Butternut Squash, Brussel Sprouts and Bread Stuffing with Apples

We're usually Pepperidge Farm stuffing people. Last year, we finally expanded to adding celery. So a vegetable stuffing is really moving up for us.

"Tainted Love" Soft Cell

From Food52

Ingredients

• 1 pound butternut squash, cubed
• 1 pound brussels sprouts, halved
• 1 medium gala apple, cut into a 1/2 inch dice
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided into 2 tbsp and 1 tbsp
• 1 cup onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 10 slices bread of choice: crusty sourdough, dry cornbread, whole grain, or, if you are gluten free, millet bread from Food For Life will work nicely. Prior to preparing the recipe, leave bread out for a day to become slightly dry, then cut into cubes.
• 1 1/2 cup vegetable broth (plus extra as needed)
• 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup pecans or walnuts
• Sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Toss the squash, brussels sprouts, apples, and shallots in 2 tbsp oil and season well with salt and pepper. Roast till vegetables are very tender (I actually like my sprouts a bit singed) and remove from oven. Reduce oven heat to 350.
Heat other tbsp oil in a large pot. Sautee the onion and celery till translucent (about 5-8 min). Add the bread cubes and allow them to get golden brown with the veggies in the oil. Add a dash of salt and pepper.
Add the roasted vegetables, vegetable broth, cranberries, pecans, and seasonings. Stir the mix till the broth has almost entirely absorbed in the toasted bread. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

Pumpkin Roll

 

I can never get rolls to roll up properly (as you can probably tell from Muscadine Yule Log)

 

But this just rolled up like a charm! And the frosting and cake were delicious (moist and sweet).

 

"This Town" OAR

I love the song, but the music video is so perfect.

Ingredient

CAKE

• 1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup pumpkin
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

FILLING

• 1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

Directions 

Cake:
Preheat oven to 375° F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle a thin, cotton kitchen towel with powdered sugar.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.

Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.) Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.  

Filling:
Beat cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Cranberry-Pistachio Biscotti

*Singing* It's the holiday season! (The holiday season)  

Black Friday is here, so it's officially (sort of) Christmastime!

The green and red in this cookie make them (not only mouth-watering but) perfect for holiday gifts.

 I used walnuts instead of pistachios for the first go-round, and it was still great.

"When You Were Young" The Killers

Here's where I found this recipe.

Ingredients 

• 1/4 cup light olive oil
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups pistachio nuts

Directions

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).

In a large bowl, mix together oil and sugar until well blended. Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts, then beat in the eggs. Combine flour, salt, and baking powder; gradually stir into egg mixture. Mix in cranberries and nuts by hand.

Divide dough in half. Form two logs (12x2 inches) on a cookie sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. Dough may be sticky; wet hands with cool water to handle dough more easily.

Bake for 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until logs are light brown. Remove from oven, and set aside to cool for 10 minutes. Reduce oven heat to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).

Cut logs on diagonal into 3/4 inch thick slices. Lay on sides on parchment covered cookie sheet. Bake approximately 8 to 10 minutes, or until dry; cool.

Tropical Smoothie

This a prefect breakfast smoothie. The orange juice adds a tropical zeal! Even in frigid November.

"I've Got A Lovely Bunch Of Coconuts" Merv Griffin

Ingredients

• 1 banana, peeled and sliced
• 1 pear, peeled and chopped
• 2 cups of orange juice 

Directions 

Blend ingredients until smooth.

 Alternative Recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 banana, peeled and sliced
• 1 pear, peeled and chopped
• 2 cups of cranberry juice

Directions 

Blend ingredients until smooth.

Peanut Brittle

So easy and sweet! 

The type you can suck on for a while, as my mom likes and the type you can munch on, like I like.

"Head Over Heels" the Go-Gos

Ingredients

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon water

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup water

1 cup light corn syrup

3 tablespoons butter or margarine

1 pound shelled unroasted peanuts 

Directions

Heat oven to 200ºF. Butter 2 cookie sheets, 15 1/2x12 inches, and keep warm in oven. Mix baking soda, 1 teaspoon water and the vanilla; reserve.

Mix sugar, 1 cup water and the corn syrup in 3-quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, to 240ºF on candy thermometer or until small amount of syrup dropped into very cold water forms a soft ball that flattens when removed from water.

Stir in butter and peanuts. Cook, stirring constantly, to 300ºF or until small amount of mixture dropped into very cold water separates into hard, brittle threads. (Watch carefully so mixture does not burn.) Immediately remove from heat. Quickly stir in baking soda mixture until light and foamy.

Pour half the candy mixture onto each cookie sheet; quickly spread about 1/4 inch thick. Cool completely, at least 1 hour. Break into pieces. Store in covered container.

 

Sage Butternut Squah Pasta

The sage and squash combination was so good, and I'm not usually a butternut squash fan!

This November school has taken over my life, but with Thanksgiving break next week I can take a little time this weekend to cook and blog. Finally! APUSH and English research projects and NHS inductions and fall sports awards are just too much for one month.

I got this from Two Peas In a Pod.

"Young Folks" Peter, Bjorn & John

Ingredients:

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and diced
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 sage leaves
12 ounces DeLallo whole wheat linguine (or other pasta)
1 1/2 cups water or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup diced yellow onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the water and add the butternut squash. Cook until soft, about 12-15 minutes.

 While the squash is cooking, fry the sage leaves. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat until surface is shimmering slightly. Add a few leaves at a time and cook until crisp, but still bright green, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a paper towel to drain. Season with salt. Set aside.

 Using a large slotted spoon, carefully remove the squash from the water and place in a large bowl. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package instructions.

Place the cooked butternut squash in a large food processor or blender. Puree the squash until smooth. Add water or broth and puree until the sauce reaches your desired consistency. You may need a little more or a little less water depending on the size of your squash.

In a large deep skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until soft, 3-5 minutes. Add pureed butternut squash. Stir in the Parmesan cheese. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Add the pasta and stir until pasta is well coated. Chop two of the sage leaves and stir them into the pasta. Serve the pasta with remaining fried sage leaves and additional Parmesan cheese, if desired.