Black and Orange

In keeping with the Halloween spirit, our theme for October will be black and orange food. Cooking club will be October 14th instead of the 9th at my house. I'll email directions later.

Appetizer: Marie (Pumpkin Dip)
Salad: Jenny (Watercress and Orange Salad)
Main: Kelsey (Penne with Pumpkin Cream Sauce)
Side: Alma (Black and Orange Pasta)
Side: Jeri (Butternut Squash Soup)
Side: Sarah (Black Bean Lettuce Wraps)
Side: Kristen (Sweet Mashed Potatoes)
Dessert: Hannah (Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars with Maple Cream)
Dessert: Lindsey (Pumpkin Pie)


Butternut Squash & Roasted Garlic Bisque
2 whole heads of garlic, halved crosswise
1 t olive oil
¼ c butter
3 c chopped onion
¾ c chopped carrots
½ c chopped celery
4 lbs butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 1" pieces
6 c chicken broth
3 T fresh sage
1/2 c + 1 T heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350º. Rub cut surfaces of garlic with oil. Put halves back together to resemble heads. Wrap each tightly in foil. Bake until tender - about 40 min. Let garlic cool in foil. Mix butter in heave large pot over medium heat. Add onions, carrots and celery; sauté until onions begin to soften – about 5 min. Add squash, broth and 2 T sage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer uncovered until squash is tender – about 25 min. Meanwhile, unwrap garlic. Squeeze from skins into small bowl and discard skins. Mash garlic w/ fork until smooth. Stir garlic into soup. Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return to pot. (Can be made 1 day ahead.) Refrigerate uncovered until cold. Cover and keep chilled. Bring to simmer before continuing.) Stir in ½ c cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer soup to tureen. Drizzle w/ remaining tablespoon of cream. Sprinkle w/ remaining teaspoon of sage.


Watercress and Orange Salad (food and wine mag)
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
1 small garlic clove, chopped
1/2 teaspoon chopped rosemary
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 navel oranges
2 large bunches of watercress, thick stems discarded
2 Belgian endives—halved, cored and thinly sliced lengthwise
1 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced

1. Coarsely chop 1/4 cup of the olives and transfer them to a small bowl. In a mini processor, pulse the remaining 1/4 cup of olives with the garlic and rosemary until the olives are chopped. Add the vinegar and pulse twice to combine; add to the chopped olives in the bowl. Whisk in the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2. Using a sharp knife, peel the oranges, removing all of the bitter white pith. Working over a bowl, cut in between the membranes to release the orange sections into the bowl; drain the juice and reserve for another use. Add the watercress, endives, parsley and onion. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss well. Season with salt and pepper and serve at once.


Black and Orange Pasta
12 oz package of black spaghetti (I got mine from Target.) --Prepare according to directions
1/2 C oil
7 cloves garlic
pinch red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
1 lb shrimp
fresh parsley

1) Heat oil on low heat.
2) Add minced garlic, red pepper, and salt; heat until garlic turns golden but is not brown, about 15 minutes.
3) Add shrimp, stir fry for 2 minutes or until shrimp is pink and opaque. (I cheated and just used thawed pre-cooked shrimp.)
4) Add oil sauce to spaghetti, add parsley, mix.

Creamy Pumpkin Dip
1 (15oz) can pumpkin puree
2 (8oz) pkgs. cream cheese
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp. pumpkin spice

Beat pumpkin and cream cheese until smooth. Add and beat in powdered sugar and spice. Serve with cookies, graham crackers or apples.


Sweet Mashed Potatoes
4-5 Large sweet potatoes- peeled
1 pkg. neufechel cheese (right next to the cream cheese)
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt

Boil sweet potatoes until fully cooked (do not use too much water). Smash potatoes while gradually adding cubes of cheese. Add salt and before adding the brown sugar- taste to see how sweet it already is and then add accordingly.


Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
16-oz pkg pound cake mix
3 eggs, divided
2 T. butter or margarine, melted
3-4 tsp pumpkin pie spice, divided
8-oz pkg cream cheese, softened
14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
16-oz can pumpkin
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

In large bowl, combine cake mix, one egg, butter and 1-2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (to taste). Mix until crumbly. Press into bottom of jelly roll pan. In same bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat sweetened condensed milk, pumpkin, salt, remaining eggs, 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice and vanilla. Mix well. Pour over crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Cook and refridgerate before serving.
NOTE: Elevate this very simple treat to and elegant dessert by drizzling with maple cream. Top with whipped cream and toasted chopped pecans.

Maple Cream
Combine 2 parts heavy whipping cream to 1 part pure maple syrup in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to very low. Simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently for 30-40 minutes, or until it is reduced by half. Cook and store in fridge.

Cilantro, Chicken, and Black Bean Salad
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (11-ounce) Mexican-style corn, drained
1 medium red pepper, cut in thin strips
1/2 cup chopped green onions
4 cups lettuce, torn (romaine, red leaf, green leaf, or iceberg)
1½ cups cooked or grilled chicken, cut into strips
Dressing
1 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1½ teaspoons sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon salt, optional
¼ teaspoon pepper
In a large salad bowl, combine black beans, corn, red pepper, green onions, and chicken.
Combine oil, lime juice, cilantro, sugar, garlic, chili powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Whisk or mix to blend. Pour dressing over bean mixture. Place lettuce on individual plates or a large serving platter. Put bean and chicken mixture on top of lettuce.
Serves 6

Caramel Pumpkin Pie
From Baking: My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan

1 9-inch pie crust, partially baked and cooled (I used one from the freezer section to make it simple)

1 cup sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons dark rum, cognac, or apple cider
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
tiny pinch of ground allspice
pinch of salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs

Lightly sweetened whipped cream, for serving

Getting Ready: Center a rack in teh oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the pie plate on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the sugar evenly over the bottom of a large nonstick skillet. Place the skillet over medium-high heat and staying close by, cook until the sugar melts and starts to color. Once you see a little color, gently swirl the skillet so that the sugar colors evenly. Cook the sugar, without stirring, until it turns deep amber--almost mahogany. The sugar will bubble up and foam and soon it will start to smoke. It is very dramatic, and it might make you think you've gone too far, but you want a dark (though not burned black) color; the darker the sugar, the fuller the flavor. When the bubble shave gone from foamy to big and fat, you will probably have reached the right color. To check the color, drop a bit of the caramelized sugar on a white plate.

Lower the heat to medium, stand back and pour the cream into the skillet. The sugar will bubble and hiss and, if the cream was cold, it may even clump. Just continue to cook, stirring, and it will even out. Add the rum (or cider) and butter and cook just until the caramel is smooth. Pour the caramel into a heatproof pitcher or bowl and cool it for about 15 minutes.

Working with a whisk in a large bowl, beat the pumpkin to break it up and smooth it. Add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and beat to blend. Whisk in the spices, salt, vanilla and eggs, beating until the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the caramel. Rap the bowl against the counter a few times to de-bubble the filling, then pour the filing into the crust.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the filling is puffed and set--tap the pan gently and the filling won't jiggle. A thin knife inserted into the center of the pie will come out clean--it also leave a gash in the filling, but you'll be covering it with whipped cream.

Transfer the pie to a rack and cool to room temperature, or cool and refrigerate. When you are ready to serve, spread teh lightly whipped cream over the top of the pie. If you'd like a dressier look, w hip the cream until it is firm, put it into a piping bag fitted with a start tip adn pipe rosettes over the surface of the pie. Alternatively, you can pipe the cream in a lattice pattern.

Playing Around: Streuseled Caramel Pumpkin Pie (this is how I made it for cooking club)

To add a little crunch to this dessert, bake the pie for 10 minutes, then scatter chunks of pecan streusel over the top and finish baking.

Pecan Streusel

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons chopped pecans
2 tablespoons cold butter

Mix until crumbly. Refrigerate until ready to use.