Lobster Mushroom Bisque

  OMG…. Heaven in a bowl!!! I seriously couldn’t get enough of this stuff. When are we going mushroom hunting again??? Unfortunately lobster mushroom season is slowly coming to an end in the Pacific Northwest. This was my first season going mushroom picking and we had such a great time wandering in the woods! None of us got lost and we had a great haul (although we didn’t really get any of the really large chanterelles). We collected tons of yellow and white chanterelles, lobster mushrooms, and chicken of the woods. We pretty much ate mushrooms everyday of the week and we still have chanterelles in the freezer. The lobster mushrooms were definitely my favorite, but we had fun with the chanterelles and chicken of the woods too. We made this lobster mushroom bisque from One Tomato Two Tomato with only a few changes… mostly just to accommodate what we already had in our kitchen. The bisque turned out fantastic! You … Continue reading

Blood Orange Roasted Tofu and Asparagus

Spring is here!!! Which means asparagus is super cheap at the market. I dug and dug all over the internet for an asparagus recipe that wasn’t the same old same and came across this recipe from Eating Well. I loved … Continue reading

Prosciutto, Grilled Fennel, & Grapefruit Salad

Thank you Martha Stewert for this amazing salad!!!! My husband is now hooked on grapefruit… and it used to be a struggle to get him to eat it. The salad we made was pretty similar to Martha’s but we made … Continue reading

East Meets West Red Curry

I made an AMAZING curry for Steve and I last week. He was craving braised beef short ribs and I was craving Thai curry and Indian curry…. I really couldn’t decide. So I decided to combine them all into one … Continue reading

Healthy Lentil Soup

I’ve gotta be honest. I haven’t been eating alot of meat lately and I’ve been feeling a bit tired. And the weather has been pretty shitty, so I made a GIANT batch of lentil soup hoping that it would give … Continue reading

Spicy Thai Yellow Curry

After two weeks of craving curry, we finally took a Sunday evening to make our own curry paste….why did we wait so long? Ingredients for Thai Yellow Curry Paste Serves 3. 4-5 dried chilies (soaked in water for 10-15 minutes) … Continue reading

Toasted Hazelnut and Cauliflower Soup

Steve and I are always trying to find ways to incorporate more veggies into our diet and we’ve been on a cauliflower kick lately. We’ve made a cauliflower pizza crust…yum; and now we’ve made this AMAZING soup…I think it’s just … Continue reading

Curried Pumpkin Soup

Yep, I’m still on a pumpkin/squash kick….and I’ve been pretty lazy about posting, so I’ll go ahead and start with our Thai inspired curried pumpkin soup. This recipe is so versatile and can be made vegan and gluten free. We made ours with chicken broth, half and half, and butter because we had a little bit of each that we wanted to use before it turned bad, but I actually think the vegan version might be better. Also, this soup was super easy to make…the hardest part was peeling the fresh pumpkin, but with a little patience our OXO Peelerdid the trick.

curried pumpkin soup

A little comfort food for a cool fall day.

Recipe

Serves 6 as entree.

1 smallish-medium pie pumpkin, peeled, seeded, and cubed
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or butter
1 1/4 teaspoon curry powder (I think you could use a curry paste if you don’t have powder)
1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
8 cups of vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 cup coconut milk or half and half
3 tablespoons peanut butter
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (optional, omit for vegan)
sour cream (optional)
cilantro, chopped, for garnish
salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot bring your chicken broth to a boil on medium-high heat and add your pumpkin. Depending on how big/small your pumpkin chunks are it could take 15-20 minutes.

2. While your pumpkin is cooking, in a saute pan combine butter or oil, onion, garlic, curry powder and chili pepper flakes over medium heat and cook until onion is tender and translucent, probably 5-7 minutes.

3. Once your pumpkin is tender go ahead and add the onion mixture, peanut butter, nutmeg and Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 15 minutes.

4. Remove from heat and slowly add coconut milk or half and half to the mixture. Blend until creamy using your hand blender.

5. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream and cilantro.

Note: Toasted peanuts or pumpkin seeds would also be a nice addition.

For other great pumpkin and squash recipes I really like this book.

  

Ale and Cheddar Soup

Earlier this week Steve and I took the dogs hiking up on Larch Mountain, just east of Portland in the Columbia River Gorge in the pouring rain just because we were getting antsy sitting around all day. Well it was pouring and it wasn’t particularly cold so we were soaked under our rain gear too. It was a pretty miserable hike and we turned around without completing the loop. On the plus side, we made an amazing Ale and Cheddar Soup from Kevin Lynch over at Closet Cooking, which is one of my new favorite blogs and I have got to share the recipe, so hop on over to his sight and take a look. YUM!!!

Ale and Cheddar Soup

Delicious!!! Bacon, Cheese, and Beer….

Apple Potato Soup

apple potato soup

An apple a day keeps the doctor away! Homemade apple and potato soup with fresh thyme.

Recipe

Serves 4. 

2 apples, peeled, cored and diced, plus 1/2 an apple sliced into thin wedges
2 celery stalks, chopped in to 1/4 inch slices
1 small-medium onion, diced
1 leek (minus the tough greens), sliced thinly
5 small potatoes, peeled, and diced
2 1/2 cups milk
2 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper
crème fraîche or sour cream

Instructions

1. In a large saute pan combine leek, onion, apple, celery and olive oil over medium-low heat until tender, probably 15 minutes or so.

2. In a large soup pot combine milk and potatoes. Bring to a slow boil, careful to not scorch the milk and cook for about 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

3. While the potatoes are cooking add chicken broth, bay leaf and thyme to the apple mixture and simmer for about 20 minutes.

4. Remove the bay leaf and combine all ingredients in the large soup pot and use a Cuisinart Hand Blender to blend all the ingredients until smooth. You could also blend the soup in batches in your blender or food processor. Our Oster Blender does an awesome job with soups, but clean up is so much quicker with the Cuisinart, so inevitably the Cuisinart Hand Blender has been getting way more action lately.

5. You might need to add a little more chicken broth or milk to achieve desired consistency ours was pretty thick. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with a dollop of crème fraîche or sour cream, a couple of apple slices and a sprinkling of thyme.

We served ours with baked brie, a whole wheat baguette and a dried cranberry, feta and candied pumpkin seed salad.

 

Holy Guacamole!!!

This guacamole always disappears…sometimes before dinner is served. It’s perfect for fajita night with a couple of friends or double it up for a fiesta.

guacamole

Holy Guacamole!!!

Recipe

Serves 3-4.

3 avocadoes, peeled, pitted and cubed
1/2 onion, minced
1 jalapeño, diced
1/2 tomato, finely diced
1/4- 1/3 cup, finely chopped cilantro, plus a couple leaves for garnish
4 garlic cloves, pressed through a garlic press
2 teaspoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon chili pepper flakes, more to taste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Combine avocado, tomato, jalapeño, garlic and lime juice. Mash like crazy with a fork or OXO Good Grips Wire Potato Masher.

2. Stir in cilantro, chili pepper flakes, cayenne, salt and pepper. Adjust accordingly. I like a slow burn, so I always heat it up….not enough to make you sweat, but so you definitely know it’s there.

3. Serve with homemade tortilla chips….or store bought if you don’t have time to make your own.
4. Transfer to a fiesta inspired bowl and garnish with cilantro.

 

Salad…Who Eats Salad???

In our attempt to not waste as much food, Steve and I have started eating more salads…which is a good thing right? Packed with vitamins…and if we didn’t pile on the cheese they’d probably be considered healthy too.

beet_green_bean_goat_cheese_salad

Yep, Steve will eat beets!!! And he doesn’t gag when I serve them anymore.

Recipe

2 servings as entree or 4 servings as a side.

3 beets
1 big handful of green beans, trimmed
1 bag of organic salad mix
goat cheese (about 1-1 1/2 oz. per person)
2 green onions, diced
1 shallot, finely minced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed with a garlic press
1/4 cup EVOO
1/4 cup red wine vinegar, plus some to drizzle on beets (takes away some of the earthiness that some people can’t stand)
1/2 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon stone ground mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Rinse your beets well before adding them to a large pot of boiling water. Boil the beets until they are fork tender, this could take anywhere from 25 minutes to an hour (maybe more) depending on the size and freshness of your beets.

2. While your beets are boiling prepare a second smaller pot of boiling water. In this pot you will add your green beans. Boil them for 2-3 minutes until bright green then strain them and add them to an ice bath to stop the cooking process.

3. Once your green beans are cooled cut them into 1-1 1/2 inch segments and set aside.

4. Once your beets are tender, strain them in the sink. I’ll usually run a little cold water over them and put a handful of ice cubes on them to speed up the cooling process. Once they have cooled you can peel them and dice them up.

5. Drizzle your beets with a little red wine vinegar while you prepare the dressing.

6. To make the dressing combine EVOO, red wine vinegar, mustard, honey, minced garlic, and minced shallot in a small bowl and whisk until blended.

7. Toss the beets in a tablespoon or two of the dressing.

8. In a large bowl toss the salad greens, green beans and dressing until covered, then serve the salad greens on small plates and top with the beets and goat cheese. Garnish with some of the diced green onion.

