Chocolate Chip PUMPKIN Cookies

It's Fall and everyone is obsessing over pumpkin.  Every time I walk into Trader Joe's, I'm bombarded by the displays of delicious pumpkin everything.  Now that it's mid-October, I'm was being to feel left out of the fun since I had yet to bake/make anything pumpkin.

Luckily, I have a little niece in need of a Halloween care package.   So I'm making these, making a card, and I got some Halloween stickers to send her.  Working on achieving favorite aunt status. ;-)

These cookies have a whole can of pumpkin in them!  So you don't have to worry about using the remainder of the can, which is neat and tidy.  I didn't want them to be super cakey though, which is why I used the egg yolks instead of only whole eggs (Full disclosure: I actually had planned on using ONLY yolks, but forgot and dropped the whole first egg in.  These turned out well, so it works.  Feel free to try with just three yolks though and see how that turns out!)

I wanted to make these as "real"/natural as possible but didn't really care about skimping on fat and sugar.  You can definitely sub in regular sugar and all-purpose flour.  If you don't have coconut oil, I think some sort of shortening would be best, texture wise, but you can also just use another 1/2 butter.

What you need:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 1/2 cup organic cane sugar

1 egg

2 egg yolks

1 teaspoon vanilla (or amaretto or whatever sweet liquor you have hanging around... that's what I do when I don't have vanilla or just want to mix up the flavor.  Today was triple sec because I had no other options in the apartment

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin 

3 cups white whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cream the butter, coconut oil, and sugar together in a mixing bowl.  Add the egg, egg yolks, vanilla, and pumpkin.  Mix well. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Mix and then add the chocolate chips.  Drop by large tablespoons on a lightly greased baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  The very middle of the top should still be slightly wet looking.  It'll dry out as it cools.  Enjoy!

Simple Pumpkin Soup (Crock-Pot)

There's no roasting or sauteing prior to putting this is in the Crock-Pot... it's super simple and you don't need to dirty an extra pan.

I made this to go with teriyaki salmon (not posting the recipe because I was in a hurry and really don't know what I did to make the teriyaki sauce). On top is a drizzle of Sriracha hot sauce and dot of my new favorite dipping sauce for fish, chicken, or...anything.  See at the end of this post for details.

What you need:

1/2 pound fresh pumpkin, skin and seeds removed and cut into 1-2 inch chunks (or use some canned pumpkin for this... I actually did a some of each because that's what I had)
1 medium carrot, cut into 1/2 inch slices and halved
1 medium onion, chopped roughly
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped roughly
2 small hot peppers (optional), stems removed
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups Silk coconut milk (the refrigerated stuff... or just use regular low-fat milk)
1/2 cup coconut milk from a can
1 tablespoon Ketjap Manis Marinade (Thai version)
1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce
Garlic-ginger puree/paste (or a bit each of garlic and ginger powder, but you may need extra salt or soy sauce in this case, because the puree or paste is usually a bit salty)

Put pumpkin, carrot, onion, bell pepper, hot peppers, and chicken broth in slow cooker.  Cook on high until everything is soft, which should be 4-5 hours.  Add milks, Ketjap Manis, fish sauce, and garlic-ginger puree/paste.   Puree everything with an immersion blender.  Enjoy!

UPDATE:

Just made this again with a few little changes... it was equally delicious, but slightly different flavored.  I used only the fresh pumpkin this time, subbed a yellow summer squash in for the bell pepper, and omitted the Ketjap Manis Marinade and garlic-ginger puree, but added two chipotle peppers.  It has a bit of a kick, so if you don't like spicy, use less chipotle or maybe omit the two hot peppers.  Yum!



Awesome Sauce (to use on top of this soup or on anything else):

1/2 cup each low-fat yogurt and fat-free cream cheese
1/4 low-fat mayonnaise
2 teaspoons + Sriracha hot sauce (I go with a tablespoon or more, but I like it spicy)
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix well.  Done!

Chipotle Vegetable Soup

Mmm... I love pureed soups.  And nice autumny ones like this help me feel more like it's Fall, even though it doesn't seem like it here in the Caribbean.  This came about because I had certain things that needed to be used up in the fridge, the vegetable mixture is a little random.  I'm sure variations depending on what you have in your vegetable drawer would work as well.  

