Squash and Cabbage Stew

I had half of a banana squash and a half head of cabbage in the fridge that needed to be used, so I thought this recipe would do the trick. It's definitely one of those soups that tastes better when the ingredients have time to "stew" together for a while--but I'm sure you could make a quicker version out of it if you wanted. I served it with my new favorite Honey Oatmeal Bread, but any crusty bread would do the trick. Now that's a nutrient-packed meal (and a good one, to boot).

Squash and Cabbage Stew
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, small diced
2 carrots, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 large winter squash (I used banana squash)
1 can petite diced tomatoes (I cut them up even smaller)
2 cups chicken stock
3 to 4 cups water
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 Parmesan rind
1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 head cabbage, cut into small pieces
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the butter and oil in a heavy based soup pan and add the onion and carrots. Saute until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and squash, stir well to coat each chunk and then leave to soften, stirring occasionally for about 10 mins.

Add the tomatoes, bay leaf and herbs to the pan, stir well and allow to bubble gently for a couple of minutes before adding the water or stock and the parmesan rind.

Turn up the heat and bring the pan to a gentle boil, cover the pan, putting the lid ajar so steam can escape, lower the heat and leave the pan at a gentle simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Add the beans and cabbage and heat to a low boil for another 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and leave it to rest for at least one hour. Refrigerate and then reheat when ready to eat--the soup taste better the longer it sits.

Serve with plenty of freshly grated parmesan and good crusty bread.

Two-Way Ratatouille

Lindy's Ratatouille
(this is a slightly-tweaked version of the Summer Vegetable Ratatouille listed below. I wanted to make a more tomato-ey version closer to the amazing Ratatouille I bought on the street in Paris. I ate my bowl of ratatouille with a baguette in the park at the base of the Eiffel Tower--I'm sorry, but it doesn't get more Parisian than that :))

1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced or small diced
1 red or yellow bell pepper, small diced
1 zucchini, cubed
1 yellow squash, cubed
2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, diced
1/2 can tomato sauce
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
4 sprigs fresh thyme
salt and pepper to taste
1 to 2 tsp Balsamic vinegar

Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in large pan. Saute onions and pepper until slightly tender. Add zucchini and squash and cook 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and cook a couple more minutes. Add diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, herbs, salt and pepper. Cook uncovered 10-15 minutes on med-low heat. When vegetables are tender and sauce has thickened, add Balsamic vinegar and remove from heat. Check seasonings.

Serve on crepes with melted swiss cheese or alongside a sliced baguette. Delicioux!


Summer Vegetable Ratatouille
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and cubed
1 yellow or red bell pepper, seeded and cubed
1 medium eggplant, cubed (I usually don't have on hand)
1 zucchini, cubed
1 yellow squash, cubed
2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced
4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1 bay leaf
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
4 sprigs fresh thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Heat 2 Tbsp oil in large pot over medium-low heat. Add onions and peppers and cook 2 or 3 minutes until slightly tender.
Add remaining 2 Tbsp olive oil to pan with zucchini, squash and eggplant. Saute until slightly tender. Add garlic and cook a minute longer.
Season with salt and pepper. Add the bay leaf and thyme and cover the pot. Cook over medium-low heat for 15 minutes.
Add the chopped tomatoes and parsley to the pot and cook another 10-15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Remove bay leaf and adjust seasoning.

Spaghetti Squash Ole

If my Spaghetti Squash recipe and my Cowboy Spaghetti recipe were to date, marry and have a baby--this would be it. :)

Spaghetti Squash Ole
1 spaghetti squash
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes (or tomato puree)
1 cup corn, canned or frozen
1 cup black beans, drained
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1. Halve the spaghetti squash lengthwise and remove seeds. Place, cut side down, on a baking sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until tender. Use a fork to shred and separate the spaghetti squash into strands.

2. Meanwhile, for sauce, in a large skillet onion, pepper and garlic until vegetables are tender.

3. Stir in tomato puree, corn, beans, chili powder, cumin and oregano. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly (I add a little spaghetti sauce if it needs to be saucier or thicker).

