Fusilli alla Vodka with Basil, Parmesan and Garlic Breadcrumbs

We just discovered the deliciousness that is pasta in vodka sauce. I’ve seen it on restaurant menus, but finally got the itch to make it after two of my favorite food bloggers and recipe creators posted their versions recently, Sarah Nasello and The Smitten Kitchen.

Most of the versions I’ve seen are vegetarian, but a couple, like Sarah’s, add a small amount of pancetta, which must add a lovely flavor. And all the recipes included heavy cream. Because I eat vegetarian, obviously, the pancetta was out, and, also, because I try to eat heart healthy as often as possible, I wanted to omit the saturated fat laden cream.

I have found an amazing substitute for heavy cream and it’s super simple. Raw cashews soaked in water overnight, then drained and blended at high speed with water and a pinch of salt. There you have it, plant-based cream with no unnatural ingredients, using nuts that are vitamin and mineral rich, and most importantly, make a rich and satisfying replacement.

And what does the vodka add to the dish? It’s hard to put my finger on it, but according to the food lab folks at Serious Eats, “Vodka does alter the flavor of the sauce in a pleasing way. It adds a touch of heat and a bit of a sharp bite that help balance out the sweetness of the tomatoes and the cream. Is it absolutely necessary? No, but vodka sauce just wouldn’t be, well, vodka sauce without it.”

Often made with penne, or, like the Smitten Kitchen’s, with rigatoni, I used fusilli, because that’s what I had on hand. Any of the three will work equally well.

To add texture, I sprinkled the finished dish with crunchy, garlicky breadcrumbs, along with fresh basil and additional parmesan. It all came together as a wonderful full meal, with the only drawback being there were no leftovers. Enjoy!

Fusilli alla Vodka

• Servings: 2-4
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Adapted from this and this Bon Appetit recipe

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled and grated

¼ cup tomato paste

2 tablespoons vodka

½ cup cashew cream (recipe follows; it will probably make more than you need)

½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 ounces fusilli pasta, preferably whole wheat (I used the Trader Joe’s Organic Whole Wheat Fusilli); penne or rotini would also work

½ ounce finely grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

1/8 cup chopped fresh basil

Garlicky Panko Breadcrumbs, for topping (recipe follows)

Heat 1 tablespoon butter and olive oil in large skillet over medium. Add shallots and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until paste is brick red and starts to caramelize, about 5 minutes. Add vodka and cook, stirring constantly, until liquid is evaporated, about 2 minutes. Add cashew cream and red pepper flakes and stir until well blended. Season with salt and pepper, to taste; remove from heat.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of well-salted boiling water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain, reserving ¾ cup pasta cooking liquid. Add pasta to skillet with sauce, along with remaining tablespoon butter and ¼ cup pasta cooking liquid. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly and adding more pasta cooking liquid, as needed, until butter has melted and a thick, glossy sauce has formed, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add ½ oz. parmesan, tossing to coat.

Divide pasta among bowls, topping with breadcrumbs, basil, and extra parmesan. Makes 2 generous servings as a main course, 4 as a side dish.

Cashew Cream

½ cup raw cashews

Water

Pinch of salt

Place cashews into a small bowl and cover with water. Let stand 8 hours or overnight. Drain cashews and place into a high-speed blender. Add 1/4- to 1/3 cup water. Blend about 2 minutes, stopping once to scrape down sides of blender. Check for thickness and add more water if necessary. You want this to be the thickness of heavy cream. Add a pinch of salt and blend another minute. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Garlicky Panko Breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon butter

1 large garlic clove, peeled and lightly smashed

½ cup panko breadcrumbs

Pinch of salt

Cook butter and garlic over medium-low heat, swirling until garlic is fragrant and foaming subsides, about 2 minutes. Add panko and stir to coat evenly. Cook, stirring often, until breadcrumbs are golden brown, about 4 minutes. Season with salt.

Mushroom French Dip with Horseradish Mayo

Do restaurants still have French dip sandwiches on the menu? I remember back in high school or college eating them when dining out, but don’t recall seeing them on menus after that. Maybe I just didn’t notice once I became a vegetarian.

