Pork and Mushroom Ragout Over Polenta

A few days ago Sweetie cooked a pork shoulder low and slow in the BBQ grill, all wrapped up in heavy duty foil. He browns the shoulder on each side before wrapping it up, then lowers the grill temperature so that it can cook for hours and get soft and delicious. In the process some of the fat and juices make their way into the bottom of the foil. When he takes the packet off the grill, he carefully saves those juices in heatproof glass jars, then opens the foil all the way and removes the pork to cut and serve. If we're having pulled pork bbq sandwiches, I ask him to just cut a chunk off for me so that I can pull the pork with two forks instead of slicing mine.

If the pork shoulder is a large one, as the one he cooked a few days ago was, I get to be creative with ways to use some or all of the leftover pork.

Today I made a sort of pork stew or ragout with some of the leftover pork, some onion, garlic, mushrooms and spinach, plus seasonings. It was yummy and went well over some soft cooked polenta. I didn't really have a recipe to follow  but I've cooked similar things before so I was pretty sure that I could figure out the recipe as I went along. I did have a recipe for the polenta and it was a delicious mix of stone-ground polenta, some chicken broth and some of those pork juices Sweetie saved then refrigerated, some salt and pepper, some butter and some Parmesan. Don't skip the Parmesan...it makes all the difference. Also, use good Parmesan, either the real deal, grated, or something pretty good like the already grated stuff from Costco. Skip the Kraft Parmesan in the green tube. Not worth adding.

Pork and Mushroom Ragout Over Polenta with Spinach
serves 4

For the Pork and Mushroom Ragout:
1/2 large onion, peeled and chopped
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
135 grams mushrooms, sliced (about 4-6 depending on size). I used cremini.
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
salt  and pepper - about 1/4 teaspoon 
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
170 grams or 6 oz. already cooked pork roast. I used the shoulder cut, slow cooked
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 cup broth/reserved pork juices/water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup chopped cooked spinach

For the Polenta: 
3 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup stone-ground (if possible) polenta  grind corn meal
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese - best quality

Instructions: 

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan or small Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onions and stir, then cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the sliced mushrooms and stir. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low and cook for 3 minutes to allow the mushrooms to release moisture. Uncover the pot and return the heat to medium-high then cook, stirring often until the mushrooms have some browned areas on the slices, about 4-5 minutes. If necessary, add the rest of the olive oil to cook the mushrooms or garlic. Add the garlic, and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 1 minute, then stir in the salt and pepper and the thyme. Cover the pot, reduce heat to low and cook another minute to allow flavors to meld.

Add the pork, cut into 1-inch or smaller cubes, to the pot, and stir to combine. Cover the pot and cook, still on low, for 3 minutes, to heat the pork.

In a small bowl combine the balsamic vinegar, cornstarch and 1/4 cup of the broth/pork juices/water, being sure to stir until there are no lumps of cornstarch left. Add this mixture and the rest of the broth/pork juices/water to the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high and stir until the broth thickens. Add the cooked spinach, stir, and cover until ready to serve, leaving over the lowest heat possible on your stove. The mixture needs to stay warm while you prepare the polenta, but you don't want it to burn.

For the polenta, add the water to a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the salt and stir to combine. (Note: Taste your pork mixture before adding the salt. If the pork mixture is fairly salty, as it might be if you use the pork juices or your broth is salty, then reduce the salt you add to the polenta water. I only used 1/2 teaspoon because my pork ragout was fairly salty.)

Once the salted water is boiling, slowly whisk in the polenta. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir until the polenta mixture is thickened and the grains are cooked to your liking. I like mine with just a bit of chew still in it. Once desired thickness is reached, add the butter and the grated Parmesan and stir vigorously until it is well combined. Mixture thickens slightly as it cools, so if it's too thin for you. let it sit 4-5 minutes before serving.

To serve, spoon the polenta into shallow soup bowls and top with the pork mixture. Serve additional grated Parmesan on the side, if desired, to be sprinkled at the table over the ragout. 

A Flaky and Delicious Savory Handpie

Inspiration comes from many places. I get newsletters from a few cooks and bakers and sometimes I use the recipes that are included. A few days ago my email had a newsletter from Lukas Volger in Family Friend and the recipe was for a filo, blue cheese and spinach dish which he was suggesting as a vegetarian entree for Thanksgiving. It is something that you can make the filling for ahead of time, the dish can bake at the same time as rolls or even a casserole, and it would also taste fine at room temperature.

As is often the case, I used this as a jumping off place for my own dish. I had most of the filling ingredients on hand except for the leek and the parsley, but I didn't have any filo dough. I had the frozen spinach, ricotta, and blue cheese, but I also had one leftover chicken thigh, already grilled, that needed using up...so this wouldn't be vegetarian. I had a roll of ReadyCrust pie dough, so that was an easy substitute for the missing filo. This also meant that I didn't have to use any melted butter.

I used half an onion instead of the leek, some dried thyme instead of the parsley, and I made this as two large hand pies. You can cut each of them in half to serve, so this serves four and uses half the quantities of the filling. It does take a bit of work, but I think you'll enjoy this entrée. The photos show the baked but uncut hand pie. If you are really hungry, don't cut them...in which case this recipe will serve 2, not 4. I served ours with a mixed greens salad with lots of veggies in it and a balsamic dressing. The sharpness of the dressing was a good foil for the fairly rich and cheesy filling and buttery crust.

You can make this vegetarian by leaving out the chicken. If you make this after Thanksgiving and you roast a turkey, you can make small cubes of cooked turkey to replace the chicken and it will still be delicious...and use up some leftover turkey!

Spinach and Blue Cheese and Chicken Hand Pies
based on the Spinach & Blue Cheese Phyllo Pie in Lukas Volger newsletter Family Friend

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon table salt
5 oz. frozen spinach, thawed
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole-milk ricotta
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
black pepper to taste
2 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
1 cooked chicken thigh, cut into 1-inch dice
1 round ready made pie pastry like Pillsbury ReadyCrust, at room temperature
1 teaspoon flour
egg wash of 1 egg plus 1 teaspoon water, beaten together

In a skillet over medium heat add the oil once the skillet is hot. Add the chopped onion and the salt and stir to coat with the oil. Cover and steam for about 5 minutes, then uncover and continue cooking until the onion is soft, 5-7 minutes more. Set aside.

Drain the thawed spinach and then squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Add to the onion mixture and stir. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, then whisk in the ricotta until smooth. Add the  thyme, black pepper, blue cheese, chicken and spinach/onion mixture and combine. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the pie dough circle. Using a rolling pin, increase the size to about 12-inches in diameter. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, divide the dough in half, cutting across the middle.

Take one of the half circles and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Mound half the spinach filling mixture on the one side of the half circle, leaving a little more than an inch of uncovered dough all the way around. Flip the half with no filling over the half with filling, matching the straight side with straight side and the curved side with curved side. Use a pastry brush to brush some egg wash on the uncovered dough next to the filling. Press the top dough down all around to seal all sides. Use the tines of a fork to press the edges to seal completely. Use the pastry brush to coat the top of the hand pie  and the sealed edges with egg wash.  Cut a steam slit of about an inch and a half in the center top.

