Ginger Leek Potato Croquettes with a Fennel Pear Honey Mustard

Kalo mina! That's Greek for "Have a good month," a wish customarily shared amongst Greeks on the first of every month. Speaking of which, today (the first of December) is the deadline for this month's Royal Foodie Joust, a friendly blogger competition hosted by Jenn of The Leftover Queen, and I am running short on time considering I have until noon (it's 10:33 a.m. as I write this) to post this on the RFJ forum.



So, the ingredients for this month's joust were fennel, pear and ginger. Three lovely ingredients indeed and so many dishes they can star in ... but I've got to keep this short. I got some inspiration for this dish from a snippet in the December 2009 issue of Food & Wine highlighting a fennel mustard by Thomas Keller (this master chef's version is just fennel cooked in white vinegar then pureed with mustard powder). I, on the other hand, cooked down some roughly chopped fennel and pear with a pinch of ground ginger in some white vinegar, then pureed it with dry mustard powder and thyme honey. Can you say Mmmmmmmm?

Now, one of my favorite things to eat with mustard is a good potato knish. A knish, if I am not mistaken, is Yiddish for a fried turnover/dumpling filled with potato more often than not although there are a number of varieties that also include ground meat, spinach and other fillings. My favorite is the potato, slathered with lots of whole grain mustard. So after making this homemade mustard of sorts, I had to try it with something potato-y ... hence these Ginger Leek Potato Croquettes that fit beautifully in with the Royal Foodie Joust, paired amazingly well with the Fennel Pear Honey Mustard and, even more importantly, took care of my sudden craving for a knish ... which come to think about it I haven't had in years.

And just so you can understand how delicious these are: my son upon popping two in his mouth jumped up and exclaimed, "Mmmm, Mama! These are yummy in my tummy!" What can I say? The kid's got a distinguished palate ... and he's only three!

Ginger Leek Potato Croquettes with a Fennel Pear Honey Mustard


For 1 1/2 cups of mustard:

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 fennel bulbs, cleaned, trimmed and roughly chopped
2 pears, peeled and diced
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
Pinch of ground ginger
1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1 teaspoon thyme honey
Salt, to taste


In a skillet, heat the olive oil and cook the fennel and pear over low heat until tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Add the vinegar and ground ginger and cook for 10 to 15 minutes more. Once done, place the contents of the skillet into the bowl of a food processor, add the mustard powder and honey and blend until pureed. Spoon the mustard into a bowl, let cool, then season with salt and store tightly covered in the refrigerator. The mustard is best made at least one day ahead, if not more.


For the Ginger Leek Potato Croquettes:

2 large potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and quartered
1 large leek, washed, trimmed and roughly chopped
Pinch of grated ginger
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 eggs (one for mixture, one for coating before frying)
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Olive oil for frying


In a medium saucepan, place leeks and potatoes in enough water to cover and boil until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain the cooking water then place saucepan with the leeks and potatoes briefly back over the heat to evaporate any excess water.

Transfer the potatoes and leeks to the bowl of a food processor along with the ginger, salt and pepper. Pulse until pureed then spoon the potato mixture into a large bowl. Stir in the breadcrumbs and one egg, adding more breadcrumbs as necessary to more easily form the mixture into croquettes. If you have the time, place the mixture in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes for better handling. Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl and set aside. Heat about an inch of olive oil in a large skillet or dutch oven. Wet your hands slightly and begin forming the potato mixture into croquettes, about one inch in diameter. Coat the croquettes in the egg and fry until golden on each side. Drain briefly on a plate lined with paper towel.

Serve hot or warm alongside the Fennel Pear Honey Mustard.

Cranberry Apple Chutney

Thanksgiving is just a week away so I thought I'd share some recipes that will be gracing our table this year. There are, of course, a few dishes that remain virtually unchanged year after year: the turkey is roasted simply with fresh vegetables and herbs; the sweet potatoes are baked with brown sugar and marshmallows; and the rice is made in our family's traditional way ... and there are no ifs, ands or buts about it.

