These are savoury muffins, and a great reason to use some roasted kabocha squash (my favourite, and the sweetest of squash).  Because the squash is bright orange, it will tint your muffins a lovely yellow-orange colour.  I paired the squash with some old cheddar, dried chilis, and garlic.  YUM.

These delicious muffins are bonus-healthy with a protein boost from the Greek yogurt, a fibre boost from the whole wheat flour, squash, and flax seeds, and they just taste so darned good.

They are also a great excuse to try out lovely holiday prezzies from friends. The lovely Ash got me the cutest-ever measuring spoons (how did she know I needed a set?!) and a Baking Notes magnetic notepad from Knock Knock.  Awesome, and just the ticket for making new muffins.

I think I’ll be topping all of my muffins with nuts or seeds from now on.  The crunch is delightful, and look how pretty they are!

I think they’d be great alongside chili (like you would serve cornbreaad), and I know they are great on their own for a quick savoury breakfast.

Kabocha Squash & Cheddar Muffins

Makes 12 muffins

• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 c. cornmeal
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. flax seeds, ground
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. aleppo chili pepper flakes or dried red chili flakes
• 1 c. roasted kabocha squash, mashed (see How to Roast Squash)
• 1 c. Greek yogurt
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 c. milk (almond, skim…)
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 c. old cheddar cheese, grated
• 1/4 c. pumpkin seeds

Preheat oven to 350F.

Grease your muffin tin with olive or coconut oil.

In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, cornmeal, baking soda & powder, flax, salt and chili flakes) with a whisk.

In a separate bowl, combine squash, yogurt, garlic, milk, and olive oil.  Add the squash mixture to the dry ingredients, and mix with a spatula to combine. Gently fold in the cheese.

Evenly distribute the batter amongst the 12 muffin cups and sprinkle the tops with the pumpkin seeds.

Bake at 350F for 45-50 minutes, until the tops are golden brown, and a knife or toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Let the muffins cool in the tin for at least 5 minutes.  Then remove them to a cooling rack to cool. Refrigerate or freeze any you don’t eat immediately.

Serve plain, à la Boyfriend (with a bit of salted butter), or à la Linz (with a bit of stinky blue cheese – Shropshire blue is delightful here).

I made an apple cranberry version, but I think this would also be lovely with bananas and walnuts, or pumpkin and dates.  I think each time I make one I’ll try a new flavour variation to keep things going.  You could also make a plain version, and add fresh fruit and nuts each morning.

There’s something about the baked apple, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg combination that tastes like apple pie.  And when you add the tart cranberries, it makes for a very happy morning tummy!

This recipe makes a TON of baked oatmeal.  It’s enough for about 9-12 breakfasts, depending on how hungry you are in the mornings.  I purposely cut out about 6 squares, double-wrapped them each individually in plastic wrap, and froze them right away as soon as they’d cooled down.  That way I always have a breakfast ready to go for emergency mornings.  The rest I left in the pan and have been eating all week.  YUMMMM.  Happy & Healthy Breakfasting!

Baked Apple Cranberry Steel Cut Oatmeal

Makes 9-12 breakfasts

• 4 c. steel cut oats
• 4 c. boiling water
• 2 tsp. coconut oil
• 2 c. frozen unsweetened cranberries
• 2 apples, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 2 tsp. ground chia seeds
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Cover the steel cut oats with boiling water and let sit for 20 minutes (to precook a little).

Grease a 23 x 23cm (9″) baking dish with the coconut oil.

In a large bowl, combined the soaked oats with the remaining ingredients and stir well.  Pour into the baking dish.

Bake at 375 for 50-60 minutes, then place on a cooling rack to cool before cutting into slices.  Serve with a little extra maple syrup, Coco Chai Rooibos Simple Syrup or fresh fruit and nuts.

My sister, Heather, and I teamed up with leek “Henry” (apparently named after her car) to create a new veggie pie.  Yes, this is my second veggie pie this week, but sometimes you just need pie. [Heather says: I like pie.]

