OMGSNAX!

um hi. i took the afternoon off work to make this + latkes with my sister, & so?? what, do you wanna fight about it?

i first found this recipe when trying to figure out what i’d bring for myself on thanksgiving, since normally all i eat is the vegetarian dressing my grandma makes for me & maybe some rolls. (everything else is a bust — either meaty or gross.) i wound up making an artichoke spread — one of my family’s favorite hot appetizers — but bookmarked this recipe for a later date, & as it turns out, the later date was to be the first night of chanukah.

INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, & cut into 1-inch cubes
salt & freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water
3 amaretti cookies, crumbled
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups whole milk
pinch nutmeg
3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
12 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated parmesan

METHOD
cook’s note: the no-boil lasagna noodles can be substituted with fresh spinach lasagna sheets. look for fresh lasagna sheets in the refrigerated section of specialty markets.

heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. add the squash & toss to coat. sprinkle with salt & pepper. pour the water into the skillet & then cover & simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. cool slightly & then transfer the squash to a food processor. add the amaretti cookies & blend until smooth. season the squash purée, to taste, with more salt & pepper.

melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. add the flour & whisk for 1 minute. gradually whisk in the milk. bring to a boil over medium-high heat. reduce the heat to medium & simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. whisk in the nutmeg. cool slightly. transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. add the basil & blend until smooth. return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan & stir to blend. season the sauce with salt & pepper, to taste.

position the rack in the center of the oven & preheat to 375 degrees F.

lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. spread 1/3 of the squash purée over the noodles. sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. repeat layering 3 more times.

tightly cover the baking dish with foil & bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. sprinkle the remaining mozzarella & parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles & the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.

*when blending hot liquids: remove liquid from the heat & allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. transfer liquid to a blender or food processor & fill it no more than halfway. if using a blender, release one corner of the lid. this prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

DEVIATIONS & OBSERVATIONS
i couldn’t find those amaretti cookies to save my life! i considered adding a little almond extract to the squash but ultimately decided against it. i also wound up using apple pie spice instead of nutmeg, b/c i couldn’t find my mom’s nutmeg (it was hidden in a small container on a really high shelf!) & i couldn’t raise her on the phone in time — the apple pie spice was nothing more than cinnamon, nutmeg, & allspice, anyway, so no big change there.

also, am i the only one who has a really tough time with lasagna recipes? how do you divide the squash purée into thirds but have enough for four layers? does “repeat three times” include the first layer? & if so, what of the 12 lasagna noodles? i wouldn’t read it that way, anyway, but DAMN. spell it out for us, b/c that really made no sense to me! i wound up making four full layers, & i had a ton of the basil cream sauce left over b/c i think i mis-interpreted the directions, so i just poured it over the top & crossed my fingers. believe me, it worked out just fine.

in fact, it tasted even better than i’d hoped it would. the cream sauce looked thin but cooked up a-ok, & it really didn’t overwhelm the squash at all the way i’d thought it would given how much basil was in there. i also felt a little dubious that basil would even go well with butternut squash — i see it mostly with sage — but it was FANTASTIC. i’ll make it again & again & again!!

 

 

 

“Butternut Squash Lasagna” from Everyday Italian

one of the good things about staying at daniel’s house (vs mine) is that he has digital cable, which for us translates to: law & order reruns, dirty jobs on the discovery channel, & unlimited access to our hero alton brown on the food network. sometimes we also watch rachael ray, mostly b/c she just has to be 100% trashed during the course of whatever show it is that she’s filming.

last night, we watched an episode of 30 minute meals while waiting for brian potts to show up (he never did) & rachael did one of her late-night, just-gonna-throw-stuff-together meals. one of the dishes was this bread gnocchi, which looked really good — good enough to try tonight!

