Walnut and Spinach Quesadillas (as tweaked by moi)

Having a teenager who suddenly decides he wants to be a vegetarian is a challenge I hadn't anticipated. I confess: I feel a little betrayed that my home cooking isn't cutting it, but I know it has nothing really to do with me. Trying to develop Vegetarian dishes that wow - we tried out tofu the other night: marinated it with a host of savory flavors and then tried it seared and added to stir fry, and then we rolled some in panko to see how it differed. Apparently marinating makes the tofu much more tender and melt-in-your-mouth.Our most recent foray into Vegetarian cooking was Walnut-Spinach Quesadillas. I found the recipe online but it called for making a Walnut-Black Olive Butter, which frankly, didn't blow my skirt up, so we improvised.

The Walnut and Spinach Quesadillas were a lot better tasting than I thought they would be (Resident doubter here, reporting for duty), and the Professor was right there, doing his part in making them.

We started with:
a heated cast iron skillet with some lovely extra virgin olive oil added to it,
then
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
half an onion, chopped semi-fine
6-8 baby bella mushrooms (was about a cup and a half)
1 and a quarter cups walnuts, chopped roughly (tip of your pinkie size)
salt and pepper
parsely flakes

We sauteeed this until it was tender, adding a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar(for meatiness)
and a quarter cup of water near the end, to help the walnuts soften - the water was fully absorbed before we took it off the heat. This concoction went into a bowl to cool while we cleaned up the skillet and got it ready again (more lovely olive oil)

On a cutting board we assembled the quesadillas, using:
1 flour tortilla
handful of shredded mozzarella (I think gorgonzola would be killer in this as well, btw)
serving spoonful of walnut/mushroom stuff
handful of fresh spinach leaves (take the big stems off when you wash this)

Grill in skillet until brown and crispy on both sides, remove and cut in half.

We served this with fresh sliced local tomatoes and it was delicious!
As a non-Vegetarian, I was pleasantly surprised by how meaty and satisfying this dish was.
Thumbs up!!!

Sadly, no picture this time: we ate them too fast!

Patience My Ass - I Need A Cold Front! (Recipe Included)

Where the hell is Fall? It's September 28th and the humidity is still omnipresent, the temperature at night is still around 70, and dammit, that shit has to go! Sure, sure, further north they get winter earlier and spring later, but right now they aren't sphitzing whilst trying to drink a cup of coffee, or having to crank the air conditioner to enjoy a bowl of butternut squash soup. Right now, the leaves are changing further north, and the apples and pumpkins are piled up at the roadside stands. We have apples and pumpkins piling up too, but the current state of humidity will cause our pumpkins to rot and mold by Halloween, and don't get me started on the soft mealy cardboard that passes for apples in this part of the world, or the Koolaid-sweet cider that's made from them.

I know where this is leading - I need a road trip to the north. I'm not going to get one though and it's making me very grumpy. I'm trying to hold out - I hear tell the great cold winds of Canadia are on their way, that by the weekend it will feel like fall, and I want to believe, but right now the air is still soupy and it seems a faint flickering light at the end of a long and miserably hot steam tunnel.

But in the meantime, because it is fall and because somewhere there is lovely crisp fall weather that warrants it, I'm making butternut squash soup. A friend on Facebook asked me to share my recipe for it, so I wrote it out, even though I never follow an actual recipe for it. I don't have recipes for anything but baked goods because, cooking in my opinion should be less regimented, and more open to variation. So take this recipe as a place to jump off from and do something wild with it to propititate the Autumnal God of the North Wind.

Butternut Squash Soup

2 large butternut squash, peeled, cored, and cut into bite-sized pieces (more or less)

1 large onion, chopped semi-fine

2-6 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed

half a stick of butter (see now, I used a whole stick last time, and some olive oil)

2 cups dry white wine

2-3 containers chicken stock or broth (8-12 cups, approx.)

