Homemade Rosemary Apple Butter

Sometimes when winter lasts well into Spring and as it encroaches on daylight savings time we need to find a way to bring back the scents and emotions that make winter enjoyable!
(Without bringing back the calories! :-)

 Rosemary Apple Butter

Prep/Cook Time:

15 Min / 3 hours

Ingredients (Yields less than 4oz)

- 10 small/medium apples of any variety

- 1/4 C Honey

- 3 Cinnamon Sticks

- 3-4 Sprigs of Rosemary

- 1/2 C Apple Cider

- Fresh Juice from 1 Orange 

STEPS
1.  Peel and chop your apples into 1-2in cubes.
2.  Put all the ingredients into a stove top pot on high heat.
3.  As soon as it comes to a boil, reduce and simmer for 45 minutes.
4.  Once the apples have cooked through remove the cinnamon sticks and some of the Rosemary sprigs.  (If you love rosemary flavor then leave them in.) 

5.  Toss it all in the blender and puree until you have applesauce.6.  Then transfer to an oven safe casserole or back to your dutch oven and bake at 275 degrees for 2 hours.  Stir every 30-40 minutes. 7.  The applesauce will reduce into a thick, sweet, and tangy apple butter infused with the essence of rosemary.

Use it on grilled cheese, sweet breads, and anything else you would like!  

Cameron Diaz' Whipped "Shallot Gold"

Last week on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, the incredibly good dancer, Cameron Diaz, shared her favorite flavor enhancer! I took what she shared, tried it, and whipped it up in my blender adding a saucy twist. So here for your flavor enhancing pleasure is my version of Shallot Gold. 

Cameron Diaz' "Whipped Shallot Gold"

Check out Cameron Diaz on Jimmy Fallon Here!

Prep/Cook Time:

1Hour - 1.5 hours

Ingredients (Yields less than one 6oz. Mason Jar)

-4 C. Shallots Minced (I chose to mince 1/2 and grate the other 1/2)
-1/2 C. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (High Quality EVOO)
- A hefty Pinch of Sea Salt 

STEPS
1. Add EVOO to the saute pan on high heat.
2.  Drop in one small shallot chip and see if the oil begins to fizzle around the it.   

10 Min.

3.  When the oil has reached the 'fizzle point' drop in all the shallots and spread the salt broadly across the shallots. 
4.  Quickly stir the shallots coating them with the hot oil and reduce the heat to medium.  Be careful not to let the oil burn. Olive Oil has a very low tolerance for heat. 

20 Min.

5.  Once you can tell the onions have stopped 'steaming' then the water has come out of the shallot and it's time to reduce the heat for 45 minutes to an hour. Let it live on a very low simmer, stirring occasionally as the 'gold' forms. 
6.  Once you've achieved a perfect color and tasted/sampled your shallots to see if the bitterness is gone, then you are ready to 'whip' or emulsify it into a golden sauce.

55 Min

7.  Put the full contents from the pan into the blender and whip it for 30 seconds to a minute until the color has lightened ever so slightly and you can tell that air is permeating the oil/onion mixture. Your goal is to achieve whipped puree. It will not 'fluff' but it should be the consistency of flowing sauce.  

 Store this in a mason jar in the fridge(2-3 weeks max) and use no more than a tablespoon each time you need a little flavor enhancement.  Use this especially as a substitute for bacon bits or bacon flavor.

Disclaimer: Full credit goes to Jimmy Fallon & Cameron Diaz for the name & inspiration.