Spaghetti Squash and Kale Gratin

Spaghetti Squash and Kale Gratin

1 medium spaghetti squash

1 onion
4 cloves garlic
5 cups chopped kale (~½ bunch)
1 T olive oil
½ tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp black pepper
¾ cup lowfat (1%) cottage cheese
½ cup grated Parmesan, divided
1 egg
½ cup light sour cream

Cut the squash in half and scrape out the seeds. Microwave the halves on a plate, cut side up, for 12-14 minutes or until very soft. Allow them to cool before scraping the flesh out with a fork. (The flesh will easily come out in strands that look like spaghetti.) Set the flesh aside, and discard the rind. Chop the onion and garlic, and chop the kale very finely. (To avoid large pieces, it can be helpful to work in smaller batches: chop the kale in one direction, then turn the cutting board 90 degrees and chop it perpendicularly)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add the olive oil to a large pan, and cook onion, garlic, thyme, and some black pepper until onion is soft. Add the chopped kale, stir, and cook until the kale leaves are wilted. Turn off heat. In a small bowl, mix cottage cheese, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, egg, and sour cream. Gently mix the cooked squash into the kale, and then stir in the cheese mixture. Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray. Spread mixture in baking dish and top with remaining ¼ cup Parmesan. Bake 35 -40 minutes, or until top is golden.

Makes 6 servings

Nutrition Facts per serving: 185 calories, 9 g fat (4 g saturated), 18 g carbohydrate (1 g fiber), 11 g protein.

http://askgeorgie.com/spaghetti-squash-and-kale-gratin/

Cauliflower, Potato and Tomato Gratin

We used our purple cauliflower in this recipe called Cauliflower, Potato and Tomato Gratin.

This dish has 1 lb of potatoes, a head of cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, with a sauce that has leeks, garlic, 2 tbsp butter, 3 tbsp flour, 1 1/2 cups of milk, cheese, 1/4 tsp of paprika, a pinch of nutmeg and parsley in it.

Cauliflower, Potato and Tomato Gratin

Ingredients:

1 pound potatoes
1 head of cauliflower
12 cherry tomatoes
1 medium leek
1 garlic clove
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cup of milk
5 oz grated cheese
1/4 tsp paprika powder
flat-leaf parsley
nutmeg

Directions:

Cut the cauliflower into small florets and boil them in lightly water for about 10 minutes.

Peel, wash and cube the potatoes and boil them in water for 10 minutes as well.

Wash and cut a leek in half-rings. Discard the dark green parts.

Grate or finely mince the garlic.

Wash, dry and finely chop a good handful of flat-leaf parsley.

Grate some aged cheese.

Add some cherry tomatoes.

Making the cheese sauce first. Melt the butter and cook the leeks for 2 minutes before adding the garlic.

Add 3 heaping tbsp flour and cook for 2 minutes to neutralize the rawness. Pour in the milk until you have a consistency you like—for me that’s usually the full 1 1/2 cup—and simmer the sauce for a minute or two/three. Season 1/4 tsp sweet paprika powder, a hint of nutmeg and melt in half the grated cheese.

Turn off the heat and stir in the flat-leaf parsley.

In the mean time the potatoes and cauliflower will be done. Drain them and put the cauliflower in a casserole, top with the cherry tomatoes and finish with the potatoes.

Drizzle the sauce all over. This looks good enough to eat without the casserole ever having seen the oven. I’m a sucker for saucy casseroles.

Top the gratin with the remaining cheese.

Bake the gratin in a preheated oven at 350F (180C) for 25 to 30 minutes. Until bubbly hot and golden brown. Garnish with a little extra parsley.

http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/cauliflower-potato-and-tomato-gratin

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Enchiladas

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Enchiladas

Serves 6-8
  Ingredients

1/2 butternut squash, diced
2 tsp. olive oil
1 can black beans
4 ounces goat cheese
12 homemade or storebought organic corn tortillas
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. coriander
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup homemade or organic storebought tomato sauce
sour cream for serving

Method

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare the squash and toss with the olive oil and a bit of salt. Roast for 30 minutes, until squash is tender and caramelized.

Toss the squash, black beans and goat cheese together in a large bowl. Season mixture to taste with salt.

Toast the spices in a dry pan for about 30 seconds. Then add the tomato sauce and stir to combine. Allow to come to a simmer and cook as you prepare the enchiladas.

Place a spoonful of the mixture in the center of each tortilla. Wrap the tortilla around the mixture by first folding up the bottom, then folding in both the sides, and finally folding down the top of the tortilla. You will end up with a rectangular package. Place all of the prepared tortillas in a baking dish, and top with the sauce. Bake for 20 minutes, until the sauce on the top of the enchiladas begins to brown.
Serve with sour cream.
http://www.organicauthority.com/main-courses/black-bean-butternut-squash-enchiladas-recipe.html

Using up what food we had before a trip to the store

Tonight we get our CSA box. Yay! We'll be going to the store afterwards. I've picked out a couple of new recipes to make. Last night we pulled together some of our remaining items left in the house and put together a pretty good last minute pasta. Here's what we had:

-a package of frozen creamed spinach
-a package of pasta
-a jar of Alfredo sauce
-some cheese

I'm sorry I don't have a picture, but it tasted pretty good. It just goes to show, that no matter what's left in the cupboard or refrigerator, that you can always come up with something creative.

