Roasted Veggies: Leeks, Brussel Sprouts, Delicata Squash

It's Wednesday again, and that means girly dinner!
I really enjoy these evenings that Pat is in class.
When he's home, I feel more pressure to make a well rounded meat and potato focused dinner.
He's come a long way since we've been together.
He's learned to tolerate my "side dish" (meaning vegetarian) dinners.
Despite this, I enjoy trying new things the first few times for just me.
Roasted veggies happen to be my most favorite food ever.
They're candy good!

Today at Wegmans, I spotted Delicata squash.

I'd never had it before, but it was described as being rich and nutty, similar to butternut.
Butternut has always been my favorite squash, so I was definitely willing to try this.
It's a much smaller squash which is also a good thing since it's always just me eating the squash.
Pat just hasn't come around to squash.
Delicata is also a squash that you don't have to peel.
The rind is edible!!!
That is one of the most annoying parts of other squash!

I also decided to make leeks since I've eaten them many times, but never actually made them myself.
I will tell you right now.
Degritting them is a pain in the ass.
How does that much sand and dirt manage to get between ever layer?
EVERY LAYER!
I soaked them, I washed them, I scrubbed them.
I was wet and irritated by the time they went on the baking sheet with the squash.
Wet and irritated....like a cat! Don't make a cat wet, and then irritate it. Bad things happen!

Everything turned out well.
The leaks were delicious, but still a total pain.
Use a serrated knife, my steak knife was just not cutting it (Hah! Get it?? Cutting it!).

The squash was actually pretty amazing.
It reminded me of a sweet potato.
I ate them like fries, even dipping a few in ketchup!
This will be something I make again.
Pat may be able to eat these since ketchup could be involved...


Roasted Veggies:

Preheat oven to 420ish, 400 is probably fine, so is 425. This is where my finger stopped pushing the up arrow on the heat button for the oven.

Rinse the Brussel sprouts.
Cut in half. Toss in a roasting pan with a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
Boom. That part is done.

Cut the rooty part, and dark green leaves of the leeks off.
Remove the dirt and sand. Maybe you have some better way of doing it than I.
If not, prepare yourself to soak, rinse and scrub for several minutes.
Place on an edged baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.

Scrub the squash.
Cut it in half by length and scoop out the seeds.
Discard, or clean and roast these too!
I threw them out.
I was too wet and irritated like a cat to rinse any slime off of seeds.
Cut into one inch sections. They should resemble frowns, or smiles if you aren't wet and irritated yet.
Place on an edged baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. (about a tablespoon. they can get soggy if you use too much)

Place everything in the oven, and roast for about 35 minutes.
Flip the squash periodically to ensure even browning.

Mustard Vinaigrette

1 Tbs Olive Oil
1.5 tsp vinegar
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp herb blend (I used Penzeys Parisien Bonnes Herbes)
Whisk together everything in a small bowl.
Drizzle over the leaks and enjoy!

Devil's Food Cupcakes with Caramel Buttercream!

We live across the street from a elementary/middle school.
Today was the first day of classes, and it was a flurry of activity for a few hours this morning.
I would have had a difficult time getting out of the driveway, so I decided to stay in and bake cupcakes!

Devil's Food Cupcakes with Caramel Buttercream!

I had been thinking about chocolate and caramel cupcakes for a few weeks, but the temperature refused to go below 80 for any length of time. Not optimal baking weather.

This morning it was a crisp 55 degrees and I decided to go for it.

I used a basic Devil's food cake recipe from my Better Homes and Garden Cookbook.
This is it here.

 I filled the cupcake liners half full, and then added a caramel to the center.
They sink a little on their own, don't push them down, or you'll end up with caramel stuck to the bottom of your cupcake liner.

Once they were done and cool, I frosted them with a fluffy buttercream with caramel flavor.

I wish I had some chocolate sprinkles to top them with, but white sprinkles and sugar crystals look pretty too.

Fluffy Caramel Buttercream Frosting

1/2 Cup butter at room temperature (2 sticks)
4.5 Cups of confectioners sugar
5 Tbs milk
2 tsp caramel extract.

Beat butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Do this for about 5 minutes!
Don't cheat! Let the air get in there or it won't be fluffy.

