Green Chile Stew (recipe link!), Croup, and Times to Avoid Reading Anything by Suzanne Collins

//Check out my recipe for Green Chile Stew here. Approved by 100% of New Mexicans that have tried it (that is, just Ian).//

Ian was born and raised in New Mexico, the only state that has its own question: "Red or Green?" Yes, those from The Land of Enchantment are a little fanatical about their chiles.

I'll come back to the chiles, I promise.

Ten days ago, Felicity and I both fell ill on the same evening. I developed some sort of horrible flu, despite having recently obtained my annual flu shot, which involved a terrible sore throat, throbbing headache, body aches, shivering, and a highish fever. As a note, if you're coming down with the flu, for the sweet love of god, stay away from The Hunger Games series and pick up some Jane Austen. Seriously, worst and possibly the most terrifying night of sleep I've ever had.

My symptoms improved the next day, although I've had some sort of lingering cold since. It's the kind of cold that seems to have new symptoms every day; every morning I wake up, and it feels like the first day of a cold. So strange.

But Felicity fared even worse. Overnight, her poor little body decided to attack itself, and she developed croup. I hadn't heard of anyone getting croup. When I hear 'croup,' I think about Anne of Green Gables and ipecac,* no lie. But yes, Felicity sounded like a dying seal, was diagnosed with croup by a kindly working pediatrican on a Saturday morning, and was promptly treated with a course of steroids to try to avoid death.

Poor Felicity also still has a cold.

Any good New Mexican will tell you to stuff your face with green chile stew before flu season, during flu season, and if you feel a twinge in your throat or nose. I am married to such a New Mexican, and my mother-in-law is such a New Mexican. She, in her goodness, mailed us a care package with a good five pounds of green chiles, with some red and green chile powder in addition. (I must take a moment to brag: I seriously have the best mother-in-law; she skypes with Felicity and me almost every day, is always encouraging and thoughtful, raised one really fine son that treats his two ladies like gold, and she knows when it's time for some chile love).

Ian and I roasted the chiles in the oven yesterday morning. Ian took the time to peel and chop about half of them, and we froze the other half. And I made my very first green chile stew. And then we stuffed our faces with it.


*I can't remember if Anne used ipecac to save Diana's little sister from death of croup; it's been a good 15+ years since I've read the books (do I sniff a literary trip down memory lane approaching?), and even my memories of the movies are vague, but my brain has tied these two things together. So no badgering if ipecac doesn't treat croup; it seems like it might actually make it worse?

Introducing: Plant Matters

Hey all.

If you've been reading along, you'll know that I decided to move back to vegetarianism about two weeks ago, and Ian followed. We shortly realized the reasons we stopped eating meat really extend to dairy and most animal products... so we decided on Saturday night to become full-fledged vegans. And we're super excited.

I've felt for awhile there is a bit of a disconnect with my love of food, menu planning, and posting of recipes, and my goals for this blog. Thus, Ian and I have started a joint blog called Plant Matters where we will post about our adventures as apprentice vegans, information about veganism and animal rights, and of course, lots of tasty, ktichen-tested recipes (which I hope to photograph along the way), and my weekly menus.

The Great Pinterest Purge (or, Hello Vegetarianism, Again)

If you follow me on pinterest, you'll know that I've posted about every recipe ever pinned (sans that stuff that has cake mixes, salad dressing mixes, or canned soup, because that's just gross). It's probably really annoyed you, your feed all taken up with by bazillion recipes (and let's be honest here, most of them involve lots of butter, cream, and/or steak).

I stopped eating meat when I was seventeen years old. I was a vegetarian for six and a half years, and then Ian, the bad influence that he is, got me eating meat again after we started dating. It started out innocently enough; local, organic lamb from our farmer's market, then a little bacon in the soup or in a salad. I visited my family in Minnesota, they heard I was eating meat, and it was all over from there. My defenses weakened, I ate whatever they put in front of me. And it was delicious.

And here I find myself, three and a half years later, cutting it out again. Mostly for environmental reasons, but also because these animals are not treated humanely. (Really, this tells me I should be looking at veganism, but one step at a time, no?)

Anyways, I took the plunge and decided to spend my Friday evening purging my pinterest boards.

Oh. My. Goodness. This was a good test of my resolve - I have pinned some damned tasty-looking recipes that are now haunting me. Why didn't I eat that twice-baked sweet potatoes with the sesame-bacon brittle when I had the chance? Why did we not prepare the chicken with peanut sauce, or make the honeyed pork roast. WHY? 

