Pumpkin Bread

Now that school has started, there is really no need for me to keep wishing that summer hang on a little longer. So despite the 90 degree temperatures we had here last week, I decided to make some pumpkin bread to help usher in some fall weather!

To do this I turned to my favorite "basics" cookbook, Better Homes and Gardens . This bread is so easy to make, and makes two loaves out of one can of pumpkin, with lots of spicy pumpkin flavor. And of course it uses the twin fall dessert spices: cinnamon and nutmeg.

I have also made this recipe into muffins. It makes three dozen regular size muffins, and they take about a third of the baking time it takes your oven to make the bread. Now just imagine the leaves turning colors...

Pumpkin Bread

Better Homes and Gardens

Makes 2 loaves

3 cups sugar
1 cup cooking oil (vegetable or canola)
4 eggs
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2/3 cup water

1 15-ounce can pumpkin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of two 9x5x3-inch, three 8x4x2-inch, or four 7-1/2x3 1/2-x2-inch loaf pans; set aside. In a very large mixing bowl beat sugar and oil with an electric mixer on medium speed. Add eggs and beat well; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add flour mixture and water alternately to sugar mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Beat in pumpkin. Spoon batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove from pans. Cool completely on wire racks. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.

Supreme Pizza Pasta Salad

If you are looking for a hearty pasta salad that could be a complete meal AND reminds you of a pie with all the toppings; then you have come to the right place. Even while making the dressing for this salad, I am transported into a pizzeria and my mouth starts watering for a slice. Yes, this is a Rachael Ray recipe, but these are actually the recipes I really enjoy from her. She is not trying to serve 4 courses to 12 people in 30 minutes; she is simply giving us an easy, tasty dish.

I would recommend adding the mushrooms no more than several hours before you will be serving this (I just buy the 8 ounce package of sliced mushrooms). Any longer and they soak up too much of the dressing and become shriveled and ugly looking. Fresh basil is key, and this is a perfect dish for that tube of tomato paste I know you all went out and bought!

Supreme Pizza Pasta Salad
Rachael Ray
Makes 8-10 side dish servings

2 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 medium red onion, chopped
8 fresh white button mushrooms, sliced
1 small green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 stick pepperoni, cut into a small dice
1 pound ball fresh mozzarella or fresh smoked mozzarella, diced
20 leaves fresh basil, torn or thinly sliced
1 pound wagon wheel pasta, cooked to al dente and cooled under cold water, then drained

Dressing:
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves or Italian dried seasoning
1 rounded tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, eyeball it
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it

freshly ground black pepper

Combine tomatoes, onion, mushrooms, peppers, pepperoni, mozzarella, basil and pasta in a big bowl.

Whisk garlic salt, oregano or Italian seasoning, tomato paste and vinegar together. Stream in extra-virgin olive oil while continuing to whisk dressing. When oil is incorporated, pour dressing over pasta salad.

Add a few grinds of black pepper to the bowl, then toss salad to coat evenly. Adjust your seasonings and serve salad.

Broccoli and Pork Stir-Fry

So I have had this bottle of rice vinegar sitting in my fridge for awhile now:

This is not an ingredient I use often, so when I saw this recipe in Everyday Food this month, I decided to try it. I really like using pork tenderloin in things (in fact, it's one of the only cuts of pork I like at this moment in time), and broccoli always sounds good to me, so that cemented it's place on our weekly menu.

This dish was fairly easy to prep and cook - although all of my cooking times were a few minutes longer than detailed in the original recipe below. I browned my pork on both sides before taking it out of the pan the first time, since the low cooking time made me nervous. I also used only broccoli crowns and the green parts of the scallions.

The orange zest and juice really add a lot to the flavor of this dish. However, not being the fruit-at-dinner lover myself, next time I may reduce the orange juice by half and sub more soy sauce in there. I served this over brown rice.

Broccoli and Pork Stir-Fry

Everyday Food, September 2008

Makes 4 servings

1 teaspoon grated orange zest, plus 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 pork tenderloin (about 1 pound), quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
1 head broccoli (about 1 pound), cut into bite-size florets, stalks peeled and thinly sliced

In a medium bowl, combine orange zest and juice, soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch; set stir-fry sauce aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 teaspoon oil over medium. Working in two batches, cook pork until browned on one side, 1 to 2 minutes (pork will cook more in step 4). Transfer to a plate and set aside; reserve skillet.

Add remaining teaspoon oil, garlic, and scallion whites to skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until scallions wilt, 1 to 2 minutes. Add broccoli and 1/2 cup water; cover and cook until broccoli is crisp-tender and water has evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes.

Add pork (with any juices) and stir-fry sauce to skillet. Cook, stirring, until pork is cooked through and sauce has thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Top with scallion greens.

Crash Hot Potatoes

My creativity has been lacking lately in the side dish department. I feel like all we have is either roasted potatoes or rice, and roasted or steamed broccoli or asparagus. This recipe has been floating around quite a bit on The Nest so I figured I would try it. And yes, these potatoes are roasted, but they were definitely different from the ones I usually make.

Since I was making these for just the two of us and trying to watch fat content (at least on a weeknight!); I did not use nearly enough olive oil to do the Pioneer Woman proud. I could definitely tell that if I used the generous amount of oil she calls for, it would take them to another level. That being said, these were so delicious that they have been added as a staple side in this household.

