We had a wonderful relaxed get together at Tim and Jerry’s house. I didn’t take a lot of photos. I cooked a lot. As vegans, we tend to bring our own food so we can make sure of enough to eat.
I experimented with winter squash. I roasted both a pumpkin (“Winter Luxury”) and a buttercup squash. Then pureed them separately and together. Then performed a taste test.
Clockwise from upper left: pure pumpkin, mixture, pure buttercup squash
The pumpkin easily pureed but was watery and had little flavor. The buttercup was sweet and delicious, but very dry and didn’t easily puree. There are major chunks in that bowl. The blend was just about right. The taste of the buttercup still came through, but the wet pumpkin really helped the texture. So our pies were a blend! And I brought the remaining mixture as a side dish, completely unadorned with spices or anything else.
My other big innovation this year: sage powder. I dried a few branches of sage in the house, then stripped off the leaves. Removed most of the stems. Then put it in the spice grinder. It came out delightfully fluffy. I don’t think it’s dry enough to jar yet, so I’m letting it sit out in this pan for awhile. Maybe it will lose some flavor…
Homemade sage powderMen in the kitchen – Jeff, Jerry, Sam
I posted on social media about having extra squash at the end of the year and requested recipes to use up squash. Eleanor sent one that was perfect. The recipe called for butternut squash, but I used a small butternut and a small red kuri. We polished this off in one meal – no leftovers, unfortunately. The kale came from the hoophouse, where it is growing like a champ.
Here’s the recipe. I didn’t use oil and the squash roasted just fine. I also didn’t have the fancy additions, so I just added some currants. The amounts for the dressing make quite a lot, so I mostly halved it.
Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Kale and Cider Dijon Dressing
Ingredients: FOR THE SQUASH: 4 cups cubed butternut squash (1/2 inch pieces) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 3/4 teaspoon ground coriander 3/4 teaspoon cumin 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg 1/8 teaspoon cayenne FOR THE SALAD DRESSING: 1 tablespoon whole grain Dijon mustard 2 tablespoons honey 1/4 cup cider vinegar 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (strained to catch the seeds) 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 cup olive oil FOR THE SALAD: 1 bunch lacinato kale, stripped off stems, rinsed and patted dry 4 cups cooked quinoa (1 cup dry) 1/3 cup roasted pumpkin (pepita) seeds 1/4 cup dried cranberries 1/4 cup golden raisins Salt and pepper to taste
Directions: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Toss the cubed butternut squash in the oil, sugar, paprika, salt, coriander, cumin, black pepper, nutmeg and cayenne. Spread out evenly onto a rimmed sheet pan and bake for 20 minutes. No need to toss, just rotate the pan halfway through. Meanwhile make the dressing. In a glass jar combine the mustard, honey, vinegars, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Add in the oil, secure the lid and shake well. In a large salad bowl add the chopped kale, cooked (warm) quinoa, roasted butternut squash, pepitas, dried cranberries and raisins. Season with a pinch or two of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Drizzle with 1/4 cup of the dressing or more to taste. Serve warm.
If you were starting new food traditions, what should be served on Easter? Lamb and ham are totally out, as vegans. And in a pandemic, not sure an extra trip to the store is warranted. I should be trying to eat what I grow, right? So one of these four beautiful squash is headed for the chopping block. And this should be the same every year.
I chose the largest Red Kuri for our Easter meal. We also had an arugula salad, a sort of dip made from frozen peas and fava beans, and a chocolate freezer pie (with squash as a prime ingredient). Felt very virtuous – and tasty actually. Jeff came over for a small dinner party.
Sam is stuffing the pre-roasted Red Kuri with a mixture of quinoa, shiitake mushrooms, dried cranberries, chopped walnuts, and flavorings.
Sam got me a food press. Turns out its known as a Torchietto in Italy, where it comes from.
I’m pretty excited about trying this out for oat milk and zucchini fritters and for pressing tofu. We’ll see what else we can do with it. Crush grapes or apples?
It was too much of a good thing, really. But we enjoyed ourselves and addressed the craving for sushi that’s been rumbling here.
