Pumpkin soup is a popular dish in Jamaica, often prepared rustically, with chunks of pumpkin, chayote and okra, spicy with scotch bonnet peppers, and perhaps even a chicken foot or two! But the pumpkin soup we fell in love with was smooth, creamy and scented with thyme. It was such a favorite of my husband’s that I experimented at home so we could have it at any time.

The last few Thanksgivings have been a bit different for us, as they have been for many others. Since we aren’t accommodating the schedules of children or out of state guests, the meal has evolved into a day long eat-a-thon! We always start with “snacks”, as the charcuterie board has come to be known, accompanied by kir royale cocktails. Without anyone in a rush to get somewhere else, we have added a pumpkin course before the main event. This is usually either pumpkin ricotta gnocchi or pumpkin soup.

It makes a perfect Fall meal with the addition of good, crusty bread and some cheese, or an excellent first course for Thanksgiving dinner!

Pumpkin Soup Photo Tutorial

The ingredients for pumpkin soup are simple and natural. This recipe is gluten free and vegetarian. Not shown is the optional hot pepper. (Or the bay leaves. Oops!)

The pumpkins are cut in half and all of the seeds and stringy innards scooped out.

Once the pumpkins are cleaned, it is time to roast them. Roasting intensified the flavors–and saves the cook from the unpleasant task of peeling the pumpkins! The skins will simply peel away from the flesh after the pumpkins are fully cooked. The roasted pumpkins are darker in color, soft throughout and the skin begins to shrivel.

While the pumpkins are roasting, chop onions and celery and grate fresh ginger.

After sautéing the vegetables, peel the skin away from the roasted pumpkin and add the pumpkin to the pot, along with the ginger, bay leaves, fresh thyme, optional jalapeno or scotch bonnet pepper and water.

Then everything simmers until the vegetables are soft and you are ready to puree the soup.

The soup is returned to the pan, adjusted to taste with salt and pepper and gently warmed.

Ladle into bowls, garnish and enjoy!

Garnish each bowl with crumbled goat cheese and a sprinkle of fresh thyme and Aleppo pepper:

Print

Pumpkin Soup

A smooth, Jamaican inspired pumpkin soup

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Soup

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours

Servings 4

Equipment

• Blender: regular or immersion
• Stock pot

Ingredients

• 5 lb sugar pumpkins
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 stalks celery chopped
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 tsp ginger grated
• 1 jalapeno or scotch bonnet pepper seeds removed and chopped. *Optional*
• 2 bay leaves
• 5 sprigs thyme plus more for garnish
• 4 C water
• salt
• pepper
• 2 ounces goat cheese
• Aleppo pepper

Instructions

For the roasted pumpkin:

• Cut the pumpkins in half and scoop out all of the seeds and fibers in the center. Place face down on a foil lined, rimmed baking sheet. Bake at 350 F for 45-50 minutes, until a fork easily pierces the flesh. Remove from the oven and cool.

For the soup:

• Heat the olive oil in a stock pot until shimmering. Add the onions and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the ginger and hot pepper (if using) and stir briefly. Add bay leaves, thyme and water.
• Peel the skin from the cooked pumpkin and add the pumpkin to the pot with the rest of the ingredients.
• Bring the soup to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes, until everything is softened.
• Remove from the heat and puree with an immersion blender, or carefully transfer to a blender container and process in batches.

  Return the soup to the pan and gently reheat. Add more water if your soup seems too thick. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serving

• Ladle the soup into bowls and top with crumbled goat cheese, more fresh thyme and a sprinkle of Aleppo pepper.

The post Pumpkin Soup: Ready for Thanksgiving? first appeared on .

It’s not hyperbole to say that these have been the craziest times in anyone’s memory, but one tiny silver lining for us was the creation of the Honey Chamomile Whiskey Sour!

After the first giddy “feels like a snow day” rush, the Ground Hog Day effect set in.

Every day was just like every other.

No schedule.

No where to go.

No reason to get dressed.

Nothing to look forward to.

We adapted though. While everyone spent their days working or studying from home or making some attempt to maintain housekeeping standards, we made it a point to plan our dinners in advance. We cooked together with Ina Garten’s Spotify playlists in the background, and Saturday nights meant dressing up and lighting candles. But perhaps most importantly, we met every evening for predinner cocktails. Aperitifs are a timeless ritual for a reason and we appreciated this tradition more than ever during the quarantine.

