Butternut Squash and Cranberry Brown Rice

I’m baaaack! I had an incredible time in San Francisco and ate many wonderful meals, including an 11 course Chinese banquet and at least 3 different flavors of wedding cake. But then I came home to an empty refrigerator, and things went downhill quickly. Trust me, it was nothing to blog about.

This was my first truly home cooked meal in almost 2 weeks, and it was so good. I picked up some fresh cranberries, but I wanted to make something different than cranberry sauce. A short while later, I found this recipe (scroll down the page) and decided to go for it. I liked the different textures, and the balance of sweet squash, tart cranberries, and spicy pepper. It’s hearty enough for a vegetarian main dish, but could be a side dish for chicken or pork as well.

While I did use fresh cranberries, you might be surprised to find that I used frozen butternut squash. Yes, this is squash season in New England, but I still needed to take a shortcut to make this meal happen. With about 7 weeks left in the semester, I’ll take whatever shortcuts I need to put a warm meal on the table.

Butternut Squash and Cranberry Brown Rice

1 T canola oil
2 Vidalia onions, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and diced
20 oz. butternut squash cubes
1 c. fresh cranberries
1/2 c. vegetable broth
1 1/2 c. diced celery
2 c. cooked brown rice
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper

Heat oil in a large frying pan. Add onions and pepper, and saute for 10-15 minutes until lightly brown. Add squash, cranberries, and broth. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove cover and stir in celery, rice, salt, and pepper. Mix thoroughly and serve.

-Adapted from the Vegetarians of Washington

Use those apples

I am off to San Francisco for a wedding, and couldn’t be more excited to see the bride, meet the groom, and spend 3 days with my college friends! People around me have been talking about apples lately, so I am leaving you for a few days with two of my favorite apple recipes.

The first is a very simple apple cake. It requires just one bowl and one pan, and comes together very easily.

The second recipe is a bit more complicated, but worth the effort. My Mom’s apple pie is a classic one crust pie with a crumble topping.

Both of these recipes are from my earliest days of blogging, and don’t have pictures attached. So if you’re so inclined and you make one of these recipes, or another fun apple recipe, will you send me a picture? I’ll publish the responses in an apple post before Thanksgiving, and everyone can see your amazing talent. My contact info is on the About Me page.

See you sometime next week……

Not Boring Chicken Salad

Raise your hand if you think chicken salad can be really boring…. Yeah, me too! Although I did like the Celery Leaf Chicken Salad I made earlier this summer. So when I graciously accepted leftover Beer Can Chicken, I decided to make chicken salad that was anything but boring. With celery from the vegetable drawer, an apple from the fruit basket, and sage that was tucked away in my freezer, this ended up quite tasty. There was enough chicken salad for 2 wraps plus a snack.

Apple Sage Chicken Salad

1 c. chopped cooked chicken breast
3 stalks celery, diced
1 apple, chopped
1 T chopped sage
1-2 T light mayonnaise
2 c. baby spinach
2 Joseph’s Whole Wheat, Flax, and Bran lavash

Combine chicken, celery, apple, and sage in a bowl. Mix in mayonnaise and add salt and pepper to taste. Divide spinach between the two wraps. Add chicken salad and roll up.

Weber Grill Beer Can Chicken

Last weekend was gorgeous, and perfect for grilling. My Dad made two chickens on the grill using the Weber Grill Beer Can Chicken recipe. Beer is not a stock item at their house and was a special purchase, but otherwise this is a fairly simple recipe. Each chicken is rubbed with oil and spices, and then placed upright on a tall beer can.

Just one small problem – the chickens were a little too tall and the grill didn’t quite close. Although some heat escaped from the grill, the chickens cooked anyway. With food safety in mind (at least, in my mind) we used a thermometer to ensure that the chicken reached 165F.

Taking the chickens off the grill might have been the most difficult part. You need to be very careful because the beer that is still inside the can is very hot.

Once the chickens were off the grill and carved, the meat was juicy and flavorful. This was a great dinner served with potatoes, butternut squash, and green beans. Plus, there was quite a bit of chicken leftover and I got a dish to take home!

Birthday with Dora

Last year we had a fairly large party for my nephew’s first birthday, with two monkey cakes and monkey cupcakes. This year, the party was much more low-key. But no matter what size party you have, there must be birthday cake. Connor loves Dora the Explorer, calling her “Deera”. And he even has his own ‘takpack’. So the cake making team consisting of me, my Mom, and our family friend Nancy set out to make a Dora cake for the fiesta.

