Food – Page 4 – Growth By the Season

Carrot and Roasted Garlic Hummus

Written by Tricia on February 27, 2013. Posted in Community, Food, Friends & Family, Recipes.

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If you’ve been to a Northern Michigan Farmers Market lately, you’re likely to see fewer greens. There will be plenty of baked goods, jelly & jams, meats & cheeses, but greens are harder to come by in February. Even with advancements in farming infrastructure like hoophouses and greenhouses, the beautiful and at times frustrating reality about growing food from the earth is that mother nature makes the rules.

At the farmers market I attend every Saturday, the majority of fresh produce you’ll find this time of year is carrots. You’ll see me walking through the market selecting my goods from the stalls and chomping on these fresh, local deliciously sweet carrots. Other than the raw form, carrots can be made into incredible soups, heart-warming roasted side dishes and salads. Recently however, I was curious to find a recipe that used carrots in a way I’d never used them before. As soon as I saw the color of this rich & flavorful carrot hummus I knew I had to try it, so I brought it along with me to a friends house last night for dinner.

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Let me just say, I LOVE having friends that enjoy cooking and food as much as I do. Last night, was an incredible feast with three women I really enjoy spending time with. Our objective was simply to gather together around food and so we did, lots of food I might add. The carrot hummus turned out smashingly with cucumber slices and pita bread for dipping. My main dish on the other hand, a concoction of beet gnocchi with lemon pesto, while equally delicious was far less ‘picture perfect.’ It was my first time making both dishes and while putting them together I realized I had created a theme unknowingly of colorful and hearty root vegetables in an uncommon form. Perhaps its because of this long cold winter, stirring up a desire for change and the color that arrives with spring.

Our collection of small plate dishes for the night included:

The ‘Life-Changing Loaf of Bread’ from Sarah B at My New Roots! (pictured above)

Beet Gnocchi with Lemon Pesto

Jeweled Rice Salad with Red Grapes, Scallions & Pecans

Guacamole with Sweet Potato Chips

Butternut Squash & Roasted Apple Quinoa

Homemade “Fig Newtons”

Carrot & Roasted Garlic Hummus with sliced cucumber and pita

Citrus Salad

Raw Cocoa Walnut Bars

The dishes paired together incredibly and though I packed my plate full of the colorful food, there was nothing but a gleaming white plate left when I had finished.

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Carrot and Roasted Garlic Hummus

Makes 1 cup of hummus

Prep time: 25 minutes

Preheat: 400 degrees

Ingredients:

1 cup roughly chopped carrots
6 cloves garlic
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
3/4 cup cooked garbanzo beans
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1 tbls lemon juice

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Directions:

Line baking sheet with foil or parchment, then place chopped carrots in a bowl and coat in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Spread them in one layer on the lined baking sheet and place in the oven.

Wrap the cloves of garlic in foil and place in the oven as well.

Roast for 20-25 minutes or until carrots are tender with a fork. Remove from the oven, unwrap garlic and let cool.

In your food processor combine all ingredients including extra salt or lemon juice to your taste.

Dinner with family and friends or Potlucks of any kind are some of my favorite gatherings. I love having small ‘tastes’ of everything dish and I often find myself experimenting with recipes in these occasions, enjoying the immediate honest feedback from the people closest to me. The dishes I made last night really made me realize how much I’m looking forward to warmer weather and all that comes with spring. The change is in the air and March is just around the corner!

What are some of your favorite, colorful springtime dishes?

love,

tricia

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Written by Tricia on February 15, 2013. Posted in Food, Recipes.

