Posts tagged ‘dinner’

October 24, 2013

Pumpkin, Butternut Squash and Sage Soup

by Crystal Cook

pumpkin shot final

There is something magical that happens in the fall: pumpkin-flavored foods are suddenly everywhere you turn. There are pumpkin spiced lattes, pumpkin breads, pumpkin beer, and hold on…there are even pumpkin flavored pop tarts!  To all of those things, I say: yes please! I love fall for this pumpkin flavor explosion, so I decided that I wanted to cook something that celebrates the pumpkin in all its natural glory. Behold the glorious Pumpkin, Butternut Squash and Sage Soup, served in a pumpkin bowl of course!

Typical me, I always seem to make things a lot harder than they need to be, so just know that this soup is delicious even without all the bells and whistles (but hello! sage oil and homemade crème fraîche) so it is up to you how crazy you want to get (that goes for the pumpkin bowls too)! But if you want to go all out (and trust me it is worth it!) then know there is some prep involved.

As seen in the previous two posts, the first thing I did was make my crème fraîche and sage oil the day before. This garnish is optional, and you can always buy the prepared product at the store if you don’t want to make it from scratch. I promise I won’t tell.

Now onto pulling out all my soup ingredients! Pie pumpkin, butternut squash, olive oil, vegetable oil, unsalted butter, onions, fresh sage, shallots, garlic, chicken broth, Salt and freshly ground black pepper. Are you hungry yet? You should be.

Ingredient shot

Cut pumpkin in half to seed pumpkin, then cut each half in half again (so your pumpkin is now quartered). Rub flesh with olive oil, salt and pepper. Peel butternut squash and cut in half to remove seeds. Cube squash into about 1-2 inch pieces, toss pieces in olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake each on a baking sheet lined with foil for 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.

roasting veggie Collage

Melt 6 tbsp. of the butter in a heavy stockpot over medium heat. Cook onions, garlic and 1 cup of the shallots in butter until translucent about 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, scrape flesh from pumpkin (I used a melon scoop to do this) and add to the onion mixture. Also add the butternut squash. Cook for about 5 minutes.

saute onion garlic shallots Collage

Add 6 cups chicken stock, 1 tablespoon chopped sage and salt to taste. Bring mixture to a boil and then simmer for 30 minutes.

squash broth sage salt Collage

If you decided to make pumpkin bowls, here is how I did it, but remember this step is completely optional (but completely adorable). When the soup is simmering, it is a perfect time to get these made! I chose a few smaller pie pumpkins than the size of what we use in the soup recipe – they were more around 2-1/2 lbs instead of 5. I guess you could do 5 pound pumpkins, but you had better be really hungry! All you have to do is cut off the tops of the pumpkin or cut a large circle around the stem of each pumpkin. Remove the lid and scoop out the seeds and fibers. I then coated the inside flesh and outside of the pumpkin with olive oil and then seasoned with salt and pepper. Place the pumpkins and lids on a baking sheet cover with foil and roast in a 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes.

bowl Collage

Using a large measuring cup take batches of soup and purée soup in a blender or food processor until smooth, then return to pot. Repeat as necessary. It is ok to have some chunky pieces. I actually enjoy that texture in the soup!

Puree Collage

Take the remaining ¼ cup of shallots and the 20 sage leaves and fry in 1 cup vegetable oil until crisp (you will see the shallots turn a nice golden color). Drain on paper towels.

fry sage and shallots

Now that your soup is done, let the garnish games begin.  I promise each one counts! First drizzle on some of the sage oil. Just look how lovely that green color is! The drizzle with crème fraîche, and finish with the crispy shallots and 2-3 sage leaves.

Garnish Collage

Now celebrate fall with your loved ones!

Final pumpkin 2

Pumpkin Bowls: (See method in post)

4 or how ever many small baking pie pumpkins you want to make – up to 2.5 pounds each
Olive Oil
Kosher salt & Cracked black pepper

 
Pumpkin, Butternut Squash and Sage Soup

Serves 8

1 small (about 5 lbs.) pie pumpkin, cut in half then quartered
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, cubed
4 -5 tbsp. olive oil for roasting pumpkins and squash
6 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh sage leaves, chopped + 20 sage leaves for garnish
1 1/4 cups diced shallots, divided
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
6 cups chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup vegetable oil
Sage Oil for Garnish (optional)
Crème fraîche for Garnish (optional)

  1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Cut pumpkin in half to seed pumpkin, then quarter. Rub flesh with olive oil, salt and pepper. Peel butternut squash and cut in half to remove seeds. Cube squash into 1-inch pieces, toss pieces in olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake each on a baking sheet lined with foil for 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.
  3. Melt 6 tbsp. of the butter in a heavy stockpot over medium heat. Cook onions, garlic and 1 cup of the shallots in butter until translucent, about 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, scrape flesh from pumpkin (I used a melon scoop) and add to the onion mixture. Also add butternut squash. Cook for about 5 minutes.
  4. Add 6 cups chicken stock, 1 tablespoon chopped sage and salt to taste. Bring mixture to a boil and then simmer for 30 minutes.
  5. Using a large measuring cup take batches of soup and purée in a blender or food processor until smooth, then return to pot. Repeat as necessary. It is ok to have some chunky pieces – I actually enjoy that texture in the soup!
  6. Take the remaining ¼ cup of shallots and the 20 sage leaves and fry in 1 cup vegetable oil until crisp. Drain on paper towels, then garnish each serving starting with sage oilcrème fraîche and then the crispy shallots and 2-3 sage leaves.
December 4, 2010

How to make corn tortillas

by Sandy Pollock

My awesome boyfriend Michael knows me pretty well. I know that because I found this beauty when I went to check the mail today.