4. Put 1 cup spaghetti squash on serving plate. Spoon 1 cup sauce over squash and top each serving with 1/4 cup cheese.

Spaghetti Squash w/ Meatless Sauce

Veggie Tales is back in business! I'm not sure what happened over the Summer--we ate plenty of veggies, I just didn't have time to blog about it. But now we're finally settling into our school schedule and I'm ready for some veggie-liciousness!

Yesterday I made my favorite lentils and rice. It's not much to look at, but boy is it satisfying and yummy. That's my kind of comfort food. I served it with some sauteed summer squash and everyone gobbled it up.

Today I was watching Rachael Ray and she was making Spaghetti Squash with Super-Thick Bolognese. Mmmmm, spaghetti squash. I ate spaghetti squash quite a bit as a kid, but I hadn't ever made it for my family. It's about time, don't you think? I roasted the spaghetti squash like Rachael, but I made a different sauce. Everyone but Sidney liked it and I let the girls eat theirs out of the "squash boats" which they thought made it taste even better :)
Spaghetti Squash w/ Meatless Sauce
1 large spaghetti squash, cut lengthwise and seeded
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup diced carrots
1/4 cup diced celery
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce, or crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup lentils, rinsed
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp salt

Place the spaghetti squash halves, cut side up, onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper. Turn the squash over so they're cut side down and roast until the flesh is tender, about 45 minutes to an hour. Once cooked, use a fork to loosen the squash strands up. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil, ground black pepper, and a sprinkle of cheese. Reserve squash in the shells.

While squash is roasting, sautee onions, peppers, carrots and celery in olive oil until tender. Add garlic and cook another minute. Add tomatoes, lentils and seasonings. Simmer 45 minutes until lentils are tender.

To serve, ladle sauce over shredded squash and top with parmesan cheese.

Yep, we liked it!
What?! Do I have something on my face?

Harvest Bread Pudding

Be still my heart. As soon I found this recipe in Katie Brown's Weekends I knew I would love it. As she writes, "This recipe will convert even a zucchini skeptic into a fan." Amen.

Harvest Bread Pudding
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 zucchini, sliced 1/4" thick
1 yellow squash, sliced 1/4" thick
1/2 cup corn
(I also added 1/2 onion, small diced)
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp chopped fresh sage (I used oregano, I think--who knows what's in my garden :))
5 cups cubed sourdough bread (I wish I had had sourdough bread, that would be heavenly. I just used what was on hand and it still worked)
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
3 Tbsp chopped pecans
2 cups half-and-half (I just used whole milk)
5 eggs, slightly beaten
salt and pepper (about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Grease a 2-quart baking dish
3. In a skillet, heat oil and cook onions. Add zucchini, squash and corn over medium heat for about 3 mins. Stir in garlic and herbs. Cook until zucchini and squash are tender.
4. Remove from heat and stir in bread cubes
5. Place half of the mixture in the baking dish. Sprinkle half of the cheese on top. Cover with the rest of the mixture and sprinkle with the remainder of the cheese and nuts.
6. In a bowl, whisk together the half-and-half, eggs, salt and pepper. Pour over bread mixture.
7. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes or unil a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let stand and cool for 10 minutes.
   

Summer dinner. There is nothing better.

Garden Pasta

Look what I pulled out of the garden today! Hooray!
To celebrate, I whipped up some Garden Pasta for dinner--

1/2 green pepper, small diced
1/2 onion, small diced
1 small zucchini, sliced
1 small summer squash, sliced
2 or 3 handfuls of spinach leaves, chopped
(you can really had any garden vegetable you have on hand, hence the name)
salt & pepper
garlic powder
fresh basil and oregano w/ 1 can small diced tomatoes
or half jar spaghetti sauce
penne pasta, cooked

Saute pepper and onion in a little olive oil until soft. Add zucchini and squash, saute until slightly tender. Season with salt, pepper and garlic. Add spinach and tomato sauce and heat until spinach is wilted. Toss with cooked pasta and top with Parmesan cheese.

This is the result: