Butternut Squash Pot Pie

I love fall.  I mean, what's not to love - colorful leaves, crisp air, warm hot chocolate, cozy fires and delicious seasonal veggies.  Ahh, yummy fall veggies, my favorite of which is definitely butternut squash.  It's beautiful to watch grow in the garden, it has a great shelf life and it tastes like candy.  This recipe has only 7 ingredients and is quick and easy.  There's a whole lotta comfort packed into this pie so it's great to take to potlucks, new parents or those going through tough times.  Roasting the squash takes the most time, but it can be done the night before.

Butternut Squash Pot Pie (Vegetarian)
(click here for the printer friendly version)

1/2 of a small butternut squash (roasted and peeled, which can be done ahead of time)
1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of potato soup
1- 16 oz package frozen mixed vegetables (green beans, carrots, peas, corn)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 package of 2 refrigerated pie crusts

1.) I prefer to roast my butternut squash.  Preheat oven to 425.  Line baking sheet with foil and spray or butter foil.  Cut squash in half lengthwise and remove seeds.  Tip: If you have trouble cutting the squash you can microwave it for 5 minutes first.  Lay squash cut-side down and cook for approximately 45 minutes.

2.) While squash is roasting, steam the veggies just to thaw.

3.) In a medium size bowl combine veggies, potato soup, milk, thyme, nutmeg and pepper.

4.) Prepare pie crust according to instructions.

5.) Remove squash from oven and allow to cool a bit so you can handle it.  Remove skin and cube the squash.  Gently fold into the veggie mix.

6.) Preheat oven to 375.

7.) Pour veggie mix evenly into first pie crust.  Top with second pie crust.  Trim and crimp edges. Make slits in pie crust and embellish if you wish.  I embellished this pie, but truthfully I usually just poke fun holes that make a shape and we laugh about it once it's baked.*  Bake at 375 for 40 minutes.  Allow to cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

 I like to serve with a spinach salad topped with feta and plum tomatoes, but whatever floats your boat.

*Tip: If you choose to embellish your crust you will want to cover your pie with foil in order to avoid burning the embellishment.  Put a slit in your foil.  Remove foil after about 30 minutes and cook for an additional 20 - 25.

This is a vegetarian pot pie and I promise that you will not miss the meat.  If you are worried about it just add some chicken.  I made two of these for a group dinner and cut up a rotisserie chicken and added it to one of the pies (trust me, you don't want me cooking your meat).

You may have seen this post on Sugar Bee Crafts during her Guest Post Extravaganza.  Check out Mandy's fantastic blog for great crafts, yummy recipes and fun tips and tricks.

Spaghetti and Meatlessballs

I apologize for the picture quality.  It was taken when my camera was out of commission.  Pics at The Curvy Carrot are much better.

I will state right off the bat that this is NOT my original recipe, but man is it worth sharing.  I am vegetarian, have been for almost 20 years (yikes! I'm getting old) and I love it - being vegetarian that is, not aging.  There is one thing I miss though and it is NOT bacon.  I know, most vegetarians I've talked to really miss the bacon.  For me, the flavor of most meat is just too intense and the texture has become foreign.  Yes, I've sampled a meat here and there over the years and am happy to say that I was meant to be vegetarian.  BUT, I LOVED my mother's meatballs.  She used a recipe from a vintage Betty Crocker cookbook.  When she'd reach for that thick book covered in faded red gingham I could already smell their savory aroma.  I even loved mixing the bread, eggs, ground beef and spices with my hands and forming the extra-large orbs that would adorn my overflowing plate of spaghetti.

I've tried frozen vegetarian "meatballs" and have yet to find anything worth eating let alone forking over outrageous amounts of cash.  My oldest son LOVES meatballs but I don't cook meat.  I've cooked it no more than 4 times in the past 20 years.  It's not my thing. I get nervous that I won't cook it thoroughly enough or that I will cook it too much and it will be dry.  I've done ok with some roast chicken, but really, a good rule of thumb is - you don't want me cooking your meat.

Then, while wasting valuable time perusing pinterest I came across these Savory Spinach Bites from The Curvy Carrot (check it out, it's a collection of fantastic looking recipes - Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cupcakes - umm, yes please).  I honestly didn't have high expectations the first time I made these so to say I was blown away is an understatement.  While I was cooking dinner I served them to my family just the way the recipe suggests.  My husband asked, "Are these turkey meatballs?".  That's when I realized that not only were these full of savory deliciousness as the name implies, they would be the perfect substitute for a meatball.  Hence, our family's Spaghetti and Meatlessballs was born.  It is now a staple in our home and we all look forward to it - including my 13-month-old and extremely, ridiculously, nauseatingly picky 2.5-year-old.  I think I'm going to make a bunch and freeze them so we are never without.

So, eat em with spaghetti or as an appetizer with a side of sauce, I don't care, but eat em!


Savory Spinach Bites (adapted ever so slightly from The Curvy Carrot)
 Servings: 18-24 spinach bites, depending on how big you make them
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon minced garlic (about 1 clove)
2 10-ounces packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 8-ounce bag of herbed seasoned stuffing mix.  I use Pepperidge Farm because it’s the only mainstream vegetarian stuffing around.
6 large eggs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1-2 tbsp flax meal (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large sauté pan over medium heat, melt the butter

3. Add onion and cook until the onions are translucent and soft, about 5 minutes or so.

4. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Remove the pan from the heat and let cool.