Heather loves mushrooms, and puts them in everything she cooks [Heather says: I like mushrooms.], so we had to make a mushroom pie.  I thought this would be a good time to introduce her to my favourite allium: the leek.

We also added in some new-to-Heather fresh herbs: thyme and sage.  [Heather says: Is it thyme for sage?  Hahaha...]  We used them in both the Thyme & Sage Whole Wheat Pie Crust and in the mushroom, leek, and lentil filling.

Prior to our pie-venture, Heather was convinced pie was for experienced bakers.  But with a little help (and encouraging yelling from me) she conquered savoury pie — next step, sweet pie.  We may have chocolate-banana plans… stay tuned!

Easy as pie — demonstrated here in Heather’s keener pie face!  We were excited!

And just in case you weren’t sure… we have even labeled it for you:

Heather’s Mushroom, Leek & Lentil Pie
Inspired by Woolton Pie from The World Carrot Museum, Serves 4-6

• a double recipe Thyme & Sage Whole Wheat Pie Crust
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 leek, finely chopped and grit removed
• 228g (about 2 c.) cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 200g (about 1 c.) oyster mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tsp. fresh sage, chopped
• 3 c. cooked lentils
• 1/4 c. parmesan cheese

Prepare your Thyme & Sage Whole Wheat Pie Crust and pat the dough into two evenly-sized discs.  Refrigerate the discs of dough, wrapped in parchment paper, for 3o minutes.

While the dough is chilling, prepare your filling.  Melt butter in a large pan over medium-low heat.  Add garlic and leeks, and sweat until soft.  Add the mushrooms, salt, pepper, thyme, and sage.  Turn up the heat to medium and saute until the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Roll out one of your chilled dough discs onto parchment or a floured cutting board.  Use a rolling pin to roll out one disc of dough to fit the bottom of your pie plate, and transfer to your pie plate as a bottom crust.  Press into the bottom and sides of your pie plate.

Add the leek and mushroom filling, then top with a layer of the cooked lentils.

Roll out your second chilled dough disc as a top crust.

Press into the pie pan to seal the edges.

Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.  Cut slits in the dough to allow steam to escape.

Bake at 375F for 30 minutes, or until the top crust is golden brown.

Serve warm, ideally with Mushroom Gravy (and shared with angelic sister, shown here with pie).

I used roasted root veggies here, instead of boiling them like for Woolton Pie. I like the caramelised bits that form on the leeks here, it’s extra delicious.

I love to serve this pie with a mushroom gravy — I used some dried mixed mushrooms I had on hand, including morels, my favourite!

And the top of the pie gets a sprinkling of grated cheddar cheese.  My cheese grater had to be taken down from active duty as Christmas tree-topper, in order to do some grating.  Isn’t she lovely?  We call her the cheese lady.  She was a Christmas prezzie from the boyfriend a couple of years ago, when I was complaining about not having a tree topper, and saw one of my favourite kitchen shops using her in just this way!  Perfect for our home!

And you know what, this savoury pie wass a perfect way to inaugurate my new Emile Henry 9-Inch Pie Dish that I received from Heather for Christmas!

I really love the scalloped edges:

And the cherry red colour.  The inside is glazed and the bottom is unfinished. LOVE.

And it goes with my red-themed kitchen… see:

I can’t wait to make a Clafoutis in my new pie dish!  And tons more savoury pies — I’ve been thinking about a mushroom & leek pie, or another swiss chard pie or maybe even a sweet pie (rhubarb and strawberry?  sour cherry?  lemon meringue?)!  Oh the pie options!  I can’t wait!

Roasted Root Vegetable & Leek Pie
Inspired by Woolton Pie from The World Carrot Museum, Serves 4-6

• 6 parsnips, peeled or scrubbed & chopped
• 6 carrots, peeled or scrubbed & chopped
• 2 small celeriac, peeled and diced
• 1 leek, grit rinsed off and thinly sliced
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 1 c. chickpeas
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tsp. fresh sage, chopped
• 1 recipe Thyme & Sage Whole Wheat Pie Crust (below)
• 1/4 c. old cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 425F.

