Concord Grape and Rosemary Focaccia

Special equipment

stand mixer with dough hook

Ingredients

serves makes 16 servings, active time 25 minutes, total time 1 hour 25 minutes

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 cup water, warmed to about 110°F
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 2 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
• 3/4 pound Concord grapes, stems removed
• 3 small sprigs fresh rosemary, stemmed
• Coarse sea salt

Procedures

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400°F. Lightly coat a 9 by 13-inch metal baking dish with 2 tablespoons of the oil.
   
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment, mix the yeast, water, 3 tablespoons of the oil, the sugar, flour, and fine sea salt on low speed until a ball forms, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the bowl from the mixer, pour 1 tablespoon of the oil over the dough, and rub with the oil to completely coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until doubled in size, 30 to 45 minutes.
   
3. Cut the grapes in half and remove the seeds, keeping the skins with the grapes, if they come away from the fruit. Set aside until ready to use.
   
4. Transfer the risen dough to the prepared baking dish and evenly press the dough into the pan, covering the entire surface. Dock the dough with your fingertips, making holes all the way through. Drizzle the dough with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Sprinkle with rosemary needles, grapes and skins, and coarse sea salt. Lightly cover the pan with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until doubled in size, 20 to 30 minutes. Carefully remove the plastic wrap and bake until golden brown and a thermometer inserted into the center of the focaccia reads at least 200°F, 20 to 25 minutes.
   
5. Let the focaccia cool in the pan until warm. Slice and serve with ice cream (if using).

Easy Grape Jam

Special equipment

a boiling water canner, a food mill, and a jar lifter

Ingredients

serves 4-5 half pint jars, active time 45 minutes, total time 1 1/2 hours

• 3 pounds of flavorful grapes, concord or otherwise (about 2 quarts)
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons low sugar pectin
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup lime or lemon juice

Procedures

1. Prepare boiling water canner and sterilize 5 half-pint jars by boiling them for ten minutes. Wash lids and rings and bring to a simmer in a separate, small saucepan of water. Turn off heat and allow jars, lids and rings to sit in hot water until you need them.
   
2. Wash and stem grapes, removing any split or compromised ones. Don't worry if small stems remain on the fruit, since they will be strained out along with the seeds. In a nonreactive, heavy-bottomed saucepan bring grapes and water to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.
   
3. Simmer grapes, periodically stirring and crushing, until they've begun to lose their shape and you can see seeds floating in the mix, about ten minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
   
4. Set a food mill (with the smallest sieve in place) over a large, heatproof bowl or pitcher, and pour grapes and cooking liquid through. Mill until all that remains are the seeds, skins, and stems. You will have about 4 cups (32 ounces) of grape pulp.
   
5. In the same, nonreactive saucepan, stir grape pulp together with sugar, pectin, and citrus juice and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until the mixture registers 220°F on a candy or instant read thermometer.
   
6. Turn off heat and skim any foam with a spoon. Ladle jam into prepared jars, leaving a quarter inch of head space. Wipe the rims of the jar lids with a clean kitchen or paper towel and seal.
   
7. Place the sealed jars back into the canning kettle. When all jars are added, make sure that the water level clears the jar lids by at least one inch. Add more water if necessary, and, over high heat, bring the water back up to a boil. Once the water boils, set a timer for ten minutes.
   
8. After ten minutes, turn off heat, and allow jars to sit in water for five additional minutes. Then, using a jar lifter, remove the jars to a cooling rack.
   
9. Once jars have reached room temperature, remove rings and test that all lids have sealed properly. If any have not sealed, store them in the refrigerator. Label and store sealed jars in a cool place out of direct sunlight.

Flounder in Grape Leaves

Ingredients

serves serves 4, active time 20 minutes, total time 20 minutes, plus time to heat the grill

• 4 medium tomatoes or tomatillos
• 2 small garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon capers, drained and chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for the grape leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 (6- to 8-ounce) flounder fillets
• 8 to 12 large grape or fig leaves, stems removed

Procedures

1. Light a grill. Grill the tomatoes over a hot fire, turning, until charred all over. Let the tomatoes cool, then core and finely chop them. Put them in a medium bowl and stir in the garlic, capers, and 1/4 cup of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
   
2. Season the flounder with salt and pepper. Spread the tomato mixture over the fillets and wrap each one in 2 large leaves, enclosing the tomato mixture. Rub the leaves generously with olive oil. Grill the flounder over a medium-hot fire until the leaves are crisp and the flounder just cooked, about 3 minutes on the first side and 2 minutes on the second side. Serve right away.

Concord Grape and Lemon Upside Down Cake

Special equipment

Pie plate/cake pan, whisk, spatula, microplane

Ingredients

serves Serves 8, active time 15 minutes, total time 45 minutes

• For the Caramel:
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 2 tablespoons butter
•  
• For the Cake:
• 1 1/2 cups seedless Concord (Thomcord) Grapes (about 8 ounces)
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup plain yogurt
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
• 2 teaspoons zest from 1 lemon, plus lemon flesh cut into supremes and diced

Procedures

1. For the Caramel: Set rack in center of oven. Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine sugar, honey and butter for caramel in small saucepan over medium heat. Once butter is completely melted, stir occasionally to emulsify. Cook until very light brown in color, about 3 minutes. Immediately pour into 9-inch pie or cake pan. Lift pan carefully by edges and gently swirl caramel to evenly coat entire bottom surface. Set aside to cool and harden.
   
2. For the Cake: Once caramel is set, lightly brush inner sides of pan with soft butter. Add grapes to pan, adding or removing some to create a single but densely packed layer of grapes. Set aside.
   
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, whisk to combine and set aside. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, milk, and vanilla. Pour melted butter in one steady stream while whisking to emulsify. Stir in lemon zest, then fold in lemon pieces. Add wet mixture to dry and gently fold together until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and bake until a skewer or paring knife inserted in center comes out slightly moist but not covered in batter, 20 to 25 minutes, turning once half way through baking. Allow cake to cool for 3 to 5 minutes before running a paring knife around the edge and inverting onto a plate or serving platter. Allow to cool to almost room temperature before serving.