There is nothing that heals a cold, chills, or the winter blues better than homemade chicken noodle soup. The first time I tasted a cup of homemade chicken noodle, I couldn’t believe I’d ever eaten it out of a can. However, I also assumed that my boyfriend’s mother has slaved over the stove for days to prepare something so delicious. The secret?… Homemade chicken noodle soup is both supremely delicious AND easy.

ingredients:

8 cups Chicken broth

Bite-sized, cooked Chicken (breasts or shredded rotisserie)

Uncooked Egg Noodles (any noodle works, these are just traditional)

2 Medium Carrots, diced

Diced Mushrooms

Chopped Medium Onion

3 cloves Garlic

2-3 tsp Salt, additional to taste

Pepper

2 tsp Thyme

2 tsp Rosemary

Chopped Swiss Chard (any green, spinach, kale)- optional

The measurements here are lacking, because the contents of this soup are up to you. If you like a soup with lots of broth then don’t use as many veggies. If you prefer a hearty, thick soup then amp up the number of vegetables you include. Its all up to you!

directions:

First, throw a tab of butter or a drizzle of olive oil in the bottom of your soup pot, saute garlic on low-medium heat (don’t let it burn) and then add chopped onion and cook until tender. Next, Add in the diced carrots and mushrooms and season with a little salt and pepper.

Pour in the Chicken Broth on top of the veggies. *Note: The carrots and mushrooms do not need to be tender, they will cook in the broth and soak up that delicious flavor!

Add in rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and then bring soup to a boil. Once boiling bring heat back down to low and simmer for 20 minutes.

If the chicken is cooked already then after the 20 minutes are up you can toss in the chicken and the “uncooked” noodles. If chicken is not cooked, just saute diced chicken breast in a pan with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Simmer soup for another 15-20 minutes until noodles are tender. Throw in greens at the last minute and let them soak in the flavor for another 3-5 minutes. Then serve!

It’s February and if you’re like me, winter blues can be a bit overwhelming this time of year. The excitement of that first snowfall back in December is lost in February compared with the intense desire for sunshine and warmer temperatures. Just remember, Homemade Chicken Noodle is soup for the soul. Make a pot of this soup, smile and soak in its warmth and soon.. the sunshine will find you.

love,

tricia

A “Pear” of Winter Salads

Written by Tricia on February 7, 2013. Posted in Food, Grow, Hoophouses, Recipes.

Winter is infamous for warm soups, hearty meat & potatoes and any kind of meal that sticks to your bones. Those dishes are certainly welcomed and savored on these seasonally cold days, but this is a reminder (to myself and to you!) never forget your greens! As snow piles up in many regions across the world, a majority of us inherently become less active. Of course there are people that provide an exception to this idea, but if you’re honest warm weather pulls you out the door, while colder weather keeps you curled up by the fire.

(a season-extending hoophouse at Birch Point Farm)

Local greens, at least in Michigan, are harder to come by in the winter for obvious reasons, but as the infrastructure for winter growing develops in our region we’re likely to see an increase in the availability of hearty greens throughout the colder months. In the past few years the number of hoophouses and greenhouses in Northwest Michigan has increased dramatically. This is in large part due to programs like the Hoophouses for Health Loan Program made possible by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and administered by Michigan State University and The Michigan Farmers Market Association.

Programs like this reduce the upfront cost for the Farmer and thereby increase availability for fresh local produce to our communities. If you’re unfamiliar with hoophouses, let me explain it here briefly. A hoophouse, like a greenhouse, is a method of extending the growing season; however a hoophouse is typically shaped like a semi-circular tunnel and wrapped with polyethylene (common plastic). The hoophouse traps warmth from the sun and soil allowing hearty greens (think: kale, collards, mustard greens, swiss chard, etc. ) to grow well into the cold depths of winter.

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Some of my favorite salads are filled with hearty greens & root veggies, the harvest of a Michigan Winter. I thought I’d share with you a few of my go-to salad combinations and a couple delicious homemade vinaigrettes to keep you thinking “greens” even in the heart of winter.