Combine parsnips, carrots, celeriac, leek, garlic, chickpeas, oil, salt & pepper in a large bowl.  Spread in a single layer over a baking sheet (or two) and roast at 425F for 30-40 minutes, or until the veggies are fork-tender and beginning to caramelise.

Throw your roasted veggies into your pie dish (there will be no bottom crust).

Top with the thyme and sage.

Roll out your Thyme & Sage Whole Wheat Pie Crust Dough into a circle large enough to cover your pie pan, with an extra 2cm (1″) all around the edges.  Plop it onto your pie to make a lid – this doesn’t have to be pretty.

Now make it pretty by pressing the edges into the side of the pan.

Cut slices with a sharp knife into your crust lid to allow steam to escape.

Top with the grated cheddar cheese.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes, until the top is golden.

Serve warm with your favourite gravy (may I recommend my mushroom gravy?) and enjoy!

Thyme & Sage Whole Wheat Pie Crust Dough
Adapted from Whole Foods’ Whole Wheat Pie Crust recipe.
Makes enough to top a 9″ pie.  If you want a bottom crust too, double the recipe. 

• 1 1/8c. whole wheat flour
• 1/8 tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tsp. fresh sage, chopped
• 7 Tbsp. butter
• 4 Tbsp. cold water

in a large bowl or food processor, combine flour, salt, thyme and sage.  Add butter and pulse in food processor or combine with a fork or pastry blender until incorporated.  Sprinkle water over top of the mixture and let sit for 30 seconds.  Mix until the ingredients form a ball.  Turn out onto the counter, and form into a disc.  Let rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.  Use in your favourite savoury pie recipe.

Best of the season,
Linz

So there’s a restaurant by us that has an item on its brunch menu that always catches my eye: Egg Muffins. Which sounded so intriguing I had to ask about them. Essentially it’s Eggs Benedict without the hollandaise — and so I thought I’d make my own version of  ‘Egg Muffins’ at home!

There’s not really a lot to it, which makes this a great weekday breakfast.  We’ve had them twice this week already… and can’t stop.  Essentially, you take an English muffin and toast it, layer it with veggies and possibly melty cheese, and then top with a poached egg.  Our favourite combination right now is sauteed red onions and old cheddar, so I’ll share that recipe with you here.  Also good: spinach and/or sauteed mushrooms.  Yes.  I’m also tempted to try kale… has anyone braved it yet with poached eggs?

The secret here is perfectly poached eggs.  I’m finding that 2 minutes in the poaching pot is perfect for whites that hold themselves together and yolks that run all over your muffin.  To me, that is the best part.  If you need an egg-poaching tutorial, I’ve also got one for you here: How to Poach an Egg — happy holidays, my gift to you!

So if you’re looking for a good excuse to learn to poach eggs, this is it.  And if you need yet another excuse, just think — you can put poached eggs on top of leftover enchiladas too!  We made a variation of my Kale & White Bean Enchiladas this week with fava beans, and they were even better as breakfast leftovers!  Just remember to add the hot sauce.

But back to Egg Muffins!  I’ve scaled the recipe here for two people eating 2 eggs (and 2 muffin halves = 1 English muffin) each.  But you can scale it however you’d like.  I’ve recently been doing 2 eggs for the boyfriend and one egg and one cheesy muffin for me.  Yum.

Egg Muffins

Serves 2

• 2 whole wheat English muffins, halved
• 1 tsp. butter or olive oil
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 30g (1 oz) old cheddar, grated or sliced
• 4 eggs

Preheat your oven to a high broil.

Set up your egg station — crack each egg into a ramekin or mug.  (You may be great at poaching a few eggs at once without this part of the process, feel free to skip ahead.  I like the results I get this way, even though there are a couple more dishes to do at the end of the day.)

