This soup has it all: healthy, hearty, quick to make, and tastes fabulous.

Last year, my little pumpkin patch was prolific, and we harvested 75-100 pounds of squash. I still have some of those pumpkins leftover today, waiting to be turned into pies, cookies, breads, and this soup. I first made this soup earlier this year during a surprise late-spring cold snap. Brant’s not a fan of squash, but he knew not to complain as I was running out of creative uses for pumpkin and this soup automatically garnished my favor simply because it used two cups of pumpkin. I was hesitant because I was afraid that the soup would taste pumpkin-y. Nope! It was great! Brant and I were both eager to eat it again for leftovers and, like most soups, it tasted even better the second day. The pumpkin made the soup rich and thick, but even with such a large amount of pumpkin, the soup didn’t taste like squash. We loved the addition of the meaty, salty ham chunks and the flavor that they imparted. This is a new favorite for us on cold winter nights, and it’s so healthy that we don’t feel guilty about going back for seconds!

Back to the quinoa again. I made a huge batch the other night and decided I would test recipe after recipe until I found one I liked. I was shocked when I loved these quinoa cakes and then again when I found out that I also loved this salad. This is not much different from my standard winter salad, except that I also add a hefty handful or two of quinoa for some nutritious protein. It can even turn a side salad into a main dish!

But if you really, really, really want a great tasting salad, fry your quinoa. It probably ruins all the nutritious benefits of this grain, but really, who cares? It’s delicious! And it’s still healthy because you’re still eating salad! I was inspired by this when I was making the quinoa cakes and some of the quinoa fell off the patties and into the oil in the pan. It got super crispy and I thought, “Hmmm… I bet we’d love this as a salad topping!” If you add 1 cup of cooked quinoa to a splash of hot olive oil, the quinoa turns a toasty brown and makes the most amazing crunchy topping. My husband loved this part so much that he literally licked the pan clean. Try it. You’ll like it.

I tried on a pair of jeans last week that used to fit me. With room to spare. And now they don’t. Given that all my current jeans are hand-me-downs from my designer-shop-a-holic friend, I simply must do something about this. Enter quinoa. I have heard loads about this complete protein and even seen some recipes here and there that have struck my fancy and I finally decided it’s time to lay off the pumpkin and chocolate themed desserts for a bit while I work on buttoning my pants again. I was certainly skeptical about these quinoa cakes. First, who uses quinoa and cake in the same sentence? Secondly, the little tails on quinoa scare me. And third, these quinoa cakes were supposed to go in a salad, which seemed like health food overkill even if I am on a diet.

I read on another website that someone enjoyed these with a lemon-garlic aioli sauce (I’m certain aioli is either French or Italian for “unhealthy”). I looked up the recipe, omitted half a cup of the oil to help make it designer-jean-friendly and smeared it on my quinoa cakes. And now I’m a quinoa cake convert. These are absolutely delicious. I enjoyed them so much that I plan on making another batch soon, which says a lot. I also am thinking about a sweet version for breakfast. Because, you know, we’ve already had the discussion about how I won’t eat anything savory for breakfast, no matter how delicious it is.

I’m not sure if mashed potatoes will ever be considered a health food, but I certainly don’t feel guilty about giving myself a double portion of these. Instead of having a stick of butter, they have a mere tablespoon. To give the potatoes that same smooth, buttery taste, a bit of sour cream and a splash of milk goes a long way. The secret to these amazing potatoes isn’t just the ingredients, though. It’s also in how they’re cooked. Cook’s Illustrated originally posted the recipe for their light mashed potatoes in one cookbook and their alternative cooking method for full-fat potatoes in another cookbook. I decided to experiment with combining the new cooking method with their light mashed potato recipe and boy oh boy! These were the fluffiest, smoothest, creamiest, most delicious mashed potatoes I have *ever* eaten. The cooler fall and winter weather is a perfect excuse to load up my plate with these spuds.

I promise you that if you try these mashed potatoes, you’ll never go back to the old ways of making taters again!!!

