Squash and Sage Pasta

This recipe was passed along by a good friend of mine, someone who knows so much more about food than me! Mercy knows a ton about food and also believes in cooking using only fresh, organic ingredients, especially when she's cooking for her two young children. So when she passed this recipe to me and said she cooked it for her kids, I knew I had to try it!

Right off the bat, I had to make a few alterations to it, simply because we didn't have the main ingredient - frozen pumpkin- in the house! First, I'll present the recipe as Mercy gave it to me. Then I'll post the recipe with my own alterations.

Ingredients:

Frozen squash (one 10oz bag for every 2 people).

Fresh or dried sage (at least 2 tbsp)

4 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp butter

Cooked pasta (bowties or penne)

Directions:

 

1. Cook the squash in a pan with  2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp of butter.
   
2. Set aside in a dish.
   
3. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and 2 tbsp of butter in a pan.
4. Add in the sage and cook until the aromas are released.
5. Add in the squash mixture to sage. Stir to combine.
6. Toss the cooked pasta into the sauce mixture.
7. Salt and pepper to taste.

Now, as I mentioned, we didn't have frozen squash, so we had to change it up a little bit. Here's my interpretation of the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 fresh squash 

Fresh sage (at least 2 tbsp)

4 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp butter

1 cup half and half cream

Cooked pasta - I used fresh ravioli stuffed with basil and romano cheese.

Directions:

1.  Cube the squash.
   
2. Set inside a microwavable bowl, half full with water.
3. Microwave on high for about 10 minutes, or until squash is soft enough to pierce with a fork.
4. Put the squash in a deep pan or wok with  2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp of butter. 
   
5. Stir on medium heat while lightly mashing the squash.
6. Puree squash in a food processor. 
7. Set aside in a dish.
   
8. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and 2 tbsp of butter in a pan.
9. Add in the sage and cook until the aromas are released.
10. Add in the squash mixture to sage. Stir to combine.
11. Fold in the cream and stir to combine.
12. Salt and pepper to taste.
13. Toss the cooked pasta into the sauce mixture.

So essentially, the recipes are the same, with just a few alterations. 

Another change I would make next time is to use only 1/2 cup of cream, and use 1/2 to 3/4 cup of vegetable broth to thin the sauce a bit. The sauce came out really thick!

However, I would definitely NOT change the combination of the sage, butter, and squash... It was so sweet and so flavourful! This is definitely going to become a staple recipe. 

What do you really know about food?

To my delight, the latest edition of Carleton's Alumni magazine came to me in the mail, and it was all about FOOD! The lead headline on the front cover read, "What's for dinner... is it safe?". The magazine touched on a number of issues, from the global food crisis, to fast food, to how children's food is marketed. All around, it was a great read, cover to cover. 

There was one quote in particular that really struck me. From the headlining article "What's for dinner... is it safe?", Professor Louise Heslop of the Sprott School of Business said, "We stopped cooking and now we know nothing about food preparation. We don't understand food anymore because life changed." Heslop goes on to discuss the reasons why we've lost touch with our food - households with multiple careers, and mainly the fact that our lifestyle is one that demands convenience. Furthermore, Professor Heslop reiterates that we often have no clue where our food comes from or what processes it went through to get to our dinner tables. Think about it - how many preservatives do you think is in that microwavable meatloaf that you see advertised on TV? Where did the meat come from? What sort of processes has it gone through to ensure that it stays preserved? In the past, we used to grow our own food in the garden, so we were well-aware of where the food came from. Can you tell me where the apple you ate at lunch was grown? What about the hamburger you ordered from that restaurant on the weekend? 

My goal with this blog is to help educate myself about food and its preparation. It is so important to be aware of what you eat and how it's prepared. That's not to say that I don't indulge in some KD every now and then (talk about processed food!), but my goal isn't to cut that stuff out immediately. My goal is to take a ride on the learning curve, and slowly ease myself into understanding food and appreciating it for its natural, unprocessed goodness. 

So next time you're thinking about dinner, think about making something yourself using local, organic produce, and minimizing the amount of pre-made ingredients. Whether it's a psychological phenomenon or what, food that you've made yourself tastes so much better. Give it a try and let me know how it works out!

Easy Antojitos!

