Papaya and Avocado Crab Salad

You can send a box of fresh papayas to Mom for Mother's Day or to that someone special who deserves a pick-me-up!

Papaya and Avocado Crab Salad

 

You need:

• 1 cup diced, peeled papaya
• 1 cup diced, peeled avodado
• 1 poblano chile, halved and seeded
• 1 medium jalapeno pepper, halved
• 2/3 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound lump crabmeat (be sure shell pieces are removed)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 6 6-inch pitas, split

Directions:

1. Preheat broiler
2. Place chile and pepper halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined broiler pan and flatten with hand
3. Broil 10 minutes or until blackened
4. Place in zip-top plastic bag and seal, let stand for 10 minutes
5. Peel and finely chop then place in large bowl
6. Add all other ingredients (except pita), toss gently to combine
7. Serve with pita
8. Makes 6 servings

We made this over the weekend and it was gone in minutes! 

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• January - Extra Fancy Gala Apples
• February - Grapefruit
• March - Granny Smith Apples
• April - Papayas
• May - Mangoes
• June - Peaches
• July - Plums
• August - Nectarines
• September - Red Delicious Apples
• October - Asian Pears
• November - Red Pears
• December - Navel Oranges 

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Recipe of the Week: Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

Nope, you didn't stumble into Bizzaro world. Yup, you read that title right. As it turns out, someone came up with the best idea since strawberries went ON your cheesecake. Why, oh why, didn't we think of this??? No time to dwell on that...let us just be thankful that someone did!

And while we're handing out thanks, we really must give a shout out to Twitter. We know some people are loath to get on board with the thought-truncating machinations of that most ubiquitos of social media options... but guess where we found this recipe? Seriously, we can no doubt live without knowing what Ashton Kutcher had for breakfast, but we're pretty sure we can't live without cheesecake stuffed strawberries! So thank you Twitter, thank you @localinseason and thank you @nutmegnanny!


Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

You need:

• 1 pound large strawberries
• 8 oz. block cream cheese
• 3-4 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (may also use almond or lemon, depending on your preference)
• Graham cracker crumbs

Directions:

1. Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of each strawberry
2. Remove tops and clean out insides, a paring knife works well
3. If you want strawberries to stand up-right for presentation, cut a bit off the bottom
4. Set berries aside
5. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla
6. Put cream cheese mix in a piping bag and fill strawberries (be sure let some 'overflow' the top
7. Put graham cracker crumbs on a plate
8. Dip tops of strawberries in the crumbs until fully coated
9. Enjoy!

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Recipe of the Week: Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse

It's Bastille Day and it's raspberry season, so we thought we'd honor both occasions this week by celebrating with a delectable raspberry white chocolate mousse! Your family and friends will be storming the kitchen for second helpings. (Sorry, we're as weak in the face of wordplay as we are in the face of dessert.)

As if being super yummy weren't enough, this mousse has a bonus feature. It can also be used to fill or ice a cake! Franc-ly (sorry) we think it would be best to try both! Ouiiiiiiiii!


Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse

You need:

• 10 ounces fresh raspberries
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons orange liqueur
• 1 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
• 6 ounces white chocolate, chopped
• 1 drop red food coloring

Directions:

1. Process berries in a blender or food processor until smooth
2. Strain mixture into a small bowl and discard seeds
3. Add the sugar and liqueur and stir until sugar dissolves
4. In a heavy saucepan on low heat, warm 1/4 cup of the cream and the white chocolate
5. Stir chocolate constantly until it melts
6. Let mixture cool until it is lukewarm
7. Stir in one tablespoon of raspberry sauce and the drop of food coloring
8. Transfer mixture into large bowl
9. In a medium bowl, whip remaining 1 1/2 cups of cream to soft peaks
10. Fold into melted chcolate mixure, one-third at a time, until no streaks remain
11. Layer into parfait dishes and serve with the sauce

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Recipe of the Week: Frozen Fruit Pops

New England or not, we think it's now safe to say summer is truly here. (If it snows next week, feel free to blame us.) One of the things we love best about this season is the amazing abundance of berries! Between the blueberries and the raspberries, it sure gets wild in our neck of the woods once the calendar flips to July.