First, my Mom baked a Mexican cinnamon chocolate cake. Even if you never have a reason to make a Dora themed cake, this is a great recipe! We modified it slightly, replacing some of the water in the original recipe with coffee. It is very moist, with just a hint of cinnamon.

We may not be professionals, but we took this project quite seriously. Many Google searches were performed. Nancy drew several stencils of Dora’s face and hair to use as a guide. My Mom ran around town to find edible materials for the project. Several eyeballs were made for practice. I performed surgery on Dora’s face with a toothpick when we had a slight mishap. We had a lot of fun along the way, and this was our final product.

Although this picture is a little blurry, I think Connor liked it too.

Cinnamon Chocolate Cake

2 c. flour
1/4 c. cocoa powder
2 c. sugar
1 t baking soda
1 t cinnamon
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. oil
1/2 c. brewed coffee
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 eggs
1 t vanilla

Prepare a 13″x9″ pan by placing parchment paper on the bottom and sides. Coat paper with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add butter, oil, coffee, water, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Pour batter into a 13″x9″ pan which has been coated with cooking spray. Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake at 350F for approximately 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

-Lightly adapted from allrecipes.com

Decorating the Cake as Dora

1 can white frosting
1 can chocolate frosting
1 small batch homemade frosting (butter, milk, confectioner’s sugar)
2 tubes black gel
1 package Kraft flat marshmallows
Food Coloring
Red colored sugar

Make one stencil for Dora’s face, and one stencil for her hair. Place stencils on cake, and dust with powdered sugar.
Tint a skin colored frosting by mixing white frosting with a small amount of chocolate frosting and yellow food coloring. Spread on cake in the face area not covered with powdered sugar. Spread chocolate frosting on the hair area not covered with powdered sugar.
Tint the homemade frosting with blue food coloring, and spread on all other areas of the cake.
Make Dora’s eyes by trimming two flat marshmallows, and adding chocolate frosting, black gel, and a tiny piece of marshmallow.
Make Dora’s mouth by trimming a flat marshmallow, dipping it quickly in water, and then coating it with red sprinkles.
Using black gel, outline Dora’s face and hair. Outline Dora’s eyes.

Massachusetts Rubies

Last week at the Farmer’s Market, I also picked up a small jar of Massachusetts Rubies, made by Deborah’s Kitchen in Littleton, MA. This spreadable fruit contains cranberries, strawberries, and raspberries, with a minimum amount of added sugar. I feel good supporting local businesses, especially ones that make homemade food products.

I started by enjoying the spread on an old fashioned piece of (whole wheat) toast. I don’t use jam often, so this was a nice treat. It is just sweet enough, and the flavor of the fruit really comes through. Then I served the spread on a plate with crackers, brie, and apples. My guests seemed to enjoy it as well.

There are a lot of other flavors I’d like to try, and next on my list might be Cherry Bliss, with sour cherries, rhubarb, and lemon zest. So where can you get some of this delicious stuff? Besides the Farmer’s Market, the products are carried in some local specialty stores. Someday, I’d love to make my own jam, but for now I’ll enjoy what others have made in their kitchens.

Black Bean Taquitos

My cooking club theme this month was “Finger Foods”, and I decided to make a vegetarian version of this summer’s hit taquitos. I found this recipe for black bean taquitos, and merged the concepts to come up with the following recipe. The bean filling was good and fairly mild, and the cheese helped the beans to stick together.

Unfortunately, the corn tortillas weren’t very pliable, even after being heated in the microwave. So that made the taquitos difficult to roll, and some of them cracked. I forged ahead, and they ended up OK, but I need to refine the technique a bit. Or perhaps try a few different brands of corn tortillas, to see which ones work best. I also made a dipping sauce for the taquitos that is very similar to enchilada sauce. The dipping sauce (not pictured here) had a little bit more kick, and was a nice addition.

We ate a lot of great things with our fingers, including butternut squash crostini, roasted vegetable pizza, and twice baked small potatoes. The evening ended with frosted cupcakes and hot tea. No utensils were required to fully enjoy this great meal.

Black Bean Taquitos

2 t canola oil
1 onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and diced
1 t minced garlic
1/2 t paprika
1/2 t cumin
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
16 corn tortillas
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Dipping Sauce

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1/3 c. water
2 t chili powder
1/2 t cumin
Dash cayenne

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan. Add onion and pepper, and cook until softened. Add garlic and spices to pan, mix well, and cook for 2 minutes. Add beans and cook for 2-3 minutes until heated through.

