Stuffed Pumpkins

These lovely little sugar pie pumpkins are small and sweet, and perfect for a fall appetizer.

For 4 servings, you will need:

4 very small pie pumpkins

4 sweet potatoes

4 yams

8 Tbs butter, melted

4 Tbs brown sugar

4 tsp finely grated orange zest

4 tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves

2 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

{optional spices}:

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground allspice

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 375.

Generously butter a rimmed baking sheet.

Cut out a lid for each pumpkin and scoop out the guts (seeds and dark orange goop).

Place pumpkins and lids, cut side down, on the baking sheet and cover tightly with foil.  Bake for one to one & one half hours, until pumpkins become tender (test by poking with finger or piercing with a fork).

Meanwhile, in the same hot oven, roast your yams and sweet potatoes on a sheet pan,covered tightly with foil, for approximately 45 minutes.  Remember to pierce the skin before baking.

When finished, potatoes will be soft and oozing  sugars.

In a bowl, put the flesh of the yam and sweet potato (skins discarded), and mash them together with the butter, zest, thyme, brown sugar, salt, pepper and spices.

Now fill your pumpkin shell with filling.

Place filled pumpkin back on baking sheet, and bake until all is heated through, about 30 minutes.

Serve pumpkin with lid replaced on top.

Enjoy!

Spring Rolls with Dipping Sauce

If you need help finding a good place to buy authentic, well-priced Asian recipe ingredients, let me suggest

 Capital Market in West Olympia.  It is located at

 2419 Harrison Ave., not far from the mall.

Now, let's talk about the ingredients.

These spring roll wrappers are made of tapioca flour.  They are recommended as the most durable, though not the thinnest of skins.

You will need to reserve the hot water from cooking the noodles, and use it to soften the skins before wrapping.

These are cellophane noodles, also known as bean threads, glass noodles, or Chinese vermicelli.  They are made of mung bean starch, and require soaking in hot water, and rinsing in cold water to reconstitute.

  

Next, make sure to have fresh carrots, green onions (aka scallions), napa cabbage (or crisp lettuce), fresh cilantro, Thai basil,  limes,  fresh ginger root, mung bean sprouts, and toasted sesame oil.

Now make the dressing for your veggie filling.  Squeeze lime juice into the bowl with some freshly grated ginger.

Add to this 4 Tbsp toasted sesame oil,  2Tbsp sugar, and  2tsp salt. 

Now grate your carrots,

cut the cabbage into thin ribbons,

and slice the scallions into long thin strips. 

Toss the carrots and cabbage with the lime-ginger dressing.

Boil a pot full of water, turn off the heat, and soak a few bundles of noodles for 10 minutes.  Then drain, rinse under cold water until cool, and transfer to a bowl.

Have your fresh herbs & mung beans rinsed clean and ready to use.

Soak a wrapper in a bowl of hot water (hopefully reserved after draining the noodles) for approximately 10 seconds until soft.

Place wrap onto your work space, lay a row of basil leaves in the center of the wrap, and cover them with noodles.  Next, add cabbage/carrot mixture, scallions, cilantro leaves and sprouts.  Wrap the left side over the filling, then fold up the top and bottom.  Next squeeze the filling together as you roll it closed.

These can be served now, or covered with a wet paper towel and plastic wrap, then refrigerated for a few hours.

For the dipping sauce, you will need:

 1/2 cup peanut butter,  1Tbsp sugar,  2Tbsp soy sauce,  juice of 1/2 lime,  1 tsp chili sauce, one chopped clove of garlic, and 1/2 cup warm water.

Mix all together until smooth.

Artichoke Dip

This is a wonderful warm dip to serve with your breadsticks.  OR, you can make your own crackers using the recipe we made at ORLA last year.   Look at the archive list on the right of this page, and click on February 2010 to find the "crackers" entry.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Assemble the following ingredients:

1 (14 oz.) can quartered artichoke hearts- drained and chopped

1 package (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach-

defrosted and squeezed dry

3/4 cup mayonnaise

3/4 cup sour cream

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 clove garlic- peeled and chopped

salt and pepper

Lightly oil a shallow 2 quart casserole dish.

In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients until well combined.  Spread evenly in the casserole dish and (this can be refrigerated at this point until you want to bake and serve it)  bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until bubbly and lightly browned.

  

Herbed Cheese Balls

Today we learned about "herbes de Provence", a combination of dried herbs from the south of France consisting of rosemary, thyme, basil, savory, chervil, mint, marjoram, oregano and sometimes lavender.  It is a wonderful combination of flavors, and when added to these mild cheese, really wakes up the taste.  You can find this combination of herbs in bulk at the Eastside Olympia Food Co-op or Bucks 5th Ave. Spice Shop in downtown Olympia.  You may also simply combine any of the dried herbs from the list which you already have in your pantry.