But really, as I was going through, eliminating well over half of all the recipes I've pinned, clicking 'edit,' then 'delete,' then confirming the delete request, there was something ritualistic and pure about getting rid of the garbage and temptation.

Rest assured dear reader, for now, I will continue to post so many filthy desserts, you will gain weight looking at them. Unless your my husband, who loses weight thinking about exercising, and tones his muscles while eating.

Baked Portabella Burgers with Roasted Red Peppers, Pesto, and Provolone

Well, last night was my last night of eating meat. We made some lamb burgers with goat cheese and a homemade spicy tomato jam. They were... delicious.

But strangely, not as delicious as tonight's portabella burgers. Granted, someone stole two legs off of our three-legged grill this afternoon (?), so we baked our caps instead of grilling them.

Baked Portabella Burgers with Roasted Red Peppers, Pesto, and Provolone
adapted from epicurious.com

2 red peppers (or 2 jarred roasted red peppers)
4 portabella caps, stems removed

olive oil
4-8 slices provolone (omit for vegan)
spring greens or arugula
2-4 Tbsp pesto
mayonnaise (or vegannaise)
4 potato buns

Using your broiler or gas stove, char the peppers (here's a useful tutorial, if you haven't done this before). Place in a medium bowl and cover with saran wrap (alternatively use a small saucepan and lid) and let sit for 30 minutes. Then peel off the skin, remove seeds, and cut peppers into four pieces.

While peppers are steaming, heat oven to 350F. Remove stems from portabella caps, and place on a slightly-greased  baking sheet, gills up. Drizzle with olive oil, and generously salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes. Add cheese slices, and bake for another 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

If you have time, toast the hamburger buns. Spread the mayo and pesto on each bun, and stack with mushrooms, peppers, and greens.

Yum!

Homemade Ricotta

My lovely friend Alli came over on Thursday to keep Felicity and I company, and she asked if I had ever made ricotta. No, I had not. What an intriguing idea, especially as I'd recently come across a ricotta recipe on Pinterest.

We went to the store. We bought our ingredients. We got to cooking once Felicity fell asleep. And it was really, unbelievably easy. 

We bought a lovley loaf of crusty french bread and made crostinis, and made the Honeyed Grape Compote with red grapes, which was amazing (although Ian is decidedly not a fan), with a side salad of arugula and pears, with a light balsamic-basil dressing. The next day, Ian and I ate the crostinis with the rest of the ricotta with some basil-infused olive oil stirred in, sundried tomatoes, and arugula.

So, if you haven't tried making ricotta yet and have 90 minutes to spare, get thee to thy kitchen!

Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwiches and Roasted Beet Salad

I invited two other moms in our building over for lunch several weeks ago and served Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Fig and Honey from my Cooking Light Cookbook (I'm trying to give this cookbook a chance), and with a lovely little salad on the side. The sandwiches were really good following the recipe exactly, and below is the recipe for the salad. Enjoy!

Roasted Beet Salad with Lemon Basil Balsamic Dressing
Serves 4 (with leftover dressing)

I would strongly recommend using a nice aged balsamic vinegar is possible, it makes a big difference. You could also add some goat cheese to this salad, or sliced almonds and shaved parmesan would be nice. I prefer to serve this salad with warm beets, but the beets could certainly be roasted in advance and served at room temperature, or even cold.

For Salad
3-4 beets, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb salad greens of your choice (I used a lovely spring mix from our farmers' market, mescalin greens would also be lovely), washed and dried
1/4 cup (generous handful) of basil leaves

For Dressing
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2-3 Tbsp brown or honey (or more to taste if you prefer a sweeter dressing)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup olive oil (basil flavored, if possible)
juice from 1/2 a lemon
1/4 cup water
2-3 Tbsp minced basil (optional, use if you don't have access to basil-scented olive oil)

Heat the oven to 425F. Toss the beets with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread beets in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet (two if needed). Bake for 40-50 minutes, tossing beets halfway through. The beets should be tender, sizzling, and starting to brown.

Mix the dressing ingredients together, adjusting the sugar or honey as needed to your taste.

Split the greens between four plates and top with basil leaves and roasted beets. Serve with dressing alongside.

Wild Rice & Mushroom Soup (aka possibly the best soup we've ever made)

Yesterday I posted a partial menu for the week. Tonight, we made the Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup from www.kitchn.com with a few adjustments. This soup take a little longer to cook than many homemade soups, but it is easy to make and is well worth the effort. And it's healthy too; if you use whole milk, it calculates at roughly 370 calories per main-course serving. If you use heavy cream, it's about 445 calories per main-course serving. This is definitely the most delicious thing that's come out of our kitchen in recent memory. Enjoy!

Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup
Closely adapted from kitchn.com, serves 4 main courses or 6 side courses

While the original recipe states the cheese rinds are optional, they really are a must. They add a lovely depth and the soup wouldn't be quite the same without them. We served this with some beautiful whole wheat rustic bread found at our farmers' market today.

1 cup wild rice
1 large onion, diced
4 celery stalks, diced
1/2 lb baby bella mushrooms, diced
1/2 lb portabella mushrooms, stems removed and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano (dried or fresh)
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup white wine
2 bay leaves
1-2 cheese rinds
2-3 cups vegetable stock
2 teaspoons rosemary (dried or fresh)
1 cup whole milk or cream
2 teaspoons salt, divided
pepper

Bring 4 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of water to a boil. Add the wild rice and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes until the rice is tender. Set aside rice, undrained.

While the rice cooks, prepare the rest of the soup. Warm a teaspoon of oil in a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onions and celery with a half teaspoon of salt, and cook until the onions are very soft, and starting to brown, 6-8 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium and stir in the mushrooms and another half teaspoon of salt. Cook until the mushrooms have released all their liquid and turned dark brown, at least 20 minutes.

Add the garlic and oregano, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir until the vegetables become sticky and there is no more visible dry flour. Increase the heat again to medium-high and pour in the white wine. Stir and scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Continue simmering until the wine has reduced and thickened a bit.

Add the bay leaf, cheese rinds, rosemary, wild rice, and cooking water from the rice. Add two cups of broth to start. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 20-30 minutes to meld the flavors. Add the milk or cream. Simmer for another 10-15 minutes, until the soup has thickened to your liking. Add additional broth if needed.

Salt and pepper to taste.

::Addendum::

When we reheated this for lunch today, it was even better.
Ian claims it's the best soup he's ever had. 

Winter Bean Soup

It may be the end of February, but we've been blasted with icy winds and cold temperatures in New York City, which makes me want to get cozy with a bowl of comforting soup. We had some basic ingredients on hand, so I whipped up some bean soup yesterday. (Spoiler Alert: it's even better on the second day!)


Winter Bean Soup
 If you eliminate the bacon or use a vegan substitute, this is a vegan recipe. For the best use of time, de-stem and chop the kale while the onions reduce. Ian gave this a "Straight A" when he tasted it. Little did he know it only took about 40 minutes to make!

4-5 strips bacon, chopped
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp dried or fresh rosemary
bay leaf
6 cups vegetable stock
45 ounces canned cannelloni beans
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 bunch kale, steams removed and chopped coarsely (could use spinach here as well)
Parmesan cheese (optional)
balsamic vinegar (optional)


Heat dutch oven over medium-high heat and add bacon. Saute until the fat begins to render, then add the onion. Saute until the bacon is fully cooked and the onion starts to brown and soften. Add garlic, stirring about 30 seconds until garlic becomes fragrant. Add the rosemary and 2 cups stock.

Stirring occasionally, allow the vegetable stock to cook down until it's very thick and almost gone, almost syrupy. Make sure to scrape up any browned bits stuck to the pot.

Add the remaining vegetable stock, beans, basil, and chopped kale and reduce heat to medium. Stir occasionally and bring to a gentle simmer to warm everything through and cook the kale. Once the kale is cooked (10-15 minutes) the soup will be ready to eat, but you could reduce the heat and allow to cook longer to better infuse the flavors if you have more time.

Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan and a few drops of balsamic vinegar.

Recipe: Green Breakfast Smoothie

Green? That's right, green.

Blend the following:
1 sliced banana (could be frozen)
1 apple, cored and in large chunks
1 1/2 cups chopped kale (stems removed)
1/4 cup soymilk, coconut milk, or skim milk
3/4 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp sugar (optional)
Dash of salt (optional)
10-12 ice cubes

This is seriously delicious and an excellent way to start the day. Serves two!

Fall is Here: Pumpkin Muffin Time!

I know, they sound odd, but these muffins are wicked delicious! I found a recipe on epicurious.com and tweaked it to my liking (and my attempts to be a little healthy in my muffin-making endeavors).

