Unbelievably Great Butternut Squash Soup

Dont' pack away that soup pot, yet!  In my neck of the woods, we are just beginning snowy season...or so it seems.  It's been relatively mild since November!  When I say mild, though, it doesn't mean "go to the beach" weather.  Just a light coat, not down jacket kind of day!

So, soups are still on the menu in this home.  I'm happy that they are because this soup was heavenly!  I needed to do something with my intimidating butternut squash.  If you've ever tried to gracefully cut up a squash of this variety, you know why I'm hesitant!  I don't think there is a strategy in carving up the extremely tough skin.  A machete, maybe?  Or, you can act like a damsel in distress (It works!) like I did.  My hubby did the hard part and we worked as a team to conquer the butternut squash.  If there is an easy way,  (besides buying it cut up) please let me know. 

I wandered onto another gal's blog called The Italian Dish for the recipe and changed a few things only slightly.  It was creamy, and good with just the right amount of spice!  It's a keeper!

Butternut Squash Soup

3 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp dried sage

6 cups butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut up

1/8 cup sherry (I used Madeira)

4 cups chicken broth

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

4 oz pancetta, chopped

1/4 cup cream or half and half

salt and pepper

Melt the butter and oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat.  Add onion and saute until soft.  Add the garlic and sage and saute for one minute.  Add squash and saute for 5 minutes.  Add the Madeira, broth and cayenne pepper.  Cover and simmer on low for about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, fry the pancetta in a small skillet until crisp, and drain on a paper towel.

Puree soup. I used a blender,  done in batches.  Return puree to the pot and stir in the cream.  Season to taste and add pancetta when serving.  You can also add toasted garlic croutons as a garnish.  Serves 4-6.

Sweet and Spicy Caribbean Stew

I'm a bit hesitant when I post some of these recipes.  It feels like I'm giving away all my "trade secrets", some of which will go into my long awaited book.  But, sharing is good and so is this original.

My inspiration comes from an area I've never travelled to but, may soon.  It is on my "bucket list"!  How many people have ever dreamed about sailing around the  turquoise bathtub-like waters of the Caribbean?  Hard to resist!  The food intrigues me to the point that I think I should pack up and move there.  Fresh fish, exotic fruits and veggies with amazing spices permeating the dishes. 

Until then, I made this spice infused stew.  It was amazingly and surprisingly great! 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb. chuck roast, cut up, dredged in flour and browned in a bit of oil.  Then set aside.

In the same large pot, add more oil ( 1 Tbsp) and the following:

1/2 -1 onion, chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

Saute until soft.  Then add the following:

4 cups beef broth

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp Jamaican seasoned pepper (I used a brand called "Jamaica Me Crazy")

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground cloves

Cover and bring to a  slow boil, cooking for 5 minutes.    Now, add the meat back into the pot along with the following:

1 potato, peeled and cut up

2 carrots. peeled and cut into chunks or sliced

1 yam,  peeled and cut up (Next time I may delete the potato and increase the yam to 2)

1 handful of chopped parsley

Turn the heat down to simmer, cover and cook slowly for at least an hour.  More is better. If you're cooking it longer, you may need to add a cup or more of water.  If you want the broth to be thicker, add a mix of cornstarch or flour and water to the pot about 10 minutes before serving.

Don't let all the ingredients and steps discourage you.  Cut everything ahead of time and have it ready to go into the pot.  It was well worth the effort!  Enjoy!

Fat Tuesday, Indeed!!

If it was Fat Tuesday, then today MUST be Slim Wednesday!  It was the perfect storm...what better day to splurge!  Traditionally, Fat Tuesday is a carnival, a gluttonous feast celebrated all over the world to prepare themselves for lent.  Although I didn't put  on my beads or party hat, I "saved the best for last", French beignets!  This was another gift from my friend who vacationed in New Orleans.  I've seen this box in World Market, so no need to hop a plane for these!



This box makes 2 dozen.  I only made a few!  No way can I have 2 dozen French donuts sitting around the house!


Growing up a strict Catholic, I always gave up something for Lent.  The teacher (nun) would go around the room and we'd resite our Lental intentions.  I tried to give up the confessional, (after all, I was a good, sinless child) but that wasn't allowed.  So, I'd make stuff up!  One year, I decided to "go all in" and give up ALL SWEETS!   Where was my guardian angel when this thought process occurred!  This was nuts!   But, I did it and it was one of the hardest things I had done back then, especially since my grandma never let her candy jar go empty!    I lost some pounds, even at 10 years old.  I'm sure it was "baby fat", and historically, I'm still working on it!  I'm here to say that losing baby fat is not like losing baby teeth!  To me, it was not a natural process!

