Although I’m a bit later than usual this year, my annual year-end post is one of my favorite things to write each year. I love reading other people’s posts, too, even people I don’t know personally. I like reflecting on how much growth and change and activity a single year can hold. It gives me perspective. But, if you’re not a big fan of this sort of thing, or of lengthy personal blog posts, skip on down to the end. There’s a recipe for a kale, golden raisin, and kabocha squash pasta that’s been getting me through this cold snap. I’ve made it four or five times to get the balance just right, and now it’s become my go-to winter pasta.

For those of you sticking with me for the long haul, let’s talk about 2017. For me, 2017 was the year of the wedding, first and foremost. After that, there was travel – but less of it than 2016 and 2015 and more of it for fun than for work. It was a year of great and easy friendships, of growing beautiful flowers, of work weekends in Maine. It was a good year, perhaps not a great year, but a good one.

The big thing – our wedding

Of course, we knew before the year even started that 2017 would be the year of the wedding. It dominated the whole year. Our wedding day turned out more beautiful than we had imagined, but it was a huge amount of work to get there. We had our wedding at my parent’s house in Maine, and it was very much a from-scratch affair. We built the barn by hand (and by we I mean mostly my parents), which was an enormous undertaking. We had gorgeous hand-made farm tables milled from trees on the property. I did my own flowers, and grew half of them. (As an aside, 2017 was 100% a year of flowers for me. I fell in love with flower gardening and arranging and I can’t wait to get my seeds started in the spring.) Every aspect of the wedding was personal and lovely, but it was so much work. I’m really glad we got married and had our closest friends and family there by our sides, and I’m really glad we’re not doing it again.

Twenty-eight countries and counting

Trevor and I kicked off the year with five weeks in Portugal, an incredible escape from the cold and dark of January in Boston. Of course, I was working the whole time, but we still got to explore on weekends and immerse ourselves in the wonderful Portuguese culture. I leave a little part of my heart everywhere I travel, but I left a big piece in Portugal. I miss the food and the wine, the lonely sounds of fado in tiny clubs, the white light reflecting off the cobblestones. I miss the café culture and the gentle winter sunshine. I miss the people, my coworkers and friends, who opened their hearts to us so easily. I miss the language, which I still practice almost daily, in hopes that I’ll need it again. I’m glad that we’re staying put this winter, after relocating for January and February in the past two years, but it was a wonderful experience to live in Lisbon.

In July, I took a long-anticipated trip to Iceland with three of my best girlfriends. It was a short trip – just five days – but absolutely packed. Iceland was stunning and wild, exceeding my already high expectations. It was also wonderful (if very tiring) to travel with friends, something I hadn’t done before beyond short weekend trips in the states. I already can’t wait to return to Iceland and continue exploring. And in November, we made a Thanksgiving trip to Colorado and Utah to visit my extended family. The sun was life-giving, and we were outside hiking in the beautiful desert every day.

And then of course, there was our honeymoon. We were gone three full weeks, making our way up the Croatian coastline, driving through the Slovenian alps, then wrapping up with a city break in Prague. It was an epic trip. It was also so nice to just be with Trevor for three weeks and… hang out. Of course we were exploring and adventuring but we were also just being us, something I had missed in the chaos leading up to the wedding. I’ll write about our trip properly someday, but for now, I’ll just mention the highlights. There was a sunset bike ride through the sleepy hill-top olive groves in Korcula, followed by an unforgettable candlelit dinner under pomegranate trees. We spent an afternoon drinking champagne and watching the sun slowly sink over the Adriatic at a seaside bar where you could climb down into the ocean at any point. We hiked up through the emerald gorges in Slovenia, following a wooden sign with a piece of cheese on it, until we reached a beautiful alpine valley with two houses, one of which did, indeed, serve us some cheese. We designed our own brewery tour in Prague, sampling the best of the Czech Republic’s beer scene. We fit so much into three weeks – it will be a hard trip to top.

For other work travel, there was one follow-up trip to Portugal in April, for my birthday in fact. Never have I received so many hugs on a single day. A July trip to Hong Kong and Singapore registers as barely a blip on my mental calendar of the year, although it was my first time in Singapore. I’ll be back to both countries in a few weeks, and I’m excited to escape the cold (and for the food! Always the food). Then just a few weeks ago, a December trip to a small town in Northern Ireland followed by two days in Dublin. I love Ireland for so many reasons but this trip was a blur, especially getting home just three days before Christmas. Overall, work travel felt much more manageable this year – hopefully I can carry that through into 2018.

The best people

I’m not particularly quick to make new friends – I’ve always done better with a small group of people I’m really close to. But after 6 years living in Boston, I have such a solid crew, many of them high school friends who have moved back to the area. They are all good, smart people who are easy to be with, and some of my best memories of this year were with them. A lazy August Sunday spent tubing down the Saco river was a highlight, as was a weekend at a friend’s Maine island cottage, complete with hours of wine-laced Molkky, a candlelit lobster dinner, the poetry reading that his father mandates, beautiful sailing, and a late night bonfire dance party. And, I almost forgot, our 10 year Andover reunion. I imagine most people don’t look forward to their high school reunions as much as we do. It was a blissful weekend full of super impressive people, an all day kickball lawn party (complete with kegs), midnight dancing, and collapsing on the lawn in fits of giggles around 2am. Sunday we couldn’t move, because we’re old now, but it was worth it. Add to this the many other dinner parties, bar nights, one epic scavenger hunt birthday party and a casual NYE game night turned dance party to close out the year, and it sums up to a year of really good playtime with really good friends.