Kale Salad with Sliced Pears, Gorgonzola, Pistachios & Dried Cranberries:

1 bunch Kale

1/2 medium red onion, diced

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup roasted pistachios

1 ripe pear, sliced

Gorgonzola cheese

Homemade Honey Cumin Vinaigrette:

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 olive oil

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp garlic salt

2 tbsp Dijon Mustard

2 tsp honey

Carrot & Beet Salad with Roasted Pumpkin Seeds & Garbanzo Beans:

3 medium-sized beets, peeled and cut into 1/2″ wedges

3 medium-sized carrots, quartered length-wise

1/3 cup roasted pumpkin seeds

1/3 cup cooked, drained garbanzo beans

2 tsp honey

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 bunch lettuce greens

Melt butter and olive oil in a covered skillet over medium heat and add beets, stirring occasionally. After ten minutes, add carrots and cook until tender (about 6 minutes). Add honey and white wine vinegar, until tender and lightly glazed, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer vegetables to a large bowl to cool.

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Homemade Tahini Citrus Vinaigrette:

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

2 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp ground cumin

2 tbsp tahini

whisk together in skillet over low heat, toss greens and garbanzo beans lightly.

top with beets, carrots, and pumpkin seeds. Enjoy!

Winter Salads help to keep those of us chilly-weathered homebodies weighing lighter on the scale, but their nutrients also increase energy and help us from feeling lethargic. We can look forward to the days of bountiful winter produce in Michigan with season-extending infrastructure like hoophouses and greenhouses. Personally I’m grateful for the ingenuity of our local farmers and organizations who’ve made it their mission to increase winter vegetable production and support farmers in need. Without them, our available local produce from December-March would equate to nothing more than seedlings under snowdrifts.

Go Green(s)!

love,

tricia

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies

Written by Tricia on January 22, 2013. Posted in Food, Recipes.

These cookies make me weak in the knees. Just the smell of them in the oven and I buckle. One bite and I’m reminded of a time in my life when apple cinnamon oatmeal was the breakfast of elementary school champions. Except this cookie is better. Its made with fresh apples, ground cinnamon and a little lemon juice. This cookie isn’t made to walk you through a 7 hour school day, this cookie is made for breakfast, lunch AND dinner. Its cinnfully delicious and without a doubt a must try.

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Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Preheat oven to: 350 degrees

ingredients:

1/2 cup of butter softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 1/4 cup oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
generous pinch of nutmeg
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 medium apple peeled and diced
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Peel and dice the apple, toss it in lemon juice and set aside. Beat the sugars and butter in a bowl until smooth. Add 1 egg and beat for a minute. Add vanilla extract and beat until blended.

In a separate bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, oats, spices and salt. Slowly add to the sugar and butter mix until just incorporated. Stir in your apple chunks and chopped walnuts last.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper, place in the oven at 350 and bake for 10 minutes. Enjoy!

adapted recipe from Joy the Baker.

A few people asked me recently about baking substitutes for vegan diets so I thought I’d add my favorite substitutes for this recipe here. For butter, vegan shortening is really the perfect consistency to substitute in these cookies and of course there is always margarine if you’re after the buttery flavor. As for the eggs, they could be substituted with applesauce and truthfully in this recipe theres no other substitution. Not only will it adjust the recipe to be vegan and add an additional apple flavor to your cookie body, but it also completely eliminates the added cholesterol of an egg.

Whether you are vegan or not these substitutions can be helpful if the situation arises where you are baking in your pajamas and just realized you are out of eggs. You don’t have to clean up and walk to your neighbors or drive to the grocery store, you don’t even need to put on a hat over your unwashed hair. You just grab the applesauce and keep on baking.

keep on, keepin’ on

love,

tricia

Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew

Written by Tricia on January 18, 2013. Posted in Food, Recipes.

Soups and Stews are my comfort food. They warm up both body and soul when the weather outside is dreary and they fill the house with incredible wafting aromas while they simmer on the stove. This stew was a must-try recipe I picked up from Sarah at My New Roots. Sarah is a holistic nutritionist and chef-extraordinaire that I absolutely admire and whom I receive inspiration from regularly. If you haven’t checked out her blog and your a lover of fresh seasonal whole food recipes, its about time you received an introduction.