Continue reading: “lite” fluffy mashed potatoes

Despite the fact that the pancakes in the above picture are obviously overcooked, let me tell you how satisfying these were for breakfast. Unlike my usual blueberry pancakes, these felt healthy. (Well, they felt healthy until I topped them with a slab of butter and a hefty dollop of whipped cream. ) With all those oats and whole wheat flour, I was full after only one pancake. And don’t fear; these aren’t healthy in the “gosh, these pancakes are as dense as bricks” sense. I wouldn’t do that to you, I promise.

Blueberries and lemon are a classic combination. I think you’ll like their flavors in these pancakes. It tastes like summer no matter what time of year you serve them!

Tomatoes. Yeah. I know. We’ve talked about this already. I have a lot of them. You see them featured every other day on my blog. Deal with it. I just processed the last huge batch (a blog post on that coming soon!) so I promise to let up soon. Then we’ll move onto winter squash. If you thought I posted a lot of tomato recipes, wait until you hear about the pumpkin and butternut squash!

This is a pretty basic recipe, and when you want the flavor of your heirloom tomatoes to shine, basic is exactly the type of recipe you want. It would make a great side dish or appetizer at a party. It’s pretty, it’s easy to eat, and it’s delicious!

Let’s say, hypothetically speaking, that you regularly read my blog and see bread recipes but are too scared to try them because they have yeast and look complicated. Hypothetically speaking, you’ve heard how hard yeast breads are to make and how they require so much time and you have to get the dough just right and it’s more effort than you want to make. You’ll just stick with banana and zucchini bread, thank you very much. But let’s say, hypothetically speaking, that today I show you an easy yeast bread for beginners that involved mixing the ingredients together (with no kneading!), letting them sit for 30 minutes, and then plopping the bread into your oven only to have it turn into a beautiful, golden loaf 40 minutes later? Wouldn’t that be great? Hypothetically speaking?

easy yeast bread for beginners
from www.101cookbooks.com

1 1/4 cups warm water (105-115F)
2 1/4 tsp instant dry yeast (one packet)
1 tbsp honey (if crystalized, heat until runny)
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour (I used white whole wheat flour and preferred that)
1 cup rolled oats (not instant oats)
1 1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
2 tbsp butter, melted, for brushing

In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients except the butter and stir well.

Brush an 9x5x3-inch loaf pan generously with some of the melted butter. Turn the dough into the pan, cover with a clean, slightly damp cloth, and set in a warm place for 30 minutes, to rise.

Preheat the oven to 350F with a rack in the middle. When ready, bake the bread for 35-40 minutes, until golden and pulling away from the sides of the pan. Remove from oven, and turn the bread out of the pan quickly. Let it cool on a rack so it doesn’t steam in the pan. Coat the top with more melted butter. Serve warm, slathered with butter and a spoonful of jam.

It seems that when I read other peoples’ blogs lately, they’re transitioning into fall already. Um, it’s still August! You can’t take summer away yet! I need to eat loads more peaches, nectarines, grapes and tomatoes before I’ve had my fill!

I found this recipe in America’s Test Kitchen 2010 cookbook. I chose it because it used zucchini and tomatoes, and I’m surely not the only one trying to find recipes to use these two ingredients! The process for making this was more work than I really wanted to do, but the results were well worth it. My friend Stacy could not stop exclaiming how good it was. My husband and I both don’t care for zucchini or cooked tomatoes and yet loved this dish. And it makes a 9×13 inch pan of gratin, so while there are many steps, at least in the end you get plenty of food to share!

summer vegetable gratin
from America’s Test Kitchen 2010 Cookbook

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound zucchini , ends trimmed and sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 pound summer squash (yellow), ends trimmed and sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
2 teaspoons table salt
1 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes (3 to 4 large), sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 medium onions , halved lengthwise and sliced thin pole to pole (about 3 cups)
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1 large slice white sandwich bread , torn into quarters
2 ounces Parmesan cheese , grated (about 1 cup)
2 medium shallots , minced (about 1/4 cup)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Brush 13- by 9-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon oil; set aside.

Toss zucchini and summer squash slices with 1 teaspoon salt in large bowl; transfer to colander set over bowl. Let stand until zucchini and squash release at least 3 tablespoons of liquid, about 45 minutes. Arrange slices on triple layer paper towels; cover with another triple layer paper towels. Firmly press each slice to remove as much liquid as possible.

