WhirlwinDISH 26

Still preparing for Turkey Day sans turkey. I think I am favoring this dish for Christmas instead, though: Delicata Squash and Fall Fruits in a Dessert Wine Sauce.

Delicata squash from my local food Co-op inspired this dessert. I have never used it in a sweet preparation before. What started me on the path was having purchased thick and regular rolled oats. I began thinking about a fruit crumble, afterwards thinking about a savory crumble with the squash. Then, I thought about a sweet crumble with the squash. Ultimately, I didn’t use the oatmeal at all and went for this easy stove-top dessert. Many times, dessert wins out in my life!

I must say, this was one of my favorite dessert experiments. I might change the presentation somewhat (a little more refined, perhaps?), but the flavors came together beautifully.

The Prep: I sprinkled a little salt and brown sugar (coconut palm sugar) on the squash and seared them on both sides. Diced apples were also caramelized with a little brown sugar. I made a sauce from water, brown sugar, raw sugar & stevia, homemade dessert wine (as it’s on the sweeter side), lemon zest, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. I generally just use whatever sweeteners I have at the time for my dishes (like agave, raw sugar, etc.). For some preps, though, I choose to either purposefully use or avoid sweeteners with flavors that are more pronounced (maple, honey, or molasses, etc.). I thought about maple for this prep, but I decided to go with the more subtle brown palm sugar. I used my homemade wine, as it was handy…but, I can think of several wine shop purchases that would be suitable. So, I will change the title to reflect the appropriate wine when I’ve tested it out.

The Stew: I added the squash, apples, dried figs, and raisins to the sauce and let them stew. The squash and fruit were plated, and I drizzled a little bit more of the reduced sauce over the top. As I’ve previously written, I am fasting from butter right now…otherwise, I would have finished with a little at the end. If I wanted to make it more fancy, I would have spiked it and flambéed. Remember I said I love food and drinks on fire!

The Finish: A sprinkling of roasted nuts and pom seeds and a whip of homemade non-fat yogurt with raw coconut butter, vanilla, and raw sugar & stevia.
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Also, just a quick update on veg tamales. Last ‘My Way’ post, I linked to a recipe for vegan tamales, so check it out. I made a couple of batches testing the steam and slow cooker methods from the link. I just switched up my fillings and added a little cumin to the dough (vs. faux beef broth). I probably used less than a quarter of the oil the recipe called for (just regular veg oil), and they turned out fab (in my opinion). Less calories means we can eat more, right 😉 . I was also inspired by another recipe using a black bean chili filling. I used a veggie curry filling for one batch:

and, I used a “breakfast burrito” filling for the other (I told you I was stuck on breakfast burritos 😉 ):

The Veggie Curry: Delicata Squash, Tomato, and Black Bean. Sauce was made from sautéed onion, garlic, and chile, my own curry blend, cinnamon, brown sugar (palm sugar), and apple cider vin. I used the same sauce to top it off with, but added a bit of tomato paste & made it a little sweeter than normal (because I love sweet, as you know).

The “Breakfast Burrito”: Scrambled Eggs, Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Black Beans, Green Bells, and Asparagus. I’m also fasting from cheese, otherwise cheese most assuredly would have been included. Eggs were initially cooked very soft, as to not overcook while the tamale was steaming. Topped with my lacto-fermented salsa.

So many different ingredients and dough combos you can use for tamales. I would like to try some Asian flavors next. I used corn husks to wrap most of the tamales, but decided to test out another method, too. I figured some people reading may not have easy access to corn husks. They are readily available here in the Southwest, but I’m not so sure about other places in the country (or world). I thought making tamales is similar to making sushi, so I used parchment paper and a sushi roll mat to roll a few. I just secured the parchment with a little tape (yes, tape! Like a wrapped package or present). You will not get the texture that the corn husks give the dough, but they cooked up fine. They are also very easy to remove from the paper. If you use the slow cooker method, though, you may want to find a way to put a little water into the pot. The corn husks are soaked in water, so that is enough to provide the steam. Perhaps some slow cookers come with steamer racks like larger electrical roasters? Anyway, I think this is a good makeshift method, and you can probably come up with even more ways. The sushi roll mat may not be absolutely necessary, but it made the rolling very easy. Tamales freeze very well, so it’s nice to make a big batch for when the mood strikes.

Fermented Foods

Happy Columbus Day! Hopefully, many of you in the States are off for the day. After posting about basic equipment for your kitchen, I was inspired to make a batch of homemade yogurt in my slow cooker. Homemade yogurt is so easy (though I still love to purchase Noosa Honey Yogurt. SO good!). That led me to this post about fermented foods. I started to take an even greater interest in fermentation after reading about how awesome homemade sauerkraut is for us. Please follow that link for some great info on the fabulousness of fermentation.

I tried to find easy instructions for homemade yogurt to post, and I thought this link gave pretty good info: Slow Cooker Yogurt. I have made mine similar to this method. I keep the yogurt base plain and add flavorings later as desired. *This is a little off the topic, but…if you don’t fancy having a bath towel sitting on your kitchen countertop to keep your yogurt warm, you can always make a fabric cover for it. You can do one totally from scratch or take a short cut. My short cut tip is to take a pillowcase or bag with a pattern you like (perhaps matching your kitchen colors) and sew a thick material to the inside. You can also do a layer of insulation in between. Obviously you would measure it to the size of your pot. You can sew elastic around the top of the case/bag for a snugger fit. If you are a stellar sewer, though, you can just do the whole thing from a piece of fabric (and get as creative as you like). I think a quilted pattern would be cute.*

Once I have my yogurt made, I use a lined strainer to drain the liquid from it. 1 gallon of milk gives me about 2 1/2 of these 24 oz. jars.

It’s nice and thick after draining, but you can always add a little Kosher gelatin if you want. There are so many uses for your homemade yogurt, both plain and sweetened. You can use it as you would sour cream, cream cheese, creme fraiche, make frozen yogurt, add it to smoothies, and so much more. I used it to replace mayo here:

–In case you’re interested, that is salmon salad with spicy grain mustard and a carrot, homemade pickled raisins, pickled garlic, apple, red onion, and lentil sprout salad. Don’t laugh, but I got on this kick of putting things on “fried” polenta “buns.” I’m sure it’s just a phase. I used nutritional yeast in that pic (to save a few cals), but my fave is to add sharp cheddar, parm, or other cheeses. I love the toasted sesame seeds on top.–

Fruit & yogurt parfaits are one of my favorite things to make with my yogurt:

I think yogurt making is an especially fun activity for kids to watch, and you can teach them about the process of fermentation. After I have drained the liquid (whey) from my yogurt, I start on my other fermented foods. You don’t always have to use whey, but I try to make use of it. I mentioned the sauerkraut, but I’m making cultured salsas now, as well. They are both super simple.

And, I fermented beets and just a bit of kale for the first time.

The kale was an experiment. I may use it for a different spin to my Polish dogs and kraut…or something…I don’t know. I miss all the Polish food I grew up with in NY! We have a couple Polish restaurants here in Tucson, though. I need to get to them more often.

Here are a few recipes & tips to give you an idea of what to do (and why you’re doing it).

Benefits of Fermented Foods,

Lacto-fermented Salsa,

Cultured Salsa,

Lacto-fermented Sauerkraut

The salt you use is also very important, so this link will give you a little insight into that: Choosing Salt for Fermenting

Have a great rest of the Holiday & Happy Fermenting!