Repeat with the second half circle and the rest of the filling.

Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the filling bubbles a bit at the steam vent. Cool for about 10 minutes. Slice each hand pie in two to make two pie wedges. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

For a vegetarian version, omit the chicken.

Fan Favorite Oldie But Goodie

The photos don't do this dish justice...at all. Trust me when I say that this recipe will become one of your favorites, just like it's a favorite of others stopping by this blog.

I first posted about this casserole in the spring of 2009. A lot of life has happened since then, but the recipe has been a continually searched one over the years. I first made it even longer ago than 2009, maybe even before my kids were born. It's from a delightful and unusual cookbook called the Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. Unusual because the recipes were written by hand and the illustrations were done by hand...no photographs, no type to speak of, just warm and welcoming recipes with lots of them vegetarian, many of them celebrating cultures other than U.S.A. cultures, and ones that became favorites, like this one. Delightful because you will likely keep finding another recipe you want to try as you make your way through the book. It was first published in 1977. If you don't find it at Powell's Books (a Portland, Oregon bookstore that has a lot of used books of all kinds), then check Amazon or your local library, used book store, etc. It's a great cookbook to have on your shelf.

This recipe, Spinach-Rice Casserole, has brown rice with it's nutty flavor, spinach, cheddar cheese, eggs and milk, and some seasonings. Don't skip the sunflower seeds on top...they not only taste great and add texture, but their fragrance mingles with the other ingredients to make your kitchen smell cozy and welcoming. Perhaps the best part is that you will likely have leftovers...and they are even better than the first night. I just returned from four days in Phoenix, visiting family, and Sweetie ate leftover Spinach-Rice Casserole the first two nights I was gone. I think he would have eaten it the next two nights, but it was all gone.

Cook the brown rice first because brown rice takes a little longer than white rice. While it's cooking you chop the onion and mince the garlic and grate the cheese. I use frozen spinach that is already chopped...it just needs thawing and then squeezing the thawed spinach to get out the excess liquid. Eggs get whisked, milk added, and parsley chopped. Then you sauté the onion and garlic, add almost all of the rest of the ingredients and stir them together, add the rice and combine everything so that it can be turned out into a buttered casserole dish. After a sprinkle of both sunflower seeds and paprika, the casserole gets covered, baked, uncovered, baked some more, than cooled just enough that it doesn't burn your mouth. Feast on a soft and gloriously flavored casserole with a bit of crunch from the sunflowers. You'll be glad you took the time to bake this dish. So will friends and/or family because this make a good sized casserole (about 9 x 13-inches) that can feed quite a few lucky folks.

Spinach-Rice Casserole, based on a recipe from Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen, 1977

2 cloves minced garlic
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt (More, to taste)
3 tablespoons butter (I used 2 tablespoons olive oil)
2 lbs. raw, chopped spinach or, as I did, use 1 package frozen, chopped spinach, thawed
4 cups cooked brown rice
4 beaten eggs 
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons tamari (optional)
a few dashes each - nutmeg, cayenne
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
paprika

Saute' onions and garlic with the salt in butter (or oil). When onions are soft, add spinach. Cook 2 minutes. (Alternately, thaw and drain a 10 oz box frozen chopped spinach. Add to onion mixture, but don't cook any further.)
Combine the onion mixture with the brown rice, eggs, milk, cheese, parsley, tamari, nutmeg, cayenne. Spread into buttered casserole and sprinkle sunflower seeds and then paprika on top.
Bake, covered, 25 minutes at 350 degrees F. Uncover and bake 10 more minutes.

Serves 4 - 6

No Bread Today But Plenty Of Veggies

Normally on the 16th of the month this post would be about which ever bread recipe the Bread Baking Babes are baking this month. I'm sure that I will bake this bread eventually because the delightful Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen asked us to bake Kürtőskalács or Chimney Cakes and they sound delicious. The difficulty is that you need a cone shaped support for the dough strips that can go into the oven and support the bread as it bakes. I haven't been able to figure out anything to use and can't go looking due to everything being shut down for the pandemic. I've also been fighting off a non-Corona-19 infection and have very little energy. Do visit Aparna's blog and those of the other Bread Baking Babes to see how they did with this challenge. Here are some links: Judy of Judy's Gross Eats, Kelly of A Messy Kitchen, Cathy of Bread Experience, Karen of Karen's Kitchen Stories.

That doesn't change the fact that we still need to eat and I've had this recipe ready to make for almost a week. Each day I wasn't up for cooking, but finally yesterday afternoon I had enough energy to cook up this delicious concoction which has lot of veggies and some white beans. As usual I only used the recipe as a jumping off place so there were lots of changes...I added mushrooms and onions and ham and substituted spinach for kale and changed seasonings...in short it's a new recipe.

This is a hearty veggie stew with ham added because it goes with beans and we had some left over from Easter, but it would be just fine without the ham and would then be vegan and still delicious (I know because I tasted it before I added the ham). Although the original recipe was written so that you quickly cooked it and served it at once, I decided that it would improve if cooked earlier in the day. I reheated it at dinner time. This gave the ingredients time to meld. I suspect that it improved the flavor. I served it with some cornbread, which went well with it. Sorry about lack of photos, but it smelled so good, and tasted better, that I forgot to take photos!

Veggie Concoction - White Bean Stew
Based on Tuscan Cannellini Bean Skillet on the baking fairy blog
Serves 3-4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup yellow or white onion, peeled and chopped
6-8 crimini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 zucchini, cut in half and sliced
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon mural of flavor or other dried herb mixture
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup frozen chopped spinach
1- 15 oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup diced ham (optional)

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil, then saute' the onion over medium-high heat until almost translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms, stir, cover and cook over low heat 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. The mushrooms will release moisture. That is fine. Add the garlic and return the heat to medium-high and saute', uncovered, 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the zucchini, the sage, thyme, dried herb mixture, and pepper. Stir well to coat the contents of the pan with the herbs and spice. Cover and cook over low heat 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the spinach, stir well, and continue cooking 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the beans and ham (if using) and stir to combine, then simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let sit until serving time, then reheat, covered, for about 10 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally. Serve hot.

Lentils and Eggs

When I was visiting Los Angeles in the summer (yes, it's still summer but it's beginning to feel like fall and school has started again, so summer seems like it's in the past) we went for brunch to a place called Playa Provisions in Playa Vista (I think). They had an eclectic menu but not a lot of items that were non-dairy. One dish that sounded good was lentils with tomatoes and egg and kale. It was outstanding! A touch of vinegar when served added just the right note against the beany flavor of the lentils and the richness of the soft boiled egg. I came home and decided to see if I could replicate the dish, or at least come close.

After searching the Internet I found a recipe by Bon Appetit that was close so I made a few tweaks and served it for dinner a few nights ago. It was delicious and filling and Sweetie enjoyed it, too. One of the key elements is a soffritto of onion, carrot, celery and garlic (the Bon Appetit recipe had fennel and not celery but I don't like fennel flavor) which is cooked almost into a paste. This plus the tomato sauce really flavor the lentils in a great way!

