Roasted Pumpkin

I’m going to admit a blunder of sorts. You see, I had every intention of bringing you, my readers, a fall full of pumpkin-y goodness. So much so that by now you’d be thinking can she cook with something over than that giant orange so-quintessentially-fall staple?

And although I’ve eaten my weight in pumpkin over the past two months, very minimal accounts of this have actually made their way onto this space. Maybe it’s because I was too busy popping roasted pumpkin into my mouth like candy.

       

       

Or maybe it’s because I was so fearful of overdosing on pumpkin I actually ended up appearing as though I’ve been living a pumpkin-less fall. And that, is one heck of a lie.

So before I dive into a season of molasses and ginger and peppermint and yule tide I’d better get my favorite – and coincidentally, most simple – pumpkin recipe up for sharing.

And just in time for T-day! T-day? Really? I just went there. And it is 100% Alton Brown’s fault as I’ve spent the past few nights watching his turkey themed Good Eats re-runs, for reference, there are about four. Who knew a guy could talk turkey so many different ways?

I digress.

If you are looking for one more side dish to dress up the table for this Thursday, I’m highly recommending this dish.

Roasted Pumpkin

Ingredients

1 sugar pumpkin, scooped clean (seeds+guts removed) and cut into (approximate) 1-inch cubes*

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

dash of salt

non-stick cooking spray

Preheat oven to 450F and line a baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper. Place cubed pumpkin, skin side down onto baking sheet and spray with a light coat of non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and bake for 30-35 minutes until pieces are easily pierced with a fork. Remove skin prior to eating.

*All the more power to Martha Stewart and her ability to peel the pumpkin prior to baking. I had very poor luck with this on my initial attempt and so I opted for skin on. Once baked, the skin peels of pretty seamlessly. Though it does make for a bit of messy eating!

Peanut Butter Banana Stuffed Pumpkin French Toast

I’ve been partaking in risky behavior over the past couple of weeks.

And while I haven’t exactly been committing any crimes, dancing with tigers or jumping out of air planes, I have been watching Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate” on my iPad right before going to sleep.

 

This leaves my mouth watering and my mind racing with thoughts of how can I make that entree/dessert/appetizer appear in my kitchen in the next five minutes??

 

I resist temptation to scurry into the kitchen and start concocting whatever Alton Brown was just raving about. But it’s not easy because I swear, if there ever was a show that could qualify as food porn (and let me tell you I hate that term – food porn) I think this show takes the cake.

 

Just when I was ready to break the habit, switch back to watching something a little more low key like Modern Family, Selling New York or Gilmore Girls I watched some woman in some diner in some Idaho town create peanut butter banana french toast. And for the next two Saturday’s I created my own version – sans Rum and butter – and felt as though I was in absolute breakfast heaven.

 

Then fall came and I was ears deep in spaghetti squash and gourds and I started buying all things orange and yellow and pumpkin puree was going into like everything I was making. I wasn’t even sure peanut butter and bananas would let some pumpkin in on that great thing they’ve got going but the aroma that was coming off the griddle assured me I had done a good job playing match maker.

Peanut Butter Banana Stuffed Pumpkin French Toast

 Serves 1

You will need:

2 slices of your favorite whole grain bread

1/2 medium ripe banana, sliced into thin strips

1 TBSP peanut butter

1 egg

1/4 cup pureed pumpkin

ground cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Toppings such as (but not limited to):

Maple Syrup

Brown Sugar

Honey

Walnuts or Pecans

More Peanut Butter

Powdered Sugar

Fruit

Here’s what you do:

In a medium bowl or shallow pan whisk egg, vanilla extract and a dash of each spice (cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg). Whisk in pumpkin puree and a splash of low fat milk or water. Set aside.

Divide peanut butter between the two slices of bread and lay banana slices diagonally across one slice. Top with the other slice and dip sandwich into egg-pumpkin mixture, evenly coating all sides.

Prepare griddle or skillet over medium heat with non-stick cooking spray.

Cook sandwich over medium heat for about 5 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking time so that each side is browned and just slightly crispy.

Plate and slice diagonally (all things taste better when they’re cut on the diagonal, yes?)

Top as desired.

Pumpkin Zucchini Lasagna

Every September I fall in love all over again. I fall in love with the most ideal temperatures, the warmest woven clothing, the sweetest apples, the crunchiest pumpkin seeds, the creamiest chowder, the most beautiful reds, yellows and oranges. I could wrap myself up in a blanket of autumn and stay for quite awhile.

And if the last post was any indication, I also partake in the craze that is adding pumpkin to  nearly every sort of meal imaginable. This time last year I prepared pumpkin stuffed shells for my girls from the internship. We celebrated the new letters we could display after our name and spoke of the careers that would play out for each of us, a different path.

One year later, I was craving the warmth of that savory pumpkin dish once more. This time, in the form of lasagna. Given that I’ve never had a great relationship with lasagna noodles, boil or no-boil, I decided to omit them all together and instead, I used zucchini. And if I’m reading your mind correctly right now, let me just say that yes, I’m on that zucchini is the new low-carb pasta bandwagon too. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for carbohydrates, just blame the noodles on this one.