Heat 5 tortillas at a time by microwaving on high for 30 seconds between two damp paper towels. Spread 1-2 T of black bean mixture on a tortilla, top with 1 T cheddar, and roll tightly. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Repeat until all bean mixture is used. Bake taquitos for 12-15 minutes at 400F.

To make dipping sauce, mix tomato sauce, water, and spices in a small saucepan. Cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes, or until heated through.

Crockpot Stuffed Mushrooms

I took my crockpot out of it’s summer hiding place and put it on the counter, where it will stay for a while. One of my favorite sources for slow cooker recipes is Stephanie O’Deas’s site. She maintains a blog, writes cookbooks, and has prepared an incredible number of meals for her family using a crockpot, so she knows what she’s doing.

For my first crockpot meal of the season, I adapted her recipe for Crockpot Stuffed Mushrooms. I normally think of stuffed mushrooms as a fancy Saturday night appetizer, but these mushrooms are a perfect Sunday afternoon casserole, with leftovers for lunch of course. I substituted large stuffing mushrooms that were on sale for the portobello mushrooms in the original recipe, and made a few other changes to reduce the amount of oil and salt.

I served the first dish of mushrooms over whole wheat couscous, and it was fantastic! The tomatoes and balsamic vinegar make a great sauce, although I did have to add a bit of salt and pepper in my dish, along with a little more Parmesan. Next time I might add a teaspoon or two of Italian seasoning right to the crockpot, but otherwise I wouldn’t change a thing. I have a feeling I’ll be making this recipe again very soon.

Crockpot Stuffed Mushrooms

2 T olive oil, divided
24 oz. large mushrooms
1 (14.5 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes in juice
1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
1/4 c. whole wheat breadcrumbs
1/2 t black pepper
1 T dried basil
1/4 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Pour 1 T oil in the bottom of the crockpot. Clean mushrooms, and remove stems and set aside. Place mushroom caps in the bottom of the crockpot, laying some flat and some sideways as needed to create a single layer.

Chop mushroom stems, and place in a large bowl. Add remaining 1 T oil, tomatoes, vinegar, breadcrumbs, seasoning, and Parmesan cheese and mix well. Pour mixture over mushrooms. Cook on high for 4-5 hours. Serve with additional freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
-Adapted from Stephanie O’Dea

Cooking Bok Choy

I went to the Copley Square farmer’s market on Friday afternoon, and although it was great to see so many fall vegetables, I was missing my greens. I almost bought some kale, but then I spotted a big bunch of bok choy. I’ve cooked both regular and baby bok choy before, but never felt very confident that I was preparing it properly. This weekend I found an excellent bok choy tutorial which takes you through the process step by step. One of the best tricks I learned is to put the garlic and ginger in the pan before it heats up.

I had such a large bunch of bok choy that I had to stuff it into the pan to get the lid on, and it took longer to steam than the one minute suggested. But I am sure things will go more smoothly if you’re not trying to cook so much at once! I served the bok choy on a bed of brown rice, topped with an egg. It was a delicious weekend lunch, and I’ll be sure to pick up another bunch soon.

Two-Cheese Pumpkin Spinach Pizza

I saw a Butternut Squash pizza with ricotta and spinach on Green Lite Bites the other day, and was thinking about it this weekend. I didn’t buy any butternut squash this week, but I did have 3 cans of pumpkin in my cabinet, just waiting to be used. I added a second type of cheese because when it comes to pizza, more cheese is always better, and the almonds added a little crunch.

Roni seasoned her pizza with sage and nutmeg, which I think would be an interesting combination. I tried allspice and cayenne, which also turned out to be interesting. I was trying to balance the sweet and spicy, and it worked pretty well. It’s fun to try new spice combinations, and you never know what you’re going to like until you try. So use this pizza recipe as a template, and make your own fall creation.

Two Cheese Pumpkin Spinach Pizza

1 Joseph’s Flax, Oat Bran, and Whole Wheat lavash
1/2 c. pureed pumpkin
1/4 c. ricotta cheese
1 T sliced almonds
1/4 t allspice
Dash cayenne
1 c baby spinach, chopped
1 T Parmesan cheese

Fold lavash in half, and place on a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray. Mix pumpkin, ricotta, almonds, and spices in a small bowl, and spread evenly on lavash. Place spinach on topping, and then sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 400F for 5 minutes.