This is a vegetarian dish but could be vegan if you skip the egg. The Bon Appetit recipe called for serving it with bread that had been fried in olive oil, but I just toasted some seeded sourdough and put on some non-dairy margarine for me and butter for Sweetie. I also sprinkled on a bit of Parmesan cheese on his serving and he said that made it even better.

You could probably serve this the day it is cooked, but I like to 'age' dishes with onions, so I put it in the fridge in the pot it was cooked in for a couple of days. That made reheating it easy. The already cooked spinach was reheated in the microwave and spooned on top of the lentil mixture before I added the egg. I actually forgot to add the red wine vinegar, but plan to do it next time (there were leftovers) since the sharpness is a great foil for the relatively bland legumes. The bread is nice for sopping up any juices. I served it in a shallow, wide soup bowl and that works really well because there are some juices.

Lentils and Tomato Stew with Egg and Spinach
serves 4

1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
sea salt to taste (I used about 1/2 teaspoon)
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 cups lentils (preferably French green), picked over and rinsed
water
1 cup baby spinach, rinsed
4 large eggs
4 sliced crusty bread
red wine vinegar and grated Parmesan cheese (for serving)

Pulse onion, celery, carrots and garlic in a food processor until soffritto is finely chopped.

In a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat, heat the olive oil and add the soffritto, stirring to coat the vegetables with the oil. Season with salt and cook, stirring occasionally for 10-12 minutes, until soft.

Stir in the tomato sauce and cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown and very soft, about 10-12 minutes. Add a splash of water if it is browning too quickly. You want to caramelize the vegetables.

Add the lentils and 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are almost tender, 30-35 minutes. Uncover and simmer for another 10 minutes to reduce the liquid.

Skim about a cup of the liquid at the top of the pot and place it in a microwave safe dish. Add the spinach and cover with foil. Let sit to wilt the spinach. Refrigerate this spinach mixture.

Taste the lentil mixture and adjust for salt, if needed.

Refrigerate the pot of lentils at least 24 hours and no more than 48 hours. You can also just make the rest of the recipe from this point without refrigerating the stew, but the flavor is better with a rest.

On serving day, reheat the lentil stew over low heat, stirring as needed to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the eggs and cook at a simmer for 9 minutes. Removed from the pot and run under cold water until just cool enough to handle. Carefully remove shell while keeping egg whole. Place on a cutting board.

Reheat the spinach mixture while the eggs are boiling. Toast and butter the crusty bread.

Put about a quarter of the lentils in a bowl. Top with a quarter of the spinach mixture. Slice the hot eggs in half lengthwise and place, yolk side up on top of the veggies in the bowl. Add a splash of vinegar and sprinkle with Parmesan, as desired. Serve with the toasted bread. Serve at once.

Another Kind of Pie

This month the Bread Baking Babes' Kitchen of the Month is Tanna's My Kitchen in Half Cups. She has gathered us around her virtual table with a delicious recipe to celebrate the 5th Anniversary of the Bread Baking Babes. The official Syrian name is syrian sabanrhiyat and they are delightful spinach pies, but with bread dough, instead of pastry, holding the spinach filling together. The combination of mahlab, pomegranate arils and feta cheese certainly give them a Syrian flavor. Unfortunately I neglected to purchase the mahlab, and the arils, plus my spinach was frozen, chopped, instead of fresh. The good news is that they were wonderful little pies even without those goodies!

My dough was really sticky, so it was a bit of a challenge to roll out. If you read the directions, you'll see that we were not supposed to roll it all out as a sheet of dough, but roll out 24 pieces of it, each to about 6 inches in diameter. In my defense, the video that showed how to shape them used a rolled out sheet of dough. A large round cutter was used to cut the dough into circles. I liked that the circles were then, mostly, even. That should make the shaping easier, right? So that's what I did. I had a nice 4-inch in diameter cutter, which made for smaller pies, but they were also easy to handle.

I cupped each dough circle in one palm, added about a tablespoon of filling, then smooshed the edges of three places on the outer diameter (about even from each other) into the middle and together. That left three openings, which I pinched together, one by one, in a more-or-less straight line. That gave me the 'Y' shaped closure. My dough was so soft that it didn't hold any shape very well, so the pies were a bit rounded 'Y's after they baked as you can see in the photo at the top of the post.

The filling included the sautéed onion, the feta cheese, the chopped walnuts, the lemon juice, and spinach from the freezer (which I thawed and then put in a wire mesh strainer, which allowed me to push out a lot of excess liquid. Since the finished filling was plenty moist, I'm glad I did.) I added some freshly ground nutmeg to the dough since I know that spinach and nutmeg are great together. I also cut the recipe in half. Even then I had more little pies than I wanted, so I did a crescent with the leftovers, kind of like the Yule Wreath that the Babes did a few years ago.

I highly recommend that you make these yummy pies. I'll bet that the ones with the pomegranate and mahlab are even better, and with fresh spinach the absolute best. Do be sure to check out the other Babes' sites since some of them have come up with different fillings!

Check out Tanna's site for the recipe and tips and gorgeous photos. If you want to be a Buddy (of course you do!) e-mail her with your story about baking these beauties and a photo.

I'm sending this along to Susan at Wild Yeast for her weekly wonderland of bread baking links, Yeastspotting. Check it out, too, to be inspired and to find great recipes.

Now, I'm going to go eat a couple of the spinach pies that I saved. I noticed that when I do my write-up that I really, really want to have a taste by the time I'm done. Don't you? Well, get baking!

Here is Elizabeth's version of the recipe (for mine, omit the mahlab but add 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg for it, also omit the pomegranate seeds and use frozen, thawed, drained spinach...and cut amounts in recipe by half since I only made half the recipe - see notes in italic for my changes) :

Assyrian Spinach Pies

DOUGH
1 tablespoon active dry yeast, (2 1/4 teaspoons) = 1 package
2 cups warm water (105° to 115°)
1/2 teaspoon ground mahlab, I'll use 3/4 to a full teaspoon next time
5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus more for kneading, use some white whole wheat next time
1 tablespoons granulated sugar, I cut this back from 2 tablespoons
2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup olive oil

FILLING

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, cut this from 1/2 cut
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 pound cleaned baby spinach, coarsely chopped
160 grams chopped walnuts, I increased this from 4 oz.
1 cup pomegranate seeds, increase these from 1/2 cup
2 cup crumbled feta cheese, increased from 1 cup
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Salt
1/2 - 1 cup lentils, optional but this was nice
Olive oil cooking spray
Plain yogurt for serving

Directions:
1. Whisk together the dry ingredients: yeast, flax, mahlab (or nutmeg for Elle), flours, sugar, salt.

Mix together water (I usually "warm" it by microwaving it about 15 seconds, it's just above room temp then) and olive oil.

2. Pour water, olive oil into dry ingredients and mix together until the dough gathers into a rough ball. Let rest 5 to 10 minutes letting the flour absorb some of the water.
Knead the dough on a lightly floured counter until the dough becomes smooth, elastic, soft and slightly sticky dough ball - mine took about 6 minutes.

3. WASH AND DRY THE BOWL - now ain't that a kick in the pants, how many Babes are going to follow that directive. We know Elizabeth will. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! and rub it lightly with olive oil Elizabeth won't do that part (but Elle will!).

