Healthy Spicy Squash Spread, Vegan

Are you tired of squash yet? You are probably thinking, "oh no not another squash recipe!" I promise this will be the last Kuri squash recipe and sadly it is also the last of my stash. Who knows maybe I'll pick up another when next time I see one at my local shop or perhaps I may be over my obsession. I don't know and can't make any promises.

Often times for breakfast, brunch or as a snack I like to have a slice of bread with some sort of spread. While I try to make healthy food choices when it comes to spreads it can very difficult to find a healthy, low calorie but still tasty spread. I am a label reader and many times readying all of the fatty ingredients and preservatives turns me off on certain spreads (and many foods). I'm not going to lie to you I will still purchase the fattier spreads but only once in a while. The other day I was really craving some bread with a creamy spread, but I wanted it spicy and the usual cheese spread was just not going to cut it. So this is what I came up with, a Healthy Low-Fat Spicy Squash Spread. Oh and a great plus to the recipe is that no animals were harmed in the making of the spread. It's Vegan! So I hope my Vegetarian buddies, Alisha (The Ardent Epicure) and Stella (The Witchy Kitchen) will appreciate my attempt. Is it weird if I dedicate this recipe to you lovely ladies? hm, well I do.

One last note I would like to add is that you could also just mix all of the ingredients instead of heating and cooking them. I get heartburn from raw garlic so I have to cook it before I can eat it. Raw garlic also burns my skin, does anyone else have this problem? OK, here is the recipe and hope you enjoy it. By the way I would like to apologize for my bad photos. No matter what I did I just couldn't get the color and light balanced, argh!

4 servings
Ingredients:
1 cup (220 grams) pureed squash
1 small carrot (40 grams) or 1 cup grated
handful chives, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. salt, adjust to taste
pinch ground black pepper
chile flakes to taste, ( omit for a mild version)
2 tbsp. water
2 tbsp. olive oil

1. In a small saucepan heat the oil, then add the minced garlic and cook for 2 minutes. (Stir often to prevent burning.) Add the grated carrot and cook for 3 minutes to soften a bit, then add the chives and cook for a further 3 minutes. The chile flakes should be added next and mix until well combined. Lastly add the squash to the saucepan, stir and heat through. Sprinkle the salt and ground black pepper into the pan, stir until all ingredients are well combined. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely before serving. Allowing the spread to sit will also help all of the ingredients come together for a better tasting spread.


Keep in the refrigerator and use within a few days.

And to finish this post I want to ask you guys to stop by Sommer's blog, Momma With Flavor, see this mouthwatering photo below? This is Sommer's delicious recipe for Autumn 3 Cheese Macaroni made with Kuri Squash, yum!. She so kindly and sweetly said "she(Nancy) inspired me to find great potential for this squash. Her addiction...erm..love for this lovely winter squash literally made my mouth water. Then the recipe she produced made me want to try this even more! " Isn't she a sweetie? When I read this it totally made my day and put a much needed smile on my face, thank you Sommer. You guys really have to stop by her blog and take a look at not only her Mac& Cheese creation but all of her delicious recipes. She is a very talented foodie with a beautiful family that inspires her kitchen creativity, with fantastic results I might add.

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Grape Jam for 2 ( refrigerator style)

Some of us take many things for granted. But before you think I'm going to give you a moral lesson hold on - this is a food blog after all. What I mean by this is that some of us don't notice nor appreciate the ordinary everyday simple foods. When we arrived in Europe it was Mexican ingredients like tortillas, chili peppers, my Mother's home cooking that made me realize I took for granted and did not appreciate enough when I had them available everyday if I wished. Sure there were other realizations of foods and mostly conveniences that I had been expose to from living in the US. But I won't bore you with a long list of things both my husband and I miss from back home, I'm going to focus on just one. Grape Jelly/ Jam. That's right, grape jelly, for my North American readers I bet you take it for granted.

Some of you may think this is a little weird, how can we miss grape jelly surely there must be grape jelly available in Europe. We searched in 6 different countries and never came across a single jar of grape jelly-jam-preserve. Now I'm not saying that it just doesn't exist, we just never found any. Well let me tell you a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich just isn't the same with any other flavor of jelly. I like to joke with my husband that Europeans turn all their grapes into wine and so there none left over to make grape jelly. Ok that's a goofy exaggeration because there are fresh grapes for sale all over, so not all grapes are turned into wine. (Wait you know I don't think I've seen grape juice here either, wow I'll have to double check the grocery store next time. ) And so not wanting my poor husband to endure a grape jelly-less existence I took it upon myself to surprise him by making our very own grape jelly.

