Rosie Makes Stuffed Cubanelle Peppers.

 

 

 I've got a quick, simple, and versatile meal for you - stuffed peppers.  It's easy and everything comes together in minutes.

I had a package (1.75 pound) of hamburger meat (80/20), and I used about 1/4 of the meat.  This was enough to fill 2 Cubanelle peppers, halved.  When picking out long peppers like Cubanelles or Anaheims for stuffing, try to get fairly straight, even peppers, not curled-up ones.  Makes it easier to stuff.

Rosie's Stuffed Cubanelles

About 1/2 pound 80/20 ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

In a medium skilled over medium high heat, melt about 1 TB butter, then add hamburger meat, chopping it up with a wooden spatula, until almost browned.  Add in chopped onion and cook until meat is nicely browned.  

Season to taste with:

kosher salt (about 1/2 tsp)

onion powder (about 1/2 tsp)

garlic powder (about 1/2 tsp)

cumin (about 1 tsp)

Cut stem ends off 2 Cubanelle peppers and slice in half  lengthwise.  Scrape out seeds and any of the white rib.

Spoon cooked beef mixture into peppers, mounding nicely.

I had leftover red onion in the fridge, so I chopped a bit of that, along with the last tomato (chopped) and jalapeño (minced)from the garden, and topped the meat, along with some chopped smoked red pepper.

Grate a decent amount of Pepper Jack cheese over top and give it a go under the broiler (450°) until cheese is melty and gooey.

Pick some cilantro and chop to sprinkle over top.  If you're not in the cilantro camp, chop some fresh parsley and pretend you like cilantro.

Rosie Note:  Now, here's where you can be a bit creative and versatile and get rid of stuff that would ordinarily stay hidden in your fridge until you found it behind something or other and it would need throwing out. 

Before stuffing the peppers with the meat and onion mixture, check what's leftover in the fridge.  If you have some rice or black beans or corn or black olives, add it to the stuffing.  I've also been known to chop up a bit of pepperoni and tuck it in the peppers.

Serve with salsa and sour cream, if desired, but I think it's just fine on its own.

Cubanelles stuffed with cooked ground beef, chopped onion, tomato, and roasted red peppers.

Give it some Pepper Jack lovin'.

Quick trip under the broiler.

Add some cilantro.

Enjoy.

Rosie Makes Acorn Squash And Apple Crisp.

 It's fall and time for acorn squash and apples.

I'm too lazy to put together a whole meal today, so I'm going with the best parts - a sweet, almost dessert-like stuffed acorn squash and an actual dessert to follow the faux dessert. 

To prepare the squash, simply slice a thin piece off each end so when you cut it in half each half  will sit evenly.  Then scoop/scrape out the seeds and stringy part.  When you have it nice and clean, stuff the center with whatever tickles your fancy.

 

  I used:

brown sugar

orange juice and zest

honey

buttah

pecans

 

Bake at 350° until tender - 50 minutes or so.  Then scrape the sides into the center with all the goody stuff and enjoy.

One of my favorite fall desserts is Mama Hawthorne's Apple Crisp.  Serve it warm just out of the oven with multiple scoops of vanilla ice cream.  Divine!

I like to get all my ingredients together first so I don't get in the middle of a recipe and find out I'm out of something essential, like eye of newt or tongue of hummingbird or dewlap of anole. I hate it when that happens.

 So, here's my mise en place (which is French for putting everything in its place):

 Mama Hawthorne's Apple Crisp

4-5 cups apple slices
juice of one lemon
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup quick Quaker oats
3/4 brown sugar
1 stick butter
1 TB cinnamon
2 TB sugar

 Heat oven to 350°.
Grease an 8" square baking dish,
Juice the lemon into a bowl.
Peel, core, and slice apples.
As you slice the apples,
 toss them in the lemon juice to coat.
Mix the cinnamon with the sugar
and sprinkle over the apple slices.
Toss to coat.
Mix brown sugar, oats, and flour and sprinkle over fruit.

Cook 35-40 minutes at 350°.

 

At the top, I have my cored and peeled apples bathing in lemon juice.

At right, I have my cinnamon and sugar.

And at left, I have brown sugar, oats, and flour.

Toss apples in lemon juice to keep them from discoloring.

Whisk the flour, brown sugar, and oats together.

 

Stir apples to coat with lemon juice.

Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over apples.
And toss to coat.

Pour in oatmeal mixture and combine.

Pour apple mixture into buttered 8 x 8-inch baking dish.

Dot top with butter pats.

Don't be afraid.  

Use that entire stick!

And ... BAKE!

35-40 minutes later.

Oh, the house smells sooooo good right now.

Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Rosie Makes Stuffed Butternut Squash

 

 

 I've got a sweet recipe for you for butternut squash.

 

 

To prepare: slice it in half, scoop out the seeds, lightly oil the surface, and then salt and pepper it.  Place it cut-side down on a parchment paper-lined baking pan and bake at 400° until fork-tender - about 45 minutes.

Just as is, it's sweet and delicious, and maybe you'd just want to add some butter and fork it in and it would be simple and lovely.  Or you can  to go another step and add a little savory oomph to it with a sausage stuffing. Because, that's what I did.  I added oomph. And it turned out mighty tasty!

 

Near the end of cooking time for the squash, start on the stuffing.

By the way, I rarely measure things, and if you want to add more or less of something, by all means do so.  And what measurements I'm giving you are for 1/2 butternut squash, since that's what I had leftover in the  fridge.  Usually, 1/2 squash is quite enough for 2 people.

Here's what you'll need for the stuffing:

about 1/3 Jimmy Dean hot sausage roll

3-4 TB chopped onion

big handful spinach leaves, stemmed and coarsely chopped

handful dried cranberries (Craisins)

handful pecans

In a medium skillet, brown the sausage, crumbling it with a wooden spatula.  Add a pat of butter and toss in the onion, sautéing for a minute.  Next add in the spinach, stirring, until just wilted.  Then stir in the cranberries and pecans.  Heat through.

When the squash is tender, spoon the filling into the hole.  If you like, you can scrape a channel down the middle and stuff that too.  Because you'll want more of that stuffing.  Trust me on this.

Scoop out the seeds.  Save seeds to plant in the garden next spring if you're so inclined.

Oil, salt, and pepper.

Place face down on parchment paper to bake.

Meanwhile, make the stuffing:

Brown the sausage.

Sauté the onions.

Wilt the spinach.

Add in dried cranberries.

Add in pecans.

Stir.

Butternut squash is fork tender.

Ready to stuff.

I scooped a little channel out so I could add in more of the stuffing.

Enjoy.