Welcome to My Fall Kitchen

Fall and winter root crops, potatoes, carrots and rutabagas are showing up in farmers markets and produce aisles. Winter squash will soon follow. John Madden’s Thick Beef Vegetable Stew, a recipe that was added to my collection in 1987, is a favorite at our house throughout fall and winter. This recipe incorporates all the winter vegetables.

John Madden’s

Thick Beef Vegetable Stew

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 pounds bottom round steak, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces.

2 to 3 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 large onions, sliced

2 small sweet green peppers, seeded and cut into chunks

2 stalks celery, sliced

1 large clove garlic, minced

3 large carrots, peeled and cut into chunks

4 medium size potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 small turnip, peeled and cut into chunks

1 small rutabaga, peeled and cut into chunks

3 cups beef broth

5 to 6 drops liquid red pepper seasoning

1/8 tsp ground savory

1/8 tsp ground marjoram

3 Tbsp chopped parsley

Combine flour, black pepper and salt, then dredge beef cubes well on all sides with the flour mixture. Reserve any leftover flour mixture for thickening.

Brown meat in oil in a large Dutch oven, working in batches if necessary. Remove meat. Sauté onion, green pepper, celery and garlic in pan dripping about 10 minutes. Add carrot, potato, turnip and rutabaga, broth, red pepper seasoning, savory and marjoram. Bring mixture to boiling. Add meat and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours until meat is tender. Add a little more broth if mixture becomes dry.

For a thicker gravy, mix 1/4 cup cold water and the reserved flour mixture in a small bowl. Gradually add some of the liquid from the Dutch oven to equalize the temperature, then stir the mixture into the stew in the Dutch oven. Simmer another 5 to 10 minutes until thickened. Yield: about 1 gallon stew.

Note: this recipe works well with venison. Just increase the garlic to 3 cloves and the black pepper to 3/4 tsp.

As winter squash come into season, summer squash like zucchini is just about done. At the end of the season, I gather all the remaining summer squash and cook them to freeze for winter use.

The process is simple. Wash, peel if the skin is tough, cut into chunks and remove any big seeds. Place in a large kettle, cover with water, bring to a boil and cook until very tender. Drain well and puree. Pack into 1 cup containers or bags and freeze. Check our Facebook page Welcome to My Kitchen for photos of the process.

Pureed zucchini may be added to soups or as part of the liquid in many breads and muffins. Zucchini Yeast Rolls, a recipe from Cindy Bell is my favorite way to use the zucchini puree.

Zucchini Yeast Rolls

1 cup mashed or pureed, cooked zucchini

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup shortening

1 tsp salt

1 cup scalded milk

1 package active dry yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water

5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading

Combine squash, sugar, salt and shortening with milk and heat until lukewarm.

Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water and add to the milk mixture. Add flour and mix well. Dough will be soft.

Let rise in a warm place until double in bulk. Punch dough down and knead until smooth. Shape into rolls and place in well-greased pans and set to rise again in a warm place.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake rolls 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Yield: 12 to 18 rolls depending on size.

Pretzel Salad has been one of the offerings at several recent area potluck meals. Though there are some slight variations in recipes, pretzel salad recipes are pretty much the same. This one is attributed to the late Art Winter.

The big question, is this really a salad or a dessert in disguise?

Pretzel Salad

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

12 ounces cream cheese

2 2/3 cup coarsely crushed pretzels (small pea size)

3/4 cup butter

1 large package (12-16 ounces) frozen strawberries or raspberries

8 ounces Cool Whip

6-ounce package strawberry or raspberry gelatin

2 cups pineapple juice

Cream together sugar and cream cheese and set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place butter in a oven proof 9 X 13 inch pan and place in oven until butter is melted.

Add the crushed pretzels to the pan, mixing to coat and press into the bottom of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely. Spread cream cheese mixture over pretzel crust. Spread with Cool Whip. Chill.

Meanwhile, heat pineapple juice to boiling. Remove from heat and add gelatin. Stir until completely dissolved. Add the frozen berries and stir until thawed. Chill until partially set. Pour over the Cool Whip layer. Refrigerate until firm. Overnight is best. Yield: 10 to12 servings.

Note: I have made this recipe successfully with sugar free gelatin. You may also make this salad with orange gelatin and 2 cans well drained mandarin oranges. It will take a little longer to thicken as the oranges aren't frozen.

Soup, stew, goulash, stir fry, share your favorite ways to incorporate winter vegetables, even wild game meats into fall menus with your fellow readers. Do you have a special marinade you like for wild game meat?

Additionally, it’s football season and tailgate party season. What are your favorite dishes to take on the road, tips for keeping hot dishes hot and cold dishes cold.

Share your favorite recipes with your fellow readers by sending them to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Record Times, P.O. Box 458, Odessa, WA 99159, email therecord@odessaoffice.com or drop the in the mail tin in the Odessa Record office. Plant garlic now to take advantage of pleasant fall weather and produce large bulbs at harvest next summer. It is not too late to seed a cover crop as well.