Fall Harvest :: Cardamom Pear Crisp

For a sweet end to our Fall Harvest dinner we ate warm cardamom pear crisp with just a spot of crème fraiche on top—a wholesome ending to a fantastic night. We served ours in individual ramekins. You can do this at home, or in one dish (as explained below) for a more family style dessert.






Photography + Food Styling by Karen Mordechai

For a sweet end to our Fall Harvest dinner we ate warm cardamom pear crisp with just a spot of crème fraiche on top—a wholesome ending to a fantastic night. We served ours in individual ramekins. You can do this at home, or in one dish (as explained below) for a more family style dessert.

Cardamom Pear Crisp
Serves 4

Filling :
6 pears, peeled, cored, and cut into large cubes
¼ cup lemon juice
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg

Topping :
1 cup flour
¾ cup butter
½ cup brown sugar
2 tbsp ground cardamom
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
Crème fraiche

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Toss the pear cubes in lemon juice, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a food processor, combine flour, butter, brown sugar, cardamom, salt and cinnamon. Pulse until mixture comes together and holds when pinched between your fingers.

Put pears in a medium size baking dish. Crumble topping mixture over pears. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until crisp is brown and bubbling. Let cool for 20 minutes, and serve with a dollop of crème fraiche.

Recipe courtesy of Casey Solomon for Sunday Suppers

Fall Harvest :: Pressed Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Chestnuts and Cipollini Onions

The entree at our Fall Dinner was a pressed chicken served over carrot puree and buttered Brussel leaves. We used real bricks for this, but you can use anything heavy to press on the chicken (canned foods wrapped in foil work well). The pressing creates a crispy skin and doesn't compromise the moisture at all. The crispy chicken, a creamy carrot puree and the perfect assortment of fall veggies. need we say more ? mmm. photos & full recipes below.





All Photography + Food Styling by Karen Mordechai


Pressed Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Chestnuts and Cipollini Onions
Serves 4

4 chicken breasts, skin on and de-boned
2 tbl butter
20 cipollini onions, blanched and peeled
1 c (roasted) chestnuts, quartered
1 ½ oz dried porcini mushrooms
½ c dry white wine
salt and pepper

Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a large skillet and coat in olive oil. Add chicken to pan skin side down. Cover chicken with something flat and weight down with something heavy like a brick wrapped in foil or large cans. Cook for 20-30 minutes in medium high heat or until the chicken releases easily from the pan.
Remove chicken and reserve. Lower the pan on medium heat. Add butter, onions and chestnuts. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and wine. Reduce by half. Add chicken back in to pan skin side up. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Finish with 1 tbl of butter or olive oil.


Carrot Puree
Serves 4
10 large carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
1 large onion
1 qt chicken stock
½ c cream
salt and pepper to taste

Boil carrots and onions until tender and falling apart when pierced with a fork. Strain and puree in a food processor with cream, salt and pepper until smooth.

Buttered Brussel Leaves
Serves 4
2 pints brussel sprouts, pulled apart into leaves
1 clove garlic, smashed
1 tbl butter
1 tbl olive oil

Heat olive oil and butter in a large sauté pan. Add garlic and cook until barely browned. Remove from pan. Add brussel leaves and sauté until bright green, approx 5 minutes.

Recipes Courtesy of Casey Solomon for Sunday Suppers

Fall Harvest Recipe, Cauliflower Soup

The first course of dinner was a roasted cauliflower soup with parmesan crisps and chive oil. The soup is a simple puree that can be done with so many seasonal vegetables. And the parmesan crisps are a neat trick to have in your culinary back pocket. enjoy.

Cauliflower Soup
Serves 4

1 head cauliflower, separated in to medium size pieces
1 onion, diced
3 c chicken stock
¼ c heavy cream
3 sage leaves
salt and pepper

Boil cauliflower florets in chicken stock until soft. Sautee onions separately and add to cauliflower mixture. Add cream, sage salt and pepper and reduce by half.
Remove sage leaves and add cream mixture to blender. Puree on high until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with chive oil and parmesan crisp.