This week we wanted to bring you a recipe that not only highlighted some of summer's best berries, but served as a tasty way to cool off. We think we've found it with these super simple ice pops - featuring three kinds of berries along with bananas and yogurt, they're also bursting with nutrition!



Frozen Fruit Pops

You need:

• 2 cups fresh blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and sliced bananas, mixed
• 2 cups plain or vanilla yogurt
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 8 small paper cups
• 8 popsicle sticks

Directions:

1. Place the berries, sliced banana, yogurt and sugar into a blender
2. Cover and blend until fruit is chunky or smooth, as desired
3. Fill paper cups 3/4 full with fruit mixture
4. Cover the top of each cup with a strip of aluminum foil
5. Poke a popsicle stick through the center of the foil on each cup
6. Place the cups in the freezer for at least 5 hours
7. To serve, remove foil and peel off the paper cup

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Recipe of the Week: Grilled Peaches

 IT. IS. ON!

We're talking about summer, we're talking about the grill and we're talking about peaches!

For a minute there it looked like we had entered into some strange weather wormhole and wound up back in November - but hey, that's New England  for you! Like the hardy breed we are, we hung in there and we're feeling pretty good about the prospect of some REAL summer weather sticking around for a bit.

And just to show we're serious, we're busting out a recipe that screams summer. Sure, these days you can get your hands on peaches for most of the year, but they never taste as good as they do in the summertime. Take it a step further and put that juicy little Georgian on the grill and it's like the culinary equivalent of the last day of school, the fourth of July, fireflies and dips in the ocean all rolled into one!

And, to top it all off, this one's as easy as a Summer breeze.


Grilled Peaches

You need:

• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black peppercorns
• 2 large fresh peaches, halved and pitted (don't remove skin)
• 2 1/2 ounces fresh crumbled blue cheese

Directions:

• In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together the white sugar, balsamic vinegar and pepper
• Simmer until liquid has reduced by one half (it should become slightly thicker)
• Remove from heat and set aside
• Preheat grill for medium-high heat
• Lightly oil the grill grate
• Place peaches on the prepared grill, cut side down
• Cook for about 5 minutes or until flesh is carmelized
• Turn peaches over, brush tops and sides with the balsamic glaze and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes
• Transfer the peach halves to individual serving dishes, sprinkle with blue cheese and drizzle with remaining glaze

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Recipe of the Week: Papaya Bruschetta

Don't know about where you are, but it is one chilly, rainy all around dreary day here in Boston. Blech. What we need is a lift, a little something bright and sweet and mmmmm, tropical! Nothing else quite fits this bill like the papaya. Our Vitamin A-rich friend is great on its own or in a smoothie or switching up your typical salsa. But today we're offering up a recipe that puts the papaya in a setting few are likely to imagine - perched atop a nice slice of crusty French bread...  papaya's got a brand new baguette! (c'mon, like you could've resisted that one)

Papaya Bruschetta

You need:

• 1 papaya
• 5 plum tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
• 2 green onions
• 1 French baguette, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Directions:

1. Cut papaya in half and remove seeds
2. Reserve 2 tablespoons of seeds for the dressing
3. Peel and dice the papaya and place in medium bowl
4. Add tomatoes, red onion, red pepper and basil and set aside
5. In a food processor or blender, combine the papaya seeds, sugar, wine vinegar, oil, mustard and green onions
6. Process until smooth and thick and most of the seeds have broken up
7. Pour over the papaya mixture and stirl to coat all of the ingredients
8. Serve on slices of baguette

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Recipe of the Week: Apple Brownies



So, this apple walks into a brownie... actually, that's a bit misleading. For you see this week's recipe, while it may be called "Apple Brownies," has a lot more in common with what you might know as a "Blondie." In other words, there is no chocolate (brown) to be found here - just apple-y goodness along with the always welcome crunch of pecans. A better name would probably be "Applies" but since that's already a word and would require an ensuing explanation of pronounciation, we'll just stick with Apple Brownies.

