Vegetarian curry stuffed acorn squash

What do you eat on a rainy evening after having worked in the yard all day? Add to that Mike and I are both struggling with sinus infections and you now have a super need for a super nutritious and warming dinner. So, with some acorn squash sitting on the counter I figured a nice curry filling would give the warmth we both needed. This makes enough curry stuffing for 4, but I only did 2 (1 acorn squash) and am saving the rest for a later meal - maybe by itself for lunch.

1 acorn squash, split in half and cleaned of seeds (save the seeds for toasting later)
olive oil
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350, drizzle the squash all over with oil and season the cavities with salt and pepper. Place squash halves open side down in a roasting pan (or 13x9 dish) and place in oven. Roast about 40 minutes until fork goes smoothly through the flesh.

Meanwhile,
1 T butter
2 T olive oil
1/2 C sliced almonds (or a combo of almonds and pumpkin seeds)
3 t curry powder
1 t tumeric
cayenne pepper to taste (I use a pinch)
1 T ground ginger
1 t salt
2 cloves garlic
1/2 small white onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
1/2 C raisins
1 C grain (I used quinoa)
2 - 2 1/2 C vegetable broth
1 T butter, melted
1/4 C almonds, run through food processor to make a crumble

In dutch oven over medium heat, heat butter and olive oil until foaming. Add almonds and cook until golden and lightly toasted. Add curry, tumeric, ginger, and cayenne and stir for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Add garlic, onions, and peppers, stirring frequently about 2 minutes, add carrots and stir 2 more minutes. Add cauliflower and stir (add a bit more oil if it is starting to dry out) about 5 minutes until the cauliflower starts getting toasted edges. Add raisins, grain, and broth, stirring to mix well. Return to boil, reduce heat to medium low and cover until grains are cooked adding more liquid if needed(follow package directions for whatever grain you use). Once grains are cooked, remove from heat and adjust seasoning as desired, leave lid on and allow to sit 15 minutes so all the liquid is absorbed and the starches have thickened the mixture.

When the acorn squash are done, immediately after removing from the oven, turn the squash over so the cavity is up. Allow to cool a few minutes (it makes it easier to stuff them if you can stand to touch them). Using a large spoon, stuff the cavities of the squash with the curry mixture, loosely packed. Drizzle the melted butter over the top of the squash and top with the almond crumble. Place in oven under high broiler for a few minutes until the top is a deep, toasted brown.

There are a lot of ingredients and a lot of steps, but the warm comfort of the curry makes you feel good. The combination of grains and nuts means you are getting the necessary complete proteins. On top of that, you are getting a healthy dose of anti-inflamatories with the garlic, ginger, and tumeric. The cayenne will help open you sinuses and all the great veggies and spices are a great immunity booster. Definitely a feel good food. Wash it down with some green tea and you've just done something really good for your health. Enjoy! :)

The flavors of fall

Today was a good day, okay it started out rough but ended well. This morning one of the heads on the garden's irrigation system popped off, so when the irrigation ran the garden got incredibly flooded. Mike and I used shovels and buckets to bail water out for over 1/2 hour this morning until there was no standing water left, but it was still pretty wet, I just hope we got enough out that nothing drowns. Since we had worked hard so early in the morning, I decided a nice, big breakfast was in order. I have been getting tons of sweet potatoes from the farm and found some some white onions from a pesticide-free farm just across the border in Nevada, so I decided to try a sweet potato hash.

Sweet Potato Hash

3 or 4 small to medium sweet potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
2 slices applewood smoked bacon (preferably nitrate free)
1 small white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T fresh sage, chopped
1 t fresh thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Steam sweet potatoes in a little water in the microwave for 3 minutes. Strain and set aside. Cut bacon in to small pieces. In large skillet over medium high heat cook bacon until just crispy. Remove bacon from skillet to a plate lined with paper towels, leaving a bit of bacon fat in the skillet. Off heat, add the onions and garlic to the skillet and return to the heat. Add the sweet potatoes, salt, and pepper, stir to mix. Cook covered about 10 minutes. Remove cover, add herbs and bacon, mix well and press down slightly. Continue to cook for 6 - 10 minutes stirring occasionally until the pototoes are starting to get crispy brown edges. If desired, add a bit of paprika or cayenne pepper before serving.

I made shirred eggs to serve on top, but it would pretty much go with any sort of eggs.