Fill a large pot with water and place on the stove.  Bring to just-before-a-boil, where you have tiny bubbles all over the surface of the water.

While you are waiting for your water to heat, toast your English muffin halves on a baking sheet under the broiler.

Also prepare your onions by sauteeing them for 5 minutes on medium heat in the butter or oil.  Once they are softened, place them onto the toasted English muffin halves:

Add a slice (or a heap if it’s grated) of the cheese:

And toast under the broiler until the cheese has melted, about 60-90 seconds:

By this time, you’ll be ready to poach your eggs.  Stir your water with a frenzy, into a whirlpool of swirling water.  Drop in your eggs one at a time and let the water swirl them into cohesive little egg parcels.  Poach for 2-3 minutes (2 for soft oozy yolks, 3 for medium yolks).  Remove your poached eggs with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towel to drain.  Lay a poached egg on top of each cheesy-oniony-muffin half and serve hot!

I like to cut into the Egg Muffins at this point in time, to get oozy yolks all over your muffins so they don’t go hard.  Totally optional, you can leave this for the eater to do.

Happy Eggy Holidays!!

I’ve been hearing a lot about Christina Tosi and the amazing treats she’s whipping up at Momofuku Milk Bar in New York City. And then I got the second issue of my new most-favourite-magazine ever, Lucky Peach (by David Chang of Momofuku), and she had some corn cookies in there. And they made me remember that I’ve been dying to make these compost cookies (maybe I’ll brave corn cookies next) and I thought this was a perfect experiment in whole wheat cookie baking.

They’re called compost cookies because you put in all your leftover “stuff” into them.  Fellow food bloggers have been delights like potato chips, dried fruit, nuts, chocolate, Doritos, bugles, pretzels, more chocolate… anything goes.  I got to use up some leftover stuff in my freezer and pantry, and it made it delicious.

The secret to these cookies?  Well, I think it’s two-fold:

1) Cream the butter/sugar for 10 minutes.  Seriously.  10 minutes.  In your mixer.  It makes the batter like buttercream.  It’s awesome.

2) The combination of salty-sweet.  There’s a good hit of salt in this dough (mmm), and you get to put in a combination of sweet and salty treats.  I added mainly sweet stuff like dark chocolate chips, leftover frozen chocolate chip cookie dough crumbles, bitter cacao nibs, chocolate-covered espresso beans and balanced them off with raw cashews.

It’s important to get the baking time right here.  You want golden-brown edges like this and just a little bit of golden brown on the top.

I even popped a few leftover Garlic croutons into a few, and they were the best cookies of them all (no joke!), so no add-in is too extreme:

And you know what?  No one will know they’re whole wheat unless you tell them.  Enjoy!

Whole Wheat Compost Cookies
Adapted from Christina Tosi’s (from Momofuku Milk Bar) Compost Cookies via Amateur Gourmet, Makes about 30 3″ diameter cookies.

• 225g (1 c. or 2 sticks) salted butter, cut into small (around 2-3cm or 1″) cubes
• 350g (1 3/4 c.) organic crystallised granulated sugar
• 10 ml (2 tsp.) vanilla extract or paste
• 2 large eggs
• 218g (1 3/4 c.) whole wheat flour
• 10g (2 tsp.) baking powder
• 5g (1 tsp.) baking soda
• 10g (2 tsp.) sea salt
• 3 c. random baking ingredients (see notes in blog post — I used 1 c. chocolate chips, 1/4 c. cacao nibs, 1/4 c. leftover bits of chocolate chip cookie dough, 1 c. cashews, 1/2 c. chocolate-covered espresso beans)

In a stand mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment), cream butter and sugar on low speed for 2-3 minutes.  Add vanilla and eggs in combine on low speed to incorporate, about 30 seconds.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Super-creaming method: set a timer for 10 minutes, and continue to cream the butter/sugar mixture on medium speed for 10 minutes to dissolve the sugar granules.  You’ll end up with a texture like buttercream frosting.

