Goat Cheese, Squash, Swiss Chard & Pancetta Tart

The photo was taken before the tart when into the oven.  I was serving this at a luncheon and
unfortunately, I totally forgot to take an after photo. Both the crust and the tart will be browned after total baking time.


Ingredients

1 refrigerated pie dough
2 T freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
freshly ground pepper
8 ounces soft garlic & herb goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 c heavy cream
2 tsp thyme leaves, chopped
3 eggs
1 bunch of swiss chard, rinsed well and dried with a dish towel
2 T unsalted butter
1/2 lb. pancetta, sauteed until crisp & drained on a paper towel
2 zucchini (ends trimmed, sliced lengthwise with a vegetable peeler)
2 summer squash (ends trimmed, sliced lengthwise with a vegetable peeler)
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 T extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 350*F
Roll the dough out slightly to fit the tart pan. Place the pie dough inside the pan and press to fit along the sides. Cut off excess dough if necessary. Place in refrigerator for at least 15 minutes. Prick the dough all over with a ford.  Top with parchment paper or heavy duty foil and fill with raw beans or pie weights.  Blind bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese and return to over for 5 more minutes.  Cool on rack.

Remove the leaves from the stems of the swiss chard.  Melt butter in saute pan and saute stems until tender, approximately 6 minutes. Add the leaves and saute until wilted. Remove from heat and set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor add the goat cheese, salt & pepper, and heavy cream. Process until blended.  Add the sauteed swiss chard and pulse until it's finely chopped. Stir in cooked pancetta.

Pour goat cheese mixture into cooled crust. Roll up zucchini & squash sliced into rosette shapes and place around the goat cheese. Fill in spaces with halved tomatoes.  Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until knife in center comes out clean.

Recipe adapted from The Chew.

Indescribably delicious!

Suga's Butternut Squash Bisque

I absolutely love the butternut squash soup at our favorite restaurant.  I can't get enough of it as it's on their seasonal menu making for a small window of opportunity.  I decided to try and duplicate it on my own.  It's not exact, but pretty darn close if I may say so myself.  This bisque has a delicate sweetness to it; not savory like the Curried Butternut Squash soup I posted last year.

Ingredients:

2 medium butternut squash, peeled, pulp removed and cut into 1" chunks
2 small carrots, peeled and cut into 1" chunks
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1" chunks
2 small apples, cored, peeled and quartered
1 small sweet onion, skin removed and quartered
1 rib of celery, strings removed and cut into 4 pieces
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups apple cider
1 tsp. Kosher salt
2/3 cup of pure maple syrup
1/3 c packed brown sugar
3 T unsalted butter
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 - 1 1/2 cups heavy cream (more or less depending on desired consistency)
Greek yogurt or sour cream
Ground cinnamon

In a dutch oven add the first 9 ingredients.  Cook until all vegetables are fork tender.  In small batches place in a blender or food processor and process until smooth.  Add back to the pot.  You can also use an immersion blender for this step.

Once you have processed all the vegetables and have a smooth base, add maple syrup, brown sugar, butter and spices.  Simmer on stove on low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and making sure not to burn it.  You may want to put a mesh pot guard over the top as the bisque is thick and tends to splatter.  Splatters are very hot!!  Do not use the lid to the dutch oven as it will heat up the soup too much.  Stir in heavy cream until blended.

To serve, ladle into soup bowls and top with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream and sprinkle with ground cinnamon.  You can also use candied pecans or pepitas if you have on hand.

Curried Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

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I went to lunch with a friend today and we both ordered the Butternut Squash soup off the seasonal menu.  It was delicious.  My friend order a quart to go, and I told her whatever the restaurant charged I would charge $1 less - kidding of course.  It got me thinking about making some soup though.  Then my cousin messaged me and asked if I had a good Butternut Squash Soup recipe. Now I know it was a sign for me to make some.  So here it is.  The lighting in the photo makes it look more like Split Pea Soup, but in reality it's the richest butternut color and tastes even richer. This is a curried version, not quite as sweet as some of the others.  If you desire more sweetness, up the amount of brown sugar.

Ingredients:

1 medium Butternut Squash, peeled, seeded & cubed
1 large Vidalia onion
2 large carrots, peel and cut into chunks*
2 medium sweet apples, peel, cored and cut into chunks*
Vegetable oil
1 Tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
4 T butter
3 T brown sugar
1 T curry
1 tsp Garam Masala
1/3 C toasted pistachios
3 C chicken or vegetable broth
1 can coconut milk
2 T maple syrup
Salt & Pepper to taste
Garnish with bread, coconut & pistachios, if desired

*Try to make all the vegetable chunks the same size so that the roasting time is the same for all.

Preheat oven to 400*. Place peeled and cubed vegetables on rimmed baking sheet.  Drizzle w/oil, sprinkle with salt and cinnamon. Stir well until all vegetables are coated.  Bake 20 mins., stir and bake an additional 20 minutes or until all vegetables are fork tender.

In a large pot, melt butter, add brown sugar, curry, Garam Masala & toasted pistachios. Cook for 1 minute. In the bowl of a food processor add the roasted vegetables in 3 batches, along with the curried pistachios and the broth.  Process until desired consistency.

Add to the large pot and pour in the coconut milk and maple syrup. Add salt & pepper.  Serve with multi-grain bread.

Now curry along and make this - the outside temps are dropping over the next few days and this is just the thing to warm you up!