Roasted Kabocha Squash with Thyme and Honey

Kabocha.  Please don't peel it.  Eve only has six teeth and she can eat the skin no problem. 

My father-in-law and a group from the stores recently got back from a trip to Ireland. I haven’t had a chance to catch up with them yet but it sounds like it was the trip of a lifetime. I did see a few photos and it looks like the weather held up for them, and they were kept busy traveling around the country, seeing the sights and partaking in the local fare. Jealous as I am of their adventures, it’s tough not to enjoy the summer in Chicago, especially with little kids who are so full of spirit and energy. The rainy weather put a damper on our outdoor cooking plans for a few days so we improvised with some salads other easy to throw together meals.

Are you familiar with Kabocha squash? It’s a delicious Japanese squash that is similar to a Butternut but sweeter with a creamier texture. I usually pick one up from the Korean grocery store by my house but I've seen them at all kinds of stores, even Trader Joe's.  Perhaps the best thing about Kabocha is that you can eat the skin.  Even Japanese people eat it – which is a big deal because compared to Americans, the Japanese peel everything! Kids usually love Kabocha because it’s sweet and mild tasting. Like Butternut squash, the Kabocha is a very versatile vegetable.  Sometimes I make a Kabocha cheesecake pie instead of a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving.  It’s also good in Thai-style curries, but the most common way we eat it at my house is simply roasted.  

Greek yogurt topped with roasted Kabocha, chopped almonds and honey. A beautiful, nutritious breakfast. 

Roasted Kabocha with Thyme and Honey

1 Kabocha squash, sliced with skin left on

2 tbs fresh thyme, chopped

2 tbs honey

2 tbs olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Before mixing the slices up on the tray to make sure they are evenly coated. 

Preheat oven to 400F.

Place the Kabocha slices on a large baking sheet.

Drizzle oil and honey over the Kabocha slices and sprinkle with fresh thyme, salt and pepper.

Gently mix with your hands until all of the pieces are evenly coated.

Place baking sheet in the oven and cook for 12 minutes. Flip Kabocha slices and cook for another 12 to 20 minutes until Kabocha has softened (there should be very little resistance when poked with a toothpick or fork) and begun to caramelize.

If you are not eating this right away you can store it in the refrigerator for up to a week. 

There are so many ways to serve this. Here are some ideas:

Crostini - on brown bread with goat cheese, a drizzle of honey and sprinkled with sea salt

Breakfast - with granola, nuts or muesli and greek yogurt

Salad - with feta, arugula, Dijon vinaigrette and lentils or chicken

Dessert - as a topping for vanilla ice cream with miso caramel sauce

Enjoy! And enjoy your Holiday weekend! 

What I Would Do With a Day in Long Grove and the Best BBQ Chicken

The other night we were out to dinner with some friends and they mentioned wanting to come to Long Grove sometime to check out the town. Paul and I are always thinking and talking about Long Grove and the stores.  It’s so much a part of just being in this family that I don’t always experience Long Grove the way I should when I’m there.

We fall so easily into our routine of stopping by Paddy’s and the Boutique with the kids then heading straight to Grandpa’s.  I have to remind myself to take some time and hang out in Long Grove. A couple of weeks ago we were leaving Chocolate Fest and, in our attempt to avoid traffic, ended up driving around the residential areas of Long Grove. I never realized how beautiful it is.  I never took the time to really look. 

Next time I’m in Long Grove I plan on leaving myself a few hours to shop and just be a tourist. Here’s my short list of places that I want to check out.

The Olive Tap

The Olive Tap, which is right next to Paddy’s, is a place I’ve been shopping for years. They always have ten things I need and I love tasting all of the different oils and vinegars.

Broken Earth Winery

Long Grove has a winery.  I cannot believe I haven’t been there yet. Located in the Mill Pond Shops, they have wine, craft beer, cheese and charcuterie, live music and host special events. They have a shop, a tasting room, private event space and a really cute patio. Sounds like the perfect place to refuel after a morning of hitting the shops. 

