geek

Eating in color – a bowl of yellow

Delicata squash with pork

The other day I was driving Dexter to school and we were talking about silly things, sometimes we do that, just natter away about nothing but absolute nonsense, and I said I wanted to eat a big bowl of yellow. It’s funny how that nonsense can promote some unconscious inspiration like this meal. In fact I didn’t even recognize this as a bowl of yellow until I saw the photos… then it made perfect sense.

This is a tasty ragout of roasted Delicata squash added to 3 cloves of sliced garlic that I simmered in a prodigious and almost embarrassing amount of butter and white wine, and sage. I was lucky enough to have a bit of pork spare ribs leftover from last weekend’s grilling so I pulled that meat off the bones and add it to the squash and garlic. I also threw together a quick batch of fresh pasta made from semolina flour and a farm-fresh egg. Rather than cut it out in any traditional shape I went for circles. Before I piled the squash and pork on the pasta I added a bit more butter and then once it was plated I finished it off with a dusting of fresh ground nutmeg and some Parmesan cheese. It was delicious with the squash complimenting the pork…the flavors all twined together with the butter, sage, and white wine. I’ll make this again but the next time I’ll finish the pasta off as fettuccine…the thin circles lacked the oomph needed for such a robust and rich melange of flavors.

One of my favorite bloggers, Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen, has posted helpful instructions on peeling a squash and some great links to other squash recipes.

I should note that I roasted the squash for about 8 minutes…just long enough to soften it up and make it easy to pull the skin off. Delicata squash is difficult to peel but this technique made it much easier.

Delicata squash with pork

October 19, 2008 | Filed Under food, gratins, stews, and stir-frys, pork, quick and easy, squash | 8 Comments 

White Sauce and Bread Crumbs – the mac magic

white sauce

My menu planning and wiki posting system is still being fine tuned. I say this because there is the absolute sloth factor that crops up when one is too lazy to come up with a practical and cogent weeknight menu. Last week went off without a hitch but we’ve had two Plan B nights this week. Last night we ate Paninis instead of risotto and tonight ot was homemade mac and cheese instead of pizza. Both were big hits…especially the mac and cheese.

white sauce

The backbone of macaroni and cheese is a classic white sauce. Its simple proportions makes it easy to remember and it’s a snap to pull off. It’s 1 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon all purpose flour, and 3/4 cup milk. For my mac and cheese I use 3 tablespoons butter, 3 tablespoon flour, and 2 cups of milk (I go a little light on the milk because I’m adding cheese). I use a heavy 4 quart cast iron/enameled sauce pan. I start by melting the butter and then adding the flour. I stir the flour into the butter and let it cook over a medium low flame for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring often. Then I add the milk, turn up the heat to medium and whisk it until smooth. Then I add pepper, salt, and Crystal Hot Sauce and let it simmer on medium low for 5 minutes or so, stirring often.

While it’s simmering I grate up (use the food processor) some cheese…this time it’s cheddar and Gruyere. I add it to the white sauce and bingo… it becomes a cheesey delight that would be so tempting to guzzle. But I restrain myself and combine it with the drained pasta instead. I transfer it to a buttered cast iron gratin pan and bake it at 375 degrees. After 10 minutes I pull it out and add a layer of breadcrumbs.

Breadcrumbs are the other must have for homemade mac and cheese. They too are so simple…if you’ve got bread then you’ve got bread crumbs. When you’re grating the cheese for the sauce as I outlined in the step above you also want to pop 3 or 4 slices of your most stalest bread into the toaster and let it do its thing on its lowest setting for as long as possible without burning the bread. I use the toaster oven and set it to 250 degrees. Once the mac is in the oven you can pop the bread into the food processor which is now fitted with its blade and pulverize the bread into crumbs. I also like to add a pinch of salt and a clove of garlic. Heat a heavy skillet over a medium flame and add a 2 tablespoons of butter. Once it’s melted add the bread crumbs and cook them until they’re lightly browned, stirring often.

Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the top of the mac and return it to the oven for 5 minutes or until it’s golden crunchy brown on top. Serve it up and know this…it is totally possible to make this fabulous, soul-satisfying dish in 40 minutes; just remember to put the pasta water on to boil the minute you walk in the door. Menu Planning and wiki posting are all good but it sure is helpful to have a Plan B like this.

Wednesday, September 17 is my 2 year blogiversary….woot. I’ve got a few blog improvements on my task list that I hope to get completed soon…a recipe index is number one. Thanks to all my sweet readers for keeping me going….I’m looking forward to another year.

September 16, 2008 | Filed Under beef, fish, poultry, pork, food, geek fast food, gratins, stews, and stir-frys, menu, pasta, pizza, noodles, quick and easy, recipe | 12 Comments 

Simple vegetable gratin

zucchini and green bean gratin

I agree, it certainly does look impressive, and the taste of this super easy gratin was absolutely fabulous. I made it from some vegetables I found in the freezer. I ended up with so much zucchini last summer that I froze several quart bags of it for use over the winter. I also froze a few bags of green beans. Somehow, the bags floated to the bottom of the freezer where they were overlooked.

I decided they would make a perfect gratin and they so nicely obliged. I dumped the frozen veggies onto a cookie sheet to knock the ice off them, I added a chopped onion and tossed it all with some dijon mustard, olive oil, and some scape pesto. I dumped it all into my favorite gratin dish, topped it all with a robust layer of grated Parmesan and baked it at 400º until it was beautifully brown and crusty.

My only regret is that I didn’t make this in the heart of the miserable winter…I wish there were a better way to organize that freezer.

June 21, 2008 | Filed Under Wisconsin, food, gratins, stews, and stir-frys, vegetable | 10 Comments 

Next Page »