Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

15-18 Medium size mushrooms
1 package cream cheese

1 can of lump white crab meat well drained

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

3 green onions finely chopped

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

6-8 drops Tabasco

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 tbsp. white wine or cooking sherry

approx 1/8 cup breadcrumbs for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash mushrooms and remove stems (reserve 1/2 of the mushroom stems). Place mushrooms cap side up on a baking rack and make sure they are thoroughly dry before filling. Once dry place mushrooms cap side down in a glass baking dish.

Finely chop the reserved mushroom stems and add to large mixing bowl with remaining ingredients except bread crumbs. Mix on low setting until ingredients are well blended.
Put mixture in pastry bag or quart size ziploc bag with a very small corner snipped off. Pipe filling into mushrooms.

Sprinkle tops with bread crumbs.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until bread crumbs turn brown. Makes 15-18 stuffed mushrooms.

Chipotle Pasta with Acorn Squash

A few weeks ago I stumbled upon a recipe online for pasta with a chipotle cream sauce. Last night it sounded like the perfect dinner, but I searched the internet and couldn’t remember where I had originally found the recipe. The recipes I did find sounded ridiculously loaded with fat (not that my version isn’t). So, I just decided to wing it. The end result was really tasty, although not really so pretty. I was also having trouble with the lighting in my kitchen, so the pictures make it look even worse! The days are getting short really quick in Fairbanks and I am going to have to find some other non-natural lighting sources soon. David thought that it might be better with yams instead of the acorn squash. We both agreed that chicken would also be a good choice. I thought the amount of chipotle sauce was perfect, but David thought it needed more. Be warned, this is not a “light” dish!

Chipotle Pasta with Acorn Squash
1 lb. penne pasta cooked al dente
1 acorn squash roasted and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 chipotle peppers in adobo
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
2 large cloves garlic
3/4 cup heavy cream
fresh grated parmesan to sprinkle
parsley for garnish
Set oven 400 degrees. Cut one acorn squash in half and remove seeds. Place squash on baking sheet and place in oven for 45 minutes or until soft. While squash is roasting toast pumpkin seeds (spread a single layer ½ cup of pumpkin seeds in a shallow dish, small baking sheet, or a sheet of foil and place in oven 5 minutes or lightly browned). Add heavy cream to 1 quart saucepan over medium heat and let simmer for 15 minutes. Combine toasted pumpkin seeds (leave a few whole for garnish), garlic, and chipotles in food processor, blend until a thick paste. Remove squash from oven and cut into cubes. Remove cream from heat and add pumpkin seed mixture. Drain pasta and add cream mixture and squash and mix well. Top with parmesan, pumpkin seeds, and parsley. Makes 4 servings.

Pasta and Greens

 I just got home from walking the dog and was planning dinner alone when David called to let me know he would be home after his meeting after all. I am hoping to finish the book I have been reading Waiter Rant. So tonight's meal will have to be an old stand by. This recipe started this spring when our CSA (community supported agriculture) share from Calypso Farm turned out to be more leafy greens than we could sometimes eat in a week. The great thing about greens is that when you steam them they turn into almost nothing. I have made this recipe with everything from Spinach, Chard, Kale, Mustard Greens, Radish Green, Turnip Greens, you name it. The one week our basil was actually plentiful here in Alaska I actually used Basil instead of greens, which turned the dish into a creamy pesto.