Galena Canning Company

Ok. I just checked their website and it says that they have been open since 2014. See what I mean? I’ve looked in the windows of this store so many times but I’ve never been inside. It’s a treasure trove of sauces, dips, spreadables, seasonings and rubs, sauces and toppings. Just the place to stock my pantry.

Scout and Forge

Scout and Forge is a vintage store, full of beautifully restored pieces from jars and signs to lights and furniture. I love it! Have you ever watched the show “American Pickers”? Walking into Scout and Forge is like seeing the goods the guys on that show find, all shined up and restored.  Matt and Meg  breath new life into discarded American artifacts with a sound cleaning and conditioning, or by completely re-purposing something into a “new” unique, one-of-a-kind, quality piece. They get their hands dirty so you don’t have to.  Paul bought me a lantern from here for Christmas and it makes me so happy.

Besides planning my Long Grove itinerary, I’ve been cooking a bit, outdoors. The other night I made Kevin Gillespie's BBQ chicken, a family favorite.  I have never seen my kids eat so much protein in my life. You can find the recipe here. It’s so good.

Cauliflower “Fried Rice”

Hello there! We've had such nice weather here in Chicago. Although summer doesn’t officially start for another couple of weeks, it feels like it’s already here. We bought a giant inflatable pool for the kids and finally planted some herbs and vegetables outside. I’ve lived in the Midwest long enough that I no longer really mind winter, I even enjoy some of its comforts, but summer is still where it’s at. I’m so excited to eat most of our meals outside and to pack picnic dinners for the park this year.  

Also, I LOVE our house in the summer. It’s hard to explain, but the layout makes it almost feel like you are outside when the windows are open. The house has old bones but it was redone before we bought it in 2012.  Now, instead of the traditional bungalow style with several individual rooms on the ground floor, it’s all open.  It’s breezy and bright, and usually full of the sounds of little ones going back and forth from the yard - all covered in sand and water.  Naturally, all of this makes it easier to enjoy cooking inside, even when it’s beautiful out there.

Recently, I made this delicious, yet almost embarrassingly healthy meal for myself.

It was a combination of prepared fish and vegetables that I bought at the Korean grocery store and a new creation, one that I will make again and again.  Cauliflower “fried rice”.  Truthfully, I wasn’t trying to be so virtuous. This recipe was born out of necessity.

I was all set with my prepared foods from the Korean store and some brown rice in the rice cooker.  I  chopped up a shallot, some garlic and green onion to make a quick fried rice when, 40 minutes later, the rice was still cooking and I was STARVING. I had some frozen riced cauliflower from Trader Joe’s in the freezer so I grabbed that and a frying pan, and got to work. Within about five minutes I had this lovely “fried rice” and my brown rice was still nowhere near ready.  

I could eat this stuff with an egg on it for breakfast, in a salad, with some Japanese curry (yum!), or Vietnamese pork chops, even meatballs and sauce.  It's unbelievably versatile.  

Here’s how you do it.

Cauliflower “Fried Rice”

Serves 4

1 tsp vegetable oil

1 tsp sesame oil

3 heads of garlic, minced

1 shallot, minced

3 green onions, chopped

Salt to taste

1 bag of riced cauliflower*, defrosted and drained if frozen

1 cup peas, defrosted and drained if frozen (I usually just run hot water over them to defrost)

*You can buy this either fresh or frozen at Trader Joe’s.  You can also make it yourself by taking a head of cauliflower and blitzing it in your food processor until the pieces approximate the size of grains of rice.

Heat oils over medium high heat in large pan. Add riced cauliflower and saute about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and shallot and cook about 2 minutes.  Add peas and saute until warmed through, about 1-2 more minutes. Add salt to taste.  Voila! That’s it.

Now go outside and play!