Apple Brownies

You need:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 Granny Smith apples, ppeled, cored, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar then beat in egg
3. Stir in apples and pecans
4. In a separate bowl, sift together dry ingredients
5. Add dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix well
6. Pour into a buttered, 8x8 baking dish
7. Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes clean from center of brownie

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Recipe of the Week: Corned Beef and Cabbage

*just a suggestion

Cead Mile Failte! We're having some techinical difficulties with our graphic elements today, so we hope you don't mind another green beer. Luckily, it still fits our theme!

Last week we brought you a rather non-traditional St. Patty's Day recipe to try - cookies made green by the magic of fresh produce. (OK, it was just shredded zucchini, but the taste was rather magical.) This week we're keeping it fresh while keeping with tradition... nothing makes a more traditional St. Patrick's Day than corned beef and cabbage.

It takes some time but, hey, you waited all year for this day, you can wait a few hours for this delicious dish! Besides, we're sure you'll figure out some way to pass the time*!
Slainte!

Corned Beef and Cabbage

You need:

• 4 1/2 pounds corned beef brisket
• 5 black peppercorns
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 onion peeled and left whole
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 small head cabbage, cored and cut in wedges
• 6 large potatoes, quartered
• 4 large carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons butter

Directions:

1. In a 6 quare Dutch oven, place beef brisket, peppercorns, garlic powder, onion, bay leaves and salt
2. Fill pan with water to cover everything, plus one inch
3. Bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes
4. Skim residue from surface of water
5. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 2 to 3 hours until meat can be pulled apart with a fork
6. Add the cabbage, potatoes and carrots, pressing them down into the liquid
7. Simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender
8. Skim oil from surface of water
9. Stir in butter and parsely
10. Remove from heat
11. Remove meat from pan and place on serving dish to rest for 15 minutes
12. Remove vegetables from pan and keep warm
13. Slice meat diagonally, against the grain
14. Spoon juices over meat and vegetables and serve

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Recipe of the Week: Bananas Foster

Can it be that time of year already? Whoo hoo, next week (March 8) is Mardi Gras! To help you celebrate, we're offering up a very quick, but most decadent dessert recipe that's as closely tied to New Orleans as Fat Tuesday itself!

We're still making sure you get some fruit but in the spirit of the holiday it's in a really, really indulgent setting. Our friend the banana is the star of this famed NOLA dish and he's potassium-packed and ready to party. He's got no qualms about dropping peel and doing a sweet cannonball into a pool of butter, rum, vanilla and sugar. Won't you join him? C'mon, you only live once!

Bananas Foster

You need:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 2/3 cup dark brown sugar
• 3 1/2 tablespoons rum
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 bananas, peeled and sliced lengthwise and crosswise
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
• 1 pint vanilla ice cream

Directions:

1. In a large, deep skillet over medium heat, melt butter
2. Stir in sugar, rum, vanilla and cinnamon
3. When mixture begins to bubble, place bananas and walnuts in pan
4. Cook until bananas are hot, about 1 to 2 minutes
5. Serve immediately over vanilla ice cream

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Recipe of the Week: Kiwi Sandwich



Whee!

 You'll never guess what we saw today! GRASS! That's right, honest to goodness growin' outta the ground, sproutin' up outta the dirt, smellin' all springy GRASS! If you're from pretty much anywhere in the U.S. that isn't Florida you probably understand our absolute giddiness at this discovery.