Place the dough ball into a rising container … I have a wonderful straight side clear 4 qt container with lid: I can easily see when the dough has doubled in volume. The lid means I don't have to use plastic or even a shower cap.
Allow the dough to double in volume - mine took about 90 minutes: if you press a finger into the dough and release it, a depression should remain.

4. If you follow the recipe directions and divide the dough into 24 pieces (about 2 oz each) you'll get what I consider a reasonable portion size hand pie although we were all eating at least one and a half each. I actually weighted the balls and they ranged from 50 to 60 grams each. I might have enjoyed them more made slightly smaller say weighting closer to 40 grams.

When the balls are formed, allow to rest so they will be easier to roll out.
If you've made the full recipe and don't want to make them all at one go, my suggestion here would be to immediately cover however many you want to bake tomorrow or the next day and retort the balls in the fridge.
Allow the dough balls you plan on baking to rest for the 30 minutes before rolling them out.
Elle: I didn't make balls, but did let the dough rest before rolling it out.

5. Saute the onion in the olive oil, they should be nicely caramelized. Allow to cool.

6. Chop the spinach and mix with chopped walnuts, pomegranate seeds, feta, lemon juice and the olive oil. Mix all with the sautéed onions.
Elle: I left out the pomegranate seeds.
Good ideas for alternatives: pine nuts, dried cranberry, dried cherry, goat cheese, small cubes or large grating of any cheese you like, lentils I added one night to some of the filling was a real winner.

7. Preheat the oven.
Elle: I lined the cookie sheet with a Silpat but parchment paper would equally as well.

8. With a light to good dusting of flour on your counter, roll the dough ball into a thin 6-inch circle. I tried to really fill these and used at least 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the filling for each one.
Elle: I rolled out the dough and cut 4-inch circles with a round cutter, then filled them and sealed, pretty much like the recipe description below.

Pile 1/2 cup of the filling, loosely measured, onto the center of the circle, leaving about 1 inch of dough exposed all around. Brush the exposed dough lightly with water. Imagining the circle to be a clock, lift up the edges of dough at the 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock positions to cover the top part of the filling and pinch firmly to seal, going all the way to 12 o’clock. Lift the 6 o’clock position of dough to meet in the center and pinch the two edges firmly to seal. The seams will look like an inverted Y. Set the pie on one of the prepared sheets.

9. Before putting into the oven, rush the pies with olive oil before baking.
Elle: I forgot to brush mine with anything.
10. Preheat oven.
11. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 375° to 380° depending on your oven.

Storing
Leftover pies can be frozen. When cool, arrange them on a baking sheet and freeze until solid. Transfer them to heavy-duty re-sealable plastic bags and freeze for up to 1 month. To reheat, thaw the pies in their wrapping, then set them on a baking sheet and pop into a preheated 350°F oven for 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Soup for the New Year

Happy New Year dear reader! I hope that your holidays were wonderful. With all of the rich foods I ate for the last month I'm ready for soup. It's usually fairly healthy, and perfect when the weather is chilly...which it is now here. Soup is one of my favorite foods...along with chocolate. I rarely write down recipes for the soups I make because my favorite ones are mixtures of onions, often garlic, sometimes carrots and celery, usually various veggies and broth, plus appropriate herbs and some pepper. I use what is in the pantry, in the fridge, in the garden and adjust the amounts both to what is on hand and what I feel like highlighting that day. Often the soup is a wonderful way to use up leftovers so I don't find little containers with exotic decomposed bits of this and that when I clean the fridge.

 Day before yesterday I finally found the time to make soup with my last garden grown butternut squash. The peeled chunks of squash were the most gorgeous golden color, even after being roasted in a very hot oven until soft. The pot also contained my usual chopped onions and some garlic, chunks of peeled garnet yam, chunks of a half a Granny Smith apple, peels left on, and chicken broth. After everything was nice and soft from simmering, I added cayenne pepper to contrast with the sweetness of the squash, apple and yams. I also added some ground ginger and some thyme, rosemary and mint for herbs plus lots of freshly ground black pepper.

I used an immersion blender to smooth it out a bit, but there was still plenty of texture. I also added a half cup of buttermilk and a half cup regular milk, plus some more broth until I had just the right consistency.

A few days before I had made a meatloaf with some ground pork, similar herbs to those used in the soup, onion, garlic, cooked bulgher wheat, feta cheese and Parmesan cheese. Once it was baked we had it for dinner with a nice salad, but there was still some left.

At dinnertime yesterday I had one of those 'light bulb' moments when I realized that the flavors of the meatloaf would go really well with those of the soup. I also decided that the soup needed some greens. Just before I was ready to serve, I reheated the meatloaf and cut it into bite sized chunks. In two soup bowls I placed handfuls of washed baby spinach, then microwaved the bowls on high for 2 minutes to wilt the greens. The soup was ladled on top and the chunks of meatloaf topped it all. The photo only shows the soup, with no spinach or meatloaf chunks...seems I forgot to take a photo at dinnertime and was able to do a quick snapshot yesterday at lunchtime when Sweetie was just about ready to polish off the last of the soup in this unadorned state.

The dinnertime soup looked lovely with that golden colored soup and some green from the spinach when I stirred it up. It also smelled wonderful! Best of all the flavors all came together. Sweetie is convinced that this is the best soup I've ever made. I'll let him think that until the next time that inspiration strikes!

Butternut Squash Soup with Spinach

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 average-sized Butternut Squash
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium yellow onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 medium to large sweet potato or yam
½ large Granny Smith Apple
2 ½ - 3 cups low-sodium chicken stock
½ cup milk
½ cup fat-free buttermilk
½ teaspoon dried ginger powder
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon dried mint
¼ teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
fresh ground pepper to taste (I used a LOT - gave it a nice kick)
a large handfuls washed baby spinach for each serving
meatloaf chunks (optional)

1. Peel and seed the squash. Cut into 1/2 inch chunks. In a large food safe bag (I use recycled plastic bags from the produce section of the grocery store), combine the squash chunks, 1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil, salt and pepper. Spread the squash chunks on a parchment lined baking sheet and roast in a preheated 400 degree F oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

2. Peel onion and chop. Set aside. Peel potato and apples and cut into ¼ inch chunks.

3. Over medium heat in a large saucepan/stock pot, heat 1 tablespoon oil and stir onion and garlic until tender.

4. Add stock, yam chunks, apple chunks, and seasonings. Give it a good stir, reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 20 minutes until the yam and apple chunks are fork tender. Add the reserved roasted squash chunks and stir. Heat another 2-3 minutes to heat the squash. Remove from heat.

5. In a blender or food processor scoop about ½ of the mixture into blender. On low speed, blend until nicely pureed. While doing this, add about ¼ cup of milk and ¼ cup of buttermilk until creamy. Transfer this to a bowl or a 2nd pot. Alternately, use an immersion blender to puree the whole pot of soup in the pot, being sure to add the milk and buttermilk (a total of ½ cup each milk and buttermilk) .

