Joey's Celery, Apple, and Fennel Slaw

 I've often had the debate about which recipes are a MUST at Thanksgiving. For some people, it's just not Thanksgiving without Mac n Cheese. For others, you can't have Thanksgiving without sweet potatoes, cranberries, and stuffing. We all have our family traditions and favorite dishes.
In my family, one of the things that MUST be on the plate, is home made cole slaw. Cole slaw, you say???? Yes! It's something my Mom always made for Thanksgiving, and so it will always be on my Thanksgiving table.
 Just as with cranberries, I have my favorite recipe for cole slaw, but I still like to try other different versions and variations. Especially when you have a big plate of heavy casseroles, you definitely want something bright and acidic to cut through everything and balance it out.
 I've always loved the crisp anise flavor of fennel, so I wanted to try it in a delicious slaw. Funny thing... I searched and searched for what I thought would be the perfect recipe, and then I wound up not following it anyway. LOL I have a habit of doing that! Well, what can I say? I like to taste things and then say "what else does it need? And then I go from there.
 So if you'd like to try a new something to brighten and freshen up your meal, give this slaw a try. It really goes SO well with a big Thanksgiving feast!


1 tbs vegetable oil
3 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tsp sugar
2 tbs mayonnaise
salt and pepper
 2 granny smith apples
3 ribs of celery
2 bulbs fennel plus 1 tbs chopped fennel fronds 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar, mayo, and S&P. Set aside.
Core apples, (no need to peel). Slice the apples thinly, then cut into thin match sticks. Slice the celery into thin slices on an angle. Slice the the fennel as thinly as possible across the bottom of the bulb.
All of this slicing is even better if you have a mandoline slicer. (just be very careful of that blade!)
Toss everything in the dressing. Adjust seasoning if needed.



Tips:
Unfortunately, this is not one of those dishes that can be made very far ahead. No one likes a soggy cole slaw. If you absolutely MUST make it ahead, I wouldn't go sooner than the night before.
For an extra hit of fresh anise flavor, you could add a little chopped fresh tarragon. I probably would have added some to the recipe, but I didn't have any on hand!

Fennel Upside-Down Cake

 Have you ever cooked with fennel?
 I must admit, I'm just discovering it, lately. I've had it in a few dishes at restaurants from time to time, but have rarely ever used it in any of my home cooking and baking. It's fun to discover a new ingredient, dontcha think? I've had it sliced raw in salads and candied on top of desserts, but this recipe is the first time I've ever seen it in a cake. It's from Giada De Laurentis and it's just fabulous!
 First of all, I love that it's not your everyday average cake. It's a little unexpected and outside the box. Second, it was great to try a new recipe!! New ingredient, new recipe, always fun. And third, I love that it makes just a tiny cute little one layer cake. It's perfect for a small brunch or if you're just having a couple friends over for tea or a dinner/movie hang.
 I served it with raspberry sauce as the recipe suggests, (even though the sauce didn't make it into the photo), but this cake is so delicious, you don't even need the sauce if you're not a fan of raspberries. Actually, I liked the cake so much that I'm already thinking of trying the cake portion of the recipe without the fennel. Maybe I'll try it with another delicious candied something or even just plain. It has a lovely hint of lemon to go along with the hint of anise, and the two are just perfect together. Plus, the cake uses olive oil, (which is also a fun not-the-norm ingredient in a cake) and it makes it amazingly moist and delicious.
 So there you have it. New ingredient, new recipe, something different, all fabulous. DEFINITELY give this one a try the next time you're having a friend or two over for coffee.
I betcha they'll ask you for the recipe!


Fennel:

1/2 cup sugar
2 small or 1 large bulbs fennel, halved and sliced into 1/8-inch half moons
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Cake:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 cup milk, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 teaspoon for greasing pan
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon fennel pollen or ground fennel seed

 Sauce:

1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam
1 tablespoon lemon juice.
Fennel fronds, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch cake pan with 1 teaspoon olive oil.

For the fennel: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, dissolve the sugar in 3/4 cup water, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Add the fennel, salt, and lemon juice, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the liquid is reduced by three-quarters, about 15 minutes. Spread the candied fennel evenly over the bottom of the prepared cake pan. Set aside to cool slightly.

For the cake: Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, olive oil, lemon zest, and fennel pollen. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and whisk until just combined. Pour the batter evenly over the candied fennel. Place in the preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean, 30 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then invert the cake onto a plate to cool completely.

For the sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together the raspberry jam, lemon juice and 2 tablespoons warm water. Sprinkle the cake with a few picked fennel fronds. Slice into wedges and serve with a spoonful of the sauce.

Tips:

I don't know where Giada does her shopping, but I've never seen fennel pollen anywhere. TBH, I had never even heard of it as an ingredient (but I've read that it's very expensive). So I just used ground fennel seeds. Easy! I just used my mortar and pestle to grind them up, but you could also place the seeds on a cutting board and use the bottom of a heavy pan (like a cast iron skillet) to crush them up a bit.

 The next time I make this, I probably won't use as much fennel as I did. I bought some extra fennel because I wasn't sure how far it would go, but it turns out 2 small bulbs would have been fine. And I think I'll slice it a little smaller next time. It was a bit chewy, and I think the cake would have sliced a bit more easily if it had smaller pieces of fennel on top.

Potato and Fennel Gratin

Here's a neat new twist on an old favorite dish. Yes, of course, you can have your regular potatoes au gratin, and it would be delicious and rich and fabulous. But when you add fennel to the equation, suddenly it becomes new and different and elegant and impressive and perfect for a special occasion. Now, I must admit that I have limited experience when it comes to cooking with fennel, but I do love it, and I knew this would be a win as soon as I saw Ina Garten making it on her show. It's so good that I didn't even feel the need to tweak the recipe! If you know me, you KNOW that that's saying something! It's perfect as is! And it's really easy too! I think you should make it for your next holiday or special occasion dinner. Love it!

2 fennel bulbs
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 pounds russet potatoes (4 large potatoes)
2 cups half and half
2 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Butter the inside of a 9x13 baking dish.

Remove the stalks from the fennel and cut the bulbs in half lengthwise. Remove the cores and thinly slice the bulbs crosswise, making approximately 4 cups of sliced fennel. Saute the fennel and onions in the olive oil and butter on medium-low heat for 15 minutes, until tender.

Peel the potatoes, then thinly slice them. Mix the sliced potatoes in a large bowl with the half and half, cheese, salt, and pepper. Add the sauteed fennel and onion and mix well.

Pour the potatoes into the baking dish. Press down to smooth the potatoes. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, uncovered, until the potatoes are very tender and the top is browned and bubbly. Allow to set for 10 minutes and serve.

Tips:
At first I thought it would be good to slice the potatoes and fennel on a mandolin slicer, just to make really thin slices, but I quickly decided that I wanted the slices to be just a bit thicker. So I bagged the mandolin idea and just used a nice big sharp knife. I think the thicker slices provide better texture throughout the dish! Just sayin.