For 24 balls, you will need:

4 oz (1 cup) cream cheese

4 oz (1 cup) chevre

6 oz (1+1/2 cup) feta 

1/2 tsp herbes de Provence

1/4 cup toasted walnuts, chopped fine

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

ground pepper

In a bowl, mix together the cheeses and herbes de Provence until thoroughly combined.  

Form the mixture into about 24 small balls, about one and a half inches in diameter.

Place the basil and walnuts on a small plate and sprinkle with ground pepper.

  Roll the cheese balls in the mixture to cover.  

Transfer to a serving plate and cover loosely with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for 1 to 4 hours, and allow flavors to marinate.

Breadsticks

These funky, crunchy breadsticks are great with dips like hummus, artichoke cheddar, or a spicy marinara.

Make this dough early in the day, in order to serve breadsticks as a dinner appetizer.  Or make the dough a day ahead, and refrigerate it until ready to use.  It will keep in the fridge for up to four days,  which means you can bake off a bit at a time, for many days of fresh, hot breadsticks with dip!  It can also be frozen for later use.  Simply thaw to room temperature before proceeding to roll and shape. 

Ingredients

1 tsp. active dry yeast
1 cup plus 2 Tbs. warm water (85°F)
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
1 lb. (3-1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup olive oil; more for the finished breadsticks
Seasonings (fresh chopped herbs, grated parmesan, whatever you like)
Kosher salt for the finished breadsticks

First, make a sponge: In a medium bowl, mix the yeast, warm water, and sugar until dissolved. Whisk in 6 oz. (1-1/3 cups) of the flour until the mixture is uniform and free of lumps. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit in a warm place until bubbly and light and almost doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Now, make the dough: Whisk the olive oil and the seasoning mixture of your choice into the sponge until well blended. Keep mixing, and gradually add 9 oz. (2 cups) of the flour. Continue to add flour until the dough is only slightly sticky, but no longer wet. When the dough begins to cling to the spoon (or your hands) and pull away from the sides of the bowl, remove the dough from the bowl and knead by hand on a floured surface until smooth and elastic, 1 to 2 min.


 Shape the dough into a ball and let it rise in an oiled bowl, covered with plastic wrap, until about doubled in bulk, about 3 hours. Once risen, punch down the dough and get ready to roll (or refrigerate it overnight or for up to four days).

To shape and bake the breadsticks:  

(Let the dough sit at room temperature for about 1 hour before shaping it, if you are using it after refrigeration.) Heat the oven to 375°F and line several baking sheets with parchment. Roll out the dough on a floured surface into a 12x20-inch rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick. Using a pizza cutter (or a long, sharp knife), cut the rectangle lengthwise into two sections (each about 6 inches wide). Then cut each section into narrow strips about 1/2 inch wide.

 Stretch and twist each strip to almost twice its original length and arrange the strips, 1/4 inch apart, on the baking sheets.

Bake the sticks until golden and crisp, 15 to 20 min. Check them periodically as they bake, as some sticks inevitably end up thinner than others and will bake faster. They’re done if they feel firm when pinched.

Sprinkle the sticks with olive oil and kosher salt as soon as they come out of the oven. Let them cool completely before serving. They will stay fresh in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Fresh Salsa & Homemade Tortilla Chips

Tomato season is coming to an end!  So find some locally grown cherry,  grape or sungold tomatoes and whip up a batch of this easy, fresh salsa.

All you need is:

1 pint tomatoes

1/4 sweet onion

4 scallions

juice of 1/2 lime

juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 Tbs. cider vinegar

1 clove garlic

1/2 small jalepeno

salt & pepper

**I ended up leaving out the olive oil.  I like the salsa better without it.**

Place all ingredients in a processor or blender.  For chunkier salsa, pulse the on button only three or four times then check.  For a thinner, sauce-like consistency, blend more.

Now let's make some tortilla chips.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  (Go to 400 if your oven runs low like the one in our classroom.)  

You will need:

corn tortillas

pizza cutter or knife

cookie sheets (sheet pans)

oil spray

salt

Stack tortillas into piles of three at a time, and cut into six wedges.

Spray pan, and spread slices out over entire pan.

Spray again with oil, and sprinkle liberally with salt.

Then bake for 10 minutes, checking for crispness and a golden brown color.  They may require 2-3 more minutes of baking.

Allow to cool, then enjoy with your fresh, delicious salsa!