Anyway, the time has come to shed my Winter coat, even though Winter has not arrived in these parts.  All the weight I lost in September-December has NOT returned (okay, maybe some - 8 lbs.)  I have the knowledge and skills to do this on my own...my love for all things, food gets in the way...but, great health and being able to walk those beaches and Italian and French hill towns have a way of  motivating me!

So, stay with me...I have alot up my sleeve!  Have a great week!

Creole Jambalaya

New Orleans has always been a place that appears fascinating in its unique way.  It's on my travel bucket list, but not in the top ten.  However, it's moving up quickly.  Why?  Because of its cuisine, a mix of seafood to make up a creole, gumbo or jambalaya.  So, what's the difference?  From what I can gather, in jambalaya the base is shrimp, ham and rice.  With Creole, the dishes refer to a cuisine derived from the French, Spanish, Indian and African influences.  Then, gumbo is a Creole dish (soup or stew) which is thickened with ocra or other thickening agents.  Are you confused yet?  At any rate, the people of Louisiana appeared to be wizards with the ingredients that were available to them.  Craw fish and alligator in the same pot?   Put it all in, add spices and simmer!

I  made my first creole jambalaya last week.  Our friends  had recently returned from a trip to New Orleans and came back bearing gifts, a cookbook called, "The best of the best of Louisiana cookbooks".  We took care of their amazing labradoodle, Lulu.  Watching this dog is a "gift" in itself.  She keeps me motivated to take my walks and also, whips my sassy spoiled cat into shape, if that's possible!




Cat: "I don't want to share your bed with you!"



Dog: "Okay, be that way...I'll sleep on your bed!  We're  color coordinated now!"

I love trying new recipes so I started with this one.  It's not as spicy as I expected it to be, so I sprinkled a bit of chili flakes on mine after serving.  Much better!  Next time I'll switch up the spices...

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp butter or margarine

3/4 c chopped onion

1/2 c chopped celery

1/4 c green or red pepper

1 Tbsp chopped parsley

1 clove garlic, minced

2 cups cooked and cubed ham

1 (28 oz) canned tomatoes, cut up and juice used

1 (10 1/2 oz) can beef broth

1 can water

1 cup long grain rice, uncooked

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 tsp dried thyme (I omitted)

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp pepper

1 1/2 lbs. raw, peeled and cleaned shrimp

Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven.  Add the onion, celery, peppers, parsley, and garlic.  Cook until tender.  Add the rest of the ingredients, except the shrimp.  Cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until the rice is tender.  Add the shrimp and simmer, again, until shrimp are cooked, about 10 minutes.   This makes 6-8 servings.   Pretty good!

Thanks, Lulu...we always enjoy watching you!  And thanks, Paul and Cathie for the cookbook!



A "love tap"




My dad's lap is off limits!



A Kiss in Provence

This special Valentine Cocktail was like a kiss in Provence.  Not that I would know, but it's what I can fantasize about.  I picture myself, and hubby , of course,  in the South of France, perhaps in  June or July when the lavender  is blooming and the sunflowers are beginning to reach towards the sun.  Our ancient stone villa we have rented has a distant sweeping view of the sea.  We've spent the day at the beach and are relaxing on the vine covered terrace before our meal.  At the market we purchased fresh from the sea mussels, a bunch of fennel, garlic, a selection of cheese, and chocolates.  I'll prepare a light supper later.   I could get lost in my dreams!

To bring a little love, lemon and lavender into reality, I concocted this special libation.  Several lavender bushes grow in my yard.  Right now they have a white crust of snow covering them.  Last early Fall I took the time to harvest and dry my lavender.  Glad I did...this is the result!

I made a lavender simple syrup, first.  All you do is start with 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar, add about 2 Tablespoons of dried culinary lavender.  Bring it to a boil, stirring, reduce the heat to simmer for 2 minutes or so.  Remove from the heat and cool.  Strain into a jar or container and you have nectar from the South of France.  Good stuff.  You can use this so many ways.  I chose to put into a "Valentine" cocktail.