A brand spankin’ new corn tortilla press! It’s a nice heavy cast-iron beauty (far superior to the lighter aluminum version).

Ain’t she pretty paw?

So shiny and new. I think it is time to get her messy! Let’s make some corn tortillas!

Ingredients: masa de harina mix (1 cup), water (2/3 cup) , and salt (1/8 tsp). Yields 8 small tortillas.

Put masa in a large bowl.

Add the water.

Put your pretty paws in there and mix.

Mix until dough comes together in a ball.

Divide the dough into equal balls. I made enough dough for 8 tortillas, because if we made any more than that Michael and I would make ourselves sick. We tend to eat them straight off the comal as fast as we can!

Now for the really fun part. Place a piece of plastic wrap on each side of the press.

Place one dough ball in the center.

Now PRESS! I like a thicker more dense corn tortilla so I keep mine just a smidge thicker than what you are probably used to seeing in the grocery store.

Seriously, how easy is that? I felt guilty that is wasn’t hard and more laborious.

My trusty comal. I use it all the time! Daily even. Love this skillet. Crank the heat to high heat.

Drop tortillas on the comal. No overlapping.

Cook for 30 seconds to a minutes per side. You are looking for the little brown spots of deliciousness to appear. Remove from comal. Cover with cloth napkin to keep soft and warm.

I am a very happy woman!

Now let’s turn these small disks of yumminess into a full blown snack!

So this is what I did. First cook the tomatoes:

Slice cherry tomatoes in half  (I used a whole pint) and mince the garlic (2 cloves). Heat olive oil in a sauté pan (about 2 tablespoons). Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add some quality balsamic vinegar to the garlic (about 1/4 cup). Add the tomatoes and mix to coat. Let them cook away. The balsamic vinegar will reduce and become syrupy and the tomatoes will start to release their juices. You will suddenly have way more juice than you started with and that is all good. Just let it reduce down. You don’t want the end result to be soupy. You are looking for a thicker sauce.

Refer to this blog post for step by step photos on preparing the tomatoes.

Melt cheese (I used Monterrey Jack, but go with whatever makes you a happy camper) on a cooked tortilla and put it in a 350 degree oven until the cheese is melted. Top with some of the sexy tomatoes, jalapenos, and your favorite hot sauce.  Easy, tasty, and a lot of fun to make.

November 11, 2010

What I did with my farmers market loot!

by Sandy Pollock

I love the farmers market.  I recently visited a great one in my hood in DC. The Dupont Circle Farmers Market is fantastic and year round!

I bought some amazing stuff and here’s what I did with it.

I love, love, LOVE the combination of basil, tomato, cheese and balsamic vinegar. We snack on this all the time. Whether I slice up all the ingredients and nibble straight from the cutting board, or stack them up with little extras like pesto or tapenade and pop them in the oven, there is rarely a nibble of food left to be had.

Today’s recipe is a play on the same yummy snack that I love. My farmers’ market delights inspired these amazing balsamic grape tomatoes on garlic and goat cheese toast. I am in love with this snack and you will be too!

Let’s get cooking!

Slice some crusty bread into 1/2 inch slices, brush with olive oil, then toast.


Look at these gorgeous tomatoes!

Slice tomatoes in half  (I used the whole pint) and mince the garlic (2 cloves).

Heat olive oil in a saute pan (about 2 tablespoons).

Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add some quality balsamic vinegar to the garlic (about 1/4 cup).

Add the tomatoes and mix to coat.

Let them cook away. The balsamic vinegar will reduce and become syrupy and the tomatoes will start to release their juices.

You will suddenly have way more juice than you started with and that is all good. Just let it reduce down. You don’t want the end result to be soupy. You are looking for a thicker sauce.

Toast is ready.

Take a whole clove of garlic and rub it on the still warm toast. It adds such a nice layer of flavor. Really worth doing.

Now it’s time for the cheese! This time, I used goat cheese (another farmers market find), but mozzarella is also a good choice. I just wanted something really creamy and spreadable.

Spread a good amount of cheese on each piece of toast and try not to eat it before you get the tomatoes on there, but be warned — this will be a difficult thing to do.

Tomatoes still cooking away and looking amazing!

My sad-looking, but still very tasty basil!

Spoon a heaping amount of the tomato mixture on top of the goat cheese and top with some basil.

Admire it for a minute.

Now eat!

This is the perfect flavor combination for me. I could eat something like this every single day.

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