Working and blogging and growing

I feel a huge amount of relief going into 2018 with an understanding of what I want this blog to be. I spent the first half of 2017 listening to blogging podcasts ad nauseam, investing in a new design and a mailing list and SEO plugins. I thought a lot about my content and who I wanted it to reach, and I pored over my analytics to understand how I could grow. Basically, I hustled. It was stressful and frustrating and overwhelming. And then somewhere in the middle of all that hustle I realized that I don’t want to blog as a business-owner. That’s not why I started, and that’s not what brings me joy. I have a stable, compelling career that I love and it’s not blogging – so why should I turn blogging into work when it doesn’t need to be? I want to create beautiful content and delicious recipes and tell stories as long as it feels like a hobby and not a chore. Of course, it’s nice when a hobby has financial perks, but making business success the goal of blogging took all the fun out of it. Realizing this has been so helpful.

On the flip side of this blogging decisions lies my real work. Although I went through a similar questioning phase about what I wanted my next career move to be, I came out the other side with the realization that I really like my job. I’m going into 2018 in a new role, with a team and multiple projects to manage, and I’m excited. I have a lot to learn but I work in a team with the smartest, best people, which makes all the learning and growing easier.

Now for 2018

I’ve been reflecting this week about how open 2018 feels. It’s a wonderful feeling. Of course, we have things planned – weddings to attend and house projects and a few trips with friends already on our calendar. But largely, the year feels full of potential, untethered to major life milestones. I’m excited to see where it takes us, what new opportunities and adventures it will bring. My intentions for 2018 are to bring a sense of calm into every day, to spend as much time as I can outside in nature, to prioritize my health, and to learn and grow.

Winter Pasta

And if you made it through all of that… I’m impressed. I’m guessing even my mother will skim this one. So now, what most of you are here for, a recipe for a delicious winter pasta. A few year’s back I read a magazine article about how you should always be finishing your pasta in the pan with the sauce and a splash of the pasta cooking water, and it has totally changed the way I cook pasta. It’s such a simple trick and it makes a huge difference. Since reading that article, I’ve been experimenting with what I think of as “perfect seasonal pastas.” I test them over and over again until they are just right, foolproof, and full of seasonal ingredients. So far I have a summer pasta, with heirloom yellow tomatoes and sweet onions, a creamy mushroom spaghetti that is irresistible in the fall, and a spring carbonara with ramps and meyer lemon zest. Over the past 5 or 6 weeks I’ve been testing what I’ve come to think of as my winter pasta, and I’m ready to share it. This pasta has tuscan kale and shallots slow-cooked in white wine, plump golden raisins, a hint of chile, and sweet roasted kabocha squash. It is hearty and wintery without being overly heavy or creamy. It’s on weekly rotation in our house and I hope it will be in yours, too.

Happy 2018 to all of you!

Past New Years’ posts…

2016: Feta and Onion Phyllo Pie
2015: Brown-Butter Chestnut Waffles with Poached Pears and Mascarpone
2014: Rye Blini, Smoked Salmon Dip, Russian Beet Dip, Pretty in Pink Cocktail
2013: Raspberry Sherbet Champagne Floats
2012: Butter-Roasted Cinnamon Chicken with Almonds and Pomegranates

Like what you just read? Subscribe to Katie at the Kitchen Door in the box on the right, on Feedly or Bloglovin‘, or follow along on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram. Thanks for reading!

Winter Pasta with Slow-Cooked Kale, Kabocha Squash, and Golden Raisins

A seasonal winter pasta with slow-cooked Tuscan kale, roasted kabocha squash and golden raisins. Satisfying and warming without being heavy.

Inspired by Sunday Suppers at Lucques.

• Author: Katie at the Kitchen Door
• Yield: 2-3

Ingredients

• 1/2 small kabocha squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 5 TBS olive oil, divided
• sea salt and black pepper to taste
• 4 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary, needles finely chopped
• 1 chile de arbol, broken in half (or 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes)
• 1 bunch Tuscan kale, center ribs removed, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/4 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 lb. orechiette pasta (or other similar shape)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Toss the cubed squash with 2 TBS of olive oil and spread out on a rimmed baking sheet. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Roast in the preheated oven until tender, about 25-30 minutes. Flip the squash cubes over halfway through cooking.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
3. Heat 1 of the remaining tablespoons of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add the sliced shallots, sliced garlic, chopped rosemary, and the chile de arbol to the pan. Saute until the shallots are soft and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the kale along with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Season with sea salt. Cook the kale in the olive oil for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently, then add the wine and the raisins to the pan. As soon as you add the wine, stir to scrape any burnt bits off the bottom of the pan.
4. Cook the kale over low heat for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, add the pasta to the boiling water. Continue cooking the kale while the pasta cooks. When the pasta is just barely al dente, use a skimmer to add the pasta to the pan with the kale. Add a few splashes of the pasta cooking water to the pan as well, along with the grated parmesan cheese. Add the roasted squash to the pan. Cook everything together for 2-3 minutes, stirring to fully coat the pasta in the sauce and to evenly distribute the vegetables. Serve immediately.