6. Repeat step 5, adding another ¼ cup of milk and ¼ cup buttermilk and transfer to bowl or pot; continue until all soup has been creamed.

7. Put soup back on very low heat, stirring to blend, and adding lots of black pepper...yum! Simmer for 15 minutes and taste soup. Adjust seasonings and, if needed, more broth, to get the consistency you like. Simmer another 2 minutes at very low heat.

8. To serve, place a handful of washed baby spinach leaves in the bottom of each microwavable bowl for the number you are serving. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Top each portion of wilted spinach with a serving of the soup. Garnish as desired. For a hearty soup, top with chunks of warm meatloaf as I did.

Buttery Ravioli

I'm not a big fan of standard time, having decided years ago that daylight savings time is far better and should just be the time we use year 'round. It makes no sense to me that as the days grow shorter we switch to  standard time where an extra hour at the beginning and end of the day is in darkness or nearly so. Sweetie has been playing tennis with his friends after they finish work for most of the spring, summer and fall. Once the time was moved to standard they had to quit playing an hour earlier. If that meant that in the morning it would be light maybe I could understand but the days are so short by the time that daylight savings time ends that it is still pretty dark at 7 am, which became 6 am. Does that mean that there is more light at 8 am, which became 7 am? A little but hardly enough to warrant switching.

For me the worst part is that my photos of food suffer. I mostly use natural daylight for my shots and so that means middle of the day photos. When I'm trying to get a good photo of breakfast or dinner food I turn on all the lights I can, but everything takes on a golden tone. Sometimes that is pretty, sometimes not.

Tonight I cooked a lucious dish for dinner. It closely resembled one I had for lunch at a Santa Rosa restaurant a week before. The photo makes it look more orange than it really was, but those round butternut squash ravioli were a bit orange to begin with. You can't see it, but underneath there is a bed of fresh baby spinach. On top of that there is a warm mixture of fresh white corn, cut off the cob, mixed with diced red and yellow bell pepper and just a hint of finely chopped red onion. Next come the just cooked ravioli and a sprinkle of cubed fresh butternut squash which had been roasted until very soft and tender inside and a bit crusty on the outside. A drizzle of melted butter to which a lot of fresh, minced, sage was added and you have the dish. It was a wonder of contrasts...crisp chilled spinach, warm, soft, buttery ravioli, crunch but warm corn, zesty red bell pepper, zingy red onion, very herby sage. Sweetie loved it and ate every last bit. I served it with some sliced heirloom tomatoes and corn muffins. It was almost comfort food and seemed very much a harvest meal.Totally delicious!

The key for this dish is planning. The squash needs to be roasted first. The spinach has to be washed and dried and put in the fridge to crisp up. It doesn't take lond to cut the corn from the cob or dice the peppers or chop the onion and sage, but those are good things to do while the water comes to a boil for the ravioli. While they cook you can melt the butter and add the sage, slice and arrange and dress the tomato slices and heat the corn mixture. Just before the pasta is done is the best time to layer the spinach in the bowls. While the cooked pasta drains you can add the warm corn mixture on top of the spinach, then the pasta, the roasted squash and the butter drizzle. It's a good idea to serve it right away while the pasta is still warm and the spinach hasn't wilted from the warm elements in the dish.

Butternut Squash Ravioli with Warm Corn Salad, Spinach, Butternut Squash and Sage Butter

2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash, seeds and stringy parts removed
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
4-5 cups fresh baby spinach
2 ears fresh corn, husks and silks removed
1/2 medium red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1/4 medium yellow bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion
4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage
1 5-oz. package fresh butternut squash and cheese ravioli, uncooked

Toss the butternut squash cubes in a plastic bag with the oil, salt and pepper. Spread on a parchment lined baking sheet and roast in a preheated 450 degree oven for 10 minutes. Stir and roast another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and keep warm.

Wash and drain and dry the baby spinach. Wrap in a tea towel and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Using a sharp knife, cut the corn from the cobs. Dice the red and yellow peppers into 1/4 inch dice. In a microwave safe bowl combine the corn kernels, all the peppers, the red onion. Set aside.

Heat 4 quarts water in a large pot over high heat until it comes to a boil. About 10 minutes before you plan to serve the dish, slide the ravioli into the water and stir. Continue to stir and/or turn the ravioli over as the pasta cooks, with the heat on medium-high, for 5-6 minutes or until pasta is tender.

While pasta cooks, mix the melted butter and fresh sage and keep warm.

Heat the corn mixture in the microwave on HALF power for 2-3 minutes, until just barely warm.

In a large bowl, like a soup bowl, layer the fresh spinach, topped by the corn mixture. Gently remove the pasta from the simmering water when it is cooked and drain in a collander. When drained, place about 5 ravioli for each serving on top of the corn mixture in the bowl. Scatter the warm squash cubes over and drizzle with the sage butter. Serve at once. Serves 2.

What to Do with the Rest of the Beans

Only one cup of cooked cranberry beans were left after making the awesome Cranberry Bean Salad. I cleaned out the fridge today and there they were...poor, unloved beans. I also found that the crisper had ample amounts of fresh spinach, half a yellow onion, some red bell pepper that needed using up, lots of celery and some carrots that were starting to dry out. There was no doubt in my mind that the answer was...SOUP. With the fog scheduled to roll in by dinnertime I knew it would be cool enough to enjoy some soup. The fridge clean out also inspired me to make some salmon egg rolls, but that's for another post.


I often don't post soups that I make because it seems so simple to me to make soup. This time it turned out so well that I want the recipe just as I made it for future reference. It is still pretty simple, but these days I forget what I had for dinner last night, so it is likely I won't remember the exact proportions and that might just be the secret for why this soup was so savory and delicious.

I started, as I usually do, with chopped onion, sauteed in a little olive oil. Garlic goes in after the onion has had some time to soften. Chopped celery and red pepper went in next, followed closely by chopped carrot. That all cooked for about 3 minutes before I added some yellow zucchini, covered the pot, turned the heat way down, and sweated the mixture for a while...about 10 minutes.

Then I gave it a good stir and turned the heat up to high...that allowed the excess liquid to steam off and also some of the veggies had some nice browned spots on them. Before brown could turn to black I added chopped tomato including juice. That deglazed the pan nicely! Fresh spinach was stirred in until it wilted. The beans were added, along with thyme, sage, dried orange peel, paprika, and pepper. Again the the pot was covered and the heat turned low. Another 10 minutes allowed all those wonderful flavors to combine. After uncovering again I added some broth and gave it all a stir. Covered again the mixture simmered another 20 minutes.

The soup smelled sooo good and tasted even better. Often I try a new recipe and make notes right away on what to do differently next time. This time I wouldn't change a thing. Quite unusual, but now you know why I want to save this recipe...and why I want to share it with you.

Cranberry Bean and Veggie Soup
serves 2-4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1-2 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1/2 medium zucchini (any color) sliced lengthwise in quarters and then sliced in 1/4 inch slices
1-2 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped...keep the juice for the pot
3-4 cups fresh spinach, rinsed
1 cup cooked cranberry beans (see THIS recipe for cooking the beans)
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon dried orange peel
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
pepper to taste
1 can (1 3/4 cups) vegetable or chicken broth

In a soup pot heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, stir and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, stir and cook another minute. Add the celery, bell pepper, and carrot and stir. Cook for 3 minutes. Stir in the zucchini and stir. Cover and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Uncover and turn heat to high. Cook another 3 minutes, stirring about every 30 seconds. Vegetables will brown a little bit.

