Whole-Wheat Butternut Squash Ravioli

Used a butternut squash from our csa box. Our side salad was mixed greens from out csa box, as well.

Comments: Next time, I will use a pasta-maker, or just not do it, because rolling out pasta is a huge P.A.I.N. Also, I used whole wheat flour, which made it especially tough, so next time (if there is a next time) I would add more water to the dough. The filling was too sweet and butternutty for my liking, so adding more ricotta and perhaps a bit of salt and other spices would be a nice addition. Finally, I did a terrible job of measuring for this recipe, so the recipe listed below is my "best guess" plus any modifications based on the end result.

Verdict: **** (**) One child did NOT like the ravioli. The other two children ate it without enthusiasm, which I suppose is good? And, my mom and sister were over, and they liked it, but agree that a pasta maker would be a necessity if I were to do this again. :)


Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli

For the Pumpkin-ricotta filling
1½-2 cups butternut squash, cubed and roasted (400F oven until tender) I used a medium-ish and didn't measure the roasted cubes.
1 cup ricotta or cottage cheese
2 Tbsp parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Pulse in food processor until smooth
Can be prepared in advance. Refrigerate until ready to use

Pasta with whole wheat flour
1 1/4 cup white flour
1 1/4 cup Whole wheat flour
1 Egg
1 egg white
12-16 tbsp water

Mix flours together. Make a well in the center and add eggs and 6 tbsp water. Mix with a spoon until starting to come together, adding more water as necessary. Pasta dough should be fairly dry. Finish mixing dough by hand, gathering it into a ball. Cover and let rest for 45 minutes before working with it. Dough and pasta can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for several days.

Roll dough out very thin (basically as thin as you can manage if you don’t have a hand cranked pasta maker) and cut into strips, depending on how much pasta-to-filling ratio you’d like. Place teaspoonfuls of filling along a strip, cover with a second strip and seal tightly around each ravioli. Be sure to get all the air out of the pocket around the filling. You can wet the pasta strips with a little water around the fillings so they’ll stick together better if your pasta gets dry as you’re working with it. Let ravioli dry on a towel for at least 30 minutes – flip them over to dry both sides - before cooking to avoid clumping. Cook in boiling, salted water for approximately 5-7 minutes (longer time needed for thicker pasta).

Top with melted butter or olive oil, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and a handful of toasted pistachios (or pinenuts). Strong sauces will overpower the filling.
Makes 3-4 dozen ravioli, depending on size.

If you have some pasta dough left over, you can also cut the pasta into noodles or shapes. Let pasta dry on a rack or on a towel for about 30 minutes before cooking to avoid clumping. If you’re just making noodles, cook in salted, boiling water for 1-2 minutes.

Frittata and Beet Roesti

Various greens (mustard and broccoli liscia), beets, rosemary from csa box

Frittata comments: would definitely use onions (I HAD green and red onions, and yet, somehow forgot to use them). Also, I would add less salt that I did (which I, of course, did not measure so how will I know???). I could probably have added more greens and will next time. Again, didn't measure... silly me.

Beet comments: I would not say beets are my favorite food, I would never choose them. But, as they come frequently in our csa box, I am always on a search for new ways to eat them. As it was valentine's day, what a great opportunity for something red for dinner. SOOOO... beet pancakes. They were pretty darn good, for beets. I did use 4 small yellow beets and 1 medium red beet. This may have made it slightly more sweet, which was probably good. I really enjoyed eating a bite of beets roesti with a bite of the over-salted frittata... the sweetness counteracted the salty. Perfect.

Verdict: Frittata - ***** Beets: ** (children were bribed with chocolate to finish their beets, and they did, too)



Both recipes from NPR. The recipes below include my changes for "next time".

Frittata
Makes 4 servings
Time: About 30 minutes

• 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced onions
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Broccoli greens, mustard greens, kale, chard, etc.

