Today I am a guest blogger over at The Gluten-Free Homemaker for Squash Fest. Go on over here to check out my recipe for sausage-stuffed acorn squash. While you’re there, check out all of the other delicious squash recipes – guaranteed to make your mouth water!
Did you know that Linda over at The Gluten-Free Homemaker has been hosting a Squash Fest? Every week, she has a guest blogger sharing a delicious recipe using various kinds of winter squash. It’s a delicious series – there are spaghetti squash casseroles, a butternut squash dessert with dates, and if you need a crash course in winter squashes and how to roast them, check out Linda’s run-down of varieties of squash or a great tutorial on roasting butternut squash. This coming Thursday, I’ll be sharing a stuffed acorn squash recipe. I can’t wait to see what else is featured!
Meanwhile, I had a mountain of acorn squash (I went a little overboard at the farmers’ market) in my kitchen. I decided to stretch it over two meals. The first night, I simply roasted all of the squash halves and served them as a side dish. The second night, I made this soup with the leftovers. While I love roasted squash, this soup was definitely the winner in terms of delicious flavor. Sweet, savory, creamy, and with just a touch of warmth from the curry powder – this soup was one of my favorite soups to date. This recipe made quite a bit of soup – enough for me to freeze leftovers for easy lunches. It’ll definitely make future appearances in my kitchen throughout the winter.
Curried Acorn Squash, Sweet Potato and Apple Soup
2 T grapeseed or olive oil
3 1/2 c mashed, roasted acorn squash (about 4 acorn squash)
1 1/2 c cooked sweet potato, mashed (about 1 large sweet potato)
1 t minced fresh ginger
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 apple (I used a Granny Smith), peeled and chopped
1 T fresh sage leaves, chopped
5 c vegetable stock (you can use chicken stock if you prefer)
1 c almond milk
1/2 t cinnamon
1 t Jamaican curry powder (recipe below) or Madras curry powder
1/2 t ground coriander
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil, for drizzling
In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium heat. Add the acorn squash, sweet potato, ginger, onion, garlic, and apple and saute for 5-6 minutes or until the onions are softened. Add the sage, broth, almond milk, and spices and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and allow to cook for 15 minutes to allow flavors to meld. Remove from heat, and using a hand blender, puree the soup until smooth and creamy. (Alternatively, you can puree the soup in batches using a traditional blender or food processor.) Season with salt and pepper to taste and reutrn to heat to warm. If soup is too thick, add additional broth or water. If too thin, allow to simmer until at desired consistency. Serve with a bit of olive oil drizzled over the soup.
Serves 5-6.
Jamaican Curry Powder Blend
4 T Madras curry powder
2 t ground coriander
2 t ground cumin
1/2 t dry mustard
1/2 t turmeric
1/2 t cayenne
1/2 t cinnamon
1 T ground allspice
Mix spices together well and store in an airtight container.
Hallie, the owner of Daily Bites, is currently hosting a series called “Cents” – able and Savory, where she is featuring healthy gluten-free recipes that won’t break the bank. So far, she has shared a recipe for 5-minute BBQ sauce, and twice-baked acorn squash. Hallie posts a lot of healthy recipes featuring whole, natural ingredients – which I love, as this is primarily my style of eating. I discovered Hallie by a guest post she wrote for Simply Sugar and Gluten Free a while back, where she featured these amazing carrot cake bites. (I’ve made them several times – they’re addictive!) Hallie has a wonderful passion for delicious, healthy eating, and I am so excited to get to be a part of it! Head on over to Daily Bites today for my quick-and-easy, budget-friendly recipe for Italian-style spaghetti squash.
It’s not really time for stew. It’s late August, so for a Texan like me, that still means at least 3-4 weeks of hot temperatures to go. The stars were aligned for us last night, however, and a cold front blew in. The high temp yesterday? 80 degrees. It was 107 on Monday. That makes 80 degrees practically feel like sweater weather in comparison! Nearly every day in August has been over 100 degrees here, so we were a touch giddy.
Armed with fresh butternut squash from a local farm, and a desire to make a frugal, simple meal, I set off to make a stew. I cooked beans in the slow cooker while I was away at work, and when I came home, I was able to assemble this dish and have dinner in under 45 minutes. Not bad. If one was in a real hurry and bought frozen, cubed butternut squash, I imagine you could cut that time down to 15 minutes. For me, I prefer fresh – especially when it’s in season!
This stew is a lovely, spicy-sweet blend of flavors and textures. I forced myself to stop after a huge bowlful, but I could have easily had seconds or thirds, in spite of how filling it was. I brought a sample to a coworker for a taste; she loved it. Sounds like a win to me!
