Adventures of A Happy Cooker: THE HAPPY COOKER ET FILLE: CARROTS AND SPICE AND ...

Adventures of A Happy Cooker: THE HAPPY COOKER ET FILLE: CARROTS AND SPICE AND ...: "Adventures of a Happy Cooker has an announcement: a daughter! We share a love of food, cooking and family food adventures, and now we will ..."

THE HAPPY COOKER ET FILLE: CARROTS AND SPICE AND EVERYTHING NICE!

Adventures of a Happy Cooker has an announcement: a daughter!  We share a love of food, cooking and family food adventures, and now we will share some of that with you! Approximately once a month we will take an ingredient or topic and give it a "mother-daughter" spin! 

  
       Hello!  Fille here!  As my mother mentioned, I will be joining this blog once a month or so to offer an alternative view point on a chosen ingredient or cooking style.  While my mother is my inspiration when it comes to cooking, we do have some differing methods and view points, and thought it would be fun to produce a "fair and balanced" blog.   So let the fun begin with carrots!

One of the things I dislike the most about carrots is the tendency of cooks to bring out their sweetness with sugar, butter and honey.  I am not a sweet fan - I tend to lean more on the spice and everything nice side of things.   So I created this dish to allow myself to enjoy the wonderful flavor of carrots, but in the manner that I enjoy them - with lots of spice!

Spicy Carrot Soup 

2 tbsp of olive oil 

1 lb of carrots (preferably fresh farm whole carrots but you can do the package of baby carrots as well), peeled and chopped 

1 lb parsnips, peeled and chopped 

4 small  baby Yukon gold potatoes, peeled 

1 medium onion 

1 clove of garlic, minced

salt 

pepper 

1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper (more to taste) 

Red pepper flakes 

2 32 oz containers of chicken stock or broth

1/2 cup half and half (optional) 

1.  Heat oil in a large dutch oven soup pot over medium heat.  Add carrots, parsnips, potatoes and onion and garlic.  Sautee until onion is tender (maybe 10 minutes or so).  Add in Stir in chicken broth, salt, pepper and cayenne and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, stirring often. 

2.  Let simmer for approximately 30 minutes and then remove from heat.  Parsnips and carrots should be extremely tender.  Process mixture  with hand held blender or transfer soup to a blender and blend until smooth.  Stir in half and half if using.  Taste for heat level, and season with additional salt/pepper/cayenne to taste. 

3.  Serve in a warm soup bowl, drizzled with a touch of high quality olive oil, fresh parsley  and a healthy sprinkle of high quality red pepper flakes.  

Enjoy!!   

A few alternatives:   If you like a smokey flavor, you may want to add a teaspoon of cumin as well.  You could also top the soup with sour cream, fresh chives or a little grated fresh parmesan cheese.  Topping with roasted pumpkin seeds is another delicious idea.  I also like to have something crunchy with any soup (I'm a huge texture fan) so I tend to serve with a toasted baguette, sliced and drizzled with olive oil and salt and chapped parsley for freshness.

This sounds so delicious, Fille, and so like you. You were always my "chips, pretzels and pickle" girl, preferring them to sweets! I like your variations too. Wish you were here to make it for me, but I guess I'll have to do it myself!
I do agree that some recipes treat carrots more like a dessert (and sweet potatoes, too) than a vegetable and the results can be cloying. That said, I  think that some sweetness  combined with the "heat" can emphasize the natural sweetness in the carrot. So I offer my recipe for "Dynamite Carrots" which I recently made with my SunCoast Organics Rainbow Carrots for a particularly colorful meal addition.

 

DYNAMITE CARROTS

1 -2 Bunches of Rainbow or other sweet organic carrots

1/2 - 1 stick butter, melted

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon (or more to taste) chili powder

1 small jalapeno, minced

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

Scrub the carrots well. I do not peel my carrots, especially the Rainbow because you will peel off the color which also has the phytonutrients. I scrub them well instead.

Cut them into matchsticks, julienne style.

Add a little water to skillet and cover and cook the carrots for a few minutes until just al dente. Drain, if there is any water left.

Meanwhile, melt the butter and add the rest of the ingredients.

Pour over the cooked carrots and cook for a minute or so additional to make sure they are all coated with the flavored butter.

 

Serve and enjoy.

