wordless wednesday: sweet potato lunch

Glorious day for a little hike - overcast, gray, but still 60 degrees , for which I am endlessly grateful, and came back hungry as a bear. ( Nope, no bears lately - another thing I'm grateful for)

I had an enormous sweet potato, which I peeled, cut into chunks, and tossed with olive oil, thyme ( lots of thyme!) kosher salt and pepper, and half a sliced onion. Roasted at 425F for 40 minutes and swooned over every delicious forkful. ( oh, and pssst: they make a great Thanksgiving side, too!)

Hope your day is just as delightful, and take care of your sweet selves!

brussels sprouts chiffonade with lemon and thyme

Oh, what a crazy several days! My computer got hit with several somethings that left me without access - just as the holiday was gearing up to Thanksgiving Day. Friend Will ( wizard of computers) has patched things together via email directions, until my savvy son can review what happened when he comes on Thursday - I'm just sorry that will be less time to visit with him.

Now, on to the brussels sprouts. This has been a staple for all my Thanksgivings - my father usually just boiled them to death and served with butter. My daughter likes to roast them, but I love this very quick saute/simmer , with the aroma of fresh thyme and the tang of lemon juice, which also helps the brussels sprouts stay that lovely green color.

This recipe makes about 3 servings, so multiply as you need to. If you're cooking them in several batches, makes sure everything is prepared and it shouldn't take too long at all. The only tedious part is trimming and slicing the brussels sprouts, but they're so pretty done that way, it's worth the time and trouble.

Brussels Sprouts Chiffonade

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I used about three handfuls of sprouts, which I bought loose. Wash the sprouts, trim the ends, and slice each sprout very thinly, a cut which is known as chiffonade.

2 cups brussels sprouts, cut in chiffonade
2 T. olive oil
2 T. water
1/2 t. kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
1-2 t. fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stem
2 T. fresh lemon juice

Place the water and olive oil in a large skillet and heat on medium high.
Add the brussels sprouts, salt, and pepper, then stir and turn down heat to medium low. Cover the skillet and cook for about 8 minutes, then uncover and stir in the fresh lemon juice.
Remove from heat and serve.

cranberry scones for breakfast!

As a native of Massachusetts, and especially Cape Cod, cranberry season is the signal the holiday season is beginning. While we didn't have wet bogs on the Outer Cape, we passed them coming and going on our trips back and forth from Cambridge or New York. Just before the Sagamore bridge, in the Carver area, there they'd be - glorious crimson ponds of floating cranberries just off the highway, as we travelled home at Thanksgiving. And so, cranberries have always been not only a very favorite fruit, adding a tang and rosy blush to everything from applesauce to cookies to scones and fresh cranberry sauce, but they bring many happy memories of the Cape.

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And speaking of travelling, nothing is easier to make and bake than these delicious scones, tucked in a backpack or picnic basket for the long trip home. Wrapped in cello and tied with a ribbon, they're a welcome treat for the pre-Thanksgiving dinner breakfast.

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To make 8 large scones:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.

4 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/8 t. nutmeg

1/4 t. kosher salt

1/2 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top

1 stick (8 T.) cold, unsalted butter, cut into tiny pieces

1 T. baking powder

1 cup dried cranberries

3/4 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

1 1/2 cups ( or more) buttermilk. Dough should not be dry.

egg wash for tops ( a beaten egg and a pastry brush)

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In mixer bowl, stir flour, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and butter until mixture resembles cornmeal.

Add the dried cranberries and mix.

Add the buttermilk and fresh or frozen cranberries and mix until it forms a ball. Dough should not be dry - if it is, add more buttermilk, a tablespoon at a time, until it forms a soft dough.

Roll dough out into a 9 inch circle. Cut circle in half, then cut each half twice again - making 8 triangles .

Brush each scone with the egg wash, and sprinkle with sugar.

Place scones on baking sheet and bake for 30+ minutes or until tops are golden. If you're using frozen cranberries, it may take a little longer. Scones should feel light when picked up carefully.

Let cool on cooling rack completely if you're packaging them for giving.

Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Countdown: four vegetarian, gluten free starters/salads

This Thanksgiving is going to be a little bit different, with four year old Izzie on a strict gluten-free, dairy-free diet. She is already feeling the isolation of "being different", so my approach is to try to have everything ( except the rolls) within her diet range. Not difficult, with these beautiful appetizers/salads! I like to plate these up ahead of time - I use these square , inexpensive plates from Crate and Barrel.

My father used to start our Thanksgiving dinners with fresh oysters he had dug from Wellfleet Harbor , a fresh, briny beginning to the holiday meal. These salads have the same feeling, with fresh, seasonal ingredients and zesty dressings.

From the top, there's Fresh Shaved Fennel Salad, tossed with parsley olive oil, and lemon or orange juice ( I'll skip the tablespoon of buttermilk) and paper thin strips of fennel bulb.

Next is Roasted Butternut salad with arugula and a tangy pomegratate dressing and shaved parmesan, always pretty and delicious. Just omit the shaved Parmesan for dairy free diets.

Roasted eggplant salad is tossed with parsley, cucumbers, tomatoes, red pepper and lots of lemon juice, - my favorite new recipe this year!

