ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

Posted in Seafood, Soups, Veggies by sallybr

And a truly amazing idea for leftovers… Read on!

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP
(adapted from Naturally Nidhi)

roasting mixture:
1 medium butternut squash , cut in half
2 tbsp walnuts
3 medium Roma tomatoes , cut into halves
1 large yellow onion, halved
2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp Herbes de Provence

soup base:
1 + 1/2 cups water
1 cup milk
salt , to taste
1/2 tsp garam masala

toppings:
roasted pumpkin seeds
sourdough croutons
grated cheese
heavy cream or thinned yogurt drops

Heat oven to 400°F.

On a large baking tray, arrange the butternut squash halves, walnuts, tomatoes, and onion halves. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle salt, black pepper, and Herbes de Provence. Roast for 45 to 50 minutes, depending on your oven, until soft. Scoop out the roasted squash. Add all the roasted ingredients to a blender, Vitamix works best.

Pour in 1½ cups water and blend until smooth. Add more water if needed. Transfer the blended puree into a pot. Add 1 cup milk first, then more as needed to adjust the consistency. Season with Garam masala, adjust salt if needed. Warm gently for a few minutes, but do not let it boil.

Pour the soup into bowls. Add toppings, decorate with drops of heavy cream or thinned yogurt. Serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This is an amazing soup, the taste is complex, warm, absolutely wonderful on a chilly evening. If you protect the walnuts under the little hole of the butternut squash, they won’t burn during the roasting time. If some are left unprotected, check after 25 minutes or so, and remove when nicely roasted but not burned.

And now for leftovers… Full credit for the husband not only for the idea but the execution. Phil grilled lobster tails and used the meat to bring the soup back to center stage. It was absolutely outstanding! I highly recommend this combination, blew my culinary mind. To decorate, I used chili oil drops. Those little tiny drops pack a punch. A nice ingredient to have around. Big thank you to Naturally Nidhi for the recipe.

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17Nov2025

VANILLA-CHAI CUPCAKES

Posted in Cake, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

A celebration of Fall in cupcake format… Decorated with tiny tuile cookies, in the shape of maple leaves.

VANILLA-CHAI CUPCAKES
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

makes 10 cupcakes

120g all-purpose flour
150g granulated sugar
50g butter, unsalted and at room temperature
1 large egg
140mL milk
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
1 tsp chai powder (or make a spice mix of your liking

Heat the oven to 350F and line a cupcake pan with paper baking cups.

Put the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and butter cut in small pieces in the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low until the butter is in very small pieces, almost like sand.

Whisk the egg with the milk, vanilla and chai powder, and add slowly to the mixer running in low-speed. Once it is almost smooth, increase the speed to high for a couple of minutes, scraping the bottom of the bowl once.

Stop the mixer and make sure the batter is fully smooth, mixing by hand with a spatula. Add batter to lined pan, filling half-way full only. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center.
Leave cool completely before decorating.

For the tuile cookies:
20g egg whites
20g melted butter
20g granulated sugar
20g all-purpose flour

Mix all ingredients and whisk well. Make sure butter is liquid but not too warm. Spread over your template, lift the template gently. Bake at 375F for 5 to 7 minutes, until fully cooked. Air-brush if you like, draw the details with a fine tip pen.

For the buttercream, use this recipe, starting with 226g of butter. Separate in two batches, dye one light brown, leave the other plain. Spoon tow lines of icing over a plastic wrap, make a little sausage and insert in a piping bag fitted with 1M tip. Ice the cookies when fully cool, add sprinkles and the tuile decorations.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: These cupcakes are wonderful for Fall, particularly if you make the maple leaf decorations. You can also use fondant or modeling chocolate with a silicone mold, but I was anxious to try my hands at the template I had sitting in my drawer for a while. I have not found it where I bought, it is out of stock, but you can see it here.

The Chai powder is a great ingredient, I’ve been using it in cookies, macarons, and now on cupcakes. Available in the place that sells it all (click here), and that I keep trying to fight against but don’t have enough will power, apparently.

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13Nov2025

CHEESY CHICKEN AND BROCCOLI BAKE

Posted in Poultry by sallybr

This is comfort food, lower-carb style. It will still leave you fully satisfied, and the best part for me, leftovers held quite well and provided me with a couple of lunches down the week.

CHEESY CHICKEN AND BROCCOLI BAKE
(inspired by Hungry Happens)

2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup cottage cheese, full-fat
1/4 cup pesto
1 tbs olive oil
4 small crowns broccoli, cut into small florets
1½ lbs chicken breasts, cubed
salt to taste
1 pint cherry tomatoes
8 oz shredded mozzarella
2 tbs grated parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 375℉.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, cottage cheese and pesto. Set aside.

