Roasted Butternut Squash Orzo

Yesterday was SO fun. For FHE we decided to celebrate Johnny Appleseed Day by playing baseball with apples! I was amazed at how they just got smashed. But it was fun to see them disintegrate. I wish I had taken a picture. It is always fun to see how groups get together and mesh. I feel that our FHE group is meshing well though. I am excited to see it blossom. :)

I was looking again at foodgawker and found this recipe.. now.. don't look too closely at the source... it may use some unfortunate language.. but I have to give credit where it is due... And this recipe just sounded so yummy! And I have to say it was 100% worth it. It was delicious! The butternut squash was intensely difficult to cut though. It probably took me about an hour.... I bet next time it wouldn't take as long though. I did look at this website for instructions on how to cut the butternut squash: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_peel_and_cut_a_butternut_squash/. One of my favorite things about this dish was how colorful it was. I ended up not adding the extra olive oil in at the end or any pepper. but I bet it would taste good if you did. I just forgot.

Roasted Butternut Squash Orzo
Source: http://abitchinkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/09/roasted-butternut-squash-orzo.html
Makes:

• 1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, and cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup orzo pasta
• 1 cup (packed) baby spinach, chopped
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and line a baking sheet with foil. In a large bowl, toss squash, onion, and garlic with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Spread out in a single layer on the baking sheet, and roast for 40-50 minutes, or until the squash is tender. Give the vegetables a good stir a couple times while they're roasting.

While the squash is roasting, cook the orzo pasta according to directions on the box. Drain and set aside.

After the veggies are done, chop the roasted garlic. Add the squash, onions, garlic, spinach, and cranberries to the orzo. Toss with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.




Crunchy Garlic Chicken
Source: http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/crunchy-garlic-chicken/fab48856-6d00-4b01-99d2-7b2536f85619
Makes: 6 servings

• 1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives or parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 cups Whole Grain Total® cereal, crushed (1 cup)
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 3/4 lb)

1 Heat oven to 425°F. Spray 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In shallow dish, mix 2 tablespoons of the butter, the milk, chives, salt and garlic powder.
2 In another shallow dish, mix crushed cereal, parsley and paprika. Dip chicken into milk mixture, then coat lightly and evenly with cereal mixture. Place in pan. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons butter.

3 Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F).

Apple Chips

There was an apple party so I decided to google apple recipes. I found one for apple chips on food gawker and they just look so good I couldn't help myself! Not to mention they seem somewhat healthy. I am super excited to try this new snack! Apples are one of my favorite snacks. I eat it for breakfast with a slice of cinnamon and sugar toast, I have it for lunch with a peanut butter and honey sandwich or just for a snack. So who wouldn't love dried apples! They were even a big hit at the party, I used granny smith so they had a nice tart flavor, slight crisp and chewy texture.

Apple Chips
Source: http://umaskitchenexperiments.blogspot.com/2011/09/apple-chips.html

Apples - 2 nos, gala, granny smith or any firm variety
Cinnamon powder - 1/2 teaspoon

1) Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.
2) Wash and slice the apples perpendicular to the core in small slices. (as this as you can)
3) Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and Bake for 2-3 hours
4) Allow to cool (will become more crispy) and then sprinkle with cinnamon.

Mashed Potatoes

 Here is the recipe of mashed potatoes I used to go along with the sugar snap peas. They were delicious. Simple but good.

Mashed Potatoes
Source: http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/traditional-mashed-potatoes/Detail.aspx
Serves: 6

6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup warm milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3/4 teaspoon salt
Dash pepper

1. Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. 
2. Cover and bring to a boil; cook for 20-25 minutes or until very tender. 
3. Drain well. 
4. Add milk, butter, salt and pepper; mash until light and fluffy. 

Guacamole and Chips

Mmmm.. avocados... after church today I decided to make guacamole! So I decided to try Alton brown's recipe.. it was amazing!

Guacamole
Source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/guacamole-recipe/index.html

3 avocados halved, seeded and peeled
1 lime, juiced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced

1. In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and lime juice, toss to coat. (I used much less lime juice then they asked, but I thought it was good and I didn't need to drain it or add it later - I just used a few drops.)
2. Drain, and reserve the lime juice, after all of the avocados have been coated. 
3. Using a potato masher add the salt, cumin, and cayenne and mash. 
4. Then, fold in the onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. 
5. Add 1 tablespoon of the reserved lime juice. 
6. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour and then serve. (I ate it right away - it was delicious)

So I talked with my roommies about this lovely dish and one said that they thought it was a 9.9/10 out of the guacamole's she's tried. It was really good. We were critiquing it and decided it was delicious because of the slight chunkiness of the avocado with the creaminess, the cool freshness of the tomatoes, the spices added really good flavor - it was a little spicy but not too much.

But I should warn you that I did cut this recipe by a third. So it was hard to get a 1/6 of a teaspoon.. so my measurements may have been a little less than it was asked for.

not only did I make guacamole but I also made chips! Only.. the tortillas I had were thick.. so when I cooked them they were a little hard. But they were pleasant. The ones I cooked longer were better because they were more crispy they were a hard first crunch but they weren't chewy at the same time.

Corn Tortilla Chips
Source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/baked-tortilla-chips-recipe/index.html

Corn tortillas
Olive oil
salt

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
2. Brush both sides of the tortillas with oil
3. Stack the tortillas and cut them into 1/6s or 1/4s.
4. Place on cookie sheet in one layer, sprinkle with salt and bake for 15-18 minutes till golden brown and crispy.