Winter is Coming ... Lamb Roast!

Since Lisa's recent post, the Basterds have had a bit of a geographical change. Lisa's now in NYC, Gloria's in L.A., and I'm in New Zealand. That just means more varied and tasty experiences to be had!

So scratch the title of this post. Winter is mufuggin' HERE. Contrary to Lisa's post about summer in NYC, it is winter in New Zealand. It is cold as a witch's teet (whatever the hell that means). So today I'll post a recipe that is fit to be eaten in front of a wood-burning fireplace.

I recently finished my first experience with Willing Workers on Organic Farms New Zealand (WWOOF — check out this international organisation!). This was a lifestyle block (nothing commercial, just a small family farm to sustain the household). As my fellow WWOOFer Steve (and Irish journo — check out his awesome farming blog!) said, "You will eat deliciously wherever you WWOOF." Indeed, I ate well and picked up some awesome recipes and cooking tips from my WWOOF host mom. So here's the first of perhaps will be many posts from my WWOOFing experience near Wakefield, NZ (on the South Island).

Since NZ is a British Commonwealth country, much of the food and culture is, well, British. Hence, Sunday roasts, or roasts for any day, are common. But first — the fireplace!

You see this here? This is a modern wood-burning fireplace. Covered. Heats other rooms in the house. Some models have burners for cooking. While this burner isn't officially for cooking, check out that silver roasting pan! That has free-range lamb shoulder in it from my WWOOFing family's backyard. Basically, slow roast it until it looks done. For roasts, the saying is, "Meat and three veg." Obviously, meat and three vegetables. These carrots, parsnips, and beetroots are from one of the garden patches.

That said, we used four veg — potatoes, parsnips, yams, and backyard pumpkin (crown pumpkin to be exact).

Looks at those yams! I had never seen ones so little and pink before. The yams I'm used to are similar to the NZ kumara (sweet potato). In any case, if you've already roasted the meat, as my family did — take some of the drippings and mix it with the veg that will take the longest to roast first. Here, it was the potatoes. Roast it with the meat at maybe 155–195 degrees C. After about 20-30 minutes, throw in the rest of the veggies and give them a quick stir with the animal fat. Roast until the rest of the veggies are done — 20 – 30 minutes more.

Enjoy your roast made of meat and three (four) veg! Starchy, meaty goodness. Fit for a farmer!

The Time is Ripe for Banana Bread

Summer has arrived in New York City and with it comes the hastening of banana ripening. I bought a bunch that was green before it got super hot and then next thing I knew I had a bunch of brownies on my hands.

Which is not really a problem for me. I'm one of those people who really doesn't care if it's brown on the outside as long as it's white on the inside (which is what happens if you put them in the fridge), and I will eat bananas that are pretty mushy in a hangry pinch. After I discovered that bananas can be an amazing delivery device for Nutella, the texture became secondary. A spoonful of Nutella makes the banana medicine go down.

But I'm trying to eat even healthier now (I feel like I read SUGAR IS MURDER everywhere e.g. Kara Walker) so in a Nutella evasion technique, I decided to try a banana bread with my brown bananas.

I'm not a baker, and this recipe was really easy. My mom makes 'nana bread with chocolate chips and I love her version -- but in doing some searching for a good recipe I saw that Ruth Reichl said it was "not [her] idea of a good time." Good point, healthier is prob better.

So I went with the banana bread recipe from Simply Recipes, which had only a few ingredients and seemed well recommended. I made it in a 85 degree apartment (at night!!) and it made the place smell amazing. I might try it toasted with a scoop of ice cream -- don't want to be tooo healthy now! :)

Goodbye, old friend

Mark Bittman ends NYT ‘Minimalist’ column after 13 years; heads to opinion section, magazine

AHHHHHH

Women Laughing Alone with Salad

Butternut Squash-Feta Muffin Squares

All right, all right, the title of this post is dumb. But I don't know what happened to my muffin tin, so I couldn't really call this creation "muffins," could I? And in the vein of Lisa's post ("Butternutz"...!), I decided to also post a butternut squash recipe while it's still considered winter in this hemisphere.

I modified this Pumpkin and Feta Muffins recipe from 101 Cookbooks, one of my favorite food blogs as of late.

I actually am not a huge squash fan, but given the fact that it was fall when I made this recipe, I figured it was time to try a savory muffin recipe with a winter squash for the sake of feeling like there are seasons in Hawai‘i. And I used peeled, chopped asparagus instead of spinach because that's what I so happened to have on hand at the time.

