Orange Squash Soup - Christmas 2011

I love cooking a traditional standing rib roast dinner for Christmas. Homemade dinner rolls, gravy, lots of veggies. Thinking about this meal makes me happy! But this year I  switched it up. My middle daughter, Pooh, came home from her four months in Africa a confirmed vegetarian.  Truth be told, she was a vegetarian before she left - I just didn’t believe it would stick.  After all, she  loves those darn Yorkshire puddings.  

I decided on three French dishes (one meat and two veggie) so that everyone would have something.   I was able to make 2 of the 3 dishes in advance which made Christmas entertaining more relaxing for me!

If you have the Julia Child’s books “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” volumes 1 & 2 you can look up these recipes.  If you don’t, give me a shout.

What you won’t find in either of Julia’s books is the starter soup we had.  Pooh requested that the meal begin with a squash soup.  So I made Orange Squash Soup from Lorna Sass’s cookbook called “Recipes from an Ecological Kitchen”, which I think is now out of print.  It’s a vegan cookbook that carnivores like me love.

Here’s the recipe for the Orange Squash Soup
Serves 4-6

2 ½ pounds butternut, kabocha, or delicate squash, scrubbed, seeded, and cut into ½ inch chunks
1 small onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 cups water
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
¼ cup old-fashioned oatmeal (rolled oats)
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon finely minced or grated orange peel
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground coriander seeds
½ teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Garnish: toasted pumpkin seeds and or diced cilantro

Place all ingredients in large pot (except maple syrup and garnish). Bring to a boil, reduce heat  and simmer, covered, until the squash is very soft, about 25 minutes.  Puree the soup in a blender (for a smoother texture), food mill, or food processor.  Return soup to pot to rewarm.Thin slightly with water or orange juice, if necessary. Garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds and/or cilantro.

The rest of Christmas dinner 2011:
Boeuf Bourguignon (Beef stew in red wine, with bacon, onions, and mushrooms)
Pommes Duchess (Mashed potato with lots of egg yolks....oh my!!!)
Gratin de Brocoli (Chopped Broccoli Gratin with cheese sauce) This is NOT what your mom  made in the 1970’s!
Carrots a La Concierge (Casserole of creamed carrots with onions and garlic).
French Bread and....for my husband
Sauerkraut and wieners - after all, variety is the spice of life!

Cardamon Bread

Photo credit: Larsen's Danish Bakery

 

I love this recipe for Cardamon Bread that I got from Sarah Perkins. It is easy to make and always satisfies! Unfortunately, I’ve become lazy. I live less than a mile away from a Scandinavian bakery that always has cardamon braids and rolls available. This is the same bakery that supplies our church with the breads on Julfest. I like the  braids sliced and slathered with butter and topped with a good cheddar cheese. Though some folks I know think mixing the savory and the sweet is a sin.

This year for Christmas I decided I would buy my cardamon bread. There were plenty of other things that I needed to make from scratch, I could cut corners and not make this. So, at mid-day on Christmas Eve I headed to Larsen’s Bakery "http://www.larsensbakery.com/index.php". The small store front was  packed A line of 30 or 40 people was snaking in front of the display case. Finally, 45 minutes after entering the store I walked out, two loaves of cardamon bread and one loaf of cinnamon bread in hand. 

The next day, as I began to prep the appetizers for the big Christmas dinner, I could not find the cardamon bread. Then I saw an empty bag under the china hutch and another under the table. I had forgotten to move the bread out of the reach of the dogs when we left for the house on Christmas Eve to watch a play at the Seattle Public Theater and consume our traditional Chinese dinner in Seattle’s International District. I had wondered why the dogs were a bit lethargic on Christmas Eve. Interestingly, they left the loaf of cinnamon bread untouched. I guess dogs can have discerning palates!
 
Swedish Cardamon Bread

1 cup milk
½ cup sugar
½ cup butter
½ tsp salt
6-8 cardamom pods, crushed
4 eggs
1 pkg yeast + 1 tsp sugar
5 cups flour
(set yeast in ½ cup hot water)

Scald milk, add butter. Cool to room temperature.

In mixer, beat eggs, add sugar, salt, cardamom, yeast, and milk mixture. Blend in flour and beat well.

Set aside to rise until doubled.

Shape into rolls or braids. Rise again until doubled.

Bake braids at 350F for 15-20 minutes. Bake rolls at 375F for 10-15 minutes.

FROSTING: (double it!)

2 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup butter, softened
2 Tbsp milk or cream
½ tsp almond extract