I used chives because that went better with what I was serving these with, but I can't wait to try out other herbs in the future. I was also too cheap to buy new potatoes for a "school-night" dinner so I just looked for the smallest white baking potatoes possible, cut them in half, and put them flesh side down on the baking sheet.

Crash Hot Potatoes
Pioneer Woman
Makes as much as you want!

new potatoes (or any other small round potatoes)
olive oil
kosher salt
black pepper
rosemary (or desired herb)

Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Add in as many potatoes as you wish to make and cook them until they are fork-tender (about 15-20 minutes depending on the size).

On a sheet pan, generously drizzle olive oil. Place tender potatoes on the cookies sheet leaving plenty of room between each potato.

With a potato masher, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes, rotate the potato masher 90 degrees and mash again. Brush the tops of each crushed potato generously with more olive oil.

Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and fresh chopped rosemary (or chives or thyme or whatever herb you have available).

Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Linguine with Turkey Meatballs and Quick Sauce

Ok, so you need to make these meatballs NOW. If not now, then tomorrow, and if not then, definitely by next week. The meatballs in this Giada recipe are so delicious I was stealing bites of them from Chuck's plate after I was finished with mine. The pancetta, onion, and sun-dried tomatoes all add to this fantastic salty, sweet tasting meatball. And the rest of the recipe is pretty good, too!

I was pointed in the direction of this recipe, from Giada's Everyday Pasta , by BMK at Reservations Not Required. I had never bookmarked this recipe in the past but I am glad that I finally tried it!

As with all recipes that require a pound of ground turkey, I end up buying the 1.25lb. Perdue version, so I end up with a little extra. That being said, I highly recommend that you double the ingredients for the sauce. I ended up with 26 meatballs and look at half of them in the sauce:

So I ended up freezing half the meatballs and only making eight ounces of linguine. Now I basically have a whole other meal in my freezer, just need to heat up the tomatoes and cook some pasta. But seriously, make this today - you won't be disappointed!

Linguine with Turkey Meatballs and Quick Sauce
from Giada De Laurentiis
Makes 6 to 8 servings

Turkey Meatballs:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 ounces pancetta, finely diced
1/2 yellow onion, finely diced
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup plain bread crumbs
1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Quick Sauce (double this):
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and cut into pieces with kitchen scissors
2 whole garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 pound linguine
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh basil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-heat. Add the pancetta and cook for 2 minutes. Add the onion and cook until the pancetta is crisp and the onion is tender, about 4 minutes more. Remove from heat and let cool.

In large bowl, combine the pancetta and onion mixture with the remaining meatball ingredients and stir to combine. Form the turkey mixture into balls about 2 inches in diameter, using about 2 tablespoons for each, and place on foil-lined and greased baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.

Meanwhile in medium saucepan (I used the skillet the pancetta was cooked in to retain more flavor), warm the 1/4 cup of olive oil over medium heat. Add the tomatoes, garlic cloves, parsley, salt, and pepper and cook for at least 10 minutes. Discard the garlic cloves.

See the little garlic guys in there?

Add the cooked meatballs and the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Add the reserved pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, if pasta needs moistening. Arrange on a serving platter and top with basil.

Spicy Apricot-Glazed Chicken

I am not usually a fan of mixing fruit (or nuts, for that matter) with my dinner. To me, fruit is a sweet and best eaten either as a snack or with lots of sugar and/or chocolate in a dessert! But I saw this recipe in this month's Everyday Food magazine and realized I had some leftover apricot jam in the fridge from a dessert made long ago.

And to be honest, I was fairly pleased with the result. Actually, I would have preferred more apricot flavor; so next time I make this I will either pound the chicken thinner so as to make the chicken to glaze ratio smaller, or just save some extra sauce to serve alongside. If you use thinner pieces of chicken, make sure to adjust the cooking time so you don't overcook it.

Spicy Apricot-Glazed Chicken
Everyday Food
Makes 4 servings

1/4 cup apricot jam
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 6 ounces each)
coarse salt and ground pepper

Heat broiler to high, with rack set 4 inches from heat. In small bowl, stir together jam and red pepper flakes; set glaze aside.

Place chicken on aluminum-foil lined baking sheet (or broiler pan, or wire rack on cookie sheet). Broil until chicken begins to turn opaque, 5 to 6 minutes.

Brush glaze on chicken. Broil until glaze is browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part of the chicken registers 165 degrees F, 4 to 5 minutes more.

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

I love cheater cookies. Cookies that use a cake mix, that is. The list of ingredients is short, the prep time is quick, and the end result is a moist, delicious cookie. And these cookies from Paula Deen definitely don't disappoint. Make sure you allot for the refrigeration time. I left them in the fridge over night with no problem.

You can taste that there is cream cheese in there, along with the rich chocolaty flavor. I used a Chocolate Fudge cake mix, but next time I may mix things up with Devil's Food or German Chocolate Cake.

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies
Paula Deen
Makes about 4 dozen cookies

1 (8 ounce) brick cream cheese, room temperature
1 stick butter, room temperature
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (18 ounce) moist chocolate cake mix
confectioners'/powdered sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg.

Then beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the cake mix.

Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to firm up so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls and then roll them in confectioner's sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart.

Bake 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and "gooey." Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioners' sugar, if desired.