Friends, it has been a heck of a brutal winter. And while there may still be 5-foot-tall snowpiles on some street corners, we're gonna celebrate that little swatch of green that has reminded us spring is (fingers crossed) just around the corner. February-March (and, let's face it, April) is a tricky time, weather-wise, in New England and we're gonna savor the morsels of non-freezing temps whenever possible until we're safely in July! So while the thermometer hovers around 60, we're thinking green, we're thinking picnic, we're thinking seasonal fruit. Put all that together and what do you get - kiwi sandwiches! No really! Check this out...

Creamy Kiwi Sandwich

You need:

• 1 (8 ounce) package Neufchatel cheese
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 cup chopped kiwi fruit
• 16 slices whole wheat bread

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix together Neufchatel cheese, lemon zest and honey
2. Refrigerate for one day to allow flavors to develop
3. Spread about 2 tablespoons of the cheese mixture over one side of a slice of bread
4. Top with about 2 tablespoons of chopped kiwi fruit, cover with another slice of bread
5. Repeat with remaining ingredients to make 8 sandwiches

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Recipe of the Week: Easy Guacamole

It's the most wonderful time of the year! OK, maybe the second most wonderful... it's time for "the big game." While it doesn't technically qualify as a holiday, it sure feels like one with all the friends, family and FOOD! Even if your team isn't vying for the title (sniff, sniff) that's no reason not to enjoy yourself.

This week we've got a great recipe to help you do just that, zesty guacamole*  - easy, delicious and always a crowd pleaser. And to our local friends - just try to ignore the fact that it's green... sigh.

Easy Guacamole

You need:

• 3 ripe avocados - peeled, pitted and mashed
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 plum tomatoes, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 pinch ground cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, mash together the avocados, lime juice and salt
2. Mix in onion, cilantro, tomatoes and garlic
3. Stir in cayenne pepper
4. For best flavor, allow to refrigerate for one hour before serving

*yup, the avocado is a fruit

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Recipe of the Week: Toasty Turnovers

If you are reading this from pretty much any of the 50 United States, chances are you have recently been/will soon be/are currently cursing your local weather forecaster... and doing so through chattering teeth, shaking a wooly-mittened fist.  You know what you deserve? Some warm delicious, soul-hugging comfort food! With this week's receipe, we think we've found the culinary equivalent of being wrapped up in granny's handmade afghan in front of a roaring fire with a trusty dog curled at your feet. Now if you could just find someone to make it for you while your fingers thaw out from shoveling...

Toasty Apple & Blueberry Turnovers

You need:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter chilled and diced
• 3/4 cup milk
• 6 apples, peeled and cored
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon dried orange peel

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. Grease 7x11 inch baking dish
3. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and brown sugar
4. Cut in butter
5. Pour in milk and stir to form dough
6. Turn out onto a well-floured surface and roll out; cut into 6x6 inch squares
7. Fill the core of each apple with blueberries
8. Place whole apple in the center of each square and drizzle with maple syrup
9. Pull up corners of dough and pinch edges together to seal
10. Place dumplings in prepared pan and sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg
11. Combine remaining maple syrup with enough water to pour over dumplings to a 1 inch depth in dish
12. Submerge remaining blueberries and apple peelings with dried orange peel in the liquid
13. Bake 45 minutes, basting as necessary, until crisp and brown
14. Serve WARM

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Recipe of the Week: "Strapping" Fruit Snacks

Now that the holidays with their blended egg nog drinks are behind us and smoothie season seems so very far away your blender may very well have the blues. So bored, so lonely, tucked in the corner of the kitchen counter behind the bread box or - worse yet - disassembled and hidden away in some seldom-used lower cabinet.

Well it's time to bust this overlooked appliance out of its winter doldrums and put it to work making a healthy snack which can do the same for you! With a little help from the puree button, you and your blender can whip ordinary apples and pears into some rather strapping fruit leather. (Get it? Strapping? Leather? OK, we won't be quitting our day jobs.) The prep time is quick, but the cook time is rather extensive, so make sure the oven is free for the day/evening. The whole endeavor will be worth it, though, as you get 16 servings of a nutritious and delicious snack and your blender gets to be the star of the kitchen once more!

