Favorite winter salad

Drumlin Farm, god love them, has a fabulous greenhouse where they grow salad greens for the winter share. It's worth the price of all that squash, any day.

Green salad is different in the winter, though, for me. We put in dried cherries from Michigan (here -- yeah, I know, it's not local, but Jon's family used to own a cottage in that part of Michigan so it feels local, in a way), crumbled feta, and sunflower seeds, as well as our usual vinaigrette. Dried fruit and seeds or nuts just don't belong in a summer salad, but they're right at home in a winter one . . .

Roasted Kale

This is the only way Arij will eat kale. He says it reminds him of nori.

Wash it, tear it into smallish pieces, cutting out the big stems. Toss it with a tablespoon or so of olive oil and some salt, and spread it on a cookie sheet -- it doesn't need to be in a single layer, but it should be well-spread-out. Put it into a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, then shake and/or stir the pan and put it back into the oven. Check it after 5 more minutes, and stir again, but it will probably need another 5 minutes or so again (a total of 20 minutes). Sometimes if it's not completely crisp, I'll turn off the oven and leave it there another 5 minutes or so.

Addictive for nibbling or garnishing soups or salads.

Roasted butternut squash

My new favorite way to cook butternut squash is to slice it thinly and toss it with olive oil, then spread it in a single layer on a cookie sheet at roast in the oven, turning occasionally, until it's brown and caramelized. Seriously, folks, if you have the time and patience, the result is like candy. It even sticks to your teeth like caramel. I'm sure your dentist would not approve.

Although I have nibbled a ton of it plain in the past few days, I also have been eating it other ways -- mostly with cheese and a starch, as you might be able to tell.

The top picture is slices of polenta, browned in a pan and then spread with roasted squash and cheese and run under the broiler.

The other two are one of my usual fast foods -- cheese toast -- but with that roasted squash layered between the bread and cheese.

Molasses spice cookies

For one brief, shining moment, one of my fantasies was fulfilled today. Both my children were in the kitchen helping me make cookies. I'll pause a moment to let that sink in. It stands to reason, though, doesn't it? For someone who loves to cook as much as I do, the ultimate is sharing it with people I love.

Bonus: I caught it on film!

These cookies are fabulous. They were a fave at a book group I used to belong to back in the dark ages, made by a bakery called Dancing Deer. I cut the recipe out of the Boston Globe when Arij was a baby, and they never disappoint.

I'm never sure about the protocol regarding supplying a recipe when it really, clearly belongs to someone else.

Should I post it, or not?

2 1/4 cups flour (I used 1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour and the remainder, all-purpose)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup molasses
1 egg
extra sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment.

Combine flour, soda, salt, and spices; stir well.

Combine oil, sugar, and molasses. Beat with an electric mixer for 5 minutes (give or take). Add egg and beat for another minute.

Mix in the dry ingredients 1/4 at a time, combining thoroughly.

Form the dough into walnut-sized balls and flatten into disks. Sprinkle with sugar and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. (I'd say, experiment and see if you like them better slightly chewy, or more crisp.) Let cool on the pan for a few minutes, and then remove to a rack to cool completely.

MIA

I haven't gone away, but am experiencing technical difficulties: a nasty respiratory virus as well as a camera with a mind of its own.

Hopefully both issues will be resolved soon and I'll be back again.

Thanksgiving

Oh, my goodness.

Usually I host Thanksgiving dinner (I know! Try to stifle your amazement!). It may be my favorite holiday -- one that hasn't been corrupted by rampant materialism, one that's all about food. True, the menu can be kind of limiting . . . but not this year.

Our wonderful friends the Hendersons hosted Turkey-day this year, and what fun it was. And we didn't collapse into food coma. We figured that was for two reasons. 1. we forgot to make mashed potatoes. Freaky, no? Maybe it was the Scotch whiskey we were all sipping that induced a little of that forgetfulness, or maybe it was all the other stuff we were busy making. 2. Morgan's mom is gluten-intolerant, so both the stuffing and the gravy were, I think, lighter than when they're made with wheat.

I forgot my camera, but Morgan came through with these photos.

They fried the turkey. If you eat meat, and you have never eaten fried turkey, I'm here to tell you, you are missing out. I could not stop nibbling the crispy bits. Absolutely phenomenal. (Plus, an 18-lb turkey cooked in an hour. Seriously.)

Morgan's dad, Bob, made the porcini mushroom gravy, and it was incredible (I believe he used a combination of rice and quinoa flours in the roux). Rich, silky -- everything you want in gravy. We had two kinds of cranberry sauce, one made by Morgan containing bourbon (here's the recipe) and one with port, walnuts, ginger, and citrus from the Hi-Rise Bread Company in Cambridge, where we had lunch last weekend while Christmas shopping. Bob also made the fantastic stuffing (pictured above with the sage leaves decorating the top).

I made butternut squash with caramelized onions and toasted pecans (pictured twice, I think), Greek-style green beans with about a cup of chopped garlic, and roasted parsnips, carrots, and red onions.

Desserts and appetizers were also amazing.

Squash soup

Have you ever checked out 101 Cookbooks?

If not, you should.

(That makes me think of Dr. Seuss: "Have you ever flown a kite in bed?/Have you ever walked with 10 cats on your head?/Have you ever milked this kind of cow?/Well, we can do it. We know how./If you never did, you should./These things are fun and fun is good.")

Ahem. Where was I?

Oh, yes. If you have a plethora of winter squash right now, you should definitely try this different and yummy recipe. And did I mention easy? It has like four ingredients, and very little work.