JCREM & Friends Fall Harvest Cook Off (Updated)
Today was the third installment in the regular feature "JCREM & Friends Cook Off." Previous installments included March's "Food From Your Upbringing" and August's "Summer Themed Dishes." Today's theme was Fall Harvest. Over 20 people attended, indulging in turkey, sides, and desserts. The menu follows:
- Main & Sides
- Turkey (Sonja)
- Green Bean Casserole (Oliver)
- Oyster Casserole (Holly)
- Four Cheese Mashed Potatoes (Courtney)
- Pumpkin Curry Soup (Alicia)
- Curry Fruit (Gina)
- Sweet Potato and Apple Salad (Diana)
- Broccoli and Cheese Casserole (Daquaan)
- Israeli Couscous (Kim)
- Macaroni & Cheese (Jen)
- Acorn & Butternut Squash Soup (Sheilah)
- Green Bean Quiche (Goli)
- Stuffing (Andrea)
- Brownies (Sonja)
- Cranberry-Orange Loaf (Ali)
- Pumpkin Mousse Pie (Brendan)
- Apple and Custard Pie with Streusel Topping (Meredith)
- Pumpkin Bread (Nancy)
- Pumpkin Cheesecake (Sheilah)
- Pumpkin Cake with Rum Icing (Bageshri)
Desserts
At the end of the day there were a few dishes that really blew me away. So, rather than announcing only a Best In Show there will also be two Honorable Mentions. The Honorable Mentions first. Honorable Mention for Excellence in Achievement in the Cooking of a Side Dish goes to Daquaan for his Broccoli & Cheese Casserole. Honorable Mention for Excellence in Achievement in the Cooking of a Dessert goes to Meredith for her Apple and Custard Pie with Streusel Topping.
And now for the Best In Show. A hearty congratulations goes to Alicia for her Pumpkin Curry Soup! Congrats and thanks to all for pulling off another amazing JCREM & Friends Cook Off.
Check out the comments section for recipes for the above dishes.
Update: I would feel remiss if I didn't mention the pumpkin mousse pie Brendan brought. It had a strong pumpkin flavor and was well spiced with a good consistency. His wife should be commended, as he confessed that she made the pie.
Also wanted to explain my criteria for judging. First, was the relevance of the dish's ingredients to the harvest/fall/Thanksgiving theme. The pumpkin in Alicia's soup and the apples in Meredith's pie especially hit this mark. Second, was uniqueness. Daquaan's casserole, made with broccoli, cheese, and stuffing, was a nice play on the standard Divan casserole with stuffing as its topping.
Labels: food
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From Sheilah:
Acorn (or Butternut) Squash Soup
Ingredients:
2 Acorn (or Butternut or mix) Squash (about 1 lb. each), halved and seeded
1 cup peeled, chopped carrots
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onions
½ cup chopped leeks (white & green parts only) or 1/8 cup shallots
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 cups fat-free low sodium chicken broth (+2-3 cup more to desired thickness after simmering)
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¼ cup real maple syrup (if you have sweet enough squash you don’t need to add any or all)
½ cup half-and-half (fat free half-and-half is what I’ve used, but in a pinch skim milk works too)
Directions:
Heat oven to 450°F. Arrange squash cut side down in a baking pan coated with cooking spray. Pour in 1 cup water (about ½ -1 in.). Cover with foil and bake 40-45 minutes, or until soft when tested with a fork through skin. Scoop out the pulp when cool enough. Use a potato masher to mash the squash. (If you prefer smoother soup, you can use a blender or food processor to puree. I prefer the lumps) In a large saucepan or dutch oven over medium low heat cook remaining vegetables in preheated olive oil until tender. Stir in pureed squash, 3 cups broth, and spices, cover and let simmer 30-40 minutes. Uncover and stir in maple syrup (if desired) and milk or half-and-half. Simmer 5 more minutes more to heat through.
(freezes well in individual ~3/4 - 1 cup containers; can be made vegan by using veggie broth and soy milk)
Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients:
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell's® Condensed 98% Fat Free Cream of Mushroom Soup
1/2 cup milk
Dash ground black pepper
4 cups cooked cut green beans (about 2 pkg. (9 oz. each) frozen green beans)
1 can French's® French Fried Onions
Directions:
MIX soup, milk, soy, beans and 2/3 cup onions in 1 1/2-qt. casserole.
BAKE at 350°F. for 25 min. or until hot.
STIR. Sprinkle with remaining onions. Bake 5 min.
From Alicia:
2 tbsp butter
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 cup chicken broth
15 oz pumpkin puree
12 oz evaporated milk
1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cook, stirring frequently for about 2-3 minutes or until tender. Stir in curry powder, salt and pepper, cook for 1 minute.
2. Add chicken broth and pumpkin, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cook, and stir occasionally for 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in evaporated milk. Transfer to blender (might need to transfer in batches) and blend until smooth.
Holy smokes - that all sounds SO good. The Pumpkin Mousse Pie, especially! Happy Thanksgiving!
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