INGREDIENTS
8 slices day old, good quality italian bread
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
salt & freshly ground black pepper
2 cups tomato sauce
3 small plum tomatoes, seeded & chopped
several fresh basil leaves, torn
2 cups shredded mozzarella, smoked mozzarella, or provolone cheese

METHOD
preheat broiler.

heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. chop bread into bite size pieces. add extra-virgin olive oil, butter & garlic to the skillet. melt butter into oil then add the bread. season the bread with salt & pepper. toss & cook the bread 7 to 8 minutes then add the tomato sauce & fresh tomatoes. turn to coat & warm the tomato sauce, 3 to 4 minutes. remove the bread gnocchi & tomatoes from heat and transfer to a casserole dish, top with basil then cover the dish with cheese. place the casserole under the broiler & cook 2 to 3 minutes, until the cheese browns & bubbles. serve immediately.

DEVIATIONS & OBSERVATIONS
since we threw it all together sort of last minute, i didn’t have any fresh basil or plum tomatoes — so, those two steps were eliminated. additionally, there’s the issue of not being able to use the oven & stove at the same time (without tripping the circuit breakers), so i wound up melting the cheese right in the pot with the sauce-covered bread chunks (as rachael did during the episode). it was ok. i left the good mozz at home, sadly, & had to work with a combination of shredded mozz & romano cheeses — not nearly as satisfying.

basically, it was one of those meals where you scour the pantry looking for a few things you can put together to eat, & it worked. daniel, sarah, & i ate it while watching Payback, & we finished it all, but ok: it’s bread in tomato sauce with cheese. like, just have a pizza, ok? seriously: if it’s that late at night & you’re that lazy, order a pizza or heat up a frozen one. pretty much the same concept.

 

 

 

“Bread ‘Gnocchi’ with Tomato & Basil” from 30 Minute Meals with Rachael Ray

an OMGSNAX! special edition

this is a special edition b/c i’ve made bruschetta approximately one bazillion times — but how could i not share?

my sister taught me this recipe after she came home from college & it’s wicked easy & really nice to eat when it’s unbearably hot out (see: this weekend) b/c it doesn’t involve anything hot, really, plus tomatoes are totally in season & i want to marry them.

i made this for my cousin jennifer (which explains the fancy-looking well-lit kitchen in the photos) while she tried to coax tyler (at 4 & a half months) to go to sleep, & by the time she got him conked out, the dinner was done.

one more thing: i took my friend cat out for her birthday a couple months ago & we had this amazing bruschetta at a restaurant on south grand called mangia italiano. instead of mozzarella & tomatoes, it was made with goat cheese & roasted red peppers, & HOLY MOSES was that good. i keep meaning to attempt it at home, but i haven’t quite worked up the nerve yet.

INGREDIENTS
1 to 1 1/2 roma tomatoes per person
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
minced garlic
fresh buffalo mozzarella
a few leaves of fresh basil, shredded
a french baguette

METHOD
slice the baguette on the diagonal into slices no more than half an inch thick. lightly brush one side with olive oil using a pastry brush, & toast in a 350-degree oven for seven to ten minutes.

finely dice the tomatoes, & mix with a splash of olive oil & a couple splashes of balsamic vinegar (i’m sorry, you really have to just eyeball it). add minced garlic to taste (i’d usually go with a clove per person) & set aside.

slice enough mozzarella to cover the number of pieces you’ve made.

top each toasted piece of bread with a slice of cheese & a heaping tablespoon (or so) of the tomato mixture. garnish with the basil.

DEVIATIONS & OBSERVATIONS
it’s pretty hard to deviate from a recipe as fluid as this, but let me just say that: daniel thinks i use way too much vinegar, & i think my sister doesn’t really use enough. i think carolyn has a pastry brush, but i usually end up drizzling the oil over the bread b/c i don’t. i prefer the bread less toasty, but most people seem to prefer the opposite. oh, & it’s REALLY important to use soft fresh mozzarella, b/c one time i used a different kind & the texture was all wrong & we were quite sad.

delicious diced tomatoes

pre-toasted baguette

sliced mozzarella

shredded basil

this barely lasted ten minutes

oh, one more thing: a serrated knife works WAY better for the cheese than anything else, unless you have an actual slicer. just trust me on this.

 

 

“Bruschetta” from carolyn.