My changes:

• I made 18 regular-sized muffins instead of the 6 giant muffins. Do I love a giant pumpkin muffin? Yes, yes I do! Would my midwife kill me if she knew the amount of carbs one of those has? Yes, yes she would.
• I used all white whole-wheat flour, which made them a little less cake-like, but I'm okay with that
• instead of using all oil, I used mostly applesauce (1/3 cup maybe?) and topped off the measuring cup with oil
• I added about 1/4 cup ground flax
• I added a decent helping of cinnamon
• I added 1/2 cup of craisins to the wet mix with the crystallized ginger. I would recommend adding a full cup, 1/2 cup was not enough!
• I adjusted the icing - I only had dark molasses and it was strong tasting the first time I made the icing. That batch was scrapped, and I remade it without the molasses, adding a little vanilla and a generous teaspoon of cinnamon.

To-Cook Recipes

For some reason I can't save into my recipe-box in epicurious.com right now, and I'm lusting after... well, all food.

So, as part save-for-later and part blog entry, here are some desserts I'm dying to try:

• Lemon Cornmeal Cake with Lemon Glaze and Crushed Blueberry Sauce
• Lemon Creme Brulee Tart
• Tarte au Sucre
• Lavender Tea Honey Bread
• Hazelnut Gateau Breton
• Sticky Toffee Banana Pudding

And some main courses that sound like heaven right now:

• Grilled Cheese and Fried Egg Sandwich
• Thai Shrimp and Halibut Curry
• Risotto with Butternut Squash, Leeks, and Basil
• Tacos with Carnitas or Carne Adobada
• Chicken Marsala
• Salmon Cannelloni with Lemon Cream Sauce
• Thai-Style Beef with Noodles
• Farfelle with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Cream
• Korean Rice Bowl with Steak, Asparagus, and Fried Egg
• Chicken and White Bean Chili

 What have we learned? Apparently I'm craving really fatty and delicious things - lots of CREAM in these recipes, which wasn't intentional, I swear. Also, meat. Yummy, yummy meat.

Okay, enough. I'm a hungry, pregnant woman and I'm going to go cook some dinner before I start nomming on my hand.

A Sunday Night

It's shortly after midnight on a Sunday evening. Ian and I got back from Honduras very late last night (we visited my sister, Sarah, and her husband Jason, and their wee babe, Josiah). Our trip was really great - it was wonderful to see where Sarah and Jason have been living for over two years, and just to hang out. There was much reading, lots of cooking together (and good food!) - a very restorative and baby-full trip.

Josiah was the first baby Ian ever held. Despite initial nerves, Ian is a natural and great with babies, at least this one.

Today was spent trying to catch up and get moving.

Overall, I'm really feeling very much better. Apparently my body is adjusting to the pregnancy hormones swimmingly. I'm sleeping much better, am done feeling green (for the most part), and while I still have much less energy than normal and some headaches, I'm not feeling low overall or terribly ill. Which is fabulous. I think, all and all, I really only had about 2-3 weeks of the greens. Compared to some women, I think I'm rather fortunate.

I also am told I have "the glow"... and have a cute little Buddha belly! This is my favorite part so far. It just 'popped' this last week. According to my endless ravaging of pregnancy blogs, most women don't start showing until they are well into their second trimester, but I guess since I'm so darned short, there isn't room for everything! I'm a strong believer in the full belly maternity pants (and don't regret getting them so early either). My only hope is that... if I look like I'm 4-5 months just starting into my third month (10 weeks today), I don't turn into a monster/whale/elephant later on. Sarah assures me this won't happen, but I've got to be worried about something, so I'll choose that.

But the forgetting! Ian and I now have a song called "pregnancy brain," because I seriously can't keep track of anything. Today I lost (and then found) not only my ken ken book, but two cookbooks, my keys, my purse, and my wedding ring (had to take it off to make some pizza dough). Although, I am happy to report that all burners are off, and I even remembered to turn the oven off immediately after using it, AND remembered to close the freezer. True progress.

We visited Babies 'R Us today on a pregnancy pillow hunt and ended up doing a little pre-registry navigation for prices and ideas. It's exciting to see Ian getting excited about the baby and what kind of crib we'll want. And the fact we both made it over 5 minutes in BRU? Amazing. Truly amazing.

This evening I made a late dinner of Asparagus and Ricotta Pizza, as found in the Real Simple magazine I found in the airport yesterday. So tasty! We used a frozen pizza dough which ended up being quite a bit thicker/fluffier than the crust pictured on the website, but it was delicious all the same.

