Pumpkin Grits with Sausage and Onion

Posted on January 30, 2015 by makehastenotwaste

This week, the Northeast suffered a MASSIVE weather event. HUGE amounts of snow were predicted from Monday night into Tuesday. “Be prepared,” we were warned. “Stock up!”

Even if it had turned out worse in my area, which only saw about 10-12″ and no power outages (some areas nearby were worse off), I sincerely question any large-scale concern about having enough food. Caring for babies, people with medical conditions, etc.? Yes you need to take precautions. But most of us? So the power is out for a couple of days. Most people’s stock of pasta and peanut butter would last them weeks!

I didn’t have to resort to peanut noodles…though that actually sounds good right about now. Earlier in the week, I had come across a great recipe that could incorporate more of my freezer stash: a half of a package of italian sausage and some pumpkin purée. On Sunday night I transferred the items to the fridge to thaw. The recipe also called for rosemary, which fortunately I had snipped before the bush was buried in snow. Alas, I had power and gas on Tuesday! Once the driveway was plowed, and the work-from-home workday ended, I prepared a rather refined dinner.

Pumpkin Grits with Sausage and Onion
Adapted from The New York Times Cooking
Serves 2 as a meal

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
1 bay leaf
3/4 Cup cornmeal grits (or fine polenta, or coarse cornmeal)
water as needed according to package directions
about 2/3 Cup – at least 6 ounces pumpkin purée
1.5 Tablespoons unsalted butter
Black pepper, to taste
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, more as needed
1/2 to 3/4 pounds sweet or hot Italian sausage, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 large onion, sliced into thin half moons

Heat your water (3 cups in my case) in a medium pot with salt and a bay leaf. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Gradually stir in the grits. Add the pumpkin.

Note: leaving a metal whisk in a metal pot as shown here is not a good idea.

Lower the heat so the mixture is at a simmer. Stir frequently until the grits are tender, about 30 minutes.

While the grits cook, prepare the sausage and caramelized onions.

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add your sausage, rosemary and fennel seeds.

Cook and turn until the sausage is browned and cooked, about 10 minutes.

Remove sausage from pan and place on a paper-towel lined plate. There should be some oil remaining in the pan–if not, add some more. Add the onions and cook on low until they are soft and golden, 10 to 15 minutes.

When the grits are tender, stir in butter and black pepper. Add additional seasoning to taste.

Return sausage to the onion pan and heat through. Spoon polenta into two bowls. Top with sausage and onion. Garnish with additional rosemary.

Enjoy the snow while it lasts!

Leek and Squash Soup

Posted on October 4, 2014 by makehastenotwaste

I’m still here! It’s been a busy time. Shall I fill you in? For starters, after two years in a job that didn’t inspire me, I made the switch. The old job happened to come with a short commute and hours that afforded me a generous amount of free time to cook and clean and socialize. Now, I’m commuting from the suburbs to the city, a hub of activity and excitement. It requires a bit more time and energy, but I was ready for it. While I’m still young, I’m going to go where things are happening!

September is a special month, filled with birthdays and wedding anniversaries (such as my own, for both), including a new anniversary established by one of my sisters, who married at a lovely ceremony on September 6. September also has the unique feature of containing two of the most pleasant seasons, summer and fall.

Along with all the events and occasions and changes, it’s harvest time. Tomatoes and zucchini and peppers continue to stream in from the farm share, plus new crops of potatoes and squash. It’s a good time to stay home and cook!

Yet Matt and I also took an overdue trip to visit some of my family in Vermont. We enjoyed a lovely September weekend that included exploring a number of farms in the region by bicycle. (Almost 30 miles of biking…I was almost too exhausted to fully appreciate the agricultural wonders!) During the visit, I made a casual comment about how much I like leeks. I noted that because my farm share so rarely includes them in the weekly offering, and I never buy them because I have plenty of vegetables, I don’t enjoy them at home as much as I think I would. My sister proceeded to pull a bunch out of her garden and send them home with us. So exciting! First I grilled a couple along with zucchini and added walnuts and a lemon dressing with parsley as per this recipe. I knew I wanted to use a bunch of them in a soup. Then the acorn squashes on the counter called my name.

As usual, I sought out a recipe for validation. Like many soups, however, this is one that you could totally wing. I realized well after the fact that it was especially appropriate to make a squash soup at the end of September around my anniversary, because we served little cups of butternut squash soup for one of the courses at our wedding four(!) years ago!