One of the big liquor companies featured a whiskey sour on their Instagram, and in a “hey, why not?” minute, we dusted off that old classic (because lemons! Vitamin C!) and rediscovered a forgotten favorite.

It was such a hit that we repeated it a number of times…and when, during a family Zoom meeting, we jealously watched someone enjoying a Sons of Liberty Honey Chamomile Whiskey on the rocks, a light bulb went off and a new star was born!

In place of regular simple syrup, the honey chamomile simple syrup lends a slightly floral note that complements the whiskey and bright lemon flavors and makes a classic cocktail just a little bit more special.

I hope you enjoy this cocktail as much as we do. Cheers!

Looking for more cocktails? Try:

Not Your Nana’s Bees Knees

Watermelon Coolers

Homemade Sweet Vermouth

Photo Tutorial for Honey Chamomile Whiskey Sour

There is only a short list of ingredients: your favorite whiskey (bourbon preferred), chamomile tea, honey, sugar and fresh lemons.

Chamomile tea is brewed double strength, before adding sugar and honey to create the simple syrup.

Print

Honey Chamomile Whiskey Sour

A fresh twist to the classic whiskey sour.

Course Drinks

Keyword cocktail, whiskey

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 2 cocktails

Ingredients

Honey Simple Syrup

• 2 teabags chamomile tea
• 1/2 C boiling water
• 1/4 C sugar
• 1/4 C honey

Honey Chamomile Whiskey Sour

• 4 ounces bourbon
• 1 1/2 ounces honey simple syrup
• 1 1/2 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 slice orange, to garnish

Instructions

• To make the honey simple syrup: steep the teabags in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Remove teabags and stir in sugar and honey. Reheat if necessary to completely dissolve the sugar. Store leftover syrup in the refrigerator.
• To make the whiskey sour: Place a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker. Add bourbon, honey simple syrup and lemon juice. Shake well and strain into two ice filled rocks glasses. Garnish with a slice of orange.

The post Honey Chamomile Whiskey Sour first appeared on .

We just got back from a pretty amazing trip to Vietnam and Cambodia. We went there expecting to see life on the Mekong River, gain some understanding of the atrocities of the Khmer regime,  and explore jungle temples. But the fruit! Didn’t see that coming. What better way to bring a taste of Cambodia home than with tropical dragon fruit jam?

There were so many varieties: those like pineapple, coconut, watermelon and  bananas that are common here, but taste so much sweeter and juicer there; exotic fruits that are familiar in the states–like papaya, mango and passionfruit, but are so abundant and delicious in Cambodia. And the last group: fruits I had never heard of before and am really going to miss!

These include durian, mangosteen, lychee, longan (they look like eyeballs!), rambutan and dragonfruit. The last is the edible pod of a flowering cactus and just looks over-the-top-exotic, although it does not have a very strong flavor. Inside, the flesh is white, pink or magenta with many small black seeds.

How we discovered Dragon Fruit Jam

The hotel we stayed at was quite unique.  Each “room” was actually an original Khmer stilt house that had been moved from its existing location and rearranged as a village, complete with exotic landscaping and rice paddies. We weren’t roughing it though, because there was an infinity pool, top of the line linens and toiletries and an amazing breakfast!

Each morning we started with cappuccino, fruit and a bowl of freshly baked baguettes, croissants and pain au chocolate. The bread was accompanied by three small bowls of jam; they were all delicious, but it was the dragon fruit jam that blew us away. I may or may not have licked the bowl clean!

The last morning as we waited for our ride to the airport we asked if the jam was available for sale. They make it fresh every day, so it doesn’t get canned, but the chef was happy to share the ingredients and the outline of the technique. I wasn’t optimistic about recreating this treat until I got home and found dragonfruit in my local supermarket! (You can also apparently buy it frozen at some Target stores).

Ingredient notes

Dragonfruit: I was able to find dragonfruit at the supermarket. It wasn’t the best, but given that the flavor isn’t too pronounced, I think it’s greatest contribution is the tiny black seeds. I haven’t tried it, but I think kiwi might be an acceptable substitute.

Other fruits: I strongly suspect that the chef used fruits that were in season, so it may vary from month to month. Oranges, pineapple and mango are usually always available, but in general the best fruit is the one that is ripest and sweetest.

