German Sunken Apple Cake

For this apple cake you need to cut the apples like a fan not only for looks — this little trick makes the cake especially moist. I like to use tart apples. You will need between 5 and 7 apples, depending on their size.

Ingredients

• 9 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 10 tablespoons white sugar

• 3 large eggs, at room temperature

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 3 medium apples, or as needed

• 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar for dusting, or as needed

Directions

• Step 1

  Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar and mix until well combined. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition.

• Step 2

  Mix 1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoon flour and baking powder in a separate bowl. Add to batter and mix until batter is smooth.

• Step 3

  Peel and quarter apples. Remove core and cut apples like a fan from the outside towards the inside but do not cut all the way through.

• Step 4

  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a springform pan with butter.

• Step 5

  Spoon batter into the prepared springform pan and spread out evenly. Set cut apple quarters in a circle into the batter with the round, cut side facing up. Gently push apples into the batter.

• Step 6

  Bake in the preheated oven until cake is golden brown, about 45 minutes.

• Step 7

  Remove from oven, allow to cool, and dust cooled cake with confectioners' sugar.

Autumn Cheesecake

With fresh apple arriving at our markets, this is the perfect recipe to get you in the autumn spirit.

Ingredients

• 1 cup graham cracker crumbs

• 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

• 3 tablespoons white sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

• 1/2 cup white sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 4 cups apples - peeled, cored and thinly sliced

• 1/3 cup white sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a large bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and melted butter; press into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar. Mix at medium speed until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in vanilla; pour filling into the baked crust.

3. In a small bowl, stir together 1/3 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Toss the cinnamon-sugar with the apples to coat. Arrange apple mixture over cream cheese layer and sprinkle with 1/4 cup chopped pecans.

4. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 70 minutes. With a knife, loosen cake from rim of pan. Let cool, then remove the rim of pan. Chill cake before serving.

Cheesy Lemon Chicken Pasta

Pecorino Romano and Parmesan give cheesy flavor to this easy lemon-chicken pasta dish that's sure to please the whole family!

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package linguine pasta

• 1 cup frozen peas

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 (8 ounce) package button mushrooms, sliced

• ½ cup diced onion

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks

• kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste

• ½ (8 ounce) package reduced-fat cream cheese, cubed and softened

• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice

• 2 teaspoons lemon zest

• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

• ¼ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese

• ¼ cup chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

Directions

• Step 1

  Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook linguine at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes, adding frozen peas during the last 2 minutes of cooking time. Drain pasta and peas, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.

• Step 2

  While the pasta is cooking, heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and onion; cook until mushrooms are brown, 5 to 7 minutes.

• Step 3

  Season chicken with salt and pepper. Cook in the same skillet over medium-high heat until browned and no longer pink, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms back to the skillet. Add cream cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest; stir until cream cheese is melted. Remove from heat.

• Step 4

  Fold in Parmesan and Pecorino Romano cheeses, then parsley. Toss with pasta and peas, adding reserved cooking liquid as necessary to make a sauce.

Zucchini Roses

I have a confession to make. I’m a guy that watches British fashion vloggers. Well … my wife does, and I’m just there for the gardening bits. One of the vloggers she follows recently posted a video making Courgette Roses. (“Courgettes” are what Brits call zucchini and summer squash. They have some weird names for veggies. Aubergine? Really?) Anyway, I found a version of the recipe with the temperatures and measurements converted to US units. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed (about 8 ounces)

• All-purpose flour, for rolling out dough

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

• 1 small summer squash (about 6 ounces), cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced diagonally

• 1 small zucchini (about 6 ounces), cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced diagonally

• Nonstick cooking spray

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roll the puff pastry out to a 12-inch square on a floured work surface.

2. Brush lightly with the olive oil and sprinkle evenly with the cheese, thyme and lemon zest.

3. Cut into 6 even strips.

4. Shingle alternating yellow and green slices of squash and zucchini along the length of each strip of dough making sure to leave half the dough strip uncovered and allowing the green and yellow skins to hang over one edge slightly.

5. Fold the uncovered dough over the squash and pinch together at the two ends.

6. Starting at one end, roll each strip into a spiral.

7. Lightly press the rolled tarts into a muffin tin sprayed with cooking spray.

8. Bake until the crusts are browned and crisp on the bottom, the top is dry and crisp and the squash is tender and browned on the edges, about 40 minutes.

9. Remove to a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm.

Presto Dill Pesto

Dill pesto is one of my favorite ways to kick up the flavor on broiled or baked fish. It's also very good served over grilled or roasted veggies. I use a small bunch of dill from the garden or my hydroponics system during the winter.

Ingredients

• 1 bunch fresh dill, chopped

• 1 tablespoon walnuts

• 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese

• ½ lemon, zested and juiced

• 1 clove garlic, peeled and quartered

• ⅛ teaspoon salt

• freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 1 pinch red pepper flakes (Optional)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

• Step 1

  Place dill fronds (a few stems are OK), walnuts, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes into the bowl of a food processor. If you have a mini or small food processor, it will be large enough for this recipe.

• Step 2

  Pulse until everything is minced well, scraping down the sides as necessary. With the machine running, drizzle in the olive oil, blending for a few seconds until smooth.

• Step 3

  If not serving immediately, store the pesto in an airtight container and chill until ready to use.

Zucchini Noodle Casserole

Zucchini season is upon us! It can be a challenge this time of the year to find enough recipes for zucchini to create variety. Here is another great recipe to incorporate into your courgette recipe rotation.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided, or as needed

• 5 zucchini squash, cut into 'noodles' using a spiral slicer or vegetable peeler

• ¼ cup minced garlic

• 1 (16 ounce) jar marinara sauce, or to taste

• 1 (7 ounce) container 2% Greek yogurt

• 1 pinch Italian seasoning, or to taste

• salt and ground black pepper to taste

• ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

• Step 1

  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

• Step 2

  Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, saute enough zucchini to fit in the skillet with 1 teaspoon garlic until zucchini is slightly browned and softened, 3 to 6 minutes. Repeat with remaining olive oil, zucchini, and garlic. Transfer cooked zucchini mixture to a 9x13-inch baking dish.

• Step 3

  Whisk marinara sauce, yogurt, Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper together in a saucepan over low heat; cook and stir until sauce is warmed through, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour sauce over zucchini mixture in the baking dish. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese and a pinch of Italian seasoning over the top.

• Step 4

  Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is bubbling, 20 to 30 minutes.