2009 September | Sequatchie Cove Farm

This recipe is also adapted from the book Fresh From the Farmer’s Market: Fall By Alastair Hendy.  It’s called “pumpkin” fondue, but any winter squash will do.  The squash is more of a vessel, or accompaniment to a yummy fondue, rather than a flavor.  I have used acorn squash, and the one in the photo is a Kabocha.  This was the centerpiece for a celebratory dinner recently.  With it I served grilled marinated steaks, sautéed greens, roasted shiitake mushrooms and fresh bread.  We welcomed the fall season in style, with comments like, “please can I hook up an I.V. of this delicious fondue?”  And, “This is so good, would you mind if I ate all of this by myself?”   The best part is scooping out the soft flesh of the baked squash, dunked generously in fondue.   So invite friends over, and pass around the spoons.  Happy Autumn to you!

Ingredients:

• 1 medium winter squash or pumpkin
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• a dash of ground cloves
• 4 tablespoons of butter, divided
• 1 onion very finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2/3 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
• 5-10 sage leaves, chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 4 baby artichokes in oil, drained and chopped
• 1 lb Emmental or Gruyere cheese (or a mixture), grated
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Green Tabasco, to taste (optional)

Method:

Slice the top off the pumpkin and reserve it, hollow out the core, and discard all the fibers and seeds.   If the pumpkin or squash is not flat on the bottom, you may want to cut away enough to make it sit upright without tipping over.  Melt two tablespoons of the butter and add the freshly grated nutmeg, ground cloves, a dash of salt and pepper.  Brush the inside flesh of the pumpkin with the butter mixture, as well as the top.  Place in a baking dish and bake at 375 degrees for about one hour, or until the inside is quite soft.

In a saucepan or skillet, heat the remaining butter and add the onion and garlic.  Saute until soft and translucent.  Add the wine, heat to simmering, then add all the remaining ingredients, except the sour cream.  Stir until the cheese melts.  Transfer to a small oven proof dish and stir in the sour cream.  Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the fondue is runny.  Pour the fondue into the cooked pumpkin and serve.

Filed under: Seasonal Food Recipes on September 28th, 2009 | Comments Off

This recipe comes from the book Fresh from the farmer’s market: Fall by Alastair Hendy

I would actually recommend this whole cookbook for the upcoming season.  The recipes are fun and interesting, with categories for the common harvest of squash, nuts, mushrooms, apples and pears.  With the arrival of winter squash these last couple of weeks, I thought I would pick an interesting recipe to share from this book.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 3 bundles Asian noodles, such as ramen or udon (optional)
• 1 oz. dried hijiki or wakame seaweed
• 1 small acorn squash, about 1 1/2 lb.
• 2 cups dashi (use instant dashi and follow the package instructions)
• 3 tablespoons mirin (sweetened rice wine)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 cup light soy sauce
• 1 inch fresh ginger, finely sliced and shredded, to serve.

Method:

Cook the noodles, if using, for about 2 minutes in boiling water until al dente.  Rinse in cold water, drain, then let return to room temperature.  Put the seaweed into a bowl of cold water until soft and re hydrated.  Drain.  Cut the squash into quarters, de-seed, peel, slice each piece in half crosswise, then again lengthwise.  Put the squash into a saucepan, add the dashi, mirin, sugar, and soy sauce, bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.  Add the drained seaweed and warm through for 1 minute.  Divide the noodles between 4 bowls, add the squash, seaweed, and a ladle of hot stock.  Top with shredded ginger.

Filed under: Seasonal Food Recipes on September 23rd, 2009 | Comments Off

Baba Ghanoush

Ingredients:

• 3-5 medium/small eggplant
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
• 5-6 tablespoons of tahini
• 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of one lemon
• 1 small bunch of cilantro, chopped
• Sea salt, cumin and cayenne pepper or paprika to taste

Method:

Cut eggplant in half lengthwise and brush cut sides with olive oil.   Place on a baking sheet and roast in the oven at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes.    Most recipes for this dish suggest that you scoop out the tender insides and discard the skins.  However, there are valuable nutrients in the skins, not to mention the benefit of extra flavor and texture.  For this recipe, use kitchen sheers or a sharp knife to chop the cooked eggplant into pieces (about one inch in size).  Place in a medium bowl with the other ingredients and mash with a pestle until well blended.  Pureed Baba Ghanoush is also a common method, but using the pestle to blend allows the many flavors to remain more bold in the dish.   Serve warm with pita, naan, or toasted ciabatta, or use as a spread on sandwiches.

