grilled red onions

a summer favorite of mine that goes well with burgers, etc. (or anything else you care to grill, i think).

1. slice red onions into flat slices with concentric circles

2. mix equal parts of
- worcestershire sauce
-olive oil
-soy sauce
-balsamic vinegar

3. marinate onions in this mixture at least 1/2 hour (you can go much longer if you can/would like) and grill to desired level of charredness.

Butternut squash chillijack

My husband made this one night and it immediately became my favorite dinner.

2 Butternut squashes peeled, seeded and diced (good luck with that, my husband said peeling the things was the hardest part)
2 red onions, diced
1/4 cup sliced jalapeno
1 tbs chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne
salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tomatoes, diced
2 cups frozen corn, thawed
2 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese
a handful of cilantro

Put the squash, onions and chilis in a roasting pan and season with chili powder, cayenne, salt and pepper. Drizzle with oil and toss well. Roast until just soft at 375 deg (25-35 minutes).

Put them in a big serving bowl add tomatoes, corn, cheese and cilantro. Mix gently.

Drool.

Eat.

Modified Keema

I'm currently on the South Beach diet. And I also currently have three kids with very disparate and definitive food tastes. I was lucky to get requests for hamburgers from Aden and Spaghetti and Meatballs from Kalan, so I bought a family pack of ground beef and went at it.

Keema is a ground meat dish usually with peas. Comfort food. I made this in my trusty Le Crueset pot, but it will work equally well in a slow cooker I'd imagine. In case someone fancies a bit of Indian...

First on chopping. I have a German hand grinder that chops things very very small. A food processor of course works for those with that sort of technology at hand. Decent knife skills are also good of course, although I was cooking 5 dishes simultaneiously and need to move fast.

Saute minced onions (one large or whatever is on hand), a generous amount of minced garlic. When they are decently sweated, put ground coriander, cumin, and curry to taste (I twice the coriander). After a minute or so, add three to four large minced zucchini (this is a huge modification, but it made for a very nice texture) let it sweat for a while and then a handful of minced meat. Cook this for a while until the meat loses the pink. I then threw in a fair amount of tomato which made it deliciously sloppy joe like. Add salt and pepper to taste. I also threw in a chopped jalepeno and some chopped cilantro.

Eat with rice. If you aren't on the South Beach diet like I am.

1/2 Butternut Squash burning a hole in my pocket

I finally decided to do something about the half a butternut squash I've been pushing around the fridge. The only requirement was not going outside in the frigid weather. A Food magazine consultation with mom uncovered a baked shell recipe with squash and onions. Tasty.

2 large onions, halved, and thinly sliced
3 T olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
winter squash puree
1 tp. rosemary
1 lb small pasta
1 1/2 c pasta water
1 c parmesan
3 slices crusty bread, cubed
1 T olive oil
1 tp. rosemary

Heat oil over low heat, add onions, s&p, cover and cook for 15 min. Uncover, raise heat to medium, and cook another 25 min till nice and caramelized.

Meanwhile bake your buttered, seasoned squash in a 400-deg oven for 30 min. Skin and mash when thoroughly gushy. Add to the onions with a teaspoon rosemary.

My shells looked more like fusilli. Yum. Cook 2 min less than directions. SAVE 1 1/2 cups pasta water. [I always forget to do that, I get all caught up in the steamy facial aspect of pasta cooking...water worked alright, but I had to simmer longer.]

Add pasta water to onion/squash mixture and simmer a bit.

Place pasta, onion / squash mixture and parmesan in a 9x13 pan. Top with cubed crusty bread covered in 1 T olive oil and 1 t rosemary. Bake at 375 for 15-20 min.

Drink a Dark & Stormy on the side.