Pantry Clean-Out Week = Bring on the Pumpkin

 

My Christmas gift/ yearly supply of Pumpkin

There are really 3 reasons we have "Pantry-clean-out" weeks in this house:    

1) I spent a ridiculous amount of money on groceries that month and I'm determined to use up what we have before buying more. (These usually occur at the end of the month)

2) I'm trying to rid the pantry of JUNK that has accumulated due to either a) having an especially busy month and therefore buying stuff I wouldn't normally buy; or b) Chris has laid the guilt on THICK and somehow we end up with ice cream, golden Oreos, Nutella, and other unidentifiable processed goods. 

3) Or- and this is the fun reason: Summer is fading and I'm getting ready for Pumpkin Season!!- I mean, Fall. In case you weren't aware, I do have about 28 lbs of pumpkin remaining from the previous year. And it's been waiting oh-so patiently to make it's debut. I only hope there isn't a pumpkin drought this year or I'm really going to have be wise about how I ration these 28 lbs!

So, here is my pantry and fridge at the end of this week: 

 

 

More than enough condiments, coffee, 1.5 measly carrots and cream soda (<--the Mr's)

And here it is now- after some minor redecorating :)

12 lbs minimum in pantry at all times. Just kidding. Kind of.

And I was so excited to make my yearly batch of pumpkin spice mix. This year I went with the recipe from Pumpkin Nook's Cookbook. 

Now, lest you think I've gone too far, let me tell you about a REAL issue. Chris and I had a semi-legitimate "tiff"- not an argument- about when the Christmas tree should go up. It's August 31st people!! My dear sweet hubby wants to put up the Christmas tree on Halloween. (!!). Yes, you read that right, Halloween. I mean, that is in the prime of Pumpkin Season, and he's trying to overshadow all the Thanksgiving delightfulness by putting up our 2.5 foot tree. Eyebrows were raised and threatening remarks may or may not have been made... but alas, I will probably give in. After his 28 years on earth, the man has mastered the puppy dog eyes and I gotta be honest, he's darn cute.  Those same puppy dog eyes are how we end up with "ice cream, golden Oreos, Nutella and other unidentifiable processed goods" in the house.

 

Pumpkin Collage:

Pumpkin Cupcakes- Birthday 2010



Pumpkin Cookbook Christmas 2011

The gift that gives all year.
 

P.S. Did anyone notice how I used both "lest" and "alas"? I've been reading too many 18th century novels.

Slow Cooker Barley Risotto

Temporary borrowed picture from Worldhealth.net

Friends, I have possibly discovered the most wonderfully delicious healthy-meets-gourmet dish yet. (Have I reeled you in?) AND I cooked it in my slow cooker! For those of you who think crock-pots don't count as cooking (you know who you are) then think again! This meal involved a small amount of prep work, but really all the slow cooker did was take the dirty work out of risotto. Instead of constantly stirring, as traditional risotto requires, the grains slowly soak up the broth over a few hours. A few finishing touches and you're done. And the best part of this meal (in my dietitian opinion): FIBER! Although my less health-inclined husband would say it was the butter. And cheese. Regardless of which end of the spectrum calls your name, I promise you, this gets just as creamy and heavenly as regular risotto.

In my excitement and haste I forgot to take a picture. Maybe during lunchtime leftovers tomorrow. Again, lack of necessary ingredients caused me to alter this quite a bit and combine various recipes..but now I can claim this as my own, right?

Slow Cooker Barley Risotto
Serves 4-6 (Makes about 8 cups)

2 Tablespoons butter, divided
2 finely sliced shallots (about 3 Tbs)
1 1/2 cups barley
5 1/4 cups chicken broth
1 fresh thyme sprig (or 1/2 tsp dried)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c parmesan cheese
pepper to taste

1. In a large skillet, cook sliced shallots in 1 Tbs melted butter over medium heat (about 1-2 mins).
2. Add thyme sprig and cook an additional 30 seconds. Add barley to skillet and cook an additional 2 minutes, or until all the grains are coated in butter.
3. Lightly spray slow cooker with non-stick spray. Add broth, salt, and barley mixture to slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 3 1/2 to 4 hours, or until liquid is absorbed.
4. Add remaining 1 Tbs butter and parmesan cheese and stir gently until butter and cheese are melted. Salt & pepper to taste.

You will not regret this! :)

When life hands you apples..make applesauce!

