“Taste of Home Cookbook: Busy Family Edition” is a three-ring-binder style cookbook with more than 1,300 recipes and a wealth of tips to help novice cooks familiarize themselves with the kitchen. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Those of us who grew up in homes where folded-and-stapled “cookbooks” with cardstock covers spilled from an overstuffed cabinet will understand the compliment here.

The new fourth edition “Taste of Home Cookbook: Busy Family Edition” imposes impressive order on what feels like the best recipes culled from church and grange cookbooks and potluck index cards, the comfort foods and the risky newcomers, the ooh-and-ahh party presentations and the I-need-dinner-fast workweek demands.

It is, in short, a workhorse of a cookbook.

This is a cookbook to buy for adult kids moving out on their own for the first time. Forget Googling ingredient substitutions and choosing recipes by browsing Pinterest for things that’ll never look as good coming out of your oven.

This book gives home cooks a solid grounding in the how and why of kitchen basics (a primer on types of cheese and cuts of meat, choosing the proper knife, what recipe instructions mean by braising or deglazing, etc.) as well as a connection to cooks all across the country. Every recipe starts with a brief, friendly introduction from the contributing cook — the Facebook status update of the print world, if you will.

With more than 1,300 recipes and dozens of tips on safety and technique, “Taste of Home Cookbook: Busy Family Edition” will keep even inept cooks well-fed.

Handy colored flags call out recipes with special appeal — the ones that only require five ingredients, the ones that can be made in under 30 minutes, the ones that can be prepped in advance and frozen, and the ones that can stew all day in the slow cooker.

The visual dictionary of vegetables is perfect for novice cooks emerging from fast-food comas; every entry includes a picture of what you’re looking for at the store as well as tips for recognizing freshness, storing properly and preparing in dishes.

In flipping through the review copy Taste of Home provided, I found appealing dishes on every page. Yes, some use shortcuts; a jar of pasta sauce here and a can of refrigerated pastry dough there might offend those who consider that cheating. But the cookbook promises a range of meals for busy families, and it delivers. You can always make notes in the margins to swap out commercially prepared ingredients for Nonna’s marinara and Grandma’s sour cream bread dough when you’re ready to step up.

Choosing just three recipes to test and share was tough. I resisted the urge to turn immediately to the desserts and instead sampled some lesser-used areas in my own cookbook collection — namely, the vegetable-heavy recipes. If your family and co-workers are anything like mine, these will be surefire hits.

Gnocchi With White Beans gets a festive splash of color from spinach and diced tomatoes. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Gnocchi With White Beans

Juli Meyers, Hinesville, Georgia, Page 258

Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 6

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 package (16 ounces) potato gnocchi
• 1 can (15 ounces) white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) Italian diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 package (6 ounces) fresh baby spinach
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, and cook and stir until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute.

Sprinkle with cheeses, then cover and remove from heat. Let stand 3 to 4 minutes or until cheese is melted before serving.

Nutritional information: 1 cup equals 307 calories, 6 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 13 mg cholesterol, 789 mg sodium, 50 g carbohydrates, 6 g fiber and 13 g protein.

Broccoli Beef Braids emerge from the oven oozing with deliciousness. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Broccoli Beef Braids

Penny Lapp, North Royalton, Ohio, Page A12

Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 16 (two loaves)

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 3 cups frozen chopped broccoli
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tubes (8 ounces each) refrigerated crescent rolls

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two baking sheets.

In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain.

Add the broccoli, cheese, sour cream, salt and pepper; heat through.

Unroll one tube of dough on a greased baking sheet. Seal the seams and perforations, forming a 12-by-8-inch rectangle.

Spread half of the beef mixture lengthwise down the center of the dough. On each side, cut 1-inch-wide strips about 3 inches into the center.

Starting at one end, fold alternating strips of dough at an angle across the filling. Seal the ends.

Repeat with the second tube of dough.

Bake both loaves 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Nutritional information per serving: 141 calories, 8 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 24 mg cholesterol, 201 mg sodium, 7 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber and 8 g protein.

Three-Cheese Spinach Calzones and dipping sauce disappear fast. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Three-Cheese Spinach Calzones

Marie Rizzio, Interlochen, Michigan, Page 276

Time: 20 minutes prep, 15 minutes baking

Servings: 4

• 1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded fontina cheese
• 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tube (13.8 ounces) refrigerated pizza crust
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon water
• 1 cup spaghetti sauce, warmed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients.