Sugar: This recipe gives a general guideline, but if your fruit is particularly sweet, you may reduce it a bit. In addition to sweetening, the sugar helps to preserve the jam, so just be aware that if you reduce the sugar it will not keep as long.

Pectin: The Sala Lodges recipe did not include pectin. They basically added a lot of sugar and cooked until it was thick. This is perfectly fine, although it takes longer and needs to be watched carefully to prevent scorching. Pectin is a naturally occuring fiber (from apples) that causes the jam to gel.

Recipe Notes for Dragon Jam

All of the ingredients.

Some jam recipes call for adding water to the fruit to prevent scorching, but I pureed the watermelon instead so it adds liquid plus flavor. This is a shameless reuse of a photo from the watermelon coolers!

Here is the dragonfruit sliced in half. The flesh can be scooped out with a spoon and roughly chopped.

The oranges are used for both the fruit and the rind. Grating only the orange part means that the bitter white pith is left behind. 

After the fruit is cooked down, it is measured to determine the correct amount of sugar to add. 

I made quite a bit, so elected to can the jam. Here it is going into the steam oven.

If you don’t have the equipment or don’t  feel comfortable canning, make a smaller batch or divide and freeze your jam. Share it with a friend. Put it on ice cream or spoon some over pound cake. Sneak a spoonful directly from the fridge. I won’t tell! Just do it!

For more information on water bath canning, please check out this site: Water Bath Canning

Print

Dragon Fruit Jam (Khmer Marmalade)

Jam made from mixed tropical fruits

Servings 10 half pints

Ingredients

• 2 C watermelon
• 4 C pineapple
• 2 mango
• 1 dragonfruit
• 4 oranges
• * sugar
• 1 envelope pectin

Instructions

• Place a small plate in the freezer. If you plan on canning your jam, sterilize jars and lids. 
• Prepare the fruit: Place watermelon in a blender and puree. Coarsely chop pineapple, mango and dragonfruit. Zest the orange, then peel and coarsely chop the fruit.
• Place all of the fruit in a large pan and cook on medium until the fruit is softened. It will take about twenty minutes, depending upon how much heat you use.
• Put the cooked fruit in a food processor and process until there are no large chunks remaining. Don’t overprocess, though, as you want to keep some texture. 
• Measure the fruit and add 3/4 as much sugar as you have fruit. For example, if you have 4 cups of fruit, add 3 cups of sugar.
• Place the fruit and sugar back in the large pan and cook over medium heat, stirring, until it comes to a full boil. Add the pectin and stir constantly until it returns to a full boil.  Continue stirring for one minute.
• Remove the pan from the heat. Spoon a little of the jam onto the plate that has been in the freezer. Return to the freezer for two minutes. The jam should appear thickened and should wrinkle when you touch the surface. 
• If the jam does not seem thick enough, return it to the heat and boil for another couple of minutes. Repeat the freezer test. 
• The thickened jam is ready to be placed into the sterilized containers. Process for 10 minutes. Remove jars and place on a towel. Do not retighten the rings. Leave jars undisturbed for 12-24 hours.

The post Dragon Fruit Jam (Khmer Marmalade) first appeared on .

Winter is coming. With only one real weekend of summer left, say goodbye with a batch of Watermelon Coolers!

I have made this cocktail (often!) for several years and I realized it was a thing when the first question after a dinner invitation was “Will you be making the watermelon drink?”. My daughter in law loves them so much that they became her signature drink (The Blushing Bride—so pink and pretty!) at the wedding.

So, yes. Yes, I will be making the watermelon drink. Give me an excuse and I will whip up a big old pitcher of them! They are everything that is right about summer cocktails….cold and fruity and refreshing. And they go down easy….probably too easy. You have been warned. Ok, I know some of you tend to skim through the paragraphs, so just in case:

You have been warned!

Bonus: these cocktails feel special, but everything can be made in advance. I often mix the two alcohols together to streamline assembly and sometimes even combine everything (except for the sparkling water) in advance.

Ingredient Notes

Rum: Either light or dark rum works well in this recipe. 

Watermelon juice: For simplicity, make the juice in advance; just be sure to stir well before using.

Sparkling water: My store brand (Stop and Shop) is sweetened with aspartame and I find it has a stronger flavor and is sweeter than a LaCroix type seltzer, so taste and adjust as needed.

Print

Watermelon Coolers

A fruity, refreshing, summer cocktail.

Course Drinks

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 1

Ingredients

• 1/2 C sugar
• 1/2 C water
• 1 handful mint leaves
• 2 oz watermelon juice
• 3/4 oz rum
• 3/4 oz melon vodka Grey Goose
• 1 oz lime sparkling water
• mint sprigs to garnish

Instructions

• For mint simple syrup: Combine water, sugar and mint in microwave safe container. Cook until sugar is dissolved. Let it stand for a few minutes and strain.
• For cocktail: Combine 1/2 ounce of the mint simple syrup, watermelon juice, rum, and vodka in an ice filled glass. Top with sparkling water. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

Watermelon Coolers Pictorial

Make watermelon juice by processing chunks in a blender.  If you make it in advance, be sure to stir before using. 

Taste the cocktail and adjust the amount of simple syrup, depending on the sweetness of your watermelon.

The post Watermelon Coolers first appeared on .

Greek Burgers. Opa! I can’t say “Greek burgers” without hearing the words in my head, spoken in the voice of one of the uncles from “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”. Pass the Windex!

This dish was inspired by another trip to Santorini. One of our teenage sons was craving a burger. You know, just a plain old, normal, American style burger. When his meal arrived, it was not what he expected–but a family favorite was born.

The restaurant proudly described the dish as a blend of meats, seasoned, and stuffed with cheese and they did not disappoint. The football-shaped burgers fit perfectly into a wedge of pita bread. Add a dollop of tzatziki and maybe a cucumber salad on the side and you will say “Opa!”, too!

Ingredient Notes

Meat: I generally use lamb and beef, but feel free to substitute pork for part of the total. Because ground lamb tends to have a higher fat content, it’s ok to use leaner (90%) beef. If you think you don’t like lamb, or haven’t really tried it, this is a good recipe to test the waters. You might be surprised!

Cheese: I always use Laughing Cow Creamy Light Swiss Cheese. It is soft and easy to shape in the burgers, but holds together pretty well once cooked. Besides, each box has eight wedges which will yield 16 2oz burgers–exactly the same as the two pounds of meat. Perfect!

Print

Greek Burgers

A simple cheese stuffed lamb and beef burger.

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground lamb
• 1 lb ground beef
• 3/4 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 pkg creamy swiss cheese wedges Laughing Cow

Instructions

• Place ground lamb and beef in a medium size bowl. Add cumin and salt and mix well. 
• Open the foil packages of cheese and divide each wedge lengthwise into two pieces.
• Using 2 ounces of the meat mixture, flatten it into an oval and place a piece of cheese on top. Carefully shape the meat around the cheese, sealing the seams well. Form it into an elongated football shape with your hands.
• Cook on the grill, turning the burgers gently so that the cheese doesn’t escape!
• Serve with Syrian bread and tzatziki.

Greek Burgers Pictorial

Such a short and simple list of ingredients!

Start by slicing each wedge of cheese lengthwise. It’s good to do them all at the beginning before things get messy!

Flatten 2oz of the meat mixture into an oval and place a wedge of cheese on top.

Shape the meat around the cheese, being sure to seal it completely. The finished burger should look like an elongated football.

Grill the burgers and serve with Syrian bread and tzatziki.

The post Greek Burgers first appeared on .

If hummus is year round comfort food, tzatziki positively sings of summer! This Greek dip is cool and creamy, tangy and herbal. It has reached condiment status in our house and it would be as unthinkable to run out of tzatziki as it would  ketchup! Here is a little Greek inspiration, where it seems to show up alongside every plate:

Tzatziki makes a great dip for veggies; it elevates any simple grilled meat or fish. Mediterranean diet? Tzatziki is the natural complement for most meals. It is also a simple and delicious way to add dairy and calcium to your diet.

Ingredient Notes

Greek Yogurt: If you don’t have Greek yogurt, you can substitute regular plain yogurt, although it needs to be drained through cheesecloth or coffee filters overnight first. Full fat yogurt will be more luxurious, although 2% still makes a very nice tzatziki.

Dill: I have written this recipe for dried dill, but fresh is even better. Finely chop the leaves (discard the stems) and use 3x as much.

Garlic: I usually use garlic powder, but you may substitute 2-3 cloves of fresh garlic, very finely minced.

Vinegar: I usually use white vinegar, but red wine vinegar may be substituted.

Proportions: The beauty of tzatziki is that you can easily adapt it to suit your tastes. Add more or less garlic or dill. 

Print

Tzatziki

A delicious and versatile Greek yogurt dip

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Ingredients

• 1 qt Greek yogurt
• 1 cucumber
• 1 1/2 tsp dill dry
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 T vinegar white or red wine

Instructions

• Peel and grate the cucumber. Squeeze out as much water as you can,
• Add cucumber and the remaining ingredients to a medium size bowl. Mix well and adjust seasonings to taste.

Tzatziki Pictorial

It seems obvious, but take a minute to make sure you have everything before you start. Here, all of the ingredients are out and ready to go.

The first step is to peel and grate the cucumber. You will see a lot of liquid released as  you do this. It is important to squeeze out the cucumber to prevent watery tzatziki.

Mixed and ready to eat! This comes together so quickly you can make it while the grill is heating.

That’s it! Now go dip something! Try crudites, Syrian bread or even chips. Spread it on a sandwich in place of mayonnaise. Try some on pizza or stirred into potato salad.  

What’s your favorite? Leave a note in the comments!

The post Tzatziki first appeared on .

In our family, my mother-in-law’s hummus was pretty universally acknowledged as The Best. Holiday, party or celebration? She was there with the hummus, no questions asked. And long before it became the ubiquitous staple that it is today, she made hummus that converted skeptics and enticed reluctant teenagers to commit to car rides and hours of enforced family time. It was that good.

Reproducing her hummus recipe

Agnes was a 4’11”, 90 lb force of nature. A first generation Syrian-American, she  took great pride in both her heritage and her authentic Middle Eastern cooking.  Sadly,  she died a few years ago from complications of Alzheimer’s disease and when we cleaned out her home I was lucky enough to inherit her recipes.  She was the type of cook who used a spoonful of this and a handful of that, so when I found her attempts to write out this recipe that she had made so often, it was greatly appreciated.  It took a few false starts before I realized that that “1 cup” didn’t literally mean one cup, but instead “1 (5 oz) Dixie cup”… the type that she always kept on the counter for the grandchildren. But of course!

With the proportions nailed down we were able to recreate her amazing hummus….it was rich, but also light, perfectly smooth and with a bright tang from the lemon juice. My kids hate recipe tinkering, but I just can’t help it.  Could it be even better? Two small ingredient changes and I was satisfied: I switched to Soom tahini and used freshly squeezed lemons instead of the bottled juice that was more readily available to Agnes.

For really great hummus, the texture is at least as important as the flavor. One of the chief complaints about supermarket hummus is the grainy consistency. Even homemade can feel gritty, leading some cooks to feel that making their own isn’t worth the trouble. The key here is patience! You need to keep blending, long after the ingredients are combined…when the hummus starts to warm, the mixture will be emulsified, light and smooth.

A note on ingredients:

You can make delicious hummus with products from any regular supermarket, but there are a few brands that I recommend to take your hummus to the next level:

Chick peas: Freshly cooked are fabulous, but you need to plan ahead for overnight soaking and cooking. If you choose to use canned, as I do most of the time, Progresso makes the best tasting ones I have found. (Cooks Illustrated agrees). Goya also has its fans: https://food52.com/blog/21680-canned-chickpeas.  To remove the skins or leave them on? Separating the skins is a true labor of love as it is ridiculously time consuming, although it will produce a smoother hummus. Is it worth it? For me, no, but go ahead…try it once and see what you think!

Tahini: sesame paste lends richness and a nutty flavor to the hummus. Some brands are more bitter than others, and some supermarket tahini is not as fresh as it might be. I find that Soom is consistently mild and delicious. https://www.soomfoods.com  or buy at Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/2LSYP6m

Lemon juice: Bottled lemon juice will work in a pinch, but there is really no substitute for freshly squeezed.

Print

Hummus

Ingredients

• 2 19 oz cans chick peas rinsed and drained
• 2 oz vegetable oil or olive oil
• 4 oz tahini
• 5 oz lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cumin

Instructions

• Place all ingredients in food processor. Let it run for 5-7 minutes until the hummus is very smooth and warm to the touch. Adjust seasonings to taste. If it is too thick, add more water, lemon juice or reserved liquid from the chick peas.

  Serve with extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of cumin.

The post My mother in law’s killer hummus…and how I upped her game first appeared on .