In a pitcher pour:

4 shots of vanilla vodka (It's what I had in the pantry)

4 shots of lavender simple syrup

2 shots of limoncello (It's Italian, but humor me on this one)

Add a few ice cubes, shake well, and strain into chilled glasses!  Amazingly good, any time of the year.  It is truly,  a kiss of Provence!

Happy Valentine's Day

In our home we celebrate every day as if it were Valentine's Day.  I don't want to sucumb to the outside (media) pressure.  In actuality, there is very little that I NEED.  That's not to say that I don't have desires for, say, a ton of travel in my future.  And, yes I do enjoy dinner out once in a while, choosing, mostly entrees that I will probably never make.  Ravioli with wild boar sauce is one.  You don't see much boar meat in the stores!    Rigatoni with hare meat sauce is another.  I guess I could hunt those rabbits that lounge and gorge on our lawn.  Not likely though...

For Valentine's Day there is a tradition, of sorts, in our family.  My father always sends a nice gift and I try to reciprocate.  My mother always remembers her son-in-law and grandson with something special.  This year they got homemade chocolate chip cookies (The best) Then I pay it forward...I do something special for my son, my special Valentine.  This year I wasn't able to bake his traditional triple chocolate cake for his birthday because we were in the middle of a kitchen remodel.  I promised I'd make it up to him...same cake, different shape.  Happy Valentine's day!

Jeremy's triple chocolate cake

For my hubby, my special everything to me, I always prepare a gourmet meal at home.  To us, it's so much better than going out...quieter, less expensive, more romantic.  So, this year he chose veal scallopine, asparagus and whatever else I can come up with, plus dessert!  We'll spend a nice evening at home and not fight the crowds.

Make every day special, cherish the people in your life.  They're in your life for a reason, I believe...and have a great Valentine's Day, however you celebrate it.

Pasta of the Month - A for Artichokes

This pasta has everything you need.  A little crunch from the walnuts, an earthy goodness you get from the garlic, cheese and sun dried tomatoes and the main ingredient, artichokes.  Originally from California, I grew up on artichokes.   My mom used to stuff the leaves with a combination of raisin bread and Roquefort cheese.  So good.

When my husband and I moved to Colorado, (we lasted only 13 months) finding fresh artichokes were difficult.  I remember, at the checkout, the checker asked what they were and how did I cook and eat them.  I assumed everyone knew what an artichoke was.

Living in Nevada, artichokes are "like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get"!  It seems that sometimes they're flavorful and other times they're dry and tasteless!  So, to still get my dose of artichokes without the guessing games, I resort to canned or frozen when they aren't in season.  This is one of those "keeper" recipes that I'll make over and over.

Ingredients: (4-6 servings)

1/2 box or 1/2 lb pasta (I used bow ties or farfalle)

1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, sliced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 cup olive oil

 12 oz bag of frozen artichokes, cut up.

1/2 cup walnuts, toasted or not, coarsely chopped

2 T fresh basil, chopped

a dash of red chili pepper flakes

2 ladles of pasta water

1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Boil water for the pasta in a large pot.  In a large skillet, saute the garlic, sun dried tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and artichokes in 1/2 of the oil.  Continue to cook on medium heat until the artichokes are cooked through.    When the pasta is cooked, reserve 2 ladles of water and drain.  Add the pasta and pasta water to the skillet.  Add the basil, cheese and the remainder of the oil.  Stir well and serve with the walnut garnish. (you can mix a few of them in, too)  Optional:  a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil before serving is good, also!  Enjoy...this is an easy one.

Chicken Soup for the Sniffles

You can starve a cold or choose to feed a cold with this easy to prepare chicken soup.  It would be wise to keep most of the ingredients ready and at your fingertips or in your pantry.  You never know when a cold will sneak up on you.  Of course, if you travel, you can almost count on being exposed to something from all that recirculating air in airplanes!  You know, the air that's been recirculating since the 80's!   And, there's a reason  why the grocery stores have hand wipes now as you enter the store!

My hubby brought home the gift that keeps giving in the form of a cold.  I vowed (refused) to catch it as I pushed him away most of the week.  He'd just laugh and say, "You know you'll probably get this, anyway".  So, as I felt a little sorry for him as he sneezed and sniffled, I went into the kitchen to make some chicken soup.  Isn't that what mothers wives do for their family?  I have a confession to make, though.  I used to just open a can and heat that soup up!   Sodium city, anyone?  No longer, because it's so easy to make. 

