Pumpkin Bread

'Tis the season and I've been sitting on a goldmine of a Pumpkin Bread recipe! It's the most moist and yummy pumpkin bread I've had. It makes 3 loaves and freezes really well. It's basically a recipe that I found on Allrecipes.com but I changed it a slight bit. Original recipe.

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
2/3 cup water
2 cups white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour three 7" (or two 9") loaf pans.
In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, applesauce, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

IKEA Meatballs

Food Network Magazine posts a copycat recipe every month and this month's was IKEA Swedish Meatballs. I changed it slightly from that and I'm very happy with the result. My recipe follows...but here's the original.


Meatballs
1 cup breadcrumbs (I used pre-made ones, not Italian seasoned)
2 Tblspns melted butter
1/2 c minced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tspn Worcestershire sauce
1.5 pounds ground beef
1 egg
salt, pepper to taste


Instructions:
1. Put breadcrumbs in a large bowl. Melt butter in a small saucepan, add in onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Saute for 5 minutes or until soft.
2. Add milk and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a simmer.
3. Pour over breadcrumbs in bowl and stir to combine. Let cool, just until cool enough to touch.
4. Add in ground meat and combine.
5. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on lightly greased or lined baking sheet.
6. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
7. Bake in a 400F oven for about 20 minutes.

Gravy
2 Tblspns butter
2 Tblspns flour
1.5 cups beef broth
1 tspn Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup heavy cream
salt, pepper to taste


Instructions:
1. Melt butter in skillet and add in flour. Cook for about 1 minute.
2. Whisk in beef broth and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a simmer.
3. Add in cream and meatballs.
4. Reduce to low for 10-15 minutes.

Serve with hot egg noodles, mashed potatoes, as a sandwich, or however you like. :)

Crab Cakes with Aioli

We don't live near the coast anymore but that's no excuse not to have crab cakes! These are made with canned crab meat but those of you who live near the coast should use fresh crab.

2 6oz cans lump crab meat
20 buttery crackers (Ritz or Keebler Club work well)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2-1 tspn Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (or more cracker crumbs if done in a food processor)
1/2 cup oil for frying

Crush the crackers and toss into a mixing bowl with the crab meat and Old Bay. Add in the eggs and stir to combine. Shape into 4 patties and coat in bread crumbs. Set aside.

Heat the oil over medium heat. Add in patties and cook until browned on each side, about 3-5 minutes.

Serve with garlic aioli (below). I like my crab cake in a sandwich with lettuce and tomato. You can also shape them into about 16 fritters and serve as an appetizer.

Aioli

3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 garlic clove, minced
1-2 Tbspns lemon juice

Mix until combined.

Homemade Pesto

Tis the season for lots of fresh garden herbs and greens. At the farmer's market this weekend, I scored a huge bunch of basil so, I decided, what would be better than making homemade pesto?

2 cups of fresh basil
5-6 cloves of smashed or chopped garlic
1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnut or pine nuts are traditional)
3/4 cup olive oil
2-3 big pinches of salt
1 pinch black pepper

Put the basil and garlic in the food processor and pulse until it's chopped well and the garlic looks evenly distributed. Add in the chopped nuts. Turn on the processor and slowly pour in the oil until it emulsifies and is smooth. Add in the salt and pepper and give it a quick spin. Taste and edit if needed with more salt/pepper or oil. Pour into a prepared jar and refrigerate. Should keep for 3-4 months. Use over pasta (hot or cold), in salad dressings, to toss veggies in, in soup (tomato in particular), on pizza, or anything else where fresh basil is needed.

*Note, I don't put cheese in mine...that is because 1.) I'm lactose intolerant and I live with a cheese harlot who likes more cheese than I can digest and 2.) cheese goes bad so leaving it out lets the pesto last longer without preservatives. :)