The post 2017 – A Year in Review // Winter Pasta with Slow-Cooked Kale, Kabocha Squash, and Golden Raisins appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

I’m so happy that I’ve had this week at home. I expected fall to be over by the time I got back from Portugal last Friday night, but instead, I woke up early Saturday to find a brilliant, glowing fall morning. I went for a walk at sunrise (jet lag problems) and reveled in the pink sky, the orange leaves tinged with sunlight, the blue-green frost on the grass, the smell of woodsmoke, even the cold, which is still exhilarating and festive feeling, and not yet the menacing cold of January and February. All week I’ve been marveling in the outdoors, as well as in the simple pleasure of being home. It’s weeks like this that make me think I will always end up back in New England, no matter how far afield my adventures take me.

This week was also a bit of a roller coaster, for many. In my circles at least, there was a lot of negative emotion being dumped into the world – shock and anger and frustration. No matter what your political opinions are, it’s difficult to be surrounded by people who are upset. We all absorb each other’s emotions – empathy is a critical component of being able to function in our society – but when that emotion is overwhelmingly negative sometimes I feel the need to withdraw. So this weekend I am taking things slow, taking care of myself, fighting off the beginnings of a cold before I get on a plane again tomorrow night. And part of that care is this soup, into which I crammed as many autumnal flavors as I could. The base of this soup is roasted pumpkin and carrots tossed with curry powder, then pureed into a light and creamy bisque and topped with fried prosciutto and sage. I’m glad to have gotten at least one pumpkin recipe up this fall before we transition into holiday flavors (is it possible that there are only 7 weeks left this year? How absurd). I hope you enjoy the soup and these last few days of autumn!

Like what you just read? Subscribe to Katie at the Kitchen Door on Feedly or Bloglovin‘, or follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, or Google+. Thanks for reading!

Curried Pumpkin Bisque with Prosciutto and Sage

A Katie at the Kitchen Door original recipe. Serves 4-6.

• 1 medium (3 lb.) sugar pumpkin or acorn squash
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into one inch pieces
• 4 TBS olive oil, divided
• 1 1/2 tsp curry powder, divided
• sea salt
• 2 TBS butter
• 1 large onion, peeled, halved, and sliced into thin half moons
• 8 sage leaves, divided
• 1 TBS minced fresh ginger, from a 1 inch piece of ginger
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1/3 cup heavy cream, plus more for garnish
• 3 thin slices prosciutto, torn into pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cut the top off the pumpkin and set aside. Carefully slice the pumpkin in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and pulp and discard or save for roasting. Cut the pumpkin halves into thick wedges and place on a large rimmed baking sheet, along with the carrot pieces.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together 3 TBS of the olive oil, 1 tsp curry powder, and about 1/2 tsp sea salt. Drizzle over the pumpkin and carrot, using your hands to rub the oil onto both sides of the vegetables. Roast until the pumpkin and carrot are tender, about 30-40 minutes, flipping once halfway through. Use a spoon to scoop the soft roasted pumpkin flesh away from the skin, saving the flesh and discarding the skin.
3. In a large soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and saute until translucent and tender, about 5-7 minutes. Roll 4 of the sage leaves into a cylinder and thinly slice, then add the slices to the onions and butter. Add the minced ginger. the remaining 1/2 tsp curry powder and the cumin seeds to the pot as well and saute until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the roasted carrots, roasted pumpkin flesh, and chicken stock to the pot and bring to a simmer. Simmer for for about 10 minutes, then remove from the heat and add the heavy cream. Transfer the soup to a blender (or use an immersion blender) and blend until very smooth and creamy. (Always be careful when blending hot liquids! If your blender is not designed to blend hot liquids, wait for the soup to cool to room temperature before blending). If necessary, thin out the soup with more cream or chicken stock until it reaches the desired consistency.
4. Before serving, heat the remaining 1 TBS of olive oil in a small frying pan. Roll the remaining 4 sage leaves into a cylinder and thinly slice, then add to the olive oil. Fry sage until crispy, about 3-4 minutes, then add the prosciutto pieces and fry until prosciutto is crispy, another 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat.
5. To serve, divide the soup between bowls. Drizzle with a little cream and top with the fried sage and prosciutto. Serve immediately.

The post Curried Pumpkin Bisque with Prosciutto and Sage appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

August’s fitness goal isn’t a fitness-goal per-se – it’s less about exercise and weight loss than it is about overall health. Despite my concerns about backsliding in July, I managed to keep the scale slowly moving downwards, getting in a solid but not stellar 4 workouts a week. I stuck to my 8 different kinds of exercise commitment too: running, strength training, ballet, hiking, swimming, cardio kickboxing, jump rope, and rock climbing. It’s fun to use your body in so many different ways. What I have not been so good about in recent weeks is keeping my stress levels in check. Work has been busy and time has been short, and I found myself teetering on the edge of illness three times in July. I know what works for my body – sleep, hydration, and mental down-time – but sometimes I fail to prioritize those things. So for August, I’m focusing on taking care of myself and giving myself room to breathe. Partly this involves 10-minute morning yoga sessions at least once or twice a week, partly it involves stretching and turning all the electronics off before bed, and partly it involves toting around big thermoses of herbal tea. I’ve also been toying with the idea of learning to meditate – I’ve never tried it, but like the idea. All together, these things do not make a goal, just a focus area: relax. In a way I’m giving myself a month off from rules – and that’s part of the point.

