Great Minds Think Alike: Chickpea and Winter Vegetable Stew

My friend, Christina, just sent this recipe to me the other day. Coincidentally, I had already flagged it in my most recent edition of Cooking Light. I have relished all of the recipes she has been sending me, and this incident clearly indicates that she and I are on the same wavelength with food!

While I had planned on trying this recipe, it is comforting to know that someone’s taste buds that I trust endorsed it! The recipe calls for Harissa, which is a fiery spice paste used in Moroccan cooking. Unable to find Harissa myself, and per Christina’s recommendation, I substituted with Sriracha. This dish is loaded with vegetables. It has great, warm flavors, and is spicy from the chili paste, and sweet from the honey.

Chickpea and Winter Vegetable Stew
(Adapted from Cooking Light, November, 2009)
Ingredients
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup (1/2-inch) slices leek
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds, crushed
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
3 2/3 cups vegetable stock, divided
2 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash
1 cup (1/2-inch) sliced carrot
3/4 cup (1-inch) cubed peeled Yukon gold potato
1 tablespoon harissa
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound turnips, peeled and each cut into 8 wedges (about 2 medium)
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/3 cups uncooked couscous
8 lemon wedges

Directions
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and leek; sauté 5 minutes. Add coriander and next 4 ingredients (through garlic); cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add 3 cups vegetable stock and the next 8 ingredients (through chickpeas); bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes. Stir in parsley and honey.

Remove 2/3 cup hot cooking liquid from squash mixture. Place cooking liquid and remaining 2/3 cup stock in a medium bowl. Stir in couscous. Cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Serve with lemon wedges.

Fakin' the Bacon: Quinoa with Butternut Squash, Bacon and Walnuts

I’d like to welcome November with a hearty seasonal dish. I tried another recipe from the Raley’s magazine. This was another opportunity for me to use a fall-favorite ingredient (butternut squash) and quinoa.

Wow – this was great! When we tasted it, my husband and I found it to be very hearty and rustic. A delectable fall meal. The original recipe calls for bacon, but I used soy bacon (which my husband has coined “Fakin’ ”). This made it healthier and allowed me to enjoy it as well! (The soy bacon keeps the smokey flavor that you'd achieve with real bacon, but cuts out the cholesterol and saturated fat.) I used more squash and onion that the original recipe called for, and also used a clove of garlic instead of garlic salt (all changes noted below).

Quinoa with Butternut Squash, Bacon and Walnuts
(Adapted from Raley’s "Something Extra", Holiday, 2009)
Ingredients
* 2 cups vegetable broth
* 1 cup rinsed and drained quinoa
* 4 strips chopped bacon (or “Fakin’”)
* 1 tbsp. olive oil
* 2 cups diced butternut squash
* 1 medium-size onion, chopped
* 1 garlic clove, minced
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
* ¼ cup walnuts, toasted
* Top with chopped fresh sage or thyme and chopped

Directions
Bring 2 cups vegetable broth to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in 1 cup rinsed and drained quinoa; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 12 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

Cook 4 strips chopped bacon (or soy bacon) in a large skillet until very crisp. Remove and set aside. (If using real bacon, drain off all fat.) Add 1 tbsp. olive oil and stir in chopped onion, diced butternut squash, and minced garlic. Cook and stir over medium-high heat for 10 minutes. Stir vegetables and bacon into quinoa and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Top with chopped fresh sage or thyme, and chopped toasted walnuts.

Squash Sauce: Rigatoni with Squash and Prawns

As I made my last tomato purchase of the year at the farmers' market last week, I also made my first butternut squash purchase. The squash were on the tiny side, so I actually got two. Butternut squash is a vegetable that many of us may have eaten early in life (in the form of baby food), but probably strayed away from into our childhood and adolesence. If you haven't had a butternut squash during your adult life, I'd encourage you to revisit it! It is naturally sweet, creamy, and very healthy. It can be challenging to deconstruct (you need a sharp knife and a strong arm), but during this time of the year and into winter, you can find it pre-cut in the produce section of grocery stores.