I served this with Pan-Seared Red Snapper and garlic bread for Rob.

What you need:
1 pound fresh pumpkin
1 large carrot
olive oil spray
salt and pepper
1 medium onion, chopped roughly
1 head of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
3 stalks of celery, sliced
1 yellow or red bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2-3 canned chipotle peppers plus a little of the adobo sauce (I used 2, but was torn between wanting more.  The flavor definitely came through with two, but 3 would have added some nice heat)
3 cups broth of choice (I used seafood in this because I was serving it with fish and had concentrated seafood broth packets that I wanted to try... but normally I'd use chicken)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 spicy V-8 juice (or tomato juice)
2 cups Silk Coconut Milk (or regular milk- I like this because it is slightly sweet which is nice with the pumpkin, and tastes richer than skim milk, which has comparable calories)
3-4 tablespoons fat-free cream cheese
1-2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
goat cheese and red pepper flakes


Start by roasting the pumpkin and carrot.  This can be done ahead of time if you want.  Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cut pumpkin into VERY rough chunks (maybe a few inches across) and the carrot into smaller rough chunks (about 1 inch pieces).  Spray a baking sheet with olive oil and spread the pumpkin and carrot across it.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Spray again with oil and then roast for about an hour, or until cooked through.  Set aside (or refrigerate until ready to use if doing this a while ahead).

Now for the rest of the soup: Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pot.  Add onions, celery, garlic, and bell pepper.  Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and just slightly beginning to brown.  Add in the roasted pumpkin and carrot, the broth, the soy sauce, and the spicy V-8.  Bring to a boil and then lower heat to medium-low and cover with a lid.  Let simmer for 20 minutes.  Add the milk, cream cheese, and apple cider vinegar.  Use an immersion blender to puree.  At this point, you may want to add more salt and pepper... I did (but I like salty and peppery).

Serve with a little crumbled goat cheese and red pepper flakes on top.  Enjoy!

Pumpkin and Butternut Squash Soup

Pretending that it's Fall even though it never feels that way on Saba.  I was going to make a purely pumpkin soup, but they didn't have the fresh pumpkin in the grocery stores that they usually have.  However, they did actually have butternut squash, which is a rarity.  So I got that and a can of pumpkin and made do.  The results were pretty great and I didn't miss the fresh pumpkin at all.  Try serving it with croutons (I made some homemade ones) and maybe a little goat cheese.

What you need:

1 medium/large butternut squash

Olive oil spray

Salt and pepper

1 medium/large onion, chopped

1 leek, white part only, chopped

2 small/medium apples, cored and chopped, peeling optional (it all gets blended in the end, and the peel is healthy, and less work!)

5 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin

4 cups chicken broth

4 cups Silk coconut milk (not the regular canned kind.. that would make this really high fat and creamy- though probably delicious, so I go for it if you aren't concerned about the fat) OR try regular skim/ 1% milk or maybe almond milk

Start with roasting the squash:

Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Slice squash in half lengthwise, scoop out seeds, spray with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and place cut-side down on a baking sheet.  Roast for 40 minutes to an hour, or until it is cooked thoroughly (easily pierced by a fork).  Remove from oven and let cool until you can remove its skin.

For the rest of the soup:

Spray a large pot with olive oil.  Heat over medium and add the onion, leek, apple, and garlic.  Sprinkle in a little salt to get things going.  Cook until softened and just slightly browned.  Add in the roasted squash and can of pumpkin.  Stir and let brown just SLIGHTLY.  Add in the chicken broth and let simmer over low heat for 30 minutes.  Turn heat off, add in the milk and puree with an immersion blender until smooth.  Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.  Annnnnnd, that's it!  Pretty simple to make and super tasty!  Enjoy!

Borscht in the Slow Cooker

Delicious, beautiful, and chock full of nutrients.  This made a nice light supper in combination with a bit of leftover crab dip I needed to use up.  And the next night, we ate the borscht leftovers as a side to steak.  

This isn't a terribly authentic borscht recipe, but it's healthy, tasty, and easy to make, so who cares?  Enjoy!