This same mentality explains the quietness around here in the past few weeks. I love blogging, but some weeks it’s just too much to cook, shoot, edit, and write on top of everything else going on. This month I’m actively cutting myself some slack on the blogging front: certainly not giving it up, but also not beating myself up for delaying a post 1 or 3 or even 5 days from when I had originally planned it (this post being a prime example). That said, we have a gorgeous haul of garden produce this week, and I’m really excited to crank things up in the kitchen again – I’m currently experiencing a refreshing burst of creativity, and I can’t stop writing down recipe ideas. Most of these ideas seem to center around zucchini and summer squash, which are practically rolling out of our fridge every time we open the door. Zucchini noodles are a popular way of using up the abundant vegetable, but I find a bowl of raw zucchini strings a bit unappetizing. Mixed half and half with green tea soba noodles, though, I could eat a whole lot of it. I tossed this easy combination with an Asian-inspired honey-ginger-soy sauce and a few handfuls of sliced herbs, and Trevor and I gobbled it up. You could get creative and add sliced carrot, bell pepper, and scallions for additional flavor and crunch, but I wanted to keep this version all green. However you decide to spin it, it’s a healthy and refreshing summer lunch.

In September we’ll be back to regularly scheduled programming – both on the fitness goals and blogging frequency front. Despite the fact that I’ve been out of school for three years, September still feels most like the time for new beginnings, and so August feels like the ramp-up period for that. Alternatively you might think of August as the last month of sunshine and lazy summer weekends before diving back into the meat of the year – so take the time to stop, breathe, and enjoy it. That’s what I’m doing.

Past Fitness Challenges

January: 10 Visits to the YMCA; Recipe: Gluten-Free Olive-and-Feta Corn Muffins
February: One vegan meal every day; Recipe: Pakistani Chickpea Pulao with Sweet-Hot Date-Onion Chutney
March: Run 40  miles in 20 days; Recipe: Chocolate-Dipped Almond Butter Cookie Bites
April: Walk 8,000 steps a day; Recipe: Herb-Flecked Spring Couscous
May: 180 minutes of Nike Training Club; Recipe: Warm Arugula Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing
June: Fresh fruit/veggies at every meal; Recipe: Chickpea Crepes with Grilled Curried Chicken and Mango Salsa
July: 8 different types of exercise; Recipe: Homemade Spinach Wraps with Chopped Greek Salad Filling

Like what you just read? Subscribe to Katie at the Kitchen Door on Feedly or Bloglovin‘, or follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, or Google+. Thanks for reading!

Monthly Fitness Goals: August // Green Tea and Zucchini Noodles with Honey-Ginger Sauce

Zucchini noodles are a great way to eat lots of veg, but I can’t quite get over the feeling that I’m being tricked out of eating pasta, so I like to mix them 50/50 with other noodles. This quick recipes mixes zucchini noodles with green tea soba, honey-ginger sauce, and lots of basil and mint.

• Author: Katie at the Kitchen Door
• Prep Time: 15
• Cook Time: 10
• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Yield: 2-3

Ingredients

• 8 oz. green tea soba noodles (or regular soba noodles)
• 1 large or 2 medium zucchini
• sea salt
• 3 TBS olive oil
• 1 TBS grated fresh ginger
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 TBS honey
• 2 TBS soy sauce
• juice from 1 Meyer lemon
• 15–20 leaves fresh basil
• 15–20 leaves fresh mint

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the soba noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
2. Use a julienne peeler to cut the zucchini into long noodles. Place zucchini noodles in a colander and salt liberally. Place colander over a bowl and let drain for at least 15 minutes.
3. Heat the olive oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add the grated ginger and grated garlic and fry until golden brown and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent sticking. Remove from heat and stir in the sesame oil, honey, soy, and Meyer lemon juice until a smooth sauce is formed. Add the sauce to the soba noodles and toss to coat.

The post Monthly Fitness Goals: August // Green Tea and Zucchini Noodles with Honey-Ginger Sauce appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

The Book: If you’re looking to update your go-to dessert recipes to something more elegant, modern, and seasonal, you are going to want to pick up a copy of Jenny McCoy’s Desserts for Every Season. There’s nothing run of the mill here – the recipes are unique and impressive but still uncomplicated. I love the emphasis on produce and seasonality – every recipe is firmly anchored to a time of year, which is something I’m glad to see, given that there seems to have been less emphasis on this in pastry than in main courses during the whole farm-to-table/seasonal/local movement. Although, I will say that Jenny’s “spring” recipes are definitely more like late July recipes for New England, given the inclusion of blueberries and lavender. As far as design goes, the whole book has a classy, subdued aesthetic that I very much like, with muted tones, botanical prints, and sedate, full-page pictures for most recipes. This will definitely be a book that I turn to for every future dinner party I plan.

The Food: The fact that some of the pages are already stuck together with sugar spills is a good sign, right? I tested this book out by making two pumpkin desserts  to celebrate October – a Pumpkin-Maple Ice Cream, and this Pumpkin Pie with a Gingersnap Crust and Milk Chocolate Ganache. I actually haven’t tried the ice cream yet (I made it right before I left on this trip and stuck it straight in the freezer as a treat for when I get back), but the base tasted delicious. This pie, however, I did taste, and it’s quite good. The pumpkin custard is a fairly typical pumpkin pie filling, although I love that it’s made with fresh pumpkin puree. But the two twists – a spicy, buttery gingersnap crust and a rich chocolate ganache – make this pie something special. If my mom gives up her pie-making rights, maybe I’ll bring it to Thanksgiving this year.

Recipe Shortlist: Honey-Roasted Pear Sorbet; Chestnut-Chocolate Layer Cake; Butterscotch Budino with Creme Fraiche; Cocoa-Lavender Cream Puffs; Peach and Sweet Corn Ice Cream Cake; Plum-Poppy Seed Kolache

Disclaimer: I received a review copy of Jenny McCoy’s Desserts for Every Season free of charge from Rizzoli, but was not otherwise compensated for writing this review.

