We’ve actually been home lately and I’m striving to cook much more often.  I’m actually cooking 5-6 nights a week and most lunches.  Well, sometimes we just have to get out of the house or we’ll have an incident similar to The Shining.  That’s one of the perils of owning a business and working from home with your spouse.  Luckily, we haven’t killed each other… yet.  :)

I would love to share one quick thing that is totally brag-worthy… We had our very first feature in the national publication, Inside Weddings.  It was EIGHT pages of gorgeous Indian wedding goodness. We’ve been published in many other publications over the years, but this was a big-un and very exciting for us. Do check it out here!  That hubby of mine… he’s a photographic genius!

So back to the recipe… I made this delicious Wild Rice Pilaf recently and had, well, a ton of it left over and had to get creative to use up the remains.  It is yummy and easy. And the best part…? Completely plant based if you use vegetable stock in the pilaf. What’s not to like?!  

Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe

2 c wild rice pilaf
2 small acorn squash, cut in half and seeds removed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
1 tsp dried sage
1/4 c chopped parsley
1/4 c + 2 tbsp dried cranberries
1/2 c + 2 tbsp pecans, toasted in the oven
salt
pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375. Place the acorn squash cut down side on a parchment lined sheet pan.  Bake until  tender, 30-40 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool enough to handle.  Scoop out the flesh of the squash, leaving about a 1/4 inch thick shell.  Put the pulp in a small bowl.

2. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium low heat. Add onions and sauté for 10 minutes, until soft and golden, but not brown.  Add the dry sage, rice and squash pulp and stir until heated through and well combined.  Break up any large pieces of squash.  Turn off heat and add the parsley, 1/2 c cranberries and 1/2 c pecans.  Mix well and season with salt and pepper.

3. Divide the stuffing between the 4 squash halves.  Bake in the 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes, until heated through.  Garnish with the remaining cranberries and pecans before serving.

Note: I served it with some left over pan seared polenta.

We’ve also adopted a mostly plant based diet.  Whatchusay?  Yes, Mrs. I heart meat is giving up meat.  Most days.  OK… I might have the occasional steak, but on a daily basis, it’s veg with a side of veg.  Watch this documentary, Forks Over Knives, and you’ll understand why. This is a whole new lifestyle for me.  It means I have to cook more and eat at restaurants less.  It also means that I need to try new recipes, which means I’ll be blogging more!  :)

This is a delicious recipe for a wild rice pilaf that I found on Epicurious and adapted it to my liking.  Served up with some yummy grilled vegetables, who is missing meat?  I also used the pilaf to stuff acorn squash, which was oh so delicious AND healthy.  Stay tuned for that blog post in the near future!

1 c pecan halves, coarse chopped
3-4 tbs cup olive oil
1 large onion, large dice
1 yellow bell pepper, large dice
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 1/2 c wild rice (about 1 pound), rinsed well in several changes of water and drained
4 c chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
3/4 tsp dried thyme, crumbled
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a small baking pan toast the pecans in the oven for 10 minutes, or until they are crisp and fragrant. Set aside.

2. In a heavy flameproof casserole, cook the onion, bell pepper and garlic in the oil over moderately low heat, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until they are just softened, and with a slotted spoon transfer them to a bowl. Add the rice to the casserole and cook it, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in the broth, dried thyme, dried oregano, salt and pepper and bring the mixture to a boil.

3. Bake the mixture, covered, in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes. Stir in the onion mixture, continue baking the pilaf, covered, for 30 minutes more, or until the rice is tender and the broth has been absorbed, and stir in the pecans.

Note: this makes a LOT of pilaf… but good news:  It freezes very well and is yummy eaten hot or cold.

We’ve been taking our time and looking for our dream house in this neighborhood… and we finally found it, two blocks away from our rental home.  We bought the house and we’re currently creating my dream kitchen in this home.  Needless to say, I am giddy with happiness!  I will have much more space than I’ve ever had before and I’m splurging on an Induction cooktop.  This is MY version of Christian Louboutin shoes.

Anyway, all this kitchen planning has given me a burst of cooking creativity and I’ve been cooking much more lately.  I made these quick chicken kabobs last night that I wanted to share!

Chicken Kabob recipe

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 yellow pepper, cut in large pieces
1/2 sweet onion, cut in large pieces
12 cherry tomatoes
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp fresh chopped oregano (or 1 tbsp dried)
salt
pepper

1. Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch chunks and place in a large bowl.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. Thread the chicken, pepper, onion and tomatoes onto metal skewers and grill for 8-10 minutes, turning often until he chicken is cooked through.

Note:  If you don’t have metal skewers, use bamboo skewers that have been soaked in water for an hour.

So that brings us to my guacamole, which is somewhat famous.  I’ve made it for many parties, dinners and just because it’s Tuesday and avocados are ripe.  When I received a lovely four pack of hot sauce from Cholula, the first thing I thought about was Mexican night!  So I made some chipotle marinated chicken tacos with corn salad and yes… guacamole!  If you haven’t tried Cholula’s sauces, you are missing out.  Flavorful and freakin hot.  Good stuff and great on tacos!  I especially like the smokey flavor of the Chipotle sauce. 

Guacamole Recipe

2 avocados, ripe
1 lime, juiced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 small tomato, seeded and diced
3 tbsp cilantro, chopped
salt
pepper

1. Cut avocados in half and carefully remove the pit.  With a butter knife, cut the avocado half into 1/2 inch slices and then crosswise into cubes.  Use a soup spoon to scrape the cubed avocado from the shell.  Repeat with the other three halves.

2. Add half of the lime, half of the jalapeno, and all of the tomato and cilantro. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper. Mix well with a rubber spatula.  If the avocado is a little firm, grab your potato masher and give it a few mashes.

3. Now I’m giving away my biggest secret.  Are you ready?  Taste it.  If it tastes good, then you’re good to go.  If it’s bland, add more of the lime, jalapeno and salt. You might even need more cilantro.

Note: I’ve found that some jalapenos are like bell peppers and some are like scotch bonnets.  You just never know.  So this is why I’ve started to add half of the pepper and taste it.  Same with the lime… some limes have tons of juice, and others are like potatoes.

Note 2:  I do not add onion or garlic to my guac… never have because I think it is too overpowering.  But if you want to add it, my feelings won’t be hurt.

But… I’m turning over a new leaf, and plan to blog… at least once a week (month) or twice a week (month) :P

I know, this is a weird recipe for January… but I LOVE molasses spice cookies.  I always get one at Starbucks when they have them and I’ve been trying a multitude of recipes until I found the perfect one and tweaked it a bit.  This recipe is from Martha Stewart’s website, but I’ve changed the ratio a little… Although yummy, I’ve found her recipe to be a little too soft.  FYI- I tend to make a half recipe and it turns out perfect!

Makes 36

2 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c turbinado or sugar in the raw
1 c sugar
3/4 c (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1/4 c molasses

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a shallow bowl, place the turbinado sugar; set aside.

2. With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until combined. Beat in egg and then molasses until combined. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in dry ingredients, just until a dough forms.

3. Pinch off and roll dough into balls, each equal to 1 tablespoon. I use a small scoop to ensure the cookies are uniform in size. Roll balls in turbinado sugar to coat.

4. Arrange balls on baking sheets, about 3 inches apart. No need to flatten… they will spread as they bake into perfect circles.  Bake, one sheet at a time, until edges of cookies are just firm, 12 to 17 minutes.  Rotate the baking sheet half way though baking. Cool 1 minute on baking sheets; transfer to racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 4 days.

Makes about 36 cookies