October menus: a hearty bean soup, French toast from a waffle iron, spareribs braised in wine or broth - recipes

Sunset, Oct, 1984

OCTOBER MENUS

Beans, bread, and bones: these three humble elements, plus a little humor and ingenuity, give simple menus this month an element of adventure.

For visual impact, bake tender drop biscuits in a wreath and serve around the base of a tureen of hearty bean soup. To give French toast dimples that hold fresh toppings for brunch or breakfast, bake slices of bread saturated with egg batter in a waffle iron. And to develop tasty juices to spoon over golden polenta for a peasant-style Italian supper, braise bony pork spareribs.

Soup and biscuit supper

Thick and warming, this bean soup makes an easy-to-manage meal for a cool fall evening.

Ham Hock Bean Soup

Cheese Biscuit Wreath Butter

Salad Relish Tray

Baked Apples

Put the soup on to simmer in the afternoon, or make it a day ahead and reheat. Bake the biscuit wreath just before dinner and give it time to cool briefly so it will be firm enough to handle easily.

To go with the soup, have a tray of refreshing foods to nibble, such as thin slices of turnip, crisp radishes, carrot or celery sticks, ripe green or black olives, and bread-and-butter pickle slices.

Prepare your favorite recipe for baked apples or consider the one on page 185.

Ham Hock Bean Soup

1 pound dried small white beans

Water

2 tablespoons salad oil

2 large onions, chopped

2 large carrots, peeled and chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1/4 cup chopped parsley

About 2 pounds ham hocks, sawed into halves

1 teaspoon each dry rosemary, dry thyme leaves, and dry mustard

1 bay leaf

2 cans (14 1/2 oz. each) or 4 cups regular-strength chicken broth

Salt and pepper

Sort through beans and discard debris; rinse beans and drain well. Place in a 6- to 8-quart pan. Cover generously with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand at least 1 hour; drain and discard water. Set beans aside.

Place the oil in the same pan and cook the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and parsley, uncovered, over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is quite limp, about 10 minutes. Add the beans, ham hocks, rosemary, thyme, mustard, bay, broth, and 1 1/2 quarts water. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer until meat is tender enough to pull from bones and beans mash readily, about 3 hours. (If made ahead, cool, cover, and chill up to 2 days; lift off solidified fat and reheat.)

Lift out ham hocks and let stand until cool enough to handle; pull off meat, discarding skin and bones. Tear meat into bitesize chunks; set aside. Skim off and discard fat from surface of soup.

In a food processor or blender, puree about half the beans, then return to pan; stir to blend. Season with salt and pepper, and pour into a tureen or serving bowl. Makes 3 1/4 quarts, enough for 6 servings.

Cheese Biscuit Wreath

Make a circle of paper 1 inch wider in diameter than base of soup bowl or tureen. Grease a 14- by 17-inch baking sheet and set paper circle in middle.

In a bowl, combine 2 cups all-purpose flour, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon each dry rosemary and dry thyme leaves, and 1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese. With a pastry blender or two knives, cut in 1/3 cup shortening until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add 1 cup milk all at once and stir just until ingredients are moistened. Drop tablespoon-size mounds of dough, edges together, to form a wreath just touching edge of paper circle. Discard paper circle. Bake in a 450| oven until biscuits are golden, about 15 minutes. Slide a spatula under biscuits to loosen, and let cool slightly. Using wide spatulas, carefully slide biscuit wreath onto a board or the table; set soup tureen in center. Pull biscuits apart to serve. Makes 6 servings of about 3 biscuits each.

French toast breakfast

For a casual weekend breakfast or brunch, set the waffle iron out on the table and let family members or company cook their own French toast.

Chilled Cranberry-Orange Juice

Waffled French Toast with Sauteed Pears

Browned Pork Sausages

Creme Fraiche or Vanilla Ice Cream

To give the toast a springier texture, use bread that is at least a day old, or let fresh slices dry unwrapped for 6 hours to overnight. For creamiest texture, let bread stand overnight in the egg-milk batter.

Waffled French Toast with Sauteed Pears

8 eggs

2 cups milk

3 to 4 tablespoons sugar

8 slices dry thick-sliced bread for French toast, or 1-inch-thick slices French sweet or sourdough bread, Hawaiian sweet bread, or egg bread

Melted butter or margarine

Sauteed pears (recipe follows)

Beat eggs, milk, and sugar (use 3 table-spoons if bread is slightly sweet) to blend. Pour mixture equally into two baking pans large enough to hold all slices in one layer. Add half the slices to each pan; turn in the egg mixture to coat both sides. Let stand at room temperature until all egg mixture is absorbed, at least 20 minutes (or cover and refrigerate overnight). Set an electric waffle iron on mediumhigh heat according to manufacturer's directions. When hot, brush grids lightly with melted butter. Arrange as many bread slices as will fit on the grids, close lid, and cook until well browned on both sides, about 12 minutes total.