Pumpkin Milk Chocolate Pie with a Gingersnap Crust

Recipe from Jenny McCoy’s Desserts for Every Season. Serves 8-10.

• nonstick cooking spray
• 1 1/2 c. (about 6 oz.) gingersnap cookie crumbs
• 2 TBS plus 1/2 cup light brown sugar, divided
• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt, divided
• 5 TBS unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 c. Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Kabocha Squash (recipe below)
• 4 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 3/4 c. plus 3 TBS heavy cream, divided
• 1 TBS molasses
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 c. (3 oz.) milk chocolate chips
• 1 TBS light corn syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
2. Stir together the gingersnap crumbs, 2 TBS of the brown sugar, 1/4 tsp of the sea salt, and the melted butter. (If you are using whole gingersnaps, you can crush them and combine with the other ingredients by blending everything in a food processor.) Stir until the mixture has the consistency of wet sand, then pour into the pie plate and pack very firmly and evenly against the bottom and sides of the pan. Bake for about 8 minutes, or until the crust is slightly puffed and a bit darker in color. Let cool at room temperature for 5 minutes, then freeze until ready to use.
3. Change the oven temperature to 325°F. In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/2 c. brown sugar, the remaining 1/2 tsp salt, the roasted pumpkin, the whole eggs, the egg yolk, 3/4 c. of the heavy cream, molasses, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg until completely smooth. Pour the custard into the pre-baked pie crust. Carefully transfer to oven, and bake until custard is set in the center when the pie is slightly jiggled, about 50 to 60 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to set.
4. About 25 minutes before you are ready to serve the pie, prepare the milk chocolate ganache. Place the chocolate chips in a large heatproof bowl and set aside. Place the remaining 3 TBS of heavy cream and the corn syrup in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour over the chocolate, let stand for 2 minutes, then gently whisk the ganache until smooth. Spread the ganache over the center of the pie, leaving a slight gap between the crust and the chocolate. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to set the ganache. Serve chilled, with whipped cream.

Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Kabocha Squash

Recipe from Jenny McCoy’s Desserts for Every Season. Makes 8 cups of puree.

• One 4-lb sugar pumpkin
• One 4-lb kabocha squash

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut the pumpkin and squash into eighths, then remove and discard the seeds. Place the pumpkin and squash pieces in a large baking dish, fill with about 1/4 inch of water, and cover with aluminum foil. Roast for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the flesh is fork tender.
2. When the pumpkin and squash pieces are cool enough to handle, use a large spoon to scrape the flesh out of the skins, discarding the skins. Puree the pumpkin and squash flesh in a food processor or blender until totally smooth (don’t skip this! It makes a big difference in the consistency of your baked goods). Let cool to room temperature before using in a recipe. You can freeze any leftover puree for up to 3 months.

The post Book Club: Jenny McCoy’s Desserts for Every Season appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been loving the fall weather we’ve been having in New England. Every day seems to start with a clear blue sky, air so crisp and fresh you feel like you’re really breathing for the first time in months. I’ve been breaking out the cashmere, scarves, leg warmers, and boots pretty much every day, and indulging in hot cider and donuts at the farmer’s market. And when I come home at night, before falling into bed, where I’ve been actively reveling in just how cozy a pile of comforters and pillows can be, I’ve been craving richer, meatier flavors.

With the falling temperatures, dinner has become something to look forward to, especially with super-easy, satisfying meals like this one-pan roast. It takes all of 5 minutes to throw together and 20 minutes in the oven, and the flavors are perfect – spicy Italian sausage, earthy acorn squash, sweet roasted onion, salty parmesan cheese and a few sweet-sour dried cherries to brighten the whole thing. It has quickly become a favorite for us this month, and I’ve already forwarded the recipe on to my family, so I figured it was one that would be worth sharing with you all, too.

Acorn squash is one of the few squash that did well in our garden this year, so I’ve been on the lookout for good uses for the pile of softball-sized squash we have sitting in the kitchen. I love this recipe, but I don’t know if it’s going to get us through all of our squash. In the past, the most adventurous I’ve gotten with winter squash is smooth bisques and roasted squash cubes tossed with pasta, but I want to move beyond that. So, I’m turning to you. What are your favorite ways to prepare acorn squash? I’d love more ideas.

Sausages with Acorn Squash and Onions

Adapted very slightly from Martha Stewart. Serves 4.

• 1 large acorn squash, halved, seeds scooped out and discarded, and cut into 1/2-inch thick slices
• 1 large red onion, peeled and cut into thick wedges
• 3 TBS olive oil
• sea salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb. of hot Italian sausage (4 links)
• 1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
• 1 TBS minced fresh sage leaves
• 1/2 c. dried cherries

1. Preheat the oven to 475°F. Place the squash slices and the onion wedges on a large baking sheet with sides, drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, then carefully flip and stir with a spatula to evenly coat all the squash. Spread the veggies out into an even layer (a single layer is ideal). Add the sausages to the pan, and roast for 20 minutes.
2. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese, sage, and cherries, tossing to coat. Return to oven for 5 minutes, until cheese is melted, then serve immediately.