When I saw a mushroom version online recently, warm food memories of the traditional sandwich came flooding back. The chewy roll, the tender beef, and oh, the au jus! Honestly I don’t remember cheese and caramelized onions on the sandwich, but what I ate probably wasn’t authentic, and I’m sure it would have been loads better with those two additions.

Since my go-to beef replacement over the last almost 30 years has been mushrooms in some form, this moved to the top of my “must make” list. Truly a multi-dimensional meal, the bite of horseradish in the garlicky mayo; the rich, meaty mushrooms; the soft, sweet caramelized onions; creamy Provolone; and the complex au jus come together on toasty French bread for a sensory overload of deliciousness. When Pete deemed this one of the best things I’ve ever made, well, I felt a duty to share. You’re welcome!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from this Pinch of Yum recipe

Horseradish Mayo:

½ cup of your favorite mayonnaise (if you’re mayo averse, I highly suggest Vegenaise Better than Mayo brand—no eggs, no dairy)

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

2 cloves garlic, finely grated

Pinch of salt

Seasoned mushrooms:

6 large portabella mushroom caps or more if they’re smaller (about 18 ounces total), wiped clean, gills scraped off, and sliced about 1/3 inch thick

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons Montreal steak seasoning (store-bought or homemade; I made a scaled down version of this recipe) or just use salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Caramelized onions and au jus:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large sweet onion, halved and thinly sliced

¼ cup dry sherry

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (Annie’s and Whole Foods 365 are both vegetarian)

1 tablespoon reduced sodium tamari or soy sauce

2 cups vegetarian “beef” broth (I used 2 teaspoons Better than Bouillon No Beef Base with 2 cups hot water)

Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To complete the sandwiches:

4 demi baguettes or one long baguette cut into four sections

Butter or buttery spread, optional

Provolone cheese slices

To make horseradish mayo, whisk ingredients together in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

To prepare the mushrooms, warm the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and sprinkle with steak seasoning. Cook, tossing mushrooms occasionally, until they release their liquid, it has cooked off, and mushrooms are tender, about 10-15 minutes. Set aside.

To caramelize the onions and make the au jus, melt the butter in a heavy skillet, preferably cast-iron, over medium heat. Add onions and cook, tossing occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until they are golden brown, about 30-40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Add the sherry to the onions and cook until the sherry has evaporated. Add the Worcestershire, tamari, and the broth. Increase heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 5-10 minutes until slightly reduced. Taste, and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

Place a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and dump the mixture into the strainer, separating the onions from the au jus. Set both aside.

Halve the baguettes horizontally and spread with butter (optional). Place on a sheet pan. Divide mushrooms among bottom bread sections and cover with Provolone slices (cut to fit if slices are wide). Transfer pan to the oven and toast the open sandwiches for about 5 or 6 minutes.

Remove from oven and top the mushroom/cheese side of sandwiches with caramelized onions. Liberally spread top sandwich portions with the horseradish mayo and put sandwich tops on bottoms. Serve each sandwich with a small bowl of au jus for dipping. Make sure to have plenty of napkins and enjoy! Makes 4 sandwiches (no judging if the two of you eat all four portions; that might have happened here).

Falafel with Creamy Tahini-Yogurt Sauce

I don’t know why, but earlier this summer I started craving falafel. And Foxy Falafel, my go-to source for truly great falafel, is limited to curbside pick-up during the pandemic. Deep-fried food just doesn’t travel well, and I’m thinking it wouldn’t be as amazing by the time I got it home.

This led me to look for an authentic recipe that would satisfy my craving. I found it and must share—it’s that good! Plus, it’s not deep-fried–yay! Golden brown and crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside with all those signature falafel herbs and spices, it’s served with a creamy tahini-yogurt sauce, thinly sliced radishes, cucumber, red onion, and tomatoes from our garden. All piled on a whole wheat tortilla or, if you have time, stuffed in my whole wheat pita bread, it’s a nutritious, delicious all-in-one meal.

There’s nothing difficult or time-consuming about this other than the need to plan ahead and start soaking the dried chickpeas the night before (canned chickpeas won’t work here). And after soaking, you don’t have to cook the beans, which makes this recipe even easier! Everything else comes together quickly enough for a weeknight meal. A very special weeknight meal! Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from this Downshiftology recipe
This recipe is naturally gluten-free and all that’s needed to make it vegan is to use a tahini sauce without the yogurt, like this one.

