Fed Up - By Jessica Conant-Park & Susan Conant Page 0,93
Save the top of the pumpkin, which will be placed back on during cooking.
In a large skillet, sauté the onions and 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat for a few minutes, and then add the fresh croutons and toss. Stir and cook the croutons for another few minutes and then add the garlic. Toss the mixture and cook until the croutons begin to brown. Add more butter as needed to keep the mixture from drying out. Set aside.
In a separate pan, sauté 1 tablespoon of butter with the mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms have released their juices and begun to reabsorb them. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
To assemble the pumpkin for cooking, put in layers of the bread mixture followed by a dash of salt and pepper, then a layer of the grated cheese, a layer of mushrooms, a bit of the crumbled bacon, and a thin layer of crème fraîche or heavy cream. Keep layering until the pumpkin is filled. End with a layer of cheese.
Put the pumpkin lid back on. Set the filled pumpkin in a casserole dish that will support its sides. Fill a roasting pan with 2 inches of water, and place the pumpkin, in its casserole dish, in the water. Bake for about 3 hours, checking from time to time, until the pumpkin pulp is getting soft enough to spoon up.
To serve, gently remove the pumpkin from the water bath and place on a large platter. Scrape out some of the pumpkin flesh with a large, sturdy spoon as you dish out each bowl.
Salad with Maple Syrup Vinaigrette
Meg Travis
Ipswich, Massachusetts
Serves 4-6
Salad
Salad greens, approximately 1 head of lettuce for
every 3 people
1 small log of goat cheese, crumbled (Make sure you
buy goat cheese that’s been salted. My favorite is from
Vermont Butter & Cheese Company)
1 package of dried cranberries or Craisins
½ cup pecans, toasted and chopped
Mix together and toss with the maple syrup vinaigrette.
Maple Syrup Vinaigrette
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. grade B maple syrup
1 tsp. dried sweet basil
½ cup olive oil
Whisk together the salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar until the salt dissolves. Stir in mustard, syrup, and basil. Whisk constantly while drizzling in oil: the dressing will form an emulsion and thicken. Refrigerate until ready to use. Bring up to room temperature before serving, since the olive oil will harden in the fridge. Makes roughly ¾ cup.
Soak bread in milk until it is fully absorbed. Soak porcini mushrooms in water until hydrated and clean. Remove and chop. Mix the next 4 ingredients, and then add mushrooms and bread. Mix well. Roll into desired-size balls. Flour each ball, and shake off the extra flour. Sear in a pan on all sides until light brown. Add wine until it comes halfway up the side of the meatballs. Put in oven and bake at 400° until cooked through, approximately 15 minutes.
Aroncini (Fried Stuffed Risotto)
Josh Ziskin
Serves 8-10 as an appetizer
1 yellow onion, diced fine
4 tbsp. cooking oil
1 pound Arborio rice
½ cup white wine
1 quart water or chicken stock, warm
4 tbsp. butter
½-¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt to taste
2 oz. Italian meat (salami, capicola, etc.)
6 oz. smoked mozzarella or Fontina cheese
2 eggs
Flour for dredging
2 cups bread crumbs
Oil for frying
Sauté onion in oil until translucent. Add rice and cook for 3 minutes until rice is coated in oil. Add wine and stir until absorbed. Add warm water or chicken stock, 2 cups at a time. Rice should absorb liquid each time before the next amount is added. Repeat until rice is fully cooked through. Add butter, Parmesan cheese, and salt. Stir until fully incorporated.
Lay mixture flat on a sheet pan until fully cooled. While rice mixture is cooling, dice Italian meat and cheese into ¼ “ dice. Beat eggs and place in a bowl. Place flour in a separate bowl. Place bread crumbs in another bowl.
When rice mixture is cooled, moisten hands. Pick up about 2 ounces of rice and create a cup shape in your hands. Add meat and cheese mixture inside cup, and close rice around mixture to form a ball. Once all aroncini are formed, roll each aroncini in flour, then egg, and then bread crumbs. Refrigerate for ½ hour. Deep-fry aroncini in oil until