5. In the meantime, remove excess water from thawed spinach by pressing it between paper towels. **You do not need to cook the spinach.

6. In a large bowl, combine the stuffing mix, flax, spinach, eggs, Parmesan, salt and pepper, and onion/garlic mixture.  Combine well.

7. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

8. One at a time, using your hands, roll the mixture into individual 1-inch balls.  Place each one on the parchment-lined baking sheet.

9. Bake the balls for about 15-20 minutes, or until very slightly browned.

Carrot Cake with Dates and Cream Cheese Glaze

Don't let the rough phone photo fool you.  This is delicious!

We've started a new daily rhythm at our house and it is going splendidly.  Each morning we have a different themed activity.  Monday's theme is baking or cooking.  A few weeks ago, Leon (almost 5), upset with his father's request, said to his dad, "I was going to surprise you and bake you a carrot cake for your birthday.  Now I'm not going to!"  Keep in mind that Steve's birthday is in February, not like next week.  When I asked Leon about the incident and how Dad might have felt about it he clearly felt bad.  At first he claimed that it was all a cover up so that Steve would be REALLY surprised when Leon got him the cake.  Then he admitted that he said it because he was feeling angry.  He wanted to make it up to Steve so he asked if we could make him a carrot cake.  It just so happened that the next day was our baking day and I had all the ingredients.  So, here is our recipe for homemade carrot cake.

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups vegetable or canola oil (or 3/4 cup canola oil and 1/2 cup applesauce)
1 8oz can crushed pineapple, drained well
1/2 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3 tsp cinnamon
3 cups grated carrots (I just finely chopped mine in the food processor)
1 cup chopped dates (optional)
1/2 cup pecans or walnuts (optional, I usually prefer it without)

For the glaze:
1 4oz package of cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners sugar, sifted (If I have kids tugging at my pants I just fluff it a bit with a fork)
1 tsp vanilla (I've also used almond extract with yummy results)
1 tbsp milk (added slowly as needed)

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Grease and lightly flour a 9x13 inch pan.  Set cream cheese on counter to soften.

In a large bowl beat together eggs, oil, sugars and vanilla.  Add pineapple. Mix in flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg and cinnamon.  Stir in carrots.  Fold in dates and pecans.  Pour into pan.

Bake 40 or 50 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.  (Mine is usually done at 40 mins.) Cool in pan for 10 minutes and then place on a wire rack to cool.

While cake is baking beat together cream cheese, confectioners sugar and vanilla.  Add milk slowly until desired consistency is achieved.

When cake has cooled apply the glaze, sprinkle with cinnamon and devour.

This cake was a huge hit.  It was perfectly moist and just sweet enough.  I use a lot less sugar than most recipes so while you can usually get away with decreasing the sugar, just know that it's already a conservative amount.  And hey, it has carrots, so it's healthy, right?

I linked up at Miz Helen's Country Cottage for Full Plate Thursday.  There are some great recipes over there so check em out.

Homemade Teething Biscuits

With three kids 4 and under mealtimes sometimes get a little hectic, especially when I'm not prepared, which happens more than I'd like to admit. Someone often ends up waiting and not always patiently - can't blame em. Today I happened to have it very much together. Probably because we were all home all day. We had no play dates, no errands, no maintaining rental properties, etc. The hubby worked a few hours from home, but it was a pretty laid back day and feeding the fam was a breeze.

While everyone was eating happily I got thinking about those days when mealtime doesn't go as smoothly. I thought that it might help to have something Buddha could snack on if she was the one who had to wait. She's had Plum Organics Super Puffs, but she can't quite pick them up on her own so I still have to feed them to her and they're pricey. She's 7 months and has suddenly developed a healthy appetite and a strong desire to chew on ANYTHING (brother's foot included), so I thought maybe some teething biscuits might do the trick. Being that she is our third child and we've made all of their baby food you would think that I would have made teething biscuits before - nope, never even thought to try. So today I hopped on Pinterest to find a good recipe. I found a few that sounded promising and ended up choosing a recipe from Momtastic's Wholesome baby food. I tweaked the original recipe, Nutritious Teething Biscuits from Vicki Lansky's "Feed Me I'm Yours, because of the ingredients I had on hand and personal preference. Here's my version:

Homemade Teething Biscuits*

1 beaten egg yolk

1 tbsp maple syrup (optional)

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 tbsp canola oil

1/4 cup (2 oz) breastmilk

1 tbsp uncooked oats

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 tbsp flax meal

1/2 tsp cinnamon (can substitute other spices)

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a medium bowl mix wet ingredients. Mix dry ingredients in separate bowl and then add to wet. I started mixing the dough with a spoon, but to get it thoroughly blended I ditched the spoon and used my hands. The dough was pretty firm. On wax paper I rolled out the dough to about 1/4 inch. Then I used a mason jar lid to cut out circle shapes and the lid to the maple syrup to cut an inner circle making an O shape. I thought that shape would be easier for Buddha to hold than a traditional rectangle.

Bake for 15 - 20 minutes. I left mine in for about 17 minutes and they were perfect, but I'd check them at 15.

There you have it. It was quick, easy, inexpensive and she LOVED them. I froze about half of them and figure that might feel good on her gums at some point.

*Pieces of biscuits can break off and become a choking hazard so ALWAYS supervise baby while she's eating. After some gumming biscuits will soften and break apart easier.