The post An Easy Fall Dinner // Roast Acorn Squash, Sausage, and Onions appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

Does it feel like pumpkin has been all the rage a little bit more than usual this fall?  It does to me – I’ve even seen complaints about the internet overdose of pumpkin: “Find a new darling ingredient!” and “What about cranberries, guys??”  So, yes, I know some of you are over pumpkin.  And frankly, it’s not my favorite ingredient of all time (although who doesn’t love the occasional pumpkin muffin?).  But when I saw this recipe for Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Moussaka, I knew I had to try it out anyway.  It’s so… different.  In the best sort of way.

The first time I had moussaka I was in Budapest.  While I was studying abroad in Prague, we had a 10 day fall break during which we could travel independently.  Most people in the program took off on a city-hopping tour of Europe, trying to hit as many major cities as possible in the short time.  My roommates and I took the opposite approach, visiting only two cities, both accessible by train – Vienna, and Budapest.

I have never felt more out of place than I did in Budapest.  Don’t get me wrong – I loved the city.  Beautiful, old-world, twisty-turny, and a little bit hipster.  But I could not say a single word in the language – not even “thank you.”  I’ve never had that experience before, and I felt completely helpless.  We managed to get by for the most part, but it was embarrassing!  The next time I’m there I’ll be prepared.

Anyway, one night we decided to go out to a Greek restaurant near our apartment (we’d already had plenty of chicken paprikash).  It was like being transported – whitewashed walls with bright blue murals, two brightly lit lofts with stone arches, waiters with Greek accents, etc.  It was one of the stranger dining experiences I’ve ever had – they actually used a dust-buster to vacuum off the table between courses!  But the food was delicious, and moussaka will always remind me of that little place in Budapest, and of the whole lovey trip, for that matter.

Originally, this post was meant to double as a review of The Country Cooking of Greece.  But as I began writing my grocery list and assembling ingredients, I made too many changes to the original recipe to really make it a fair “review” recipe.  You can’t judge a cookbook on a recipe you’ve changed!  The original recipe was vegetarian, but I couldn’t imagine having moussaka without ground beef – the salty, meatiness of it is the perfect counterpoint to the creamy bechamel and the sweetness of the roasted veggies.  Then, the grocery store didn’t have any eating pumpkins, so I used sweet potatoes and butternut squash instead of all three orange veggies.  I also had to play with the ratios a bit – I had way too much squash/sweet potato for the amount of bechamel I had made.  By the end, it wasn’t really a fair representation of the original recipe – but it was super delicious.  So you’ll have to hold out for the cookbook review, but you should try this adapted recipe in the meantime.

Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Moussaka

Adapted from The Country Cooking of Greece.  Serves 6-8.

For the bechamel:

• 4 TBS salted butter
• 1/4 c. flour
• 4 c. milk, slightly warmed (on the stove or in the microwave)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 c. crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
• pepper to taste
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg

For the filling:

• olive oil
• 3 large red onions, peeled and diced
• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
• 2 large sweet potatoes (about 2 lbs), peeled and sliced lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices
• 1 medium winter squash or pumpkin (about 2 lbs), peeled and sliced lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices
• flour, for dusting
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh mint
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper, to taste

1. Make the bechamel: Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the flour and whisk to combine so there are no lumps.  Cook for 1 minute, until lightly browned.  Slowly pour in warm milk, whisking continuously.  Whisk the mixture non-stop until it thickens, about 10-12 minutes.  (Note, to save a bechamel that’s not thickening, melt a little extra butter (2 TBS) in the microwave and mix with an equal amount of flour – add to the bechamel to restart the thickening process).  Once thickened, pour a ladleful of the hot mixture over the beaten eggs, whisking the eggs vigorously, to temper the eggs.  Pour the egg mixture back into the bechamel, whisking the whole time, and remove from the heat.  Stir in the cheeses, and season with pepper and the nutmeg.  Set aside.
2. Prepare the filling: heat 2 TBS of olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook diced onions in it for 10 minutes, until soft.  Add ground beef and brown thoroughly.  Remove from heat, and use a slotted spoon to scoop beef and onion mixture into a bowl.  Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
3. Heat enough olive oil to rise a 1/4 inch up the side of the pan in a large frying pan.  Use medium heat, and let oil heat fully before beginning frying.  Test the temperature by dipping a piece of squash in the oil – if it sizzles immediately, the oil is ready.  Dredge the squash slices lightly in flour, then fry in the oil until lightly browned on both sides.  Remove to a paper-towel lined sheet pan to drain.  You will need to do this in batches.  Once the squash is done, lightly fry the sweet potato slices (you do not need to flour these) until golden brown.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F and assemble the moussaka: In a 9×13 roasting pan, place a single layer of sweet potatoes along the bottom such that they overlap slightly.  Sprinkle with half the mint and half the parsley, then top with half of the beef and onion mixture and half of the bechamel.  Cover these layers with a layer of the squash, then sprinkle remaining mint and parsley on top, as well as remaining beef and onion mixture.  Spread the rest of the bechamel on top, spreading out to the edges of the pan if possible.
5. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until bechamel is puffed and golden.  If the top is not browning, broil it on low for 2-3 minutes and then remove.  Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve warm.

The post Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Moussaka appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

I’ve been dragging my feet on a lot of things lately, including, as you may have guessed, blogging.  It doesn’t really make sense to be having a burnt-out period now, as I don’t have that much going on to be burnt out from.  My current project is fairly boring, I don’t have any trips or major events planned for the next several weeks, and I’m just kind of doing the lazy summer thing.  Maybe that’s the problem – does inspiration beget more inspiration?  Or maybe it’s just a phase.  Or the heat.  In any case, I find myself mostly wanting to read and eat takeout and get 8 hours of sleep and stalk people on facebook, and not so much wanting to go to the grocery store and plan meals and turn on the oven.

