Autumn New England Traditions

Ryan's

lunch:
Thermos
of tofu
herb
ravioli;
raw snap
peas;
mixed
salted
nuts;
apple
bunnies;
steamed
broccoli;
marin-
ated
mush-
rooms.




It was a beautiful weekend. I took Nate with us on his first letterboxing hike...












The sun was setting as we made our way home. Nate found many leaves & pinecones, but brought home a giant oak leaf that we scanned for posterity.

Weekend food included...

Chocolate Pumpkin Bread

5 T. margarine, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 T. milk (any) or water
1 1/2 cups steamed mashed
pumpkin or winter squash
2 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4-1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg
1 cup roughly chopped walnuts (optional)
spray olive oil or other medium for oiling pan

Melt or soften margarine.
Mix in brown sugar until
creamy. Add vanilla & milk.
Stir. Add pumpkin. Stir.
Add remaining dry ingred-
ients (except walnuts). Stir
to make a thick batter. Add
walnuts. Oil a bread pan.
Add batter, spread flat on
top. Bake at 375F for about
50 minutes. Allow to a little,
turn out onto a cutting board
or large plate. Allow to cool a
little while longer before
slicing.



Pumpkin Curry Rice

2 cups basmati rice
2 cups pumpkin, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 T. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. garam masala
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1 cup coconut milk
3 cups water

Place all ingredients in a rice
cooker set on 'regular'. Turn
on.

This is a great way to use up
some excess pumpkin from
Halloween if you get to it
within a couple of days (I
used just the top of 1 large
pumpkin for this recipe!). Or
peel and cut up any small
pumpkin.


Curry Hurry Sauce

1 large onion
4 garlic cloves
2 tsp. grated ginger
1/2 tsp. hot sauce
2 T. olive oil
1 T. margarine or other buttery spread
1 1/2 cups crushed tomato
2 T. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. garam masala
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/8-1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
1 T. ground coriander
3 T. lemon juice

This is a great way to
make an easy curry.
I usually use chickpeas
but you can also do
potatoes, spinach, or a
combo of these, or
really any vegetable
you can think of.

First put the onion, garlic, ginger, & hot sauce into a food processor and puree. Melt the olive oil & margarine in a large pot. Add about 3/4 of the processed mixture to the pot and cook over medium-low heat. With the remaining 1/4 of the mixture, add all remaining ingredients (except the lemon juice). Puree again. Add your chick peas and/or vegetables to the pot, then the second batch of puree. Stir. Bring to a low boil. Then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 20-30 minutes. Add lemon juice, stir, cover, and cook another 10-15 minutes. Serve with rice, such as the pumpkin curry rice above! Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro (coriander leaf) if desired. I like to add some extra hot pickled mango relish!