Strapping Fruit Snacks

You need:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 4 cups apples peeled, cored and chopped
• 4 cups pears peeled, cored and chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees
2. Cover a baking sheet with a layer of plastic wrap
3. In the container of a blender, combine the sugar, lemon juice, apple and pear
4. Cover and puree until smooth
5. Spread mixture evenly on the prepared pan
6. Place pan on the top rack of the oven
7. Bake for 5 to 6 hours, leaving the oven door partway open
8. Fruit is ready when the surface is no longer tacky to the touch
9. Remove tray from oven, roll up on the plastic and store in an airtight container

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Happy New Year! Happy New Recipe: Warm Baked Apples

Happy new year, friends!  We hope that 2011 is off to a great start for you! Since it's now a bit after midnight, in lieu of a toast, today we're bringing you a recipe that will help keep you toasty warm! (Not sure about where you are - but here in Boston, today's high temperature is expected to be around 19.)  It also includes plenty of fruit, which is an important part of any healthy-eating resolutions you might have made... but don't worry, there's a lil sugar in there to sweeten the deal.

Warm Baked Apples

You need:

• 6 apples peeled, cored and sliced
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup whole milk

Directions:

1. Preheat overn to 350 degrees F
2. Grease a 2 quart casserole dish
3. Place apples in a large bowl
4. In a small bowl, mix the sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves
5. Stir spice mixture into apples until evenly distributed
6. Fold in the raisins and walnuts
7. Spoon into prepared dish and pour milk evenly over mixture
8. Bake in preheated overn for 45 to 60 minutes, or until soft and bubbly

 

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Recipe of the Week: Sweet & Savory Pear Kugel

 

Drooling and driving. It has many causes. Maybe you're driving by a bakery in the pre-dawn hours when all the fresh goodies are coming out of the ovens. Perhaps you pass a billboard with a gigantic juicy hamburger, several feet tall, staring back at you with its glistening onions and pickles. Or, perhaps you hear something delicious on the radio. Certainly this is one of the less common causes of drooling and driving, but it happened to us just the other day! Flipping stations, we heard the word "pears" (seriously, we're attuned to that sort of thing) and stopped. It was our local NPR affilate and on the eve of Hanukkah, a guest was sharing her favorite holiday recipes. Well, this lady had such a way with words, we could practically taste the dense pear and prune sweetened bread and savory sauted onions as she described her go-to recipe for kugel. Don't worry, we didn't try to write it down as we drove. We arrived safely home, looked it up on the Web and now share it with you. Happy Hanukkah and happy eating!

Sweet & Savory Pear Kugel

You need:

• 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 pounds ripe Bosc pears
• 2 small onions (about 1/2 pound), peeled and cut into 1-inch dice
• salt to taste
• 1/2 loaf thick white bread, about 7 ounces
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 8 tablespoons butter or pareve margarine, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups pitted prunes
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• juice of one lemon
• 1 cup+ water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Grease 9-inch springform pan with 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil
3. Peel the pears and cut all but one of them into 1-inch cubes
4. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat
5. Lightly saute the onions until translucent; remove from heat, salt lightly, cool slightly
6. Soak the bread for a few seconds in lukewarm water and squeeze dry
7. Put bread in large bowl and mix with 1/4 cup of the sugar and butter/margarine; stir in the eggs, onions and half of the diced pears
8. Pour batter in springform pan and bake for 2 hours
9. While kugel is baking, cook the compote - in a heavy saucepan combine 1 cup water, 1/2 cup sugar, prunes, cinnamon, lemon juice and remaining pears, set on medium-high heat and cook uncovered for 30 minutes
10. Finely grate the remaining pear and stir into the cooked compote
11. When kugel is finished baking, remove from the oven and set on rack to cook for about 20 minutes
12. Remove kugel from pan onto serving platter, spoon half of compote over kugel, serve the remaining compote on the side.

