Some Disconnected Rambling, Roasted Pumpkin & Pancetta Pasta and Quiet Cupcakes

 

Mini Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Buttercream for a good friend's birthday. (recipe below) Since the cake recipe doesn't require a mixer I prefer to call them "Shhhhh...The Babies Are Napping" Cupcakes.  

These wee bites were decorated by my very talented nearly-3yr-old.  

We plan to open a bakery together before she turns 5.

 

I busted out the winter dishes this weekend.  I swear they really do help brighten the cold, snowy, dark days.  Plus, everything tastes a little bit yummier in a festive bowl, right?

 

Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Roasted Pumpkin & Pancetta  (recipe below)

 

Three generations of love.  A little bit of girl talk and so. many. giggles.

 

I took this photo to remind myself of how fast this time with her will fly.  We'd been stuck in the house all day due to the weather and I was feeling worn down, restless and in no mood to play.  Naps weren't great, Daddy was working late, Mama needed a workout and the laundry piles were threatening to suffocate all of us.  

 All she wanted was someone to sit with her while she molded, squished, smashed and chatted. 

All I wanted was a moment. to. myself. and perhaps some time to pull my house back together (and fold a load or two of laundry). 

I chose to take a deep breath, pour a glass of wine and jump in with her.  It made my day.   

 

 Her: "Cheeeeese!"  

Him: "BRIGHT COLORS!!!"

 

"Huh?"

 

"BRIIIIGHT COLOOOORS!!!!!"

Speaking of bright colors, yellow is officially OUT.  As is the jaundice!

 Leaving only pure cute.

Roasted Pumpkin & Pancetta Pasta

This is essentially macaroni and cheese topped with sweet roasted pumpkin and smoky pancetta.  I prepped it in the morning, covered and refrigerated it, then baked it just before dinner that night.  Serve this with a simple salad of Arugula, pears and walnuts.  So delicious on a cold autumn day.  

Ingredients:

• 3/4  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried rosemary
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 3  cups  (1-inch) cubed peeled heirloom pumpkin (or butternut squash)
• Cooking spray
•  6 oz. pancetta, chopped
• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 8  ounces  uncooked penne
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 2  cups  2% reduced-fat milk
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 3/4  cup  (3 ounces) shredded "Italian blend" cheese (Mine had romano, asiago, provolone and mozzarella)
• 1/3  cup  (1 1/2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°.
2. Combine 1/4 teaspoon salt, rosemary, and pepper. Place squash on a foil-lined baking sheet coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with salt mixture. Bake at 425° for 45 minutes or until tender and lightly browned. Decrease oven temperature to 350°.
3. Cook the pancetta in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove pancetta from pan and set aside, reserving 1 1/2 teaspoons drippings in pan. Increase heat to medium-high. Add shallots to pan; sauté 8 minutes or until tender. Combine squash mixture, bacon, and shallots; set aside.
4. Cook pasta according to the package directions until just barely al denta, omitting salt and fat. Drain well.
5. Combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and nutmeg in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Gradually add milk, stirring constantly with a whisk; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add shredded Italian cheeses, stirring until cheese melts. Add pasta to cheese mixture, tossing well to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish lightly coated with cooking spray; top with squash mixture. Sprinkle evenly with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly and the cheese begins to brown.
6. Let sit 10 min before serving.

Adapted from HERE.

Quiet Mini Lemon Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup water
2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 2/3 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup sour cream or plain low-fat yogurt
• 1 tsp pure vanilla
 zest from one lemon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 48 mini-muffin tins with liners or generously grease a 10x15x1 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.  In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, sour cream and vanilla.
   
3. In a large saucepan, bring 1 cup butter or margarine and water to a boil. Remove from heat, and quickly whisk in dry ingredients first, followed by egg mixture. Whisk gently until smooth but do not overmix.  Stir in lemon zest. Pour batter into a greased 10 x 15 x 1 inch baking pan. (or prepared cupcake tins)
4. Bake at 350 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 20 to 22 minutes (10-12 min for minis), or until cake is just barely golden and springs back when lightly pressed. Cool completely before frosting.

Lemon Cream Cheese Buttercream

 Ingredients:

• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temp.
• 8 oz. cream cheese, room temp.
• pinch of salt
• 3-4 T fresh lemon juice, divided
• 2 tsp. pure vanilla
• 4 cups confectioners sugar

Directions:

1. Beat butter, cream cheese, salt, vanilla until smooth. 
2. Add in confectioner's sugar, 1/2 cup at a time.
3. Beat in lemon juice, starting with one tablespoon and then adding the rest one teaspoon at a time, until frosting is light and fluffy.  You may not need all of the lemon juice.
4. Frost cooled cupcakes immediately or store in an airtight container in refrigerator until ready to use.  Bring buttercream to room temp and rewhip before frosting cupcakes.

Adapted from my brain.  :)

Lentil & Farro Salad with Roasted Vegetables

So, as you can see by the title, this dish doesn't really scream SUMMERTIME! Not only do you actually have to turn the oven ON but you also have to preheat said oven to a seriously roasting temp of 400 degrees. However, my dear (vegetarian) friend just had a beautiful, sweet baby and specifically requested this dish when I offered to bring dinner...and who am I to tell a post-partum babymama 'No'?

I first made this salad for a cooking club a couple of years ago because I was dying for a reason to try farro, a grain I'd only recently discovered at the time. As it turned out, the farro, as tasty as it was, ended up as that afterthought (aftertaste?) to the deliciousness of the earthy vegetables, creamy lentils and zippy vinaigrette.
Unfortunately I didn't write down the recipe after I created the dish 2 years ago so this time I had to rely on taste memory.
Thankfully, it turned out well, even with a last minute, random raddichio addition. And my dear (vegetarian) friend swooned over it, which is the ultimate reward.
********************

Lentil and Farro Salad w/ Roasted Veggies

1 cup french lentils
1 cup farro* (or barley, or hard red winter wheat)
5 carrots, peeled and quartered
15-20 cremini mushrooms, halved, stems removed,
2-3 T olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
2 medium leeks, halved and thinly sliced
3 T parsley, minced
1/2 medium head raddichio, chopped

Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
Juice from half of a lemon
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 cup plus 1 T olive oil
1 T minced fresh thyme
salt and pepper, to taste


Directions:
1) Toss peeled, quartered carrots and halved cremini mushrooms (15 or so?) with olive oil, S&P
2) Roast at 400 degrees until soft and slightly browned (the mushies will take less time than the carrots).
3) Let veggies cool and dice into small cubes.
4) While the veggies are roasting, cook 1 cup french lentils for about 15 minutes or until just tender. Strain and rinse under cool water to stop cooking.
5) Cook 1 cup farro as you would rice but do not over cook. It should still have a little bite to it. Rinse under cool water.
6) Whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, dijon mustard, 1 T thyme and olive oil. Season with S&P.
10) Combine the roasted veggies, grains, lentils, parsley, leeks and radicchio. Toss mixture with enough of the dressing to coat everything. Let sit at room temp for about 20 min. Stir again to see if you need to add more dressing. Add more if necessary. Serve immediately or refrigerate, stirring frequently and adding more dressing as needed.
Stir before serving. (I also think this salad is best when it's brought to room temperature before serving, but this is optional.)

*I just made this recipe again for a different new-mama-friend of mine and used a combination of barley and hard red winter wheat. It was so deliciously nutty that I almost liked it better than with just the farro!