1 cup dried chickpeas (canned won’t work in this recipe)

About half of a medium yellow onion, roughly chopped

1 cup fresh parsley, in between loosely and tightly packed

1 cup fresh cilantro, in between loosely and tightly packed

1 medium jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

Several grinds of black pepper

2 tablespoons chickpea flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

Grapeseed or avocado oil for pan-frying (or another neutral oil of choice)

Tahini-yogurt sauce, recipe follows

Flour or corn tortillas or my whole wheat pita bread

Accompaniments:
Thinly sliced radishes, cucumbers, red onion, diced tomato

The night before you plan to make the falafel, place the chickpeas in a pot and cover with water by 2-3 inches (the chickpeas will triple in size and you want to make sure they stay submerged). Cover pot and set aside.

The next day, drain and rinse the chickpeas and add them to your food processor (after draining, I dump them onto a clean kitchen towel and pat them dry before putting them in the food processor).

Add the onion, parsley, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, cumin, salt, cardamom, and black pepper to the food processor and process until the mixture is the texture of coarse sand (you may have to stop and scrape down the sides a couple times).

Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and stir in the chickpea flour and baking soda. Cover and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F. Place a cooling rack on a baking sheet and place it in oven.

Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat. Add a couple tablespoons oil. When oil is hot, form falafel mixture into balls (I used a #30 cookie dough scoop, which is about 1 ½-2 tablespoons) and place in hot pan. Flatten slightly with a spatula. You’ll have to do this in batches—don’t crowd the falafels.

If the mixture seems too wet, add another tablespoon of chickpea flour. If it seems too dry, add a tablespoon of water (I didn’t need to do either both times I have made this recipe).

Cook the falafels for about 3 minutes, until golden brown on the bottom. Flip and cook another 3 minutes. Remove to rack in oven to stay warm. Repeat with remaining falafel mixture. You will probably need to add more oil to the pan.

Serve in warm tortillas or pita with a swoosh of tahini-yogurt sauce, several falafels, tomato, radish, cucumber, or other toppings of choice. Makes about 4 servings or 18-20 falafel.

Creamy Tahini Yogurt Sauce
From this Feasting at Home recipe

¾ cup plain Greek yogurt (I used 2%)

¼ cup tahini

2 garlic cloves, grated on a micro-plane

Juice of one medium lemon

½ to 1 teaspoon kosher salt (my tahini was salt-free, so I used the full teaspoon)

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Wisk all ingredients in small bowl until thoroughly combined and creamy. Can make a day or two ahead of time. Cover and refrigerate until use.

 

Spaghetti with Cauliflower Meat Sauce

A little over two years ago when I posted this Cauliflower Taco Meat recipe, I mentioned wanting to tweak it with Italian seasonings to be used in things like lasagna, spaghetti sauce, and stuffed peppers. Well, it took me two years and several versions, but it’s finally exactly what I wanted it to be.

This hearty, meaty spaghetti sauce of my dreams will now be in regular rotation in our kitchen. Versatile cauliflower, along with meaty portabellas and healthy omega-3 fat-packed walnuts comes together with herbs and a rich red sauce to create a spaghetti dish I’m confident could hold its own in a cook-off against one made with ground beef.

You could use your favorite red sauce recipe, jarred marinara, or the quick homemade version I included that’s pulled from the headnotes of the Smitten Kitchen’s Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan, which sounds amazing in its own right.

Both the cauliflower meat and the sauce, if you’re making your own, can be done a day or two ahead, which would make this perfect for a weeknight.

To give it an extra dose of veggies, I sautéed some chopped onion and spinach from our garden with a little red wine before adding the sauce and meat. Feel free to leave that out if you’d like. Served over whole wheat spaghetti and topped with a little parmesan (omit for a vegan version) and fresh basil, you’ve got an amazing comfort food meal without the typical saturated fat and cholesterol. What could be better!?! Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Cauliflower Meat
3 cups cauliflower florets

1 ½ cups chopped cremini mushrooms

½ cup chopped walnuts

¼ cup tomato sauce

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon fennel seeds

½ teaspoon onion powder

¼ teaspoon dried marjoram

Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet.

