I have a ton of recipes for preparing a variety of squash. There must be 50 tear sheets from a gazillion cooking magazines on file. Yet all I want to do is cut'em in half, scrape the seeds out and toss the halves into an oven warmed to 350.. and with no additional special treatment. It's crazy I know but I love the earthiness of just eating it plain and in the shell. Add freshly grated nutmeg over the top. Very simple.
I've tried this method with butternut, acorn, ambercup (like a small pumpkin), and I think the sweet dumpling.. it's whatever is in the farmers market bin on sundays, ($1/lb). One thought: stay clear of the pumpkin-carving pumpkins as they are difficult to manage, tough and stringy. They have a lower sugar content that makes them taste watery. Choose a smaller variety like the Sugar pumpkin instead.
Winter squash is a source of niacin, potassium, iron and beta carotene. 1 cup cooked (200g) is less than 100 calories. Add to your plate a favorite lean protein to give your squash a boost as it doesn't win in the protein catagory.
I bet it makes for good pie though... I'll be looking over those tear sheets again. Maybe there's a "crustless butternut squash pie" in our future!
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Diestel Turkey Ranch in Sonora, California
I had an A-Ha! moment at PCC this weekend mulling over the fresh turkeys in the cooler. Which one will I choose? PCC carries the Diestel turkey brand. This ranch is one of last small, family owned turkey "grower-processor" farms in the U.S. Even though the birds are of differing breed, like the American Heirloom, essentially all the birds are coming from the same sustainable farm. Just knowing a little bit more about this farm has made me feel confident that I can buy a less expensive turkey knowing that it 1) ate a high quality vegetarian diet and 2) lived a longer livespan (giving it a chance to fatten up more naturally).
Something else great about this farm? They are eliminating the use of toxic chemicals, fertilizers and inorganic substances, conserve biological resources, reuse resources instead of laind filling and conserve on ground water. http://www.dietelturnkey.com/.
Something else great about this farm? They are eliminating the use of toxic chemicals, fertilizers and inorganic substances, conserve biological resources, reuse resources instead of laind filling and conserve on ground water. http://www.dietelturnkey.com/.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Recipes
Crustless Apple Pie
This would actually be considered a crumble though I lovingly refer to it as pie.
In one gianormous bowl throw in 5 heaping handfuls of sliced granny smith or any mix of apples that you have -cored but not peeled is preferred but not mandatory. If you have pear that would add a delicate balance, and quince paste would be a real spulge. Toss in a handful of brown sugar -eyeball about a 1/4 cup and keep adding to suite your sweet tooth. Continue with a spoonful of cinnamon, a pinch of allspice, a pinch of ground clove and a liberal drizzling of brandy (if possible). Mix and transfer to one big baking dish or use several individual sized oven bound dishes.
In another bowl, create a crumble topping by combining coarsely chopped walnuts or any combination of nuts that you have. 1/2 cup whole oats, 1/4 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cut packed brown sugar, generous pinches of salt, freshly grated nutmeg, ground cinnamon and 3 big pads of chilled butter (don't skimp) cut into small pieces. Use hands to combine and then layer over apples. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes or until filling is bubbly and topping is golden. Serve with a layer of fresh goat cheese.
Cranberry-Cornbread Stuffing
Make your cornbread a day ahead to take the edge off. Don't be thrown by the list of ingredients. Feel good about adding whatever you have in the pantry.
2 cups walnuts
1 stick butter
3 large onions, chopped small
1 bunch celery, chopped small (set aside a heaping handful)
bundle of fresh oregano, chopped
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock
cornbread, roughly crumbled (recipe follows)
1 loaf stale bread, crusts on & cut into cubes (10 heaping handfuls)
3 large eggs, lighten beaten
2 cups dried cranberries plus any other dried fruits in the pantry
1 bunch italian flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon salt (more to suite your tastes)
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
a generous pinch of cayenne pepper
Step 1. 2 handfuls coarsely chopped walnuts or any combination of nuts that you have, toasted 8 minutes in 350 oven. Anticipate raising oven temperature to 375 for stuffing.
Step 2. Melt 1 stick of butter in a large skillet. Add 3 heaping handfuls each of onion and celery, both chopped small. Cook over medium heat til the onion is translucent. Toss in a generous handful of fresh oregano, at least 1/2 cup chopped and add a 1/2 cup stock. Let simmer and reduce by about half, about 5 minutes.
Step 3. Transfer onion mixture to large bowl and rough-cumble the cornbread and toss in the bread cubes. Add the eggs, pecans, dried cranberries, parsley, salt, black pepper, cayenne, and remaining stock. For more texture, you can add in a heaping handful of rough cut fresh celery and maybe a tart apple if you have it. Butter your baking dish and bake at 375 for 45 minutes or until the top is golden, crunchy and heated through.
cornbread fixins:
1/4 skimmed chicken fat or vegetable shortening
2 cups flour
2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups milk
4 large eggs
Step 1. Place fat in an ovenproof skillet and transfer to 425 oven.
