Sugar loaf squash with glazed vegetables, Dumplings of Acorn Squash with braised Beet Greens and shiitake Pilaf.

(Gold nugget was substituted for sugarloaf, though pretty it is not as good eating Ed.)





Half all the squashes and remove the seeds.
Add them to a large pot and inundate with water put on stove over high heat and cover.
Peel 1/2 a hand of Ginger and make ¼ inch thick slices. Add to pot.
Peel 2 white onions and quarter. Add to pot.
Add 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 heaping TBS salt to pot.
Cook them on high, covered until tender and done.

Wild Mushroom Pilaf
2 cups brown basmati rice, washed.
1 small onion chopped
1/2 head of garlic
10-12 sprigs of thyme
2 cups wild mushrooms, washed and cut (Chanterelles and shiitake)
Salt and pepper

Sautee Onions, on medium until translucent add mushrooms sauté a bit. Then add the rice, 1/2 of garlic head and thyme. Stir add 4 Cups of water bring to a boil and cover tightly. Place in a 375 Oven.

Prepare the winter vegetables for glazing.
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.
Trim 1 bunch of Radishes, small red
Hericot vert ( small green beans ) 2" sections
1 bunch baby carrots, scrubbed and topped
1 cup full chanterelles, buttons or made small.

Make an ice bath and par-cook the vegetable until tender but not done 3-6 min depending on size. Remove to ice bath. Strain vegetable. Set aside.

Glazing the vegetables.
Heat a large skillet add 2 Tbs. oil. Add chanterelles and fry untouched for 4 min on medium high heat. If it is smoking or dry looking, a 2 Tbs. water from the pot.
Toss in a ¼ cup of small chopped onions, continue to cook. Add all of the vegetables, a few pats of butter, s + p, and a couple of ladles of water. Simmer until the liquid and the butter make a nice glaze for the vegetables. Fill the sugar loaf with the spring vegetables, and set in a warm place.

After the squash is done, remove it from the liquid, and add the beet greens, simmer for 6+ min. until tender and remove and drain excess liquid, arrange on serving plate.

For the gnocchi remove the flesh from the acorn squash with a spoon add to a mixing bowl. Add level tsp fresh grated ginger, tsp salt, tsp sugar and 1 cup flour for every 2 cups of Squash mash. Form into dumplings with 2 spoons and boil for 3 min in the same cooking liquid used for the squash and beet greens. Arrange on the beet greens.

Server one plate with the stewed beet greens topped with the gnocchi. Chervil or parsley is a nice garnish. Sugar loaf squash cut side up, and fill the sugar loafs with the glazed vegetables, server the Pilaf separate.


Edit: this meal was designed to be served with roasted Pheasants or game hens, however that was not possible. Also the gold nugget squash replaced the superior sugar loaf squash (unavailable.) I originally called the dumplings gnocchi, which they are not like at all. That is corrected. Revised the post to be more congruous.

All Elements are working simultaniously so individual pitures really don't reflect descrete processes. I tried to make certain all elements were completed and served in 1 hour. Therefore to keep things more simple for me here are the images.