Place cauliflower, mushrooms, walnuts, tomato sauce, salt, fennel seeds, onion powder, marjoram, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor and pulse on and off until the texture of ground beef. I found it easier to get the right texture by doing this in two batches, half of each ingredient in each batch. The first time I made it I did it all at once and half of it was almost like a paste—still tasted great, but just not the right texture. Transfer mixture to the baking sheet and spread it out in an even layer.

Bake for 30 minutes, stirring once at the half-way point.

Spaghetti or marinara sauce–homemade, jarred, or this quick Smitten Kitchen recipe:
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a pot over medium, add 2 minced garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and a pinch or three of red pepper flakes, and a little dried oregano, if you wish. Cook for one minute. Add a 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (it will splatter, be careful) and stir (I used a can of whole San Marzano tomatoes and crushed them with a potato masher once in the pot). Cook at a simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, until you get the saucy consistency you want. This yields 3 cups.

To bring it all together
8 oz. regular or whole wheat spaghetti

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

½ of a medium yellow onion, chopped

A couple handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped

A splash or two of red wine

Salt & pepper

Freshly grated parmesan cheese, optional

Torn fresh basil leaves for garnish

Place a big pot of well-salted water on the stove and bring to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain and return to pot to keep warm.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and sauté for several minutes until beginning to soften. Increase heat to medium-high and add spinach and red wine, plus a little salt & pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until spinach has wilted and wine has mostly cooked off.

Turn heat back down to medium and add 2 to 2 ½ cups red sauce. Add about half of your cauliflower meat (reserve the rest for another batch). Bring to a simmer and cook until heated through.

Pile pasta into bowls and top with cauliflower meat sauce, parmesan, and basil. Take a big whiff of all this wonderfulness, and dig in. Makes about 4 servings, with enough “meat” left for another batch.

Oregano-Hazelnut Pesto

Right now, we’re experiencing the kind of growing weather where everything is thriving. That perfect combination of sun, heat, and humidity that has your garden practically exploding. Especially my herbs. It’s times like this that I start to panic and wonder how will I ever use all the basil, sage, thyme, tarragon, and oregano.

Today my panic was focused on the oregano. Our tomatoes are weeks from being ready so that great tomato-oregano combination won’t happen for a while, but my oregano plant badly needed trimming. I began to wonder if there is such a thing as oregano pesto or would that be too strong a flavor? Yes, oregano pesto is a thing, my online research told me, and I was intrigued by a recipe that used hazelnuts in the pesto. That partial bag of hazelnuts buried in my freezer would finally get used!

It’s been a while since we’ve had pasta, so why not an oregano pesto penne pasta? Shallots for good measure, some quality parmesan because hello, Italian pasta dish, and a little lemon zest to finish. I’ve included the recipe below the pesto instructions–I think you’ll like it!

Fully prepared not to like this oregano version, I was pleasantly surprised and now have a new favorite pesto. The oregano was not overwhelming, and the hazelnuts brought a lovely, unique flavor. I’m looking forward to using some the of the leftover pesto on pizza this week. Enjoy!

 

• Servings: 1 1/2 cups
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Inspired by this recipe

1 cup fresh oregano leaves (discard the stems)

½ cup unsalted hazelnuts

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt

In a small skillet, toast hazelnuts over medium-low heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Stir often so they don’t burn. Cool slightly.

Place oregano leaves, hazelnuts, lemon juice, and garlic into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until well mixed. With machine running, slowly drizzle in olive oil. Scrape down sides and process until mixture is mostly smooth. Add salt, to taste.

Refrigerate, covered, until use. Keeps about 4 days. Freeze for longer storage.

Great on pasta (recipe follows), a little mixed into scrambled eggs, as a dip for good quality bread, in place of red sauce on pizza, or a dollop swirled into a bowl of soup. Makes about 1 ½ cups pesto.

Penne Pasta with Oregano-Hazelnut Pesto, Shallots, and Lemon Zest

8 oz. penne pasta, regular or whole wheat

1 medium shallot, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Oregano-hazelnut pesto (about half of above recipe)

¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, optional

Grated zest of one lemon

Cook pasta in a pot of well-salted boiling water, according to package directions. Reserve about ½ cup of pasta water before draining.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes.