Parmesan Crisps
Cover a baking sheet with parchment. Place tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese on parchment and spread each out with a spoon into small flat circles. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 5-6 minutes.

Chive Oil

Blanch 2 bunches of chives, Dry on paper towels. Blend in a blender with 1 cup of good olive oil. Strain through a fine sieve.

Fall Harvest :: Beekman Blaak

To begin our fall harvest dinner, we served Beekman 1802 Farm’s Blaak cheese. This beautiful wheel is made from a mixture of goat and cow’s milk (Beekman’s own) and is aged for four months. While aging it is coated with ash at every turning. This oh so attractive ash coating calms the acidity of the cheese, is a catalyst for ripening, and forms it’s edible rind.





All Photos + Styling by Karen Mordechai
Cheese Platter by MUD Australia, available at Global Table and Moonriver Chatel in NY

Fall Harvest : Part One

Our vintage Americana inspired table and matching whites and bluish grays in floral, were reminders that autumn is more than pumpkins and dahlias. The bouquets (by the uber talented Jessie@ Rountree Flowers) were made of of Calla Lilies, gray Lukadenron (the mini-pine cones), Lamb’s Ear and Dusty Miller Foliage: a token of a softer autumn foliage. Kale, feathers, Berried Ivy, and Anemones added deeper hues and pops of color and the vessels were our collection of vintage + tarnished teapots and pitchers.




We used a large wooden plank as a runner down the center of the table and scattered chestnuts and crochet covered votives for a touch of softness. Our menu was hand written by Bryn from Paperfinger and enclosed in a vintage frame. Place cards were zinc tags with rewritable surfaces (inscribed by Bryn as well) and tied with a strand of vintage fabric. The pale palette felt like the first frost and gray-white skies but our bundles of twigs, knits, chestnuts, and bursts of dark and color reminded us we weren’t quite in the thick of it yet. A perfect backdrop to a hearty Fall menu. We were very lucky to have Jillian from 100 Layer cake collaborate with us on the design and a wonderful group of talented artists listed below.










All Photos + Styling: Karen Mordechai
Collaborators Included:
Event design & styling: Jillian, 100 Layer Cake + Sunday Suppers
Flowers: Jesse, Rountree Flowers
Calligraphy: Bryn, Paperfinger
Guest Chef: Casey Solomon

Fall Harvest :: Part Two, Favors + Recipe Cards

As our parting gift, we worked closely with Jillian Clark from 100 Layer cake to design the perfect tokens. Jillian boxed bags of chestnuts with instructions on how to roast them. Guests were also given a small recipe book covered in the vintage fabric used throughout the table design. They had hand stitched spines, and fraying edges. The books contain all the recipes taught at the Sunday Supper for guests to make at home. We set these on a table with playful garlands hanging from the ceiling, and a banner that read "Fall Harvest" hung below. Jillian created these incredible garlands (made of cupcake wrappers and fabric rounds). For a step-by-step instruction of how to make these garlands click here . And for instructions on how to roast chestnuts scroll down below, and tune in all week we'll be posting lots of recipes from our fall menu.






All Photos + Styling: Karen Mordechai

How to Roast Chestnuts:

Cut an X into one side of each cleaned chestnut
Place Chestnuts X side up on a baking sheet
Roast for 15-25 minutes at 425 degrees.

Let cool, peel + enjoy!

Fall Harvest :: Sneak Peek

Photography by Karen Mordechai

Our Fall Harvest Supper last night was a great success! We had a unexpectedly beautiful sunny day (in the middle of november :). Jillian from 100layercake collaborated on decor items (just wait till you see her goodies), flowers by Jessie from Rountree, and the food, well it was absolutely fall on a plate - created by the wonderful Casey Solomon. Here's a sneak peak at the menu. More photos and recipes will be coming soon.

Menu:

roasted garlic and cauliflower soup
parmesan crisp, chive oil

crispy chicken
porcini mushrooms, chestnuts, sweet onions,
carrot puree, buttered brussel leaves

cardamom pear crisp, creme fraiche