But some dishes I like to tweak and experiment with include appetizers, the essential cranberry sauce and all the fall inspired desserts. So I thought I'd start with this cranberry chutney which I began making last year in place of plain cranberry sauce (which I still adore but sometimes a girl needs a little extra oomph). This is a great make-ahead recipe that's full of flavor and can have some texture depending on how thick you like to dice your apples.

Use apples that can withstand cooking a little better and not turn to mush: I'd say Gala, Rome, Jonagold or Winesap are your best bets. Also, freshly grated orange zest and juice as well as freshly grated ginger are key ... and if you're feeling adventurous, add some ground clove for a truly flavorful chutney that can not only serve as a worthy accompaniment to your turkey, but pair well with roasted pork loin, grilled pork chops and make an amazing addition to any sandwich.

Cranberry Apple Chutney
Makes 6 to 8 accompaniment servings


2 pounds of apples (about 4 large)
2 medium onions, thickly sliced
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon orange zest
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard
2 cups fresh cranberries (I purchase fresh cranberries and freeze them for future use, then thaw before using)


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Halve, and core apples (and if you prefer, peel them as well although I leave them unpeeled) then cut into 1-inch cubes. In a bowl combine the apples with the orange zest, orange juice, sugar, ginger, mustard and butter and stir lightly to coat. Place the mixture in a baking dish and bake for about 45 minutes. Stir the apple mixture a few times during baking.

Stir in the cranberries and bake for 15 to 20 minutes longer until the cranberries are soft and the chutney thick. You can make the chutney a couple of days in advance; just bring it to room temperature or warm it ever so slightly before serving with your roast turkey. Try it with roasted chicken or pork; better yet add it to a sandwich or wrap using leftover chicken or turkey breast ... trust me, you won't be disappointed.

Ginger Goodies from The Ginger People

So, back in February, Valentine's Weekend to be exact, Jenn over at The Leftover Queen ran a giveaway dubbed the "Hearts of Fire" sponsored by The Ginger People and ... drumroll please ... I WON! The giveaway entailed submitting an idea for a Valentine's Day dessert incorporating the company's Ginger Sweeties. My entry was randomly drawn and a couple of weeks ago, I received this basket chockful of ginger goodies.


The sweet prize contained three large boxes of the company's Ginger Chews in three flavors (Spicy Apple, Hot Coffee and Peanut), three small boxes of Ginger Chews in the Original Ginger flavor, two boxes of Gin Gins hard candy and a jar of some heart-shaped Ginger Sweeties. So far, I've tried a couple of the Ginger Chews all of which have this surprisingly peppery burst of ginger that give these sweet treats a real bite.


The Marina, Calif.-based company is passionate about all things ginger and boasts state-of-the-art ginger factories in California and Australia. According to The Ginger People, the company is the world's only producer of closed-kettle artisan style crystallized ginger and it prides itself on being the most innovative, quality-oriented and environmentally conscious ginger producer in the world.

To show my appreciation to The Ginger People for sending me this lovely basket, I decided to bake something using none other than that pretty little jar of Ginger Sweeties. And what better place to get some inspiration for a ginger recipe than The Ginger People's very own web site? The site features a Cook's Corner with a collection of some sweet and savory recipes incorporating ginger and more specifically some of The Ginger People's products. I decided on some Ginger Chocolate Chip Cookies using some chopped Ginger Sweeties and the result was a great variation on the traditional chocolate chip cookie.

Ginger Chocolate Chip Cookies
(from http://www.gingerpeople.com/)

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 Ginger Sweeties, finely chopped
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, oats, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until well blended. Stir in the egg and vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture into the butter mixture and mix until smooth. Stir in the chopped Ginger Sweeties and add the chocolate chips.

Heap teaspoonsfuls of dough onto the prepared cookie sheets, spacing each 2 inches apart. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until light brown. Remove from the oven and cool on cookie sheets for a couple of minutes. Transfer cookies to rack to cool completely.