Curried Pumpkin Soup with Crème Fraiche

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Side Dishes: Curried Pumpkin Soup with Crème Fraiche

By Maris Callahan

Pumpkins might be strongly associated with Halloween, but the truth is, a Thanksgiving dinner just isn't complete without a pumpkin pie on the table.

If you eat a gluten-free diet, you might be avoiding pie this year (although there are some excellent gluten-free pie crust options). If you're passing on the pie but still want to indulge in the warm, earthy flavors of pumpkin this year, try starting your meal with pumpkin soup.

Not only is pumpkin high in fiber and low in fat, it's gluten-free. And it's naturally gluten-free, so if you're cooking for a crowd, you won't have to make a big deal about it being any different than any other pumpkin soup that your gluten-eating guests enjoy.

Curried Pumpkin Soup with Crème Fraiche

Makes 6 servings

Pumpkin soup, with its creamy texture and warm, comforting flavor, is the perfect way to begin any Thanksgiving feast, gluten-free or not. This recipe draws exotic inspiration from curry powder and has a touch of cayenne pepper for an extra kick.

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced or 1 tsp ground ginger
2 tbsp curry powder
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 15oz cans unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 cup reduced fat (2%) milk
Pinch cayenne pepper
Crème fraiche optional

Directions

Step 1: In a heavy-bottomed 3- or 4-quart stockpot, melt butter over medium-high heat, or until it becomes fragrant. Add onions and sauté until they become tender and just translucent. Add ginger and curry powder and stir to combine. Let cook another 2-3 minutes so that flavors can blend.

Step 2: Add pumpkin and stock, and with a sturdy whisk, stir until combined. Bring the pot to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and let cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat, add milk and cayenne pepper, and stir until blended.

Step 3: Serve topped with crème fraiche, if desired.

More Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Side Dishes:

• Shells & Cheese with Browned Butter and Swiss Chard


• Warm Quinoa Salad with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Sage


• Brussels Sprouts with Apples and Chestnuts

About the Author:

Maris Callahan is the author of In Good Taste, an avid self-taught home cook, and is widely knowledgeable about all things culinary. She is especially passionate about helping new cooks learn how to prepare healthy, delicious meals and snacks, even when life is busy. She believes in Ghirardelli chocolate, farmer's markets and cooking from scratch when possible. When she is not in the kitchen working on her next recipe, Maris works as a marketing professional in Chicago and in her spare time, contributes to several websites including SheKnows.com, Diets In Review and Shape.com.

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/11/gluten-free_thanksgiving_side_1.html

Butternut Squash Soup

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving: Butternut Squash Soup

By Jeff Potter
A recipe excerpt from Cooking for Geeks

Ingredients

2 cups (660g) butternut squash, peeled, cubed, and roasted (about 1 medium squash)
2 cups (470g) chicken, turkey, or vegetable stock
1 small (130g) yellow onion, diced and sautéed
1/2 teaspoon (1g) salt (adjust to taste)

Directions

Step 1: Peel the butternut squash and then coat it with olive oil. Sprinkle it with salt, and roast it in the oven at a temperature around 400-425°F / 200-220°C until it begins to brown.

Tip:
To cut thick gourds such as squash and pumpkins, use a large chef's knife and a mallet. First, slice off a thin piece of the gourd so that it lies flat and doesn't roll, then gently tap the knife blade through the gourd.

Step 2: Purée the squash and the rest of the ingredients in a food processor or with an immersion blender. When you go to purée the ingredients, hold back some of the squash and some of the stock, taste the purée, and see which you think it needs. Want it thicker? Add more squash. Thinner? Add more stock.

Notes:
This soup by itself is very basic. Garnish with whatever else you have on hand that you think might go well, such as garlic croutons and bacon. Or top with a small dab of cream, some toasted walnuts, and dried cranberries to give it a feeling of Thanksgiving. How about a teaspoon of maple syrup, a few thin slices of beef, and some fresh oregano? Chives, sour cream, and cheddar cheese? Why not! Instead of purchasing items to follow a recipe exactly, try using leftover ingredients from other meals to complement the squash soup.

If you're in a rush, you can "jump-start" the squash by microwaving it first. Peel and quarter the squash, using a spoon to scoop out the seeds. Then, cube it into 1-2" / 3-5 cm pieces, drop it into a glass baking pan that's both oven and micro- wave safe, and nuke it for four to five minutes to partially heat the mass. Remove from microwave, coat the squash with olive oil and a light sprinkling of salt, and roast it in a preheated oven until done, about 20 to 30 minutes. If you're not in a rush, you can skip the peeling step entirely: cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, add oil and salt, roast it for about an hour (until the flesh is soft), and use a spoon to scoop it out.

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/11/gluten-free_thanksgiving_butte.html

Brussels Sprouts with Apples & Chestnuts

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Sides: Brussels Sprouts with Apples & Chestnuts

By Maris Callahan

Brussels sprouts may be one of the most disliked vegetables on the planet but in early fall, their fans seem to spring forth from hibernation and rally around them at farmer's markets until November, when they make a splash at Thanksgiving tables from coast to coast.

Brussels sprouts, despite their reputation for having a bitter taste and mildly offensive aroma, are well liked enough by professional and home chefs to have earned a permanent place on many a Thanksgiving dinner table.

Brussels sprouts have a nutty, noticeable flavor that pairs well when served alongside sweet dishes like butternut squash pureed with maple and brown sugar or tart cranberry sauces or relishes. Perfect for Thanksgiving, Brussels sprouts are also - you guessed it - gluten-free.

Gluten-Free Brussels Sprouts with Apples & Chestnuts

Serves 8

Though you can prepare Brussels sprouts a number of other ways - baked, roasted, au gratin, I like to make the on the stovetop on Thanksgiving day, freeing up coveted oven space for dishes that need to be baked or slow roasted (not to mention the turkey, which on many tables, is the main event).

Ingredients

2 pounds Brussels sprouts, sliced thinly with brown ends and outer leaves removed
1/2 cup diced onion
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 small apples, diced into small pieces
1/4 cup chestnuts, chopped
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup dark maple syrup

Directions

Step 1: In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until they begin to appear translucent, 2-3 minutes. Add apples and Brussels sprouts and cook for about 6-8 minutes or until fruit begins to soften. Add chestnuts.

Step 2: Add red wine vinegar and maple syrup. Stir to combine and cook for five more minutes or until flavors or blended.

Step 3: Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with additional chestnuts as a garnish, if desired.

More Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Side Dishes:

• Shells & Cheese with Browned Butter and Swiss Chard


• Curried Pumpkin Soup with Crème Fraiche


• Warm Quinoa Salad with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Sage

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/11/gluten-free_thanksgiving_sides.html

Rosemary Mashed Potatoes

I LOVE all things Potato! This is a fun twist that must be tried.

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving: Rosemary Mashed Potatoes

By Jeff Potter
A recipe excerpt from Cooking for Geeks

This simple mashed potato recipe uses the microwave for cooking the potatoes. If you're in the anti-microwave category, consider this: cooking a potato or any other starchy root vegetable requires gelatinizing the starches in the vegetable.

For this to occur, two things need to happen: the starch granules need to get hot enough to literally melt, and they need to be exposed to water so that the granules absorb and swell up, which causes the texture of the tissue to change. Luckily, the temperature at which most starches undergo the gelatinization process is below the boiling point of water, and there's enough water naturally present in potatoes for this to happen without any intervention needed. Try popping a sweet potato in your microwave for a few minutes - fast, easy, and healthy!

Ingredients

3 to 4 medium (600g) Red potatoes
1/2 cup (120g) Sour cream
1/3 cup (85g) milk
4 teaspoons (20g) Butter
2 teaspoons (2g) Finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/4 teaspoon (1g) Salt (2 large pinches)
1/4 teaspoon (1g) ground pepper

Directions

Step 1: Microwave until cooked, about six minutes.

Step 2: After cooking, cut the potatoes into small pieces that can be mashed with the back of a fork. Add the other ingredients and mash together.

Notes:
For a tangy version, trying substituting plain yogurt for a portion of the sour cream.