What you need:

3-4 medium beets, thoroughly washed, ends trimmed off, and cut into rough chunks

1-1.5 cups chopped fresh pumpkin or winter squash (really I was just trying to use this up- you could substitute with carrots, which is what I saw in different recipes I looked at before making this)

1 apple, cored and cut into rough chunks

1 leek stalk, roughly chopped

1 celery stalk, roughly chopped

1/2-1 full head garlic, cloves peeled

3 packets beef seasoning or bouillon cubes (I used Swanson Flavor Boost, concentrated broth)

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

4 slices turkey bacon

Some sort of creamy topping*(sour cream is traditional, but see below for my healthier choice)

Dump the beets, pumpkin (or winter squash or carrots), apple, leek, celery, and garlic into the crockpot.  Saute the onion and bacon in a lightly greased (I use olive oil spray) frying pan and season with a little salt and pepper.  Once browned, add a half cup of water to the pan and scrape around with a spatula to loosen any browned stuff at the bottom of the pan (adds flavor).  Stir in the beef seasoning.  Pour this over the vegetables in the pot.  Cook on high for 3 hours, or until all vegetables are tender.  Use an immersion blender to puree it all up.  Season with additional salt, pepper, or garlic powder if necessary.  Enjoy!

Cottage Cheese and Roasted Garlic Topping:

3/4 cup cottage cheese (I used 1%)

1/4-1/2 cup fat free Greek or plain yogurt

2 whole heads of roasted garlic (cut the tops off, spray with olive oil, season with a little salt and roast at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-30 minutes, or until soft)

1/2-1 teaspoon black pepper

fresh or dried parsley

salt (if necessary)

Blend everything together in the blender.  Done!

Speedy Pork and Pumpkin Curry

I got home at 5:45.  This was on the table by 6:15.  Yep, it's that quick.  And REALLY good.  And pretty healthy.  And it makes a lot, so you'll have leftovers for when you really don't have time to cook.  What more can you ask for?

I served it with some of my leftover vegetable salad, leftover cooked rice, and pita bread.   Without convenient leftovers, you'd still have time to cook up some rice while the curry is cooking and maybe roast a quick pan of asparagus or make green salad.  

What you need:

1/4 cup curry paste (I used Patak's mild curry)

2 teaspoons coriander powder

1 teaspoon chili powder (optional)

1 teaspoon black pepper

2-3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger

3 tablespoons minced garlic (or substitute garlic powder)

1/2 cup chopped onion

3-5 dried hot red Thai peppers

1 package (with the 2 tenderloins, each 3/4-1 pound) pork tenderloin, chopped into 1 inch chunks 

2 tablespoons Ketjap Manis

1 cup coconut milk

1-2 cups milk, water, or something along those lines (I used a light soy milk to cut calories and I also sometimes use unsweetened almond milk in things like this.  If you are not watching calories too carefully, you could also just use more coconut milk for a richer version.)

1/4-1/3 tomato sauce or ketchup 

Start by heating a large pot over medium-high heat.  Add the curry paste, coriander, chili powder, black pepper, ginger, garlic, onion, and red peppers and let cook for a few minutes.  The mixture should become fragrant and slightly browned.  Add the pork and let this brown for a few more minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the pumpkin and continue to stir-fry.  If the mixture is too dry and starting to stick too much, go ahead and add the Ketjap Manis and a splash of water to help it along.  Once the pumpkin is slightly browned and beginning to soften, add the coconut milk, the Ketjap Manis (if you haven't already), the milk/ water, and the tomato sauce.  Reduce heat and let simmer until both the pumpkin and pork are cooked through (the pork can be just slightly pink in the middle.  Taste test and add a bit more Ketjap Manis, garlic powder, or even some regular curry powder if you find it lacking. 

Enjoy!

Thai Pumpkin Curry (Sauce or Soup)

I made this as a sauce for the Slow-Roasted Salmon I posted, but it could also serve as a thick soup as a light main course (or poured over a salad of lettuce, tomato, and cucumber, which is what I ate for lunch the next day after the salmon).  

The first step to this recipe is roasting some vegetables.  This can be done ahead of time and the roasted vegetables can be kept in the fridge until you're ready to make the rest of it.