On a lightly floured surface, unroll the pizza crust and shape into an 11-inch square. Cut dough into four squares and transfer to a greased baking sheet.

Spoon the spinach mixture diagonally over half of each square to within 1/2-inch of the edges.

For each calzone, fold one corner over the filling to the opposite corner, forming a triangle. Press the edges with a fork to seal. Cut slits in the top.

Combine egg and water; brush over calzones.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with spaghetti sauce.

Nutritional information per serving: 1 calzone with 1/4 cup sauce has 549 calories, 22 g fat (11 g saturated fat), 109 mg cholesterol, 1,637 mg sodium, 59 g carbohydrates, 5 g fiber and 28 g protein.

Mashed rutabaga, though a departure from tradition for most, is a sweet and creamy replacement for mashed potatoes. (Julie Falsetti photo)

From Scratch is a regular guest column by Julie Falsetti

My Thanksgiving dinner is fairly traditional: turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes and broccoli or cauliflower. I like it to be a dinner that celebrates the vegetables of fall, so I skip the green bean casserole.

One dish my family loves is a creamy, golden puree that at first might be mistaken for mashed potatoes. One bite, though, will tell you this is tastier than any potatoes you’ve ever eaten. Behold the rutabaga!

The rutabaga is a natural hybrid between a cabbage and turnip with a history that goes back to the 17th century. It goes by many names: Swede, yellow turnip or neep. Most often it is sold waxed to prevent dehydration through the winter months.

The waxy rutabaga tastes better than it looks. (Julie Falsetti photo)

This vegetable is not going to win any beauty contests, so you might have run in the opposite direction if you spied it in the supermarket. However, when cooked, the flavor is a delicate combination of sweet and savory.

Nutrients: In addition, because rutabaga is a member of the Brassica family, which includes broccoli and Brussels sprouts, it is replete with vitamin C, dietary fiber, potassium and antioxidant compounds. Give it a try and your Thanksgiving guests will be surprised by the rutabaga’s subtle sweetness and creamy texture.

Begin with one large rutabaga. Peel it and cut it into 1-inch pieces. I use a cleaver to do this, and if I can corral my husband, I try to get him to do it as the flesh is quite firm.

Put the cut rutabaga into a medium-size pot and cover it with water. Add one teaspoon of salt and 5 cardamom pods. The cardamom will enhance the rutabaga’s natural sweetness.

Bring the water to a boil and cover the pot. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes until the pieces are tender. Drain and discard the cardamom pods.

Place the drained rutabaga in the bowl of a food processor and add 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 1 teaspoon of chopped fresh thyme. Process until you have a smooth puree. If the texture is not creamy enough, add more cream or milk.

— Julie Falsetti, a York native, comes from a long line of good cooks. Her column, From Scratch, runs twice monthly in The York Dispatch food section.

“If you don’t eat yer meat, you can’t have any pudding!” Those of a certain age might remember these Pink Floyd lyrics and have visions of a bowl of creamy dessert held aloft just out of reach.

However, in British English, “pudding” is the general term for any sweet served after dinner.

The American version of pudding is my go-to pantry dessert. That is, I usually have all of the ingredients on hand to make the recipe.

It’s fast and easy — and depending on how it’s served, it can be simple or elegant. It also makes a great school lunch treat.

In the supermarket I see rows and rows of pre-packaged puddings in plastic containers. In addition to all of the artificial ingredients in the pudding itself, the idea of millions of those little plastic tubs ending up in the landfill really bothers me.

To make your own “pudding snack pack,” buy some reusable 4-ounce plastic containers (such as GladWare).

Because the preparation is straightforward, your children can make the pudding if you are pressed for time.

For a fancy dessert, get out your best crystal dishes and top the pudding with whipped cream and chopped pecans.

The recipe below can be doubled, if you like.

For an extra rich pudding, use the half and half.