I’m sure I’ll get my groove back in the next week or two, but in the meantime it would be a shame to not take advantage of summer’s best produce, so I did manage to throw together a few meals this week.  And while I may be a little uninspired, this recipe certainly isn’t – in fact, I’ve been excited to share it since I first tried it 2 years ago.  You really do need to wait to make this until that moment in August when all the ingredients are at their ripest – sweet sweet corn, tomatoes bursting with flavor, fresh beans that aren’t too starchy – and that time is right now, at least in Boston.  The corn, in particular, is the best I’ve had in years.  I bit into an ear as I was shucking, just to see how sweet it was, and proceeded to eat the entire thing raw in about 45 seconds.  I’m stopping by the farmer’s market today to get another 5 ears to devour – maybe I’ll even get a jolt of inspiration from them.

“First-of-the-Season” Succotash

Adapted slightly from Sunday Suppers at Lucques.  Serves 6-8.

• 1 shallot, finely diced
• 3 TBS lemon juice
• 4-6 TBS olive oil
• 1 small red onion, finely diced
• 2 tsp thyme leaves
• 2 c. sliced summer squash
• kernels from 4 ears fresh corn
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 1/2 c. fresh or frozen lima beans, cooked
• 1/4 c. basil, mix of green and purple
• 2 TBS sliced parsley
• 2 TBS minced chives
• sea salt
• black pepper

1. Mix shallot, lemon juice, and 1/2 tsp salt in a small bowl.  Let sit.
2. Heat 2 TBS olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.  Add red onion and thyme, and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.  Add summer squash, season with 1/2 tsp salt, and cook 4-5 minutes, stirring, until the squash is tender and beginning to brown.
3. Remove squash/onion to a large bowl and return frying pan to heat.  Add another 2 TBS olive oil to frying pan, and let heat up for 2 minutes.  Add corn, 1/2 tsp salt, and a sprinkle of black pepper.  Cook until corn is just tender, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes.  Add corn to bowl with squash.  If using frozen lima beans, and them to the hot pan and defrost over medium heat, then add to the succotash.  If using fresh lima beans, drain the cooked beans well and add to the succotash.
4. Add shallot mixture, cherry tomatoes, basil, parsley, and chives to succotash and stir to combine.  Taste, and season with olive oil, salt, and pepper to your taste.  Serve at any temperature.

The post Summer Succotash appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

I’ve been waiting for this meal for a long time.  Since February, to be exact, from the moment I put the first seed in the first pot to sit in my bedroom window absorbing the weak winter sun.  And by this meal, I don’t mean this dish exactly – I just mean the first meal where all of the produce (well, except the garlic, we don’t get to plant that until September) could be fresh-picked from the garden, moments before preparing it.  Accomplishing this was just as satisfying (and delicious) as I thought it would be.

The garden has been far more successful than I expected.  Our random assortment of pots with store-bought dirt have turned into a lush array of greenery, and I’m so happy about it.  The highest tendrils of the watermelon are beyond arm’s reach, the cucumbers have climbed all the way up the porch and threaten to overrun the grapes, the tomatoes (started from seed!) are turning red one at a time, and the kale finally battled off the last of the cabbage moths and could provide at least 5 batches of my favorite kale soup.  Even the lemon tree has made a comeback and is covered in new leaves (!) after losing almost all of them this winter.  (This lemon tree seriously toys with my emotions.  After all my painstaking work nursing it back to health from the mealybugs, it rewarded me with over a hundred blossoms – not a single one of which managed to turn into a lemon larger than a quarter before shriveling up and falling off the tree.  No lemons this winter – any citrus experts out there have advice for me?)

This is less a recipe than a suggestion for how to use whatever’s good in your garden now.  The basic process is this: gently cook your vegetables until they’re crisp tender, then toss with pasta, or rice, or leave them by themselves.  Smother the veggies with herbs, heated only for a moment or two just to release their flavor.  Then dress the dish – I went the luxurious route, with cream and cheese, but a drizzle of good olive oil and a sprinkling of salt would have an equally wonderful effect.  Maybe pour yourself a glass of white wine, and, if it’s a nice night, take your dinner out to the garden and enjoy all the goodness summer has to offer.  It can’t be beat.

I can’t wait to share more garden-inspired recipes soon!  Especially when the watermelons (and the figs, and the grapes) are ready.  Stay tuned.  And enjoy your weekend!

Creamy Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Serves 4-6

• 1 lb. spaghetti
• 3 TBS butter
• 2 small summer squash, thinly sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 20-30 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/3 c. packed fresh parsley, thinly sliced
• 1/3 c. packed fresh basil, thinly sliced
• 1/2 c. heavy cream
• 1/3 – 1/2 c. packed grated parmesan
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• sea salt
• black pepper