In a large heavy bottomed stockpot melt butter and saute onion and garlic until tender, add cubed squash and saute until browning occurs on bottom of pot. Add salt and pepper to taste at this point.

Deglaze with 2 cups of white wine, let alcohol cook off a little, then add chicken stock/or broth to cover the squash. put on the lid and let boil for about 15-20 minutes. I also added a tablespoon of bacon fat, to add flavor and to tenderize the squash.

When squash is tender, mash up with potato masher, add more stock and cook at medium heat, stirring and mashing for about 30 minutes. The lid is off at this point, allowing condensation, so soup will become thicker. Squash will begin to have an "applesauce" consistency and get thick. Keep adding stock until you are ready to serve or until it is the thickness you desire. (when reheating, you will have to add more stock, as it thickens when it cools) I know that a lot of people prefer to use an immersion blender to speed things up, but I personally think the slow cooking approach breaks the squash down just as well, and allows more time to build flavor with your components.

If desired, add 2 Tablespoons of horseradish to soup and stir in well. The heat will mellow it, but it shouldn't be more than an earthy taste at the end of a spoonful, and a bit of a warm glow on your throat. The longer the horseradish cooks into the soup the less prevalent it will be as itself.

Serve in a wide, shallow bowl, garnished with crisp chopped bacon and green onion, or julienned rare roast beef and green onion. It is also very good with a creamy blue cheese and candied green apples (leave out the horseradish for this variation). Fresh crusty bread or buttermilk cheddar biscuits are a good accompaniment.

Bea's Southwestern Stuffed Peppers

Bea over at Trapped Under Something Heavy has been trying to eat healthier, and this is a recipe she came up with the idea for, based on her rice and beans dish. We kicked variations back and forth and this is what we came up with. It's really easy to make ahead of time, refrigerate, and pop in the oven 30-45 minutes before serving. You could serve a salad with it, though it has all the food groups represented in it, as is. I'm just saying...

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Start with:

1 onion, diced

2-3 cloves of garlic, diced

2-3 jalapenos, de-seeded and chopped

Saute the onion, garlic, and jalapeno in a large sauce pan with some olive oil and a bit of butter, until looking a little transparent.

Then add:

1 cup of rice (we like basmati or jasmine, but whatever floats your boat)

chili powder, to taste (we like about 2-3 teaspoons, maybe more - I go by smell)

While the rice, spice, and oniony-type stuff is sauteeing, open up a can of petite diced tomatoes and drain the liquid into a measuring cup. Add enough water to make 2 cups. Save the diced tomatoes.

When the rice, et al is looking a bit toasty and smelling a bit nutty, add the tomato-water, and the diced tomatoes. Stir and cover. Let come to a boil, then turn down to low heat for 10 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, grate about 1-2 cups of cheddar cheese (this is a preference thing, so add as much or as little as you like. I used Cabot Black Wax cheddar, because it's white and creamy, so it's presence wouldn't be as easily detected by my cheese-hating son - Muhahaha!)

Open a can of black beans; drain and rinse them.

If you're like me, and need a little meat in the mix, chop up a breast or two of chicken. I had some left over from another meal, where I had sauteed the chicken in olive oil with garlic and a bit of pepper.

Wash 6-8 medium peppers (maybe 4-6, if they're large) and cut off the tops. clean out the guts and set aside.

By this time the rice ought to be done, so take it off the heat and stir it. Add in the black beans, the cheese, and the chopped up chicken. mix well.

Fill each pepper and mound up slightly. These can be placed in a casserole dish and refrigerated for up to a couple of days in advance. When you're ready to bake, place them in an open casserole dish, with more grated cheddar on top. Drizzle a bit of olive oil around the peppers to help them roast and expand their flavor. Bake at the magic number (350 degrees) for about 30-45 minutes, depending on how done you like your peppers. Top with sour cream (we used the Breakstone's light) and serve.

They should look like this: Bon Appetit Ya'll!