Ingredients:

3 chicken thighs, skin and bone removed

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped  (or more is better)

1/2 onion, chopped or sliced

3 carrots, sliced

1 handful of chopped fresh parsley

3 leeks, cleaned and sliced (the bottom white part)

1 container or 32 oz. of chicken broth

2 cups water

1 cup rotini pasta

First I browned the thighs in oil, removed them  from the pan and cut them up.  In the same pan, I added the onion, leeks, carrots and cooked until onions were soft.  Add the garlic and parsley.  Then add the chicken,  broth and water, bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer.  Cook for about 35-40 minutes or longer.  Add the rotini or pasta of your choice the last 12 minutes.  Serve and watch those cold symptoms subside (temporarily anyway)  And, by the way, as I cross my fingers, I never caught that cold!  Hooray.  Must have been this wonderful soup!

Back to Italy - Polenta al Gorgonzola

Back to Italy, I wish!  I always have that feeling that I have "unfinished" business (pleasure) there.  So to appease my appetite for all things Italian, I go to my kitchen to recreate the feeling and tastes of being there.

I found this recipe, polenta al Gorgonzola, on a website called 
Italian  Connection.  Polenta has never been a favorite in this home but it deserved a second chance.  I halved the recipe (revisions are below) to be suitable for two people.  If you can make couscous, you can make this.  It just requires a bit of stirring.  The recipe suggests a shaving of truffles from the Piedmont region of Italy.  I knew that could be a problem since I don't have a truffle dog in Piedmont!  Would a cat from Reno do!  Anyway, I sauteed some earthy mushrooms in a little olive oil, butter, garlic and parsley to crown this polenta.  Delicious and super easy!

Ingredients:

6 oz. yellow cornmeal (polenta)

24 oz. salted water

3 1/2 oz. Gorgonzola pieces (roughly under 1/2 cup) *  Note:  I would use more Gorgonzola next time. Maybe 3/4 - 1 cup.

I also recommend the mushroom topping.

Bring the water to simmer and slowly add the cornmeal, stirring the whole time.  Cook and stir for about 30 minutes.  Mixture will be quite thick.  Butter an ovenproof baking dish.  I used a glass pie plate because I inverted it after cooling.  Pour half the cornmeal into the dish, layer most of the Gorgonzola, then add the remainder of the cornmeal.    Bake in a preheated 400 degrees oven for 15-20 minutes.  Let it slightly cool to cut or invert,  top with mushrooms, if using, and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.  Enjoy!

In a "Jam" Passion Fruit Bars

On our last trip to Hawaii we happened upon a farmer's market.  On any given day in different areas you can find a great farmer's market.  In Hawaii, it's everything you'd expect it to be.  Vendors selling lotions fragrant with tropical scents, Hawaiian clothing, trinkets made from coconuts, and loads of fresh fruits and vegetables.

As we passed one of the fruit stands, a gal held out a sample of the best avocado I've tasted in a long time.  Being a hop, skip, and a jump away from California's legendary avocados, you'd think they would be in abundance in Northern Nevada.  Unfortunately, this time of year, you're lucky to grab one from Mexico.  Primarily they are shipped from Chile.  So, back to the Hawaiian farmer's market...  We purchased one avocado the size of Rhode Island (actually the size of a child's football) and proceeded to have several sandwiches (counted 7) from this soft green wonder!  Where can you find a great tasting gigantic avocado for $1.00?!!  I know, I should be exporting them!

In addition to the avocado, I purchased some honey and passion fruit jam after happily sampling it.  Yum!  It waited in the cupboard until the right recipe came along.  I didn't want to just spread it onto a mediocre piece of bread!  I had this recipe in my files, not sure of its origin.  It called for raspberry jam in it, which I'm sure is great, but what if I replaced that one ingredient with this golden goodness, passion fruit jam?

Ingredients:

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

1 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup (1 stick) softened butter

3/4 cup passion fruit jam from Hawaii (or your favorite jam will do)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease an 8 inch square pan.  In a bowl mix the brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt and oats.  Mix the butter with a fork or your hands, until it is a crumbly consistency.   Press 2 cups of the mixture into the pan, spreading evenly.  Pat it down.  Then spread the jam over the top and sprinkle the remaining oat/flour mixture over the top.

Bake for about 35 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool, cut and devour!  These are really good!

The website for the Hawaiian  jam is: www.honomujams.com