Butternut Squash Risotto with bacon and Sage

This stuff is amazing.  Could be a main dish, but mostly I make it as a filling side dish when we have fish for dinner.  I love it so much that I'm bringing it to Thanksgiving dinner this year.  I like extra sage.  Another Fine Cooking recipe. 

Butternut Squash Risotto with bacon and sage

1 qt. homemade or low-salt chicken broth; more as needed   
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 Tbs. olive oil
10 large fresh sage leaves
4 slices bacon, cut crosswise into thirds
2 medium shallots, minced (about 1/4 cup)
2 cups 1/4-inch-diced butternut squash
1-1/2 cups arborio or other risotto rice, such as carnaroli or vialone nano
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

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Combine the chicken broth and wine in a small saucepan and set over medium heat. In a medium (3-qt.) saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sage leaves and fry, turning once, until they’ve turned dark green in most places, about 1 minute total. Don’t brown. With a fork, transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Put the bacon in the saucepan and cook, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the bacon to the plate with the sage.

Add the shallots to the saucepan and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until softened, about 1 minute. Add the squash and rice and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Ladle in enough of the hot broth mixture to just cover the rice. Cook, stirring frequently, until the broth is mostly absorbed. Add another ladleful of broth and continue cooking, stirring, and adding more ladlefuls of broth as the previous additions are absorbed, until the rice is tender with just a slightly toothsome quality, about 25 minutes. As the risotto cooks, adjust the heat so that it bubbles gently. The broth mixture needn’t be boiling; it should just be hot. If you use all the broth and wine before the rice gets tender, use more broth but not more wine.

Set aside the nicest looking sage leaves as a garnish (1 leaf per serving). Crumble half of the bacon and the remaining sage leaves into the risotto. Stir in the Parmigiano. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Crumble the remaining bacon over each serving and garnish with a sage leaf.

Best Chocolate cake

I've found the best classic chocolate cake recipe.  So dark and rich, rose perfectly flat.  Didn't love the chocolate icing I made with this one, so still searching for the perfect icing.  This is it for the cake part though!  Saw this exact recipe on many sites, not sure who wrote the original.

Ingredients

• Butter, for greasing the pans
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cups good cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup buttermilk, shaken
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch x 2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

Lemon Meringue Pie

Don't have a picture, but this pie turned out great.  My MIL said it was the best lemon meringue pie she's ever had (and that she's had a lot of them since it is my FIL's favorite!).  Wanted to go ahead and post the recipe so I remember which one I used for next time.

Pastry
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 plus 1 tablespoon shortening (I used half butter, half shortening)
2 to 3 Tablespoons cold water

Filling
3 egg yolks
1.5 cups sugar
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon cornstarch
1.5 cups water
3 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/2 cup lemon juice


Meringue
3 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
6 tablespoons of sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Pie crust:  Combine flour and salt and add to food processor.  Add cold butter/shortening and pulse until particles are pea size.  With processor running add water one tablespoon at a time, until dough forms a ball.  Shape into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 475.  With floured rolling pin, roll pastry out 2 inches larger than pie plate.  Fold into fourths, place in pie plate, unfold and press firmly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.  Trim edges, flute as desired.  Prick bottom and side of pastry thoroughly with fork.  Bake 8 to 10 minutes until light brown, cool on cooling rack.

Filling:  Reduce oven temp to 400.  In small bowl, beat egg yolks with fork.  In 2 quart saucepan, mix sugar and cornstarch; gradually stir in water.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils.  Boil and stir 1 minute. 

Immediately add half of the hot mixture into the egg yolks, one whisk full at a time.  (tempering - see Alton's Brown's short and helpful video here).  Stir the egg yolk mixture back into the saucepan.  Boil and stir 2 minutes; remove from heat.  Stir in butter, lemon peel, and lemon juice.  Pour into pie crust.

Meringue:  In medium bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with electric mixer on high speed until foamy.  Beat in sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time; continue beating until stiff and glossy.  Do not underbeat.  Beat in vanilla.  Spoon onto hot pie filling.  Spread over filling, carefully sealing meringue to edge of crust to prevent shrinking or weeping.

