Lumaconi with Roasted Beets, Sweet Potatoes, Kale and Chard

Large snail shell lumaconi is wonderful to stuff with favorite filling and serve warm or at room temperature. Sometimes, leftovers become the filling. This time, some pesto with Greek yogurt and sauteed chopped spinach came together to make the filling. Served with roasted sweet potatoes and beets, this was a sumptuous meal one weeknight.

Now that it is cold and rainy, the last of the kale and chard from the garden were waiting to be used up. Am told they'll manage winter fine and keep yielding, but they seem quite sparse now.

Saute some kale, chard, garlic in olive oil with a pinch of salt, then add a splash of lemon juice and set aside. Roast the sweet potatoes and beets. Meanwhile cook the lumaconi to preferred doneness, drain, coat lightly in favorite vinaigrette.

Simply toss the roasted beets, sweet potatoes, sauteed kale and chard, with lumaconi and serve warm.

Thukpa Tibetan Noodle Soup

Soups are perfect for rainy autumn evenings, be it hearty and chunky or clear and brothy with just a hint of vegetables and noodles.

Thukpa, ubiquitous in the northern Himalayan regions, is a version of noodle soup that is always popular as it is easy to make and easy to enjoy.

Some wheat noodles and veggies come together in broth/stock, with ginger, garlic, red onion, cilantro, spring onions, carrots, spinach, and optionally chicken, simmered gently, with a touch of garam masala powder for flavor and heat.

Of course, the authentic recipes call for making wheat flour noodles as little dumplings in the soup, but I went with packaged ready-made noodles from the store... One of these days, I might try my hand at the wheat flour fresh dumpling-style noodles for Thukpa.

Slow Cooker Chicken with Vegetable Mash

Nothing extraordinary about this recipe, but I still wanted to share it here because it's one of my favorite ways to use up bits and pieces of veggies that are left over at the end of the week.

Half a zucchini, a small wedge of red cabbage, half a red onion, a bunch of celery bottoms, and half a bell pepper were waiting to be used. Simply chop them up, grind them into thick paste-like consistency, sauté to use as a starter for the curry.

Add this veggie-medley starter, some stock, cut chicken breasts, potatoes and carrots to the slow cooker and allow to simmer gently for 6 to 8 hours. Usually, I start this curry the previous night and serve it for dinner the following night.

Rub the chicken pieces with garam masala or curry powder before tossing into the slow cooker for an Indian style curry. Or rub it with achiote and adobo sauce with some cumin and oregano for a Mexican style dish. Adjust spices, herbs, seasoning to taste.

Millet and Lentil Stuffed Golden Danish Squash

I picked up a few Golden Danish/Acorn and Amber cup and Golden Kuri squashes at the farm market, hoping to make hearty roasted veggies and soups. But, the Golden Danish was perfect for stuffing and baking.

The Stuffing: 
Ingredients
1 cup millet
½ cup lentils
2½ cups stock or water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
salt to taste

Preparation:

1. Cook millet and lentils in the rice cooker, adding salt/seasonings as preferred, plus some olive oil; fluff with fork when done and keep handy
2. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and saute favorite veggies - onions, red cabbage, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, grated carrots, adding favorite seasoning - I used lemon pepper seasoning plus some garlic powder and parsley
3. Stir in the cooked, fluffed millet+lentils and adjust seasoning to taste

The Baked Golden Danish:

1. Wash and clean the skin of the squash, cut it in half, scoop out the pulp and seeds; slice off a thin portion of the squash on its curved side so it will sit flat for baking
2. Lightly brush with olive oil, sprinkle some salt, and bake in a 400 °F oven for about 30 minutes, cut side down; then flip the halves so the cut side is up, and add a dab of butter to each half and bake for another 8 to 10 minutes; turn oven off
3. Remove from oven, stuff each half with the millet+lentil filling, top with Pepperjack or Cheddar cheese, return the stuffed halves to the oven and bake for a few more minutes till cheese melts - the residual heat in the oven is plenty for this, even if the oven is off
4. When ready to serve, top with feta and chopped spring onions, serve with a wedge of lemon