Return of the Squash

Earlier this week, I used half of a butternut squash to make a delicious pumpkin curry. But, I still had the second half to use up and was pondering what to do with it. Pasta? Risotto? Or just tossed with a little sauce as a side? I finally came up with something I thought would be perfect for the cooler weather...a stew of roasted pumpkin in a little broth with greens, beans and mini-gnocchi.

Recipe: Roasted Squash and Gnocchi Stew

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 large butternut squash, seeded and roasted at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes then pealed and diced.

1 onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional, if you like a little heat) 

1 teaspoon dried oregano  

3 cups vegetable broth

10 ounces fresh baby spinach

1 16-ounce can chickpeas, cannellini beans or other large, white bean, drained and rinsed

1 packages vacuum packed gnocchi, perferably miniature sized

Parmesan cheese for garnish (optional) 

Or

Two tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional, for a vegan preparation) 

Directions 

In a large pan or dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat and then add the onion and cook for 10 to 15 minutes and it is soft and starting to turn golden. Add the garlic and cook for two more minutes, stirring constantly, then add the red pepper if using and the oregano. Stir in the squash and continue to cook for about five minutes. If the pan becomes dry, you can add some of the broth a couple tablespoons at a time. Season with salt and pepper. Add the rest of the broth, bringing to a simmer, cook until the squash is tender, then add the gnocchi. Cook until they are tender, then stir in the spinach and beans, continuing to cook until the greens are wilted and the beans are warm. Taste for seasoning, stir in nutritional yeast (if using) and serve warm, in large bowls with hunks of bread for dipping. Garnish with freshly ground Parmesan cheese if you like. 

Greens

For New Years, my grandparents usually cooked up black eyed peas, some winter greens and a little fat back.  I won't go into the details of fat back, but suffice it to say it smelled to high heaven and isn't eaten at herr haus.  Greens, however, that is another story.  And what goes great with greens? Andouille sausage.  

And guess what? Tofurky has come out with a vegan andouille as part of their new artisan line!  And I have to say, it's a little spicy and pretty delicious with a mess of Swiss chard and some brown rice to soak up all of the pot liquor.

Recipe: Garlicky Swiss Chard

• Olive oil
• 1 onion, in a very small dice
• 2 bunches of rainbow Swiss chard, butchered according to the directions below
• 4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 3 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• Liquid smoke
• Salt and pepper to taste

To prepare the chard, cut the leafy part of the greens away from the thick stem.  Also, cut out any of the thick veins that may be at the lower end of the leaves if they are the really large ones.  Now, I usually take the stems and make sure all of the greens are trimmed off, then I trim the top and the bottom and make long slices (two or three, depending on the size of the stems) in the thicker part of the stem.  Now, I gather them all up and slice them as fine as I possibly can.  The stems take longer to cook than the greens, but it doesn't mean they aren't edible and delicious...

You can do all of this while the onion is cooking (about 10 minutes) on medium heat in the olive oil in a nice, large lidded pot.  Now add the Swiss chard stems and continue to cook for about five more minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for another two minutes.  Your kitchen should be smelling fantastic right about now.

At this point, add the crushed red pepper, rice wine vinegar, a dash of liquid smoke then salt and pepper to taste, stirring and cooking everything for another two to three minutes.  Add the greens and stir to combine everything, then cover the pot and let them cook for three to five minutes.  The greens should be good and wilted, so just taste and adjust the seasoning, then your ready to eat.

Stir in some delicious sausages you cooked in another skillet and serve with a little bit of rice.  It's all so nice!