Bake 8 to 12 minutes or until meringue is light brown.  Cool away from draft for 2 hours.  Cover and refrigerated cooled pie until serving.  Store in refrigerator.

Cheesecake

Everyone thinks a cheesecake is so impressive, but they are actually very easy to make!

Basic cheesecake

Prepare pan:  mix two packages of crushed graham crackers with melted butter until it sticks together when pinched.  press into the bottom and sides of a large springform pan.

5 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 Tbs flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
6 eggs
1/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 450.  Put a shallow tray with water in it on the rack below where you will put the cheesecake.

In a large bowl beat cream cheese until creamy.  Add sugar, flour, salt and vanilla; beat well.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Blend in milk.  Pour filling into prepared pan.  Bake at 450 for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 200 and bake 65-70 minutes**.  The middle will still be pretty giggly, but not liquid-y.  Cool at room temperature then refrigerate overnight.

Serves 14-16



**It always takes my cheesecake longer than this.  I usually bake mine at 250 instead of 200, and even then it takes longer than the 70 minutes.  So, don't get worried if after 70 minutes yours still looks soupy in the middle - just let it bake awhile longer.  OH - and be sure not to open the oven door after you put the cheesecake in - that's a good way to guarantee a crack!  If your cheesecake does crack don't worry, it will still taste amazing and any cracks can be covered up by spreading whipped cream or cherry pie filling on top of the cake.

Roasted root veggies

Doesn't sound very fancy or delicious, but dice them small and they are good enough to be a colorful side dish for Christmas dinner! (which is what I made them for)

3 Parsnips, diced small
1 rutabega, diced small
2 sweet potatoes, diced small
4 carrots, diced small
   (you could add any other root vegetable, diced small.  can't wait to try celery root!)
  
Mix, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Arrange in a flat layer on a shallow roasting pan and put in a 375 degree oven for around 30 minutes, until tender and starting to brown a little.

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A little note about the shallow roasting pan.  If you don't have one, get one!  I use mine several times a week - throw basically any type of vegetable on there with a little olive oil and S&P, heat the oven to about 400 and in anywhere from 10 to 40 minutes (depending on what vegetable and what size chunks you use) you have an easy and DELICIOUS veggie side dish.  I got mine for $10 from a restaurant supply store.  The ones at regular retail stores warp and get this sticky yellowish gunk on them that is impossible to get off.  Get you a good one and it might become your most used pan too :)

Green Goddess Potato Salad

Over the next few days I'm going to post some of the recipes I used over the Christmas holiday.  This first is a potato salad recipe I got at a Foxfire cooking class.  I don't usually like potato salad, especially the traditional kind with eggs and pickles, but this recipe is good even if you're not a big potato fan.  And it can be made ahead. 

2.5 lbs Red bliss potatoes (or a mix of small red and white)

1/2 cup   mayo
1/2 cup   sour cream
1/2 cup   scallions, green and white parts, finely chopped
1/2 cup   flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
2 Tbs      fresh tarragon, finely chopped
1/2 tsp    anchovy paste (or 2 anchovy fillets, minced)
1 Tbs      white wine vinegar or champagne
1 Tbs      lime juice
1 tsp       salt
1/2 tsp    fresh ground pepper

In a large stock pot, cook potatoes in salted water until just fork tender.  Drain and allow to cool enough to handle.

Meanwhile, mix together all other ingredients and set aside.

Peel the potatoes while still warm and cut into medium sized pieces.  Add the dressing and toss well.  Allow the potato salad to sit and rest.  While cooling the salad will absorb the dressing.  Mix again later and taste for proper seasoning.  Serve at room temperature or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days before serving.

Cranberry Sauce

I only make this on special occasions as it has a good bit of sugar.  But Thanksgiving needs cranberry sauce, and not from a can.  The other time I make it is with chicken corn chowder or wild rice soup - I just think the flavors compliment each other perfectly.  The recipe is easy, make ahead, and yummy.

1 bag of fresh cranberries
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 jar orange marmalade
zest of 1 lemon peel

Put cranberries and sugar in an oven proof dish.  Stir well, cover and bake at 350 until cranberries begin to pop, stirring occasionally.  Remove and cool slightly, then stir in remaining ingredients.