Apple pear butter

2 lbs. apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
1 lb. pears " "
3 c. sugar
Juice of one lemon
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. kosher salt

I brought it to a boil and then cooked it over medium heat in a 5 qt. pot until the liquid dropped off a spoon in thick, heavy drops. I then pureed the mixture in the blender.

It's pretty sweet, so I might cut some of the sugar in the future (maybe by 1/2 c.?). I think it would be good on ice cream, too.

Butternut Squash Soup

I love love love love fall food—soups and bread and cider, oh, my!

For the lovely Meg's shower today, I made butternut squash soup. It turned out quite tasty. I've cobbled it together from a few different recipes, and we think it's the bomb shizzle.

Ingredients:

For squash:

1 very large butternut squash (or two smaller ones)

Melted butter, kosher salt

For base:

3 Yukon gold potatoes

3 large carrots

1 large parsnip

6 c. chicken stock (more as needed to get soup to desired consistency)

All the rest and so forth:

3/4 c. heavy whipping cream

1 tsp. fresh grated ginger

Kosher salt and cracked white pepper, to taste (these are the sort of things I don't measure, and add until it "tastes right," an amorphous and unhelpful description, I know)

about 1/2 tsp. fresh grated nutmeg

1 Tbsp. honey (a good squeeze from the plastic bear is usually good)

1 Tbsp. sherry vinegar

1/2 tsp. truffle-infused baslamic vinegar (available at Caputo's . . . optional but delicious)

1 tsp. lemon juice or more if you like more acidity

A pinch of pimente d'espelette (or cayenne if you can't find the pimente d'espelette)

Directions:

1) Set oven to 400 degree F. Peel raw butternut squash with a sharp vegetable peeler. Slice off top and bottom to make it easier to stand up. With a very sharp knife, cu in half along the middle (not horizontally; you want two large round cylinders). Cut bottom half (the large, rounded base) in half down the middle. Scoop out the seeds. Cube into one-inch chunks.

NOTE: This is a bit more labor intensive and requires a very sharp knife. You can alternatively just cut the squash in half (so you have two open halves like a sandwich) and roast it that way and scoop out the flesh. I prefer the first method because it means not having to try to handle the fiery hot squash to get the flesh out.

Place the squash on a parchment-lined jellyroll pan (or I use my Silpat—makes cleanup a breeze). Brush with melted butter and sprinkle liberally with kosher salt. Roast in the oven for an hour.

2) Meanwhile, back at the ranch, get the rest of the veggies going. Peel and finely chop the potatoes, carrots, and parsnip. Barely cover in chicken broth in a 5 qt. pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until the veggies are soft but not mushy. (By the time I've prepped the veggies, the timing with them finishing cooking is usually around the time the squash is done).

3) When the squash is done (soft, but not blistered), add to the rest of ingredients. Slowly add the cream. Puree using either a stand blender or an immersion blender until very smooth. Add stock as needed to reach your desired consistency. I like it fairly thick, but feel free to mix around with what worked for you.

4) Add the seasonings and feel free to tweak them to suit your tastes. If you like a sweeter soup, add more honey and cream. The white pepper has a slightly sharper taste and looks better than black pepper because it blends in (no little black speckles). Black pepper will work just fine, though. Fresh ginger tastes a lot better in this soup, but it doesn't take very much.

5) Serve warm and swirl in a bit of a finishing-grade olive oil into the individual bowls. Now put on your fuzzy slippers and curl up with some David Sedaris.

Goat Cheese and Spinach Quinoa

1 ½ cup quinoa

1 T olive oil

1 T Butter

1 onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

3 cups broth (chicken or vegetable)

½ cup white wine

1 lb spinach

4 oz goat cheese

Parmesan, parsley and lemon zest for garnish

Directions

1. Rinse quinoa in a fine metal sieve until your water turns clear.

2. Spray a skillet with cooking spray. Sauté spinach until tender. Set aside.

3. Heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender. Add garlic and cook for one minute.

4. Add quinoa, wine and cayenne pepper. Cook until the wine is almost evaporated, stirring frequently.

5. Add enough broth to cover quinoa. Simmer uncovered over medium low heat. Add broth as the liquid absorbs and stir frequently. Cooking quinoa will take about 15 minutes

6. Stir in spinach in last two minutes of cooking.

7. Remove from heat and add salt, pepper and 3 ounces of the goat cheese. Stir.

8. Crumble remaining goat cheese, parsley, lemon zest and parmesan over the quinoa.

For the love of all that is good in this world

make THIS.