On low speed, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Mix just to incorporate all ingredients for 40-60 seconds, do not over-mix.  Add your random baking ingredients and mix 10 seconds, until they are evenly spread throughout your batter.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and drop mounds of batter around 2 Tbsp. in size onto your cookie sheet.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.  Repeat with remaining batter.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Once your batter has chilled for 30 minutes, bake cookies at 400F for 9-12 minutes.  You want the outside edges to be golden brown and the tops to be just starting to turn golden.  They will still be soft.  Let cool on on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or freeze any leftovers.  You can also freeze the batter and cook straight from frozen.

The lovely Louise got me a copy of Alice Hart’s Vegetarian for my birthday.  And oh-my-goodness is it one of my favourite cookbooks ever.  There’s a whole chapter entitled “Big Salads” and of course I wanted to make everything in the book.  The first winner: “Giant couscous salad with preserved lemon and charmoula”.  I made it my way, based on what I had on hand, and what I like to eat, and it’s divine.

Seriously, you have to try this.  You roast parsnips and carrots with honey and olive oil in a hot oven and lay them over Israeli couscous.  Yum.

I was overjoyed to have an opportunity to use my favourite new-to-me treat: local raw honey from Nude Bee Honey.  I’ve got their blueberry and their wild, and love the unique flavours of each.  I used the wild honey here (from multiple sources), and it made the roasted carrots and parsnips trancendent!  (And they ship for free, by bicycle, to downtown Toronto!)  I simply cannot wait to try their starthistle and honeydew varietals! Don’t you just love their packaging?

I love love love this Charmoula dressing (of course I’d love any dressing made with a whole bunch of fresh cilantro leaves).  It’s bright green and has these rich wintery flavours with the cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, and coriander.  Oh yes, I’m going to be putting this dressing on everything.  It’s fabulous here as both the dressing and as a topping mixed with Greek yogurt.

In my veggie box this week I got a gorgeous living bunch of tatsoi greens.  So I had to include them in my salad!  I used them as the base on top of which I piled all of my other ingredients.  If you can’t get a hold of your own tatsoi greens, baby arugula would be a great substitute here.  We did that for second-day leftovers and it was awesome to get the peppery arugula bite.

And somehow this doesn’t taste like ‘just a salad’ – it’s an amazing combination of flavours, and I will definitely be making it more often around here!  YUM.

Israeli Couscous Salad with Honey-Roasted Parsnips & Carrots

Adapted from “Giant couscous salad with preserved lemon and charmoula” from Alice Hart’s Vegetarian, Serves 4

• 500g parsnips
• 500g carrots
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 150g Israeli couscous
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 preserved lemons, diced
• 2 c. tatsoi greens or fresh baby arugula
• 1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. Charmoula Dressing (recipe below)
• 200g Greek yogurt
• 1/4 c. hemp seeds

Preheat your oven to 400F.

Peel your carrots and parsnips, and halve lengthwise.  Cut into sticks around 7cm (3″) long.

In a small bowl combine the olive oil and the honey.  Toss the carrots and parsnips in the olive oil and honey mixture.

Line a baking sheet with foil, and lay out the carrots and parsnips in a single layer.  Roast at 400F for 40-45 minutes, until the veggies have caramelised.

While the veggies are roasting, prepare the rest of your salad ingredients.  Bring a pot or kettle of water to a boil.  In a medium pot, toast the Israeli couscous over medium heat for 5 minutes.  Add 250 ml (1 cup) boiling water and stir well.  Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 10 minutes, until the water has been absorbed and the Israeli couscous is al dente.

In a large bowl, combine the lemon juice, preserved lemons and 1/4. cup of the charmoula dressing.  Toss with the Israeli couscous.

In a separate small bowl, mix together the Greek yogurt with the charmoula dressing.  It will be lovely and green.