1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil.
2. Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until melted.  Add the sliced squash and cook until tender and beginning to turn golden brown, about 7-10 minutes, flipping with a spatula once or twice over this time period.  Add the minced garlic and cook for 2 minutes longer, until garlic is very fragrant but not browned.  Add cherry tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring.
3. Add the spaghetti to boiling water at about this point.  Cook according to package directions.  In an ideal world, you want the sauce to be ready as the same time as the pasta, but life doesn’t always work out like that.  If your pasta is done first, rinse with cold water or drizzle with olive oil to prevent it from sticking.
4. Lower the heat on the sauce and cook vegetables for 2-3 more minutes, stirring.  Add cream, parsley, and basil to vegetables, and cook, simmering gently, for 2 minutes.  Turn off heat, and stir in lemon juice and parmesan cheese.  Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as necessary.
5. If your spaghetti is just finishing, add a few TBS of the pasta cooking water to the sauce, then drain the spaghetti and immediately toss with the sauce.  If your spaghetti has been finished for a while, add as much of the spaghetti as will fit to the saucepan and heat over low heat for 2 minutes, tossing spaghetti with sauce.  When spaghetti is just heated, add it all back to the pot to mix thoroughly.  (The goal here is to get the sauce to adhere to the spaghetti and both to be hot when served).
6. Serve hot with additional grated parmesan.

The post Garden: Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.

Yes, I’ve been home from Colorado for almost two weeks.  Meaning to write about my trip.  Meaning to make this great new side dish I discovered there.  But now that my life has slowed way down, to a level where for the first time in years, I have to create tasks for myself rather than do the ones that other people have assigned me, I’ve been lacking in inspiration a little bit.  I’m happy to be at home, happy to feel so calm, and very happy to spend a perfect June afternoon napping in the hammock, just a little bit directionless.

Anyway, I’m still here.  Ready to blog.  And I really had an incredible time in Colorado.  Almost my entire extended family on my mom’s side lives there – my grandparents, 3 of her sisters, her brother, and 8 cousins – and I used to go out to visit every other year.  Sadly, that ended after my freshman year in high school, when my school vacation calendar diverged from my brothers’, and so this was my first trip out there in 7 years.  They live in Grand Junction, a medium-sized city on the Western Slope encircled by the Mesa to the North, the Rockies to the East, the Colorado National Monument to the South, and Utah only 20 miles to the West.  It’s a beautiful place, with pretty much all the outdoor activity you could want right at your fingertips.  Heaven.  I was thrilled to be able to hike almost every day, with just a 5 minute drive bringing me to several different trailheads for the monument.  Actually, the hikes I went on were one of the highlights of the trip – particularly the trip to Royal Arch in Boulder with my friend David and to Liberty Cap on the monument with my brother and cousin Alex.  Luckily, I was there right in the middle of the desert wildflower season, and I couldn’t stop taking pictures of the flowering cacti and other scrappy mountaintop flowers.  Or the sweet lizards.

Other highlights included a drive up and over the mesa with my Aunt Lynn to the site of their future yurt, during which we startled a herd of deer in the most picturesque, sun-dappled stand of aspens I have ever been privileged enough to encounter.  I’m pretty sure the pictures I took there are the best I’ve ever taken.  Photography career, you may begin.

Of course, I should probably mention that a big part of the reason I headed out to Colorado now, as opposed to any other time of the year, was that Trevor was competing in the college Ultimate Frisbee Nationals in Boulder.  I’d never seen him play before, and to be honest, I was a little skeptical about how compelling watching a frisbee tournament was going to be.  Let’s just say I’ve had a frisbee-riddled past and have not always taken the sport seriously.  However, it ended up being awesome.  With the help of my brother, who plays for Cornell, I picked up the rules, and by Tufts’ final game vs. Harvard, one of their biggest rivals, I was really into it.  Like holding my breath on the sidelines into it.  And also really impressed by how athletic the play is.  So, I stand a little bit corrected when it comes to Ultimate.  It should be stated, however, that it is still not, nor shall it ever be, more important than me.  Take note.

Lastly, and probably most importantly, it was so good to spend time with my family.  Just being able to sit around the dinner table swapping stories with aunts and uncles and cousins, to call up in the morning and make hiking plans, was a luxury.  And, to bring things back to food, at one dinner in particular, my Uncle Mark’s girlfriend, Julie, contributed the most delicious vegetable dish I’ve had in a long time – a mixture of summer squash, zucchini, corn, green chile, and a little bit of sharp cheese, a traditional New Mexican recipe called Calabacitas.  Not usually a fan of squash in any form, I loved the sharpness of the cheese and chiles against the soft freshness of the zucchini and corn, and immediately decided it needed to be added to my repertoire.  Julie shared her recipe with us, and I’ve pretty much followed that to the T here, although there is a lot of wiggle room to adjust for personal taste.  It’s a great summer side dish, especially given that gardens and farm stands always seem to overflow with zucchini in late summer and it’s always good to have another way to prepare it.

Calabacitas – Cheesy Corn and Zucchini Salad

Serves 4 as a side dish.

• 2 zucchini, 1/2 in. dice
• 1 yellow summer squash, 1/2 in. dice
• 2 TBS olive oil
• 2 TBS water
• 1 1/2 TBS minced garlic
• 10 scallions, finely chopped
• 1/3 c. diced green chile (I used the pre-chopped canned kind)
• 2 ears fresh corn
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp. onion powder
• kosher salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 c. cheddar jack cheese

1. Heat olive oil and water over medium-high heat.  Add washed, diced zucchini and squash, and sautee for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add garlic, green chile, scallion, dried thyme, onion powder, salt, and pepper, and cook for another 2 minutes.  Add kernels from corn cob.  Lower heat, and cook until everything is soft, about 5 minutes more.  Remove from heat and stir in cheese, allowing to melt completely and spread evenly throughout dish.  Serve warm.

The post Colorado/Calabacitas appeared first on Katie at the Kitchen Door.