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place the butter or oil in a medium-to-large ovenproof skillet, preferably non-stick, and turn the heat to medium. Add onions and saute until just soft. While it's heating, beat together the eggs, cheese, salt, and pepper. Add greens to mixture. When the butter melts, pour the egg mixture into the skillet and turn the heat to medium-low. Cook, undisturbed, for about 10 minutes, or until the bottom of the frittata is firm.
3. Transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake, checking every 5 minutes or so, just until the top of the frittata is no longer runny, 10 to 20 minutes more. (To speed things up, turn on the broiler, but be very careful not to overcook.) Serve hot or at room temperature.

Beet Roesti with Rosemary
Makes 4 servings
Time: 20 minutes

• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds beets
• 1 teaspoon coarsely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons butter

1. Trim the beets and peel them as you would potatoes; grate them in a food processor or by hand. Begin preheating a medium to large non-stick skillet over medium heat.
2. Toss the grated beets in a bowl with the rosemary and salt, then add about half the flour; toss well, add the rest of the flour, then toss again.
3. Place the butter in the skillet and heat until it begins to turn nut-brown. Scrape the beet mixture into the skillet, shape it into a nice circle, and press it down with a spatula. Turn the heat to medium-high and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the bottom of the beet cake is nicely crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Slide the cake out onto a plate, top with another plate, invert the two plates, and slide the cake back into the pan. Continue to cook, adjusting the heat if necessary, until the second side is browned. Cut into wedges and serve immediately.

Fire Roasted Artichokes

Went for an impromptu trip to Trader Joe's for some milk and eggs and came home $50 poorer... BUT, I did come home with some smallish artichokes. I was immediately inspired to make the roasted artichokes from Claim Jumper that I fell in love with this past week. (As a side note, we went to the Claim Jumper for the first time and it was yummy, a bit more expensive that we are used to, but VERY family friendly. It was a successful evening out.)

Since we were at my mom's house this evening, I didn't use anything from my csa stash or things I had in my fridge. BUT, we did use up my mom's garlic and a bunch of butter. :)

Verdict: *****(**) My mom and sister ate with us and both enjoyed the artichokes.

Comments: I didn't measure precisely and apparently I used too much lemon juice (or it was too lemony) so next time, I would use a lot less. We used dried basil as we had no fresh basil on hand. Also, since we were having ravioli for dinner, we didn't want to fire up the grill JUST for the artichokes, so we faked it with a grill pan. Worked well! I also think that bigger artichokes would have been better/sturdier. The relish was good, but hard to eat with the artichokes with the flimsy leaves. Anyhow, overall a success for everyone.


Fire Roasted Artichokes

Ingredients:
1 large artichoke
1 tablespoon butter, melted

***Roasted Garlic Mayonnaise***
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 head garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1 dash salt

***Tomato Relish***
1 medium tomato, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon minced onion
2 basil leaves, minced
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 dash ground black pepper

Directions:

Roast the head of garlic by preheating your oven to 325 degrees. Cut the top off of a head of garlic and cut the bottom (the root end) so that the garlic will sit flat. Remove most of the papery skin from the garlic, but leave just enough to hold the garlic together. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the garlic, then place it in a small oven-safe casserole dish.

Cover it with a lid or aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour or until the garlic begins to brown.

While the garlic is roasting prepare the tomato relish by combining all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Stir well, then cover and refrigerate until needed.

Prepare the artichoke by cutting about an inch off the top with a sharp knife. Use scissors to clip the thorny tips off of all the outer leaves so no one gets poked. Cut the artichoke in half down through the middle, then bring some water to a boil in a large saucepan to steam the artichokes.

The water should be a couple inches deep in the pan, but not so much as to cover the artichokes. If you have a steamer, that will work as well. When the water is simmering, add the artichokes, cover, and steam for 40 to 45 minutes or until the artichoke is tender. Preheat your barbecue grill to high heat.

Squeeze about 1 tablespoon of roasted garlic from the head and combine it with the mayo, lemon juice and salt. Stir well.

When the steamed artichokes are cool enough to handle, use a spoon to scrape out the fuzzy choke inside each half. Brush melted butter over the entire surface of each steamed artichoke half and place each half, flat side-down on the preheated grill. Grill for 4 to 6 minutes or until dark charring marks appear on the face of each half. Serve grilled-side-up with tomato relish (strain the liquid from the relish before serving) and roasted garlic mayonnaise on the side.

