It is September. Time to go back to school, time for pumpkin spice and apple cinnamon everything, time for the Great Frederick Fair. My kids have recently become interested in entering different classes for the fair, after watching our cousins at their own county fair. I think they thought you had to have an actual farm to enter, or livestock - we have neither. But seeing flower entries, baked goods, and art. So, I want to list a few ways that you, kids or a whole group could try a few recipes to enter at the fair. These are easy to adjust and make your own.
Unicorn Fudge
This is a no bake (stovetop only) rainbow colored fudge, using white chocolate and condensed milk. If you don’t use salted butter, add a pinch of salt to the recipe to balance out this super sweet fudge.
Ingredients:
- 3½ cups white chocolate chips
- 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 3 tbs salted butter
- Pink food coloring
- Purple food coloring
- Blue food coloring
- ½ cup marshmallows bits
- 1 tbs rainbow sprinkles
Directions: Line an 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment paper and set aside, don’t use foil, it will stick. Set three separate medium bowls with three separate stirring spoons on the countertop. Place the white chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and salted butter into a large saucepan. Heat on medium, stirring often, until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is glossy, about 4 minutes. Do not overcook the mixture.
As soon as the chocolate chips are melted you should be good to go. The mixture should be thick. Remove from the heat and pour a of the fudge mixture into each of the three separate bowls. Quickly stir in the desired amount of pink food coloring to one bowl, purple coloring into the second, and blue food coloring to the third. Immediately use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop the fudge into the baking pan, alternating between colors. Create swirls throughout the fudge with a knife.
Be careful not to mix the colors too much, otherwise the contrast of the colors won’t be as noticeable. Quickly sprinkle with marshmallow bits and rainbow sprinkles. You may have to press them gently into the fudge depending on how much it has cooled down. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or until the fudge sets completely. Once set, remove fudge from the pan using the parchment paper, cut into squares, and serve. You can store your fudge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Quick (Refrigerator) Dill Pickles
There is an entire section for adult and youth food preservation and pickles are its own class. There is evidence of pickling with vinegar in Mesopotamia as early as 2400 BCE. You’ll need two 1-quart wide-mouth jars with lids.
Ingredients:
- 3 cups water
- 3/4 cup white vinegar
- 3 tbs granulated sugar
- 2 tbs kosher salt
- 6 small cucumbers
- 8 sprigs fresh dill
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and sliced thin
- 2 tbs pickling spice
Directions: In a medium saucepan, combine the water, vinegar, granulated sugar, and 2 tbs of salt and bring to a boil over medium to medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Set aside to cool. Wash the cucumbers and cut each into 4 spears for a total of 24 spears. If the cucumbers are too tall to stand up in the jars without sticking out the top, trim off one end of each so they're the right size for the jars. Fill each jar with cucumbers. Push the fresh dill sprigs down into the jars between the cucumbers. Add the sliced garlic and pickling spices to the jars. Pour the warm brine evenly into the jars and seal each jar with a lid. Refrigerate for 24 hours before serving. Keep refrigerated for up to one month (discard leftovers after 1 month).
- Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin
I like to think of being a friend to future me. And I know I will want to do is make dinner after working on fair projects all day. So be a best friend to future you and just after lunch, put this pork tenderloin with apples in the slow cooker and you will have something ready and seasonal to serve.
Ingredients:
- 2 pork tenderloins (2-3 pounds)
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp ground mustard
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1 medium sweet yellow onion cut into thin slices
- 1 large granny smith apple cut into thin slices
- 1 tbs minced garlic
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 4 tbs unsalted butter
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 3 tbs maple syrup
Directions: Pat the pork tenderloins dry with a paper towel and then season them all over with the salt, pepper, dried thyme, ground mustard, garlic powder and onion powder. Heat a large skillet with the olive oil over medium heat until the oil starts to shimmer in the pan. Sear the pork tenderloins in the hot skillet for 3-5 minutes on each side until nicely browned and then remove from the heat. Place the seared pork tenderloins in a slow cooker and top with the onions, apples, garlic and chicken broth. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4 hours, until the pork is fork tender.
Remove the tenderloin from the slow cooker and place on a cutting board to rest while the gravy is made. Heat a skillet on medium heat, melt the butter in the hot skillet and then whisk in the flour, cooking for 1 minute, while whisking continuously. Slowly whisk in all of the juices, along with the apples and onions from the slow cooker. Next, whisk in the dijon mustard and maple syrup. Continue to cook, while whisking, for 2-3 minutes until the gravy is thickened.
Slice the pork tenderloin into one-inch medallions and serve with the pan gravy, and steamed broccoli.