Acorn Squash and Leek Soup
Adapted from Food & Wine

3 1/2 pounds acorn squash (about two small) or similar, halved
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3 large leeks, white and tender green parts, roughly chopped
5 fresh thyme sprigs or 1 teaspoon dried
4 Cups chicken stock or low sodium broth
1 teaspoons salt
1/3 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Optional toppings:
About 5 Tablespoons sour cream
About 2 Tablespoons chives, chopped
2-4 slices of bacon (to taste), cooked and crumbled

Set the oven to 350°. Prepare the squash by slicing in half.

The recipe I followed said to scrape out seeds AFTER the halves are cooked, but I would recommend scraping them out at this point. Place the squash, cut side down, on a baking sheet.

Roast until tender, checking at 30 minutes. Allow to cool so that you can handle the squash.

In the meantime, prep your leeks by washing thoroughly in a few changes of water. I took my green parts and tossed them in my freezer bag of vegetable scraps; I recently read that they contribute nicely to well-flavored vegetable stock.

Chop up the white and light green parts.

Set your large heavy saucepan or Dutch Oven over low heat. Add the butter and melt. Toss in the leeks and thyme and cook gently, stirring occasionally, until soft and browned, about 40 minutes.

Before…

After!

Discard the thyme sprigs.

When your squash is ready to handle, separate the flesh from the skin. If you waited until this point to scoop out and discard the seeds, do this now, taking care not to toss out too much of the delicious roasted flesh.

Then scrape the squash from the skin. Get all the good stuff!

Stir the stock and squash into the leek butter mixture.

Simmer for about 20 minutes. Using an immersion blender, or in a blender or food processor, puree the soup until smooth.

Season with the salt and pepper.

Spoon the soup into bowls and top each with 1 Tablespoon sour cream, a sprinkling of the bacon, and 1 teaspoon fresh chives if you have them, for garnish. Serve with toast to round out the dish.

Bake it into a cake

Posted on April 4, 2013 by makehastenotwaste

Last week, I kept seeing in the freezer a container of leftover canned pumpkin and thought, I better use that up. Pumpkin is generally though to be a fall/winter ingredient, and we are heading straight into summer, based on the weather forecast. I do wish that pumpkin recipes better matched up with the standard quantity in cans, because there is always some remaining!

As I said before, my first idea for using a leftover ingredient often involves baking a dessert. Fortunately, this was going to be a welcome addition to my husband’s family’s Easter meal gathering the next day.

Pumpkin Roulade with Ginger Frosting
Adapted from Ina Garten’s Food Network Recipe

For the cake:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 extra-large eggs, or 4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the filling:
8 ounces cream cheese
scant 4 ounces plain yogurt (I used greek)
1 1/4 C confectioners’ sugar, sifted
~2 tablespoons milk
1/4 cup minced dried crystallized ginger
pinch of kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 13 by 18 by 1-inch sheet pan (also known as a jelly roll pan?). Line the pan with parchment paper, or in my case a silpat, and add grease and flour to that–it is very important so the cake doesn’t stick!

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Place the eggs and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium-high until light yellow and thickened (this goes faster if your eggs have fully come up to room temperature). With the mixer on low, add the pumpkin, then slowly add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Finish mixing the batter by hand with a rubber spatula. Pour into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the top springs back when gently touched.

While the cake is baking, lay out a clean, thin cotton dish towel on a flat surface and sift the entire 1/4 cup of confectioners’ sugar evenly over it. (This is to prevent the cake from sticking to the towel). Remove the cake from the oven and immediately loosen it around the edges with a rubber spatula. Invert cake squarely onto the prepared towel. Peel away the parchment paper or silpat.

Gently roll the warm cake and the towel together (without squeezing), starting at the short end of the cake. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Ina’s recipe calls for 12 oz Italian marscapone cheese, 1 1/4 C confectioners sugar, and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. My beloved Trader Joe’s was out of marscapone, so I followed a reviewers suggestion of using cream cheese. Since I only bought one package, I thought I needed to beef it up closer to 12 ounces. But there was plenty of frosting — I probably could have just used the cream cheese and reduced the sugar to 3/4 Cup. I also used the skim milk I had on hand rather than buying a container of heavy cream.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, and milk/cream together for about a minute, until light and fluffy. I added just enough to milk to reach the desired consistency. Stir in the crystallized ginger and salt.

To assemble, carefully unroll the cake onto a board with the towel underneath. Spread the cake evenly with the filling.

Reroll the cake in a spiral using the towel as a guide. Remove the towel and trim the ends to make a neat edge. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve sliced. (I refrigerated to preserve for the next day, and sliced immediately before serving.)

Ta-da! My first roulade:

An effort to make efficient use of every last drop, stem, crumb, and moment.

Category Archives: Pumpkin

Pumpkin Grits with Sausage and Onion

Leek and Squash Soup

Bake it into a cake