Roasted Delicata Squash Stuffed with Wheat Berries, Mushrooms, Kale, and Goat Cheese.

Yesterday morning I was given the most magical glimpse into what a happy person I will be once fall is finally here. I know, I know, technically fall IS here, but tell that to the Native American Summer we're currently experiencing. And with the weather expected to hit 93 degrees tomorrow, Al Roker can take that weather report and shove it where the sun don't shine. Ok, I know that was kind of rude, but mother nature is a rude, 93 degree hearted bitch and what goes around comes around. And since I can't find her, I'm going to punish Al Roker for it. (Sorry, Al. She must be a real crappy boss.)

Anyways, yesterday morning was all foggy and there was a chill in the air. It made my heart happy. It made me want to bake and watch Home Alone and be all around joyful and pleasant. Unfortunately, Richard was at the gym because "joyful and pleasant" usually doesn't happen for me before 11am. Or my first glass of wine, whichever comes first. And some days you'd be surprised which comes first. So,  it really was such a good morning... until it was 85 degrees and then, well, it wasn't.  I love summer, but  enough is enough! I wanna cook some pumpkin shit, ya know?

So, I did. Nothing holds this ginger back.

We got some delicata squash in our CSA this week. What on earth do I do with these? I thought to myself... I mean, besides adding them to our transitional gourd display (it's almost time for pumpkins. goodbye gourds I've never heard of!). So initially I thought These are much too pretty to eat. But, you are what you eat, right? And pretty is a nice thing to be, so I decided to cook them. Now,  I know what that which saw in Hansel and Grëtl! Delicious, pretty youth. (Author's Note: Please do not eat children.)

Anywhoo, I think this is a good time to transition into the recipe...

Roasted Delicata Squash Stuffed with Wheat Berries, 

Mushrooms, Kale, and Goat Cheese. 

Ingredients:
1 delicata squash, cut in half with the guts scraped out
1 cup wheat berries, cooked according to package directions
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 onion, chopped
1 small clove of garlic, minced
1 cup kale
1/4 cup pecans, toasted
2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
Goat cheese
Kosher salt and pepper

Method:
Cook the wheat berries according to package instructions, which most likely say something like "Bring a pot of water to a boil and simmer the wheat berries, covered, for about an hour until tender." Something like that... Once cooked, drain and set aside.

Cut the delicata squash in half. Scrape out the guts, drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Turn it upside down on a cast iron pan and roast the squash at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes until tender. Mine started to caramelize on the edges and it was delicious.

While the squash is roasting, prepare the stuffing.

Sauté mushrooms and onion for about 7 minutes until golden and the liquid has evaporated from the mushrooms. Add the garlic and kale and sauté for another 2 minutes until wilted and fragrant. Remove from heat and stir in the pecans, cooked wheat berries, and chopped parsley.

Once the squashes are roasted to perfection, fill them with the wheat berry mixture and crumble some goat cheese on top. Then place back in the oven for 10-12 minutes until the cheese gets a little bit melty and delicious.

Enjoy!

Garden Vegetable Soup

I have decided that it is FALL! It's official. I'm done waiting... and sweating! I went to Starbucks this morning (as I only do from mid September-November...) and ordered a Pumpkin Spice latte and it set me over the edge! Both into fall and into an over-caffeinated, gourd-based decorating spree (there was some dried corn involved, too. After all, it is FALL!).

 

it's that time of the year!

Now, I may have a friend or two who is less than thrilled about my seasonal enthusiasm, (ahem... Marco....), which Rich calls my "seasonal affective disorder" because he says I try to bring about the changes in season through my decorating. But, here's what I have to say to you (and Marco), "Come over and eat a pumpkin whoopie pie while sitting at my lovely, gourd covered dining room table, and shut your mouth!"

I know that it is going to be in the high 80's this weekend, but I will be holed up in my house with the A.C. blasting, brainstorming for my Thanksgiving day menu. You might think that I am kidding.... I am not. Trust me, the only thing that I'm kidding about is that I haven't already started thinking about what I am going to serve on my perfectly decorated Thanksgiving table. I just really love fall!