Return drained pasta to pan and add shallots, pesto, parmesan (if using), and about a third a cup of reserved pasta water. Toss to coat pasta until sauce becomes creamy. Add a little more pasta water if necessary. Transfer pasta to serving bowls, top with lemon zest and additional parmesan, if desired. Makes 3-4 servings.

Spiced Pear Butter

A while back I spied some beautiful organic Bartlett pears on sale at Whole Foods and decided to buy a big bag of ‘em. I left them on the counter to ripen and then put them in the crisper drawer of the fridge with plans for lots of pear snacking. Fast forward a week or so and that bag o’ pears was still in the crisper, said snacking had not happened, and the pears were starting to lose their beauty.

A dessert using all those pears would be mighty big and I certainly don’t need those calories, so I decided to see if there was such a thing as pear butter. Pears are kind of like apples, and apple butter is delicious, so pear butter must be a thing. Sure, enough, I found several recipes online.

The result is wonderful! Full of warm fall spices with a richness from the brown sugar and vanilla—I’ll be finding many uses for this deliciousness! On ice-cream, English muffins (paired with peanut butter it’s especially good!), mixed in with plain yogurt, a sweet touch to a savory grilled cheese sandwich, pancake topping, a smoothie mix-in—so many ways to use this concoction! Enjoy!

• Servings: three 12-ounce jars
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Adapted from this USA Pears recipe

3 pounds ripe Bartlett pears

¼ cup water

¾ to 1 cup light brown sugar, use the lower amount for a less sweet version

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ of a vanilla bean or ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract*

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Wash, quarter, and core pears (if you do not have a food mill, mentioned later in the recipe, peel pears after washing, and skip the food mill step).

Place pear quarters and water in a large stockpot, over medium heat, until water starts to simmer. Cover pot and adjust heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until pears are soft, about 20 minutes. It may seem like you should add more than a quarter cup of water, but the pears will release liquid as they soften—I assure you there’s no need for more water.

Remove pot from heat and mash pears with a potato masher (if you don’t have a potato masher, carefully mash the pears with the bottom of a large drinking glass).

Place a food mill over a large bowl and run mashed pears, in batches, through mill, discarding pear skins that are left in the mill. Dump the bowl of pear pulp back into the stockpot, add the brown sugar, the vanilla bean, and the spices.

*If you are using pure vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean, add the vanilla later, after the cooking process, where the instructions have you remove the vanilla bean.

Cook pear mixture, uncovered, at a simmer, for about an hour, until desired thickness. Stir every few minutes to prevent scorching. Mixture will thicken somewhat as it cools.

Spoon mixture into jars and, if freezing, leave about an ½ to an inch of headspace in jars for expansion. Will keep in refrigerator for a couple weeks and in freezer for a couple months. Makes about three 12-ounce jars.

 

Bourbon Cranberry Sauce

Even though it’s been years since turkey has been on my Thanksgiving table, I still love many of the dishes that traditionally go with it. Cranberry sauce is one of them. I used to make an Ocean Spray version that was more of a relish, uncooked and made in the food processor with orange. It was good, but this year I was craving a cooked sauce.

I came across a recipe with bourbon and thought that sounded swell—almost cocktail-like. Works for me! Alas, that recipe called for a pound of sugar, which seems like it would sweeten any tartness right out of those cranberries, taking away their best quality.

After a little more looking, I found this one; much less sugar and still has the bourbon. Plus, it incorporates orange, like that old tried and true relish. I could tell this was a winner while cooking it (I just may have licked the spoon after stirring, and yes, more than once). Where has bourbon in cranberry sauce been all my life?!? Enjoy!

• Servings: 6
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Adapted from this Savory Sweet Life recipe

One 12-oz bag fresh cranberries

¾ cup orange juice

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 ounces bourbon

Zest of half an orange, for garnish

Place all ingredients, except for the orange zest, in a medium-sized saucepan. Cook on medium-high for 15 minutes or until most of the liquid has reduced, stirring occasionally. Cranberries will burst open. I had to turn the heat down after about 5 minutes or it would have boiled over. Just lower it to a heat that keeps it bubbling, but not boiling over.

Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Mixture will thicken as it cools. May be served chilled or at room temperature. Sprinkle with orange zest just before serving. Serves about 6.

