Butternut Squash Risotto

Ina has done it again.  This Risotto recipe is incredible.  I had it at a friend's house and was embarrassed by how much I ate.  Perfect for a fall day.

Total Time:  50 min
Prep:  10 min
Cook:  40 min
Yield:  4-6 servings

Ingredients
1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2 ounces pancetta, diced
1/2 cup minced shallots (2 large)
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (10 ounces)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut it into 3/4-inch cubes. You should have about 6 cups. Place the squash on a sheet pan and toss it with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, tossing once, until very tender. Set aside.
Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock in a small covered saucepan. Leave it on low heat to simmer.
In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the pancetta and shallots on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of stock to the rice plus the saffron, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total. Off the heat, add the roasted squash cubes and Parmesan cheese. Mix well and serve.

Peach Orange Smoothie

You may not think you need a recipe for a smoothie but this one is a keeper! We make it so much that I have the recipe memorized. I always keep frozen peaches so I can whip this up quickly to go with breakfast or dinner. Also, I have found that my kids drink smoothies better with a big milkshake/smoothie straw, something like this.

Peach Orange Smoothie:

2 cups good quality orange juice
1 cup peach yogurt
2 cups frozen peach slices
2 tablespoons of honey
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Mix together in a blender and blend until smooth.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

I made this for friends during the World Series and he proclaimed it the Kluber of lasagnas (sad!) but it really is delicious in the fall!  I found it on Food Network but added Spicy Italian Sausage.  If you exclude the sausage, it is healthier and vegetarian.

Total Time: 2 hr 10 min
Prep: 30 min
Inactive: 15 min
Cook: 1 hr 25 min
Yield:8 to 10 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes

1 lb spicy Italian Sausage (optional)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water
3 amaretti cookies, crumbled (a few more doesn't hurt--I buy them at World Market)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups whole milk
Pinch nutmeg
3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
12 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

If including Italian Sausage, brown in a skillet--can be done ahead of time and refrigerated--then follow the rest of the directions.  

Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the water into the skillet and then cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly and then transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the amaretti cookies and blend until smooth. Season the squash puree, to taste, with more salt and pepper.
Melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg. Cool slightly. Transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. Add the basil and blend until smooth. Return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan and stir to blend. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.
Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.
Lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. Spread 1/3 of the squash puree over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. Repeat layering 3 more times.
Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. Continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.
*When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/butternut-squash-lasagna-recipe.print.html?oc=linkback

Chocolate Toffee Cookies

I found these on Epicurious and quickly became Peter's favorite cookies.  Below is the recipe with my notes and variations:

YIELD:  

Makes about 2.5 dozen

INGREDIENTS

1. • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
   • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar (I sometimes substitute a half cup of that with dark brown sugar)
   • 1 large egg
   • 1 tablespoon dark rum (the rum matters so buy a good tiny bottle--Myers Dark, etc)
   • 2 teaspoon vanilla extract (called for 1, but I think a little more is nice)
   • 1 cup all purpose flour
   • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa (I buy the good stuff.  I do think that Scharffen Berger or Valhrona do turn out a better product than the old Hershey's.
   • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2. • 1/4 teaspoon salt
   • 1 1/2 cups crushed chocolate-covered English toffee (such as Heath bar; about 7 ounces)
   • 1/2 cup chopped almonds

PREPARATION

1. 1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until fluffy. Add egg, rum and vanilla and beat until well blended. Sift flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt into small bowl. Stir dry ingredients into butter mixture. Mix in toffee and chopped almonds.
   2. Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls onto heavy large ungreased baking sheet (preferably on a silicon mat, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies puff slightly and crack on top but are still soft to touch, about 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheet 1 minute. Transfer cookies to rack and cool completely. Repeat shaping and baking with remaining batter. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.)

Orange Honey Mascarpone Crepes

My mother in law made this for us when she was visiting once and it is amazing.  We've made it several times since.  