Last is Crunchy Bok Choy salad with mandarin oranges - another delightfully fresh way to complement the turkey and all the trimmings.

Of course, you don't have to wait for Thanksgiving Day to enjoy these!

tiny gougeres with scallions, parsley, and lemon

I am, as usual, doing four things at once. I decided to re-test a savory gougeres recipe, in anticipation of Thanksgiving Day appetizers, clean the house, paint the trim - no, wait. Maybe I should paint the walls first. Actually, I wonder what the floor would look like a different color.

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Yesterday I wandered around the Benj. Moore displays, which seem to multiply every time I visit. I am quite sure that particular paint company hires poets and painters to name their colors - and these are just the soft grays! Sleigh bells, Winter solstice, Bear creek, Timber wolf, Temptation, French beret, Smoke embers, and my favorite, Going to the chapel. I'm sticking with London Fog for now, but one never knows.

Oh, you want to know about the gougeres?

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Tiny, soft puffs sprinkled with finely minced scallions and parsley, with the zest of a lemon and several scrapings of nutmeg and pepper, with just a hint of parmesan. Mmmmm, perfect for my very late breakfast. I've been told you can freeze the formed but unbaked gougeres, so I'm testing a batch in the freezer , but in the meantime I think these tasty little bites will make a very nice addition to the pre-Thanksgiving nibbles.

To make about two dozen puffs:

Preheat oven to 400F.

Fit two baking sheets with foil or parchment.

6 T. unsalted butter

1 t. kosher salt

pinch of cayenne pepper

several scrapings of nutmeg

several grindings of fresh black pepper

3/4 cup King Arthur all purpose flour

3 extra large eggs

zest of one lemon

4 scallions, finely chopped

3T. minced parsley

2 T. parmesan cheese, grated

Bring one cup of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the butter, salt, peppers, nutmeg. Once the butter has melted, take the pan off the heat and stir in the flour with a whisk. Stir rapidly until it forms a ball, then return to medium heat, stirring another minute or so.

Add the eggs one at a time to the dough, then parmesan, parsley and scallions, and the lemon zest. Scrape mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip, and pipe one little circle of dough, then another on top of the first circle, pulling up gently to make a little swirl on top.

Place gougeres in the hot oven, and bake for about 21 minutes, or until gently browned.

Continue with the second sheet.

Let cool a few minutes, then remove to a cooling rack with a spatula.

Enjoy your day!

thanksgiving countdown: creamed onions

Heaven help me if I forget the creamed onions again! The last time I forgot them my kids gave me no end of grief, so I made sure they were at the top of the shopping list today.

When you shop, the sign usually says "white boiling onions" - and pick through for the smaller ones , which are preferred. They're also a pain to peel, but I can deal with it once a year for my beloveds.

I won't give any amounts, since it's the process that matters, rather than the weight. Take a small onion and, using a sharp knife, shave off most of the stem end ( not the twisty Hershey's kiss top), then trim the top. Cut one onion layer through the onion, then peel away the top layer with the onion skin. Continue until all the onions are trimmed.

Place the trimmed onions in a large saucepan with a bay leaf. Fill with water, so the onions are floating with about two inches of water below them. Bring to a boil, then simmer until the onions are tender, but not falling apart.

Using a strainer, drain the onions but save the onion water. Rinse out the cooking pot, then melt a tablespoon or more of unsalted butter. Whisk in a few tablespoons of flour, then add a cup or so of the onion water to the mixture, whisking all the while. Add a teaspoon or so of thyme, and whisk , whisk, whisk in some lowfat milk ( surprise! No cream!) until the mixture is creamy but thick. Add salt and pepper to taste, then add the onions and gently stir them so they're coated. Top with a little chopped parsley and serve alongside the turkey. Delicious!

thanksgiving countdown: two soups

Even with a feast like Thanksgiving, there are some people who like to start the dinner with a light soup. I'm definitely one of them. I don't use cream in these smooth soups, preferring to simply use more vegetables before pureeing. I doubt you'd ever notice the difference. And because there's no cream, the soups are less heavy and filling. And (pssst), they're healthy, too!

At the top, there's the Spicy Mushroom soup, with toasty sauteed mushrooms and lots of thyme.

At the bottom, the gorgeous Spinach soup, with handfuls of baby spinach pureed to that beautiful bright green.

Serve with some of those Portuguese flour rolls, or a few crackers and enjoy!

thanksgiving countdown: two pretty salads

Both of these salads add a burst of color to the overloaded Thanksgiving table. The roasted butternut with pomegranate dressing and arugula has a lovely zest to it, while the watermelon salad with gorgonzola is a real stand out!

thanksgiving countdown: simple cakes

There's always someone who doesn't like the pumpkin pie. For those people, and for extra rations for company, I've included several unfrosted cakes that can be made ahead and frozen. The silly 3-minute microwave cake-in-a-cup is included , simply as entertainment for the kids. It's not bad, either, especially if you drizzle a little chocolate sauce on top after it comes out of the microwave.

From the top, there's the lovely spiced Pumpkin Cake with sugared ginger, then the Orange-Scented Olive Oil cake, and then my current favorite, Fresh Apple Gingerbread.