CSA Week 3: Savory Winter Squash & Caramelized Onion Tart

Growing up, there were two uses for pumpkins:  pie and jack o’lanterns.  I never heard of pumpkin in soups or curries or quick breads, and can you imagine, the little pumpkin-pie-lover that I am, to be opened to those possibilities?  Of course, I still love carving pumpkins for Hallowe’en:

We’ve had a surfeit of pumpkins and other winter squashes coming in with our CSA box–Long Island Cheese Pumpkins, Butternut Squash, Delicata Squash–perhaps not great for carving, but absolutely delicious when roasted and pureed into soups, and in this case, a savory tart.  It’s rich stuff, with butter and sour cream and sweetened ever-so-slightly with caramelized onions and the natural sugars that develop with roasting squash.  I’ll admit something to you–because I was baking this on Hallowe’en evening, and along with getting ready for the Big Night, I cheated and used a Pillsbury Pie Crust.  I KNOW, I KNOW, I can make pate brisee and it would have been so much better, but I was in a time crunch you guys!  Anyway, it was a huge hit with Choo, who shares my love of all that is pumpkin.

I used a blend of a few different squashes–I had roasted a pan full of pumpkin, butternut squash, and delicata to help clear some counter space earlier in the week.  Roasting winter squashes is incredibly easy:

1. Preheat oven to 400°
2. Cut squashes into large pieces, scrape out seeds and stringy pulp.  You can peel them, but it’s really not necessary–the flesh can be easily scraped out after roasting.
3. Toss in just enough olive oil to coat pieces lightly, and if using squash for savory dishes, add a head’s worth of garlic cloves.
4. Roast in oven for 45 minutes to an hour, until flesh is browned and tender.

If you have extra puree, then it’s fine to store in the freezer in an airtight container.

Even though I served it for dinner, this tart would make an excellent Autumn brunch dish–it would go perfectly with a mixed greens salad with fall notes (pomegranate seeds, candied walnuts, chevre, etc.).

Savory Winter Squash & Caramelized Onion Tart

• 1/2 batch of Pate Brisee (or one refrigerated pie crust if you’re a cheater like me)
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 large Maui Sweet onion, sliced
• 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 1/4 cups roasted squash puree, any combination of pumpkin, butternut squash or delicata
• 5 cloves roasted garlic
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3 eggs
• 3 Tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 10-12 fresh sage leaves (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 425°
2. Roll out pate brisee and line a 9″ tart pan.  Cover and refrigerate lined tart pan for 20 minutes.
3. Blind bake tart crust for 10-12 minutes.  Blind baking is done by lining dough with a layer parchment paper and filling crust with pie weights such as dried beans, rice, ceramic beads.  Set aside to cool slightly and turn oven down to 350°
4. Melt butter in a skillet on medium-low heat and add onions.  Gently cook until soft and add thyme.  Slowly cook onions on low heat until caramelized, about 20-30 minutes.  Remove thyme branches and set aside.
5. In a food processor, add squash puree, roasted garlic cloves and caramelized onions (and any melted butter remaining in the pan) and pulse until smooth.
6. Add sour cream, eggs, cream, salt and pepper to food processor and pulse until incorporated fully, scraping sides down with a rubber spatula at least once.
7. Pour into prepared tart shell and decorate with sage leaves if desired.  Bake for 30-35 minutes until center is set and top is browned.

 

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Eating Our Veggies: Italian Wedding Soup

We are still clearly in soup mode here at El Rancho Destructo.

I had a great bunch of spinach from our CSA box, and even though I usually default to a spinach salad, I wanted to do something I knew Kiddo would happily eat.  Italian Wedding Soup was a no-brainer for this one:  little bite-sized meatballs and some fun small pasta like stars (as pictured), ditalini, orzo  or acini de pepe in chicken broth, loaded with vegetables.

This is also one of those soups that taste even better the next day, so don’t cut the recipe in half!  Make a full batch and freeze portions for lunches–you’ll be glad you did.