Filed under: Seasonal Food Recipes on September 23rd, 2009 | Comments Off

I suddenly realized it has been over a month since I have sat down and written a letter. And this whole time I have been going to the market, cooking good food, and enjoying good company.

But now I am holed up inside a cloud on Lookout Mountain with nothing to do today except maybe sweep the floor and make some banana pudding (that is a foodstuff that has nothing to do with the market but is almost a necessary part of the diet if it has rained more than five days in a row). I somehow found a bunch of fair-trade organic bananas among the regular organic bananas at Greenlife so I just had to buy them. But before I make that totally unlocal (excepting the Sequatchie Cove eggs — those precious and much sought after gems) comfort food, I thought I would share some long overdue thoughts. Read more …

Filed under: Local Food Letter, Local Food News on September 20th, 2009 | Comments Off

This was a delicious alternative to mashed potatoes on a fall menu.  It would be excellent served with a herbed pork tenderloin and some grilled okra.  The natural sweetness of this squash is such that you could also turn this mash into a pie without any added sugar.  Yum!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 large Kabocha squash, (or one whole if small) peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 4 tablespoons of melted butter
• 1/2 nutmeg, grated
• 1-2 tablespoons of dried ground orange peel, or zest of one orange
• 1 teaspoon of cardamom
• dash of ground cloves
• sea salt to taste
• 4 tablespoons of butter or margarine
• Juice from 1/2 lemon

Method:

In a glass baking dish, coat the squash with the melted butter mixed with the nutmeg, orange peel, cardamom and cloves.  Sprinkle with sea salt and bake at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes to one hour.  Remove from oven and transfer to a serving dish.  Add butter or margarine and lemon juice and mash with a potato masher to desired texture.  Add more sea salt to taste.

Filed under: Seasonal Food Recipes on September 16th, 2009 | Comments Off

Basil Ice Cream

Make at least one day ahead before serving with squash.

(I did get a few hints from one of the Lindley brother’s at Alleia for this one, but had to work out the details on my own.  I like the original best, but this one will do for home-made)

• 4 cups (packed) basil leaves.
• 2 star anise
• 2 cups of half and half
• 1 cup of sugar
• dash of salt
• 3 quarts of cream
• seeds from one vanilla bean pod

In a large sauce pan, boil 2-3 cups of water.  Add the basil leaves and cook until tender and dark green.  Remove from heat and let cool.   In a small saucepan heat the half and half with the sugar, salt and the star anise, stirring occasionally, on low heat until it just starts to boil around the edges.  Remove from heat and cool to at least room temperature.  Remove the star anise pods from the half and half and combine drained, cooked basil leaves and half and half in a blender.  Puree until mixture turns green and has very few leaf specks remaining.   Combine the basil mixture with the cream and vanilla bean in an ice cream maker and freeze as directed.

Maple & Spice Delicata Squash

There are many ways in which you can serve the squash and ice cream.  The squash is softer if left in large pieces while roasting, and like chewy candy if sliced thinly for roasting.  It’s delicious however you choose to cut it up.  For this recipe, I cut the ends big enough to use as ‘bowls’ for the squash, and sliced the rest very thinly, then diced the cooked pieces and sprinkled it on the ice cream as a candied garnish.

Scrub the skins of two small delicata squash with a vegetable brush to remove any soil or spots.   Cut in half and scoop out the seeds.  Do not remove the skins.  On this winter squash, they are edible and nutritious.    Slice or dice the squash to desired thickness and place in a glass baking dish.

Blend the following ingredients together and pour over the squash:

• 1/2 stick of unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup of real maple syrup
• a hefty dash of cinnamon
• a dash of cloves
• 1/2 to 3/4 of a whole nutmeg, grated
• a dash of sea salt

Bake at 375 degrees for about 1/2 hr to 45 minutes, depending on how thickly the pieces are sliced.

Serve slightly warm with ice cream.

Filed under: Seasonal Food Recipes on September 8th, 2009 | Comments Off