I most frequently use butternut squash in soups and as a side dish (I simply roast it with extra-virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper). This recipe actually turns the squash into a creamy sauce for pasta. It looks like mac 'n' cheese, but is so much better for you! I make this recipe with shrimp, but it would make a wonderful vegetarian entrée without the shrimp.

Rigatoni with Squash and Prawns
(From Giada's Kitchen)
Ingredients
* 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
* 1 pound butternut squash, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 teaspoon salt, plus 1 teaspoon
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/2 teaspoon
* 1 cup vegetable stock
* 1 pound rigatoni
* 1 pound prawns, peeled and deveined
* 3/4 to 1 cup whole milk
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
* 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions
Warm 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butternut squash, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Saute until the squash is golden and tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the vegetable stock, bring to a simmer, cover and cook until the squash is very soft, another 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the squash mixture to a blender or food processor and puree.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, warm the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the prawns with the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper. Add the prawns to the pan and cook until just pink, about 3 minutes.

In a large pot over low heat combine the cooked pasta, pureed squash mixture, and 3/4 cup milk. Stir to combine. Add the remaining 1/4 cup milk if the sauce needs to be moistened. Add the cooked prawns, basil, and cheese. Stir until warm and serve.

Two-for-One: Roasted Winter Vegetables & Soup, with Kate’s Toasted Baguette with Gruyere

I love making soups year-round, but the root vegetables of fall and winter give way for making soups with a thick consistency, and adding nothing more than a little seasoning and broth. Roasting the vegetables caramelizes them, making them soft enough to quickly puree with some broth. I make soups with all different variations of root vegetables, and this Ina Garten recipe combines them all.

This recipe is really a two-for-one. The first part leaves you with a colorful and delicious side dish of roasted vegetables. You can leave them as is to serve along with an entrée , or puree them into a soup. This is a great soup to make in the cooler months of the year, but for some reason I also find myself craving this soup in the spring with a light salad.

This evening we ate this soup with a variation on a grilled cheese. The crusty baguette and gooey cheese are a great compliment to the warm hearty soup, and I like to dip pieces of the bread into my soup bowl. The splash of chardonnay on the baguette is a nice touch that adds another layer of flavor, and freshly ground black pepper adds a little kick.

Her recipe calls for chicken stock, however I use vegetable stock. I puree the soup with an immersion blender in the stock pot, rather than transferring to a food processor.

Roasted Winter Vegetables & Soup
(From Barefoot Contessa Family Style)

Roasted Vegetables:
Ingredients
1 pound carrots, peeled
1 pound parsnips, peeled
1 large sweet potato, peeled
1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled and seeded
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425° F degrees.

Cut the carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and butternut squash in 1- to 1 1/4-inch cubes. All the vegetables will shrink while baking, so don't cut them too small.

Place all the cut vegetables in a single layer on 2 sheet pans. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss well. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once with a metal spatula.

Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste, and serve hot.

Roasted Vegetable Soup:
Ingredients
3 to 4 cups vegetable stock
1 quart Roasted Winter Vegetables (see recipe above)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
In a large saucepan, heat 3 cups of vegetable stock. In 2 batches, coarsely puree the roasted vegetables and the vegetable stock in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pour the soup back into the pot and season, to taste. Thin with more vegetable stock and reheat. The soup should be thick but not like a vegetable puree, so add more vegetable stock and/or water until it's the consistency you like.


Kate’s Toasted Baguette with Gruyere
Ingredients
1 French baguette
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons white wine (like chardonnay)
1 cup gruyere, grated
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 350° F degrees.

Slice baguette into thirds, and then slice each section in half horizontally. Place baguette slices on a large baking sheet, cut side up. Drizzle bread with extra virgin olive oil. Bake in oven for approximately 6-8 minutes, until bread is crispy. Remove from oven.

Splash white wine over baguettes, sprinkle with gruyere, and season with freshly ground black pepper. Turn broiler on high, and toast baguettes until cheese is melted and bread is toasted (approximately 2-4 minutes). Serve immediately.