Rooty Tooty

Happy fall everybody! For those of you not fortunate enough to be in Chicago (yeah, I said it) you are missing out on a GORGEOUS sunny fall, which is relatively rare since autumn in Chicago is usually synonymous with rain and misery. Anyway, I decided to do a little seasonal cooking in celebration of the lovely weather. I've recently developed a habit of trying to replicate recipes that I've had at restaurants. It's a fun thing to do because it: 1) allows me to test how good/bad my palette really is and 2) allows me to eat the same stuff for waaaay less money. So, my inspiration for this recipe came from the ever popular Andersonville brunch spot, m. henry http://www.mhenry.net/. Last winter I had their root vegetable hash with andouille sausage and polenta and it was nothing short of a-mazing. (Sidebar: there is an adorable trio of little girls at the next table discussing the pros and cons of owning a Chihuahua. So far they've settled on the fact that it's a waste of money to own a dog that requires clothes. Smart girls). Anyway, I decided to try my hand at a root vegetable hash, but I've replaced the andouille with a homemade apple garlic sausage and cut out the polenta all together. As much as I try to jump on the polenta train, at the end of the day, it just doesn't snap my bean. I also poached an egg and made a spicy maple crema to sauce it up a little. Let me preface this post by saying this is a freaking tedious labor intensive dish but it will feed you for well over a week for about $25 out the door, so suck it up, k? Okay, let's do this.

Root Vegetable Hash w/ Apple Garlic Sausage, Poached Egg and Spicy Maple Crema

THE HASH

3 carrots

2 medium beets
2 large parsnips
2 medium/ large sweet potatoes
2 medium/ large russet potatoes
1 large yellow onion
2 small apples
olive oil
kosher salt
fresh cracked pepper
cumin

PREPARATION

1. Clean and peel all of the vegetables (you can leave the skins on the russets). [Note: This is the effing tedious part] Your fingers will be red, 'cuz that's how beets roll.
   


2. Chop the carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, beets, russets and onion into a 1/2 in x 1/2 in dice and chop the apples in large wedges (it's okay to leave the skin and seeds, you'll be removing them later. (Try to make it as uniform as possible so it roasts evenly.
   
   From fug to fab. For real.


3. Toss with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper and cumin (just a little bit) and spread on a large baking pan.
   

Don't mess with the veggies too much or the beets will
bleed all over the other roots, and that's unsanitary.

4. Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 15-20min

5. Turn veggies and return to oven for another 15-20 or until fork tender with golden brown edges.

6. Remove from oven, pick out apple slices and put aside.

Resist the urge to eat it like this, unless you're a vegan.
if you are a vegan, eat this now and head for the hills
because about we're about to get our exploitation on
with your animal friends.

THE SAUSAGE

1/2 lb. ground chicken
1/2 lb. ground pork
2 small green apples (peeled and chopped)
3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 small yellow onion chopped
paprika
sage
thyme
salt
pepper
olive oil

PREPARATION

1. Saute apples, onions and garlic until golden brown and soft.



2. In a large bowl, combine chicken, pork, apple mixture and seasonings



3. Either form into patties to cook (which I did here) OR tear off small pieces to make a "loose sausage" (which actually works better with the hash because you can throw the vegetable mixture back into the pan with the sausage and the finished product = sausage in every bite with minimal effort on the eater's behalf)

SPICY MAPLE CREMA

4 tbs creme fraiche
1 tsp sriracha
1/2 tsp maple syrup OR brown sugar
1/4 tsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp salt

PREPARATION

Ummm...mix it up with a spoon and put it on your food.

POACHED EGG

I'm too lazy to give you explicit directions on how to poach an egg, but a good way to keep the white from going everywhere and making eggs that look like Dementors (Yep, simile Harry Potter style), is to add a little vinegar to the poaching liquid.

Once you've finished all the components, drizzle the crema on a plate and top it with the egg and some chives (for color) and enjoy the hell out of a delicious, cheap seasonal meal. (You can also sprinkle some queso fresco on the plate if you're feeling frisky. As you can see, I was, indeed, feeling frisky).

You're Welcome