Orange Honey Mascarpone Crepes

SERVES: ABOUT 16 9-INCH CREPES

INGREDIENTS

• Crepe
• 1/2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 c. white whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp. cane sugar
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 1/2 c. whole milk
• 4 large eggs
• 3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• Filling
• 1 c. (8 oz.) mascarpone (or you can mix sour cream and cream cheese)
• 1 tbsp. orange zest
• 1 tbsp. orange juice
• 2 tbsp. honey
• dash of cardamom
• dash of salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Make crepes ahead. Add crepe ingredients into a blender and blend for 30 seconds or until evenly combined. Scrape down sides if necessary. Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes or overnight in the refrigerator. Batter and flavor develop over the rest.
2. Heat a large non-stick pan over medium-high heat (much easier with a crepe pan). Once warmed, add a tiny bit of butter to the surface. It should bubble and brown quickly. This will give your crepe a nice color. Pour a little less than 1/3 cup of batter onto the pan. The crepe should be thin. Slowly tilt the pan in a circular motion to move the batter around the pan. Once batter stops moving, place back on the burner.
3. Cook for 2 minutes. Using a thin spatula along with your fingers, flip the crepe and cook for another minute longer. Stack crepes on a plate and repeat.
4. Make filling. In a bowl, add filling ingredients and stir until combined with a spoon or spatula. Skip getting out your hand mixer. Over beating mascarpone will cause it to become grainy.
5. Serve crepes warm. Fill with a small dollop of mascarpone. Fold over twice. Top with berries of choice (blueberries are nice with orange).

Easy Shepherd's Pie (err Cottage Pie)

We hope everyone had a happy St. Patrick's Day!  Mitchell learned at a little pub in Santa Monica that he thinks Shepherd's pie is great!  And we're happy to get some veggies into his little body, so it was win-win.  We made this again for the holiday and Mom and Dad did too (redeeming themselves from their newly wed Shepherd's Pie Disaster.

It should be noted that a Shepherd's Pie is actually made with Lamb.  The ground beef variation is most people's preference and is technically a Cottage Pie, but no one knows what that is.

I think with these you can mess around with the veggies based on your tastes and what you have on hand, I used carrot, celery, peas, and onion, but some of those might not appeal to you

• Mashed Potatoes (Do these however you want but make sure they're seasoned)
• 1 1/2 - 2 lbs Ground Beef (or lamb if that is your thing)
• 1 carrot
• 1 celery (optional)
• 1/2 c peas
• 1/2 c corn (optional)
• 1 onion
• 1 cup beef stock
• 1 Tbs Worcestershire (or more, we really love this)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 2 Tbs Flour
• 2 Tbs Butter
• Fresh Italian Parsley

Basic Instructions:

1) Begin making Mashed Potatoes (your favorite way)

2) Brown meat in some oil and season with S&P

3) Drain meat and set aside in a bowl

4) Saute veggies for 5 or so minutes until softened

5) While veggies, create a gravy: cook flour and butter for 2 minutes

6) Add Worcestershire and stock and cook for another minute

7) Add the meat and veggies to the gravy.  Season to taste.

8) In a casserole dish or individual french onion soup crocks, put the meat and veggie mixture on the bottom, top with seasoned mashed potatoes, and some paprika

9) Broil for 6-8 minutes until potatoes are brown.  

10) Garnish top with Parsley

Buche de Noel

We had the parents here for Christmas and wanted to make something special for dinner and dessert (since their usual meals are reheated packages from Costco).  We decided to make a Buche de Noel, which is a French tradition of making a cake in the shape of a yule log.  It is a flourless chocolate cake with a chocolate mousse filling.  It was easy enough to follow that Peter (not a baker) made this for us.  Incredible.  New tradition.

Prep:  45 Minutes
Cook:  15 Minutes
Ready in 1:30 Minutes

"Buche de Noel is the French name for a Christmas cake shaped like a log. This one is a heavenly flourless chocolate cake rolled with chocolate whipped cream. Traditionally, Buche de Noel is decorated with confectioners' sugar to resemble snow on a Yule log."

Ingredients

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (we used Valhrona--go big, right?)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup white sugar

• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 6 egg whites
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line a 10x15 inch jellyroll pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whip cream, 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup cocoa, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until thick and stiff. Refrigerate.
2. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until thick and pale. Blend in 1/3 cup cocoa, 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla, and salt. In large glass bowl, using clean beaters, whip egg whites to soft peaks. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, and beat until whites form stiff peaks. Immediately fold the yolk mixture into the whites. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Dust a clean dishtowel with confectioners' sugar. Run a knife around the edge of the pan, and turn the warm cake out onto the towel. Remove and discard parchment paper. Starting at the short edge of the cake, roll the cake up with the towel. Cool for 30 minutes.
4. Unroll the cake, and spread the filling to within 1 inch of the edge. Roll the cake up with the filling inside. Place seam side down onto a serving plate, and refrigerate until serving. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.  (Or coat it in the mousse to look like a log like the photo)