Place tomato slices in single layer on double layer paper towels and sprinkle evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt; let stand 30 minutes. Place second double layer paper towels on top of tomatoes and press firmly to dry tomatoes.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onions, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened and dark golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Set onions aside.

Combine garlic, 3 tablespoons oil, remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and thyme in small bowl. In large bowl, toss zucchini and summer squash in half of oil mixture, then arrange in greased baking dish. Arrange caramelized onions in even layer over squash. Slightly overlap tomato slices in single layer on top of onions. Spoon remaining garlic-oil mixture evenly over tomatoes. Bake until vegetables are tender and tomatoes are starting to brown on edges, 40 to 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, process bread in food processor until finely ground, about 10 seconds. (You should have about 1 cup crumbs.) Combine bread crumbs, remaining tablespoon oil, Parmesan, and shallots in medium bowl. Remove baking dish from oven and increase heat to 450 degrees. Sprinkle bread-crumb mixture evenly on top of tomatoes. Bake gratin until bubbling and cheese is lightly browned, 5 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with basil and let sit at room temperature 10 minutes before serving.

I’ve never been a fan of Caprese salads. While the idea is lovely – tomatoes layered with fresh mozzarella and snips of basil – the resulting taste for me is bland. I have had it topped with olive oil. Still bland. I’ve had it drizzled with balsamic vinegar, which was a step in the right direction. As I perused America’s Test Kitchen 2010 cook book in search of recipes that would use loads and loads of tomatoes, I came upon this one and thought to myself, “Hmmm… a dressing! I may like this!” And sure enough, I love it! I halved the recipe for my husband and me to share as a light lunch. He wasn’t very hungry so I ate almost the entire bowl. That speaks volumes. This has all your classic Caprese elements, but the tomato juices and seeds are boiled down with balsamic vinegar and shallots to create a reduction that is lightly tossed with the salad. The end result? Caprese perfection.

caprese salad
from Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2010 Cookbook

Note: Because this does not keep well overnight, I halved the recipe to serve two or three people a fairly decent portion. If you’re serving more than that, double this recipe. 

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
4 oz fresh mozzarella cheese (packed in water), sliced into 1/2″ cubes
3/4 cup loosely packed basil, roughly torn into half-inch or one-inch pieces
1 1/2 tbsp minced shallot
1 tbsp high quality balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
additional sea salt and pepper to taste

Combine the cherry tomatoes, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl and let sit for 30 minutes. After thirty minutes, pour tomatoes into a salad spinner and spin for 30 seconds to one minute to release juices. Reserve at least 1/4 cup of tomato juices. Discard any additional juices.

Combine tomato juices with shallot and balsamic vinegar in a saucepan over medium heat. Reduce until the mixture is approximately 1.5 tablespoons. Remove pan from the heat and whisk in olive oil. Cool for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, cheese, basil, and sauce. Mix well and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with crusty bread.

mixed greens with grapes, goat cheese, avocado & candied pecans
inspired by Joylicious, as featured on www.6bittersweets.com

(please note… this is a *salad* folks… add as much or little of any particular ingredient as you want!)

1/2 cup pecans
1/4 cup white or brown sugar
1 tbsp butter
several handfuls of mixed spring greens
red grapes (I used a small bunch for our two salads)
goat cheese (I used about 1 tbsp per salad)
1 medium avocado, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/4″ slices (I used about 4-5 slices per salad)
1 tbsp good quality olive oil per person
1/2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar per person (we used a cranberry pear infused white balsamic, but I think it would be fine with a regular white balsamic as well)
sea salt and pepper for sprinkling on top

In a sautee pan over medium heat, add the pecans, brown sugar and butter and stir until caramelized. Remove and place on a sheet of wax paper in a single layer. Let cool while you assemble the rest of the salad.

Place a layer of greens on each plate. Add some grapes, crumble some goat cheese, and layer with some slices of avocado. Place several candied pecans on each salad. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil and vinegar. Pour over individual salads, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper, and serve immediately.