Mmm...autumn

[badseed1980]

I love fall foods. Oh sure, I look forward to the delicate fresh greens of spring, and I love the juicy ripe produce of summer, but fall is when the hearty, spicy, rich flavors come out, and when sweet and savory blend most beautifully.

Tonight, pierceheart has a meeting that will take place around dinnertime, so I'll be eating alone. I have carnival squash, apples, onions, brown rice, pork chops, brussels sprouts, dried fruit, nuts, cheeses, spices, and many more delicious things from which to make a meal. My original plan was to caramelize some onions and apples, add a splash of calvados, and serve them over the skillet-cooked pork chops, along with mashed squash and roasted sprouts. Now, I think I'll leave the chops in the freezer for another night when we'll be eating together. Instead, I'll take one of the squashes and stuff it with something. Maybe brown rice, apples, caramelized onions, dried cranberries, and nuts. I'll still roast the sprouts. I might augment the squash stuffing with maple syrup and/or calvados. There will certainly be cinnamon, and perhaps some nutmeg and clove. There might conceivably be a slice of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled into the stuffing. We shall see. :)

I love cooking in the fall. I need to have dinner guests sometime soon, so I can share my love of fall foods with others.

Comments

Yum

[dee-cee.livejournal.com]

That Squash Stuffing idea sounds divine. so, just cut open a squash, scoop out the seeds, put in the rice/apple/cranberry combo, then bake it?

I just may need to try this idea, it sounds so yummy!

Re: Yum

[badseed1980.livejournal.com]

Actually, it's best to first bake the squash (or even nuke it, if you don't have a lot of time), and then stuff it and put it in the oven until everything's heated through. I usually bake the squash first until it's nearly done, stuff it, and then return it to the oven until it's fully done but not falling apart. It's a good idea to put foil over the stuffing until near the end, so the top of the rice doesn't dry out and get crunchy.

[miss-lisa-ma.livejournal.com]

Fall food......mmmmmmmm.....*wipes drool off chin*

[justanyolname.livejournal.com]

Fall and spring are my favorite food seasons. I am a huge fan of winter squashes, and Daniel is an amazing cook, much to my pleasure. I am totally spoiled! And we have an awesome farmers' market close by, which has also spoiled me. Butternut squash soup, anything with pumpkin--oh, gawd, I'm in heaven. And your meal sounds fabulous!!!

[badseed1980.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I love pumpkin! Have you ever had it at an Afghani restaurant? OMG. They bake it with sugar, then top it with yogurt and a tomato meat sauce. Sheer heaven.

[justanyolname.livejournal.com]

No, I have never had Afghani food that I can recall, which is unfortunate. (I totally need to live in a city where there is gastronomic diversity.) Of course, there is every possibility that I HAVE had Afghani and I don't remember it--Daniel can probably tell me about some awesome restaurant where I raved about the pumpkin with meat sauce and I will have no memory of it at all. *rolls eyes amusingly at self*

Either way, it sounds great!!!

[witchyspyce.livejournal.com]

OMG I love fall food too! The other night I made carnival and another similar squash I got at the local farmers market and stuffed it with mushroom risotto. YUM!

OK, the risotto was precooked, but still...