Once your veggies are done roasting, create your plate:

1) Layer your plates with the arugula

2) Add the charmoula-dressed couscous

3) Layer on the roasted parsnips and carrots

4) Top with a big scoop of the Greek yogurt and sprinkle with hemp seeds.

Enjoy in good health!

Charmoula Dressing
Makes about 1 cup

• 1 bunch coriander
• 1 Tbsp. toasted cumin seeds
• juice & zest of 1 lemon
• 60 ml (1/4 c.) olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1/2 tsp. sweet paprika
• 1/4 tsp. turmeric
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
• black pepper

Blitz all ingredients in a food processor until you have a smooth paste.  If the dressing is too thick, thin it out with a little more oil, a tablespoon at a time.  Keep in an airtight container (a mason jar works well) in the fridge for up to a week.

We’ve been making these quite a lot, after our friend Sue introduced us to her version at the cottage this summer.  She mixes mashed (boiled) cauliflower in with the egg mixture, and it tastes divine!  Her recipe is from a cookbook about sneaking veggies into kids’ meals, but I think it’s pretty awesome for adults.  They look pretty fancy, but trust me – all you do is slice a tortilla, stick it in a muffin cup, fill with stuff, and bake.  All of a sudden, you have these gorgeous tortilla bowls for your eggy deliciousness.

You can see in the recipe photos that I decided to only do 8 tortilla cups — it’s an easy recipe to adjust to the quantities you need for whomever you’re serving.  A ratio of one egg for every 2-3 tortilla cups works really well.

This Tex-Mex version has become our standard, but it will work with whatever veggies you’d want in an omelet – maybe you could do “Greek” tortilla cups with  green peppers, black olives, spinach, and feta… or mushroom tortilla cups with sauteed mushrooms, onions, and goat’s cheese… or leeks and collards… the options are endless!

I think we’re going to have these as our light breakfast on Christmas morning (so I’ve popped them into my Holiday category). You know, the meal before the big brunch and the dinner feast.  I think the red peppers and the green cilantro will look perfectly festive, and they’ll provide some delicious nourishment and sustain us through the morning craziness.  I might have to sneak some kale in there.  After all, ’tis the season.

Tex-Mex Breakfast Tortilla Cups
Serves 4-6

• 3 large flour tortillas
• 60ml (1/4 c.) refried beans
• 1/2 red pepper, finely diced
• 1/4 red onion, finely diced
• 56g (2 oz or 1/4 c.) sharp cheddar cheese
• 4g (1/4 c. or 1 large handful) fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 c. plain Greek yogurt

Preheat your oven to 400F.

Grease a muffin tin (I use olive oil in a vacuum spray bottle – no ozone-harming chemicals!) with olive or coconut oil.

Slice your tortillas into quarters (a pizza wheel is great for this).  Press each triangle of tortilla into a muffin cup.

Spoon in a heaping teaspoon of refried beans, and top with peppers, onions, cheese, and cilantro.

In a separate bowl, beat your eggs with a fork or a whisk.  Pour the beaten eggs over the muffin cups, being careful not to overfill them.

Bake at 400F for 12-18 minutes, until your eggs have set and the edges of your tortilla cups are golden brown.

Let cool for 5 minutes, and gently run a knife around the rim of each cup to loosen it from the muffin tin.

Serve with a good dollop of Greek yogurt.  You could also serve with salsa, extra refried beans, more veggies, and extra cilantro!  If there are any that aren’t so pretty, feel free to top with a dollop of yogurt or salsa.

Eat warm, or at room temperature, and enjoy!

How do I love thee?  Let me count the ways.

1) You are magic.  Somehow, soup as a whole is always better than the sum of its parts.  You put veggies in a pot with some water, and they come out tasting incredible.  Magic.

2) You make me love winter.  Because who doesn’t love a hot bowl of soup on a cold day?

3) You help me eat more veggies.  Not that I really needed help with that, but you’re a really good excuse for nutrition.