Italian Wedding Soup Makes 6 to 8 servings

Meatballs

• 1 pound extra lean ground beef or ground turkey
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1/2 of a large yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 egg

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  Line a sheet pan with foil and lightly oil with vegetable oil.
2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients until well mixed.
3. Scoop and shape meatballs into 1″ balls.  This amount will make about 32-40 meatballs.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes until meatballs are cooked through.  While the meatballs are in the oven, start on the soup.

Soup

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup onions, diced
• 1 cup carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 8 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup small pasta
• 1 bunch spinach, washed and trimmed
• Salt & pepper to taste

1. In a large soup pot on medium heat, heat olive oil and add onions, carrots and celery, and sweat until vegetables are glossy and onions are tender.
2. Add thyme and white wine; simmer until the wine is reduced by half.
3. Add chicken stock and bring to a full simmer.  Add pasta and simmer until pasta until al dente, about 8 minutes.
4. Add meatballs;  stir in spinach in batches, letting it wilt into the soup.
5. Season to taste, remove thyme stems and serve.

 

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CSA Week One: Beet & Apple Puree and Chard Gratin with Bacon & Chevre

Needless to say, this CSA challenge is, well, challenging. I know I’m a good cook, but I do fall into ruts, especially on the weekdays when time is shorter, so vegetables tend to come in simple salads or sautés or stir-fries.  Getting vegetables that I wouldn’t normally buy in my day-to-day grocery purchases has been the nudge I really needed to try something new.  So, with a little inspiration, I have two dishes that used items from my CSA box.

First up, Beet & Apple Pureé, as inspired by The Silver Palate Cookbook (which I found an old copy in near-perfect condition at the used book store for $2).  I’ll admit it right now:  I’m not really a big fan of beets.  I don’t hate them, but I just don’t ever reach for them when I’m at the farmer’s market.  I received two Candy Striped Beets in my box and they cooked up to a really gorgeous sunset pink-orange which once blended with the apples, turned the puree a lovely golden-rosy color.  I think this is a great way to introduce beets to those who don’t really like beets–the apples and the caramelized onions sweeten and temper the earthiness of the beets.  As mentioned by The Silver Palate, this goes well served hot with pork, duck or goose, or cold with grilled sausages.

Beet & Apple Pureé adapted from The Silver Palate Cookbook by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins

Makes approximately 2 cups

• 2 medium beets, washed and green tops removed
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 medium Granny Smith or any other tart apple
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon fruity and/or sweet vinegar, such as raspberry, balsamic, etc.
• Salt to taste

1. Put beets in saucepan, cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil, turn heat down to medium, and simmer beets until tender, about 30-40 minutes.
2. While beets are simmering, melt butter in large skillet on medium-low heat and add onions.  Gently cook onions until tender and beginning to caramelize, about 30 minutes.
3. Add apples, sugar and vinegar and cook until apples are tender, about 10 minutes.
4. When beets are ready, cool until they can be handled and slip off skins, chop roughly and put into a food processor.  Add apple-onion mixture with a pinch of salt to food processor and pulse until smooth.
5. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if needed;  serve warm or cold as desired.

 

Next up, is a Chard Gratin with bacon and chèvre (of course there’s bacon, I hear you say).  Now, I do like chard, but I usually do a simple braise in chicken stock and garlic or a basic sauté with olive oil and a little lemon juice.  This time, I was ready to branch out, and I found inspiration at Oui, Chef with his Rainbow Chard and Chévre Casserole and through my friend, Sonya, who told me about her way of making chard (bacon, goat cheese, and tons of slow cooked garlic and onions. YUM. Sometimes I crack an egg on it and call it breakfast).

I did have to tweak it since I was working with what I had, and what I didn’t have was chicken stock (I desperately need to make a batch soon), and what basil I have I’m holding on to for making tomato soup tomorrow.  What I did have was bacon, and bacon and greens are a match made in heaven.  You guys, this is ridiculously good and if you can’t stand the idea of chard, but like spinach, that would be a perfectly acceptable substitute.  I actually made a double batch of the sauce and saved half for my spinach later this week, because it’s just that good if you love chévre.