Sarah was recently asked by Whole Living to develop a menu for healthy living in the new year. The Menu is built as a detox, to start the new year off fresh, and this stew is featured among the first week of recipes. Though I haven’t jumped on any strict detox train, I certainly expect to be enjoying quite a few of these recipes on their own in the coming weeks.

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The color in this dish is incredible and I’m a firm believer in eating with my eyes. Not only does it taste delicious and bring you warmth physically, but the colors themselves instil a sense of warming comfort as well.

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ingredients:

2 Tbsp coconut or extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 diced large onion
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 minced cloves garlic
2 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
2 peeled and diced sweet potatoes
1 diced (stemmed, seeded) red bell pepper
1 1/2 cups rinsed red lentils
6 cups cleansing broth (substitute vegetable broth if need be)
Chopped fresh cilantro

directions:

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook cumin, turmeric and curry powder until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add onion with a few pinches salt, and cook, stirring, until tender, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until tender, about 2 minutes. Add sweet potatoes and bell pepper and cook 1 minute.
Add lentils and Cleansing Broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until lentils are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Top with cilantro before serving.

This stew will be a new staple in my recipe box and I am so excited to have found it. The savory spices paired with sweet potato and red pepper are an instant well-balanced, delicious meal. And what’s even better about soups is you’ll often have leftovers for lunch!

Do you have a favorite soup or stew this season? …Tell me ALL the details…

Fill your day with color and warmth

love,

tricia

Edible Holiday Gifts 2012

Written by Tricia on December 20, 2012. Posted in Community, Food, Friends & Family, Recipes.

With the holidays just around the corner I’ve put together a list of incredible holiday gifts made in the kitchen, all from some of my favorite inspiring food bloggers. If there is a friend you still need a gift for, or a father you can’t quite decide what to give, then these ideas are for you. Spend just one day in the kitchen this weekend and all your gift dilemmas will be solved.

1. Bake Cookies. These Dark Chocolate Pistachio & Sea Salt Cookies are incredible. Whether you fill up a thrifted cookie jar and gift these to grandma, or wrap them up in plastic bags and ribbon, these cookies will delight you. Joy from Joy the Baker, is hilarious, straight-forward and real, not-to-mention she bakes dreams.

2. Simple Jarred Granola. Granola is easy and customize-able for any and all. Add dried fruit, chocolate chips, coconut, anything your loved one would delight in for a healthy breakfast or snack. Sarah from My New Roots is truly a master of healthy living and eating. She can make your mouth water all the while convincing you to make healthy eating choices, its a win win.

3. Apple Cider Caramels (and/or the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook!). Deb from Smitten Kitchen just released a cookbook at the end of October that is absolutely incredible. With over 100 original recipes including these to die for Apple Cider Caramels. Whether you pair the caramels with the cookbook, which placed #2 on the New York Times bestseller list by the way, or simply share the caramels themselves, those receiving this gift will melt with joy.

4. Gingerbread Pancake Mix. Another fabulous edible gift idea is to take a recipe like these Holiday themed Gingerbread Pancakes from Ali at Gimme Some Oven, and create an easy to use “mix” out of the dry ingredients. You don’t want to include things like milk, butter, or eggs that are perishable, but gifting a loved one the bulk of the ingredients and the recipe to try on their own is like giving two gifts at once! The gift of cooking AND the gift of pancakes!

5. Homemade Vinaigrette. Salads are healthy and a great staple for mealtime, but after awhile may seem boring and bland. With this delicious homemade vinaigrette you can help your loved one enjoy eating healthy. If you include the recipe you’ll also save them the money spent on expensive dressings from the supermarket! This tried and true vinaigrette is simple to make and always adds the perfect burst of flavor to your greens.

I wish you all an incredible holiday ahead, and a homemade holiday at that. With a peak at these fabulous food bloggers and their holiday treats I hope to leave you inspired and itching for some time in the kitchen.