Different types of potatoes have different amounts of starch. Varieties with high starch content (e.g., russets, the brown ones with rough skin) turn out lighter and fluffier when baked and are gener- ally better for baked or mashed potatoes. Lower- starch varieties (red or yellow potatoes, typically smaller and smooth-skinned) hold their shape better and are better suited for applications in which you want the potato to stay intact, such as potato salad. Of course, there's still a lot of room for personal preference. When it comes to mashed potatoes, I prefer a coarse texture to the creamy, perfectly smooth potatoes so often seen in movie scenes associated with Thanksgiving, so I tend to use red potatoes.

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/11/gluten-free_thanksgiving_rosem.html

Cranberry Pomegranate Sorbet

Recipe: Cranberry Pomegranate Sorbet

By Katie Goodman

Cranberry pomegranate sorbet is a wonderful, seasonally appropriate party dessert. It packs great flavor while still being a more health-conscious option than most desserts. The sorbet's beautiful color will certainly take the spotlight at your holiday party this year.

This is a great option for dessert if you need to work on preparations in advance, as the sorbet can be made many days ahead and stored in the freezer until you need it. Your guests will never know!

For fun, serve in mini martini glasses with a few glugs of champagne. Or for the non-alcohol drinkers and children, use sparkling water or sparkling white grape juice. Garnish with cranberries.

Download the Recipe PDF Right click to save the PDF to your desktop. Directions on downloading PDFs.

Ingredients

2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup pomegranate juice
Zest of one large orange
Cranberries for garnish
Champagne, sparkling water, or sparkling white grape juice, optional

Directions

Step 1: Zest one large orange using a microplane grater. Set aside for later use.

Step 2: Add the cranberries, water, and sugar to a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil mixture for 2 minutes. Stir in the orange zest, remove from heat, and cover for 25 minutes.

Step 3: Add the cranberry mixture to a food processor and puree until smooth. Pour into a medium-sized storage container. Stir in the pomegranate juice, cover, and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, or overnight.

Step 4: Freeze the cranberry mixture in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer instructions. Then, remove sorbet and put in a freezer-safe container, cover, and freeze until it reaches desired consistency. Makes about 1 quart of sorbet.

More:

• Raspberry-Mascarpone Whip Brownie Parfait
• Microwave Treacle Sponge Pudding
• Brandied Cocktail Cherries

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/12/recipe_cranberry_pomegranate_s.html

Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Pecan Topping

I'm not a fan of pumpkin pie - just the crust for me - but maybe the pecan topping will change my mind...

Thanksgiving Feast: Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Pecan Topping

Thanksgiving Feast: Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Pecan Topping
By Katie Goodman

I have had so many failures with pie crust — too sticky, too dry, full of cracks — that for a while I just resigned myself to buying either frozen crusts or those ones you roll out and shape yourself. But that's really not my style. I love homemade, not store-bought. When I found this recipe from Simply Recipes, it seemed so easy and straightforward that I thought it was worth another go. With such great results on my first try, I felt the confidence I needed to never look back at those store-bought crusts again.

If you're trying to save time on Thanksgiving, you can make the recipe up to Step 5 and store it in the refrigerator until you're ready to make the pie. Just let it sit out on the counter for about 10 minutes before you roll it out.

All Butter Pie Crust

Slightly adapted from Simply Recipes.

Ingredients

1¼ cups all-purpose flour
8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter, cold
½ tsp salt
1½ tsp sugar
2–4 Tbsp ice water

Step 1: Cube the butter into ½" pieces. Place them on a freezer-safe plate or cutting board and freeze until very firm, approximately 30 minutes.

Step 2: Sift together the flour, salt, and sugar. Add the flour mixture to a food processor along with the butter. Pulse the ingredients until the butter is cut into coarse crumbs.

Step 3: Turn the contents of the food processor out into a bowl. Using a fork, stir in the ice cold water 1 tablespoon at a time until the mixture becomes a crumbly dough and forms together.

Step 4: On an un-floured surface, turn the dough out and shape it into a circle, approximately 6" in diameter, kneading as little as possible (pockets of butter are what keep the crust flaky and tender).