 

 

 

Orange Spiced Pumpkin Macarons

orange pumpkin spiced macaron

orange pumpkin spiced macaron…no feet, but perfect texture and flavor

This recipe is nearly identical to the one found on plant food fabulous. I just made a couple of spice adjustments to suit my taste. She has some great tips for macaron making and troubleshooting too.

Cookie Recipe

30 cookies (more or less)

2/3 cup almond flour/meal
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 aged egg whites (left out on the counter overnight)
orange gel food coloring

Filling (you’ll probably have leftover)

1/4 cup butter, room temp
8 oz. cream cheese, room temp
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin puree, moisture removed by drying between two paper towel layers
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest

Instructions

1. Sift together powdered sugar and almond meal, at least twice.

2. Stir in spices.

3. Beat aged egg whites until just frothy then add the granulated sugar. Continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to over beat your eggs.

4. Preheat oven to 375 (know how your oven cooks and adjust accordingly) I usually turn mine down and cook a little longer.

5. Add almond mixture to your egg mixture; stir with a rubber spatula. Then macaronage  by spreading the mixture against the side of the bowl and then scraping it back down. Do this between 8 and 10 times. This removes some of the air from the batter. You’ll know it’s done when the batter folds back on itself in ribbons and spreads out slowly. You don’t want it to be runny.

6. Fill a piping bag or Ziploc bag with the batter and pipe 1 1/2 inch circles on to a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet. Once your baking sheet is full tap the baking sheet on the counter 5 or 6 times to remove the air bubbles from the macarons.

7. Let your macarons rest for 15+ minutes to form a skin on the surface.

8. Bake your macarons for 6-7 minutes, then rotate your baking sheets and bake for another 5 to 7 minutes. They should be just golden around the edges with nice frilly feet.

The macarons pictured don’t have any feet…maybe due to the rain, over (or under) worked batter or maybe undercooking, but they were still nice and chewy with a slightly crunchy exterior.

Filling Instructions

1. In medium sized bowl combine butter, cream cheese, pumpkin, powdered sugar, vanilla and orange zest and mix with your hand mixer to desired consistency.

2. Pipe or spoon on to the bottom side of a macaron and then press another macaron to the frosting creating a “sandwich.” Repeat until they’re all matched up.

3. Let macarons mature in the fridge for 24 hours (if you can resist) and the flavors will all blend together nicely.

Here is a tutorial video on how to make macarons: macaron tutorial.

Pumpkin Goat Cheese Panna Cotta with Caramelized Pears

So we opened a can of organic pumpkin puree to make our pumpkin crème brûlée last week, but we didn’t finish it off, so we made orange-pumpkin spiced macarons, and still hadn’t finished the pumpkin. So to finish it off we created this slightly wacky panna cotta. Panna cotta  means cooked cream in Italian and is historically from the Piedmont region of Italy. It’s a super smooth, creamy eggless custard that is super easy to make and is great with fresh fruit, or in this case pumpkin and caramelized pears.

goat cheese pumpkin panna cotta

okay…so maybe we used more than a dollop of whip cream

Pumpkin Panna Cotta Recipe

3-4 servings.

4 oz. plain goat cheese
1/3 cup milk
1 ½ cups half and half (heavy cream or even milk, you can make this as full fat as you want)
1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar (to taste)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 packet gelatin (1/4 oz)

Instructions

1. To soften gelatin add it to 1/3 cup milk and stir gently. Let sit while you prepare rest of the panna cotta mixture.

2. In a sauce pan combine goat cheese, pumpkin, half and half, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg and bring to a quick simmer.

3. Remove from heat and add the gelatin mixture. Whisk briskly to make sure everything is blended well. We used the whisk attachment that came with our Cuisinart hand blender’s whisk attachment and the cream turned out super smooth.

4. Divide into 4 lightly greased ramekins and refrigerate for 2 ½ to 3 hours.

Caramelized Pears Recipe

2 pears
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

1. Peel pears, quarter and core them; then dice into small cubes (1/4 in. or smaller).

2. In a small frying pan melt the butter until frothy then add pears, sugar and cinnamon. Over medium heat continue stirring until pears are tender and golden.

3. Remove from heat and set aside till ready to use.

goat cheese pumpkin panna cotta with caramelized pears

Serving Instructions

1. Remove the panna cotta from the ramekin by boiling an inch and a half of water (enough to cover atleast ½ of the ramekin).  Remove the pan from the heat and dip one ramekin at a time in the water for about 45 seconds. Then take a butter knife and run it around the inside edge of the ramekin. Take your ramekin and place it upside down on a pretty plate, tap each side of the ramekin a few times to loosen the panna cotta from the ramekin. This takes practice, but the presentation is way prettier than serving it in a ramekin….unless of course you have beautiful ramekins.