Pumpkin Butter

Similar to jams and jellies, fruit butters (and in this case vegetable butter) are slow-cooked to evaporate moisture and caramelize sugars. When finished, they’re dense and smooth with the spreadable texture of room temperature butter, thus, the name.

The result has a concentrated flavor of the fruit or vegetable that’s deep and luscious in a way that jams and jellies aren’t. I’ve made peach butter a couple times and love it on toasted English muffins, as an ice-cream topping, and even as a sandwich spread to give a sweet edge to a savory lunch. Makes me look forward to peach season!

This time of year, pumpkin is perfect for the butter treatment. Going light on the added sugars lets the natural sweetness of the pumpkin shine through and the apple cider and spices give it that cozy, fall warmth that is so welcome when the temperatures start to drop.

Limited only by your imagination, the uses for this magical elixir are endless: Spread on warm biscuits, swirled into plain yogurt, mixed into cream cheese and slathered on bagels, as a pancake topping, an oatmeal mix-in, or ice-cream topping. And because this doesn’t hit you with first with sweetness, it can be used in savory dishes like maybe mixed into browned butter, sage, shallots, and crushed red pepper for a delicious seasonal pasta sauce. The thought has my mouth watering!

One of my favorite things about using whole pumpkin or squash, as opposed to canned, is the seeds. I almost never discard them. Once cleaned, tossed with a little neutral oil, sprinkled with salt, and roasted until crisp and golden, they are an addictive snack (instructions included at the end of the recipe).

Whatever uses you come up with for this fall treat, you’ll be happy you made it. Enjoy!

• Servings: 1 1/2 pints
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Adapted slightly from this Food & Wine Magazine recipe

1 (approximately 3 pound) sugar or pie pumpkin, stemmed, halved lengthwise, and seeded*

1 tablespoon neutral oil (grapeseed, canola, vegetable)

¼ cup apple cider

1/3 cup brown sugar (light or dark)

3 tablespoons pure maple syrup

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon kosher salt (if using a fine salt, reduce to ¼ teaspoon)

¼ teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg

Pinch of ground cloves

Pinch of ground allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Brush cut sides of pumpkin halves with the oil. Place pumpkin halves, cut side down, on a large, rimmed baking sheet (less mess if you line the sheet with parchment paper, but not essential). Bake until very tender when pierced with a sharp knife, about 50 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly, 10-15 minutes.

Scoop flesh from cooled pumpkin halves and transfer to bowl of a food processor. Discard pumpkin shell. To food processor, add apple cider and process until smooth, about one minute, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl when necessary. Add brown sugar, maple syrup, vinegar, cinnamon, ginger, salt, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds, scrape down sides, and give it one more pulse.

Transfer pumpkin mixture to a deep saucepan, cover, and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low, keep cover on, but vented (it sputters and spatters), and cook, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula so that bottom of saucepan doesn’t scorch. Cook until mixture is reduced by about one-third and turns slightly darker in color, about 40-45 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Transfer to jars and refrigerate. Keeps in the refrigerator 2-3 weeks and can be frozen for several months. Makes about 1 ½ pints.

*Don’t toss out those seeds! Roasted, they make a delicious and nutritious snack. Simply clean the pumpkin flesh out of the seeds, toss them with a little neutral oil (a couple teaspoons to a tablespoon, depending on the amount of seeds), and sprinkle with salt. Cook at 400 degrees F. in a single layer on a baking sheet for about 30 minutes, stirring once or twice for even browning. If you don’t eat them all right away, store in a zip-lock bag or other air-tight container.

Chive Mint Pesto

There’s a patch of chives in front of our cabin that grows like crazy; not sure why it’s so prolific—could be it’s just as happy to be there as we are. I try and remember to cut some to bring home every time we’re there, but it seems like half the time I forget.

This time I remembered, and I brought home a lot! It’s especially nice if the chives are flowering their light purple blooms, so pretty and edible too—a mild onion flavor that works beautifully as a garnish on whatever you’ve used the chives in.

With this volume of chives, the first thing that came to mind was making pesto. I’ve made a rustic chive pesto in the past, but this time I decided to do the more conventional pesto method, in the food processor. And with my mint and basil plants needing a trim, I opted to include a good amount of mint and a little basil.