Step 2. Wisk together your dry ingredients in one large bowl. In a second bowl, whisk together the milk & eggs. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and combine without over-working it (lumpy batter is good).
Step 3. Carefully pour batter into oven skillet - being mindful that the skillet is mucho HOT. Cook until the top is golden brown and the center appears dry when poked with a knife, about 25 minutes.
Consider serving a no cook cranberry relish on the side. Just combine into a food processor whole cranberries, fresh oranges cut into wedges (with skin on) add sugar, and the zest and juice of a lemon or lime to suite your taste. Get fancy by adding coarsely chopped nuts (preferably toasted), red onion & jalapeno pepper chopped small, grated fresh ginger and/or a handful of celery chopped small.
This would actually be considered a crumble though I lovingly refer to it as pie.
In one gianormous bowl throw in 5 heaping handfuls of sliced granny smith or any mix of apples that you have -cored but not peeled is preferred but not mandatory. If you have pear that would add a delicate balance, and quince paste would be a real spulge. Toss in a handful of brown sugar -eyeball about a 1/4 cup and keep adding to suite your sweet tooth. Continue with a spoonful of cinnamon, a pinch of allspice, a pinch of ground clove and a liberal drizzling of brandy (if possible). Mix and transfer to one big baking dish or use several individual sized oven bound dishes.
In another bowl, create a crumble topping by combining coarsely chopped walnuts or any combination of nuts that you have. 1/2 cup whole oats, 1/4 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cut packed brown sugar, generous pinches of salt, freshly grated nutmeg, ground cinnamon and 3 big pads of chilled butter (don't skimp) cut into small pieces. Use hands to combine and then layer over apples. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes or until filling is bubbly and topping is golden. Serve with a layer of fresh goat cheese.
Cranberry-Cornbread Stuffing
Make your cornbread a day ahead to take the edge off. Don't be thrown by the list of ingredients. Feel good about adding whatever you have in the pantry.
2 cups walnuts
1 stick butter
3 large onions, chopped small
1 bunch celery, chopped small (set aside a heaping handful)
bundle of fresh oregano, chopped
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock
cornbread, roughly crumbled (recipe follows)
1 loaf stale bread, crusts on & cut into cubes (10 heaping handfuls)
3 large eggs, lighten beaten
2 cups dried cranberries plus any other dried fruits in the pantry
1 bunch italian flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon salt (more to suite your tastes)
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
a generous pinch of cayenne pepper
Step 1. 2 handfuls coarsely chopped walnuts or any combination of nuts that you have, toasted 8 minutes in 350 oven. Anticipate raising oven temperature to 375 for stuffing.
Step 2. Melt 1 stick of butter in a large skillet. Add 3 heaping handfuls each of onion and celery, both chopped small. Cook over medium heat til the onion is translucent. Toss in a generous handful of fresh oregano, at least 1/2 cup chopped and add a 1/2 cup stock. Let simmer and reduce by about half, about 5 minutes.
Step 3. Transfer onion mixture to large bowl and rough-cumble the cornbread and toss in the bread cubes. Add the eggs, pecans, dried cranberries, parsley, salt, black pepper, cayenne, and remaining stock. For more texture, you can add in a heaping handful of rough cut fresh celery and maybe a tart apple if you have it. Butter your baking dish and bake at 375 for 45 minutes or until the top is golden, crunchy and heated through.
cornbread fixins:
1/4 skimmed chicken fat or vegetable shortening
2 cups flour
2 cups coarse yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups milk
4 large eggs
Step 1. Place fat in an ovenproof skillet and transfer to 425 oven.
Step 2. Wisk together your dry ingredients in one large bowl. In a second bowl, whisk together the milk & eggs. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and combine without over-working it (lumpy batter is good).
Step 3. Carefully pour batter into oven skillet - being mindful that the skillet is mucho HOT. Cook until the top is golden brown and the center appears dry when poked with a knife, about 25 minutes.
Consider serving a no cook cranberry relish on the side. Just combine into a food processor whole cranberries, fresh oranges cut into wedges (with skin on) add sugar, and the zest and juice of a lemon or lime to suite your taste. Get fancy by adding coarsely chopped nuts (preferably toasted), red onion & jalapeno pepper chopped small, grated fresh ginger and/or a handful of celery chopped small.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Preparing an Eat-Local feast for Thanksgiving
My mind is a whirl with ideas for a mostly vegetarian thanksgiving. I am crazy for butternut squash, carrots, sweet potatoes and yams - everything can be roasted and tossed together or pureed for soup. Stuffing goes without saying. I always make a sweet and savory cranberry cornbread stuffing no matter what the theme of the dinner. And since we have apples a plenty, dessert will be a no crust apple pie. Instead of brining the turkey - it's going straight to the oven with a crust of freshly ground fennel, coriander, white peppercorns and kosher salt. Lemon halves and rosemary sprigs inside.
The romantic ideal of buying a farm fresh turkey within a 100 mile radius is just not economically feasible for me. I'm going to be more than thrilled to select an organically raised bird at PCC market for $3.50 lb.