2. Once you’ve successfully removed the panna cotta, dress it up with a spoonful or two of caramelized pears and a dollop of homemade whip cream.

3. Serve with a whiskey or rum spiked hot apple cider or strong french pressed coffeecoffee for an ultimate fall treat.

 

Easy Pumpkin Crème Brûlée

pumpkin creme brulee

Easiest pumpkin crème brûlée….ever!!!

Recipe (3 servings)

1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 F.

2. Whisk together yolks and brown sugar.

3. Stir heavy cream, vanilla and spices into yolk and brown sugar mixture.

4. Pour crème brûlée mixture into your ramekins. We had enough to fill 3.

5. Place ramekins into a baking dish and fill baking dish with hot water about ½ way up the side of the ramekins to create a water bath.

6. Carefully place the baking dish into your oven and bake for 30-35 minutes.

7. Chill cooked crème brûlée for 2 ½ hours in the refrigerator.

8. Coat tops of crème brûlée with the granulated sugar and caramelize with a Culinary Torch.

 

Baked Baby Bellas with Lemon Dill Dipping Sauce

Baked Baby Bellas (Criminis)

Baked Baby Bellas (Criminis) with Lemon Dill Dipping Sauce

Baby Bellas, also known as crimini mushrooms, lend themselves well to this savory appetizer adapted from the folks at Season with Spice. Steve and I made these with a Roasted Acorn Squash Rigatoni. A perfect fall dinner!

Recipe

Mushrooms
1 8 oz. package of Baby Bella mushrooms
1/2 cup Panko (you can find Sun Luck in most grocery stores in the Asian food section)
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Fresh ground sea salt and pepper

Lemon Dill Dipping Sauce
1/3 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons mayo
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh dill, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Fresh ground sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Mushrooms

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Wipe the mushrooms clean with a damp paper towel

3. In a small-ish bowl combine Panko, parmesan cheese, basil, parsley, garlic powder, cayenne, salt and pepper and mix well.

4. In a separate bowl beat the egg.

5. Dip the mushrooms in the egg mixture until fully coated then transfer to the Panko mixture and coat well again. Place mushroom on a Silpat(or Parchment) lined baking sheet. I swear by my Silpat and would definitely like another one or two!!!

6. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until they are golden brown. Serve warm.

 Lemon Dill Dipping Sauce

1. While your mushrooms are cooking combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Roasted Acorn Squash Rigatoni with Arugula, Italian Sausage and Parmesan

I’m on a squash kick right now, so this recipe was right up my alley. The acorn squash lends the rigatoni a subtle sweetness that is balanced by the savory flavors of the sausage and arugula; the toasted pumpkin seeds give it just enough nuttiness to round it out. I’ve seen recipes similar to this one all over then net, ours is adapted from Lesley Elliott’s recipe at Five O’Clock Food.

roasted acorn squash rigatoni with arugula, italian sausage and parmesan

roasted acorn squash rigatoni with arugula, italian sausage and parmesan

Recipe

1 acorn squash, quartered and seeded
olive oil
1/2 pound Italian sausage (spicy or sweet)
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced (or roast a whole head of garlic with your squash and throw in the roasted cloves near the end)
1/4 cup dry white wine (we used Pinot Grigio)
2 large handfuls of arugula (kale would also be good, but I like the spiciness of arugula)
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups rigatoni pasta
Grated parmesan
Bob’s Red Mill Pumpkin Seeds toasted
1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
Fresh ground sea salt and black pepper

Makes 4 servings.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Arrange squash on a foil lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes or until tender. Once finished roasting, allow to cool, and cut into cubes.

3. Boil salted water for your rigatoni and cook to al dente.

4. While your water is boiling cook the Italian sausage in a medium sauté pan until browned, about 10 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

5. In the same pan add 1 tablespoon olive oil and onions. Once the onions are softened add the garlic and stir. Add the white wine and reduce until nearly gone. Then add the chicken broth and reduce until about 1/3 is left, this takes a while. While the broth is reducing stir the arugula into the drained pasta to allow it to wilt.

6. After the broth is reduced add the squash, chili pepper flakes, and sausage to the pan, stir, and remove from heat. Combine rigatoni and squash mixture. Serve up and garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds and grated parmesan. I even stirred in about 1/3 cup of parmesan before serving to make it extra cheesy.

Notes: Next time I will omit the 4 cloves of minced garlic and I will roast an entire head of garlic with the squash and use some of that instead. Love roasted garlic, YUM!

We probably should have had a salad with this one, but we decided on baked baby bellas instead.

First of all, I am a total sucker for cookbooks, but if you’re also on a squash kick…get this book. It has so many amazing fall recipes!