The change of seasons is welcome for many reasons: the weather cools down, the leaves change colors, I can bring out the winter wardrobe (scarves, boots, gloves and peacoats..what could be more fun?) and of course, fall food! In the States, seasonal changes didn't seem so drastic for a few reasons. First, I lived in Florida where it's summer for 11 months and fall/winter for 1 month; which hardly merits a dramatic change in wardrobe (sadly). Secondly, we have a variety of foods available to us most of the year. Sure there are some seasonal fluctuations, but if I want it badly enough I can find a winter squash in the spring or an avocado in December.

Here in Italy, it's a little different. While we don't have the luxury of incredible variety all year round, we do get the "cream of the crop" of the seasonal foods. You may recall me raving about the tomatoes this summer..and then a few posts later I complained about eating zucchini every other day- because that's what the summer has to offer: tomatoes and zucchini. And they were delicious!- But by August we were not sad to see them go. This fall I was disappointed that even some of the typical "in-season" fall foods are not widely available. Each week at the base we get a total of about 8 butternut squashes and you can own one for the small sacrifice of your child's college education (do you sense my sarcasm?) But I digress...

My positive point of all that is that because we don't have the variety all year round, the Harvest Season (September-November) is really celebrated. Every weekend in October you can find a harvest festival. Our local ones included: apples, truffles, chestnuts, chocolate, and beer & wine. We had the chance to go to the Apple Festival with some friends. It doesn't get much more fun than that! We sampled apple cider, apple wine, apple cakes and breads, and apple syrups.

There were about 30 tents like this one..all with their individual products

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire.."

My first chestnut- yum!

Everyone participated in Apple Festival!

And because I can buy a ridiculous amount of apples for ridiculously cheap- I did! And I came home and made some apple pear sauce via slow cooker. It was way too easy and I'll definitely be doing it again :)

I made my own variation (which I'll post soon), but it was inspired by this one: http://moneysavingmom.com/2011/01/homemade-crock-pot-pear-sauce-or-applesauce.html

An Apple a Day..

Always striving for that daily fruit intake! (Does it count if it's in a cobbler form? What about a healthy cobbler?) I recently made these individual Apple Crisps from Clean & Delicious and they were super yummy! I was thankful I only made enough for my husband and me to have just one...we would have been reaching for seconds! But luckily these were so easy and quick to make, I think I'll be making them again soon :)

As always- had to make some changes based on availability and preference! I used canola oil instead of coconut. I used 1 Tbs ground flax instead of 1/4c wheat germ.

*Gluten Free without wheat germ

Signature Dish: Mushroom Orzo Risotto

  

Mushroom Orzo Risotto

 This recipe started out as a side dish for tonight's dinner (herb crusted pork tenderloin- thanks Mom!), but stole the show without a doubt. Sometimes when I'm planning our meals, it slips my mind that my husband requires about a billion calories a day. So I need meals and/or sides that will stretch- i.e. feed him a lot and allow me to have a "normal-person" intake. Therefore we tend to include a lot of rice, pasta, couscous or other grain with our meals. In the future though, I'd say this one is worth doubling. It was truly a Muñoz Family Favorite. (I wish I had a better picture, but it was gobbled down pretty quickly)

For those unfamiliar, orzo is a tiny rice-sized pasta that cooks in minutes. By coating it in the butter first, and allowing to sit after cooking, it even gets the creamy risotto texture. Perfect for a quick last-minute side dish. I adapted it from a Whole Foods recips, which you can find here: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/recipe.php?recipeId=1924. I modified and "healthified" it a bit, in true dietitian fashion. And according to my Offical Taste-Tester/Husband, he wouldn't change a thing. (Usually when given the option, he says "more cheese.")

Mushroom Orzo Risotto

8  medium mushrooms, quartered (About 2 1/2 cups when sliced)
2 Tbs finely chopped onion
2 Tbs butter
1 tsp dried parsley
3/4 cup uncooked orzo
2 cups chicken broth
2 Tbs grated or shredded parmesan cheese

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan or stockpot (something with a lid). Add onions and mushrooms and cook until tender but not browned, about 2-3 minutes.  

2. Add orzo and stir to coat, another 30-60 seconds.  

3. Add broth. Bring to boil and cook until orzo is tender, about 6-8 minutes.  

4. Remove from heat, stir in Parmesan and cover. Let rest an additional 3-5 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley and season with salt and pepper, if needed.