Recipe

1tbs butter

2 tbs olive oil

2 c. pumpkin or butternut squash, cubed into 1/2 in. pieces

salt and pepper to taste

1 c. peeled asparagus, sliced into coins.

2 tbs chopped parsley or cilantro

3 tbs sunflower seed kernels

3/4 c. grated parmesan

1/2 c. cubed feta

2 tsp. whole-grain mustard

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 c. milk

2 c. flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp fine-grain sea salt

Pre-heat oven to 405 degrees F. Butter muffin tins (or in my case, 9x13 in. cake pan), or use muffin liners.

Toss the cubed squash or pumpkin with some olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for 15–25 minutes. I used one "normal"-sized butternut squash and it seemed to be enough, as the squash will shrink a bit as it cooks (Note: I should've eHow'd it as to how to get the meat out of those oddly-shaped fruits. 'Twas a bit dangerous for me...). Set aside to cool.

Put 2/3 of squash in a large mixing bowl. Gently fold in asparagus/spinach/whatever greens, parsley, sunflower seeds, parm, mustard and two-thirds of the feta. In a separate mixing bowl, beat eggs and milk, then add to squash mixture. Sift in flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Fold until just combined. Do not overmix.

Pour into muffin tins until each one is 3/4 full, or dump with reckless abandon into baking dish. Sprinkle remaining squash and feta on top. Bake for 15–20 minutes or until golden and set. Do not overcook, or else your savory babies will get dry. Sad face. Makes 12 servings.

What nice surprises with the parmesan and sunflower seeds! A vegetarian's dream meal muffin, I would imagine. And yeah, you had really better like squash to eat these colorful cubes of carb.

Butternutz

My mom delivers seasonal fruits and vegetables to me every time I see her at my grandmother's weekly Sunday night dinner, like a CSA that knows your proclivities. She gave me a butternut squash, and after I roasted half of it with olive oil (delicious!!), I decided to try a soup. Butternut squash has the most wonderful natural flavor. Really does taste like butter.

This is the second veggie soup I've made (the first was potato leek; the post is forthcoming), and I am a total convert. Soups are soup-er simple (Margot isn't the only one who can pun!!) to make when you have a food processor, which I bought only about a year ago. So key.

This was, of course, a Minimalist recipe from his list of Thanksgiving dishes:

13. Sauté sliced shallots in olive oil, then add chunks of butternut squash, some rosemary and chicken stock or water to cover. As the soup simmers, bake strips of prosciutto until crisp. Purée the soup, swirl in some cream if you like and serve topped with crumbled prosciutto.

I used half of a butternut squash, about 1.5 cups of chicken stock, rosemary from the front of my parent's house, and one strip of BACON. so delicious!

Thanksgiving Eats: Coconut-Sweet Potato Pie

It's no secret by now that we love Mark Bittman of the NY Times. I totally jumped on his twist on the traditional sweet potato pie and was not disappointed. I'm not a fan of sweet potatoes (sweet potato fries: I am not impressed with you), but add sugar and I'll eat almost anything. The recipe is here, but I've also pasted it below.

Recipe

2 medium sweet potatoes (peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks, boiled for 12–15 minutes and mashed)

1 1/3 c. graham cracker crumbs (1 package, which has 9 sheets)

1/4 c. shredded unsweetened coconut

1/2 c. plus 2 tbs. sugar

1 1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1 stick of butter (8 tbs.), melted

3 eggs

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

pinch ground cloves

large pinch of salt

1 c. coconut milk

Pre-heat oven to 350 F. While the potatoes cook, crush the graham crackers and mix with 2 tbs. sugar, 1/4 tsp. ginger and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon. Add melted butter and toss until just combined. Press into 9-inch pie plate and bake for about 7 minutes. Let cool.

Mix eggs, rest of sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt. Add coconut milk. Mix until just combined. Add mashed sweet potatoes, mix until just combined. Pour into cooled pie crust. Put pie plate onto a baking sheet and bake about 40–45 minutes, until mixture is set but still moist. Cool and serve.

I love the coconut, sugar and spices in the graham cracker crust. The coconut milk in the filling was a little too much coconut for my taste. But I'm still glad I tried this recipe out this year. Maybe Okinawan sweet potatoes or Hawaiian purple potatoes with the coconut milk would be an awesome combination for next time.