Squash Cassarole

Happy New Year!

This holiday, I wanted to start the year loading up on veggies. So I grabbed whatever squash and root veggies I had and put them all together for this tasty meal:

Ingredients
2 zucchini
2 summer squash
2 carrots
1 turnip
2 russet potatoes
2 eggs
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
Shredded mozzarella Grated Parmesan Olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray casserole dish with olive oil. 2. Slice all veggies about 1/4" thick. Mix veggies in a bowl with about 2 tbsp olive oil and mozzarella (about 1/4 cup). 3. Pour veggies into casserole dish. 4. In a small bowl mix eggs, breadcrumbs and parmesan (a few tbsps). Pour over veggies. 5. Bake for about 30 minutes and serve! (Top with more parmesan if desired)

Spicy stuffed acorn squash

You may remember my acorn squash recipes from awhile ago - Winter Stuffed Squash and Stuffed Squash. As it's autumn, nearing winter, I thought I'd try this again but change it up a bit.

Ingredients
1 acorn squash
1 clove garlic, diced
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1 carrot, chopped
Peppers of choice, chopped
1 can black beans, rinsed
Dash of spices - cumin, cayenne
Cheese of choice, shredded

1. Following squash cooking instructions as in previous posts.
2. Meanwhile, heat veggies in a pan in oil until slightly browned.
3. Scoop out the pulp from the squash and mix with veggies. Spoon the mix back in to the shells. Top sith spices and cheese.
4. Bake for another 10-15 minutes.

Autumn Pizza

Who doesn't like a good pizza?

And now that it's fall, I feel the need to incorporate autumn vegetables into everything. So, autumn pizza it is!

Ingredients
Olive oil Large Butternut squash
1 small Yellow onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, diced
Wheat tortillas
Basil pesto
Ricotta cheese
Parmesan cheese
Nutmeg Pepitas(or roasted pumpkin seeds)

1. Slice the squash in half lengthwise. Lightly oil a cookie sheet or glassware and place squash face down. Cook at 375 degrees for 45-60 minutes, until the "meat" is soft.
2. Meanwhile, in 2-3 tbsp olive oil, brown the onion and garlic.
3. Spread out the tortillas on a cookie sheet. Spoon 2-3 tbsp pesto across each tortilla. Top with cooked garlic and onions.
4. Once squash is soft, spoon out the guts (the yucky looking pulp with the seeds)and discard. Spoon out the rest of the 'meat' and spread by tbsp-ful evenly over the tortillas. Top with dollops of ricotta, and sprinkle on Parmesan, pepitas, and nutmeg.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, until tortillas are crispy. Slice and serve.

Summer Series: Too Hot to Cook - Part 1: Panzanella & BBQ Tofu

I'm attempting a summer-long series inspired by my lack of desire to do lots of prep work or stand over a hot stove as temperatures hover in the 90s.

Last night, I made a Panzanella salad and BBQ tofu strips (which I just called "BBQ strips" until my 3-year-old declared them a winner) with a side of sliced avocado. Simple, not a lot of prep and perfect for a hot summer evening. Honestly, I would eat just the salad for dinner with some sliced avocado, but for the kid's sake, I wanted to round the meal out.

For the BBQ tofu, I followed this recipe from my BBQ Tofu Sandwiches.

Panzanella Salad
Ingredients:
(all vegetables are approximate)
5 nice-sized tomatoes, cut into a large dice
1 English cucumber, cut into a large dice
1/2 red onion sliced thinly
1 loaf of yummy bread (ideally getting stale, but if it's not, that's okay!), cubed - I used ciabatta
1/4 cup vinegar (red wine or balsamic)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 (small) clove garlic, minced or grated on the microplane
salt & pepper to taste
1 handful basil, chiffonaded

Directions:
If your bread isn't stale, set your oven to 200 and put the cubes on a cookie sheet and let them dry out for about 40 minutes. Once that is done, continue with the recipe.

In a measuring cup, measure out the vinegar and oil, add the garlic and salt & pepper and mix together.

Put the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and mix together. Add the dressing and toss and toss and toss. Then refrigerate for at least an hour to let the dressing soak into the bread.

Add basil and toss again just before serving.