Makes 4 good-sized"side-dish" servings.

And because I was on a roll, we had some stuffed apples for dessert. These too, were pretty tasty, and very easy. Thanks Rachel Ray! (She puts them in muffin tins to bake so they don't topple over-genius!) I actually halved the entire stuffing recipe and decreased the brown sugar to 3 Tbs and they were still heavenly! (Make sure you scoop out the liquid from the bottom of the muffin tins when you serve them- yum!)

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/stuffed-apples/ 

Oh- I am so excited for fall!

Some fall favorites: Pumpkin Oatmeal

We are in the midst of autumn and although the blogging has been slow, the cooking has not! I've been trying to fully embrace all of the wonderful fall flavors and seasonal foods, and I keep finding myself wondering why I don't eat some of this stuff all year round. I now could package and sell my pumpkin oatmeal, which I humbly feel I have perfected; and I am also on a personal mission to convince my Resident Expert/roommate about the wonderful-ness of soups. She is not a soup lover and I'm committed to making one new soup recipe per week (so naturally I've renamed our kitchen The Soup Kitchen). I've done this for the past 3 weeks, and each recipe is better and better! Last week I made a creamy cauliflower soup which required me to pull my food processor out of the garage and get it in working order! I received the creamy cauliflower soup recipe as a part of an online recipe exchange, and am so glad I made it. I will share in a separate post, and below is my pumpkin oatmeal recipe.

As I am writing, I am making a simple carrot dill soup, courtesy of the Food Network which has a 50 Simple Soups section on their website. I'm overwhelmed with options! I am making #34 carrot dill soup because I happened to have all the ingredients on hand, and figured if I'm going to make some of these then I need to get started. (This particular one happens to be Gluten Free as long as GF broth is used!) Here's the link: www.foodnetwork.com/recipes-and-cooking/50-easy-soups-1--10/index.html.

Pumpkin Oatmeal a-la-Heather
(Makes 4 servings)

• 1 cup steel cut oats
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1/4-1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/3 cup golden raisins
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• dash of ground cloves
• pumpkin pie spice (be generous!)

Bring water to a boil and add oats. Immediately reduce to a simmer, stir for a minute or two (I recommend a non-stick pot). Add vanilla extract and spices. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 15-20 minutes. Add raisins and maple syrup cook for an additional 5-10 minutes. I stir in canned pumpkin during the last 5 minutes, but it can be added at any time. Let cool before serving or refrigerating.
This will stay good for several days! Just add a few tablespoons of water or milk before re-heating in microwave. I also top mine with 1 tbs of ground flaxseed and 1 tbs chopped walnuts.
*Side note: spice measurements are estimated- I probably use double by the time I'm done shakin' and playin'!
Can you see why breakfast is my favorite meal of the day?? It is my favorite meal of the day...until lunch :)

Falling in Love with Fall

October is my favorite month of the year- there are so many reasons to celebrate! My birthday (a questionable reason to celebrate), Florida finally reaches less than 90 degrees, and of course the wonderful seasonal food! I would not be surprised if I woke up orange one day from the amount of pumpkin I've been eating. It can be added to everything- oatmeal, cookies, pudding, brown rice, smoothies, sauces...this list goes on. In addition to pumpkin, there's cranberries, pears, butternut and acorn squash and the debut of soup/chili season. I've got more recipes than I can keep up with. A fun one I tried with a friend recently was a butternut squash-apple-cranberry mixture with a little bit of brown sugar and butter. Can you say delicious?

As dietitians, we encourage people to eat from the "rainbow;" meaning the brighter the colors the more nutrient-filled the food (vegetable or fruit). It's true- they are loaded with vitamins, minerals, and other health-boosting, disease fighting nutrients. Fall foods provide such a good opportunity! It's never been more fun to eat healthfully. Baked or poached apples, peaches or pears tossed with seasonal spices like cinnamon and nutmeg make the perfect side dish or dessert. No kidding, my roommate and I have gone through at least 3 bottles of ground cinnamon.

I'll be sad to see all these foods go, but until then I'll experiment all I can. I know it's a little premature for New Years resolutions, but this year I think I'll resolve to eat pumpkin all year long. To whet your taste buds, check out this yummy recipe below-courtesy of Whole Foods of course :) www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/2377.