Make sure you use good quality chili powder for this. I use Penzey's and sometimes I add a little of their "Arizona Dreaming" spice to the butter too. It adds a little more depth to the chili flavor.
You could also use maple syrup in place of the honey for a stronger flavored dish.

TALE OF TWO SQUASHES..

DELICATA AND CARNIVAL SQUASHES

"It was the best of times, it was the..." wait a minute, it could never  be the "worst of times" when we have such fresh, beautiful produce to prepare and eat! What was I thinking?!


Delicata Squash, is just that, delicate. It is relatively petite in size, light in color and markings, and the skin is thin (for a squash, that is). The flesh is also a little lighter in color and density. The flavor is delicate, too, but delightful! Probably the best squash for "people who do not like squash". It is best when baked or roasted, I think.

Carnival, on the other hand, is more dense, heavier and sometimes larger. It takes longer to cook and is more dry. It is good for cutting into chunks and sauteeing, but it's beautiful markings and shape call for baking too!


These two are, of course, not the only types of squash, in fact they are probably more similar to each other than different varieties of squash, such as Acorn, Butternut or the "grandaddy" of  squashes, Hubbard. Their skins are hard, flesh dense and orange. The list goes on: the squashes are a large and interesting family! 

A Trio of Squashes, Kabocha, Delicata and Carnival

Hubbard, which I love to use for soup, was once a near disaster for me.  Youth is wonderful! You act on impulse and then actually have the energy to cope with your folly.  

I was planning a lovely buffet for a group at a conference center and wanted a spectacular presentation for the soup course. Hubbard Squash, of course! It can be HUGE!! and what a beautiful way to serve soup! So I blithely ordered a giant from the produce purveyor.

First of all, it took two of us to carry it into the kitchen. Secondly, we knew instantly that there was no way our kitchen knives would carve into this ROCK sitting on the counter. The soup was made and lunch was on in about an hour. Fortunately, it was lunchtime  and the maintenance crew was available. We put in an emergency call and they came, saws, chisels and hammers in hand! 

After they cut, ( and we bowed in gratitude!), we scooped the seeds, forever, but finished in time to present our beautiful, natural soup tureen, the Hubbard Squash.  Great idea, but never again. I think that is why they make ceramics that LOOK like vegetables!

The following is a lovely, light fruity recipe for baked stuffed Delicata.

FRUIT STUFFED DELICATA SQUASH

1/4 Granny Smith or other tart apple variety

1/4 pear

1/2 cup cranberries, halved or chopped

2 tablespoons sliced almonds

3 tablespoons Panko or fresh toasted breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut squash in half and scoop out seeds. Place in baking pan with a little water and cover with foil. Bake for 15- 20 minutes until softened.

Turn the oven to 450 degrees.

Meanwhile make stuffing. Cut the apple, and pear into small pieces and cut or chop the cranberries. Add the nuts, syrup, breadcrumbs and mix in the butter with your fingers.

Stuff the squash halves and bake for about 20 minutes until browned.

 

  A note on the maple syrup. Use Grade B is possible. It is less expensive and has more flavor. 

The second time I made this, I did not have pears or almonds, so I used a little pineapple and walnuts. The cranberries and apples are necessary, otherwise use your imagination or whatever you have in stock! This is so simple and so delicious. I don't think it would be as good with any other squash than Delicata. It is really a "delicate" light recipe.

Now for the Carnival. This recipe would work with Acorn squash as well (and probably many others !). The "stuffing" is based on a sauce I used to make for pasta at the White Rainbow, Sausage, Basil and Cream. Of course back then, it was homemade Italian sausage from Trupiano's. Now I use "Greenwise" Hot Chicken Sausage from Publix. How time changes all! 

The basil is still fresh from my "garden", now a container on the lanai. Does anyone remember my herb garden outside the White Rainbow kitchen?  Mine! The real one!! I have an old newspaper clipping of it and me picking Basil for a Pesto Lasagne, Night Rainbow "special".

Carnival Squash..doesn't it look happy!?

ITALIAN SAUSAGE, BASIL, CREAM STUFFED SQUASH

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds.

Place it in a baking dish with a little water. Cover and bake for 30-40 minutes until softened. This is a denser squash and takes more time to bake. The recipe takes a long time, but the "active" cooking time is minimal.