I also made some cream scones from my very favorite cookbook, The New Best Recipe by the Cooks Illustrated team (quick plug - most delicious everything, and apparently now only $24.50? If you don't have this essential cookbook, even if you are a vegetarian, you should get it). I found a nearly similar recipe here as I didn't want to type out my own adaptation. I'll just say that I used white whole wheat flour to give them a little body (10 oz), and made an 8 inch round, which I cut into 8 slices to make the scones. Also, a word to the wise, if you are too lazy to make your own lemon curd, for heaven's sake, buy the $8 jar instead of the $4 jar. I had to resort to strawberry jam... and now my project is to find a recipe to cook up the cheap lemon curd. Any ideas?

Blackberry Scones for Lovers

Blackberry Scones

These scones are healthy with fruit, whole grains, and flax, and only about 300 per serving, although they yield a large scone. They are also fast, only about 25-30 minutes from start to finish. 


This is a great basic recipe you could add almost anything to. I used blackberries when I made these as that was what I had on hand, but they would be good with some grated lemon zest, or some minced crystallized ginger, or even shredded ginger if you put it in the wet mix. You could also experiment with almond or another flavored abstract. I really want to try the following combinations: dried cherries and walnuts, lemon and ginger, and raspberries, white chocolate, with almond extract.


1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 - 1/4 cup ground flax (optional)
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup sugar
5 Tbsp. cold, unsalted butter (cut into small pieces)
2 eggs, room temperature, plus one egg white
1/2 cup skim milk
about 1 cup frozen blackberries (I chopped mine in thirds so they were still in fairly large chunks . I would recommend keeping these frozen until everything else is done)

Heat the oven to 425F. Lightly butter or grease a large baking sheet.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, flax, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the dry mix until it resembles small crumbs and is integrated fairly thoroughly.

In a medium bowl, whisk the 2 whole eggs, then add the milk. Using a wooden spoon (as the mixture will be thick and sticky), stir the liquids into the dry mix until just moistened. Very carefully (especially if you are using fresh berries!!!), fold the berries into the mix.

Turn the dough onto a lightly-floured surface and flatten into a circle that is about 3/4-inch thick. Don't worry about the dough being perfectly level; uneven scones are the prettiest! Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into six wedges and carefully transport them to your baking sheet. Whisk the egg white, and lightly brush on the scones.

Bake for 12-14 minutes, until they are golden brown.

Sweet Souffled Ricotta Cakes (aka really delicious, fluffy pancakes that will melt your cold, cold heart)

My mom mailed me Vegetarian Suppers by Deborah Madison for my birthday (thanks Mummy!). Ian and I had a friend over for brunch this morning and I cooked some delicious little pancakes for us based on this recipe.

Sweet Souffled Ricotta Cakes
Adapted from Deborah Madison

This recipe could be either savory or sweet. We topped our pancakes with honeyed Greek yogurt and fresh fruit, and with homemade pearsauce, but maple syrup or whipped cream and berried would be delicious as well. You could also omit the sugar and make savory pancakes. Fresh herbs mixed into the batter would be quite nice, or served with a light vegetable puree. 

3 eggs, separated
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup milk (skim, whole, or almond)
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon sugar (if sweet, omit if you are making savory pancakes)


In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks until smooth. Add the ricotta cheese, stirring until well blended. Then add the milk and butter, again stirring until well blended. Sift in the flour, baking soda, and salt, adding the vanilla and sugar once well blended. Set aside.

With a hand beater or standing mixer, beat the egg whites until they reach soft peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter until no streaks remain.

Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat, with butter or oil if desired. When pan is hot, reduce heat a little and drop 1/4 cup of batter at a time to make smaller pancakes. Flip after 1-2 minutes, when the first sides are nicely browned (be careful, the batter will still be a bit loose and will bubble on top when they are ready to flip like a traditional pancake!). Serve immediately.

Mollie Katzen's Spinach-Rice Casserole

As today was the first get-back-on-track food day I have two delicious recipes to share!

Spinach-Rice Casserole
Adapted from Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen

We gave this recipe a solid 'A' in our cookbook notes. It's easy to make and a delicious, wintery, comfort-food. We made this recipe with cheddar and milk from our co-op, but you could make this a vegan recipe if you chose to (although it's really lovely with the cheese). While you can use short, medium, or long-grain brown rice, you will save yourself calories by avoiding short grain brown rice. The broccoli slaw can be found by the salad mixes in the produce section. Our mix was a "rainbow mix," with a little bit of shredded carrots and cabbage in addition to the broccoli. Yum!

