Butternut Bowtie

Ingredients
1 butternut squash, halved and seeds removed
1 tablespoon EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 box of bowtie pasta
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
A pinch of nutmeg
A pinch of cinnamon
5 to 6 sage leaves, thinly sliced
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
A handful toasted almonds, to garnish (optional)
Yields: 6 to 8 servings

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°F.

Place squash halves on a baking sheet and drizzle them with 1 tablespoon EVOO, salt and pepper. Place them cut side down and transfer to the oven. Roast until tender, about an hour. Remove from oven and cool. Once cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh out of the squash and transfer it to a food processor. Process until smooth.

Place a pot of water over high heat for the pasta. Once at a boil, add some salt and the pasta, and cook to al dente according to package directions. Drain the cooked pasta and return it to the pot it was cooked in.

While the pasta water is heating up, place a small skillet over medium-high heat with the butter. Once melted, add the flour and cook about a minute. Whisk in the milk and cook until the liquids come up to a bubble and the sauce thickens, 2-3 minutes. Add the squash puree, nutmeg, cinnamon and sage, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add the sauce to the pot with the reserved cooked pasta and toss to coat. Turn everything out into a baking dish and sprinkle the top with both cheeses. Transfer to the oven and bake until the cheese is brown and bubbly, 10-15 minutes.

Garnish casserole with the toasted almonds and serve.

*Notes: I skipped out on the garnish and used ground sage and my whole family absolutely loved it. Thanks Rachel Ray!

DINNER-IN-A-PUMPKIN

1 small to medium sized pumpkin (make sure it fits in your oven)
1 onion, chopped
¾ c. sliced carrots
1 ½ to 2 lbs. ground beef
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. brown sugar (or more)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 ½ to 2 cups cooked rice
1 8 oz. can water chestnuts, drained, sliced

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare pumpkin by cutting off the top and taking out the insides. Draw a face on the pumpkin.
3. In a large skillet, sauté the onions & carrots in a little butter, until tender.
4. Add the ground beef, cook until browned.
5. Drain the drippings from the skillet.
6. Add soy sauce, brown sugar, water chestnuts to the skillet and mix well.
7. Add cream of chicken soup and rice to skillet, mix well and heat through.
8. Spoon mixture into pumpkin shell.
9. Replace pumpkin top and place on a baking sheet covered with foil.
10. Bake 1 hour or until inside of pumpkin flesh is tender.

ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS

Ingredients:
2 cups pumpkin seeds, rinsed
3 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. salt
Instructions:
1. Boil the pumpkin seeds in salt water for 10 minutes.
2. Dry them on a cookie sheet lined with paper towel or wax paper until dry (overnight)
In a medium bowl:
1. Melt 3 Tbsp. butter
2. Mix in 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce and 1 tsp. salt
3. Coat seeds with mixture
4. Spread them out on a baking sheet and cook at 225 degrees for 2 hours, stirring them at the one-hour mark.

BILL’S FAVORITE BANANA CAKE

2 1/4 cups cake flour (sift before measuring)
1 2/3 cups white sugar
1 1/4 tsps. baking powder
1 1/4 tsps. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2/3 cup shortening
2/3 cup buttermilk
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cups mashed ripe bananas (Heidi’s note: I always use at 2 cups or more and if they’ve been frozen and then thawed, they add more moisture to the cake.)
2/3 cups finely chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans)-optional

Heat oven to 350'. Grease and flour baking pans: one 13"x9"x2", or two 9"
or three 8" round layer pans.

Measure all ingredients into large mixer bowl. Blend 1/2 minute on low
speed, scraping bowl constantly. Blend 3 minutes on high speed, scraping
bowl occasionally. Pour into pan(s).

Bake oblong 45 to 50 minutes, layers 35 to 40 minutes, or until toothpick
inserted in centre comes out clean. Cool in pan(s) for 15 minutes, then
turn out on cake rack(s). Frost with vanilla butter icing or cream cheese
icing.

Butter Cream Frosting II

Yields: 24 servings
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure almond extract (optional) 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup milk
DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl (Kitchenaid-type mixer works best to make this truly light and fluffy), cream butter until light and fluffy. Add salt, almond extract (optional), vanilla, confectioners' sugar and milk. Beat on high for at least 5 minutes and it’s just like the frosting they use in bakeries.

