All posts by Rebecca Harrold

Butternut Squash Loaf

We grew some hefty Butternut Squash this summer. Six of the squashes topped 6 lbs. All of that delicious squash couldn’t be wasted! We cooked some up into a soup and then began the process of storing the rest. We froze both roasted, pureed squash and cubed squash. We also pressure canned eight quart jars.

Grandma presented me with a recipe for Pumpkin Loaf and I’ve seen recipes with pumpkin and Butternut Squash substituted for each other. Why not try baking with Butternut Squash? I grated the squash and used it in place of pumpkin in the recipe (see below).

The result was a dense, moist loaf that tasted delicious on its own or topped with butter. My girls preferred to spread strawberry butter on their pieces. Although the loaf was more on the savory than the sweet side, I consider it a success since the little ones pulled it out and snacked on it without me trying to sell it to them first. I think I’ll use this recipe as a seasonal treat and pull it out again next October when the garden offers up its plump, delicious Butternuts.

I’m not sure where Grandma first found this recipe, but I’ll pass it along if you want to try it too. Enjoy!

Prep Time: 15 min.
Total Time: 1 hr  30 min.
Makes: 1 loaf

Ingredients

½ cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
⅓ cup water
1 cup grated Butternut Squash
1¾  flour
1½ cup sugar
¾ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350℉.

In a large bowl, mix together the oil, eggs, water and squash. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and spices. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and stir well to combine. Pour the mixture into a greased loaf pan.

Bake for 75 to 80 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out dry. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan and allowing to cool on a wire rack.

Dad’s Quick EggNog

The same daughter who has a taste for sage, also has a taste for eggnog – not the store-bought kind. Oh no, she likes it freshly made on the stove and served hot. Thankfully, we have a ready supply of fresh eggs for experimenting with and a Dad who likes to cook up tasty creations. Lucky for her and her siblings, Dad can whip up a quick batch of eggnog anytime of the year… even months after eggnog cartons disappear from the grocery store shelves.

Dad likes to up the fun factor of eggnog by serving it with cinnamon sticks so the little ones can use them as straws to slurp up their warm eggnog. We wash these “straws” for future eggnog slurping. If not, we’d be going through cinnamon sticks at too wasteful a rate. We like to enjoy our eggnog during the cold, dark evenings of winter; the tastes of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves just seem to fit that somber atmosphere.

Ingredients

4 cups milk
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
4 whole cloves
½ tsp vanilla extract
¼ almond extract
¼ cup sugar
3 egg yolks
Cinnamon sticks (optional)

Pour milk into medium-sized saucepan and begin to warm over medium heat. Add the spices to the saucepan and steep for 5 – 10 minutes to blend the flavours, stirring regularly.

In a separate measuring cup, mix ¼ cup sugar with 3 egg yolks. Temper this sugar-egg mix by slowly adding 4 ladlefuls of warmed, steeped milk and whisking constantly*.

Add this tempered egg mixture to the saucepan and whisk constantly until combined. Allow to sit and thicken for 2 minutes.

Serve with cinnamon straws (or not) and enjoy.    

*You want to temper the eggs so it will combine smoothly into your steamed milk. By slowly adding a small amount of warmed milk, and whisking it with the egg, you’ll gradually warm the egg mixture until it is steamy and ready to be added to the warmed saucepan. Failing to temper properly will result in clumps of unappetizing egg floating in your beverage. 

Sage and Brown Butter Soufflé

One of our daughters has a real love of fresh sage. She will go to the garden, pluck a handful of sage and come in with a fragrant bouquet and ask us to make her something. If we can’t fit the sage into our meal, she’ll ask for us to fry it in brown butter and will then eat the crispy, butter-fried leaves as if they were potato chips.

On one occasion Dad responded to her request by pulling out an egg carton and creating a new dish. The result was an airy, sage infused soufflé. A single soufflé was enough to feed our family of 5.


Sage and Brown Butter Soufflé 

The following will fill a 12 inch fry pan. If you wish, you can add slices of pre-cooked chorizo, bacon, or peameal bacon. You can also toss in some vegetables – be careful with water-filled vegetables, like tomatoes, that can add too much moisture.

Prep Time: 15 min.
Total Time: 35 min.
Makes: 8 servings

Ingredients

2 Tbsp butter
10 sage leaves, fresh
1 cup milk
3 Tbsp flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
⅛ – ¼ tsp Worcestershire Sauce
½ – 1 cup salsa
6 eggs
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

In a 12 inch frying pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the sage leaves and cook for 4-5 minutes or until the butter is brown and bubbling.

Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, add the milk, flour, baking soda, salt, Worcestershire Sauce, salsa, and eggs and whisk to combine. Pour mixture into the pan with the sage and brown butter. If you wish to add any other veggies or pre-cooked sausage or bacon, put them in now. Turn heat to medium low and place a lid over the pan. Continue to cook for 10-12 minutes

Preheat broiler to 400℉. Before placing the pan under the broiler, remove lid and sprinkle liberally with parmesan cheese. Cook, uncovered, until cheese browns and eggs are firm, about 3-5 minutes.

Let site a few minutes to cool, then serve and enjoy while still warm. We “slice” our soufflé in the pan with a plastic flipper and then lift them out of the pan and onto the plates.