Sweet Pumpkin, Sweep Caroline...so good, so good

In October 2004 I was convinced that because I fed my family nothing but Fenway Franks for a week, the Boston Red Sox made history and swept the World Series, clinching the title after 86 years of waiting.

This year I wasn't quite so willing to make that extreme of a sacrifice. We've eaten well this week.

Luckily, it didn't seem to make a difference. We swept in four and the sounds of Sweet Caroline could be heard on the streets of Denver. What a great time to be a Red Sox fan.


The series started with a rather ho hum start... oh, there goes another run. To entertain myself, I decided to bake a whole pumpkin. Check out A Veggie Venture blog for How to Roast a Whole Pumpkin A very simple process. Easy to do while catching bits of the game. Two small pumpkins resulted in enough processed fresh puree to make a couple of loaves of pumpkin bread and, my old stand-by, Maple Pumpkin Pie.

Good thing too, because the subsequent games became more tense and the meals more sparse. No pictures to show of the pie because it disappeared too quickly. I did not make pie crust from scratch this time around... a few too many distractions. Using maple syrup with pumpkin makes a great pie filling. Normally I would use a can of puree and found that the fresh pumpkin provided a much lighter taste.


Some may not think it is worth the effort to prepare fresh puree, but I thought it was a fun way to spend a cold October night.



Pumpkin Bread with Raisins
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup orange juice
1 3/4 c fresh pumpkin puree (or 1 15 oz can)
3 cups whole wheat bread flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
3/4 cup golden raisins

Set the oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 by 2 1/2 inch pans. Line the bottoms with a piece of parchment paper. Grease paper and pans, dust with flour, tapping out excess.

Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer for 1 minute. Add the oil, orange juice and pumpkin and beat just to mix.

Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice into a medium bowl. With mixer on lowest speed, add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and mix just until it forms a smooth batter.

With a rubber spatula, stir the raisins into the batter. If you want to add nuts, add now. Pour the batter into the pans.

Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. If the bread is browning too quickly on top, cover with piece of foil, shiny side down.

Set the pans on a rack to cool slightly, then turn the breads out of the pan and set them right side up to cool completely before serving.

Makes 2 loaves. Adapted from The Way We Cook

Maple Pumpkin Pie

One single crust pie shell, prebaked

Filling
3 large eggs
1 cup light cream
1/2 cup pure maple syrup, preferably dark
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 c firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cup fresh pumpkin puree

Beat the eggs lightly in a medium-size bowl. Whisk in the cream, maple syrup, and vanilla. Combine the brown sugar, flour, spices, and salt in a small bowl. Add the mixture to the wet ingredients and stir well to combine. Add the pumpkin and blend well with a whisk. Carefully pour the filling into the cooked pie shell.

Place the pie on the center oven rack and bake for 25 minutes, then rotate the pie 180 degrees, so that the part that was facing the back of the oven now faces forward. Continue to bake until the filling is set, about 25 minutes. When the pie is done, the center will not be soupy and the outer area will have puffed a little. The edges of the pie will have a slight sheen, although the center portion may not. Transfer to wire rack. Pie will settle once cooled a bit. Serve warm or a room temperature. You can also cover with foil and refrigerate until well chilled. Serve with a garnish of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

It may be Fall, but there is still baseball

Although it feels very much like summer with both warm weather and baseball games continuing, the Fall season is very much here. Someone recently asked if I had any pumpkin recipes. Aside from the traditional pumpkin pie I couldn't think of anything until I saw the new cookbook by Patricia Wells. Her latest book, Vegetable Harvest is a delight. The recipes are unusual and straightforward with clear instructions, helpful hints in a "What I Learned" section along with Wine suggestions. Its the sort of cookbook I envision writing someday... a little introductory paragraph to set the mood for the recipe, listing of equipment needed then clearly outlined steps to prepare the dish.

Tonight we tried her Pumpkin and Sage Risotto which, although clearly written, was not immediately understood, to me. In my rush to get dinner started, I reached for the fresh thyme instead of the sage. None of which would have been apparent to anyone until I decided to photograph the dish with thyme instead of sage. My mind is most certainly on tomorrow's game and not tonight's dinner!!!

The risotto was wonderful, none the less.




PUMPKIN AND SAGE RISOTTO

For preparing the Pumpkin
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, trimmed,peeled, and minced
Fine sea salt
2 cups 1/2 inch cubes of peeled pumpkin (can also use butternut squash)
8 leaves fresh sage
2 cups chicken stock

For preparing the Rice
about 5 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, peeled, halved
1 shallot, trimmed, peeled, minced
Fine sea salt
1 1/2 cups Italian Arborio rice
1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the oil, shallot and salt. Cook covered, over low heat until soft but not browned, for about 3 - 4 minutes. Add the cubed pumpkin, half the sage and the 2 cups stock. Cover and simmer until the pumkin is cooked but still slightly firm, about 10 minutes.

2. In a large saucepan, heat the 5 cups stock and keep it simmering, at low heat, while you prepare the risotto.

3. In another large saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the garlic, shallot, and salt. Cook, covered, over low heat until soft and translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Remove and discard the garlic. Add the rice and stir until the rice is well coated.

4. When the rice becomes glistening and semitranslucent, add a ladleful of the stock. Cook, stirring constantly until the rice has absorbed most of the stock, 1 -2 minutes. Add another ladleful of the simmering stock and stir regularly until all the stock is absorbed. Adjust the heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. The rice should cook slowly and should always be covered with a veil of stock. Continue adding ladlefuls of stock, stirring frequently and tasting regularly, until the rice is almost tender but firm to the bite, about 17 minutes total. The risotto should have a creamy, porridgelike consistency.

5. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the cheese and the cooked, drained pumpkin. Taste for seasoning. Transfer the risotto to warmed soup bowls. Garnish remaining sage leaves or anyother herb you happen to have handy. Season with coarsely ground pepper. Serve immediately.
Adapted from Vegetable Harvest by Patricia Wells 2007

I could have stayed home and baked cookies...**

Most people know who uttered those piercing words, renewing the debate about the role of woman at home versus woman in the workplace. My reaction, at the time, was one of simple confusion. Fifteen years ago, when my children were babies I was very focused on my career. I loved my work, I loved my children and I loved to cook. Why couldn't I do it all?

Over the years my children had lots of home baked cookies and lots of store bought ones too. It doesn't matter if you're a "full time, at home" Mom or a "work outside the home" Mom... you are still going to get that short notice announcement, from your child, that they need to show up at school, tomorrow, with 34 cupcakes. Time, in the end, will dictate the result...if the supermarket is closed, you bake until midnight.

My children have learned, over the years, to give more notice. Now that they are older, they take more responsibility for ensuring that the right food, in the right form is available at home. Either they put it on the shopping list, buy it themselves or learn to cook something to their liking from the ingredients available.

What has changed from 1992, is the workplace. It moved. I used to go into the office everyday. Dinner preparation started when I got home. Now, I may not even leave the house. To support this new global economy, my conference calls can start at 7:00 am. It can be noon before I know it and I still haven't made it to the door, to get in the car, and drive to the office. With today's technology, one can work from almost anywhere...an office building, a plane, a train, your own kitchen table or the local coffee shop.

So one of those days, when I found myself still at home at noon and debating the feasibility of a trip to the office. The phone rang. Daughter #2 had a break in her school day and was calling to tell me some good news about the results of a very difficult test she recently took. After the animated chatter came the real reason for the call. She asked if I would bake her an apple pie to be ready for when she came home from school.

She had hit my weak point. I absolutely love baking pies. But, I rarely do anymore because, oddly enough, my family does not like eating pies. So, unless I can give them away, they go to waste. Why, I asked, did she want a pie? I knew she wouldn't eat it. Because she wanted to come home to a house that smelled like apple pies baking.

Did this request fall under the category of last minute demands? If I dashed out and bought an apple scented candle, would that suffice? I really didn't have the time to make an honest to goodness, something I would be proud of, pie.

What I came up with was an Apple Tart. Very fast, very easy, and makes the house smell like apple pies are baking.

Apple Tarts

3 firm apples (Cortlands, Granny Smiths, etc.) peeled and thinly sliced
Juice of 1 lemon
Puff Pastry (1 package, prepared, thaw if frozen)
12 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar

Sprinkle the apple slices with the lemon juice. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Roll out the puff pastry to 1/4 inch or less thickness. Cut the pastry into circles, almost as large as the dish you plan to serve it on (about 8 inches in diameter.

Place circles on cookie sheet. Arrange apples around pastry, leaving about 1/2 inch outer rim. Dot each pastry with 1 tablespoon of butter and sprinkle each one with a tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and dot with the rest of the butter and sugar. Sprinkle some cinnamon on top. Bake the pastries for 10 minutes more.

Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.




Even Hillary adapted and went on to create her own Chocolate Chip oatmeal cookie recipe.



** "I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas, but what I decided to do was to fulfill my profession which I entered before my husband was in public life." (Hillary Clinton, March 26, 1992)

When I'm in a rush - which is always

Family dinner did not get canceled this week after all. Although next week may be a different story.

So, when I find myself in a rush and needing to pull together supper because we did take-out last night and can't possible do it again tonight, I begin by pulling whatever I can find out of the refrigerator.

What fell out last night was some yellow summer squash. In addition, our recent warm weather produced yet another batch of vine ripened tomatoes, still sitting on my kitchen counter. The perfect combination for making a Zucchini & Tomato Gratin. Although mine was not as artistic, it still tasted great and was perfect to serve daughter #1, aka the vegetarian. Thanks to Culinary Types for the recipe and a lovely picture.

I also had some boneless chicken thighs in the refrigerator and plenty of apples, left over from child #3's trip to an apple orchard. The result:




Chicken and Apples with a mustard and maple sugar glaze

1/2 cup apple cider
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon granulated maple sugar
1 tablespoon Grey Poupon mustard
1/2 cupe seasoned dry breadcrumbs
Boneless chicken thighs or breasts, about 2-3 lbs.
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium unpeeled apples, cored and cut into eighths (use Delicious, Granny Smith, Cortland, or McIntosh apples)
1/2 cup chicken broth

1 Whisk cider, cornstarch, mustard, honey, salt and pepper (to taste) in a bowl. Set aside.
2 Spread bread crumbs on a piece of wax paper, lightly coat chicken with crumbs.
3 In a large non-stick skillet, heat the oil and add the chicken. Cook over medium heat until golden brown on one side, about 3 minutes. Turn chicken, add apples, and cook until browned on the other side.
4 Add chicken broth, cover and simmer until chicken is tender, about 15 minutes.
5 Whisk cider mixture again and add to skillet. Cook and stir over high heat until lightly thickened and bubbly, 1 to 2 minutes.

Serve with rice. Serves 4.

Dinner Interrupted

A sure sign of Summer is watching baseball late into the evening. A sure sign of Fall is the anticipation of extending those games into the playoffs. So when the hometown team pulls it off and secures a spot...everything else comes to a stop...including dinner.

Convenience food will be a staple In The Nord Kitchen for the next week, or so. A family favorite is Big Papi salsa. Red Sox's slugger, David Ortiz has created a line of salsa available in mild, medium and hot. Probably ony available in Massachusetts, but if you can find, I recommend trying it.

Meanwhile, the take-out menus are lined up with the hopes that we can repeat our 2004 dinner schedule. GO SOXS!!!!!!

More to come later....