Following the basic pesto recipe I’ve used for years, but subbing in chives and mint in place of basil and throwing in a shallot for good measure, the result was wonderful! On pasta, as a marinade for grilled vegetables, on pizza, in mashed potatoes, eggs, sandwiches, the uses are endless.

As in other pesto recipes I’ve shared in the past, there’s no cheese, which is not typical for pesto, but with the olive oil, it seems rich enough in my mind already, so I do without. Feel free to include some parmesan if you’d like.

This recipe makes a big batch that would be hard to use between Pete and me in the week or so it lasts in the fridge, so I froze half. Pesto freezes well and it’s nice to have on hand for whipping up yummy recipes at a moment’s notice (a quick defrost in the microwave and your frozen pesto is ready to use).

The bonus is I have enough chives left over to make a couple loaves of buttermilk chive bread—I can’t wait!

• Servings: makes 3 cups
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2 cups firmly packed fresh chives

1 cup fresh mint leaves, or a combination of mint and basil, firmly packed

1 cup chopped walnuts, almonds, pistachios, or a combination, toasted

¼ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 shallot, chopped

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Place all ingredients, except olive oil, in bowl of a food processor. Process until combined. Scrape down sides of food processor bowl.

With food processor running, slowly drizzle in olive oil until mixture is completely blended. Scrape down sides again and give it a final pulse or two. Taste, and add more salt or lemon juice if necessary.

Keeps in the fridge for a week or so, in the freezer for a couple months. Makes about 3 cups.

Vegetarian Swedish Meatballs and Gravy

Recently I came across a recipe for vegetarian Swedish meatballs and my mouth started watering. I’ve never had the real thing, but I imagine they’d be delicious. This recipe, however, didn’t have the traditional allspice and nutmeg included, so I moved past it and searched for other versions.

Ultimately, I ended up adapting a non-vegetarian recipe, one called The Best Swedish Meatballs from the new-to-me blog, The Recipe Critic. I replaced the ground beef with a mixture of wild rice, cremini mushrooms and cauliflower, then added a little ricotta for richness (you could also use Greek yogurt). To save time, I purchased already-cooked wild rice, which you can find in either cans or pouches. Just make sure it’s all wild rice, not a blend including other types of rice.

But the gravy is what makes this dish truly special. Oh, the gravy! Luxurious, I tell you, with unexpected oomph from Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard. Quick and easy to make, whip it up while the meatballs are baking.

You certainly can eat the meatballs and gravy on their own, but served over mashed potatoes or egg noodles makes a complete, comfort food meal—perfect for a cold winter’s day! Enjoy!

• Servings: 4
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Adapted from The Recipe Critic

Meatballs:
2 cups cooked wild rice

1 ½ cups chopped mushrooms, cremini work well—nice and meaty

3 cups cooked cauliflower florets

½ cup ricotta cheese or Greek yogurt

¼ cup finely chopped onion

2 eggs, lightly beaten

½ cup bread crumbs, preferably whole wheat

¾ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon allspice

¼ teaspoon white pepper

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley, divided

Olive oil spray or olive oil

Gravy:
4 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

2 cups vegetable broth (I used Edward & Sons Not-Beef Bouillon Cubes)

½ cup milk or half-n-half

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (the Annie’s brand is vegetarian)

1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Pulse 1 ½ cups of the wild rice, the mushrooms, and cauliflower in food processor until blended, but with some texture left. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the remaining half cup of wild rice. Add the ricotta or yogurt, onion, eggs, bread crumbs, garlic powder, salt, allspice, white pepper, nutmeg, and 1/8 cup of the parsley. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Roll 1 ½ – 2 tablespoon portions of mixture into balls and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. I used a #30 cookie dough scoop, which worked perfectly. Spritz balls with olive oil spray or brush with a little olive oil. Bake for 20 minutes, rotating pan at the halfway point.

Meanwhile, make gravy. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add butter and flour. Whisk until it turns light brown. Slowly stir in broth and milk. Add Worcestershire and Dijon mustard and bring to a simmer, whisking until gravy starts to thicken. Season with a little salt and pepper, to taste.

Add cooked meatballs to the skillet and simmer for a couple minutes (you’ll have leftover meatballs). Sprinkle with remaining parsley.

Serve over mashed potatoes or egg noodles. Makes about 4 servings.