Pumpkin Soup - Happy Halloween!

Pumkins are not just for carving.

The only kind of pumkin I ever ate, until recently, was pumpkin pie and it was most likely always made with pumpkin purée from a can. Little did I know that there are a myriad of ways to prepare pumpkin! And, you can even invest in one or two ahead of time as they last weeks if they are not cut. But before you rush out and grab a pumpkin from one of the many bins from which you buy to make Jack-o-Lanterns, read on, and even better, check the link posted at the bottom of this post.

I have looked around and gauged the scene regarding pumpkins. It is really easy to find the type appropriate for Jack-o-Laterns, but less so to find the ones that taste best: sugar pumpkins or as they are sometimes labeled, pie pumpkins. This variety is sweeter and less stringy. I had no luck at Safeway or Coop, but did find them at Sobey's and at farmers markets. My mom told me they carry them at The Place, for anybody living in Fort Frances!

Here is a fabulous and healthy autumn meal that takes the best of the season and transforms it into something delicious! Now, doesn't that make you just a little bit excited about embracing autumn?

Pumpkin Soup

• 450g or 1 lb pumpkin, chopped into 1 inch cubes


• ¼ cup butter


• 1 medium onion, finely chopped


• 750 ml or 3½ cups chicken broth


• 2 cups milk


• Pinch of ground or grated nutmeg


• Salt and pepper


• 6 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese

Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until onion softens. Stir in the pumpkin and cook 2-3 minutes.

Add the broth and cook for another 15 minutes, or until pumpkin is soft. Remove from heat.

Pour into a blender or food processor and purée. Return liquid to the saucepan. Stir in milk, nutmeg and season with salt and pepper. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in parmesan cheese and serve.

For a great resource on pumpkins check out:

http://www.lesliebeck.com/ingredient_index.php?featured_food=27

Enjoy!

Squash and Sweet Potato Casserole

Sweet Squash.

Instead of pining over the loss of summer veggies and fruits for another year, welcome autumn by embracing (and eating of course!) what's in season.
It's a wonderful time of the year to have your pick of a variety of squashes. I always love picking one out - so many different shapes, colours and uses. Here's one use that you're sure to enjoy:



















Squash and Sweet Potato Bake:

• 1 large butternut squash
• 2 medium to large sized sweet potatoes (so, if you use a smaller squash, just reduce the amount of sweet potato - you're aiming for more or less equal quantities of each. Also, if you make a smaller quantity you may want to reduce the amount of onion.)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 tbsp butter or extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350°- 375°

Cut the butternut squash in half, lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and lay the halves on a baking pan. Cut the sweet potatoes in half, lengthwise, lay on baking pan.

Bake squash and sweet potato for a half an hour to 45 minutes, or until tender when pierced with a fork. Remove from oven, let cool until you can handle.

Meanwhile, briefly sauté the diced onion in a pan with butter or olive oil over medium-high heat until translucent.

Scoop out flesh of both squash and sweet potato and mash up with fork or potato masher. Stir in sautéed onions. Spread into a casserole dish and heat at 350° for about half and hour, or until heated through.

Enjoy!

Perfect Roast Turkey

First, don't listen to this guy?! LOL

How many times have you invested your time and money into preparing a turkey only to have it turn out dry as a bone and lacking in flavour?

No more will you be plagued by dry white meat! Follow this recipe and be prepared to impress!

The lemons used in this recipe add a nice, subtle lemon flavour to the breast meat, while the herbs add a nice savoury earthiness. This dish is all about aroma and taste, all inside a magnificently crispy skin. If you like to stuff your bird with dressing, omit the lemons and stuff away! If you like the lemons you can always make your dressing on the side.


Perfect Roast Turkey

• 1 turkey
• 2 lemons, cut into quarters
• 2-3 Tbsp freshly chopped or dried herbs (adjust depending on size of bird), such as thyme or rosemary
• 1½-2 cups chicken broth and/or white wine (pick a wine you enjoy as the flavour of the wine will influence the taste of your bird, and more so the gravy you make from the pan drippings)
• Sea salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425°F

Rinse your bird in cold water, taking care to remove any giblets and such from the cavity. Place in roaster pan and pat dry with paper towels.
Stuff cavity with lemons quarters and truss the turkey.
Carefully separate the skin from the breast meat by working your fingers and hands gently(!) underneath the skin.
Rub the herbs, mixed with some sea salt and pepper into the breast meat (this will look and taste so beautiful!)

With a brush (or hands), coat the entire turkey with olive oil.
Place on middle rack of the oven for 20 mins.

Reduce oven to 325°F.

Roast chicken 20 mins. per pound or until the internal temperature reaches at least 165°F and no more than 180°F in the thickest part of the thigh.

3-4 times, depending on length of cooking time, remove turkey from oven, brush again (not with hands this time!) with olive oil and baste with a third or a quarter (depending on length of cooking time) of the wine or chicken stock (I like to use both, the more flavour the better!).
Let turkey rest for 15 mins. before carving.

To make a fabulous sauce simply place roasting pan on the stovetop, on low heat, and deglaze* the pan by scraping up the turkey bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. If necessary, add a little cornstarch (dilute this first with a little water or stock to prevent lumping) to thicken it up and more stock to make more gravy. Drizzle over carved and plated turkey.

Now, Enjoy!

*Definition of Deglaze: To remove the remaining buts of sautéed or roasted food from a skillet or pot by adding a liquid and heating. This mixture often becomes the base for a gravy or sauce. http://foodgeeks.com/encyclopedia/44/deglaze/

p.s. Next post I will give you my grandma Noreen's recipe for sweet potato and squash bake. It's very good for you and for your taste buds! And is a perfect side dish for your upcoming Thanksgiving dinner.