White rice, mango, asparagus, cucumber, sweet potato, spicy shiitake, marinated tofu, purple rice, carrot, avocado, wasabi & pickled ginger!My roll with its sad ends. I admire the talent of sushi chefs.
I’m spending a lot of time in the kitchen. Really have nowhere else to go.
Big accomplishments this year:
Found a vegan pecan pie recipe, along with crust, that I really like. I’ve made it three times now. Last pie had a bit of molasses replacing some of the maple syrup, which I find to be a nice enhancement to deepen the flavor.
Developed a routine for making my own vegetable stock. No more purchasing those overpriced, overpackaged bricks of broth!
Pecan pie, with a bit of molassesReplenished jars of vegetable stock
My stock is loosely based on Rebecca Katz’s Magic Mineral Broth, although I don’t demand too much precision in ingredients. Both Sam and I have gotten more diligent about savings scraps in the freezer. When the bag of scraps gets full and/or the jars of broth get empty, it’s time to make broth.
I throw the frozen scraps into the stockpot. I usually add some potato, carrot, leek tops or what’s looking old in the fridge. Then throw in peppercorns, juniper berries, and kombu or other embellishments. It will simmer on the stovetop or woodstove for a couple of hours.
Then, after cooling, I use a measuring cup and strainer to decant broth into my two big jars. The jars are the perfect size for the amount of stock I get from a full pot. The jars are missing lids so I use the beeswax wraps and rubber bands.
I don’t bother freezing stock. That was just causing additional headaches that were complicating the process. If we don’t use it up in two weeks, I make some soup or just discard it on the compost. Happy with this process!
The marathon of holiday cooking started on Wednesday morning with two pies. A vegan pumpkin pie (really butternut squash and some sweet potato) and a vegan pecan pie.
And a beautiful brief snowfall, just perfect to make pies by.
Side yard with old path to clothesline and new tractor road to fruit yard highlightedFront yard overlooking bird feeder, orchard, and pile of wood chips
By Wednesday evening it was becoming clear that there would be too much food for Thanksgiving dinner. So we ate the kale farro salad for pre-thanksgiving dinner. An overlooked mealtime until this year!
Thursday morning’s bake was this main course: shepherd’s pie with mushroom lentil filling and polenta topping.
A relish tray to nibble while waiting for roasted vegetables – cheese (my cheat), kalamata olives, and pickled red onionsRoasted buttercup wedges with balsamic glazeRoasted Brussels sprouts with soy sauce and garlicTable setting for two. (Ignore the half-eaten pecan pie!)Cutting into the pumpkin pieYummy pie, lots of flavor.
We were overstuffed of course and have plenty of leftovers. It felt weird to have thanksgiving alone at our house due to COVID. But the food was fun and exciting and just the way we like it.
A busy kitchen this morning with frost on the ground and the woodstove going. The coziness almost mitigated the ominous news about the Supreme Court. I have to keep remembering to return my mind to mutual aid as a principle. Feed the hungry. And take care of the land that feeds us.
Pumpkin sliced and roastedReady to purée Two pounds of puréed pumpkin for pie or pancakesBeets from Lesley preparing for canningA single apple from our baby orchard. Edible and juicy but not too tasty.
We eat a whole-foods plant-based diet. Vegan plus. No meat, no seafood, no dairy, no eggs. No oil or other added fats. I cheat more often than Sam does. I enjoy finding new WFPB recipes. Highly recommended: the Paprika app, where I save all my recipes and make my grocery lists.
Here’s what I made last night (half eaten):
Vegan meatloaf
I’ve never been a huge fan of meatloaf, and in fact I loathed ground beef in any recipe although I ate it occasionally for many years. The texture of this vegan meatloaf was a little disturbing because it reminded me so much of ground beef.
But actually it tasted ok. Bland, but nourishing enough. And useful for sandwiches the next day. It would be better if pulsed less in the food processor to reduce the paste-like quality. And with the recommended barbecue sauce, which we didn’t have.
