Roasted Butternut Salad

1. Peel, clean and cut into chunks, 1 butternut squash. Coat in olive oil and roast in a 425F oven until browned. Let cool.
   
2. Thinly slice 1/2 a red onion.
3. Measure 1/4 cup each of dried cranberries and toasted walnuts.
4. Heat to a bubble and let reduce, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar and 1 heaping tbsp brown sugar, then let cool.
   
5. Toss gently all ingredients with a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, cracked pepper and a pinch of salt.

Lamb Sausages and Broccoli Salad

1. Rinse 2 heads of broccoli then break into florets
2. A can of peaches in juice, cut into chunks. Reserve liquid.
3. 1/2 a large red onion, cut into thirds then thinly sliced*
   
4. Slice 20g of fresh basil into ribbons.
5. Toast 1/4 cup of slivered almonds.
6. Whisk 1/3 cup light mayo, 1tsp lemon juice, 1tbsp each of rice and apple cider vinegars**, 3tbsp of peach juice, fresh cracked pepper.
7. Toss.
   

VOILA!

1. Fry up the lamb links until done. Don't clean the pan.
2. Immediately add the other half of the onion, sliced, and let them cook in the drippings for a minute or so.
3. Add a good shot of red wine to deglaze the pan.
4. Serve the 2 on a bun with a roasted red pepper glaze (RRpepper sauce***, dijon mustard, mustard powder and honey.)
   

Is Nice!

* the thinner shaved the onion, the sweeter.
** I would have rather used plum vinegar but I did not have any.
***You can buy it prepared or make your own. Today I used Ajvar. I keep it on hand for lots of things. Makes a great sandwich spread.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

This soup is my absolute favourite. I make it every other week, but I could probably eat it every day. It really is gorgeous. Makes me blush just thinking about it.
Go on. Try it.

• 1 large butternut squash
• 1 medium spanish onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 4-6 cups of chicken stock/broth
  
• 4 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/8 tsp each of onion and garlic powders and white pepper
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• dash each of cayenne, cinnamon and nutmeg
• salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

1. Roast squash for atleast one hour in a 400F oven or until skin is golden brown.
2. Saute garlic and onions in butter, until golden (caramelized) in a stock/soup pot.
   
3. Remove skin and reserve seeds from squash. Cut squash into chunks and add to the onions.
4. Stir in sugar and all seasonings.
5. Add stock and puree with a hand mixer BEFORE the stock heats up.
6. Let simmer for 20 minutes.
7. In the mean time, rinse the seeds in a colander and pat dry with paper towel. Spread them on a baking sheet, spray with cooking oil, dust with salt and put them back in the 400F oven for 10-15 minutes or until done.
8. Correct seasonings, then serve with toasted seeds on top.
   

Jambalaya

Dinner tonight. The beautiful thing about cooking is that there is so much room for interpretation. Jambalaya is as diverse as chili, soup, casserole or stew. So go with the flow. If you only have one pepper and it's green, who cares. Chop it up and toss it in. It always helps to refer to a few recipes when making something at home. Don't rely too much on exact ingredients. There are always perfectly acceptable substitutions. If you don't like sausage, try shrimp. If peppers aren't your thing, try zucchini. You get me. So here we go.

Peppers, onion and garlic.

4 garlic links, simmering until cooked.

4 tsp louisiana hot sauce, several shakes of the tobasco, 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 can tomato paste, 1 cup chicken broth and 1 cup water.

1 tsp thyme, 3 bay leaves, salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.

While the sausage simmers cut the peppers into chunks and dice the onion.

Remove the cooked sausage and add a tbsp of oil to the skillet. Saute your veg on high heat just to soften.

In a preheated crockpot add the sauces and seasonings, sliced cooked sausages and 1/2 cup of rice. Once the veggies are done add them in too. Cover and let cook for atleast 2 hrs or at least until the rice is cooked. Taste and correct the seasonings before serving.

My corrections

1. I didn't have any celery which I find pretty standard so I added celery seed for extra flavour.
2. I have a sick obsession with onion and garlic powder...so in they went.
3. I would have really liked to have added some big juicy shrimp, but alas I don't just keep those expensive buggers on hand.
4. I like extra spicy so I added cayenne pepper and the hubby's special spicy blend*.

* the hubby loves to garden which is probably just a means to feed his obsession with anything hot. 2 years ago he grew enough peppers, to make enough dried spice to last a lifetime. It consists of habeneros, cayenne, fish peppers, banana peppers, jalapenos, cherry hot, hungarian wax and probably 10 more I can't remember. It's damn good stuff. Unfortunately the jars of sauces and salsas he made have long since been eaten.

Mexicana Salad

Ingredients

2 cups baby spinach
4 cups field greens or california mix greens
pint of cherry tomatoes
1 small red onion very thinly sliced
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1 small red pepper, diced

~for the dressing~
1 small, ripened avacado pit and skin removed
2 egg yolks
2-3 tbsp olive oil
the juice of one lime
dash or so of cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp of cumin powder
1/8 tsp onion powder
1 clove of garlic
cracked pepper and margarita salt, to taste

Method

Prepare the dressing by mixing the ingredients in a blender or by using an immersion mixer. You can add a little more seasoning or lime here or there to adjust to your own tastes.
Toss the dressing with the spinach, peppers and onions. Top with tomatoes and pistachios to serve.

Dill-licious Potato Salad

Ingredients

5 lbs red potatoes, washed, skins on
1/2 cup fresh dill
1/4 cup mayonaise
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
Seasoned rice vinegar
onion powder
salt and fresh cracked pepper

Method

Cut potatoes into 1 inch cubes, roughly. Boil in 6 litres salted water until tender yet firm. Remove, drain. Transfer to bowl and cover with a generous portion of vinegar. Place in fridge to cool. Once cooled stir in dill, mayo and onion adding the seasonings to taste. Serve and enjoy :o)

Chicken Soup

This is a great recipe for a cold day or when you've got the sniffles!

Ingredients

2 8oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into chunks
5 cups homemade chicken stock
1/4 c quick cooking, wild rice
1 small spanish onion, diced
1/4 c sliced baby carrots
1 stalk celery, diced
1/4 cup zucchini, diced
1/4 cup pimento or diced red pepper
3 tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
dash or so each of garlic, onion and mustard powder, cayenne pepper and hungarian paprika
1 tsp thyme
fresh cracked pepper and salt to taste

Method

In a large stock or soup pot melt butter and saute onions and garlic until onions are clear. Add remaining vegetables and cook for another several minutes. Add diced chicken, broth and water or stock, rice and spices. Bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat, cover and let simmer for 25 minutes. Serve and enjoy.