Butternut Squash Soup

Butternut Squash soup

Today is September 1st.

The beginning of the beginning of Fall!

Fall is my favorite time of the year in New Mexico..... for many reasons. First off, there is little or no wind. 
The skies

are blue and clear. The aroma of roasting chili not far away.

The growers markets are in full swing, and the crisp cool fall 

air is on the way!

1 large butternut squash, cooked, baked or steamed

until soft. 2T butter or olive oil

1C milk or half and half,

or broth or water for thinning.

1 Shallot minced, and sautéed

Sage for garnish ( I like to fry the sage leaves for 

just a minute in a little olive oil to crisp them)

To add some extra flavor to this wonderful soup, try carmelizing

the squash somewhat in a hot oven on a cookie sheet, just browning the edges..

In a stock pan, melt butter or use olive oil.

Sauté onions,

Place squash in blender, or you can also get out your

Immersion blender for this one!

Blend until smooth adding cream or milk last.

Do not boil cream. If using broth or water to thin,

you can boil just a little bit. So not place hot liquid in
blender, it will explode!!!! Serve warm with croutons and sage on top!
Happy Cooking! Happy Fall!

Quick Green Chili Enchaladas

Green Chili Enchaladas

(Quick Method)

This recipe is from my sweet Husband Ron.

1 Tub Frozen Bueno Chopped Green Chili

2 Cans Cambells Cream of Mushroom Soup

2 Cans Cambells Cream of Chicken Soup

1 Onion Chopped

12 Corn Tortillas

1/2 C Corn Oil

16 oz Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 Rotisserie Chicken, (Meat removed from bones and chopped)
1T Chopped Garlic

Sauté onion in 2 T oil in a small fry type pan, remove onion from pan and place in large stock pot or large pan, over medium heat, add thawed green chili, soups and chicken. stir all ingredients together.

Add the rest of the oil to the small fry pan and turn heat to medium. Fry tortillas one at a time for only less that 30 sec each side, place on paper towel to drain. Spray a large casserole pan with Pam to coat.

Place a small amount of sauce on the bottom of the pan and spread a thin layer. Place tortillas on top of sauce, then more sauce, cheese, tortillas,sauce, cheese etc, ending with sauce and cheese.

Bake in 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes! Yummy! If you are feeding kids, make sure you get the mild green chili. It can be omitted. Also you can use low fat versions of the soups and cheese. There are vegan varieties of soups and there is also a TVP type of Chicken substitute from Morningstar Farms!

Or saute vegetables of choice to place in the sauce, i.e.: Squash, white beans for protein, carrots, potatoes, eggplant, peas, green beans! Total time is about 15min prep time and 30 min cooking.

Check out this beautiful Stock Pot from Le Creuset at Sur La Table! Its only 54.00!!! This fry pan from Chefs Table is only 20.00! Its from Cuisinart! I prefer pans without coatings, this one is my personal favorite! Happy Cooking!

Le Creuset Cherry Enameled Steel Stockpot, 8 qt. (Google Affiliate Ad)Cuisinart Chef's Classic Fry Pans - 8" - Cuisinart Chef's Classic (Google Affiliate Ad)

Idea for the day

Idea of the Day

08/30/12

While editing my recipe of the day for my Butternut Squash Risotto, I had actually 2 ideas that came from this recipe. When you are using a large squash, you can either cube and freeze what you do not use, but another idea is if you have a baby, or even an older adult that you are taking care of, you can run the steamed squash thru a baby food mill. Very easy, freeze small portions in small plastic (safe) ware, for later use!

My second idea is about the actual preparing the squash. Butternut squash are kind of awkward to handle. These simple tips can make it a little easier.

There are several schools of thought in handling a BNS. (Butternut Squash). First, I like to cut the neck off the round body. Then, cut the body in half and scoop out the seeds. Next either you can cut the neck in half as well, use a peeler and peel the hard skin away, or to make it even easier, you can roast the squash unpeeled in a shallow pan of water, until it is somewhat golden brown for more flavor. Then simply cube the flesh and remove. If you cube the squash raw, please be very careful! It is very easy to cut yourself! Video to come soon!