Red Quinoa Salad

The color red has been known to enhance our appetites, so this salad from Better Homes and Gardens will surely get your tummy grumbling.

Red Quinoa with loads of spring produce: raspberries, beets, radishes, lettuce and cilantro!

Quinoa with Sweet Potatoes

I've been holding on to this one for awhile. And I figured I better make it now before winter veggies are no longer around! A yummy recipe from Makezine.com:

This took me all of 25 minutes to make, including prep and cook time. I might just have to add this to my Thanksgiving roster.

Champagne wishes and cupcake dreams

Tired of mimosas? Got leftover champagne? Here's a tasty way to use up some of that bubbly.

A easy recipe surprisingly from Wikihow.com

For the frosting, I whipped up my own batch:
1 cup vegetable shortening
2 tsp raspberry extract
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
3 tbsp milk

1. Beat the shortening to soften and mix in extract.
2. Slowly add the sugar, throwing in milk as needed to make creamy.

I added a little food coloring and topped with red and yellow sprinkles for some charm.

Minty Chocolately cookies

Merry Christmas, everyone! I know you're probably sick of all the sweets already, but he's a cookie to top all cookies! I was looking around online for a recipe, and just couldn't decide. So I combined my favorite ones.
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 cups chocolate powder
1 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tbsp mint extract
1 cup almond milk
1/2 bag chocolate chips
Crushed peppermint candy canes

1. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and chocolate. Set aside.
2. Beat the butter until creamy. Add vanilla, flour mix, and milk in batches.
3. Stir in chips. Refrigerate for about 10 minutes for the dough to get sticky.
4. Roll a large spoonful of dough in your hands and flatten into a patty. Press one side of patty in candy canes.
5. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and bake at 325 degrees for 11-12 minutes and cool. 

So rich and sweet. A yummy Christmas treat.

Winter Stuffed Squash

I had the ingredients, but nothing to do with them. That's when you make something up! Here's a yummy and filling recipe full of winter vegetables and Thanksgiving ingredient leftovers.

Ingredients:
1 acorn squash
1 yam, chopped in 1/2" pieces
1 large carrot, chopped
1 turnip, chopped
1/2 leek, sliced
1 cup fresh kale
1/2 cup cooked lentils
Olive oil
Thyme & savory
Leftover T-giving gravy

1. Slice squash in half and scoop out seeds. Spray a cooking sheet with oil, and bake face down at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. Go do something productive. 2. About 30 minutes in, cook the rest of the veggies and seasonings in an oiled pan for 15 minutes, or until softened. 3. Remove squash from oven. Scoop out the meat of the squash and mix with the veggies. Fill each squash half with veggie mixture. Drizzle gravy on top. 4. Reduce oven temp to 325 degrees. Bake stuffed halves for about 10 minutes and serve.

Squash and Bean Bolognese

A different take on regular spaghetti...
I found the bean mixture recipe at EatingWell.com.

Then, rather than using regular ol' noodles, I used spaghetti squash - almost as easy to make as regular spaghetti!
1. Cut squash in half lengthwise. Place face down in a baking dish in 1 inch of water.
2. Bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cool for about 10 minutes.
3. Stand one half on its end. Take a fork and scoop out the pulp and seeds gently and trash it.
4. With the fork, scour the inside of the squash - it comes out in noodly strips!

Pumpkin stew

I saw this recipe from October issue of Vegetarian Times and wanted to try it.  A hearty fall meal!


I didn't have all the ingredients they called for on hand, so I devised my own filler:
2 small pie pumpkins
2 cups wild rice, cooked
1 carrot, diced
2 cups frozen sweet corn
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 cup spinach
2 cups pecans, chopped

1. Heat carrot, corn, onion, and garlic in olive oil in a skillet.  Cook until soften.
2. Carve off top of pumpkins and pull out the guts (save the seeds to roast!)
3. Combine rice, spinach, pecans, and carrot mix and fill each pumpkin.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes with pumpkin lids on.  Remove lids and cook for another 20 minutes.
5. Serve in pumpkins!

I really liked this meal, but I think next time I'll add a little cheese to the mix.  And possibly some peppers to give it a little kick.

