Stuffed Carnival Sqaush Recipe

I am very excited to share this recipe with you today. I haven't enjoyed anything ad much as I enjoyed this in quite some time. At the pumpkin patch last weekend, I picked up a lovely carnival squash. They're similar to the acorn squash in size, with a slightly sweeter flesh.

They also look lovely!

I didn't know what to do with it at first. I looked around for recipes, but ultimately decided I had to make it stuffed. Many of the recipes were stuffed with sausage, which I just don't care for. Then I remembered a Lean Cuisine I had for lunch recently. They make a very tasty, very fall dish called Apple Cranberry Chicken. I like it a lot, and knew something similar would be the perfect mate for this squash.

I looked it up on their website, to see what they put in it, and sort of extrapolated from there. The only part I really had to guess on was the sauce, and it was simple enough to make with just a little guessing. The wheat berries are delicious, but I had a hard time finding them. I didn't even know the existed before I bought that lunch. I got mine at Whole Foods. You could definitely skip them if you can't find any, but I would recommend you try them if you can.

This is a little complicated to do all at once, so it'll definitely give your kitchen a work out. I would recommend cooking the wheat berries and pasta beforehand, but it's perfectly do-able all at once. You'll just be a little bit busy.

Stuffed Carnival Squash

Makes 4 servings

What You'll Need:
4 carnival squash (acorn squash works, too)
1 apple, any variety
2 carrots
2 cups green beans
1 cup dried cranberries
2 cups apple cider
1 cup dry orzo pasta
1 cup dry wheat berries
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tbs lemon juice

The Process:
     Put on a pot to boil 3 cups of water, add the wheat berries, cover, and bring to a boil. Let simmer for 1 hour, until tender.
     Carefully slice each squash in half, lengthwise, and remove the seeds and pulp. Place face down in a baking sheet with 1/4 of water and bake at 375° for 45-60 minutes, until tender.
     Bring a pot of water to boil for the pasta. Cook as directed, then drain. Simmer cider, lemon, and spices together and let reduce. Meanwhile, slice vegetables and apple in to bite sized pieces. 

     20 minutes before the squash is finished, add vegetables, apple, and cranberries to sauce pot. Let cook on low heat until squash is ready.
     Toss pasta, wheat berries, and vegetable mixture together. Spoon into hot squash halves and serve immediately.

I want to make this every day.

Onion Roasted Chicken & Veggies

I hope you are weathering the storm well. Near DC, we are experiencing high winds and a steady rain, with it getting stronger all the time, but fortunately we've not been severely impacted yet. We still have power (obviously) and I was able to bake roasted chicken and vegetables for dinner tonight, instead of my power-outage backup plan (peanut butter and banana sandwiches).

This is incredibly easy to throw together and if you line your pan with foil, cleanup is super simple, too.

Onion Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
makes 4 servings

What You'll Need:
4 small chicken breasts
3 large potatoes, cubed
4 carrots, diced
2 Tbs olive oil
1 packet of onion soup mix

The Process:
   Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a 13 x 9 pan with foil and spray with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Combine all ingredients into a bowl and mix until onion soup mix is well distributed.
   Remove the chicken breasts from the bowl and place them into the pan. Distribute the vegetables evenly around the chicken. Bake uncovered for 40-45 minutes, checking potatoes for doneness.


This is also excellent for beef, either cubed or a roast. If you're going to use a roast, instead of just tossing all the ingredients together, I reserve half of the onion mix packet to use as a rub on the roast. Either way, it's simple and satisfying.

Please be careful if you're in the path of the storm. It's dangerous out there, and it's going to get worse before it gets better.

Slow Cooked Chicken Pot Pie

My neck of the woods has thoroughly fallen into autumn. For over a week, we've had 75 degree days and 50 degree evenings, just absolutely wonderful weather that makes you yearn for a hearty dish. Tonight I just had to make something in the spirit of this weather. I have quite a bit of chicken on hand, so a chicken pot pie was an easy choice.