Make it. Tonight. And revel in its deliciousness.

I want more and I am stuffed. You know that's a good sign.

Eggplant and Goat Cheese Open-Faced Sandwiches

Make these.

Bread:
I used a boule-shaped Italianish bread from Smith's, sliced to 1/2 in. slices, brushed with olive oil, and toasted at 375 degree for seven minutes (flip once).

Eggplant:
Also sliced to 1/2 in., dunk in egg and then bread crumbs, pan-fry in a drizzle of olive oil for about 3 minutes on each side.

Tomato Mixture:
I dumped a can of petite diced tomatoes into a pan over medium, added in a few whole garlic cloves, a heavy pinch of kosher salt, and a swirl of sherry vinegar and reduced it about 20 minutes. Remove the garlic cloves.

Assembly:
I made these open-faced, piled on the eggplant, then a smear of tomato stuff, a dab of goat cheese, and a fresh basil leaf.

Eat fresh (they don't keep for more than about an hour!) and enjoy.

Greek Salad

I know it's another boring salad recipe, but the vinaigrette in this one makes my taste buds say it's good to be alive. Plus my garden lettuces are going nuts and as discussed, my house is way too hot. This is a salad with more chunks than lettuce, and tastes super fresh because of the cucumber.

A bunch of leafy (not iceberg) lettuce, washed and torn into bits
1/4 to 1/2 of a cucumber, sliced thick then quartered into bite sized pieces
2 Roma tomatoes cut in half slices
1/4 small red onion cut in skinny, skinny slices
olives of your choosing
fresh basil or oregano
1/4 C feta
a couple of glugs of good olive oil
a couple of glugs of red wine vinegar
coarse salt and pepper to taste

Toss everything together and taste. Adjust oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, or feta to preference. Serve immediately.

Makeover Mac 'n Cheese

So, I am a subscriber to the Taste of Home brand magazine, Healthy Cooking. I love it. One of the things I love most about it is that readers can submit their favorite recipes that are, shall we say, not exactly "lite," and ToH's cooks will revamp the recipe and make it a million times better for you, but still really, really yummy. It's pretty cool. I have yet to submit a recipe, but I will someday. As you can probably gather from the title of this post, someone submitted a recipe for homemade mac 'n cheese. When I saw it I thought, yeah, no way that is going to be as good as regular homemade mac. But I tried it anyway. SO good. I love it. Beware, it makes a LOT. We STILL have leftovers and I've been eating some every day for a bit. Here you go...

Makeover Macaroni and Cheese

1 pkg. (16 oz) elbow macaroni (or whatever noodle you want)

2 T. flour

2 c. milk

1 pkg. (16 oz) reduced-fat process cheese, (e.g., Velveeta) cubed

1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, combine flour and milk until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in process cheese and 1/2 c. cheddar until smooth. Drain macaroni. Stir into cheese sauce.

Remove from heat; sprinkle with remaining cheddar cheese. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

Now, for the best part. Get this:

Nutrition Info for 1 serving of the original Mac n Cheese:

Calories: 593

Fat: 32 g

Saturated fat: 20 g

Cholesterol: 100 mg

Nutrition Info for 1 serving of the makeover Mac n Cheese:

Calories: 403

Fat: 11 g

Saturated fat: 6 g

Cholesterol: 36 mg

Carbs: 54 g

Fiber: 2 g

Protein: 23 g

And really, this makeover recipe was yummmmy. Mac n Cheese is one of my favorite comfort foods. I am so glad I found a recipe that will let me eat it without killing myself slowly. :)