Kitchen Lessons From the Weekend

This past weekend, I had a few kitchen disasters. Think of your scariest kitchen nightmares, playing out right in front of you. For some people, their kitchen fear is burning the Thanksgiving turkey. For others it's a blender of soup exploding on the ceiling. For a few it's dropping the birthday cake you spent hours decorating on the floor, candles and all, right before the big song.

Well, mine weren't that bad. Those are real kitchen disasters - mine were pretty minuscule in comparison. Instead of looking at them as awful situations, I'm trying to see them as learning moments. So, I guess I learned two kitchen lessons this weekend:

1. Don't freeze canned pumpkin (more on that later)

2. Don't buy any small kitchen appliances that aren't made by Kitchen Aid.

To emphasize the appliance lesson: I have now had two non-Kitchen Aid appliances break mid-use. If you've ever experienced this, it sucks. I was making Butternut Squash and Apple Soup (AMAZING. Recipe below) when mine decided to quit. It didn't just stop blending though, which would have been totally preferable. Instead, the base cracked while I was blending and the hot soup oozed out all over the base, the counter, myself, etc. It was one hot sweet squashy mess. My boyfriend raced to my rescue, my sous chef superhero. Poor thing didn't know what he was getting in to. About the moment he had hot squash running down his bare arms, I think he realized that I was culinarily delusional. Probably wished he had denied that top secret mission. But, instead, we soldiered on through a sea of orange. In the end, I was able to puree half of the soup and it was simply fabulous. Honestly, delicious. A triumphant disaster.

As for my other one, this was more of a strange discovery. It was an experience that I have now coined "Revenge of the Pumpkin Sponge." Think sweet pumpkin puree meets the Blob. Dock your pies and roll your cookies. Run for your life before the Pumpkin Sponge strikes again! It is the most feared of all the Thanksgiving monsters and autumnal villains. Frozen pumpkin, once defrosted, is no longer human. It takes on new shape and form. The Pumpkin Sponge is a condensed mass of pumpkin, only without any moisture. It can actually be wrung out like a kitchen sponge and cut like Swiss cheese. This creature is not to be messed with. Beware it's wrath, for it will destroy all baked goods in sight! I made the awful mistake of attempting to actually use defrosted frozen canned pumpkin (I froze the leftovers from a can I had opened). Instead of incorporating into my cookie batter, it became this clumpy chunky mess. Yuck. My warning to you is if you have leftover canned pumpkin, do not try to freeze it. Avoid the Pumpkin Sponge; your loved ones will appreciate it. On the bright side, when I tried again with NOT-frozen canned pumpkin, my Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cookies with Caramel Cream Cheese Icing totally blew my skirt up. A winner. You'll love them! (Note: These are best eaten within 1-2 days as they must be refrigerated)

Anyhoo, time for the best part: the recipes! Check them out below.

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup: Yields 4 Servings

2 T olive oil

1 large Vidalia onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 T curry powder

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 t nutmeg

1 large butternut squash (about 1 1/2 lbs), peeled and cubed

2 large apples, peeled, cored and cubed

3 cups vegetable stock

1 cup almond milk

creme fraiche and/or chopped apple to serve (optional)

1. Heat olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add onion and sweat until translucent. Add garlic, curry powder, bay leaf, salt and pepper and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

2. Add nutmeg, squash, apples and stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 30-40 minutes or until tender. Remove bay leaf. Puree using a hand blender or in batches with a regular blender.

3. Return soup to the pot. Add almond milk and readjust seasonings, if necessary. Heat through and garnish with creme fraiche or apples, if using.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cookies: Yields 2-3 Dozen Small Cookies

1 cup + 2 T gluten-free flour mix

1 1/4 t pumpkin pie spice

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t xanthan gum

1/4 t salt

4 T unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup light brown sugar

3 T granulated sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup pumpkin

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 recipe Caramel Cream Cheese Icing (recipe below)

toasted pecan halves, for garnish

1. Mix flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt.

2. Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Add egg and pumpkin puree and blend. Slowly add dry ingredients, mixing well after each addition. Stir in raisins.

3. Refrigerate batter for 1 hour.

4. Heat oven to 350. Scoop cookies with a small ice cream scoop and drop on a parchment-lined sheet tray about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-14 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.

5. Let cool completely. Frost with Caramel Cream Cheese Icing and top with a toasted pecan half, if using.

Caramel Cream Cheese Icing: Yields Enough for 1 Batch of Cookies

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1 T heavy cream

6 T butter

8 oz cream cheese, cubed

1/4 t vanilla

Bring sugar and water to a boil. Continue cooking, brushing the sides occasionally, until the mixture is a dark amber color, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately stir in cream and butter. Place in a standing mixer and beat on medium speed for 4-5 minutes, or until the caramel comes together. Beat in cream cheese one cube at a time, beating well after each addition; add vanilla and mix to combine.

These two recipes are totally simple and amazing. Hope you like them! Finally, after weeks of coming home late after work, I was actually able to make a weeknight meal!! We had a favorite, Breakfast for Dinner. The meal consisted of Scrambled Eggs, Sweet Potato and Fennel Hash and an Apple Puff Pancake. There is also a mega-meal planned for Saturday, so be sure to check back next week for more delicious recipes!