The other weekend (forgive me for the late post!) Rob and I tested out a recipe for antojitos, which I got from foodtv.ca. It's a recipe by Christine Cushing, from an episode entitled "Student Food". Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained

2 cloves of garlic, minced

8 flour tortillas

1 avocado, sliced

3 roasted red peppers, sliced

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

juice of 1 lime

1 cup of grated cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Mash beans with a fork or potato masher. 

2. Add garlic, lime juice, and spices.

3. Salt and pepper to taste.

4. Spread black bean mix evenly onto the tortillas.

5. Sprinkle with avocado, roasted red pepper, and cheese.

6. Roll and slice into 1 inch pieces.

Rob and I thought these would be better baked for a little while. I also found that maybe there was too much cheese. (I know, can there ever really be too much cheese!?).

The lime juice added a nice kick to the black bean mix. Maybe some diced jalapenos woud be good too?

This was an easy recipe, and is pretty healthy (much healthier if you leave out the cheese... but really, who does that? hahaha)

Enjoy!

Quinoa Colour Salad

I was at the gym on Friday and was watching Chef At Home, like I always do when I work out. Chef Michael Smith was doing an episode on healthy alternatives. He made a meatloaf with ground turkey instead of ground beef, an apple pie with whole wheat flour and oats crust (instead of lard and white flour!), and a quinoa salad. 

For those who don't know about it, quinoa (pronounced "kee-no-ah" or "keen-wah") is a grain that orginates in the Andes of South America. It cooks similarly to rice and looks just like couscous, but is packed with WAY more nutrients. Check this out:

Per 45 gram serving (cooked quinoa on its own):

180 calories

3.5 grams of fat (0 saturated, 0 trans fat)

7 grams of protein (This is phenomenal for all you vegetarian types!!!)

7% of recommended daily intake of Potassium

4% Vitamin A

2% Calcium

15% Iron (More awesome-ness for vegetarians!)

20% Vitamin E

6& Vitamin B1

15% Vitamin B2

8% Folate (the "pregnancy" vitamin!)

20% Phosphorus

25% Magnesium

20% Zinc (awesome for fighting colds)

Anyway, after seeing all this nutritional content, I decided to try out the Quinoa Colour Salad recipe - called so because it has so many colourful veggies in it! I'll save the whole wheat and oats apple pie for another time!

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa

1 carrot, peeled and grated

1 red pepper, seeded and diced

3 green onions, sliced thinly

1 cucumber, chopped

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup olive oil

salt

pepper

Directions:

1. Rinse quinoa in cold water. It washes off the bitter coating that naturally covers the grain.

2. Cook as directed on package.

3. In the meantime, add all of your veggies to a bowl.

4. Add the lemon zest and lemon juice.

5. When the quinoa is done, fluff with a fork and add to veggies and lemon.

6. Add olive oil.

7. Salt and pepper to taste.

8. Toss well.

Notes:

You can serve this warm or cold. I tried it warm, and I think I would prefer it cold. 

The original recipe calls for fresh parsely, diced. I might add that next time, but I forgot to pick it up when I was at the grocery store. 

I might add some more veggies - tomatoes, seeded and chopped, would be great. Or sundried tomatoes... mmmm...

As an alternative to the olive oil, you could add a low-fat, oil-based salad dressing to season the salad.

Otherwise, the original recipe is pretty damn good.  Thumbs up!

Mushroom Cheddar Vegetarian Burgers

Rob and I tried out a veggie burger recipe this weekend, and we were pleasantly surprised! It was really easy, and the mess was minimal!!

The recipe is by Elizabeth Baird from Canadian Living Cooks. I found it online at www.foodtv.ca. (my favourite source for recipes!)

Mushroom Cheddar Vegetarian Burgers

Yield:  4 

INGREDIENTS:

2 tsp vegetable oil

1small onion, grated

1 1/2 cup finely chopped mushroom

1/2 tsp dried Italian herb seasoning

1 x 19 oz can white kidney beans, drained, and, rinsed

1 egg, yolk, lightly, beaten

2 tbsp dry breadcrumbs

1/4 tsp pepper

3 oz old cheddar cheese, sliced

4 lettuce leaf

4 whole wheat pita, breads

DIRECTIONS:

1. In nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; cook onion, mushrooms and Italian seasoning; stirring, for about 8 minutes or until mixture is just starting to brown and liquid is evaporated. Let cool slightly.
   
