Tag: Fall

Butternut Squash and Kale Mac and Cheese

Well Dined | Butternut Squash and Kale Mac and Cheese

So I actually made this a year ago and didn’t manage to post it before it was way past butternut squash season, doh!  I figured I would just hold off and post about it the next Fall, which is what I am doing now.  The problem is, my photography has improved leaps and bounds since then so these photos look really awful.  I am so sorry in advance, but the mac and cheese is really good.  I promise.

Well Dined | Butternut Squash and Kale Mac and Cheese

I saw this recipe on an episode of The Chew, and the idea was that it was orange and black for Halloween.  Orange from the squash, black from the kale.  Except that kale is green, even when it’s wilted…  Whatever – it uses Fall produce and it’s delicious, so let’s pretend it works.

Well Dined | Butternut Squash and Kale Mac and Cheese

Cook up some bacon (I used pancetta because stuff and things), add some butter, sweat some onions and garlic, wilt some kale – awesome.  So here’s where the original recipe gets weird (The Chew website is notoriously bad at reviewing their recipes) – it says to have 1 butternut squash, peeled and diced, and to saute the squash in the pan.  Then later it says to add in the butternut squash puree.  What butternut squash puree?  There is no butternut squash puree in the ingredient list.  Huh?  Also – sauteed squash?  Meh.  So here’s what I did (as you can see in the previous picture) – tossed that cubed squash with olive, salt, pepper, and nutmeg; then roasted it.  Yummy.  Then I took half the roasted squash and mashed it.  Ah-ha!  Now there is butternut squash puree, sort of. (more…)

Apple Oat Muffins

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

Let’s start the week out with something sweet, and not even that bad for you.  These muffins are mostly oats, held together by a little yogurt, and studded with chunks of delicious apples.  The are unbelievably moist and spiced with cinnamon.  Breakfast, dessert, whatever – these are going to get gobbled up fast.

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

I used braeburn apples, but any good baking apple will do.  Some stores have little signs that tell you which apples are good for what.

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

See what I mean?  There is more than 2x as much oats as there is flour.

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

The batter is very wet, but this is a good thing.  I would dice the apples smaller next time.

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

My husband practically inhaled these bad boys.  Seriously.  Go make these.  Right now.  I’ll wait…  Did you make them?  Aren’t you glad you did?

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

You can invite your neighbor over for muffins and hot chocolate.  I bet they’d love it.

Well Dined | Apple Oat Muffins

They might even take one of the muffins you give them on an adventure to the airport.  Cuz who wants to eat airport food, right? (more…)

Healthy Moroccan Lamb

Well Dined | Healthy Moroccan Lamb

Super comforting spiced lamb on top of creamy mashed potatoes – how could that be healthy?  Well for starters, there are no potatoes – that is a cauliflower and white bean puree.  This looks like comfort food, and it totally is, but it is all veggies and protein with no carbs!

Well Dined | Healthy Moroccan Lamb

Start by caramelizing some carrots to release that sweetness.  Then brown up some lamb.  I used lamb chops and discovered that there is very little meat on them – next time I am definitely using cubed meat.

Well Dined | Healthy Moroccan Lamb

When the lamb is browned, add in garlic, spices, chard, and chickpeas (more protein!).  I wondered why the original recipe didn’t call for tomatoes – they make so much sense here.  So I went ahead and added them.  The original recipe also just used paprika, which I thought was a little boring.  I used paprika, cinnamon, cumin, and coriander.

Well Dined | Healthy Moroccan Lamb

Another change from the original was that it called for polenta to serve with the lamb.  Polenta is cooked corn meal, and I am trying to avoid grains.  So I used a cauliflower puree instead and it was creamy and delicious – a good counterpoint for the tangy spiced lamb. (more…)

Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese

Well Dined | Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese

I don’t know if you’ve noticed yet, but warm quinoa salads are kind of the go-to for my friend, Melissa, and I (like this one, and this one, and this one).  So when we didn’t really have a lunch plan a couple of weeks ago, we decided to throw some her CSA veg into, you guessed it, a warm quinoa salad.  I would apologize for the repetition, but these salads are healthy and filling and delicious, so I’m not sorry!

Well Dined | Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese

This time around, Melissa was drowning in fall squash.  So we diced up a butternut and threw it in the oven with a sliced onion.

Well Dined | Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese

Meanwhile, we cooked up our pretty tri-color quinoa and tossed in some toasted pine nuts.  You could easily sub walnuts or pecans instead.

Well Dined | Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese

In went the roasted veg and some arugula, along with some fresh thyme.  Again, you could easily sub another type of green (I do love peppery arugula, though) and whatever herbs you have on hand.