One problem with the changing seasons is that it’s now dark when we sit down for dinner–and my notoriously not-very-well-lit living room is making photography a challenge.  Even with playing around with GIMP, my pictures are looking like they’re straight out of a 60′s cookbook.

Chard Gratin with Bacon & Chévre

Serves 4

• 1 pound Rainbow Chard
• 4 ounces bacon, diced
• 1/4 medium yellow onion, diced fine (appx. 1/4 cup)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 cup half & half (more if needed to thin sauce)
• 4 ounces chévre, crumbled
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Butter, as needed

1. Wash and chop chard; remove stalks first and chop into 1/2″ pieces, then cut leaves into 1″ strips (or if you want to be fancy, you can say chiffonade).  In a saucepan, add 1 cup water with a hefty pinch of salt and bring to a hard simmer.  Add stalks and simmer uncovered for 4-5 minutes.  Add leaves, simmer for 2 more minutes, then cover saucepan and remove from heat; let steam for 6-8 minutes.  Drain chard in colander and set aside.
2. In a large skillet on medium heat, cook bacon until crispy, then remove and drain on paper towels.  Remove all but 2 tablespoons of bacon fat, turn heat to low, and add onion and garlic.  Cook until onion is glossy and translucent and lightly browned.
3. Sprinkle flour over onions and cook roux for about 3 minutes, stirring often.
4. Add half & half, and whisk until smooth and thickened.  Add chévre and stir until melted.  Season as needed with salt and pepper.
5. Butter a small casserole dish and spread chard in casserole.  Sprinkle with bacon then top with sauce.
6. Place casserole under broiler on low setting and broil until sauce is browned and bubbling, about 6 to 8 minutes.

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The Great CSA Experiment: Week 1

We did it.  We signed up for a CSA.  It sounded like a really good idea, as part of the proceeds go towards Kiddo’s school (for “greening funds”–they’re building a garden and a soccer field), and the drop-off is at the school.  Easy-peasy, unlike other CSA programs we’ve looked into.  Even though the cost was all up front, it worked out to what I’d pay for my usual haul at the farmer’s market.  Today was the first pick-up:

You know what’s killin’ me right now?  That wee pumpkin!  I’m not quite sure what I’ll do with it, but it’s adorable and it can hang out on the counter for a few days while I figure it out.  There’s plenty of greens happening–kale, chard, and spinach, so there will be some soup in the near future with that stuff.  Tomatillos, cilantro and green onion will clearly be turned into salsa verde and put up in the freezer;  that eggplant will certainly be turned into baba ghanoush.

So, here’s what I’m planning:  I’m going to document the next 12 weeks of my CSA haul, and do a write up of at least one thing I make out of the haul.

This should be interesting.

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Acorn Squash with Wild Rice, Sausage, Dried Fig & Hazelnut Stuffing

Here in L.A., we’ve finally had some real, honest-to-god Fall weather hit the area, after last week’s crazy record-breaking heatwave.  Grey skies!  Drizzle!  Chilly nights!  I can’t tell you how much I love this kind of weather, and it really gets me to thinking about the perfect Autumn dishes.  Some of my favorite foods and flavors are synonymous with this time of year:  roasted turkey, sage, pumpkin, apples, cranberries… sounds a whole lot like Thanksgiving, doesn’t it?

I’ve had a few acorn squash and a bag of wild rice hanging around for a while waiting for inspiration to hit, and today, while digging through my cupboards, I had the perfect combination of flavors to stuff into roasted squash.  A filling made with a little bacon, some chicken sausage, sweetened with dried figs and made earthy with sage and chopped hazelnuts, all tossed into cooked wild rice;  after the Kiddo and I had our fill, Choo finished it all, with no hope for leftovers.

Note:  The usual ratio for cooking wild rice is 4 cups liquid to 1 cup of rice, and when I simmered the rice for the recommended 45 minutes, the rice was perfectly cooked, but I ended up straining off about 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth.  If I had let it simmer much longer, the rice would have been mush–when you purchase your wild rice, follow the given directions on the package.  Also, if you’re not a big fan of wild rice, brown rice or quinoa would work nicely as a substitute.