Roasted Vegetables:

3 cups chopped fresh pumpkin (about 1 and a half inch square pieces)

1 large carrot, chopped into 1 inch slices

1 medium-large onion, quartered

4-6 small green Thai hot peppers

Salt and pepper OR curry powder

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray a 13 x 9 pan with olive oil and spread the vegetables across it.  Spray them again and season with salt and pepper OR curry powder.  Roast vegetables until soft and slightly browned.  You may need to take the peppers out early so that they don't get too crispy.  Set vegetables aside while you start the rest of the curry.

What You Need For the Curry:

3 Tablespoons chopped fresh ginger 

Couple of cloves minced garlic (or more)

2-3 Tablespoons Thai Red Curry Paste

1 teaspoon EACH Garam Masala and ground Coriander

1/2 can coconut milk

Ketjap Manis OR Soy Sauce

2 teaspoons fish sauce

1 cup Milk

Roasted Vegetables (from above instructions)

2-4 dried Thai hot peppers

1 teaspoon Kaffir Lime Leaves

1 can minced clams, NOT drained

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup sliced red peppers.

Start by skimming off a glob of the thick coconut cream from the top of the coconut milk can.  Add this to a large greased pot along with the ginger, garlic, curry paste, garam masala, and coriander.  Fry these together until the spices become fragrant and have browned slightly.  Add in the rest of the coconut milk (altogether using half of the can), a couple splashes of Ketjap Manis or soy sauce, the fish sauce, milk, roasted vegetables. and dried hot peppers.  Let simmer for a bit (maybe 5-10 minutes), then use an immersion blender to puree everything.  Add some water if necessary.  Add the Kaffir lime leaves, can of clams, the mushrooms, and red peppers (and possibly more water, depending on how thick you want it).  Let simmer for another 5-10 minutes.  You also may want to add a bit more Katjap Manis, fish sauce, or some garlic powder after a taste test.

Enjoy on its own or as a sauce for the salmon! 

Pumpkin Coconut (and lots of veggies) Chicken Curry

I just finished eating this, and am trying to do this post as soon as possible to try to get things accurate.  Even so, this post is going to be a lot of estimation and open to a lot of personal interpretation.  Also, I'm still sweating from eating it, so if you don't like spicy, you'll want to cut the heat.

What you need:

1 pound of chicken cutlets of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and Pepper
Olive oil spray
Splash of white wine
1 large onion
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
3 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2- 2/3 cup roughly chopped Fresno peppers or jalapeno peppers (reduce this or use milder peppers to cut back on the heat)
1-2 teaspoons soy sauce or Ketjap Manis
2 tablespoons red curry paste
1 medium eggplant, cut into 1 inch chunks
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch chunks
3/4 cup to 1 cup cooked pumpkin (I used canned because that's what I had)
1/2-1 cup coconut milk
1 can chicken broth (or equivalent water and chicken bouillon)
1 can diced or stewed tomatoes


Start by cutting the chicken into 1 and a half inch chunks.  Toss in a bowl with salt, pepper, and garlic powder (I used about a teaspoon of salt, a couple teaspoons of pepper, and a couple teaspoons garlic powder).  Heat a large pot greased with the olive oil spray on high.  Throw chicken in the pan and sear, stirring every couple of minutes to make sure all sides are browned.  Toss a splash of wine in the pan to loosen up the browned stuff at the bottom of the pot.  Dump chicken into a bowl (it does not need to be cooked through at this point, just browned).  Place pot back on stove, grease again, and add the onion, ginger, garlic, hot peppers, eggplant, soy sauce, and curry paste.  Saute until slightly browned and slightly softened, then add the bell pepper and the chicken.  After a couple minutes, add the coconut milk, pumpkin, chicken broth, and tomatoes.  Reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

After tasting, if you think it needs something more, try fish sauce, more soy sauce or Ketjap Manis, or some Sambal Badjak (type of chili-based sauce used in Indonesian cooking).

I served it over a bed of lettuce for me and rice for my boyfriend.  Topped it off with a cilantro-mint sauce I made.  Yum!

Pumpkin Pork Chops

I needed to use up some extra pumpkin and came up with this.  Delicious!