Blessings to you and yours.

love,

tricia

Edible Holiday Gifts: “Tea Bag” Cookie

Written by Tricia on December 14, 2012. Posted in Food, Recipes.

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Edible Gifts for the holidays are both thoughtful & light on the pocket book. Its a gift designed from the heart that finds its way straight to the belly of a loved one. When you put thought, time & creativity into your holiday gifts, rather than spending more than you can afford, the gift giving is that much more enjoyable for both the one giving & the one receiving.

These days I find that I know quite a few people who truly enjoy tea, including myself which honestly I thought I’d never say. My grandmother always drinks tea and and as a young girl I never understood why. To me it was nothing but watered down flavor, making it that much more perplexing as to why people, including my own grandmother enjoyed it. However, as I’ve grown older I’ve learned to savor a warm cup of tea before bed. I enjoy it when I’m feeling sick or stressed, and simply just because. Over the years it would seem that the flavors I felt were once missing from tea have actually blossomed, but I’m willing to bet its merely that my tastes have evolved.

For the holidays, and all my tea loving friends, I decided to try baking these adorable tea bag cookies I came across recently. For those who don’t know me well, I’m not much of a successful baker. Its not because I don’t LOVE sweets, cookies, or pies, its simply due to the science of baking and my lack of “coloring between the lines.”

As I’ve begun to explore the culinary world I’ve really enjoyed experimenting with flavors, textures and combinations; adding a “splash” here or a “pinch” there and often using a recipe as a guidebook rather than rules that need to be followed. With baking, a recipe is specific because it has to be. Its a creative form of chemistry in that the measurement of substances in a mixture are precise and exact; if you guess, quite often it will result in a different or more extreme reaction than you were expecting. In the same way, a cookie will turn out flat & thin if your ratios are off, and a cake will be dry & crumbly for the very same reason. When you stick to the recipe though and your mixture is precise, boy oh boy! those treats are simply divine.

With my holiday spirit beaming this December, I decided to give baking my undivided attention and truly focus on the recipe this time. Of course as is my nature i’ll always leave room for a little innovation & creativity, but I’ve now realized my baking mistakes and learned that measuring precision is key. What once had frustrated me now became a personal challenge. This Holiday I’m accepting the baking challenge and as a result making delicious treats and edible gifts for the loved ones on my list!

Preheat Oven: 350 Degrees

Cook Time: 8-10 Minutes

ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup powdered (confectioners or icing) sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 teaspoons herbs de provence with lavender

optional chocolate coating:

6 ounces of dark chocolate chips

These shortbread cookies were based off of a recipe from joyofbaking.com but I gave them a little twist by adding the rosemary lavender combination of the herbs de provence. The first step is to combine the flour and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Next, powdered sugar, room temperature butter, pure vanilla, and herbs de provence are folded together in a bowl. If you have a stand-up mixer, hand mixer or spoon you can do this, but the key here is the temperature of the butter.

Now we add the flour & salt to the mixture, then cover and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour. When we roll out the dough its important than its neither too cold nor too warm, and this cooling process will help make it easier for you in the long run. With little patience to wait an hour, I simply let my dough cool over night, and then took it out the next day, softening in room temperature for about 10 minutes.

With flour lightly tossed on my countertop, I placed the dough on top and rolled it out with a rolling pin to about 1/4 inch thickness. A tea bag helped create the perfect shape and I simply cut around it, making a hole near the top with a chopstick large enough to easily get a string thru. You could also use a straw, which would create the perfect shape, but I didn’t have one so I improvised. As a side note: Its important not to place the hole too close to the top, because the weight of the cookie could easily break when your “dunking” the finished product.

By placing parchment paper on the pan, you’ll ensure the cookies wont stick. So on top of the parchment lined baking pan, place your tea bag cookies and pop them into the oven. Once they are a very light brown its time to take them out, usually about 8-10 minutes. I let my cookies cool a bit on the pan, because my first attempt to remove one resulted in a cookie snapped in half..of course I ate that one though, so it really wasn’t that heartbreaking.