**By far the best frosting I’ve ever made. It also freezes well.

CAN’T LEAVE ALONE BARS

1 pkg. white cake mix (18.25 oz.)
2 eggs
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
¼ c. butter, cut into cubes

In a bowl, combine dry cake mix, eggs and oil. With floured hands, press 2/3 of mixture into greased 9 x 13 x 2 baking dish. Set remaining cake mixture aside. Combine condensed milk, butter and chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Uncovered, cook on high for 45 seconds. Stir. Microwave 45-60 seconds longer or until butter and chips are melted. Stir until smooth. Pour over crust. Drop rest of cake mixture by teaspoon full over the top. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Makes 3 dozen.

FRANK’S FAMOUS SALSA

1 can stewed tomatoes
1/8 clove garlic
1 bunch of green onions
1 bell pepper
1 hatch mild pepper
2 Jalapeno peppers
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (I usually put in the entire bunch)
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
3 tomatoes, finely chopped
chili powder to taste
2-3 tsp salt
1/2 to 1 tsp pepper

Blend above ingredients together in a food processor or a blender.

CHICKEN DIVAN

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups cooked chopped broccoli
2 cups shredded, cooked chicken meat
2 (4.5 ounce) cans mushrooms, drained
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, drained (optional)
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Arrange cooked broccoli in a lightly greased 3-quart casserole dish. Arrange chicken over broccoli. Add mushrooms and water chestnuts.
In a medium bowl combine the soup, mayonnaise, lemon juice, curry powder and butter/margarine. Mix together and pour mixture over chicken and vegetables. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 45 minutes.

RATATOUILLE

Provencal style—Heidi learned this one serving a mission in the South of France. There are a ton of ratatouille recipes out there and this is the one I fell in love with in Provence. It’s different because you bake it in a piecrust after all the vegetables have been sautéed. It may seem difficult to make at first glance but it’s really quite simple. All measurements are approximate since there’s no hard & fast rule about the proportions of vegetables in this dish.

2 c. eggplant, 1/2 inch cubes
2 c. zucchini, 1/2 inch cubes
1 c. onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 c. green pepper, 1/2 inch pieces
1 c. red pepper, 1/2 inch pieces (optional to use just one pepper or the other)
2-3 c. tomatoes (use fresh or canned diced tomatoes or canned crushed tomatoes)
1 Tbsp. Herbes de Provence (Buy it in the spice section or if you can’t find it then make your own mixture of the following: thyme is most prominent, marjoram, rosemary, basil, crushed bay leaf & lavendar flowers--optional)
2 tsp. Kosher salt
¾ to 1 tsp. pepper
Olive oil
Pie crust for 9 inch pie
1/2 - 2/3 c. Emmental cheese (very expensive in U.S.) or use freshly shredded parmesan – do not substitute with classic American cheeses such as cheddar which is too oily and doesn’t have strong enough flavor

1. Preheat oven to 350. Place piecrust in pie dish.
2. In a very large skillet, sautee the eggplant in olive oil until the pieces have darkened and cooked. Sprinkle some salt & Herbes on while it cooks. Remove from pan.
3. Sautee the zucchini in olive oil until the pieces are cooked and becoming translucent. Sprinkle some salt & Herbes on while it cooks. Remove from pan.
4. Sautee the onion in olive oil until the pieces are translucent and beginning to brown. Leave in the pan.
5. Add the green pepper and red pepper and sautee together in olive oil for a few minutes. Add the garlic & tomatoes. Sprinkle the remainder of the salt & Herbes and add the pepper. Let simmer together for a few minutes to create a nice sauce. Add the eggplant & zucchini to the pan and let it all simmer together for several minutes so flavors mix together.
6. Pour mixture into pie shell and cover with generous amount of cheese.
7. Bake for 45 minutes or until pie crust is golden brown.
8. Can be served with rice as a main dish or as a side.

Lemon Cake

1 pkg lemon cake mix
3 oz pkg lemon jello
4 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
juice from 2 lemons
2 T margarine

Blend together cake mix, Jello, eggs, oil and water. Beat on medium speed for 5 min. Bake on greased and floured 9x13 pan at 350 for 45 min

Meanwhile, blend sugar, juice, and margarine. Right after the cake comes out of the oven prick with a fork and pour on glaze

Pink Lemonade Lime Dip

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (6oz) can frozen pink lemonade, thawed
1 tsp grated lime rind

Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl until blended. Cover and chill at least 2 hours. Serve with sugar cookies.

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

2 boneless skineless chicken breast cut into strips
4 oz linguine, cooked al dente
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
2 tablespoons butter
1 thinly sliced green onion
1-2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp chopped sun-dried tomatoes
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp dried basil
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp garlic powder
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese


1 Place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat

2. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter until chicken is tender about 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, pepper and heat through.

4. Pour over hot linguine and toss, with Parmesan cheese
Bon Appétit