A taste of New Orleans

Mmmm...Fall veggie jambalaya from Vegetarian Times

Instead of sausage or seafood, this recipe calls for scrumptious fall root vegetables.

I also made my Creole stuffed peppers as a sidedish.

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

I love fall produce! Here's a really tasty pasta made with a creamy butternut squash, from Better Homes and Gardens:

And if you're looking for a spooky pairing in time for Halloween, be sure to check out Joe's Halloween Wine recommendations!

Shepherd's Pie - Fall edition

I'm sooo loving autumn dishes this year!
Just recently, I revamped one of my fall favorites, my shepherd's pie.

Instead of plain potatoes, I used solely mashed sweet potatoes with a bit of almond milk. I also topped the pie with some pepitas and cayenne to give it a little crunch and kick.

I didn't use any gravy this time around because the frozen veggie pack I used was already in a butter sauce - didn't want to over sauce it.

Wine of the Week - ELVIRA's Macabrenet 2008

Here's a wine with a fun label that also happens to be good quality!

From Sort This Out Cellars, one of my personal favorites, comes this Cabernet Sauvignon featuring the Mistress of the Dark herself, Elvira.

Fresh-off-the-vine grape seeds are the first thing I picked up on the nose. It also smells very plummy, with a little black cherry underneath.

The taste is big, juicy and full of sour berries. There's also a streak of something burnt, a little like ash. A good drink now, and it promises to age well; decant in the meantime.

This bottle is great for lovers of bold wines with a dark streak, and a perfect table decoration for your adult Halloween party.

15.1% alcohol

Butternut squash soup with ravioli

A great recipe from BHG.com. Very easy to make, and quick to whip up! I used about half a large squash, and bagged mini-raviolis from Trader Joe's. A yummy autumn meal that actually filled my belly!

Wine of the Week - Benefactor Cellars 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

Fruity on the nose and darker to taste, this is a sort of harsh, hasty wine that would nonetheless suit a loud party well.

A lot of spiciness and acidity attack the tongue with this wine. Nutmeg, black licorice, and a little bit of pepperoni. These flavors come out over a bed of sour strawberry and a little black cherry.

Not a great wine, but it gets the job done.

14.5% alcohol

October goodies - Apples

The next installment of October treats centers around apples. So go pickin'!

Apple Sauce

Apple Oat Bars

Apple turnovers

Slow-cooked Apples

"F it" Brunch (brunch foods that start with "F") Part 1

We were having friends over for brunch this past weekend and I wanted to impress without having to, you know, slave in the kitchen all morning or especially while they were here. So I knew a French Toast casserole was in the cards - something I could prepare ahead of time and pop in the oven.

Baked Apple Cinnamon French Toast (I halved the recipe from the website, because there were only 4.5 of us. This version is my adaptation)

1/2 loaf of challah bread (I used homemade, because I made a rocking, but giant one for Yom Kippur)

3/4 cups non-dairy milk (soy, almond, rice, hemp, etc.)
1 1/2 tbs. cornstarch
2 tbs. white whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice or nutmeg
Topping:
1 1/2 tbs. vegan margarine (I like Earth Balance)
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 tbs. brown rice syrup
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice or nutmeg
3 apples, peeled, cored and sliced (use a firm variety)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Slice bread into 2" pieces. Place into a 9"x9" glass baking pan. In a large bowl whisk together milk, cornstarch, flour, vanilla, cinnamon and allspice. Pour mixture over the bread in the baking pan and turn the bread over a few times to make sure the mixture is equally absorbed.
Melt the margarine in a large skillet over medium heat and stir in the brown sugar, brown rice syrup, cinnamon and allspice. Add in your apple slices and toss until they are coated in the brown sugar sauce. Pour the apple topping over the bread in the baking pan and evenly distribute. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove pan from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes

Serve with maple syrup.

October goodies - Pumpkin

Happy October! A monthly of ghostly parties and monstrous treats! To start the month, here's a list of our Eat Well and Prosper blogger's pumpkiny desserts:

Chocolate-soled Pumpkin Cookies:

Pumpkin Apple Muffins:

Iced Pumpkin Cookies

Pumpkin Bars

Pumpkin Pie Cake