For finishing touches, you can string a thin but durable string thru, add a clever design to the paper on the end of the string, or even add a little dark chocolate. I kept a few cookies plain to add a little variety to my edible gift, but I couldn’t pass on dark chocolate so I did a few of those as well. To add the dark chocolate is really quite simple. You need a heatproof bowl to place over a pot of simmering water and you place about half of your chocolate into the bowl to let it melt. Once it has you remove the bowl from the heat, add your remaining chocolate chips and stir until it all has completely melted.

With the string already tied to my tea bag cookies, I diped the ends in the chocolate and placed them on parchment paper lining a baking pan. Once they were all dipped I placed them in the refrigerator to cool.

I’m sitting here imagining the look on my loved ones faces when they receive this edible gift, and I simply cannot wait. Of course I’ll be including the recipe with my tin of cookies as well, so my friends can always make more (the gift that keeps on giving!). Next week I’ll be sharing another gift with you all, but until then get on with your crafting & baking! A Homemade Holiday is something to celebrate!

love,

tricia

Gnocchi and Butternut Squash

Written by Tricia on November 29, 2012. Posted in Community, Food, Friends & Family, Recipes.

Fall flavors are like a warm hug from a friend you’ve missed. My mouth waters and my mind buzzes with the potential flavor combinations that a fall harvest brings to the table. One of my favorite fall vegetables is squash, and surprisingly enough my dog Chet adores it too! He’ll eat roasted squash over a chewy dog treat any day…so would I.

Butternut squash has this rich, sweet and buttery flavor that pairs with just about anything. The trick with squash is in the slicing & dicing, but when it comes to roasting, preparation is just as easy as can be.

This particular dinner with friends was in celebration of our new house. My boyfriend Alex and I purchased our first home this past August. Its taken a month of construction dust, new paint, boxes and exhaustion to finally start feeling comfortable.

Even with our living areas piled to the brim with boxes we had friends over to celebrate, dug into the pantry, dirtied the kitchen and gathered around the table. The meal was all about embracing fall flavors in every dish, from a cranberry salad to pumpkin cupcakes with a cream cheese topping. Mmmmmm…

The main course was a homemade gnocchi, new to my list of staples, but nonetheless delicious and worth the extra effort. Mix the savory warmth of potato gnocchi with the sweet buttery flavor and smooth texture of butternut squash, and you’ve got yourself a melt in your mouth favorite.

Preheat oven: 400 degrees

ingredients:

for gnocchi-

5 medium sized potatoes

sea salt for baking

1 1/2 cup flour

2 egg yolks

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4 tablespoons butter, diced

2 teaspoons sage

1 small bunch of fresh basil, chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely diced

1 small onion

1 small/medium butternut squash, peeled & diced

olive oil

salt & pepper

parmesan

Start by placing a layer of sea salt on the bottom of a baking dish, thick enough that the potatoes will rest on the salty layer, rather than the bottom of the pan. Remember to poke a few random holes with a fork in each of your potatoes…the recipe for ‘exploding potato bombs’ is a mess I’d prefer to leave for someone else 🙂 Bake them for 40 minutes or until tender and remove from the oven.

While the potatoes are cooking, its time to peel, slice & dice the squash. The best trick I’ve found is to slice off the bottom of the squash so you have a flat surface to work from, then simply slice into smaller sections. Peel & dice each section one by one.

Place the diced squash into a medium bowl and toss with enough olive oil to lightly coat the pieces, then a quick pinch of salt. Transfer the contents to a baking pan and place in the oven for 20 minutes, stirring the pieces around on the pan about half way through and removing them from the oven to cool after your 20 minutes are up.