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Recipe of the Week: Ultimate* Cranberry Sauce



The holiday season. It's a time for folks to gather together in peace and harmony. Well, the same is true of fruit. No, really! A couple of weeks ago on this very page (screen) we shared the story of the delightful union of the cranberry and the pear. Today we revisit these fine fruits to find they've forged a fantastic new friendship. The pear, the cranberry, the apple and the orange are all coming together for Thanksgiving and the result is an irresistable combination you'll love to invite to your table every year! (Also, there are pecans. Boy do we love pecans, and their role in this dish is one of the best we've seen outside of a pie-setting.)

*not to take anything away from the Cran-Peary Sauce recipe, but this one is pretty amazing.

Ultimate Cranberry Sauce

You need:

• 1 cup water
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 (12 ounce) package fresh cranberries
• 1 orange, peeled and pureed
• 1 apple, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 pear, peeled, cored and diced
• 1 cup chopped dried mixed fruit
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, boil water and sugar until the sugar dissolves
2. Reduce the heat to simmer and stir in the cranberries, pureed orange, apple, pear, dried fruit, pecans, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg
3. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring ocassionally, until the cranberries burst
4. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature

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Recipe of the Week: Cran-pear-y Sauce

When the pear first spied the fetching, ripe cranberries it was love at first sight. Sure, they might sound like an odd  pear-ing, but when these two fall flavors combine you'll agree they were meant to be. In fact, they're such a great couple, we recommend inviting them to your Thanksgiving dinner. In addition to being delightfully warm and possessing great taste theywon't overstay their welcome -  in fact, we're pretty sure they'll be gone before dessert.

Cran-pear-y Sauce

You need:

• 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 large ripe pears, peeled and quartered
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

Directions:

1. In a saucepan, combine water, sugar and cinnamon
2. Add pears and bring to a boil over medium heat
3. Stir in cranberries
4. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally
5. Serve warm
6. Makes two servings

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Recipe of the Week: Mini Pumpkin Treats



Show-offs.

Among the inhabitants of every pumpkin patch, it is generally agreed that there is no higher purpose than to become a jack o’lantern. Scary, funny, fanciful - it doesn't matter - they're all waiting for the day when they are stoop-ified and filled with that magical inner glow on Halloween night while their roasted seeds are snacked upon and their innards added to soup or pie.

That is if you're a big, or even medium-sized pumpkin. But what of the little guys? You know the adorable palm-sized ones overflowing from wicker baskets at farmers markets and perched on the edge of your co-workers desk. Too tiny to be carved (sure sometimes they get a little face drawn on them with a marker or maybe poster paint but that’s not the same) and too tiny to be made into pie. The miniature pumpkin, like the mass of men, lives a life of quiet desperation* - their stature too small to dream big.

Well, we’re looking to change that today. We’ve found a recipe that elevates the fate of the wee sugar pumpkin – making it the centerpiece/edible fruit it was born to be. A recipe that allows these tiny gourds to make a great big delicious impression. And best of all, it couldn’t be simpler! When they're finished in the oven, they can still masquerade as festive display items until it's time to eat - making them both a trick and a treat! Neat!

Baked Mini Pumpkins

You need:

• 1 small sugar pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon butter
• 2 pinches ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Cut off the top of the pumpkin and scrape out the seeds
3. Place the butter and brown sugar inside the pumpkin and sprinkle with ground cinnamon
4. Put the pumpkin lid back on and place the pumpkin in a baking pan with a little water in the bottom
5. Bake for about 30 minutes or until tender

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*Apologies to Mr. Thoreau. Though we think he'd kinda like this recipe. He certainly liked pumpkins -"I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself than be crowded on a velvet cushion."