I measured amounts in this recipe, but you can certainly alter as you see fit. Feel free to use canned beans if that’s your desire. Increase or decrease the jalapenos or chipotle chili powder to suit your heat tolerance. It was relatively spicy when I made it, so if you can’t handle a lot of heat, you might want to only use 1 jalapeno. If you don’t have smoked meat, a bit of cooked, crumbled bacon or salt pork might do nicely, or you could simply omit the meat altogether, and add a touch of smoked paprika. That’s what I love about stews – there really isn’t a “wrong” way to go!
Butternut, Black Bean and Smoked Pork Stew
2 T grapeseed oil
1 large onion, diced (about 2 cups)
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 c butternut squash, diced in half-inch cubes
3 c cooked black beans (about 2 15-oz cans)
2 c shredded, smoked pork or chicken
1 ½ T ground cumin
½ t ground chipotle chile powder
1 t sweet paprika
3 c chicken stock
Salt to taste
Optional accompaniments:
Chopped tomatoes
Chopped cilantro
In a large, heavy pot, heat grapeseed oil to medium heat. Add onion and jalapenos and sauté for 8-10 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic and sauté for another minute. Add butternut squash and sauté for 2 more minutes. Add beans, pork, cumin, chipotle chili powder, and stock and stir. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Season with salt. Allow to simmer until butternut squash is tender, about 15-20 minutes. Adjust seasonings as necessary. Serve topped with tomatoes and cilantro.
Serves 4.
A few weeks ago, I won an awesome book, courtesy of Nosh With Me. This book arrived Christmas Eve, meaning I had a wonderful surprise Christmas present. That book was Flying Apron’s Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book. What a sweet Christmas present it was! This book is full of delectable recipes, most made with natural sweeteners, and all gluten-free. I was in heaven. Except that I couldn’t decide what to make first!
After the holidays were over, I decided it was time for me to bake. Yes, I realize how much of a backwards comment that is. My goal for baking right now, however, is to bake healthier. I want to have my cake and eat it too – without a lot of sugar or guilt. I decided upon the Pumpkin Glory Loaf recipe. But of course, I had to modify it, if ever so slightly. (Honestly, this time around, I would have stuck to the original recipe, except I didn’t have enough brown rice flour, and I didn’t wish to use all of my expensive maple syrup for this bread.) I opted to use some leftover kabocha squash puree I had in the freezer, which worked beautifully. Below is my take on the original recipe.
If you baked this up for friends and family, I promise, they would never know it was gluten-free. It’s moist, tender, and not-too-sweet. It makes the perfect breakfast treat with a cup of coffee, or afternoon snack with some herbal tea. Though it’s January, and most people have moved on from pumpkin recipes, I haven’t. But no worries, this isn’t overly “pumpkin-y”, in fact, the forward flavors are a mix of molasses, cinnamon, and clove – perfect for any winter day, in my opinion.
I can’t wait to try more of the Flying Apron’s recipes. But what to try next? Scones, biscuits, bread? So many choices!
Pumpkin Molasses Bread, adapted from Flying Apron’s Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book
1 c buckwheat flour
1 c brown rice flour
1 c white rice flour
1 3/4 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1 t ground cinnamon
3/4 t ground cloves
1 c canola oil
1 c molasses (I used blackstrap)
3/4 c agave nectar
1 3/4 c pumpkin or squash puree (you could also use sweet potato)
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 c chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 c raisins
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine the flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves in a large bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the oil, molasses, agave nectar, pumpkin, and vanilla, and beat until well mixed, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture until well mixed, about 2-3 more minutes. Fold in the walnuts and raisins.
Line the bottom of two 8 1/2 X 4 1/2 inch loaf pans or one 10-inch cake pan with parchment paper, or grease and dust with rice flour. Pour in the batter.
Bake for about 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for about 1 hour before serving.
The other day, I discovered a wonderful new website. www.eatgreendfw.com If you live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, you should visit this site! It’s almost like visiting the farmer’s market from the comfort of your home…you can order local, sustainable produce, meat, dairy, and other items from area producers. (Don’t live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area? There is a great website for anyone in the U.S. http://www.localharvest.org/ I actually found a little farm not far from our house that sells fresh eggs from this site!) I was excited about the idea of this site, so I ordered some winter vegetables from Garden Harvests, a local farm near Waxahachie. Within 2 days, I received a box that contained some of the freshest, most beautiful winter vegetables – swiss chard, collard greens, beets (with their greens), and a bunch of cilantro. I was literally so excited that I jumped up and down. (yes…I realize that makes me a bit weird…jumping up and down over a bunch of vegetables. I am comfortable with my eccentricities.) What to do with all of these vegetables?
Well, as for the chard, I simply chopped and sauteed it with a bit of olive oil, crushed red pepper, and garlic. Check out Simply Recipes, Elise happened to have a recipe that worked wonders for this vegetable. It was slightly sweet, and just what I wanted. http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/000965swiss_chard.php
But that’s not what this post is about. I’m getting to that.