 

Pumpkin Zucchini Lasagna

Serves 1

1/2 cup part skim ricotta

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1/4 cup gorgonzola

dash of red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

handful baby spinach leaves, chopped

1/2 medium zucchini, sliced lengthwise into thin, flat strips

1/2 cup marinara sauce

 

Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a small baking dish. Spray pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix ricotta and gorgonzola cheese with pumpkin, red pepper flakes, spinach, salt and pepper.

Begin the layering process my spooning a thin layer of marinara sauce onto the bottom of the pan. Lay strips of zucchini down then top with ricotta pumpkin mixture. Repeat this process one more time, ending with a layer of tomato sauce on top. Sprinkle with addition cheese as desired.

Bake for 15 minutes covered with tin foil, remove foil and continue baking for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool about 5-10 minutes before serving.

Note this recipe can easily be increased to reflect the number of guests you are serving.

Mini Portobello Pizzas

I watch the way the clouds huddle over the deep blues of the sound, a pewter tint surrounds them and fills them. I catch a glimpse of the sun, she has traded places with her summer skin. But I can’t help but feel like everyone else.

It seems that every social media outlet (think instagram, pinterest and the like) is filled with all things autumn and I’m just another pumpkin-loving kind of girl. But hey, I guess it’s about time I embraced that whole “the more the merrier” concept and took a seat at the fall appreciation table. But really, you’ll probably find me kicking up crunchy leaves along the curb, zipping up my boots, marveling at the way the leaves filter the light onto the last of the summer tomato crop, pulling my new scarf just a little tighter over my shoulders.

Ironically, the recipe I’ve chosen to include today has nothing to do with fall, or pumpkins. In fact, the jpegs have been sitting idle in my flickr account for about 6 weeks now, patiently awaiting my return to the world of blogging.

But don’t say I didn’t warn you of all the pages of pumpkin filled goodness to come.

Mini Portobello Pizzas

Makes 6 mini pizzas, enough for 2 people

1 package of baby bella stuffers, stems removed (contains 6 caps)

3/4 cup marinara sauce

5-10 cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

5 leaves fresh basil, chopped

1/4 pound prosciutto, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F and spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Spoon marinara sauce into each baby portobello mushroom. Fill with tomatoes and prosciutto. Sprinkle with cheese and basil and bake until cheese is bubbling and melted, about 10-15 minutes.

Chocolate Coconut Granola Bars

For better or for worse I have a very strong tendency to tie scents, songs, and sightings to both distant and recent memories alike. Sometimes it will have me moving CDs to the back of the closet to take a bit of a hiatus and sometimes on snowy commutes like today I become lost in thoughts of baking up something warm and delicious as I pad across the kitchen to marvel at how much quieter the street looks when it snows, as if the flakes are like little sound sponges.

This particular memory stems from a “girl’s night in” back in middle school when we ordered pizza from Universal Market and baked chocolate chip cookies as a layer of feather-like snow blanketed our small town. The cool tile of the kitchen floor felt good against my feet because the warmth of good friends, gossip, and the oven was aplenty.

Even though I have since forgotten most of my middle school memories – most likely for the better – this one has stuck and thus I find myself baking up chocolate coconut granola bars in place of cookies some eleven years later as my own way of welcoming the snow. As I have grown up I’ve adapted a more practical approach to things and therefore these bars will also serve as a convenient pack and go breakfast for weekday mornings.

Sometimes I am stopped in my tracks by something so mundane to the outsider it almost seems absurd even in my own mind. But the way the memories come flooding back when I catch the sunlight filtering through the tree line casting a single beam on Ram Island as our deck sits in the shadow evokes memories the late November days of my childhood when thoughts of Santa and snow days were my biggest priorities. 

Reading this may make it seem as though I walk through life tied down by memories and it could make you wonder how I ever have the ability to make new memories if I am so busy recalling years past. This is what amazes me most about the way I recall memories, the ability to connect the dots of life without even knowing when a time or place, or voice or aroma is going to claim a spot next to the many memories in the microfiche of my mind.

These chocolate coconut bars come together nicely with a bit of milk, brown sugar, and honey. Pumpkin, oats, nuts, and dried fruit bring some fiber to the mix giving that stick-to-your-ribs appeal of wintertime foods without the burden of flour or butter.

Chocolate Coconut Granola Bars

Recipe adapted from Pastry Affair

Makes about 10 – 4 by 1 1/2” bars

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp allspice

1/8 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups old fashioned rolled oats

1/4 cup dried cherries and cranberries, halved

1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

2 TBSP honey

3/4 cup pureed pumpkin (canned or homemade)

1/4 cup skim milk

Preheat oven to 375 F and butter or spray an 8×8” baking dish. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix until moistened throughout. Firmly pack mixture into the baking dish forming an even layer and bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. The refrigerator can speed up the cooling process. Cut bars and store in air tight containers.