A celery and tomato pasta with a celery leaves sauce

A celery and tomato pasta with a celery leaves sauce

We haven't been to the grocery store in awhile because Doug went up to our son's place to help watch the kids while our daughter-in-law went to see her mother in the hospital. They called it "Two men, two babies and two dogs."

So I didn't have much to work with for dinner. I had some celery from our CSA box which also had some good lcelery eaves. I had some cherry tomatoes, some pasta and some goat cheese. And I had no recipe. So I decided to make my own sauce for the pasta.

The sauce:

zest of lemon

the juice from said lemon

1 cup olive oil

3 cloves of garlic (small ones)

1 cup fresh celery leaves

1/2 cup chopped onions

1 tsp chopped sage

I put it in my blender but you can use a blender or food processor and mix until its blended in.

We sauteed additional onions, garlic and celery stalks in olive oil in our wok.

We boiled water and added pasta according to the directions on the package.

When the pasta was boiled and the saute was done, we added the sauce and we mixed it with tomatoes and goat cheese and let cook until the tomatoes were hot and the goat cheese was melted in.

For a spur of the moment dish, it was really great.

 

Spaghetti squash with kale, dried cranberries and Dijon vinaigrette recipe

Spaghetti squash with kale, dried cranberries and Dijon vinaigrette recipe

I used kale instead of swiss chard.

From the kitchen of Cookin Canuck. www.cookincanuck.com

Ingredients

• 1 (3 lb.) spaghetti squash
  The dressing:
• 1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp white wine vinegar
• Salt & pepper to taste
  The rest:
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 6 large Swiss chard leaves
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries

Instructions

1. Using a large, sharp knife, pierce a spaghetti squash in several places. Place the spaghetti squash in a glass baking dish and cook in the microwave on high for about 15 minutes, turning the squash halfway through cooking.
2. Before handling, let the squash stand for 10 minutes. Cut it in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and fibers. Using a fork, twist out strands of the spaghetti squash flesh and place in a large bowl. Let stand at room temperature.
   The dressing:
3. Place the Dijon mustard into a small bowl. While whisking constantly, slow pour in olive oil. Whisk until smooth and well-combined.
4. Whisk in white wine vinegar, salt and pepper.
   The rest:
5. For the Swiss chard, cut the leaves away from the stems and discard the stems. Roughly chop the leaves.
6. Heat the olive in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add the Swiss chard and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chard is cooked down and dark green, 2 to 3 minutes.
7. Add the chard and dried cranberries to the spaghetti squash. Pour in half of the dressing, toss to combine. Add more dressing, to taste. Serve.

Spinach pasta with goat cheese and lemon parsley sauce

Spinach pasta with goat cheese and lemon parsley sauce

2 heads of spinach, washed

desired amount of pasta

olive oil

desired amount of chopped garlic

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup of cherry tomatoes

5 ounces of goat cheese

Topped with some grated Parmesan cheese

The sauce:

zest of lemon

the juice from said lemon

1 cup olive oil

3 cloves of garlic (small ones)

1 cup fresh chopped parsley

1/2 cup chopped onions or shallots

1 tsp chopped sage

1/2 cup celery leaves

blended in my blender until mixed.

Prepare pasta according to the directions on the package.

Use a frying pan or wok to brown the onions, celery and garlic. Once this has been done, add the spinach and cook until just wilted. Add the sauce mixture, goat cheese and tomatoes. Once the sauce is heated and mixed in, add the pasta and mix in.

Who needs grocery store pasta sauce. The goat cheese really worked well with the lemon in this sauce. Great meal!

This time we got our large CSA box. We have radishes, broccoli, baby bok choy, Dino Kale, celery, carrots, spinach, cilantro, red leaf lettuce, oranges, apples and strawberry jam.

Creamy Swiss Chard Pasta

Creamy Swiss Chard Pasta

Ingredients:

1 lb swiss chard

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 garlic cloves, smashed

1/4 cup onion, chopped

2 large tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup fat free sour cream or 1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/4 cup parmesan cheese
8 ounces fettuccine pasta, cooked according to package
Directions:

1. Wash swiss chard, cut into small pieces.

2. Heat oil in large 2 quart saucepan over medium high heat, 1 to 2 minutes.

3. Add swiss chard, garlic and onion; cooking 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Add tomatoes, sour cream (and sauce mix - see below), milk, parmesan cheese, cooked fettuccine, salt and pepper to taste; stir well.

5. Serve warm

http://www.food.com/recipe/creamy-swiss-chard-pasta-57123

The sauce is a lemon parsley sour cream sauce with the zest of one lemon and the lemon juice, 3 cloves of chopped garlic, 1 cup of olive oil, 1/2 cup of chopped shallots, sour cream and 1 cup of fresh parsley. Put the all but the sour cream in the blender and blend until it's liquid. Then pour into a dish and mix with the sour cream. Put aside until you are ready to add it to the pasta dish.