Chinese "Hot Drop" Soup

We are not Chinese, but being festive, we decided to have a little Chinese New Year dinner to use up some of the things in my fridge. I love a few different chinese soups. My favorite might be the hot and sour soup. My kids are tolerant of spice, but probably not that much "hot". I also really like egg drop soup and my kids have had this and tolerated it. And... we have a bunch of bok choy... so, I am making a mish mash soup. I know mixing the flavors might turn out to be terrible, but we'll see how it goes. Egg drop soup is so bland, and 2 of my kids are sick, so we might need a little more flavor (like the hot and sour). It will just be an experiment.

Bok Choy from CSA box
tofu left over from potstickers
white onion subsituted for green since we have white on hand
ginger i bought for an orzo recipe, but didn't end up using because we had this instead - plus i have 2 sick kids, and I hear ginger helps.

Verdict: ****** (my mom joined us for the celebration!)

Comments:
I didn't measure anything, but approximated my made-up recipe. I probably added closer to 1/2 cup onion and 3 tsp red wine vinegar, but feel free to make yours how you like it.


Chinese "Hot Drop" Soup

Ingredients:
4 cups chicken broth
8 oz tofu, small cubes
1/4 cup finely diced onion
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp Asian sesame oil
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 garlic clove, peeled, chopped
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/2 cup bamboo shoots
3 heads baby bok choy, leaves only, thinly sliced
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions:
Bring the chicken broth to boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in the red pepper flakes, soy sauce, Asian sesame oil, red wine vinegar, ginger, bamboo shoots, and the chopped garlic.

Add the bok choy. Simmer for up to 10 minutes, until the bok choy leaves turn dark green and are wilted and tender. Remove soup from heat. Very slowly pour in the eggs in a steady stream. Stir egg in a clockwise direction for approximately 1 minute.

Creamy Swiss Chard Pasta

swiss chard from csa box
all other items in fridge, believe it or not.

Verdict: ****1/2 (the 1 year old ate everything-with coaxing-except the pasta as she still has trouble with long noodles)

Comments: I made modifications to use up some of my ingredients in the fridge... the link below is to the original recipe.

Creamy Swiss Chard Pasta


Ingredients:

1 lb swiss chard
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 cup onion, chopped
3 roma tomatoes, chopped
3/4 cup fat free sour cream or 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup 2% low-fat milk
1/2 cup romano cheese
8 ounces whole wheat angel hair pasta, cooked according to package

Directions:
Prep Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 20 mins
1 Wash swiss chard, discard stems, cut leaves into small pieces.
2 Heat oil in large 2 quart saucepan over medium high heat, 1 to 2 minutes.
3 Add swiss chard, garlic and onion; cooking 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4 Add tomatoes, sour cream, milk, parmesan cheese, cooked pasta; stir well.
5 Serve warm.

Vegetable Potstickers and Oriental Cabbage Salad

Cabbage, carrot, and bok choy from CSA box
Also, I made kung pao chicken with some leftover bottled kung pao sauce... cheated there, but used up something in my kitchen. Also, added in the rest of the bunch of green onions used for other recipes, and a green pepper that needed to be eaten soon.

Verdict: ****

Comments: My 1 year old only liked the potsticker wrapper. The rest of us ate it all with grins. The kung pao was just spicy enough for my oldest to complain but he still ate it.... bottled sauce, though, so maybe next time I will opt for making it from scratch or make him suck it up again? The vegetable potstickers were kinda bland, so I might add in a bit more flavor -- perhaps some hoisin sauce, or more soy sauce, or maybe some spices???


