Side Dishes

Celery Root Gratin (Deb Madison, "Savory")
Broiled Eggplant with Walnut Sauce (Deb Madison, "Savory")
Kim's Cous-cous
Oven-Roasted Green Beans
Brussels Sprouts with Vinegar Glazed Red Onions
Pickled Ginger
Apple, Celery, and Walnut Salad

Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Deborah Madison's Book Strikes Again

Or should it be "Hits Again". Last night I tried the Celery Root Gratin. Very tasty. I actually wouldn't mind replacing all the potatoes with celery root next time. I need to find a good chicken marinade.

Stewed Lentils with Celery Root

Tonight I made another recipe from the Deborah Madison book I bought at Jackson Street Booksellers. It's really good. I paired it with leftover Eggplant/Walnut sauce and some Pine Nut Couscous. Dessert was that Winter Fruit Whip. The lady at Wild Oats said some people use celery root or turnips to make mashed "potatoes". Omoshiroii, ne? She said it tastes pretty much the same, but you can eliminate most of the carbs. I'll try it and maybe that'll be one of the Thanksgiving dishes when the Daharis come.

Dinner with Mom

Mom came over to shop and stayed for dinner tonight. I love how everything turned out. The menu was:
Grilled Chicken (seasoned with salt, pepper, amino acids, thyme and ginger)
Walnut Eggplant dish (recipe from Deborah Madison cookbook)
Grilled veggies (so-so, but a nice healthy sidedish)
Bread
Winter Fruit Whip for dessert (excellent)

Mom and I had a great time and dinner turned out so nice. She's pretty fun to cook for b/c she will try about anything as long as it's not too spicy. I added the Winter Fruit Whip to the blog, but not the Eggplant dish, yet. Can't wait to make it again. The walnut sauce that went on top was perfect.

Winter Fruit Whip

Winter Fruit Whip

persimmon
black grapes
dates
pomegranate
1 Cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Brown Cow Low-Fat Vanilla Yogurt
granola
almond slivers

Cut persimmon, grapes and dates into chunks. Blend whipped cream, sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form OR use yogurt for a lower calorie/fat dessert. Layer cream then grapes fruit then granola twice. Put a dollop of cream on top and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and almond slivers. Freeze or refrigerate, according to your taste.

Recipe by Kim.

Acorn Squash Soup

Acorn Squash Soup

3 acorn squash
2 Tablespoons butter
1 1/2 Cups diced onion
3 Cups apple cider (hard or not)
4 Cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 dash nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon orange juice
popped popcorn to garnish if desired

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut squash in half and place face-down on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until tender.

In soup pot, melt butter on medium heat and saute onions until soft. Scoop out cooked squash flesh and add to pot. Also add cider and chicken broth to pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Blend or puree in blender. Return to pot and add spices and orange juice. Garnish with popcorn.

Found in soup cookbook at Borders.