At this point in time, you’ll either have a little free time on your hands or your potatoes will be nearly ready to pull out of the oven. Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle you should easily be able to remove the skin and toss the soft potatoes into a medium sized bowl. Mash them as well as you can manage, or even put them through a food processor if you have the means to do so.

Add the flour and egg yolks to your potato mash and fold “dough” together. Then, toss some additional flour on a cutting board and place the dough on top. Your gnocchi dough should be rather sticky, yet solid enough to be rolled easily. Split the dough in half and roll out each section into a 1 inch-thick ‘snake’. You’ll then, cut the ‘snake’ into one-inch wide pieces so that your little pieces of gnocchi are squares of 1 inch by 1 inch.

Your gnocchi are nearly finished! Just get a pot of salt water boiling on the stove and you’ll drop a few (5-8) at a time into the boiling water. The gnocchi will rise when they are finished, so simply fish them out of the boiling water with a spoon and place them into a strainer. The next step is optional, but personally I love my gnocchi browned on either side, I place a small tab of butter into a frying pan and simply brown them in a little butter and set aside.

The sauce is the last step and its really quite simple, plus it smells absolutely delicious. Warm your remaining butter in a pan over low-medium heat, toss in the chopped onion, and garlic and simmer. Stir in your sage and continue to heat. The aroma should be nothing short of tantalizing and luckily all you’ve got left to do is toss in your roasted butternut squash, gnocchi, and fresh basil at the last minute.

My mouth waters for the flavors in this dish and I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do. Soak in the savory warmth and goodness of your homemade gnocchi and butternut squash. Its a friend you’re bound to return to, and one that will always greet you with the same warming hug of those delicious fall flavors.

Dig in!

love,

tricia

Balsamic Roasted Brussels with Red Grapes

Written by Tricia on November 19, 2012. Posted in Food, Recipes.

This past week I’ve turned my dinners into Thanksgiving Experiments. So as not to mislead you, know that at least a few of my average weeknight dinners tend to be experiments, but this week its all about what I might bring to the Thanksgiving table. This year, my grandmother challenged me to find a new way to present one of the typical green veggies: green beans, broccoli, or brussel sprouts. After some recipe searching and brainstorming, I settled on brussels for a few reasons. There really isn’t a vegetable that I won’t eat or wouldn’t try, so its not as if brussel sprouts are an enemy of mine, but I’ve never really craved them. I’ve never had them presented in a way that had me begging for seconds or forwarding the recipe on to friends. This was my goal, the hopeful end result of my experiment.

The balsamic vinegar and red grapes are what drew me in. The tangy sweetness of balsamic and the fruitful juice from the red grapes were bound to turn these brussel sprouts into a must have dish. One worth sharing with family over the Thanksgiving table and one worth sharing with you all over the inter-webs.This Wednesday I’m heading home to Chicago to see some much loved best friends & family, and I couldn’t be more excited. Thanksgiving is an absolute favorite holiday of mine. Its a Celebration, the epitome of this incredible community I’m inspired by, coming together around food. Its about being thankful for the people around you and the meal in your belly. I can’t think of a more important reason to celebrate than life, the food and the people that nourish you.

Preheat Oven: 400 Degrees

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

ingredients:

24 ounces brussels sprouts (about 8 cups), halved or quartered
24 ounces grapes
1 small cippolini onion
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons fresh thyme
2 tablespoons garlic
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup pecans

The preparation of this dish is really quite simple, which makes it all that much more enjoyable to make for a gathering. In a bowl mix olive oil, balsamic, salt, pepper, garlic, pecans, chopped onion, brussels and red grapes.Pour mixture onto a rimmed baking sheet, and sprinkle thyme overtop.Be certain the mixture lies in one layer on the baking sheet.

Roast for 20 minutes, stirring the mixture once while in the oven. When you’re ready to serve pour a teaspoon of balsamic on the mixture scraping up any leftover caramelized deliciousness, and plate!

Simple is perfect for the holidays. A no stress method, where you can enjoy both a delicious meal and the people gathering around you. I’m so excited for this upcoming holiday and I wish you & your family the best (and most delicious!) one yet.

