Giving Nummy Thanks

We had an intimate Thanksgiving dinner with our charming friends Dennis and Stuart. They cooked all the nummy favorites, including this picture-perfect turkey, and a de-constructed greenbean casserole, which we both adored. Our contribution was an orange and butternut squash soup. Thanks D and S, for a terrific holiday!

PB and Pistachio

I know! It seems we passed over the biggest eating holiday without so much as a num! But fear not, we were invited to an exquisite Thanksgiving feast with charming hosts and nummy cheer. I'll have a few photos to post in the coming days...

In the meantime, let me present this high-born peanut butter sandwich topped with ground pistachio and honey, on French walnut bread.

Spaghetti Squash Minestrone

Here is a recent take on minestrone, replacing pasta noodles with roasted spaghetti squash. We started by slicing the squash in half, rubbing it with olive oil, and roasting cut side down in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. We also roasted a green paper, white onion and garlic on the same tray, but pulled them out after 20 mnutes. After the veggies cooled a bit, we gave them a chop and saute in a little more olive oil in a heavy soup pot, along with a bay leaf, dried basil, thyme, and oregano. The roasted garlic adds a very nice, deep aroma. Next we added chicken stock to cover, chopped kale, one can of white beans, chopped boneless chicken (we cooked in the same 400 degree oven), and the scooped flesh from the squash. I then seasoned with salt, pepper, and a few red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, and cover and simmer low for 10 minutes, or until the kale is nice and soft. Then we turned off the heat and added the chopped tomato and let the soup sit for another 10 minutes. We served with grated asiago.

Baked Orange Roughy with Miso Glaze

These tasty fillets were dressed in olive oil, lemon juice and miso sauce and then baked at 400° for 10-15 minutes. We finished them off under the broiler. However, the real standout star here is the miso sauce (the recipe for which I picked up while working at The Wildflower Café in Siesta Key, FL back in the mid-nineties). It's at once tangy, sweet, earthy and comforting like a good cup of miso soup. I've been making this for years and use it as a marinade, for salads, as a condiment, or for dipping.

Wildflower Miso Sauce
1/4 white onion, chopped (or 2-3 green onion)
1/2 cup of sweet white or mellow white miso
1/4 cup of rice vinegar or cider vinegar
2-3 Tbsp tamari or soy
1/2 cup water
1 cup canola oil

Add all ingredients (except oil) to a blender or food processor, pulse until blended. Then turn on and while spinning drizzle in the oil. Adjust to taste.

Red Radish and Daikon Quick Pickles

We got a few shots of the dishes from the birthday dinner. These homemade quick pickles make a lively start- tangy, sweet, and tart- they really awaken the palate. We dressed these in an umeboshi vinaigrette for an extra punch.

Bird's Birthday Menu

Numnumnum is fresh off the heels of our first catering job! We prepared a six course seasonal dinner with a medley of macrobiotic and Asian flavors. It was a lovely evening on Lake Monona with kind people, good cheer, and lots of numnumnums! The menu included:

Starter: Quick radish and daikon pickles with umeboshi vinaigrette

App: Nori roll of sweet brown rice, carmelized tempeh and green onion, with cranberry ginger relish, pistacio dust and tamari-wasabi sauce

Soup: Cream of curried butternut squash, red bell pepper, and cilantro with Chinese 5-spice cracker

Entree: Baked halibut on udon noodles tossed with shitake mushrooms, roasted carrots and miso dressing

Salad: Mesclun greens with red pear, toasted pumpkin seeds and citrus vinaigrette

Dessert: Mulled apple sorbet with candied apple slice

Curry Under Pressure

Many thanks to TPY's folks for mailing us our new dreamy pressure cooker. We christened the pot with a batch of spicy beef curry. We modified a recipe from the ATK Family Cookbook (where you'll find an impressive list of pressure cooked dishes). It's naan or never!