Well Dined | Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese

Lastly, and certainly not least, we added in some goat cheese.  We both seriously love goat cheese.  We mixed half of the cheese into the salad to get it melty, and crumbled the rest on top so there would be nice pockets of it.

Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad with Goat Cheese
original recipe, click here for Melissa’s post
serves 4

1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 small onion, sliced in half-moons
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and black pepper
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
1 tsp fresh thyme
2 cups baby arugula
4 oz goat cheese, crumbled

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Toss the squash and onion in olive oil, season lightly with salt and pepper.

Spread the veggies in a single layer on a rimmed cookie sheet covered in foil.  Roast for 25–30 minutes, turning the veggies over halfway through.  When the squash is tender, remove from the oven.

Meanwhile, combine the quinoa and water in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil. Cook, stirring frequently, over medium heat, until the water is absorbed and the curlicues pop out.  Season with salt and pepper.

Stir the pine nuts, roasted veggies, thyme, arugula, and half the goat cheese into the quinoa; crumble the rest of the cheese over top.  Serve warm.

Kale and Corn Galette with Shrimp and Feta

Well Dined | Kale and Corn Galette with Feta and Shrimp

This is one of those transitional dishes that takes you from one season into another – the last of the summer corn, combined with dark leafy greens in a warm tart.  The original recipe didn’t have any protein, but it did use feta and dill, so I thought shrimp would be perfect.

Well Dined | Kale and Corn Galette with Feta and Shrimp

If you don’t eat shrimp, then no problem – leave them off.  The veggies and cheese are hearty enough on their own. (more…)

Moroccan Meat Pies and Afghan Pumpkin

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This post got lost and forgotten somewhere, so it’s not very seasonal and I apologize.  But you can look forward to making it next Fall.

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And you should look forward to it.  Sweet, caramelized pumpkin with spices, creamy yogurt, and tangy tomato sauce?  Yes, please.  This is one of my favorite Afghan dishes, called kadu bouranee.

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And these delicious Moroccan inspired meat pies made with phyllo, ground beef, and spices are the perfect main to complement the pumpkin.  You could also make the Afghan meat dumplings called mantu, of course, but they require a little bit more work. (more…)

Light Pumpkin Cream Cheese Loaf

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We are finally getting into some Spring weather here but I am way behind on my posts, so I’m sorry if the cold weather stuff drags on a bit!  I actually made this Pumpkin Cream Cheese Loaf all the way back in October – yikes!  Put it uses canned pumpkin, so you can make it whenever that is available.  I found this recipe through Pinterest which advertized only 500 calories for a WHOLE LOAF!(!!!)  Oh-em-gee!  Can it be true?  Delicious and healthy?  The unicorn of pumpkin loafs?!  EDIT – Well, no in short – it is not.  It actually has more than 1000 calories per loaf and it doesn’t taste that great.  But I will leave it on here in case someone has a use for it.  EDIT

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Okay, I wouldn’t really call it healthy.  It’s low calorie and low fat due to the use of low-fat cream cheese, egg whites vs whole eggs, and applesauce vs oil.  And it uses half fake sugar and half real sugar, but I’d still call that a sugary snack.

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As for deliciousness?  I’d call it okay.  You can definitely taste the fake sugar and it isn’t as dense and luxurious as the real thing, but it’s a pretty good substitute.  So all-in-all I’m going to call this decent but not amazeballs. (more…)

Turkey and Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie

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Okay – it is really hard to get an attractive picture of a shepherd’s pie.  The blogger I got this recipe from did cute little individual dishes and I thought “Ain’t nobody got time for that!” and just did one big casserole.  But after posting a very unattractive photo on facebook (that sparked a crazy battle between two friends, no joke) I know why she did it that way!

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Photography aside, this dish is great.  Lean but satisfying ground turkey mixed with a ton of veggies make a hearty filling.

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Topped with delicious super-food sweet potatoes, this version of shepherd’s pie is super healthy and super delicious.

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Baking it in individual dishes is definitely cuter and neater, but if you don’t care whether the topping gets mixed into the filling on the plate – you can totally do one big dish. (more…)

Fall Pasta Dishes

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I’ve been playing with combining squash and pasta for comforting Fall/Winter dishes.  Like last weeks White Lasagna or the Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells from the beginning of the month.  And now I have a few more, starting with this Butternut Squash and Leek Pasta Sauce.

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This is simple and delicious – pureed squash, leeks, garlic, butter, sage, and Parmesan form a rich and creamy sauce to perfectly coat spaghetti.

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Next up is Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese with Amaretti Crumbles.

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Roasted pumpkin combined with noodles, cheesy bechamel, and sage.

SAM_2908‘Then topped with delicious almond cookies and baked.  Yum!  So comforting in cold weather. (more…)