It’s finally snowing! But the wind is so strong today It’s blowing the snow siseways and it feels like the temperature has been falling throughout the day. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to try a new-to-me ramen. Despite having garlic, ginger, soy sauce and murrin it wasn’t very tasty. This dish won’t be going in my regular rotation.
17 Likes
Thank you!
1 Like
I wing it for the butternut and black bean chili so I don’t have a recipe. I do have ingredients and a basic method. The size of the butternut squash I get in my CSA share varies—a lot!—so I eyeball the proportions based on the size of the squash. I have found this to be quite the forgiving prep, so I bet you could customize it to the liking of your kiddo.
Will share my notes here. I’ll warn that these are notes so kindly don’t expect precision, LOL. Lots of recipes on the web which may be a more useful starting point.
My shortcut: I usually use one or two cans of Kuner’s Black Beans with Cumin & Chili Spices. One can only when the squash is small. These beans have a noticeable presence of cumin that plays well with the sweet butternut.
Ingredients:
- Olive oil to sauté the sofrito (another vegetable oil would work)
- Onion, carrot, and a clove of garlic for the sofrito
- Chile powder of some kind (here I want cumin and some heat)
- Dried oregano OR thyme (depending on what I have)
- 1 box of finely chopped tomatoes, 26 oz. Pomi brand is what I have—will use partial box for a smaller squash and one can beans
- 1 peeled, seeded, and cubed butternut squash
- 1-2 cans of Kuner’s Black Beans with Cumin & Chili spices
- Water to loosen the mixture and provide enough liquid to cook without burning
- Garnish(es) of choice for serving. Ideas: pepitas, sour cream/crema, lime wedges, avocado, shredded cheddar, cilantro
Method:
I like using my Dutch oven. This or another heavy bottomed pot with a lid helps the ingredients simmer without burning.
Sauté sofrito in oil over medium heat until the onion and garlic are soft but not brown. Onions go in first, carrots second, garlic last.
Working quickly and being careful not to scorch the ingredients, add chili powder and bloom it in the sofrito for a few seconds. Have that water handy if needed to stop mixture from burning.
Add the chopped tomatoes, cubed butternut, black beans (if using the Kuner’s seasoned beans include the flavorful liquid), dried oregano OR thyme, and stir together.
Add enough water to loosen the mixture, cover the cubed squash, and make sure the chili isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Simmer for about 1 hour with lid on, stirring periodically to make sure ingredients aren’t sticking to pot. Splash in additional water if chili is thickening too fast. Check after the first 20 minutes to see how quickly the butternut is cooking to make sure you get the texture your household prefers (firmer or softer squash). Remove from heat when the squash and chili reach your desired consistency—may be less or more than 1 hour.
This prep does take well to adaptations. I have added shredded leftover beef brisket, substituted kibby spice and Aleppo pepper when I didn’t have chili powder (worked well enough), squished in whole Italian tomatoes with their juices. You get the idea. 
9 Likes
Yeah, I did a little reading around and the latter is almost definitely the issue. I have more dill! I have more goat cheese!
6 Likes
The temp effects popovers and Yorkshire pudding too, similar type of batter!
1 Like
I’m pretty good at frittatas, so there is hope for me.
2 Likes
Good to know. I’ve never made one.
1 Like
Oatmeal chocolate chip? Sign me up for that whole meal.
2 Likes
Almost a disaster for dinner tonight. Well, visually anyway.
Plan was sushi bowls. Then I thought I’d try one of those set-sushi type things where you press rice into a baking dish, then the fillings, then more rice, turn out, cut into neat portions, and ta-da!
Yeah, no ta-da. Turns out the “shredded” carrots I included were too thick and made the cuts a mess. So then I thought, I’ll just roll this in seaweed. But, too thick – kimbap thick. Third roll in, back to decent form but livid 
All ended fine, and tasted delicious, but I should just stick with the simplest plan sometimes.
Mom had a beyond burger and coleslaw.
We all started with miso, butternut squash, and carrot soup.
22 Likes
One additional thing that might help obtain a puffy, light Dutch baby pancake: I use my blender to mix the batter.
As I don’t possess the magic touch with pancakes and flatbreads—plenty of fails—I wonder if using a blender to mix is also helping me. Dunno.
The pancake does deflate when removed from the oven though.
1 Like
I think the recipe had problems. And thank you.
1 Like
Early morning double crown dental appointment, bc I know how to have fun 
The doc shot me up with so much Novocain it rendered half of my face numb & left me with some interesting vision in my left eye for the better part of the day 
. Once I felt less like The Phantom of the Opera I stopped in at Sam’s & Aldi to check for any items of interest (meh on both counts).
Now that the stuff has worn off entirely & I’m rather painfully attuned to the results of my dentist’s labor, I don’t have the energy to make good on my turn to cook a new recipe today. Nope.
I’d already picked a salmon treatment from the NYT & was going to attempt a recreation of that magnificent shaved celery / hazelnut / chopped dates / snowy ricotta salad we had in Philly to serve along with it, but I honestly can’t be bothered: postponed to Friday.
And so, another night of leftovers @casa lingua - the lemony chicken-but-actually-turkey & feta meatball soup with spinach. I’ll still make a salad, but nothing fancy.
18 Likes
This is when I go with scrambled eggs. Hope the pain lessens very quickly!
6 Likes
Sunshine has an appointment tomorrow to get a replacement cap put on. I’ve planned a potato soup (puree) for dinner. I’m figuring she is also going to be in some pain.
Moreover, this gives me a chance to use my immersion blender, and I really like using it.
7 Likes
Aw, thanks!
1 Like
And you probably know but… don’t open the oven while baking.
LOL!!!
You’re very thoughtful.
5 Likes