4) You make my place smell divine.  There’s nothing quite like a bowl of soup simmering away on the stove, and that magic first smell when all the flavours start to come together and you realise you’re about to have soup!

5) You’re easy.  Most of making you, soup, is letting you bubble away while I get on with all the other things I’m doing in my life.

So thank you soup, you’re welcome to come by for a delicious visit anytime you’d like this winter.

Love,

Linz

Roasted Acorn Squash & Pear Soup
Serves 6-8

• 2 acorn squash
• 1 Tbsp. butter or oil
• 1 red onion, minced
• 2 pears, chopped
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1/4 of a fresh nutmeg, grated (I use a microplane)
• 1 Tbsp. curry powder
• salt & pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 425F.

Slice the acorn squash in half, lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds.  Place the squash cut-side-down on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.  Roast at 425F for 45 minutes, until the flesh is tender.  Let cool, and scoop out the acorn squash flesh.

Heat a large pot over medium heat, and add your butter or oil.  Add the onion, and sautee until the onions are soft.  Add the roasted squash, pears, vegetable stock, nutmeg, and curry powder, and stir to combine everything.

Turn the heat to high and bring the pot to a boil.  Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 45 minutes, until all of the flavours are infused and gorgeous.  Your home will smell decadent.  Season with salt & pepper.

Serve warm, topped with your favourite soup toppings.  I like a little Greek yoghurt and some freshly chopped chives.

Refrigerate or freeze leftovers.

This is a very traditional combination of flavours, and for very good reason.   Butternut squash + sage = heaven.

And on a side note, did you know you can get a specialty nutmeg grinder?  It looks like a pepper grinder:

But has a totally different mechanism, just for whole nutmeg!

And random aside #2 — if you get really tired of folding tortellini… you can always make Trianglini:

That night we enjoyed the fruits of our labour and had a gorgeous dinner – two types of tortellini (the Chanterelle Tortellini Aglio e Olio) and this Butternut Squash Tortellini:

Along with my favourite new beet & mint salad:

Topped with “crispy feta”:

And for dessert, a chocolate mousse topped with pureed and whole raspberries:

Was it worth it to make the two types of tortellini?  OH HECK YES.  But you know what, next time, I’m only going to make one at a time.  And I’m absolutely making the filling the night before to make my life 0h-so-much easier and more enjoyable.

But I think fresh pasta is always worth whatever efforts it takes.  And I hope you do too!

Butternut Squash Tortellini in a Sage Butter
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Mastering: Pasta, Noodles & Dumplings

• 500g (1 lb) fresh egg pasta
• 1 butternut squash
• 125g (4 oz / 1 c.) Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
• 1 egg
• 5g (1 tsp.) sea salt
• 1g (1/4 tsp.) nutmeg, finely grated
• 1g (1/4 tsp.) freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 1 big handful of sage leaves

Preheat your oven to 400F.

Cut your squash in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds.  Place the squash (cut-side-down) on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil, and roast at 400F for 1 hour, until the flesh is soft.  Let cool, and scoop out the flesh and set aside.  Discard the skin.

Once your squash has cooled, place it in the bowl of your food processor, and add the cheese, egg, salt, nutmeg, and pepper.  Blitz until all ingredients are well combined and you have a smooth puree.

Cut your fresh egg pasta into 10cm (4″) squares, and place a teaspoonful of filling in the centre.

Brush the edges with water (using your finger or a pastry brush), fold into a triangle, and press the edges together to seal well:

Then fold over one side:

And fold over the other, and pinch them shut:

Repeat with your remaining pasta and filling. Place your formed tortellini in a single layer on a floured baking sheet.

Cook your pasta in boiling, salted water until al dente, about 3 minutes.

While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat, and add your sage leaves.

Drain your pasta, and add to the sage butter pan:

Toss well to coat the butternut tortellini with the sage butter.

Serve immediately, blanketed with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper.

Freeze any uncooked tortellini you won’t use immediately, by laying them out in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Then transfer them to a freezer bag once they’ve frozen.