Food Holidays: September 30th, 2021

Good morning, welcome to our series sharing Food Holidays: September 30th, 2021. Take a look at the Holidays being celebrated today and let me know if there is one you would like to celebrate or not. For my family we hadn’t heard of a Soufflé Potato which might be nice to try and David said he would like to have a cup of Mulled Apple Cider. How about you?

National Soufflé Potato Day*

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to grease the souffle dishes, plus 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened, plus an additional 1/4 cup melted unsalted butter to brush souffle tops (about 3/4 cup total)

1 cup dry Bread Crumbs

3 pounds Potatoes, unpeeled and scrubbed well

2/3 cup warm Milk

Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 Eggs, plus 1 additional Egg Yolk

1/2 pound Cambazola Blue Cheese, cut into 8 equal pieces

Paprika, to the top of the Potato Souffle

 A potato ricer or food mill 8 (4-ounce) ramekins

1. Remove the top oven rack and place a rack on the bottom 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease the Ramekins with the 3 tablespoons of Butter. Dust the inside of the dish with the Bread Crumbs.
3. Place the unpeeled Potatoes in a pot of cold Salted water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and continue simmering for about 30 minutes or until fork tender. Drain.
4. Carefully peel the Potatoes while they’re hot. Cut them into large chunks; while still hot mash the Potatoes by running them through a ricer/food mill. In a large bowl, mix the Potatoes, 1/4 cup of the Butter, and the warm Milk. Season, to taste. Beat in the Eggs and Egg Yolk.
5. Carefully peel the Potatoes while they’re hot. Cut them into large chunks; while still hot mash by running them through a ricer/food mill. In a large bowl, mix the Potatoes, 1/4 cup of the Butter, and the warm Milk. Season, to taste. Beat in the Eggs and Egg Yolk.
6. Fill each of the 8 Ramekins halfway with the Potato mixture. Make an indentation in the Potato layer, pushing the Potato up along the Souffle dish wall. Fill the indentation with a portion of the Cambazola Cheese. Equally divide the remaining Potato mixture among the 8 Ramekins, mounding the mixture above the top of the dish.
7. Place a small amount of Butter on top of each Souffle and dust with Paprika. Place Souffles on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Increase the temperature to 425 degrees F and continue baking for another 5 minutes. Serve hot.

Five Food Finds about Soufflé Potatoes

1. Souffle Potatoes, also known as Pommes Souffles or Potato Puffs, are a type of Fried Potato.
2. The item was created by French Chef Jean-Louis-Francois Collinet completely by accident, sometime in the 1830s.
3. Potatoes are fried once to seal the outside, then fried again at a higher temperature, causing the steam inside to puff the Potatoes like balloons. 
4. The hand-cut Souffle Potatoes are often accompanied by Bearnaise Sauce.
5. Burbank Russet Potatoes puff the best, due to their moisture and high starch content.

National Mulled Cider Day‘

On September 30, the National Hot Mulled Cider Day is celebrated in the United States and it is the perfect occasion to enjoy a cup or two of warm Spiced Apple Cider in cool weather.

Hot Mulled Cider is a delicious beverage that will make September afternoons march warmer. Apple Cider is a popular fall or Winter drink often associated with end of the year Holidays such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. It is made with Apple Cider (or Apple Juice for the non-alcoholic variation), Sugar, and Spices.

Hot Mulled Cider can be made at home. In a large saucepan, combine 2 quarts Apple Cider, 1/2 cup Brown Sugar, 3 Cinnamon Sticks, 1 tsp whole Cloves, 1 tsp whole Allspice, 1/4 tsp Salt, and 1 dash Nutmeg. Bring to boiling, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain and pour into mugs. Garnish with Orange wedges before serving.

Liquor could be added if you like in your Hot Mulled Cider add Rum. Stud 1 Apple with 2 tsp whole Cloves. In a medium pot, combine 2 quarts Apple Cider, the studded Apple, 1 thinly sliced Orange, 1/2 cup light Brown Sugar, 1 tsp Allspice, 1 dash Nutmeg. Bring to boil, the let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes. Strain, add 1 cup dark Rum and pour into Mugs. Garnish with Cinnamon Sticks.

Five Facts Cider

1. The Cider industry uses 45% of all Apples grown in the UK.
2. The UK Cider industry grew nearly 200,000 tons of Cider Apples in 2010; Bulmers alone has 10,000 acres of Cider Apple Orchards under its control.
3. There are more than 300 varieties of Cider Apple grown in the UK – all with the sole purpose of making Cider.
4. Varieties include Foxwhelp, Brown Snout, Ball’s Bittersweet, Kingston Black, Merrylegs and Slack-ma-Girdle.
5. Cider Apples are different from Dessert Apples in that they contain Tannin, which is also found in Coffee and Red Wine. whichgives the Cider a full-bodied flavour and dry’s out the the mouth (astringency)’

Recipe Mulled Apple Cider

• 3 Cinnamon Sticks (3 inches)
• 3 Whole Cloves
• 2 whole Allspice
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 3 quarts Apple Cider or Apple Juice
• 1/4 cup Orange juice
• 1/4 cup lemon Juice
• 1 tablespoon grated Orange Zest
• 2 tablespoons Brown Sugar
• Dash Salt
• 1 to 1-1/2 cups Brandy, optional

1. Place Cinnamon Sticks, Cloves, Allspice and Bay Leaf on a double thickness of Cheesecloth; bring up corners of cloth and tie with kitchen string to form a bag.
2. In a large saucepan, combine Apple Cider, juices, Orange Zest, Brown Sugar, Salt and Spice Pag. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 30 minutes to blend flavors. Discard Spice Bag. Strain Cider mixture and, if desired, stir in Brandy. Serve immediately.

Thank you,

Glenda, Charlie and David Cates