Spaghetti Squash

Our friend Steve introduced me to this recipe for spaghetti squash. I’ve made a couple variations of this, and never the recipe as it is below. It’s just a really good starting point. Enjoy!



1 spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
2 t vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 c tomatoes, chopped
3/4 c crumbled feta cheese
3 t black olives, sliced
2 t fresh basil, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place spaghetti squash cut sides down on a lightly greased baking sheet, and bake 30 minutes or until a sharp knife can be inserted with only a little resistance. Remove and set aside to cool enough to be easily handled.
2. In a pan over medium heat, saute onion in oil until tender. Add garlic, and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook only until tomatoes are warm.
3. Use a large spoon to scoop the stringy pulp from the squash into a medium bowl. Toss with the sauteed vegetables, feta cheese, olives, and basil. Serve warm.

The first time I made this, I did it almost to the recipe, except I omitted the basil and went with a raw cheddar over the feta since it’s what I had. I also added a can of peas and carrots (because I was cleaning out the pantry…). It was tasty. The second time I made with chickpeas instead of black olives (and a whole lot of chickpeas at that) and parsley instead of basil and again with raw cheddar. I really liked the variation with chickpeas, the textures went well together. Chickpeas and feta cheese would probably be a perfect mix.

Black Bean "Chili" with Winter Squash

It’s winter squash season! I found a recipe for “black bean chili with winter squash” on vegetariantimes.com (link) and created my own variation. It’s more of a stew with everything than chili, although you can add some kick to make it spicy like chili.

3-4 medium potatoes
1 medium acorn or butternut squash
1 onion
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 16oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 32oz. can diced tomatoes
1 16oz. can corn, drained and rinsed
1 t ground cumin
1 t cayenne pepper
salt & pepper

1. Peel and dice potatoes. Boil until easily pierced with a knife, drain and set aside.
2. Cut squash in half, scoop out seeds, and place in a microwave-safe container with 1/4 inch of water. Cover and microwave until tender, allowing 2 to 3 minutes per squash half. Remove squash and let cool, then peel and cut into chunks.
3. In a large pan, cook onion and garlic approximately 5 minutes over medium heat. Add black beans, diced tomatoes, corn, cooked potatoes and squash chunks. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve warm.

I’ve made this once with acorn squash and once with butternut. Both are fantastic, but acorn is definitely more time consuming peeling since it’s such a weird shape. Just something to think about.

Banana Bread!

I had in the past mused about how poorly I was making banana bread. Well, after countless over-ripened bananas forced me to try various recipes I FINALLY discovered my favorite, which has become a favorite among friends and family I've shared my skill with. This recipe comes courtesy of Cathy Lowe listed on the Food Network website (link).

2 c flour
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
2 eggs
1 c sugar
4 very ripe bananas*
1 t vanilla
1/2 c vegetable oil
1 t cinnamon
1/2 c chopped walnuts, optional

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and powder, salt.
3. In a large bowl, cream together eggs and sugar. Stir in mashed bananas, vanilla, oil and cinnamon.
4. Stir in flour mixture into wet ingredients, a third at a time, until just combined.
5. Divide batter into two 9x5 loaf pans. Bake for about 1 hour.

*I have at times only used 3 large bananas without issue.
I've also added chocolate chips and/or walnuts with tasty success.

Apple Crisp

This recipe is from the Betty Crocker Cookbook (link). I think it's best when you add a handful of raisins or walnuts, but this recipe really is fool-proof and classic. Enjoy!

4 medium tart cooking apples, sliced (4 cups)
3/4 c packed brown sugar
1/2 c flour
1/2 c oats
1/3 c butter, softened
3/4 t ground cinnamon
3/4 t ground nutmeg
Cream or Ice cream (optional)

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Spread apples in 8" greased pan.
3. In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients except cream until well mixed; sprinkle over apples.
4. Bake approximately 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown and apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Serve warm with cream.

Mom's Cocoa Brownies

This recipe isn't actually mom's, but she makes them fantastically and I got the recipe from her, so the credit goes to mom. We had these in place of birthday cake for my party yesterday.

3/4 c butter, softened
3 eggs
1 1/2 t vanilla
2/3 c cocoa powder
1 1/4 c flour
1 c sugar
3/4 c packed light brown sugar
1/2 c walnuts, chopped (optional)
1 t baking powder
1/4 t salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine all ingredients and pour into 9x13 greased pan.
3. Bake 20-25 minutes, until brownies spring back when lightly touched. Do not over bake (then they're no longer gooey!).

Our Balcony Garden

With much help from my wonderful mom, Alex and I have a nice assortment of plants and vegetables on our balcony this year. Last year we had tomatoes, LOTS of them, and some herbs, including chives, parsley, dill and basil. So far this year we have tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, snap peas, a fig tree, cat nip, leaks, and herbs (parsley, chives and dill). I still would like to get some basil out there this year and once the lettuce is done mid-month I'll have an empty plater for something else.

Last year the tomatoes (and one pepper plant that didn't fruit) were in a large planter with mostly composed soil. This spring all the weeds in the composted soil started to grow and since I didn't have new tomato plant yet, I let it grow. Every time we opened the balcony door our cat, Tula, would race outside and into the planter and aggressively eat the grass. When it came time to clear it out and plant this year's crop, Tula was so angry, she jumped into the planter when I was half-way through and started chomping away. Alex tried to pull her out and she meowed like she was dying. I realized then that there was a cat nip plant growing in the weeds! NO wonder she was so drawn to this planter. I transplanted some grass and the cat nip into a cat sized pot, just for her. She nearly ate the cat nip to nothing that day. It's doing okay now and mom's provided some more plants for her entertainment. At least it keeps her from the real edible plants. =)

We have been enjoying the lettuce for about a week now, we planted it a little late. It's growing back in fast where we've harvested already, so we'll get a couple more weeks out of it. The peas will go well in a salad once they're a little bit bigger. We have tiny figs growing now too! I'm so excited mom brought me one of her trees, they are just one of my favorite summer treats! We'll also be overrun with tomatoes before we know it. I'm so excited to try some new salsa and tomato sauce recipes (posted then, of course!).

Here are some pictures of our balcony garden:


Our fig tree.


Little figs coming in!


Snap peas, hanging on!


Baby snap pea!


The peas hanging off the balcony.


Tula with her pot.

Black Bean Veggie Burgers

Yesterday I made my first attempt at homemade veggie burgers with guidance from a recipe on the Whole Foods Website (link). They came out so well, my meat-loving fiance even had seconds!! This is a quick easy recipe that allows for a lot of customization. Check it out:

1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 egg
1/2 onion, chopped
1 c bread crumbs
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried basil
1/2 t garlic powder or granules
Salt and pepper to taste
Hot sauce to taste
olive oil (for cooking)

1. Mash beans with a fork in a large bowl.
2. Add egg, onion, bread crumbs, spices and hot sauce and mix together thoroughly.
3. Form into 6 patties.
4. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat and cook patties in single layer until brown on both sides and cooked through (approx. 10min total).
5. Transfer to buns and dress as desired.

I actually didn't have an onion when I made these, so I cut celery really fine for crunch and added onion powder to the mix. I do plan on using an onion next time though! I also used some seasoned salt, pepper, oregano, chili powder and hot sauce instead of what was suggested. I went a little heavy on the hot sauce and it was pretty amazing. We dressed them with some lettuce from our balcony garden, pickle relish, ketchup and mayo. Mmm!