recipes

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A Polar Vortex… of Flavor!

As the latest instance of the polar vortex moves away, I am left to re-ponder my understanding of the concept of ‘cold’, as the temperatures now seem almost spring-like in comparison!  But more seriously, the seeming antithesis of everything warm and green has left me increasingly anxious for spring. (I do enjoy living in the Midwest… I do enjoy living in the Midwest…)

We are just leaving soup month, but winter is still staring intently at us for the near future.  So- perhaps we need a de facto extension to soup season!  As I have written before, I love soup.  What a better way to fight off a vortex than with a bowl of hunger-sating warmth?  Chef Fabio has some options for soup, as well.  I just defrosted some eggplant chili and some mixed vegetable soup from this summer.  What’s your favorite soup to beat the cold?

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Prelude to Spring

Yes, we’re still in January, but I’m thinking spring.  That’s not just because I can’t wait to enjoy warmer weather!  Hopefully to help you ‘think warm’, I’m sharing some recipes…

Salmon and Potato Salad with Caper Dijon Vinaigrette

Cheesy Pasta Ideas

Spiced Pear Sauce

More to come, now that we have Internet back, and spring gets ever closer!

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Popped…

Pop Deluxe Logo

Sadness.  It’s not an April fool- Pop Deluxe (a favorite store of mine on State Street in Madison, and in the links below at the right) is closing its retail location.  Pop Deluxe, if you haven’t heard of it, is a wonderfully quirky, unique, and whimsical store that had an ever-changing array of miscellany…  Now, the news isn’t all bad, since the website will still be up.  Whether it was snazzy kitchen gadgets or tastily diverse cookbooks or serene plant accessories, they always had something fun.  Future State Street trips won’t be the same…

Now, where else can I get my art-o-mat fix…?

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Drunken Valentine’s Day Eve

Chow Ciao logo

What better on Valentine’s Day Eve (or national ‘Eat Italian Food Day‘) than to look to a classic Chow Ciao! for some last minute recipe ideas: Drunken Spaghetti!  In keeping with the red wine theme, Chef Fabio also offers a recipe for Red Wine Risotto via his website.  In either case, you have an excellent meal idea for Valentine’s Day.

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Soup Day!

Squash soup with wild rice

Yes, pomegranate in the background…

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s National Homemade Soup Day!  And there are always plenty of ideas and flavors for soup…

I love soup.  It’s not the first time nor the last time I will say that on this blog.  I enjoy eating different soups as much as I enjoy making soup.  I like that it’s easy, aside from much chopping (sometimes)!  The above picture is of a curried squash and wild rice soup that I made a little while ago with the last of our squash we had from our Community Shares Agriculture (CSA) share.  I often make soups with the abundance of vegetables we get, especially in the middle of summer.  It tends to freeze well for winter, when CSA vegetables are nowhere around.  I tend to use spices instead of salt, almost to the point of under-salting, though the broth adds much of what I don’t.

The recipe turned out fairly well.  I followed some of the comments and caramelized the onions in brown sugar, as well as using tomato sauce for an acid instead of orange juice.  I also upped the curry powder a bit.  I baked the squash beforehand, which made it easy to mix together and used an immersion blender before adding the rice to cook.  We didn’t have any butternut squash left, but some buttercup squash combined with other squash worked just fine and gave it a nice color.  The wild rice (from our Minnesota trip) held up well in the soup and added to the texture.  It was nicely toothsome even in the tasty leftovers.  I would make this again, as we had been looking for some good squash recipes.

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What’s cooking on Thanksgiving Eve?

Butternut Squash Risotto

Photograph from recipe

As I’m writing this, my wife and I are finishing up applesauce and baking butternut squash for butternut squash risotto for Thanksgiving.  Risotto is one of my favorite thing to make, given that the recipe is so versatile with add-in ingredients.  I especially enjoyed my mother-in-law’s response upon tasting it- “How can we make our rice taste like this?”   I will often make it with portabellas (with some modifications), but this version with butternut squash is another of my favorites.  I love the flavor of butternut squash, as it can savory or slightly sweet, depending on how it’s made.  I have made this recipe previously, to excellent results.  It doesn’t call for other herbs or spices other than salt and pepper, but it can easily be adjusted.  I use a little cinnamon and nutmeg to add a little spice to the recipe.  Butternut squash risotto is a nice alternative to cheesy potatoes (though I love cheesy potatoes, as well!) and adds in an extra vegetable with the starch.  Happy Thanksgiving!

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Grilled Cheese… with a Brick?!

Chow Ciao logo

 

 

 

Chef Fabio provides his take on grilled cheese on Chow Ciao!  An abundance of excellent local cheese is something I am thankful for, living in Wisconsin.  It’s one of those foods that’s a personal favorite, with all the different flavors and varieties.  Fabio offers a cheese primer… I’d also add that reduced fat cheese, while still good in some recipes (to keep flavor and cut a few calories), won’t produce the necessary melting one might hope for.

And don’t miss it- cooking with a brick!  And I’m not talking about brick cheese…  but you could make a cheese sandwich with a brick and brick cheese…

The recipe(s)!  (Plus a bonus- soup!)