Rustic presentation, beautiful in it's simplicity, is my MO for maintaining holiday sanity. This usually means a less aggressive/pared down grocery list, minimal day-of prep time and a coordinated cooking schedule that maximizes oven time. Thanksgiving at my place may not be ultra-gourmet but it will be scrumptious with heaping spoonfuls of local goodness and love, laughter and thankfulness a plenty.
The romantic ideal of buying a farm fresh turkey within a 100 mile radius is just not economically feasible for me. I'm going to be more than thrilled to select an organically raised bird at PCC market for $3.50 lb.
Rustic presentation, beautiful in it's simplicity, is my MO for maintaining holiday sanity. This usually means a less aggressive/pared down grocery list, minimal day-of prep time and a coordinated cooking schedule that maximizes oven time. Thanksgiving at my place may not be ultra-gourmet but it will be scrumptious with heaping spoonfuls of local goodness and love, laughter and thankfulness a plenty.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Veteran's Weekend in Bend, Oregon
I had a wonderful visit with my mom. We shopped, we walked, we ate scrumptious locally raised beef. That said, I didn't practice the 80% locavore rule and feel defeated.
For five days, I found it nearly impossible (for me) to choose from a local food shed - not even sure how I would have identified it unless it was printed on a menu. It's not easy. It requires a lot more intention and research than I was prepared to give. I think too that it created complicated situations at meal times and also behavior that didn't bode well (socially acceptable) with my family. So I let go and went with the flow.
The little home town that I grew up in - from K-12 - has become a thriving, economically strong (in appearance), intelligent and artistic small urban city. The beauty is in it's certain cowtown-ness that I hope sticks for a long long time. I am so proud to see that it is drawing restaurants with an afinity for locally grown produce and farmed raised animals. We have an artisan cheese farm. Redmond is really discovering it's natural potential to provide it's community. It used to be, back-in-the-day just about locally spun llama wool. Wow, it's so much more.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
I'm giving up Haagen-Dazs
There are foods that I'm willing to part with this month - just so that I acknowledge that these scrumptious pints of ice cream are distributed from a source that is a long way from my house. Instead I'm making my own with eggs and milk that come from the farmers market on vashon.
On the flip side, I am struggling to give up diet soda. I know it's bad and I like it. If anything, I am more immediately motivated to reducing my recycling bin and cutting out excessive cans and bottles. The conflicting studies on whether the chemical bisphenol-A in cans and bottles is safe is also needling at me. There seems to be so many stories of late that say the Food and Drug Administration is ignoring scientific evidence and using flawed methods when determining a chemical widely used in baby bottles and in the lining of cans is not harmful.
I am travelling to Bend, Oregon for the rest of the week so eating out and grocery shopping will be a challenge, especially since my mom and I love to eat. Central Oregon is already experiencing freezing temperatures -- and I'll be craving comfort food.
On the flip side, I am struggling to give up diet soda. I know it's bad and I like it. If anything, I am more immediately motivated to reducing my recycling bin and cutting out excessive cans and bottles. The conflicting studies on whether the chemical bisphenol-A in cans and bottles is safe is also needling at me. There seems to be so many stories of late that say the Food and Drug Administration is ignoring scientific evidence and using flawed methods when determining a chemical widely used in baby bottles and in the lining of cans is not harmful.
I am travelling to Bend, Oregon for the rest of the week so eating out and grocery shopping will be a challenge, especially since my mom and I love to eat. Central Oregon is already experiencing freezing temperatures -- and I'll be craving comfort food.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Where did this come from?
I've been practicing mindful eating for several months, admittedly with a lax approach. Now that I've made this commitment to think more consciously about where food comes from I realize just how negligent an eater I am. Now, I'm obsessing about things like where did my yogurt come from? The HQ is here in seattle though I'm guessing that the manufacturing plant is beyond a 100 mile radius. When we don't know the origin of the food source, is it enough to justify plating it if it's a) organic, b) hormone free, c) a whole food, d) supporting a local business?
It was a frenzied weekend and to save time I relied on the apples & pears picked from our family farm on vashon and the greens from the magolia farmers market. My big A-Ha! moment on monday was that I'm questioning why I ate tomatoes? I have "seasonal disorder". When I'm out with friends & family I need to make my selections based on what I believe to be regionally available in the northwest --right now. Okay, so tomatoes may be out but I have mushrooms. There are compromises to be made every day and my locavore journey goes on. I'd like to get to the point where I can make my own dough for bread and pasta --we have the local eggs & dairy.
It was a frenzied weekend and to save time I relied on the apples & pears picked from our family farm on vashon and the greens from the magolia farmers market. My big A-Ha! moment on monday was that I'm questioning why I ate tomatoes? I have "seasonal disorder". When I'm out with friends & family I need to make my selections based on what I believe to be regionally available in the northwest --right now. Okay, so tomatoes may be out but I have mushrooms. There are compromises to be made every day and my locavore journey goes on. I'd like to get to the point where I can make my own dough for bread and pasta --we have the local eggs & dairy.
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