But I didn't really want to heat up my whole place by turning on the oven to bake one. Where do I always turn in times of temperature crisis like this? To my trusty crock pot, of course. This is a really easy way to make that savory pot pie dish without using your oven, or having to worry about over baking a crust (as I am known to do).

My vegetables were carrots, peas, lima beans, and potatoes.

Slow Cooked Chicken Pot Pie
makes 6 servings

What You'll Need:
 4 boneless chicken breasts, thawed
 2 cans cream of chicken soup
 1 cup sliced celery (I'm not a fan, so I traded it for a diced potato instead)
 1 medium onion, diced
 2 cloves garlic, mince
 1 bay leaf
 1/2 tsp marjoram
 1/4 tsp sage
 1/2 tsp thyme
 1/2 tsp rosemary
 1/2 tsp black pepper
 salt to taste (I added 1/2 tsp)
 2 cups of cut fresh veggies- carrots, peas, corn, etc OR a 1lb frozen bag mixed veggies
 6 biscuits, either prepackaged or homemade (I'm posting a recipe for some soon)

Rice Wine Vinaigrette

While on my trip to New Orleans, I tried to eat as many new, local foods as I could. Such delights included a crawfish boil, a po boy, alligator, and an unexpected delight- a fantastic rice wine vinaigrette. At one restaurant, the house salad served before the entree turned out to be the best thing of the whole meal. This vinaigrette is why.

My fancy (but so useful) emulsifier.

The server was kind enough to tell me what was in it- not suspecting that I wrote the ingredients down as soon as she walked away so I could try to recreate it at home. I've made 5 versions of this vinaigrette and I think I've finally nailed it. So far, I've eaten it on a salad, on some carrots, and over cold pasta just because I can. I may never get another store bought dressing again.

Rice Wine Vinaigrette
Makes 1 cup dressing

What You'll Need:
1/3 cup Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar
2/3 cup good olive oil (do not use "light" olive oil)
4 cloves garlic, minced up small
3 tsp Italian herb mix
2 tsp dry mustard (or 2 Tbs prepared mustard)
1 tsp honey

Maple Balsamic Salmon

For my valentine, I made a little something special tonight. I had some rice left over from the other night, so I decided to incorporate that into this one. It was Spanish rice already, so I just fried it up in a hot pan again.

Funny thing is, it was supposed to be "honey balsamic salmon" but when the time came, I realized that I actually do not have honey in the house right now. Oops! It was far too late to procure any, so I had to make a quick substitution.

Maple Balsamic Salmon
Serves 2
What You'll Need:

1 salmon filet
2 cups day-old rice
2 cups brussel sprouts
2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
3 Tbs maple syrup
1/2 garlic clove, minced
2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt

Carrot Bundles? Yes, please!

I haven't had much time for sewing this week, but I have done a lot of cooking. Do you ever have trouble getting your kids to eat veggies? I don't have anyone underfoot, so it isn't a problem I've had. But I remember being one of those children, and we didn't have a dog I could sneak them to. I have the seriously most simple way for you to prep fresh vegetables that make them pretty tasty without adding anything, so they stay healthy, too.

Are you ready? Blanch 'em. Seriously. I never would have thought of it, and I bet you didn't either. My favorite vegetable to blanch is carrots, because it just softens them up a little but they still have a nice crunch. To blanch vegetables, all you need is to boil some water, drop your cut veggies into it for 2-4 minutes (depending on the thickness and how done you want them). I do not salt the water when I do this, but you can if you prefer.

I usually stop there, because I just pop them on a plate as a simple but tasty side dish. But, if you want to blanch them and make a little sauce to accompany them or grill them, then you need to dunk the newly blanched veggies in an ice bath to stop them from cooking further. I got the idea to bundle a few carrot sticks together from Paula Deen, who tied them together with some blanched chives (to soften them up enough for tying) and then dunked them into a skillet of butter, brown sugar, and white wine. The woman is overly fond of her butter for my taste, but she has some fantastic recipes and creative cooking ideas.