Add the chopped tomatoes to the pot and stir. Lower the heat to medium. Use a wooden or nylon spoon to scrap any dark brown or black bits from the bottom and sides of the pan. Add the fresh spinach and stir. Let cook another minute to wilt the spinach. Add the cooked beans, dried thyme, dried orange peel, paprika, sage and pepper to taste. Cover and cook 10 minutes over low heat.

Uncover, add the broth, recover the pot and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve. If desired, sprinkle a little grated Parmesan cheese over the soup in the bowl before serving.

Pizza Inspiration

Inspiration comes from lots of places. I like to see what is going on in Kitchen Stadium on the Food Channel, what other food bloggers are up to, I read lots of cookbooks and sometimes magazines like Bon Appétit that focus on food.

This month's issue had a gorgeous pizza on the cover and a suggestion inside that a pizza party is fun to have, with enough dough for everyone to top their pizza their way.

Since I'm just starting to feel like I'm not breathing underwater, the energy required to host a party is way beyond me, but I did like the idea of freshly baked pizza with my own toppings. The dough recipe in the mag was for no-knead dough but I really like the sourdough pizza dough I've made in the past and I did have some toss-off from feeding my sourdough starter. I fed it, allowed it to sit out for a few hours, then covered it and let it sit overnight.

Yesterday I turned it into pizza dough. Because I had the time I let it rise once, punched it down and let it rise again. I also used bread flour in the dough instead of all-purpose flour. The result was a dough with good gluten strands


and one that baked up crisp where the dough was thin and chewy where it was thicker, just the way I like it. It didn't flop like it sometimes has in the past but was nice and firm so I could pick up a piece and eat it out of hand.

For toppings I made two veggie and two with pepperoni and mushrooms.

The veggie one had plain Greek yogurt, shredded mozzarella cheese, asparagus coated with olive oil and a little garlic salt, and baby spinach which had been pre-wilted to release some of the excess moisture. Fresh chopped Italian parsley and some fresh thyme leaves added just enough herbal zing. Parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top was the perfect finishing touch.

For the meat ones I started with a very small amount of pasta sauce, some of the Greek yogurt, the same herbs, very thin slices of pepperoni and thinly sliced mushrooms. Parmesan on top here, too. For the second meat one I also added some shredded mozzarella over the pasta sauce and I liked that additional melty cheese a lot.

These were excellent pizzas even if, because each was baked separately on the baking stone, I was up and down a lot while they baked. I liked the veggie ones the best but Sweetie liked the meat ones best. If you make these you can top them with whatever toppings you enjoy, just be sure to go lightly on the toppings if you want your pizza to have a good crust. Too many toppings overwhelms the best dough. If you don't have sourdough starter, there are lots of good pizza dough recipes online.


Homemade Pizza

Sourdough Pizza Dough
Sponge:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup barely warm water
1 cup sourdough starter

Dough:
½ teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ – 2 ½ cups bread flour
Make a slurry of the flour and water. Mix the sourdough starter with the slurry and whisk to combine thoroughly. Let this mixture sit at room temperature for two hours. If you will be making the rest of the dough another day, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate this starter mix.

When you are ready to make the dough and make pizza, put the starter mix into a stand mixer bowl and stir the sugar, olive oil and salt into the starter mix.

Using the dough hook, gradually add the flour until a dough forms. Knead with the mixer for 4-5 minutes, adding more flour a tablespoon at a time as needed.

(If not using a stand mixer, put two cups of the flour in a bowl. Make a well in the center and add the mixture of starter, sugar, olive oil and salt that you’ve whisked together in another bowl. Stir to mix the wet mix into the flour until a dough forms. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead in enough flour to make a smooth and elastic dough which can still be a little sticky.)

Once dough is smooth and elastic, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for another minute, adding flour if necessary to fully blend the dough.

Form dough into a ball. Place in a lightly oiled bowl or other container good for dough to rise in. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and a tea towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

When it is about 45 minutes before you plan to bake the pizza, preheat the oven to 500 degrees F and if you have one place a baking stone in the oven to preheat, too.
On a lightly floured surface place one quarter of the dough. Using floured hands, stretch the dough into a rough circle, keeping a rim of thicker dough around the edges. Some people like to toss the dough to do this, but mine always ends up on the floor if I do, so I just push the dough or hold it by the edge and work my way around.

Sometimes I let the stretched dough sit for a couple of minutes, then stretch it some more. Place the stretched dough (about 9-10 inches in diameter) on a piece of baking parchment.

My Toppings:
1/4 - 1/2 cup pasta sauce - if too watery boil until thickened
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2-3 oz shredded mozzarella
1 oz thinly sliced pepperoni
1 oz thinly sliced fresh mushrooms
2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian Parsley
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or use oregano)
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
6 stalks fresh asparagus - washed, dried, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon olive oil
sprinkle garlic salt or salt
1/2 cup fresh baby spinach, steamed for 1 minute, then drained

Top the dough as desired, leaving the outer rim untopped except for when sprinkling the final Parmesan cheese. I used a tomato based sauce that included canned tomato sauce, canned diced tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, onions, basil, oregano and garlic, all cooked together over low heat for an hour until most of the liquid had evaporated. The topping over the sauce for the meat version was dollops of plain Greek yogurt, thinly sliced pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, chopped fresh Italian parsley and fresh thyme leaves and Parmesan cheese.

For the veggie version plain Greek yogurt was thinly spread over the dough and a few dollops of thicker yogurt added here and there. Shredded mozzarella cheese was sprinkled over that. Previously I had washed, dried and thinly sliced on an angle about 1 cup of fresh asparagus spears. I put these in a bag and doused them with 1 teaspoon olive oil, sprinkled on a bit of garlic salt, then shook the bag to coat the asparagus pieces with oil and seasoning. This allows them to stay moist in the high heat needed to cook the dough. The asparagus were distributed evenly over the mozzarella, some lightly steamed baby spinach leaves were added, then a sprinkle of freshly chopped Italian parsley and fresh thyme leaves (just like the meat pizzas) was added. A final snow of grated Parmesan cheese left them ready for the oven.

Baking notes: The high heat and baking stone really combine to make a nice crust. I left each pizza on its piece of parchment and slid it onto the baking stone with a pizza peel. After 5 minutes I used the parchment to turn the pizza 180 degrees and baked it for 4 minutes more. I baked one of the veggie ones first, then kept it warm in my toaster oven while I baked the meat one. We dined on those two while the other two were baking.

If no stone is available, turn a jelly roll pan upside down on an oven rack in the preheated oven and immediately slide on the parchment paper holding the pizza.

Bake pizzas until golden brown. Your timing may be different as ovens differ. Remove from oven to cutting board, cut and serve. If you are making more than one pizza (recipe makes 4 crusts) prepare it on another piece of parchment and once you remove one pizza, put the next one in the oven.

