Pumkin and Red Lentil Curry

I got this recipe of Cooking Light's web page and I loved it. Because pumpkin has a neutral taste, it works well in Indian curries, where it takes on the flavors of the spices. For the best results, choose pie pumpkin, which is smaller, sweeter, and more tender than the larger pumpkins used for carving jack-o'-lanterns. You can substitute brown lentils and cook them 20 to 30 minutes longer, adding more broth, if necessary.


1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil
2 cups chopped onion (about 2 medium)
5 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled fresh pumpkin (about 1 3/4 pounds)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
4 cups organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup dried small red lentils
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
6 lime wedges

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in pumpkin and next 7 ingredients (through jalapeño); cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add broth and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until pumpkin is just tender. Stir in lentils; cook 10 minutes or until lentils are tender. Stir in salt and black pepper. Ladle stew into individual bowls; sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1 1/3 cups stew, 2 teaspoons cilantro, and 1 lime wedge)

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

This Bread Pudding taste just like pumpkin pie. It sooo good and can feed an army...it would be great for a Thanksgiving morning breakfast.


6 large eggs
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin or squash
2 cups (16 ounces) light cream
1 cup (8 ounces) milk
3/4 cup (5 7/8 ounces) granulated sugar
1/3 cup (2 1/2 ounces) brown sugar
1/4 cup (2 ounces) rum, optional
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons vanilla
8 cups (about 18 ounces) bread*, cut in 3⁄4" cubes

*Try using our Holiday Pumpkin Bread. The recipe makes 2 loaves, so you can enjoy one, and save the other for this pudding. Or use any non-savory bread: brioche, a sweet bread, or plain white or whole wheat bread.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin, half and half, milk, sugars, rum, salt, spices, and vanilla, stirring to blend.

Lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish or a 9" x 13" pan; if you’re going to refrigerate the pudding before baking, be sure to use a dish that can go from the fridge to a hot oven. Place the cubed bread in the dish in an even layer, and pour the liquid mixture over it. Let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes, or for up to 24 hours in the refrigerator.
When you're ready to bake the pudding, stir it together to redistribute the custard; quite a bit of it will have been absorbed by the bread. Sprinkle with grated nutmeg, if desired; and bake in a preheated 350°F oven till set and beginning to brown, about 40 to 50 minutes. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream; garnish with minced crystallized ginger, if desired.
Yield: 2 dozen small servings, or fewer larger servings.

Holiday Pumkin Bread

I love bread pudding so I made this bread for a Pumpkin Bread Pudding I am making today. I will post pictures and recipes for that later.


Holiday Pumpkin Bread

Autumn is a great season to bake with pumpkin. Pumpkin’s mild yet distinctive flavor (and rich color) makes it a favorite ingredients in cake, muffins, cookies —pie, of course! —and pumpkin yeast bread. This mahogany-gold wreath is dense and moist, mildly spicy, and utterly tasty. The recipe makes two loaves; enjoy one, and give the other away. Or use the other to make Pumpkin Bread Pudding.

2 3/4 cups (11 1/2 ounces) All-Purpose Flour
2 cups (8 1/2 ounces) White Wheat Flour, organic preferred*
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup (2 1/2 ounces) brown sugar
1/3 cup (1 5/8 ounces) diced crystallized ginger, optional
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon instant yeast
15-ounce can pumpkin
2 large eggs
1/4 cup (1/2 stick, 2 ounces) melted butter or canola oil (1 3/4 ounces)

*Or use entirely all-purpose flour.

Combine all of the dough ingredients, and mix and knead them—by hand, electric mixer, or bread machine¬—until you’ve made a smooth, somewhat sticky dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and set it aside to rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours; it should have expanded somewhat, but won’t be wildly puffy.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased surface (a silicone rolling mat works well here), divide it in half, and divide each half into three pieces.
Roll each piece into an 18" log. Working with three logs at a time, make a braid, pinching the ends together.
Coil the braid into a lightly greased 8" or 9" cake pan, shaping it into a wreath-like circle and pressing the ends together where they meet. Repeat with the remaining logs. Cover both pans with a proof cover or lightly greased plastic wrap, and let the wreaths rise for about 90 minutes, until they look puffy, though not doubled in bulk.

Bake the bread in a preheated 350°F oven for 30 minutes, until lightly browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 190"F. Remove the wreaths from the oven, and allow them to cool on a rack. Keep one wreath for yourself and give one away; or serve one, and make the other into Pumpkin Bread Pudding.
Yield: two 8-inch wreaths.

Apple Sauce

Guess what, I have an apple tree in my front yard. Over the past many years this tree has been neglected and has not been shown any love. It's sad, the tree was in pretty bad shape...so it has been a project of mine to take care of it and give it a little love. I've pruned it, I have been getting rid of the fallen apples, I spent time picking off bad apple (the tree has been infested with worms) . I have been working on getting rid of the worms and I want to do it with out sprays and such. Next year we will see how my work pays off. This year I found about 200 good apples (I've thrown away over 400 bad apple) I used the good apple and canned apple sauce.

I find a big shift in our expectations with food, back in the day canning was huge. Think about it, all of our parents were raised canning or at least their parents were raised canning partially because the were apart of the depression era. Then in about the 80's or so canning really decreased...I'm not sure if it was because of the increased use of cocaine., I don't know. Then we expected to find everything we needed at the store for low prices making canning uneconomically for the average person. Unless you grow the food yourself it's a little pricey to can. I'm not sure if the farmers just felt to pressure to produce more and bigger products but they started pumping our food and dairy with hormones, and spraying everything with who knows what. Because of that I think we are a little more hesitant to buy what stores are offering. Thats why I go to farmers markets, to meet the farmer face to face and ask them what they use on their crops. Also I love when I buy food that has been grown locally. That is why I canned applesauce this year, the applesauce has no added sugar and I know the tree has need been sprayed, I know the fruit was picked when it was ripe making it unnecessary to add sugar. Knowing all of this make me happy when I eat the applesauce, which by the way it is delicious!!! If you want to come over for breakfast I will make you some french toast topped with homemade applesauce.

Creamy Red Pepper Soup

Creamy Red Pepper Soup

4 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
6 cups chicken broth
2 (12-ounce) jars roasted red bell peppers preserved in water, drained
1 russet potato, peeled and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
16 (3/4-inch thick) baguette slices, cut into 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, carrots, garlic, and thyme and saute until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the broth, bell peppers, potato, wine, and sugar. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Decrease the heat to medium-low. Partially cover and simmer until the potatoes are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Cool the soup slightly.
Using an immersion hand blender, puree the soup in the pot until it is smooth. Alternately, working in batches, puree the soup in a regular blender, taking care while blending warm liquids. Season the soup, to taste, with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the bread cubes and saute until they are crisp and golden, about 8 minutes.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Dollop a tablespoon of mascarpone in the center of each bowl and top with croutons. Sprinkle with pepper and serve.