What you need:

2 pounds bone-in pork chops (or boneless, we just don't have those here)

Salt and Pepper

1 cup chopped onion

3-4 hot peppers, chopped (something moderately spicy, or else use less)

2 chipotle peppers in adobe sauce, chopped

4 cups pureed roasted pumpkin (see how to roast pumpkin under my Curry Pumpkin Soup post)

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 cup hot water with 4 chicken bouillon dissolved into it

1-2 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons honey

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon sage

2 teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

Start by sprinkling the pork chops with salt and pepper and then searing in a large frying pan on both sides until lightly browned.  Remove from pan and set aside.  Spray the same pan with oil and saute the onions and the peppers until softened and browned.  Add a splash of soy sauce as you do this to help them cook.  Next, add the pumpkin, applesauce, water, rest of the soy sauce, vinegar, honey, and spices.  Stir to mix.  Now put the pork chops back into the pan, spooning the sauce over them until they are covered.  Reduce heat and let simmer for 20-25 minutes, occassionally moving the chops around to ensure even cooking and prevent things from sticking to the bottom of the pan.  Top with some chopped green onions.  

You could serve this over rice or do it my style- over a bed of lettuce.  Enjoy!

Curry Pumpkin Soup

A thick and spicy pumpkin soup for colder weather.

What you need:

3/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 finely chopped ginger

3-4 chopped hot peppers (I'm not sure what variety mine were, but they probably comparable to jalapenos on the spiciness level)

1.75 ounces red curry paste (this is the amount that came in the packet I bought- probably 2 tablespoons.  My soup was pretty spicy, so you may want to use less)

1/2-1 3/4 cup coconut milk, depending on how creamy you want it.  I didn't use much because I was trying to keep it light, but I added a bit more to a small bowl later to see the difference and would say that using more does taste better and also cuts the spiciness.

5 cups roasted fresh pumpkin, pureed (see note below on roasting pumpkin)

4 cups of chicken broth or 4 chicken bullion and 4 cups water

2 teaspoons soy sauce

Greek Yogurt, Goat Cheese, Cilantro, and Roasted Pumpkin Seeds (garnish)

Saute the onion, ginger, and hot peppers in a skillet sprayed with oil until slightly browned and softened.  Add the red curry paste and mix in, allowing the spices the brown slightly before adding the coconut milk.  If you are not sure how much to use, just start with a little right now, and add more after the soup is about done if you think it needs it.  Add the pumpkin, chicken broth, and soy sauce.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.  You may need to add more water during this if it becomes too thick.

After it is finished, you can puree everything if you want a completely smooth soup.  I didn't, and thought that the chunks of pepper, onion, and ginger were nice to come across.

Serve with a dollop of the yogurt or cheese, cilantro and pumpkin seeds.  Enjoy!

Roasting Pumpkin:

Cut your baking pumpkin (not the same as the type you make jack-o-lanterns out of) in half if it is small, or quarters if it is larger.  Scrape out the messy inside, saving the seeds if you have plans to roast them.  Spray the inside with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place on baking sheet and roast at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour or until soft and cooked through.  Let cool before pureeing.

Swiss Chard and Pumpkin Soup

A healthy, filling soup that is perfect for fall (even though I'm not experiencing that on Saba anyway).

What you need:
3-4 cups Homemade Chicken Stock (I made mine by simmering water, celery, onion, and garlic with the chicken carcass from a chicken that I roasted)
Cooking Spray or Olive Oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 small hot peppers, chopped
1 small bunch of swiss chard, chopped- stems separated from leaves
Salt
2-3 cups of cooked pumpkin (I used fresh, you could also use canned)
2 teaspoons EACH black pepper, coriander, cumin, and chili powder
2 tablespoons garlic powder

Saute the onion, peppers, and swiss chard stems in cooking spray or a bit of olive oil.  Add a pinch of salt here to help them cook.  When they have softened and browned slightly, add the leaves from the swiss chard and a spash of chicken broth.  Add the spice.  Continue sauteing until leaves have completely wilted.  Add the pumpkin and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for 45 minutes to an hour.  If too much liquid is lost in this process, add a bit of water.

I was orginally going to make this a pureed soup, but decided I liked it all chunky.  You could try pureeing though if you like those types of soup.  Serve hot or cold.