I also have had a bit of a butternut squash ”thing” lately. It’s one of the most wonderful winter squashes. Sweet and creamy, and you can put it with anything. Since I happened to have one in the kitchen, I figured, why not use it? As for those beets, they were gorgeous. See? GORGEOUS.
Unlike most of the beets I’ve purchased in the past, the greens were still quite pretty. I didn’t want to waste them. So I began to think…why not use these ingredients together, for one super-whiz-bang vegetable side? And suddenly, this dish was born!
Of course, you can serve any one of these three vegetables on their own. Or combine two out of the three. But the three together complimented one another quite well.
I’ve listed each recipe out separately.
Roasted Butternut Squash
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and diced into ½ inch cube
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 sprig thyme, leaves picked
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In an 8X8 baking dish, toss diced squash with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme. Roast in oven on center rack for 30-40 minutes or until squash is soft and lightly browned.
Sauteed Beets
Olive oil
5-6 small beets, peeled and diced into 1 inch cube
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
Heat a shallow, wide skillet to medium heat. Add olive oil, swirl to coat. Add beets, and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Turn meat to medium-low and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, for 30-40 minutes. Once beets are browned and soft, add garlic, and sauté for 1-2 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Beet Greens
1 T oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ c water
1 T sugar
¼ t crushed red pepper flakes
About 1 lb beet greens (or greens from about 6 beets), rinsed thoroughly and chopped into bite size pieces
2 T sherry vinegar
Salt and pepper
Heat a large saucepan to medium heat. Add oil and swirl to coat. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add water, sugar, and red pepper flakes and stir. Bring to boil, and add greens. Reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Stir in vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
To serve: Put a portion of beet greens on each plate. Top with beets and squash, and serve.
I recently was browsing through the recipes on foodbuzz.com and saw a salad recipe posted by http://jenniferscooking.blogspot.com/. It looked so delicious, I was inspired. Like so many people right now, I’m trying to make healthy choices. This is a nice, satisfying change from the same ol’ salad everyone has been eating lately while trying to lose weight. What’s even better, is that you can save time and effort by purchasing a rotisserie chicken at the grocery if you would like, and use that for the chicken in this salad. Or, of course, you can omit the chicken entirely for a vegetarian dish. What’s so wonderful about salads is the versatility. Feel free to adjust however you choose, depending on what ingredients are available.
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and diced into ½ inch pieces
½ T olive oil
Salt and pepper
Baby spinach leaves (one large bunch), washed and dried thoroughly
2 T Italian flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 cooked chicken breasts, torn into pieces (a store-bought rotisserie chicken works well here)
¼ c roasted, salted pumpkin seeds
4 oz feta cheese
3 T dried cranberries
Cherry tomatoes (optional)
1/8 c balsamic vinegar
1 t honey
1 small garlic clove, minced
Salt and pepper
¼ c olive oil
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place the diced squash on a baking sheet or in a baking dish and drizzle olive oil over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Bake for 30 minutes or until the squash has begun to brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool a bit.
In a bowl, add balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic clove, salt, and pepper. Whisk ingredients together, and while whisking, pour in the olive oil slowly. (Alternatively, if you have a stick blender, use it to mix these ingredients.) Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary.
Divide spinach leaves on four plates, and sprinkle with parsley. Top with roasted squash, chicken, and sprinkle pumpkin seeds, feta, and cranberries over. Add a cherry tomato or two if you desire. Drizzle dressing over, and serve.
Rarely can you find patty-pan (aka scalloped) squash in the grocery store. However, many farmer’s markets have them. In Texas, it seems that every farmer’s market is overflowing with squash come June. However, if you can’t find them, any summer squash will do. I also have made this recipe using yellow squash and zucchini and it was quite delicious. The freshness of the ingredients scream “summer.”
4-5 medium patty pan squash, sliced ½ inch thick
1 T olive oil
1 T butter
½ medium sweet yellow onion (preferably Vidalia or Texas 1015), sliced thinly
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
¼ c chopped fresh parsley
1 T chopped fresh basil
Dash lemon pepper
½ T grated Parmesan
½ lemon’s worth of juice
1 ½ c fresh spinach leaves, packed (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Heat pan to medium high, add oil and butter. Once butter is melted and foaming, add onions. Cook until onions are beginning to become tender and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add garlic, and squash. Season squash with lemon pepper. Sauté until squash can be pierced with a fork, 5-6 minutes. (don’t overcook, or squash will become mushy) Add parsley, basil, and spinach, if using. Sauté until spinach wilts, about a minute. Squeeze lemon juice over squash, and sprinkle Parmesan over. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