I have to say with this dish, my mission was accomplished. I was certain it’d be the perfect Thanksgiving plate after the first time I experimented with it, but I made it again the next night because I was dreaming of the brussels and their sweet & tangy companions. Do you have any delicious holiday plans or recipes for Brussel Sprouts? Share ’em! I’d love try something new.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving, shared with beloved friends & family and that delicious feast at your table.

love,

tricia

Basil Spinach Pie (Spanakopita)

Written by Tricia on November 14, 2012. Posted in Food, Recipes.

Thanks for visiting this very first entry in what should be considered a visual timeline of my own growth through the seasons. Growth from the ground up, growth in the exploration of flavors and culinary aptitude, and growth in community coming together around the table; to dine, to talk, and to build relationships with one another. I want to give you a taste of what is to come in both literal and written context. This blog will evolve around the themes of these three words; Grow, Food, Community. Mix them up, shake them around, put them together and you’ll begin to understand the premise of Growth by the Season.

My name is Tricia and I have a passion for food that’s blended with an incredible appreciation for the community that exists because of it. From farm to table, people and food intertwine. It is because of this that Growth by the Season has begun to take shape. You can expect recipes straight from my kitchen as I continue exploring my own culinary journey. You’ll be introduced to the farms I visit to get my hands in the dirt and the growth of my own garden as spring comes back around. The people and community will always be present and often highlighted in instances of inspiration.

For the literal taste we’ll start off with a recipe. A Grecian number I debuted at my boyfriend’s mother’s home not too long ago, and one that was gratefully responded to with high remarks!

Basil & Spinach Pie

Preheat Oven: 350 degrees

Prep Time: 20 Min

Cooking Time: 25 Min

Serves 4

ingredients

1/2 pound of phyllo dough, thawed
1/3 cup of oil
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
generous pinch of salt
generous pinch of pepper
1/4 cup of basil, finely chopped
12 oz bag of fresh spinach
1 bunch of green onions, ends and tips tossed, sliced
1/4 cup of red onion, diced
10 oz great feta cheese, crumbled
2 eggs, beaten
12 tbsp butter, melted

First, a delicious smelling onion & garlic oil is your task. Start with your olive oil in a pan at medium heat and once the oil is warmed add your chopped red onion & scallions. As they become tender add garlic to the mixture, letting it cook to a light golden brown, being extra careful not to burn.

Wilt spinach & basil in the pan by adding 1 half portion at a time, stirring thoroughly until all spinach is tender when you’ll scrape the contents of the pan into a small bowl to cool.

As that sweet smelling garlic spinach cools down just a bit, grab a larger bowl and whisk together your eggs and feta cheese, LOTS of feta cheese. Spanakopita is nothing without this deliciously cheesy component so overindulgence is absolutely recommended. Add the contents of the spinach bowl into the larger bowl and mix together. Add the salt & pepper to taste and Viola! the creamy & satisfying filling for your pie.

Now for the construction: Melt butter to use almost as a binding paste. Phyllo dough is very temperamental. It will crumble and become fragile easily, so when you open it up cover its entirety with a towel. Brush a light coating of butter along the walls of your baking pan. You will need to lightly butter each sheet of phyllo dough you add to the pie, first placing six sheets down at the bottom of your pan. Once you have six down, spread a portion of the spinach and cheese mixture evenly over the top. Repeat these layering steps with six more sheets of phyllo dough (remembering to butter every one) followed by the rest of the filling. You’ll place a layer of eight more sheets of phyllo to the top to finish the pie!

Bake for 25-28 minutes until you have a golden brown, buttery flaky crust on top. Mmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about it! oh yeah, Make some and air mail me a piece while you’re at it, those are my final instructions. I would devour a slice of spanakopita for lunch!

Happy cooking times my dear friends!

love, tricia

Category: Food

Growth by the Season