A Very Halfway Gourmet Thanksgiving

Is there any food holiday better than Thanksgiving? I think not. In fact, I am certain that Thanksgiving was created for the sole purpose of the leftovers that it provides. There is just something about putting turkey and stuffing in between two pieces of bread that makes me happy.

But I am getting ahead of myself here. Before you have leftovers you have to have the meal...and what a meal it was. Now, I must preface this my saying that this Thanksgiving was different than any either Kelly or myself has ever had. Kim, Todd, and Hannah were supposed to drive in from PA to share in the festivities (much like they did last year), but we found out on Tuesday that Hannah had come home sick from school with a fever and a stomach ache that turned into something much worse over the course of the next three days (poor girl). Needless to say, they were unable to make the trip so it was just me and Kel for Thanksgiving. The issue is that we bought enough food to feed all of us not only for Thanksgiving, but also for Friday brunch when my folks and little brothers were coming over. So, we had LOTS and LOTS of food for just the two of us.

Despite her heartache over not seeing her sister, Kelly put her heart and soul into this meal. Seriously, it was astounding. The turkey was the most moist I have ever had (with a nice, crispy skin to boot), the asparagus were cooked to perfection and the mustard and caper sauce that covered them was bright and lovely, the cranberry and apple compote was the perfect combination of sweet and tart.

And then there was the stuffing. Oh the stuffing! The cornbread and Italian sausage stuffing (that I am still smiling about) was, in my opinion, the star of the show. This should surprise none of my family though as I am a notorious stuffing eater, but this was seriously some of the best stuffing I have ever tasted. The only miss on the day was the crockpot sweet potatoes that I was in charge of. Those will never be mentioned again.

I was planning on also telling you about the Black Friday Brunch that Kelly put together, but I've already written way too much. Another post for another day perhaps. Plus, after writing all of this I am STARVING.

Off to the fridge!

It's Butternut Squash time

...and do I have a recipe for you!

I know, I've been totally bad and you probably forgot all about you. Rest assured, I would not forget about you. It was Kevin's turn to blog but if you've been keeping up at all with the Hatgases (or Hatgai as some like to say) you know we've had our fair share of crazy lately.

But there's something about fall, and these crisp days with sun and dramatic clouds that has been getting me thinking about cooking. And with the mother of all cooking holidays within reach, it's about damn time.

Anyhow, I was feeling really fall-ish and found this recipe that I'd clipped from a magazine, but never made before. It's de.lish.us. Trust me.

Butternut Squash with Cumin Couscous

1 2lb butternut squash, peeled, and cubed
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1T chopped garlic (mine comes from a jar
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, divided
2 tsp cumin, divided
1/2 cup dried fruit (I used a mix of cherries and apricots but raisins are fine too)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 box of stock/broth (veggie or chicken is acceptable)
Salt
Pepper
1 1/2 C Couscous (or a small box)
1 1/2 C boiling water
1/8 C sliced almonds, toasted

Ok, now for the down and dirty--In a pot or dutch oven (I love mine, it's an enamel cast iron from Target...got it for $40 and have used it a ton. WELL worth it! But I digress...) heat a couple of tablespoons of Olive Oil and add the onion. Sweat the onions on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cayenne, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, and 1 tsp of cumin and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes, chickpeas, squash, fruit and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and lower heat. Simmer with the lid on for 10 minutes and then remove the lid and continue to simmer for another 20 minutes until the squash is soft. You can use a potato masher and bash it about it a bit if you want but you want it big and chunky so don't go crazy. While all the butternut squash stuff is going, boil some water and cook some couscous (according to package directions), adding a 1 tsp of cumin and 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 a tsp of salt. Fluff with a fork and add almonds. Serve couscous as a base for the stew. Enjoy!