Butternut Squash Chowder Even MY Family Will Eat

Brian found this recipe online a week or so ago, and I've been dying to try it.  Aside from the laborious chopping of the butternut squash (is there an easier way to do this?!?), it was a piece of cake and so yummy I went back for a second bowl.  Even Jack ate everything in his bowl, in spite of protests that he doesn't like squash.  We told him to just eat the apples instead.  Sneaky, huh?


Roasted Butternut Chowder with Apples and Bacon
Makes 4 servings
Time: About 1.5 hours

Roasting the squash, onion, and apples, then simmering them until they break apart, leaves you with a thick, rich soup that you’ll turn to every fall. Try the mixed root vegetable variation, too; it’s just as good. And to sweeten the pot, add a pinch of nutmeg or allspice just before serving.

1 butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled, seeded, and cut into cubes
1 large onion, chopped
2 large apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
4 bacon slides, or one 1/2-inch-thick strip slab bacon, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
salt and black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage, or 1 teaspoon dried
1/2 cup dry white wine or water
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock or water

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spread the squash, onion, apples, bacon, and garlic in a deep roasting pan or on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with the oil. Roast, stirring every now and then, until the squash, onion, and apples are tender and browned and the bacon is crisp, about 45 minutes.

2. Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Stir in the sage and white wine and scrape up all the browned bits from the bottom. If you’re using a roasting pan that can be used on the stovetop, position the pan over 2 burners and put both of medium heat. Otherwise, transfer the contents of the pan to a large pot or Dutch oven and set it over medium heat.

3. Add the stock and cook until the squash, onion, and apples break apart and thicken and flavor the broth, about 25 minutes. You can help the process along by breaking the mixture up a bit with a spoon. Taste, adjust the seasoning, and serve.

Roasted Root Vegetable Chowder: Substitute any combination of celery root, turnips, parsnips, and rutabagas for the butternut squash.

For more recipes from Mark Bittman’s Food Matters, check out our feature “Family Food Matters: 3 healthy dinner recipes from Mark Bittman.”

Sinfully Yummy Corn

I picked up some sweet corn at the farmers market on Wednesday, so I decided to try this recipe, suggested by an email from Cooking LIght. However, it's not actually from Cooking Light, but from their sister magazine: Southern LIving. Cooking Light would be appalled by the contents of this recipe. Leave it to the region that spawned Paula Deen to come up with a recipe this naughty. And this delicious.

Creamy Fried Confetti Corn

Ingredients
8 bacon slices, chopped (I used Trader Joe's nitrate-free bacon)
4 cups fresh sweet corn kernels (about 8 ears)
1 medium-size white onion, chopped
1/3 cup chopped red bell pepper (I just had green, so I doubled the green pepper)
1/3 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cubed
1/2 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Preparation
Microwave corn, wrapped in saran wrap, for 5 minutes. Let cool, then shuck from cob.
Cook chopped bacon in a large skillet until crisp; remove bacon, and drain on paper towels, reserving 2 tablespoons drippings in skillet. Set bacon aside.
Sauté corn, onion, and bell peppers in hot drippings in skillet over medium-high heat 6 minutes or until tender. Add cream cheese and half-and-half, stirring until cream cheese melts. Stir in sugar, salt, and pepper. Top with bacon.

Breakfast for Dinner

Tonight I made breakfast for our dinner, one of my favorite Sunday night fallbacks. We had fresh strawberries, baked bacon, and banana-buttermilk pancakes. Yum!

Baked Bacon
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put bacon on a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake for 25-ish minutes.

Banana Buttermilk Pancakes
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup whole milk (I used a little more because the batter was too thick)
1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter, plus 3 tablespoons
2 over-ripe bananas, smashed

Directions
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. In large bowl sift together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In separate bowl whisk together egg, buttermilk, milk and melted butter. Slowly combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Stir until the flour disappears, but being careful not to overbeat the batter. Smash the bananas with a fork, then stir into the batter just until mixed.
In a large cast-iron skillet or griddle, melt about 1/2 tablespoon remaining butter. Ladle about 1/4 cup of batter into the pan for each pancake. Cook until bubbles appear and then flip and cook on the other side, about 3 minutes total. Transfer the pancakes to a platter and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining batches, adding butter to the pan as needed. Serve hot with syrup.


I had fun making the pancakes because Jack helped me. He measured the sugar and other dry ingredients, as well as mashing the bananas (his favorite part). He also helped wash the strawberries and put them in a bowl, as well as haphazardly setting the table. It's nice when I have time to let him help out in the kitchen because he loves the idea of cooking -- he's always pretending to make dinner and serve food to us, -- so whenever I am not rushed (which isn't often) I let him help out.

Bacon and Cheese Make Even Cauliflower Taste Good

Since Jack has become such a huge fan of broccoli ("brock-lee!"), I've been looking for ways to branch out from steamed and roasted broccoli, so last night at the grocery store I decided to buy him some "white broccoli" (a.k.a. cauliflower). I saw a Giada At Home recipe that used bacon, gruyere, and buttered breadcrumbs to make a cauliflower casserole, so I decided to give it a try. The Cauliflower and Bacon Gratin turned out delicious. Brian loved it, I loved it, and Jack ate it. (He seemed to love the country ribs we served with it a bit more.) The casserole is rich and creamy with lots of flavor. The only change I made to her original recipe is using a combination of Panko breadcrumbs and regular breadcrumbs, and I left out the salt because the bacon and gruyere were salty enough. Next time, i wouldn't bother with the capers. They're too pricey for the minimal impact they have on this dish. With these modifications, this is a definite keeper!