Different

Although most of us like to have our moment, or time to shine, to be special, in general we all want to fit in with others, to be part of a family, of a group, of our community.

To be different is often considered to be a trial or hardship given the almost universal desire to blend. When I was growing up my parents encourage us to be different. Maybe that was their way of dealing with having a large family when the suburban norm of the time was 2.5 children, not 8. The reason doesn't really matter and most of the time I'm grateful to them for encouraging us to be ourselves, to find our own path and not try to be like the latest flavor or fad. The only downside is that most of the time one also feels just a beat out of step with the rest. I did that when I tried jazzercise and ended up turning the wrong way and bumping into the other dancers. Maybe that's one reason why slow weight training appeals to me. The only one I'm being different than is myself if I'm able to do better than last time.

Today is all about being different. Those who were born or married or died on a February 29th Leap day won't have a repeat for four years instead of the usual one year...imagine how that feels!

To celebrate the oddness of the day, I created an odd recipe. Part cornbread, part spoonbread, part fish loaf this one is tasty but might not get repeated for four years, either.

A piece of leftover grilled salmon caught my eye yesterday at lunchtime. We had enjoyed the salmon the previous night for dinner and the leftover piece was fairly small. For some reason I thought that it would go well with corn and spinach and first considered an omelet but then decided to go with cornbread. I usually keep a box of cornbread mix in the pantry that makes just 6 muffins, so it is basically half a batch. You mix the contents of the box with one egg and one third cup of milk or water and bake it at 400 degrees F.

The enhanced variation of cornbread came together quickly. I increased the egg to two and the milk to 3/4 cup which increased the moisture...a bit too much as it turned out, at least for a loaf pan. I baked it at a lower temperature and in a loaf pan. Once the mixture had baked for fifteen minutes I checked the interior...still a batter...so I dug in with a large spoon and turned the top toward the sides to let the interior cook more quickly. Perhaps I should have just let it bake at 400...I'll try that next time.

It made a delicious savory lunch.


The corn muffin part was moist and flavorful and a bit like a spoonbread, the salmon pieces warm and delicious. The spinach was just barely cooked and still bright green. Very enjoyable and there was enough left over at lunch to serve two of us a nice portion at dinner last night. Good thing I enjoy salmon and never tire of it. Sweetie added some barbeque sauce to his dinner portion and liked the result.

For those of you who are interested in what is going on here at the farm, Sweetie finished burying the last of the conduit with the fence wire. I went to the doctor and was told that I might have a virus as well as the hay fever and to avoid fresh grass, so no helping Sweetie.

The seedlings of zucchini, chard and tomato are getting bigger in the sunspace. The daffodils are blooming and tulips will be soon.

Sweetie made great progress yesterday in PT, being able to push his shoulder back and open up his diaphragm for better breathing. His overhead reach has improved, too. Better results at racquetball today, too.

Salmon and Spinach Cornbread
Serves 3-4

1 package corn muffin or bread mix for 6 corn muffins
Note: If you only have corn bread or muffin mix for 12 muffins, make half the mix into muffins and use half for this recipe.
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk (I used 2%)
1/8 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground if possible
1 cup fresh spinach leaves, stems removed, chopped
1 cup flaked cooked salmon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a loaf pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl combine the corn muffin mix, eggs, milk and pepper. Stir just until dry ingredients are mixed wet. Pour 1/3 of the batter into the prepared pan.
Sprinkle half the spinach and half the salmon over the mixture in the pan.


Pour in another 1/3 of the muffin mixture and repeat layering with the remainder of the spinach and salmon.

Pour remaining muffin mixture over the spinach and salmon and poke down any spinach or salmon floating to the top. Smooth the top and place pan into preheated oven.

Set timer for 15 minutes. At that time check interior. If middle is still batter, scoop the top off, using a large spoon, and set it damp side up to the side of the loaf pan, exposing the batter in the middle.

Continue cooking for 5 -10 minutes more until the batter towards the center holds its shape. Place the top pieces down to re-establish the loaf shape. Let cool 3-4 minutes on a rack.

Serve warm. Best served by scooping from the pan with a large spoon.

Pork Yumminess for a Cold Night

Sometimes things just come together. The plants go in the ground just before a gentle rain falls, followed by warmth and sunshine, so they grow well from the start. A job opens up after months of not much interest when resumes were sent, then housing nearby is easy to find and the move happens just before a big snowfall. Requests for a speaker for an important meeting fall through and then, at the last minute, you get a 'yes' from the speaker you wanted the most. Things like that brighten you day, week or month.

Today things came together on the dinner front. I knew we had some boneless pork that needed to be cooked, I had a yen for polenta, inspection of the produce bin showed that we had both fresh mushrooms and baby spinach. After that it was just a matter of remembering other dishes that were good and borrowing from them. Sautéed onion, mushrooms, celery and garlic can be the base for any number of delicious savory meals. Sage and thyme go so well with pork and with mushrooms.

Julia Child often threw some orange peel into this kind of braised meat dish, so why not this one? Ditto with the red wine and touch of tomato sauce. My mom's stew recipe uses Worcestershire so I added some of that, too, plus a bit of leftover chicken broth to keep the meat submerged in liquid as it braised.

I've always loved polenta with a little Parmesan cheese added and I know that this sort of hearty braised meat goes well with polenta. The spinach? It was the thing that pulled it all together, plus the bright green color is so appealing.

Have fun with this. The wine could be replaced with beer, ale or stout, or even white wine. The fresh mushrooms could be replaced with dried and reconstituted ones. Add more garlic, skip the orange peel, replace the celery with fennel. I'm sure you will still have a wonderful dish that will warm you up on a cold night as it did Sweetie and Elle.


Pork Ragout with Spinach over Polenta

2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
4 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/4 lbs boneless pork (I used country rib meat), cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh sage
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried orange peel or a 1-inch by 2-inch piece of fresh orange peel minced
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup chicken broth
Polenta for 2 - 4 people
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups baby spinach leaves, rinsed and drained

In a large, heavy bottomed ovenproof pot heat 1-2 tablespoons of the olive oil and saute' the onions, mushrooms, celery and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes, stirring often.

While vegetables are cooking, heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Blot the meat cubes if necessary. Dry meat browns better than cubes with moisture one them. Brown the pork cubes on all sides, working with about 1/4 of the meat at a time. As the pork finishes browning, transfer to the vegetable pot.

To the vegetables and pork add the sage, thyme, orange peel, salt and pepper, red wine, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce and chicken broth. Cover the pot and place over medium heat on the stove top while you preheat the oven.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. When oven is hot remove the pot of pork and vegetables from the heat and put it into the oven, still covered. Cook for 1 hour, checking in the last 15 minutes to make sure there is still enough liquid so that the contents don't burn.

When the pork has about 15 minutes left, prepare polenta according to the package directions. When cooked stir in the Parmesan cheese.