Homemade chocolate pudding can be dressed up with nuts and whipped cream or packed in a plastic container for lunch on the go. (Julie Falsetti photo)

Chocolate Pudding

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa
• dash salt
• 1/3 cup warm water
• 1 3/4 cups milk or half-and-half
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 cup milk or half-and-half
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

In a medium-size pot, combine the sugar, cocoa, salt and warm water and stir until blended. Place the pot over a medium flame and stir in the 1 3/4 cups milk or half-and-half and heat slowly.

Combine the cornstarch with the remaining milk or half-and-half and gradually stir into the cocoa mixture.

Stirring constantly, cook until the pudding thickens. It usually takes about 5 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

Chill before serving.

— Julie Falsetti, a York native, comes from a long line of good cooks. Her column, From Scratch, runs twice monthly in The York Dispatch food section.

If the store display of my local big box retailer is any indication, I’m several weeks behind on my holiday shopping. The tower of green beans and fried onions that loomed over aisle 3 has been replaced by some configuration of the “season’s hottest toys.” Yes, even in the produce department one cannot escape the rampant commercialism of the holidays.

But if you’re like me and still vaguely tossing around the idea of what you’ll serve for Thanksgiving — I haven’t missed it, have I? — consider serving a craft beer selection with your holiday meal this year. Just because you stuff yourself with stuffing (no? Just me?) doesn’t mean a carbonated brew is too heavy to pair with this coma-inducing meal.

Here are three style suggestions, and a local offering for each, that pair well with Thanksgiving Day dishes and desserts.

Pumpkin ale: This might seem obvious, but pumpkin beers are often too overpowering to serve along with a meal. Spiced heavily with a rich pumpkin flavor, there’s no denying that they’re fall in a glass, however, and too hard to ignore on the flagship day of autumn. Serve before your meal with a small cheese plate to let the spices shine against the creamy sweetness of brie or a tangy crumbled blue. Really like pumpkin? Serve a glass along with a slice of pie after your meal and let your tastebuds go nuts.

Try: The Brewery at Hershey Flash Gourd’n Pumpkin-spiced Oktoberfest ale. This crisp brew has a clean pumpkin flavor with just the right amount of spice to complement your dish, not clobber it.

IPA (India Pale Ale): What is one of the most ubiquitous styles of brews can be a bit of a challenge to pair with dishes thanks in large part to the bold hop character, floral aroma and caramel malt sweetness present in most IPAs. However, with a smoked turkey breast, sweet cranberry sauce scented with orange zest and a generous portion of sage-infused sausage stuffing (all on the Thanksgiving menu in my house), an IPA can enhance the citrus, smoke and sweet on your plate.

Try: Pizza Boy Brewing Co. West Shore IPA. An American IPA that’s hoppy and dry with light citrus and pine notes. Not too sweet, not too bitter — show up with a growler for your hosts if you’re looking for a gift that truly says, “Thanks for doing all the work today.”

Stout: If you’re like me and possess an endless pit of a stomach, you can drink a stout with just about anything. For some, however, this dark style of beer can feel heavy with a substantial meal. After a post-meal nap, consider rallying on the sofa with a plate of reheated sides that will taste even better with a rich, smoky stout.

Try: This year I’m looking forward to a bowl of bacon-braised Brussels sprouts with Crystal Ball Brewing Co.’s Breakfast Stout. Infused with real local smoked bacon post-fermentation, this hearty — yet, a surprisingly 5 percent alcohol by volume — stout will bring out the salty, smoky deliciousness that blankets the all-but-ignored green vegetables of my holiday spread. Bonus: Serve a slice of pecan pie with Lancaster Brewing Co.’s Double Chocolate Milk Stout. You can thank me for this piece of heaven later. Right now, I’m busy drooling.

— Entertainment editor Amy Peiffer can be found in the kitchen cooking with craft beer nearly every holiday — and maybe sampling a glass or two on the weekend. She’s Crafty is a regular guest column in The York Dispatch Food for Thought blog.

An immersion blender works well to create smooth applesauce, but you can also use a food processor, blender or Foley mill. At right, after washing the apples and removing stems and leaves, cut them into quarters and remove the seeds and cores. (Lauren Gross photos)

This was the weekend the clocks fell back, which makes it well and truly autumn. One of my favorite things to make in the fall is applesauce. Living in Central Pennsylvania, we are blessed with an abundance of orchards, many of which grow apples.