Acorn Squash with Wild Rice, Sausage, Dried Fig and Hazelnut Stuffing

• 2 large acorn squash
• Olive oil, as needed
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cups low-salt chicken broth (or less, if needed)
• 1 cup uncooked wild rice
• 5-6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 ounces bacon, diced
• 3 links chicken or turkey Italian sausage (sweet or hot, to your preference), appx. 10 ounces
• 2 shallots, minced
• 1 large stalk celery, finely diced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage, rubbed
• 9 dried Black Mission figs, appx 1/4 cup (cranberries would also be excellent if you don’t like figs)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped toasted hazelnuts
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. In a medium saucepan, add chicken broth, thyme, and bay leaf  and on medium-heat bring to a full boil.
3. While waiting for the broth to boil, wash, halve squash lengthwise, and scoop out seeds.  Cover sheet pan with foil and grease with olive oil.  Rub olive oil on the insides of the squash and season liberally with salt and pepper.  Place cut side down on sheet pan and roast in oven until fork tender, about 40-50 minutes.  About 30 minutes of roasting, turn squash cut side up to get some color on the inside.  Set aside when done.
4. When broth comes to a boil, add wild rice and cover.  Simmer for about 45 minutes, until tender.
5. In a large sauté pan, cook bacon on medium heat until well-browned.  Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Keep about 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings in the pan.
6. Remove sausage from casing and cook thoroughly, and break into small crumbles.
7. Add shallots, celery and sage; sweat until glossy and tender.
8. When wild rice is done, combine with sausage mixture, figs, hazelnuts, bacon, and 1 tablespoon parsley.
9. Scoop stuffing into squash halves, top with remaining parsley.

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Eating Our Veggies: Garden Minestrone Soup

You guys!  It RAINED today!  Ok, fine, it was just a drizzle, but I am thrilled–thrilled–I tell you!  And when it rains, you know what that means.

Soup!  Hearty, comforting, fortifying soup that warms the toes and makes you feel all cozy on the inside.  And, from my last post, you know I’m on a mission to eat more vegetables on a daily basis.   An easy way to do that is to make a soup loaded with vegetables and plenty of flavor from chicken stock and a fat dollop of pesto.

The great thing about minestrone is there really isn’t a set recipe–use some seasonal vegetables, add some beans (Canellini is the usual, but red kidney beans or fava beans would work well), tomatoes, a little pasta or rice, and some homemade chicken or vegetable stock and you’ll have yourself a fine soup.   And, once all your vegetables are chopped, this comes together really quickly–especially if you’re cheating like me and using canned beans (gasp!).  This recipe makes about 4 quarts–about 8 dinner-sized servings of soup, but it freezes very nicely for lunches.

BBB Garden Minestrone Soup

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 small onions, diced
• 2 leeks, sliced into half-moons
• 1 cup sliced celery
• 1 cup peeled and sliced carrots
• 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 large red bell pepper, 1/2″ dice
• 5 small Yukon Gold or Red potatoes, 1/2″ dice (appx. 1 1/2 cups)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-14 ounce cans diced tomatoes
• 6 cups chicken (or vegetable) stock
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced into half-moons
• 1-14 ounce can Canellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup whole wheat pasta–any small pasta will do, such as shells or fusilli
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Optional:  Pesto or grated Parmesan cheese

1. Heat a large soup pot on medium heat and add oil.  Add onions, leeks, celery, carrots, thyme and bay leaf.  Sweat vegetables for 4-6 minutes, until onions are translucent and glossy.
2. Add bell pepper, potatoes, garlic, tomatoes, and chicken stock.  Raise heat to medium-high and bring soup to a low boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Add zucchini, beans and pasta and simmer for another 10-12 minutes, until pasta is tender.
4. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with pesto or Parmesan cheese.

(I told you it was easy!)

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