Rinse the broccoli florets, drain, allowing a little of the water to stay over the surface. Season lightly with salt, place in a microwave-safe bowl, cover and steam in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes. Reserve.

In a large deep skillet, heat 1 tbs olive oil. Season the chicken pieces with salt, and sautee the chicken until golden brown, about 5 minutes.

To the cottage cheese mixture, add the tomatoes, steamed broccoli, mozzarella and chicken and toss to combine all. Transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish and spread out evenly. Sprinkle the grated parmesan on top. Bake for 35 minutes and then remove from the oven. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes then dig in…

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This is my favorite type of meal, it has everything: protein, veggies, a nice cheesy component, and plenty of flavor. As you know, I live for leftovers and they worked great in the microwave straight from the fridge. No rubbery texture in the chicken, the cottage cheese environment make it all work perfectly. This goes into our rotation for sure, I hope you give it a try!

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8Nov2025

SOUTHERN STYLE SKILLET CORNBREAD

Posted in Breakfast & Brunch, Pizzas & Small Dishes, Side dishes, Small Dishes, Vegetarian-friendly by sallybr

I made this three times in a row: easy, simple, delicious! It will shine next to a hearty bowl of chili (I highly recommend our favorite recipe, one of the oldest in this bewitched spot). This is a small version, good for 2 people with leftovers or 4 to clean the pan.

SOUTHERN STYLE SKILLET CORNBREAD
(adapted from fieldcompany)

bake in 8-inch cast iron skillet
(recipe can be doubled for larger size pan)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 large egg (whisk and eye-ball half the amount for the recipe)
1 ear of corn, kernels removed (about 1/2 cup kernels)

Turn the oven to 425F and place your seasoned cast iron skillet inside, to heat it up as you prepare the recipe.

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter gently in a microwave and set aside to cool.

In a medium size bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate small bowl, whisk the buttermilk, egg, honey, and the cooled melted butter until well combined. Add the wet ingredient mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk gently until combined, being careful not to over mix. Gently fold the corn kernels into the batter with a rubber spatula.

Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter to the skillet and swirl to evenly coat the bottom and all sides. Pour the batter into the hot, buttered skillet and use a rubber spatula to smooth the top. Return the skillet to the oven and bake until the top of the bread is lightly golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center, 15 to 18 minutes.

Allow the cornbread to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: It is recommended that you use fresh corn kernels, but the recipe works very well with frozen. Canned corn will be a bit too mushy, so I advise against using it. This is not a sweet type cornbread, even if it has a bit of honey. Cumin or chili pepper could be nice additions, if you like some heat.

We enjoyed it with a bowl of chili (recipe here) and it was truly wonderful comfort food on a Saturday evening.

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4Nov2025

INCREDIBLY SIMPLE SHRIMP AND SQUASH DINNER

Posted in Incredibly simple, Seafood, Side dishes, Veggies by sallybr

For a light version, pair the shrimp with spaghetti squash. To go for the kill, serve with a hearty helping of fettuccine… Two super easy recipes that we absolutely loved!

Let’s start with the main dish…

SAUTEED SHRIMP WITH LEMON-CAPER DRESSING
(adapted from The New York Times)

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
¼ cup lemon juice
2 very thin slices of lemon, deseeded and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped dill
1 tablespoon capers or more, coarsely chopped
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Kosher salt

to brine the shrimp (optional, but recommended)
1 qt water
1/4 cup Kosher salt
squeeze of lemon juice

Brine the shrimp by soaking in the solution for 30 to 45 minutes. Drain, rinse lightly and pat dry with a paper towel. Reserve.

In a large bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons olive oil with the lemon juice, chopped lemon, dill, and capers; set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over medium. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink and lightly browned on the edges, 3 to 4 minutes.

Transfer the shrimp to the bowl with the lemon dressing and toss to coat. The shrimp can be served right away, over pasta, rice, or any side dish you desire.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

SUPER SIMPLE SPAGHETTI SQUASH

To get the original recipe, click here

I don’t think I will ever use another method to make it. The only tricky part is slicing it, BUT if you poke a few holes with a fork around the skin and microwave it for 5 minutes, slicing is easy.

Place crosswise slices (about 1.5 inches thick) over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Remove the seeds with a spoon. Drizzle some olive oil, salt and pepper, rubbing the slices to coat slightly.

Bake at 400F for about 40 minutes, flipping the slices midway through roasting.

Use a fork to shred the squash while still warm in the pan.

Comments: The shrimp preparation is delicious, I’ve made it three times in the past month, so I highly recommend you give it a try. As to the squash, I love how each little portion is perfect for a single serving. You can do that and follow with recipes that use the squash in little muffin tins with a bit of tomato sauce, or an egg, there are countless options out there in the blogosphere and Pinterest universe. It ends up with perfect texture.

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