I have been using this recipe and making our very own grape jam for about 5 years now. I actually call this grape jam because I use the whole fruit, minus the seeds of course, rather than using just juice which would then classify this as a jelly. This is my recipe for easy , relatively fast, small portion for 2 grape jam craving individuals who won't be accidently poisoned by incorrect canning procedure - refrigerator safe grape Jam!



Your Ingredients:
1.5 lb. or 680 grams dark grapes
1 1/2 cups or 300 grams Dr. Oetker Gelfix Extra 2:1
( this is a Gelation Sugar with pectin from apples and citrus fruits) Premium Fruit Pectin
1/2 cup or 120 ml of water

large pot
blender
strainer
Sterilized jar

1. Wash and remove grapes from stems. Place the grapes inside the pot and pour the water over the grapes cover and bring to a boil. Once the mixture has boiled use a potato masher to crush the grapes to break them down further. You should have a very watery juice with most of the grapes broken down and skins separated. Boil for another 5 minutes.

2. Place a strainer over a large bowl or another pot. Strain the grapes and use a spoon to push the remaining grape chunks through and break them up. Now you'll need to pick out and discard as many of the seeds , that is if you used a grape variety with seeds. The grape skins should be placed inside a blender with the grape juice that was just strained. * Please note that I like to use the grape skins in my jam, if you do not want to you will again need to strain the grape juice and discard the remaining grape skins. *

3. Pour the grape juice mixture back into the same pot used to boil them. Next we will add the gelation sugar into the grape mixture. Cook the grape mixture over medium low until the jam has set. This will take about 40 minutes or so , stir often to prevent burning and bubbling over. If foam begins to form on top scoop out and discard. You can test the jam by dropping about 1/2 tablespoon onto a plate, allow it to cool and using your finger push on the jam if it stays and does not run back down it has set.

4. Once the jam has set quickly pour into your sterilized jar , leave uncovered and allow to cool down to room temperature. Once cooled place the lid on it and store in the refrigerator for at least 1 day before eating. The jam will continue to set as it cools further. This jam should be save in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.

I bet you wont look at your grape jelly the same ever again. Now I ask you if you've moved away from home is there something you miss terribly and just can't find in your new home?

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Yellow Split Pea Spread

The recipe I have for you guys today came together as a craving for a hearty yet healthy alternative to dairy bread spreads. I came up with this yellow split pea spread just by looking at what I had available in my kitchen. So you will more than likely already have all the ingredients in your kitchen too. I just started mixing different the spices and flavors and textures until I was happy with the taste, and this is what I came up with.

Yellow split peas cook very fast ( see package instructions) so you can cook them right before you prepare the recipe, or alternatively you can soak the split peas overnight , ( which is what I did ) . Yellow split peas are more commonly used in soups, although in both Guyana and Trinidad the Indian communities use them as Dal and are less common in India. Yellow split peas are a great source of protein, which provides our bodies with energy. If you are on a diet or trying to consume less calories protein is something you want to make sure you have with your meals because it will keep you feeling full longer.



Your Ingredients:
1/2 cup or 100 grams yellow split pea
1/4 tsp. each salt and black pepper
1/2 tsp. Turmeric
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ginger powder
1/2 tsp. paprika
splash fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp. olive oil

1 small carrot, shredded
*1/2 sprig onion,including green stem, Or chives
+ salt & b.pepper to taste

Potato masher or Blender

1. Cook split peas following package instructions, you want to over cook these a bit since they will be pureed. Once the split peas are cooked, allow to completely cool off. Either in a blender or in a large bowl/container , add the cooked split peas and all of the spices and lemon juice. Mash or puree the ingredients , until it becomes a thick paste or puree. If the mixture is too dry add a couple of tablespoons of water, one at a time.
2. * By half of a sprig onion I mean, slice the onion down the middle to include all parts. Or for a more pungent taste you can add the whole onion.* Mix in the shredded carrot and sliced onion to the puree combine well. Taste for salt and pepper, and adjust to your liking.


Serve on sliced bread/toast or crackers. I served mine on whole grain bread that was covered in seeds and oatmeal and it was perfect! You could also use this spread to dip fresh vegetables instead of using fatty dressings. Store leftovers in the refrigerator , but use it up in the next day or two.

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