4 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, chopped (approx. 1/2 cup)

2 cups cream (yes, heavy cream)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (freshly grated if possible)

twist of black pepper

20-25 leaves of fresh basil, chopped 

1/4 -1/2 cup breadcrumbs to bind stuffing

1 pound (4) Italian sausages (hot or mild), casing removed

Melt the butter in a skillet. 

Saute the onion until softened. 

Add the sausage, crumble and cook until done.

Add the cream, nutmeg, pepper and parmesan and continue to cook until slightly thickened.

 Add enough breadcrumbs to "bind" the stuffing, but do not make it too dry.

Chop and add the basil.

Stuff the squash and bake for 20-30 minutes.

Cut, serve and enjoy!

This should stuff 4 squash and serve 4

 

NOVEMBER: FLORIDA AND NEW ENGLAND

Florida

November is a pivotal month. Summer is truly over , baseball is past and the Holiday fervor starts its slow crescendo. First Pumpkins, Squashes and Mums, then the makings of Holiday traditional foods appear on the grocery shelves and in the fresh markets. The pace is no longer leisurely, yet there is a sense of warmth (in  Florida, the lovely sunshine enhances that feeling), nostalgia and retreat. I feel it here in the shorter days and waning afternoon sun, the conversations which inevitably turn to family stories, and the quest for familiar foods to prepare.

This is really Florida, too, but looks like New England!

The following is an excerpt from my column, Cornucopia, which I wrote in the 1970's! It is the "November" I remember and echos the sentiments described above in a different environment.

"November in New England signifies many things. It is the end to any recall of summer that comes with the deceiving warmth of Indian Summer days. The brilliance of October is but a pale trace of color on a frosty cheek.

  It is a time of transition into winter, cheerful, despite nature's ominously  stark scene. Life turns indoors as thoughts of winter and the upcoming Holidays mount. 

  Amidst the atmosphere, the preparation of tradtitonal foods is almost a necessary ritual. As with rites of all kinds, the formula is prescribed: pumpkin pies, cranberry sauces, fruit and nut cakes. These are as much a part of November as the bare trees outlined against the sky. No changes should occur to them unless the household sanctions them. The following recipes, using pumpkin and cranberries, are solid enough not to offend the staunchest November Yankee, but interesting enough perhaps to tempt him and provide the cook some secret delight in a little bit of license."

The recipes I've included in this post are simple and homespun, yet delightful in their own way. Warm your hands on a mug of coffee or tea and enjoy them!

AUNT MATTIES' CRANBERRY CAKE

My aunt Mattie was a wonderful home cook. Everything she made was fresh, simple and delicious. Fresh food was all she knew, so there are no tricks or contrivances here to distract.

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla 

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup fresh, halved cranberries

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg and beat until well blended.  Add the vanilla and almond extracats.

In another bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salta together.

Alternately add the dry ingredients and milk to the creamed mixture.

Fold in the cranberries and pour into a well greased 9 inch cake pan. Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar. 

Bake for 50 minutes. 

You could dust with confectioners' sugar or an orange glaze, but it is good as is. 

Simple ingredients for Cranberry Cake

Ready for coffee??

The next recipe makes 2 loaves. It is not the usual pumpkin bread as it is not really sweet. The sour cream and whole wheat flour make it more wholesome and maple syrup as the main sweetener make it slightly more subtle too.

New Englanders know that the best maple syrup for cooking is Grade B. (the same way that Floridians know that the best fruit is often the ugliest..we send the pretty stuff to the tourists) Grade B is darker and more opaque, perhaps not as translucent as its light amber Grade A cousin reserved for the tourists, too.

These loaves are great toasted with butter or cut into triangles and used as a base to hold a fruity or curried chicken or turkey salad.

MAPLE PUMPKIN BREAD

(2 LOAVES)

3 cups white flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

1/2 cup sour cream

1 1/4 cups maple syrup

(1 cup chopped nuts or raisins-optional)

Preheat oven to 350.

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth and add the eggs one at a time.

Stir in the pumpkin puree, sour cream and maple syrup.

In another bowl, sift the dry ingredients together.

Gradually mix them into the pumpkin mixture.

Fold in nuts or raisins if using.

Divide the mixture between 2 well greased loaf pans. 

Bake for approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes or until done.

Serve warm or room temperature.

Freeze one loaf for later, or give as a nice holiday gift.