Step 5: Dust both sides of the circle with a bit of flour and wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze for 30 minutes or refrigerate for an hour.

Step 6: Remove the dough from the refrigerator or freezer. Set it aside while you dust the work surface and rolling pin with flour. Unwrap the dough and roll with a rolling pin until the dough has formed a circle about 12" in diameter and 1/8" thick.

Step 7: When the dough is the proper size, wrap it gently around the rolling pin to transfer to the pie plate.

Step 8: Press the dough into the 9" pie plate and shape the edges according to your desired design.

Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Pecan Topping

Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook 12th Edition.

This is my family's absolute favorite version of pumpkin pie. It's not that we've tried hundreds of recipes or tested and tweaked for years. We just found one we really like, made a couple of changes, and have stuck with it. There's never been a need for us to try a different recipe. Pumpkin Pie with Caramel Pecan Topping is our family's "must have" recipe. Everyone wants to make sure we're having the "pumpkin pie with the pecans." And we always do!

Ingredients

15 oz can pumpkin
3 slightly beaten eggs
1/3 cup half-and-half or heavy cream
½ tsp vanilla
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ cup brown sugar, packed
3 Tbsp flour
1 tsp lemon zest
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp allspice
1/8 tsp cloves
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup chopped pecans
¼ tsp salt
2 Tbsp softened butter
Single crust pie, prepared as directed above

Directions

Step 1: In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, zest, salt, and spices.

Step 2: In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin, eggs, half-and-half, and vanilla.

Step 3: Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and lightly beat by hand until well combined. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the pastry-lined pie plate. Bake at 375° for 25 minutes.

Step 4: While the pie bakes, stir together the brown sugar, pecans, salt, and butter until combined. Remove the pie from the oven and sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the top of the pie.

Step 5: Bake for 20 minutes more or until the center is set and the topping is golden and bubbly. Cool on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate within 2 hours.

Tip: It's easier to remove the first slice of pie from the plate if you cut the first piece and then cut the second before removing the first.

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/11/thanksgiving_feast_pumpkin_pie.html

10-Minute Apple Crumble

Recipe: 10-Minute Apple Crumble

By Andrew Lewis

This quick apple crumble recipe can be a real lifesaver when unexpected guests arrive. I have to admit that I make it more often than I should, even if I don't have company coming. Making the crumble takes about 10 minutes, which is roughly the same time it takes to percolate a good cup of coffee. I call this dessert a crumble, although in reality it is somewhere between a pie, a crumble, and a cobbler. I don't think my friends care too much what it's called, as long as there is enough to go around!

Download the Pattern PDF | Subscribe in iTunes Right click to save the PDF to your desktop. Directions on downloading PDFs.

Ingredients

2 large apples (NOT cooking apples)
2 cups broken, plain biscuits (plain cookies)
3 tbsp brown or white sugar
2 tbsp margarine (or butter)
1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Directions

Step 1: Peel and core the apples, and then dice them into a ceramic bowl.

Step 2: Add 2 tbsp of sugar and a splash of water.

Step 3: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Step 4: While the microwave is running, crush the biscuits into a coarse powder. I use a pestle and mortar for this, but a food processor (or even a plastic bag and a rolling pin) will work just as well.

Step 5: Wait for the microwave to finish, and then remove the baked apple. Let the apple cool for a couple of minutes and then remove the plastic wrap. Drain off any excess water.

Step 6: Add margarine to the crumbed biscuits and microwave for 30 seconds, to soften the margarine.

Step 7: Stir the melted margarine into the crumbed biscuits.

Step 8: Pour out the biscuit crumb mixture onto the apples. Try to get an even coating right across the bowl, using a fork or spoon to level out any high spots.

Step 9: Sprinkle 1 tbsp of sugar on top of the bowl, and then pop it under a hot grill until the topping turns a deep, golden brown color.

Step 10: Serve with fresh cream, ice cream, or crème Anglaise. A few summer berries or a sprig of mint will garnish the dish nicely.

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/10/recipe_10_minute_apple_crumble.html