2. In bowl, mash kidney beans with fork. Add mushroom mixture, egg yolk, bread crumbs and pepper; mix well. Shape into four 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick patties. (Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 6 hours)
   
3. Place patties on greased grill over medium-high heat; close lid and cook for 5 minutes or until golden brown. Sandwich along with lettuce in pitas.

All in all, it turned out well... We made a few changes:

1. We used grated cheese and integrated it with the mixture, instead of putting it on top.
2. We added more mushrooms than the recipe calls for. Upon tasting the recipe the first time around, we decided it tasted too much like beans and not enough like mushrooms. 
3. We fried them in a pan instead of grilling them. (The snow was covering the BBQ).
4. We used burger buns instead of pitas. We also topped it off with your typical burger toppings.

Next time around, I'd like to try using a different kind of beans. Black beans, possibly. Chick peas would be good too. I'd also only use a half can to start, and add them in as necessary to bind everything together.  

This is a great recipe as it's very flexible. It would be great with portabello mushrooms and Swiss cheese, or you could do black beans and monterey jack for something a little different. You could add in jalapenos or olives or whatever you wanted to give it the flavour you like. 

Who has two thumbs and really likes this recipe? This girl. 

:)

Orange Ginger Broth with Soba Noodles

Here's another recipe involving oranges. This one is from Michael Smith of Chef at Home andChef at Large.  He's another one of my favourite chefs, as he often cooks without a recipe. This is something I strive for - the ability to know what ingredients go together to make an interesting flavour blend! 

Ingredients:
1 x small package soba noodles
2 cups orange juice 
2 cups chicken stock 
2 inch piece of ginger, frozen
1 tbsp soya sauce
1 cup sliced green onions
2 cups baby bok choy, chopped
1 cup bean sprouts
1 x carrot, grated
1 tbsp sesame seeds

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. 
   
2. Season with salt and then add soba noodles. 
   
3. Boil just until they have softened, about 3-5 minutes. 
   
4. Drain and rinse.
   
5. Bring orange juice and chicken stock to a simmer.
   
6. Grate in frozen ginger, reserving some for garnish and add soya sauce, green onions, bok choy, sprouts and carrot.
   
7. Stir until bok choy is wilted. 
   
8. Place some soba noodles into soup bowls.
   
9. Ladle in some broth and vegetables and garnish with sesame seeds and grated ginger.
   

 

Rob and I made a few changes to this recipe. First of all, Rob is vegetarian so we used veggie broth instead of chicken broth. Other changes we made...

1. We used rice noodles instead of soba noodles. If you're making rice noodles, just put them in a bowl and cover with boiling water, then let them sit. Don't boil them like regular pasta (what a mushy mess that makes, trust me!)
2. We used a jar of minced ginger instead of frozen fresh ginger. Same diff!
3. We added a bit of garlic.
4. We also added mushrooms and broccoli to the mix. I recommend you throw in as many veggies as you like!
5. We did the 2 cups of OJ/2 cups of broth combination. In retrospect, the next time I try this dish, I will use less OJ and more broth. While the orange was a nice flavour, it was a little overpowering at times. 

Overall, I really liked this recipe and would definitely make it again. 

Orange Fennel Salad

This recipe is done by Roger Mooking of The Everyday Exotic. I tested this out this weekend and found it to be a success!! It's very simple, but the flavours are awesome. 

Ingredients

3 x oranges, segmented

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 bulb fennel, thinly sliced

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

1/2 bunch mint, leaves picked

1/3 cup almonds

salt

Directions

1. In a bowl, add oranges, red onion, fennel, and vinegar.

2. Season well with salt.

3. Add mint and almonds just before serving.

Here are some notes that I had...

1. If you have a Chinese mandolin to slice the fennel and the onions, use that instead of a knife to slice them. If the fennel or onion pieces are too big, the flavour will overpower everything else.

2. Segmenting oranges is tricky. Segmenting oranges is cutting the peel and the skin off, then slicing the orange so that you have wedges that have none of that transparent skin on them.

3. When you have segmented the oranges and added them to your bowl, squish a little bit of the juice from the remaining bits into the bowl to add flavour. 

4. Let your salad marinate overnight. I tried some immediately after I made it yesterday, then tried some again today. Today the salad tasted much better, since the flavours and juices had time to blend together.

And finally... if you have any remaining mint leaves left over, make a MOJITO!

Enjoy!