Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Recipes Lost and Found: Falling for squash

Festival winter squash, dusted with snow.Image by cookipediachef via FlickrRecipe: Tiramisu CheesecakeImage by VancityAllie via FlickrStir-Fried Tofu, Red Cabbage and Winter SquashImage by Zlatko Unger via FlickrYummy Easy Butternut Squash SoupImage by vigilant20 via FlickrSquash and ChanterellesImage by Laurel Fan via FlickrRecipe Pudding Condensed Milk Flickr VideoImage by NilmaBoston via FlickrRecipe #295: Pumpkin RisottoImage by cyberpenguin via FlickrRisotto with Butternut Squash and SageImage by thebittenword.com via FlickrMoroccan-Style Stuffed Acorn SquashesImage by thebittenword.com via FlickrButternut SquashImage by VancityAllie via FlickrSquashImage by La Grande Farmers' Market via FlickrSquash and chard quicheImage by cathepsut via FlickrSquash & Tomato PieImage by lynn.gardner via Flickrsquash with cherriesImage by elana's pantry via FlickrBy JEFF HOUCK | The Tampa Tribune


Fall is a great time to take advantage of the seasonal squashes, including pumpkins.

Chef Scott Swartz of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., suggests using gourds as bowls to serve his Butternut Squash Soup. Use smaller pumpkins for individual servings, or place the soup in one big pumpkin and let guests serve themselves.

Prepare a pumpkin by washing the exterior and patting it dry. Carve out the top to make a lid and remove the seeds from the inside. You can also carve away some of the flesh inside the pumpkin so it can hold more liquid.

The following recipe has been adapted from The Culinary Institute of America's 2009 book "The New Book of Soups." To watch Swartz demonstrate how to prepare Butternut Squash & Apple Soup go online to www.ciachef.edu/ButternutSquashSoup.

Drink your cranberry

During a recent event at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, I had a chance to chat with Ocean Spray cranberry grower Jim Bible. During our conversation, he mentioned that his dad made a margarita recipe using cranberries.

Unfortunately, the Bible family didn't write down the recipe – a company spokeswoman says it's just a matter of throwing a handful of Craisins Dried Cranberries into any frozen margarita mix before blending – but I went online to the Ocean Spray site and got a more formal recipe. It runs below.

Longing for steak sandwich

"I don't know if you are old enough to remember the Mac and Ivey's Steak Sandwich," writes Bob Moore. "Their shop was located on Henderson Boulevard in the '60s. They made a steak sandwich somewhat similar to a Philly Steak sandwich but BETTER."

Bob says that the sandwich's meat was finely chopped ("You knew you were there by the sound of the cleaver chopping the meat on the grill!") and had chopped onions and chopped tomatoes in it.

"For a long time you could get them at the state fair, but I haven't seen them for a while," Bob writes. "I would love to find someone who knows the recipe!"

Leftover recipes

Roxanne Papia of Tampa is looking for a recipe for Stuffed Shrimp a la Pepe from the former Café Pepe's on Kennedy Boulevard in Tampa.

Connie Rott wants the fried beef tips recipe served with yellow rice at J.D.'s in Ybor City.

Kathy Freeman of Lake Placid is looking to make the fluffy coconut dessert served at the Fred's restaurant chain in Plant City, Lakeland and Winter Haven.


Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
Makes 8 servings
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 1/4 cups diced onion
  • 1/3 cup diced carrot
  • 1/2 cup diced celery root
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 to 4 cups vegetable broth
  • 3 cups cubed butternut squash
  • 1 cup sliced tart apple
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt, or as needed
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper, or as needed
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
  • 1 cup crème fraîche for garnish (optional)
  • 8 small pumpkins (about a pound each) or one large pumpkin
  1. Heat the butter in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, ginger, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is tender and translucent, 5 to 6 minutes.
  2. Add the broth, squash, and apple. Bring the broth to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook until the squash is tender enough to mash easily with a fork, about 20 minutes.
  3. While the soup is cooking, wash the pumpkins with mild soapy water, rinse thoroughly, and pat dry. Carve a lid off the tops and remove the seeds from inside.
  4. Purée the soup using a handheld blender directly in the pot, with a sieve or a food mill, or in a countertop blender food processor. Return it to the soup pot if necessary. Return the soup to a simmer over medium-low heat.
  5. Season the soup as needed with salt, pepper, and orange zest.
  6. You can serve the soup in heated bowls topped with a dollop of crème fraîche, if desired.
  1. Or, to serve the soup in pumpkins, place each pumpkin onto a plate and fill them with soup topped with a dollop of the crème fraîche, if desired. If serving the soup in one large pumpkin, place the lid back on top to keep the soup warm. You can also offer the crème fraîche in a separate bowl on the buffet.
Nutrition Analysis per 8-ounce serving without crème fraîche: 80 calories, 2g protein, 17g carbohydrate, 1g fat, 250mg sodium, 0mg cholesterol, 3g dietary fiber


Cranberry Pomegranate Margarita
Makes 1 serving
  • 2 ounces Ocean Spray Cranberry Pomegranate juice drink
  • 1 ounce tequila
  • 1/2 ounce orange-flavored liqueur
  • 1/2 ounce lime juice
  • Orange zest
  • 2 lime wedges
  • Coarse salt
  1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine cranberry pomegranate juice drink, tequila, liqueur, lime juice and orange zest. Shake until well-chilled. Rub rim of margarita glass with lime wedge. Dip in coarse salt. Strain cocktail into glass with ice. Garnish rim of glass with remaining lime wedge.


Seeking a recipe? E-mail jhouck@tampatrib.com or write to Jeff Houck, The Tampa Tribune, P.O. Box 191, Tampa FL 33601.


Taken from Tampa Bay Online; source article is below:
Recipes Lost and Found: Falling for squash

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