I like to use local orchards and apple seconds — fruit that is slightly imperfect but still perfectly usable for canning. By buying local, you ensure you’re getting fruit picked at the peak of freshness. This year, I bought seconds at Brown’s Orchards in Loganville, but almost all orchards I know sell seconds, so if you have a favorite orchard, ask them about fruit seconds.

When making applesauce, the key is variety. You want a variety of apples (I used Golden Delicious, Fuji and Cameo) to make a complex, rich sauce. Pick sweet apples — Granny Smiths, while delicious in pies, are not good for sauce.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 pecks apples, different varieties
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 cup apple cider (or water)
• 1-1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (if desired)

Yield: 11 pints

PREP & PROCESS

After washing the apples and removing stems and leaves, cut them into quarters and remove the seeds and cores. (Lauren Gross photo)

Put water in the canner and bring to a boil, sterilize your canning jars and put lids in to simmer. While waiting for your water to boil, prep your apples. Wash them well in cold water, twist off stems and remove leaves.

Cut apples in quarters, remove seeds and cores, cut into chunks, and put in heavy-bottomed, deep stockpot. Add apple cider (or water), lemon juice, spices and sugar. Cover and cook on high 25 to 35 minutes, or until apples are soft, stirring occasionally so apples don’t stick to the sides and burn.

Remove apples from heat. Now comes the making-into-sauce part. You have to smooth them out in some way. I used an immersion blender, but you could also run them through a food processor, a blender or a Foley mill. Once the apples have reached the consistency you want, ladle the sauce into jars, leaving about 1/2-inch headroom.

Listen for the lids to pop, or flex-test when they’re cool. Label and store for up to one year.

NOTES

•I used locally made Honeycrisp cider because we happened to have some in the fridge that needed using. Water would work just as well, although if I have to add a liquid, I prefer using a fruit juice because I think it improves the flavor.

•I do not peel the apples. If you’re going to use a Foley mill, you might want to peel them first or else you’ll be pulling the skins out of the mill. Since many nutrients are in the skin, and since peeling apples takes a lot longer than I’m willing to commit to, I just don’t peel them. But you can. Also, if you leave the skins on, your applesauce will have a faintly pink color, which is pretty.

•The amount of cinnamon might seem small, but cinnamon’s flavor will intensify the longer it sits.

— Lauren Gross, a York transplant, has long been fascinated by the science of cooking. Her column, Preserving the Harvest, runs seasonally in The York Dispatch food section.

Homemade gingerbread delights the senses with the full-bodied flavor of fall — and a healthy dose of sweet, rich molasses. (Julie Falsetti photo)

From Scratch is a regular guest column by Julie Falsetti

I like to eat with the seasons. When the weather turns cool, it’s time for foods that remind me of autumn.

Lately I’ve been craving gingerbread. It’s been a while since I’ve made one, because the full-bodied flavor just doesn’t seem right for summertime eating. If you’re a gingerbread fan like me, this is one cake you won’t want to make from a box mix. I was given a piece of such a box mix cake once and was unable to identify it as gingerbread.

This gingerbread recipe is quite spicy. You won’t mistake it for anything else. At first I was reluctant to give it to my York County friends and neighbors, thinking they would be put off by the strong flavors.

However, I was pleasantly surprised by the reception it has gotten from almost everyone. Perhaps it is because the molasses flavor is reminiscent of shoo fly pie, another fall favorite of mine.

To begin, gather the following ingredients. For the spices, I suggest Kramer’s at either Central Market or the New Eastern Market. The spices there are sold by weight, so you can buy just what you need.

Gingerbread

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup hot tap water
• 2 eggs

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 9″ cake pan. Even though mine is non-stick, I still give it a quick spray with Pam.

In a medium-size bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and pepper. Set aside.

In a larger bowl, mix together the melted butter and molasses. Stir in the water. Add the eggs and mix well.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until just combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this will develop the gluten in the flour and make the cake tough rather than tender. I usually do all of the mixing by hand.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake 30 to 40 minutes.

You can tell when it is done: It has risen in the center and is slightly pulling away from the sides the pan.

To be sure, stick a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, the cake is done.

No need for icing as this cake stands well on its own, but a little whipped cream or ice cream will only make it better.

— Julie Falsetti, a York native, comes from a long line of good cooks. Her column, From Scratch, runs twice monthly in The York Dispatch food section.

Pour the freekeh into a saucepan, add water, bring to a boil, cover and let simmer for about 25 minutes. (Mel Barber photo)

Growing up in the Midwest, I ate a lot of meat and potatoes.

Back then, white rice was an acceptable alternative to fancy things up, and asking for things like couscous and quinoa would’ve gotten you a blank stare from the grocer. Ordering exotic grains online was not an option.

I’m making up for it in adulthood by pushing aside the potatoes — mashed, scalloped and baked — and sampling some of the alternative side dishes.

Young wheat: This time out it’s “freekeh,” roasted green wheat that can be seasoned and prepared in ways similar to rice. I received a sample of Rosemary Sage Freekeh from Freekeh Foods (freekeh-foods.com); the product is non-GMO, certified organic and made from wheat grown in the United States, for those who like to know how their eating decisions affect the economic food chain.

The company’s website has a number of recipe suggestions as well as online ordering, but I kept things simple for my first time trying freekeh and just followed the instructions on the package: Bring one cup freekeh and 2-1/2 cups water to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer until tender. Easy.

Freekeh resembles barley or oatmeal as it cooks. (Mel Barber photo)

The rosemary-sage variety has a pleasant, aromatic quality both before and during cooking. The grain puffs up quickly as the water heats, almost resembling barley in a hearty soup. By the time it’s done, it has the fluffy roundness of couscous.

The results: Mine started out a little chewy-to-gummy — likely the result of undercooking, and something experience will fix. At that stage, it had an oatmeal-like quality to it, and since I recently started incorporating oatmeal into savory side dishes, I was OK with that.

In its finished state, freekeh marries the fluffy quality of couscous with the sticky quality of rice. (Mel Barber photo)

I paired the finished freekeh with a pork roast, and the two together were heavenly. The rosemary and sage, along with the quasi-nutty flavor of the freekeh, bonded with the salty fats in the pork and enhanced the taste of both.

Freekeh is also high in fiber and protein, which help you feel full longer and provide steady, long-lasting energy for your body.

You might have to stick to online ordering or search out specialty and natural foods stores to get freekeh for now, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it showing up in the boxed-potatoes-and-rice aisle at grocery stores soon. When it does, I’ll be eager to explore more complex dishes.

Rosemary Sage Freekeh paired with slices of pork roast make a delicious weeknight dinner (Mel Barber photo)

About 200 people dig in at the Farm to City Dinner on Sunday along North Beaver Street in York City. (Randy Flaum — rflaum@yorkdispatch.com)

By JULIE FALSETTI, for The York Dispatch / Food for Thought

When most people hear the word “benefit,” they think “rubber chicken.” York’s second annual Farm to City Dinner delivered food far better.

On Sunday, Oct. 5, about 200 York countians gathered to celebrate the food bounty of our area. And celebrate, we did.

People started arriving at 2:30 p.m. on Beaver Street in front of Central Market. I headed to the bar for a glass of Chambourcin provided by Allegro Winery.

Braised pork on potato crisp appetizers (Julie Falsetti photo)

Very soon afterward, the all-volunteer wait staff poured out of the market carrying trays of appetizers: hand-stretched Cagliata cheese with puttanesca sauce, braised pork on tiny potato crisps, and lump crab with salsa on tortilla chips.

Crab salsa on tortilla chips appetizers (Julie Falsetti photo)

Each was delicious and artfully prepared with local ingredients donated by farms around the county. The cheese from Caputo Brothers made me wish they had a retail store close by.

Hand-stretched cheese with puttanesca sauce appetizers (Julie Falsetti photo)

Musical entertainment was provided by the very talented Donna Jean Foster.

A little later, people gravitated toward the long tables set up along the street and introduced themselves. Within a few minutes, plates of artisanal bread and cheese appeared on the table. Little dabs of babaganoush (eggplant spread) complemented each dish.

The artisanal bread goes quickly, but the plates are refilled just as fast. (Julie Falsetti photo)

Since everything was served family style, I had to curb my urge to eat every piece of bread in sight. I had little to fear, though, as each plate was replenished as soon as it was emptied.

Quickly following came the main dishes, with no chicken — rubber or otherwise — in sight. Being a pork lover, my husband lit up when he saw the tender braised pork. He commented that it was nothing like the dry, tasteless pork from the supermarket.

Braised pork (Julie Falsetti photo)

Equally popular at our end of the table was the roast beef with tomato and sweet onion compote.

Roast beef with tomatoes and sweet onions (Julie Falsetti photo)

An autumn celebration, however, is really about the vegetables, and they were in abundance here: roasted red and gold potatoes with garlic and herbs, creamy corn pudding, roasted broccoli, cauliflower and red onions.

Roasted potatoes (Julie Falsetti photo)

My favorite vegetable dish was a bean cassoulet with roasted vegetables. Our table did not consist of faint-hearted eaters, so refills were soon forthcoming.

Bean cassoulet (Julie Falsetti photo)

Alas, I was pretty full when dessert arrived, but I wasn’t going to let the peach crisp and apple bread pudding pass by untasted.

I have tried most of the fine dining establishments in the area, but have never had a meal that could even come close to this one. My thanks goes out to all the wonderful people who put this event together. I look forward to attending next year.

— Julie Falsetti, a York native, comes from a long line of good cooks.

About the dinner

In its second year, the Farm to City Dinner doubled its turnout of paying patrons to 193, said Nedette Otterbein, the executive director for dinner host the Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education.

The event also received generous support from donors and volunteers. More than 100 volunteers helped out on Sunday, 34 local farms and vendors donated items for the meal, and 67 donors supplied prizes for the silent auction, Otterbein said.

The final fundraising total isn’t available yet but is expected to exceed last year’s $6,000. The proceeds benefit three local nonprofits: the Horn Farm Center, Buy Fresh Buy Local and Healthy World Cafe.

For more information about the dinner or about building a strong system for locally grown, healthy foods, visit hornfarmcenter.org.

A stack of deep-fried mini apple pies will go quickly. (Mel Barber photo)

I recently came home from Brown’s Orchards pick-your-own loaded with ripe apples. The McIntoshes went into homemade applesauce, but the Honeycrisps I saved for eating and trying out a few recipes.

One of those recipes is for Deep-Fried Apple Pies posted on Food 52. The original called for 10 ounces of puff pastry, and if you’re in a hurry or don’t enjoy making homemade dough, that’s a good choice.

I immediately turned to my favorite recipe for Fast and Easy Puff Pastry from King Arthur Flour. The trick is not to overwork the dough or let it warm up too much. Multiple foldings and a long chill — the recipe calls for at least 30 minutes, but I leave mine in the fridge for two hours — make this pastry dough hold together and puff up brilliantly.

The recipe calls for four Honeycrisps, but remember the amount of filling you get will depend on the size of your apples. I chopped up four monster-sized beauties and had enough filling for 24 deep-fried mini-pies and a couple of tarts.

Dicing the apples. Seeds and cores to the left, yummy filling to the right. (Mel Barber photo)

The pastry recipe will turn out one pound of puff pastry, or about a 12-by-24-inch sheet when rolled out. If you have large apples and you plan to use all of the filling in the deep-fried mini-pies, you’ll probably want to make two batches of dough. Or you might double the dough anyway — it makes excellent elephant ears, topped by the apple mixture or just sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.

The assembly line for making deep-fried mini-pies moves from empty dough rounds to half-filled rounds to ready-to-heat pies to finished and ready-to-eat pies. (Mel Barber photo)

The filling calls for bourbon, but you could leave out the alcohol and double the vanilla if you prefer. I used Jim Beam Maple Bourbon, which smells like syrup-covered waffles and heats you up from the inside out.

If you don’t have a clip-on thermometer to measure the temperature of the frying oil — I don’t — you can test the readiness by standing a wooden spoon upside-down in the pot. If bubbles form around the spoon’s handle, your oil is hot enough to fry. (If at any point your frying oil begins to smoke, it’s too hot.)

Apple filling waits to be loaded onto dough circles. (Mel Barber photo)

Deep-Fried Mini Apple Pies

The Dough

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup cold unsalted butter (2 sticks), cut in pats or cubes
• 1/2 cup sour cream

Stir the flour, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl.

Work in the butter until the mixture becomes coarse and crumbly. The butter should not be fully incorporated — only mix until the butter breaks into pea-sized pieces.

