year on the Jewish calendar. To sweeten the New Year it is traditional to eat apples and honey and round foods which signify the annual cycle. To kick off the High Holidays, we have a couple of big meals with friends and family and this year I am making this apple and honey galette. It’s an easy dessert and you only need 2 apples! You can really use any kind of soft cheese, but I used brie. Serve it warm or at room temperature.

L'Shanah Tovah (Happy New Year!)

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

Roasted Potato + Green Bean Salad

For warm weather gatherings, I love making a roasted potato salad served at room temperature. I buy the mini potatoes, roast them in advance with olive oil, salt and pepper, then toss them with any mix of herbs, arugula, green beans, sliced almonds, pine nuts, olives, feta, vinaigrette, marinated artichokes, pesto…etc! It comes together quickly and is a filling vegetarian option on the BBQ buffet.

Roasted Potato + Greenbean Salad

serves 4-6

40 mini potatoes

10 garlic cloves (optional)

2 c (or 2 handfuls) greenbeans or snap peas, ends trimmed and sliced

1 small bunch (or a big handful) of fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped (some stems are ok)

your favorite vinaigrette, or rice vinegar mixed with my FF x PRMRY finishing olive oil

Toss the potatoes (plus garlic cloves if you wish) in olive oil and salt and roast at 450F for 20-25 minutes, until a fork goes in easily. If the potatoes are bigger than bite size, slice them. The size of the potatoes will determine cooking time so keep an eye on them. When they’re done, allow them to cool in a big mixing/salad bowl.

Once cooled, add the other ingredients and toss. Enjoy at room temperature.

*If you’re making this several hours in advance, wait to add the cilantro and dressing until it’s time to serve.