1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice
1 Tbsp. butter (or olive oil/margarine if you're going vegan with this)
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups shredded broccoli slaw mix / diced broccoli stems and florets
2 bunches fresh spinach, stems removed and roughly chopped
2 tsp. salt
5 garlic cloves, minced
dash of nutmeg
pinch of cayenne pepper
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
3 eggs, beaten (omit for vegan)
1 cup milk (omit for vegan)
1 - 1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (omit for vegan)

Cook the rice per the manufacturer's instructions. When the rice is finished, remove from heat and fluff with a fork.

While the rice is cooking, heat the oven to 350F. Heat the butter in a dutch oven or deep skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion for 5-7 minutes until it start to brown and soften. Add the broccoli and a few teaspoons of water. Continue to saute, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli turns bright green and starts to soften as well. Add the spinach, garlic, and salt. Continue to cook over medium heat, about 5 minutes or until the spinach wilts and cooks down. Remove from heat and mix in the cooked rice, nutmeg, cayenne, and 1/4 cup sunflower seeds (not full 1/2 cup!).

Beat the eggs and milk together until well combined. Pour the milk-mixture over the vegetables and rice and stir, adding the cheese until everything is well combined.

Spread into a 9x13 inch baking pan (you will probably need to grease if you aren't adding any dairy products). Use a scraper to press the mixture down evenly. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds on the top of the casserole.

Bake, uncovered, for 35-40 minutes until the casserole is heated through and is beginning to brown on top. Remove and let rest for about 5 minutes, then serve!

Roasted Eggplant Soup

The motor for our blender and food processor pooped out this week. Ian and I were planning to make a roasted eggplant soup with our last farm share veggies. and then realized this evening we had nothing to make it creamy and delicious with!

Enter trip to Target for the IMMERSION BLENDER. Our good friend Em whipped out her immersion blender out at a jam-making party a few weeks back, and I must admit I was terribly jealous at how fast and mess-free it was. Boiling pears and sugar into pear sauce in mere moments with no messy back and forth between blender and pot? I believe I will!

So we picked up this little dude. Exciting, right? And red (yes mom, red) to match my standing blender. Because Ian spoils me rotten like that.

Our vegetables are currently roasting away for our soup, so I can't tell you how the soup turned out yet, but here is the recipe for Roasted Eggplant Soup at Epicurious.com. Also see Smitten Kitchen's beautiful pictures, my original inspiration.

I'm off to make some Gruyere croutons for the soup. Nomnom.

Butternut Squash Gratin Recipe

It's fall!

Ian and I made my favorite fall dish, Butternut Squash Gratin. This is my fifth fall making it, and I've gradually worked out a recipe that is pretty darned delish.


Butternut Squash Gratin
Smaller butternut squash have more flavor. It's more work to cut up a few of these, but the results are worth it!

3-4 small-medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup flour
1 Tbsp. butter
2-3 onions, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups broth (vegetable or chicken)
several sprigs fresh sage, minced and divided
thyme (fresh or dried)
rosemary (fresh or dried)
4 slices high quality bread
olive oil
2-4 oz. grated Gruyere cheese (or a nice Parmesan)
1/2 - 3/4 cup milk, warmed (recommend whole milk)

Toss the cubed squash in the flour until well coated. Salt and pepper, and set aside.

Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Melt the butter and add the onion and garlic, along with half of the sage and a pinch of thyme. Saute until the onions began to caramelize and brown. Add the broth and increase heat to medium-high. Stir occasionally until almost all of the broth is absorbed and very little liquid remains. Take the onion mixture off of the heat and spread in the bottom of a 13x9 baking dish.

Reheat skillet over medium heat with 1 Tbsp. olive oil. When the oil is hot, place just enough of the squash cubes to cover the pan in a single layer. Cook, tossing gently every minute or two until squash begins to sizzle and starts to nicely brown, about 7 minutes. Place cooked squash on top of onion mixture. Repeat until all of your squash is cooked, usually 2-3 batches depending on your pan size.

Time to make your breadcrumbs! Run the bread through a food processor to make crumbs. Return your non-stick skillet (wiped clean) to medium-low heat, and, if you want, heat a small amount of butter or olive oil. Add the bread and 1-2 teaspoons rosemary, and some salt and pepper. Toss the breadcrumbs and continue to cook about 5-7 minutes until they begin to brown. Set aside.

Sprinkle the cheese and the rest of the sage evenly over the squash mixture, then pour over the warm milk. Cover with tinfoil and cook at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Uncover the squash and sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the dish. Continue cooking for 15-250 minutes more, until the squash is browned and sizzling.