Acorn Squash Stuffed with Quinoa

With the return of fall weather recently, I've noticed that I'm craving less raw salads and more hearty meals. And the other night was no exception. As the seasons change, have you noticed a change in the foods your body craves?

Acorn Squash - those seeds are tasty too!

Because I've taken the October Unprocessed pledge, I took a look in my kitchen and tried to come up with something to make that would not require me to buy anything or go to a restaurant. I saw an Acorn Squash I bought recently, and decided to turn it into a complete meal. How to do that, you ask? Enter quinoa! I always have quinoa in my kitchen, in fact I have three kinds of it: white, red and black. Each ones tastes subtly different, so depending on what I'm making I'll choose a different type. To go with the squash, I decided to go with the blend, as it seems to go well with savory dishes.

To start, I roasted the squash in my oven. As that was baking, I cooked the quinoa in a pot on the stove. And miraculously, everything was done at about the same time!

A delicious meal! Yum!

Acorn Squash Stuffed with Quinoa (serves 2)
Ingredients:
- 1 Acorn Squash
- 1/2C Quinoa
- 1C Water
- 1/3C Minced Onion
- 1/8C Your choice: Raisins, Currants, Cherries, or Cranberries
- 1/8C Pecans
- 1T Olive Oil
- 1T Balsamic Vinegar
- Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Rinse and dry squash, then slice lengthwise down the middle.
- Remove and save the seeds for roasting.
- Put the squash face-down on a foil-lined baking pan. Bake about 30 minutes, or until soft.
- While squash is baking, prepare the quinoa.
- Rinse the quinoa to remove the natural saponins that give it a bitter taste. When water runs clear, put quinoa in a pot with water (ratio is same as for rice - 1:2).
- Bring water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer quinoa until water has been absorbed, about 10-15 minutes. In the last few minutes, add the onion.
- When water is absorbed, remove quinoa from heat and add the remaining ingredients. Stir to combine, and let sit until the squash is done.
- Spoon the quinoa into the squash, and serve.

Eggplant Two Ways: Roasted & Baba Ghanoush

Dinner: Roasted Eggplant and Tomato with Pesto

I had a problem the other night. I was home alone, and there were two huge eggplants (a globe and a rosa bianca) sitting in the fridge. No matter the preparation I chose, I knew there was no way I was going to be able to eat it all in one sitting. But I needed to cook them soon. And then, I had an idea! Why not roast some eggplant tonight (with some under-ripe tomatoes), and make baba ghanoush tomorrow? Brilliant! I love meals that meld into each other - another way to use leftovers! If you aren't thinking ahead that far, you can roast the eggplant the same day as making the baba ghanoush, but be sure to allow enough time to let it cool first.

Eggplant and tomato slices. Fresh and hot, right out of the oven!

Roasted Eggplant & Tomatoes
Ingredients:
2 Eggplants (any variety will work)
4-6 Tomatoes (under-ripe works great here!)
1t Salt (plus extra)
1/4t Black Pepper, freshly ground
2T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Garlic Cloves, finely minced (I used a press)
8 Fresh Basil Leaves, chopped (or 1t Dried Basil)

Directions:
- Rinse the eggplant and pat dry, then slice into 1/4" rounds, put in a colander and sprinkle with coarse salt. This draws out the moisture, making them less bitter.
- Let eggplant sit for 20-30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- When time has elapsed, remove slices and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Put slices (plus sliced tomatoes, if using) in a big bowl, and toss with salt, pepper, oil, garlic and basil.
- Lightly oil the baking sheet, and arrange slices in a single layer (use two baking sheets if you're overlapping).
- Bake for about 30 minutes, until slice turn a bit brown.
- Eat immediately, or let cool to make the baba ghanoush.

Baba Ghanoush (without tahini)

Leftover eggplant, about to be blended up!

The result: delicious Baba Ghanoush!

Ingredients:
1.5 Pounds of Eggplant, weigh before cooking (how many this is depends on size)
3T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1T Fresh Lemon Juice

Directions:
Note #1: Because I was using the seasoned roasted eggplant from the night before, I did not need to add seasoning. If you're using plain roasted eggplant, add 1t sea salt and 1 clove of pressed garlic to this recipe.
Note #2: Most recipes tell you to remove the skins of the eggplant, but I left them on the slices. Not sure how this would work in a regular blender (and I would not do it for bigger pieces) but in a Vita-Mix it turned out great.
- Add ingredients to blender or food processor, and pulse until combined to desired consistency.
- Serve either at room temp or chilled with your favorite dipping items: fresh veggies, whole wheat pita, etc. Or use as a spread on sandwiches.