Vegetable Potstickers

1 package firm tofu
1 large carrot, shredded
1 cup finely shredded baby bok choy
1/4 c finely chopped water chestnuts
1/4 c finely chopped bamboo shoots
1/4 c finely sliced green onions
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp salt
1 package potsticker or gyoza wrappers
2 Tbsp oil for frying dumplings

Directions:
Drain tofu, cut into cubes and mash. Wash and prepare veggies. Combine tofu and the remainder of ingredients. Lay out a wrapper in front of you and moisten edges with water. Place a heaping teaspoon of filling in middle of wrapper. Fold wrapper over filling and pinch edeges to seal. (I highly recommend the "heaping" as the ingredients cooked down and left a lot of noodle with little filling)

Heat 2 Tbsp oil in large skillet or wok. When ready, carefully add dumplings and cook on high heat until golden brown (approx 1 min). Without turning dumplings over, add 1/2 cup of water and cover. Cook for about 1 minute to cook the raw filling, then uncover and continue cooking until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Oriental Cabbage Salad

1 package of chicken flavor ramen noodles
1/2 head of shredded cabbage
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
2 Tbsp sesame seeds

Dressing:
3 Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
2 Tbsp canola oil
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Directions:
Crush noodles slightly and place in colander. Pour boiling water over noodles to soften slightly. Drain well. In a large bowl, combine noodles, cabbage, onions and sesame seeds. For dressing, combine seasoning packet from noodles, vinegar, oil, salt and pepper. Pour over salad and toss. Cover and chill for several hours or overnights. Before serving, stir in almonds.

Mustard Chicken And Orzo Casserole With Dill And Capers

Celery and dill from csa box
chicken tenders used instead of breasts (from Sprouts)

Comments: I used more chicken and orzo to make the dish a two-nighter. :) Ground nutmeg was used instead of fresh (who has fresh nutmeg on hand, anyway?) Also, I found some whole wheat orzo, and used that instead. I had a hard time with the sauce part, but that could be that I had to leave part way through to pick my son up from school and the broth might have chilled too much, or that my butter was not unsalted... or something... Anyway, all turned out well in the end as far as I am concerned. It did take a long time to prepare due to all the steps, so I highly recommend making a large portion (as I did) so that you get multiple meals of enjoyment!

Verdict: *****(**)
My mom gave it a positive review as well as my daughter, who required 2 forks, so as to feed herself just as fast as she possibly could.

Mustard Chicken And Orzo Casserole With Dill And Capers
Gourmet | December 2002
Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 1 3/4 hr
Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings
Active Time: 45 min
Total Time: 1 3/4 hr

3 cups chicken broth
1 3/4 lb skinless boneless chicken breast halves
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons coarse-grain mustard
3 tablespoons drained bottled capers, rinsed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
1/4 cup sour cream
6 celery ribs, cut diagonally into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 cup orzo (rice-shaped pasta)

Special equipment: a 2 1/2- to 3-quart flameproof gratin dish or shallow casserole dish (1 1/2 to 2 inches deep; not glass)

Bring broth to a simmer in a 4-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Add chicken and simmer very gently, turning once, 6 minutes total. Remove pan from heat and cover, then let stand until chicken is just cooked through, about 15 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate to cool and keep broth warm, partially covered.
Melt butter in a 2- to 3-quart heavy saucepan over low heat, then add flour and cook roux, stirring, 3 minutes. Add warm broth all at once, whisking, and simmer gently, whisking occasionally, 10 minutes. Whisk in cream and simmer, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in mustards, capers, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and dill (to taste).
Transfer 1/2 cup sauce to a small bowl and stir in sour cream to make topping.
Shred chicken with your fingers and stir together with remaining sauce in a large bowl.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Cook celery in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 8 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of cold water to stop cooking and return cooking water to a boil. Drain celery in a colander and add to chicken mixture. Cook orzo in same boiling water until just tender, then drain in a sieve.
Stir orzo into chicken mixture, then transfer mixture to gratin dish, spreading evenly. Spoon sour cream topping over top and spread evenly. Bake, covered with foil, in middle of oven until heated through and sauce is bubbling around edges, 25 to 30 minutes.
Preheat broiler.
Remove foil from dish and broil about 3 inches from heat until top is speckled with brown spots, 3 to 5 minutes.

Cooks' note:
• Casserole can be assembled (but not baked or broiled) 6 hours ahead and cooled, uncovered, then chilled, covered with foil. Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes before baking.

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