Two Hearty Winter Mac 'n Cheeses

Two winter veggie versions of Mac n Cheese to get you through the long, cold nights.

Cold Season Mac n Cheese

1/2 lb. of pasta
1 lb. of ground lamb (or beef or chicken)
1 bunch of Kale, coarsely chopped
1 turnip
1 butternut squash
1 tbsp Olive Oil
2 tbsp butter
2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 medium onion, diced
3 tbsp flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup half and half
2 cups cheddar cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Nutmeg

Pre-heat the oven to 400.

Cut the butternut squash in half and scoop out seeds. Place on a roasting pan with a thin layer of water. Roast the squash until the top collapses - about 40 minutes. Once roasted, scoop out the flesh.

Meanwhile, peel the turnip and grate it in a food processor. Add the meat to a pan and begin to cook on medium-high heat. Once the meat begins to brown add the kale and turnip to the pan and cook until the meat is cooked through and the kale is bright green.

While the meat is cooking, add the oil and butter to a pan. Once it's melted, add the thyme and onion. Cook the onions for a minute then add the flour and cook while stirring for another minute or two. Whisk in the stock and then the squash. Once it's evened, stir in the cream and bring the sauce to a bubble. Stir in the cheese and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.

Mix the pasta, meat & veg mixture, and sauce together.


Hearty Mac n Cheese

1 box of Mac n Cheese
4 strips of bacon
1 bunch of kale, coarsely chopped.

Make the mac n cheese per directions (or use the recipe above. You can make the sauce with or without the squash. If you don't use the squash, cut the amount of broth in half and/or use milk for all or some of it).

Cook the bacon as you like - as for me, I'm a microwave kind of girl.

Saute the kale in olive oil until bright green.

Mix together. Grate in extra cheese if you like.

Gorgonzola Ravioli w/ Squash & Kale, & a Creamy Walnut Sauce

Squash, kale, blue cheese, and sage taste like winter to me.

Gorgonzola Ravioli w/ Squash & Kale & a Creamy Walnut Sauce

For the squash --
1 butternut squash
1 turnip (optional)
Olive Oil
Sage
Allspice
Pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Peel the squash and cut it into cubes (not necessarily in that order) and peel the turnip and cut into cubes. Place the squash and the turnips in a roasting pan then drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with a generous amount of sage and pepper and a pinch of allspice. Put the pan in the oven for about 30 minutes until the squash and turnips begin to caramelize.

For the Kale --
1 bunch of Kale
Olive Oil
4 gloves of garlic
1 cup of Chicken Broth (or Vegetable or Beef)

Coarsely chop the Kale. Mince garlic and put it in a pan with with a few tablespoons of oil and the kale. Once the garlic begins to brown, pour in the broth. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale turns bright green and most of the broth has evaporated - about 20 minutes. Drain the kale if needed.

For the Ravioli --
1 package of Trader Joe's Gorgonzola Ravioli (What? You think I make ravioli myself? Okay ... I did try a few times and failed miserably).

Cook to directions on package.

For the sauce --
1 cup walnuts
1 piece of bread
1/2 cup of half and half
2 cloves of garlic
Olive Oil

Spread the walnuts out on a pan and toast in the oven with the squash for a few minutes. While the walnuts are toasting, put the bread in a bowl with the half and half. Let the bread stand for a few minutes. Once the walnuts are toasty and the bread moist, put the walnuts, bread (leave any extra liquid), and garlic in a food processor and pulse until uniform and pasty. Slowly pour in olive oil while running the food processor until it's the right consistency.

Put it all together --
Mix the kale, squash, turnips, and ravioli together in a bowl. Add the walnut sauce and mix well. Throw on some cheese if you'd like and mix it in. Then enjoy!

To make vegan - omit the cheese at the end, use regular pasta or non-cheese ravioli, and use soy milk or omit the bread altogether in the walnut sauce.

To make gluten-free - use gluten-free pasta or ravioli or replace pasta with sausage or just have the veggies with the walnut sauce.

First Winter Share Pick Up of the Season

I was very excited today for our first winter share pick up of the season. This year our farm - Garden of Eve - offered a "shopping basket" option for their winter share which would include local grains, diary, and fruit. I couldn't wait to see what we got!

First the veggies:
- Kale
- Collard Greens
- Turnips
- A Massive yellow carrot
- 2 bunches of baby orange carrots
- 1 small head of garlic

Fruit:
- Apples
- Fuji Apple Juice from Red Jacket Orchards

Other Stuff
- Jar of Honey from South Paws Farm
- Kasha
- Cream of Buckwheat
- Hawthorne Valley Farm Yogurt

Since I'm not really a big breakfast cereal fan, especially not hot cereals, I'm trying to figure out what to do with the buckwheat and Kasha. The back of the buckwheat box has a tasty looking recipe for "Cheesy Buckwheat with Green Chilies" which I might try. I also found a recipe for Gluten Free Italian Buckwheat Gnochi. There a few Kasha recipes on the Pocono site which sound good: Kasha and Honey Bread, Applesauce Kasha cookies, and Savory Kasha Apple Suffing.

We are also doing the Winter Sun Farms share which starts in about a week and a half. That one is preserved food from the summer: pureed squash, frozen tomatoes, etc. All and all it's looking to be a yummy, not quite as filled with beets winter of local eating!