Add sugar about a cup at a time.
You can also add the caramel extract and milk at this stage.
I added it as needed with the sugar so it didn't get too hard to mix.
You can alter the amount of milk to get the consistency you want.

Add frosting to a piping bag with your choice of tip.
I used a 2D for this look.

Pipe it on once the cupcakes are totally cool.
Sprinkle with fun things!
Let cupcakes sit, or chill briefly to set the icing

I found the caramel center to be a bit too chewy to go with the cake, so I may change things up next time.
It was a delicious combination of flavors, and the frosting was exactly what I wanted!

Well, It's September....where did summer go?

Brief recap of the past few months.
We finally closed on our house, and moved out of the apartment.
While I enjoyed the apartment, and our landlords were pretty cool, it's even better having our own place.

It's a cute little house, on a quiet street, and it's in really good shape.
There will still be plenty of projects to keep me busy. More on that later.

First and foremost I want to get back in the habit of writing and taking pictures.
I suppose technically this is a public blog, but I'm pretty sure it's just me reading these diary like entries, and that's how they'll stay.

I had a terrible day at work, and couldn't wait to get home to my liquor cabinet.
Choices choices.....
I ended up with the Buffalo Trace White Dog Mash #1.

It's got a major bite to it, which I like, and tastes of creamed corn.
I like it straight, with maybe a few drops of water, or an ice cube if I plan on drinking it quickly.
Tonight it's straight, and I finished the bottle.
I am so hardcore.

September is apparently Bourbon Heritage Month, so I may have to take advantage of that and have a few extra cool night drinks this month.


Patrick has grad-class tonight (he had the summer off) so it's my girly night of whatever I want for dinner.
I'm doing roasted Brussels sprouts (favorite food ever!) and a stuffed Portobella mushroom. I'm also making an ear of corn though that may end up being breakfast instead...

I'm trying the mushroom two ways since it's something I'd like to make for Pat, but I'm not sure which way he'd like best.
My two-for mushroom features ricotta cheese, and one side topped with spinach and tomatoes, the other side with tomatoes and pepperoni. I'm attempting a pizza like mushroom, and a lasagna type mushroom.
I used ricotta on both because it's delicious. I also only wanted to open one type of cheese tonight.

Oven Picture!

Behold its messy glory!

I made a sriracha-mayo dipping sauce for the Brussels sprouts, which turned out well.
I've made chipotle mayo before, and while I liked the chipotle more, I always have sriracha on hand, so it's more convenient!

Every part of the mushroom was delicious! My favorite was the side with the spinach and tomato, but I'm sure Patrick will enjoy the pepperoni option. They crisped up nicely.

I could probably use sauce, but we had this bowl full of heirloom cherry tomatoes from my Mom's garden. Who could resist an amazing explosive little warm tomato? Not me!

I ended up needing something a bit more drinkable to go with dinner, so I had a bottle of Southern Tier Brewing Company's Harvest Ale. It's that time of year that all these harvest or Octoberfest beers come out. I enjoy them the entire time they're available!

Now it's time for a little couch time. I've got big plans of curling up with Half Life 2, and possibly a book if I get tired of shooting things!

Cheers!

Stuffed Portobella Mushroom for One
Ingredients:
-One large Portobella mushroom cap
-1/4 Cup ricotta cheese (with seasonings mixed in if you like. I added a little salt, pepper, basil and crushed red pepper flakes)
-Tomatoes or tomato sauce
-Fresh spinach leaves
-Pepperoni (optional...ok, most everything in this list is optional! Put whatever you want on it!)

Preheat oven to 425. Set mushroom cap gill side down in a small baking dish. Add about a tablespoon of water to help it juice up. Cook for 5 minutes, and then flip it gill side up. Cook another 5 minutes.
*Some recipes call to remove the gills and entire stem. I didn't bother. The stem was small, and I hate giving up any of that delicious mushroom.
Remove the oven and dish from the oven.
Top the mushroom with ricotta cheese. Smush the tomatoes into the cheese. (If using sauce, you may want this layer directly on the mushroom to allow the cheese to hold it together). Top with spinach and pepperoni.
Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until tomatoes are hot, and cheese is set.