When the polenta is almost done, remove the pot from the oven, stir in the spinach, and set aside, covered for 2-3 minutes to wilt the spinach. Serve the pork and vegetable mixture over the polenta in wide bowls. Garnish with more grated Parmesan if desired. Serves 2- 4

Butternut Squash Ravioli and Spinach

My recent trip to Seattle not only included a visit to the University of Washington Arboretum where the photo above was taken (I just LOVE autumn colors so had to post one more!) but also a wonderful dinner at Smash, a small restaurant which focuses on small plates and nice wines. I was particularly taken with an entree which had a bed of spinach topped with luscious tender ravioli filled with ginger enhanced butternut squash. A silky browned butter cream sauce with a hint of Marsala pulled it all together. I decided to see if I could make something similar at home.


The first thing I did was to purchase some fresh pasta ravioli made with butternut squash and sage. The filling had more cheese than the restaurant made ones, but they looked like they would work just fine. Then I made sure I had fresh baby spinach, more butternut squash that I could prepare to go on the side and the ingredients for the sauce. Although the extra squash might seem like too much, ravioli doesn't really have a lot of squash in that filling so additional veggies seemed like a good idea. I used to have Marsala, but couldn't find it and the sauce really needs it. Marsala must not be too popular...the bottle I purchased at the Safeway was dusty on the shoulders.

The real challenge was replicating the sauce because it really does bring all the other flavors together. I started with the ingredients for a basic white sauce: butter, flour, milk & cream, and salt and pepper. In addition I added some ginger because the ravioli I purchased lacked the ginger in the filling that the restaurant used. I also added some Parmesan cheese, a dash of sage and the all-important Marsala. To capture the nuttiness found in the restaurant sauce, I browned the butter gently until it was a medium golden brown and then added the flour/ginger combination. When it came time to add the Marsala I added one teaspoon, tasted, then added a second teaspoon. That was all it needed, but it added just the right hint in both flavor and fragrance to let you know it was there.


The butternut squash on the side wasn't part of the restaurant meal, but Sweetie is used to big plates, not the minimal ones found at trendy restaurants. He really liked the contrast of the delicate ravioli and creamy sauce with the squash which had been pan roasted and was still slightly al dente. It was a slight bit sweeter, too, which was a nice counterpoint to the spinach. Although I could have seasoned the spinach I remembered that the restaurant seemed to use plain spinach, wilted, under the ravioli, trusting no doubt that the seasonings in the sauce and pasta would suffice. I used about 5 cups baby spinach, but would use more if I made this again.

Timing is important when making this dish. Plan on having everyone ready to be at the table once the pasta is done. Parsley can be minced ahead of time. The pasta water needed to be fully boiling and then the pasta only takes 5 minutes to cook, so the sauce should be made ahead a bit and kept warm while the pasta cooks. If the spinach has been rinsed and put into a microwave safe bowl, the wilting takes only a minute or two after starting the pasta. Of all the elements, the pan roasted squash takes the most time but it can be made ahead and reheated in the microwave once the spinach is wilted and the pasta is in to boil. Once the pasta is just cooked, it can be drained and the plate put together quickly. Serve at once while everything is still hot.

I hope you try this one. None of the elements are difficult as long as you can find ready-made butternut squash raviolis. It makes an impressive and delicious plate of pasta and vegetables and somehow seems very luxurious as you eat it. The sauce makes enough for 4 but I only had pasta enough for two, so the recipe is for two. You could increase the ingredients to use the whole squash and buy a couple bags of baby spinach (10 oz each) and double the amount of pasta to serve four and there should be enough sauce.


Butternut Squash Ravioli
with Wilted Baby Spinach, Pan-Roasted Butternut Squash and Browned Butter Sauce

1 medium butternut squash
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon sage
1 tablespoon grated onion
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
2 cups milk or a combination of milk and cream (I used 1 1/2 cups evaporated non-fat milk and 1/2 cup "1/2 and 1/2" light cream)
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons Marsala
dash ground sage
1 package butternut squash ravioli (about 8 oz. for two)
1 bag (10 oz) baby spinach, well rinsed but not dried
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, minced

To make the Pan-Roasted Squash:Cut the butternut squash in half. Reserve the other half for another use and peel one half. Cut to reveal any seeds and remove seeds and stringy materials from the inside if there. Cut the squash into 1/2 inch dice. Set aside.


Heat a skillet (cast iron works best for this) over high heat. While skillet is heating, place the squash cubes, olive oil, salt, sage, and grated onion into a gallon zipper bag or large plastic bag. Close and shake vigorously to coat the squash pieces with the other ingredients.

When a drop of water dropped on the skillet sizzles, add the seasoned squash cubes. Use a spatula to flatten the mixture and compact it a bit. Let it sit undisturbed for 30 seconds, then reduce the heat to medium-high and cook for another 30 seconds.

Turn the squash with a wide spatula to bring the browned side up and get the unbrowned side in touch with the pan. Cook another minutes. Repeat. Add the maple syrup and stir to combine it with the squash mixture. Flatten the squash mixture again and let cook 30 seconds. Turn the mixture a few more times, letting the squash brown a bit before turning. Check for how done the squash is by tasting a piece. It should be softened but still have a little resistance, like al dente pasta. Correct seasonings if needed. Remove from the heat and reheat in the microwave just before serving.

To make the Browned Butter Sauce:In a medium saucepan with a heavy bottom, melt the butter over medium-high heat. As the butter melts, swirl the pan to mix the butter solids in with the clarified butter. Continue to cook and swirl until the butter is colored a medium golden brown. Remove from the heat. Combine the flour and ginger in a small bowl. Whisk the flour mixture into the browned butter. The residual heat will cook the flour enough so there is no need to return the mixture to the heat. Whisk the milk in, all at once, and continue whisking to thoroughly combine the milk mixture and flour mixture. Return to medium heat and, whisking constantly, cook until the mixture thickens, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the Parmesan, Marsala, and sage. Taste for seasonings and add salt and pepper as desired. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the top of the sauce to keep it from forming a skin. Set aside until needed for plating the pasta. When that time comes, remove the plastic wrap and gently heat the sauce again, whisking as needed.

Start a large pot half filled with water to boil. Add 2 teaspoons salt if you like your pasta salted.


To make the spinach:Take the washed spinach and place in a microwave safe bowl.Cover with waxed paper or a plain paper towel. Set aside.

The pasta:Once the water comes to a full boil and you know that you can serve in about7-10 minutes, reduce the heat to medium (so that water is barely boiling) and gently place the ravioli, one by one, into the pot. Start your timer for 5 minutes. About half way through that time you may want to flip the ravioli over but don't if they start to break up or lose filling.

Now, once the pasta is in the boiling water, you can reheat the butternut squash for 2-3 minutes in the microwave. Next wilt the spinach by cooking on high 1-2 minutes in the microwave. Remove the plastic from the sauce and gently reheat. Get your plates ready.

At 5 minutes (or at whatever time is recommended for cooking the pasta by the manufacturer), drain the pasta gently. Place half the spinach on each plate, spoon on a little of the sauce, place half the pasta on each plate (leaving some space on the side for the pan-roasted squash) and spoon a generous amount of sauce over the pasta. Sprinkle some minced parsley on top. Spoon some of the squash on the side and repeat with the other plate. Serve at once.

A dry red wine goes well with this dish. Toast the cook. He or she will deserve it after putting this meal together.