Stir in the sour cream. Don’t expect the dough to hold together yet.

Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface, and knead it a few times with your hands to bring it together.

Pat the dough into a rough log, and roll it into an 8-by-10-inch rectangle.

Dust both sides of the dough with flour.

Starting with a shorter end, fold the dough in three like a business letter.

Flip the dough over and rotate it 90 degrees on your work surface.

Again roll it into an 8-by-10-inch rectangle and fold it in thirds.

Wrap the dough in wax paper or plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.

While the dough is chilling, make the filling.

The Filling

• 4 Granny Smith or Honeycrisp apples, diced
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon bourbon
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 to 3 quarts oil, for frying
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon or ground cardamom
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the diced apples, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the apples are caramelized.

Add the bourbon, apple cider vinegar and vanilla, and cook the mixture for another minute.

Remove the skillet from the heat and set it aside.

Retrieve the pastry dough from the fridge and roll it out to 1/4-inch thick. Cut into circles (a 2-1/2-inch biscuit cutter works well).

Heap the apple filling on half of the pastry rounds.

Top the mini pies with the other half of the pastry rounds, stretching as needed to cover the apples.

Crimp the edges with your fingers or the tines of a fork to seal.

Heat a pot of oil to 350 degrees. Using a slotted spoon or deep-frying basket, fry the pies for about 30 seconds on each side. They should turn golden brown.

Place finished mini-pies on a paper-towel-lined baking sheet to drain.

Mix the 1/4 cup sugar and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon or cardamom, and sprinkle the mixture over each mini-pie.

A lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

My house is a Jif house, so I jumped at the chance to try Jif’s new line of seasonal flavors. The company sent over samples of the summery Jif Whipped Peanut Butter & S’mores and the autumnal Jif Whipped Peanut Butter & Pumpkin Pie Spice, both of which are available at grocery stores for a limited time.

Now, you could eat this stuff straight out of the tub — we’re partial to peanut butter on graham crackers at my house, though apple slices are a good companion, too — and it delivers on flavor. The S’mores version is heavy on the chocolate flavor and light on the marshmallow and graham hints, but the Pumpkin Pie Spice variety is dead-on accurate. The initial taste for both is the peanut butter core, with the additional flavors developing more as aftertastes.

Jif Whips come in 15.9-ounce tubs, with the seasonal flavors available for a limited time. S’mores is disappearing from grocers’ shelves, but Pumpkin Pie Spice will hang around through December. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Jif’s Whips offerings are lighter and fluffier, as the name implies. The texture is similar to creamy peanut butter but with an airy lift like egg whites destined for an angel food cake.

You can find out more about Jif Whips at jif.com or www.facebook.com/jif.

Naturally, I couldn’t leave well enough alone, so I incorporated the Jif Whips seasonal flavors into bars and muffins. The recipes are below. Bon appetit!

Peanut Butter S’mores Bars are a dense, crumbly bar with a thickly frosted top. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Peanut Butter S’mores Bars

Bars

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup Jif Whipped Peanut Butter & S’mores
• 1 16-ounce bag brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Frosting

• 1 16-ounce bag confectioners sugar
• 1/2 cup Jif Whipped Peanut Butter & S’mores
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup warm water

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 13 by 9 pans.

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.

Add the flour mixture slowly, at low speed, and beat until smooth.

Divide the batter between the pans and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Make the frosting while the bars bake. Combine all of the ingredients except the water in a mixing bowl. Add the water slowly to thin the frosting and beat until smooth.

Pour the frosting over the bars while they are still warm.

Optional: Sprinkle the tops with crushed graham crackers and mini marshmallows.

Peanut butter pumpkin chocolate chip muffins have a lot going on in the flavor department. Thankfully, the tastes all meld well. (Mel Barber — mbarber@yorkdispatch.com)

Peanut Butter Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup Jif Whipped Peanut Butter & Pumpkin Pie Spice
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 generous cup semisweet mini chocolate chips

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease 18 muffin cups.

Combine flours, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.

Beat peanut butter, butter and brown sugar in a mixing bowl until creamy. Add eggs and milk and beat until smooth.

Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl and beat until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.

Cool muffins in pans on wire racks for five minutes before removing from pans.