I may be getting a little ahead of myself, but this time of year just gets me verrrrry excited! Maybe it's a little too early to talk turkey, but it is not too early to break out the fall decor. It's after Labor Day, so something has to fill the hole in my heart left by my inability to wear white jeans (which isn't a seasonal thing for me, white jeans just never work for me and that hurts my heart!)

Anyway, I made a soup a few weeks ago and, looking back, maybe I was jumping the shark a little bit. I mean, I pretty much had to strip down to my skivvies and surreptitiously sip soup slowly as I sat about 2 inches away from the A.C. (which Rich assures me is the least sexy way to see me unclothed). I did all of that just to avoid spontaneously bursting into flames from severe overheating. But, seeing as it was in the 60's this morning,  I decided to give this whole soup-making thing another try. Here's the thing, it's the end of summer vegetables and there's starting to be a (very) slight chill in the air, so take off your judging pants (or shirt... this could get fun) and give soup a chance.... I promise to hold off on the pumpkin recipes for at least another week!

Ingredients:
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, washed and thinly sliced
1 potato, peeled
1 onion
3 stalks celery
5 carrots, peeled
A few leaves of kale (I used curly)
1 zucchini
15 green beans
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 gallon (or so) of chicken or veggie stock (you know me, I use no chicken- chicken broth because it is the bomb dot com)
2 28oz cans of diced tomatoes
A few sprigs of fresh parsley
A few fresh basil leaves
Kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper

If you have some extra veggies that you are dying to add... go for it. Get crazy, be creative, the sky is your limit (I am such a motivational blogger! Woo!)

Method:
Chop all of the veggies into bit sized pieces... about 1/4 inch. Then, in a large stock pot, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and saute all of the vegetables for about 5 minutes until they are translucent, but not browned.

Add the stock of your choice, tomatoes (with their juices) and fresh herbs, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook the soup, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes.

Serve. Hot. Enjoy.

Kale Caesar Salad with Homemade Croutons

That's me at age 3.
Adorable. I know. Thanks, Mom and Dad. 

Here is a list of the foods that I would not eat:
Brussels Sprouts
Beets (I actually still wouldn't even try beets until a few months ago)
Spinach
Cabbage
Peas
Bok Choy
Carrots
Sweet Potatoes
Kale (Did anyone eat Kale before 2012?)

....need I say more? What a picky little bitch I was. (Sorry Mom and Dad)

It really blows my mind that these crazy vegetables that my mother tried to poison me with as a child are now  staples in my diet. Let's take kale, for example. I would have rather eaten my own foot while sticking a fork in my eye than even have had a whiff of kale (or any other leafy green for that matter) anywhere near me. Now? Ok... well I still don't really like my greens, but I do hide them in just about everything. Especially kale. I add kale to just about every salad and every veggie dish I eat. Sometimes I'll even add kale to my kale (there are many kales). Which is why I literally dream about this kale caesar salad from my new favorite blog Two Blue Lemons (thank you, Rebecca!). This Caesar dressing takes 5 minutes to make and is so delicious it will blow your mind. And because kale is so hearty you can leave the dressing on this salad and it just keeps getting better!

kale caesar salad

Ingredients:

2 bunches kale
4 slices of bread... I used a loaf of olive bread from the Farmer's Market and it turned out super yummy! 
2 lemons
5 garlic cloves
1 farm fresh egg yolk
1 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for croutons
FRESH Parmesan cheese (fresh is the key word)
salt and pepper

Method:

Rinse kale. Remove the leafy parts of the kale from the tough stems and tear into bite sized pieces. 

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut the bread into 1 inch cubes. Toss in olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake for about 10 minutes until golden brown and crispy. Set aside. 

 In a blender, add the juice of 2 lemons, zest of 1 lemon, garlic cloves, egg yolk, pinch of salt and pepper. With the motor on, stream in the cup of olive oil until combined. The consistency just be that of heavy cream.

Toss the kale with the dressing and the croutons and enjoy!