You can find these mills online very reasonable priced! If you enjoyed my blog today, please click on the baby food mills for more information!

Butternut Squash Risotto

Butternut Squash Risotto

Fall reminds me of squash. Now is the time you will 

Find an abundance of them at your local markets. Take advantage of their beautiful colors and luscious favors. Butternut squash, pumpkin and many other squash of these types freeze well. That way you can have squash all winter. Frozen butternut squash makes excellent soup on a cold winter day. (recipe later)

This recipe is not vegan, however, just a few minor changes

Can make it so. Simply by eliminating the chicken, bacon,and chicken

Stock, substituting mushroom stock, or vegetable stock. I would add sautéed mushrooms, sugar snap peas, and either edamame or chick peas for the protein if you are making it vegan.

3 cups broth boiling in a pot on back burner of stove top

2 T olive oil

1 shallot minced

1/3 c white wine

1 rotisserie chicken cubed

5 slices of bacon  cooked and chopped

1 c Romano cheese 

1 C Butternut Squash, Cubed

12 oz. Arborio Rice

Brown bacon, remove from pan. Drain grease. Add olive oil and sauté shallots.

Add risotto and sauté for just a few minutes, add white wine and stir until absorbed. Begin to add hot stock, by ladles, until absorbed. This takes about 15 minutes. Watch risotto very carefully, turn down heat to low. Risotto will turn somewhat transparent when done, soft to the taste, or al dente depending on preference. Stir in. Bacon, chicken, squash and cheese. Cover and let stand, adding more liquid as needed. Reserve a little bacon and cheese for garnish.

Enjoy!Serve with a steamed vegetable or small salad! 

Glop

Glop

This is a quick and easy dipping sauce for almost

anything fried!!

1/4 C Mayonaise

1/2 C Ketchup

a few shakes of Tabasco!

Mix well and dip away!
Click on the ketchup for information on catering size products!

Thai Red Panang

Thai Red Panang

5 T Panang Curry Paste

2 t cooling oil

4 C coconut milk

2 lbs of chicken cut

2 T sugar

2 T Fish sauce or Oyster sauce

6 Kaffir Lime leaves

2 Red Thai Chile peppers, or other red peppers

1/4 C Basil (Lemon Basil works well here)

Fry curry paste in oil until it releases its fragrance. Stir in Coconut milk and boil, add chicken and cook through. Stir in sugar, fish sauce and lime leaves. Stir in basil last and use basil for garnish. I like to make this dish vegetarian, by only using lots of stir fry vegetables . Select from red bells, snap peas, edamame, bamboo shoots, green beans, squash, broccoli, or any other of your choice. Just stir fry the vegs first a little  to soften. Also this is a great dish to add Tofu. Just dice the tofu, and fry to give it some texture.

There are some ready made red curries and panang sauces on the market. This makes it real easy. Just stir fry and add! Viola! Happy Cooking! Keep in mind that the products below are sold by the case, but at least you know what the product looks like to purchase in the market. Case purchases are probably for Hotels or restaurants.

I

Pico de gallo

Pico de Gallo
Roosters Beak

You will need a chopper or mini FP for this one!

This recipe is great to make this time of year due to the abundance

of fresh ingredients!!!! (Aug-Oct)

I prefer red peppers because they bring a little sweetness

 and more flavor to the table. You can use any red pepper you like, but when selecting them from the growers market or store just keep your eyes open for the red ones. I like to use a combination of Thai peppers, and Serranos. They offer a medium, steady medium heat.

This recipe makes about 1 -2 cups.

 2 Chilis

3 large Roma Tomatoes

1 Clove of Garlic Juice of 1/2 Lime

1/4 t Sugar

1/2 t salt

Handful of cilantro

Small Shallot

Dice everything together, adding lime juice, salt and pepper

In the end, mix well, chill and devour!!!,

This is a very colorful salsa! Feel free 

To use any type of tomato, even green, making this a wonderful salsa Verde!
Happy chopping!!!