Spaghetti Squash with Bolognaise Meat Sauce

If you didn't read my previous post you must be warned, I am a rabid squashavore in peak season right now. I adore squash of all varieties and eat them like crazy every fall. When I can get fresh, locally farmed squash, LOOK OUT! I will be on a squishy rampage and no dish is safe from me finding a way to include squash in it.

My family is big on pasta. My husband is about as crazy about tomato sauce as I am about squash. I could announce an Italian dish every night of the week and his eyes would light up every single time. I grew up eating a lot of spaghetti, so I get a little bored with tomato sauce and I'm always trying to find ways to keep it interesting for me without being terrifying for him. Kind of funny for me, a foodie to be married to someone with complex, deep rooted food phobias. But, I've actually found it very challenging and it's helped me to grow as a home chef.

Carl very happily devoured my home-made bolognaise over angel hair for dinner last week, but I had a bit left over and the girls were home for lunch on Friday sooooo..... I re-heated the sauce on the stove. I absolutely love leftovers now that we've ditched the microwave. I cut a beautiful, gleaming yellow spaghetti squash lengthwise and scooped out the seeds. (They will be roasted as a snack for after school today.) I placed the halves, cut side down in a pan with a couple inches of water in the bottom and baked the squash for about 45 minutes at 350. Then I scraped out the flesh which comes out in elegant strings that look just like spaghetti noodles. I topped it with the warm bolognaise and a little Parmesan. Voila! Instant hit with my girls. Marie actually did say it was her favorite meal ever. If you have kids who are reluctant to eat squash, give this one a try! You can top it with any warm pasta sauce, but the creamy, hearty bolognaise worked very well with the mild-flavored squash tendrils.

Basic Pork Bolognaise Sauce
3-4 slices of bacon (I prefer nitrate-free applewood smoked, Mmmmmm)
1 diced onion
1 diced pepper (I used three teeny peppers from my garden, two purple and one green.)
1 lb pork sausage (I was really happy with Johnsonville's all natural mild pork sausage)
2 cups stock (I used vegetable, but beef or even chicken should work fine too.)
1 tsp sugar
1 can of tomato sauce
1/2 cup of cream
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the bacon slices on medium heat in a large skillet until they are just barely browned, cut them into small pieces and return them to the pan with the onion and peppers. Saute until the veggies are beginning to look translucent. Move all the veggies around to the sides of the pan and place the sausage in the middle of the pan. Break up the sausage as it is cooking until it's browned and in small bits. then work the vegetables into the pork and add the stock, sugar and tomato sauce to the pan. Turn town the heat to low and let it simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally. Before serving add the cream and salt and pepper to taste. Spoon over spaghetti or toss with rotini or be brave like me and serve it over some spaghetti squash!

Squishy dishes, AKA "The Joy of Squash"

I love squash. To the point of near-fetish. Seriously. Every fall I need to buy at least one and often more than one of every variety I find at the farmer's markets. I have certain things I love to do with each kind. I make buttercup squash into muffins, I bake butternut squash and puree it into soup. Hubbard squash is cubed and mixed with apples and sausage for a sweet and spicy fall casserole. Acorn and carnival are stuffed with cinnamon laced rice with raisins. Gold nugget, turban, ambercup, pumpkin, delicata, sweet dumpling and the magical "Musquee de Provence" are all revered and cooked with love and adoration in my kitchen.

Unfortunately, the rest of my family are not such squash enthusiasts. Carl shudders at the sight of a kabocha corpse, flayed on my kitchen counter. My daughter Stella claims she doesn't like squash, even though she generally eats what I put in front of her as long as it's not too spicy. My step-daughter Marie is probably my best chance for a convert to squash adoration. She recently proclaimed that my spaghetti squash with bolognaise meat sauce is her favorite meal ever. But, I will save details of that dish for my next post.

Onigiri Piglet Bento

I pack bento lunches for my two daughters every day. It's convenient, fun, nutritious and doesn't create a lot of waste like items packed into baggies or individual serving sizes.

The girls (ages 7 and 9 currently) love their lunches and tell me that they look forward to them every day. But, their favorites are definitely when I make the ingredients into animal shapes, like this cute little onigiri piglet I create out of onigiri (rice balls) and ham slices. I use nitrate-free natural ham, but you could also use vegetarian deli slices or even turkey if you would prefer.

The piglet is nestled in a bed of corn and edamame salad, which looks to me like something a little piggy would love to eat. The veggies were simply thawed and tossed with a little olive oil, vinegar and salt. The compartment above has apple slices (locally grown wine-sap apples which I am so going to miss when they are gone.) baby carrots and a sesame seed and craisin trail mix.

If you're in the Columbus, Ohio area and would like to learn how to create this bento, come to Sprout Soup at 4310 North High St. tonight at 6:30pm for my "Build-a-Bento" workshop. It's only $10 and you will get to create your very own onigiri piglet to have and hold and love... and eat!

Visit Sprout Soup's website for more information: www.sproutsoup.com

Roasted Beets & Carrots Over Sage Polenta with Goat Cheese

This is one of my all-time favorite veggie meals. I crave beets, especially roasted and paired with goat cheese. So, whenever I'm able to grow some or get a pretty bunch from the farmer's market - this is what I like to do with them.

Ingredients:

3-5 small/medium beets, sliced or diced

3 large carrots, chopped

splash of evoo (extra virgin olive oil)

honey or maple syrup to taste

1 cup dry polenta

2-3 cups water, soy milk or cow milk

1/8 cup fresh sage cut into bits

salt to taste

goat cheese, crumbled

First toss the beets and carrots with evoo, honey or maple syrup and salt. Roast uncovered in your oven at 400 until juices are thick and parts of veggies have begun to brown and crisp. Take pan out and stir around every 15 minutes or so.

Boil the polenta and liquid on the stove top to desired thickness and creaminess. Add sage and salt as you remove it from heat.

Serve vegetables over the polenta with goat cheese on top and a sprig of fresh sage as garnish!

Food Blogging

I love food. I've always loved food. Working for Wild Oats Natural Marketplace for seven years gave me a deep appreciation for natural and organic foods. I enjoy teaching classes about different foods and unique ways to prepare things. I am always taking pictures of food and posting on facebook about food and I have decided maybe it's about time I blog about food. So, here is my food blog. I've got a lot of backlogged photos to post and lots of ideas. I hope someone reads this...