The Smiling Onion

Vegetarian and Gluten-free Cooking

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Archives for September 2017

Roasted Kabocha Squash with Walnut Sauce

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Since the weather isn’t doing its part to get us into the fall spirit, I decided to do mine. Despite the unseasonable warmth, winter squash is starting to pop up at the Greenmarket, and I’ve been eating my weight in kabocha (aka Japanese pumpkin). Kabocha has a wonderfully starchy texture and sweet, buttery-nutty flavor that lends itself to all manner of dishes, and it happens to contain zero FODMAPs! That means that, unlike with other winter squashes, those of us on the Low FODMAP diet don’t have to measure out portions.

This recipe is a fabulous way to start transitioning into autumn, embracing the sweet abundance that is coming our way. I wish I had posted it in time for Rosh Hashanah, when it is traditional to eat sweet foods for a sweet new year. (I’m a couple days late on that, but hey, it’s still the beginning of the new year!) Anyway, whatever your diet or religion, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this lovely side dish/small plate. If you’re not a fan of kabocha (or its price tag), this fabulous vegan walnut sauce would be great on all manner of roasted veggies – especially the sweeter ones like carrot, sweet potato, and other winter squashes.

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Zucchini Spice Cake with Vanilla-Nutmeg Frosting

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It started with a gigantic zucchini, surreptitiously hidden amongst many ordinary-sized zucchinis in my mother’s garden. Once it emerged, we were left wondering how something so enormous could successfully remain in hiding for so long. Was something supernatural at play? Not wanting to take any chances, my mother not-so-surreptitiously unloaded the mysterious monster onto me, where it not so much sat as embodied all of the remaining space in my fridge with its girth.

When life – or family, in this case – hands you a gigantic zucchini suspected of  having supernatural powers, breaking it down becomes somewhat of an urgent matter. So I made zucchini bread. And it was awesome. Enjoyed warm, right out of the oven, it was even supernaturally-awesome. Airy, delicately spiced, buttery….so it was true! There was loveliness inside even the scariest monsters.

Once refrigerated, the bread took on a denser, cakier texture and it occurred to me that it might function as a delicious layer cake. (I happen to like my cakes on the denser side, provided there is some light and fluffy frosting accompanying the layers!) So, enter this zucchini-spice cake, which is composed of two zucchini bread layers separated and surrounded by a vanilla-nutmeg cream cheese frosting that you won’t be able to stop eating. If you can, I’d be worried that this recipe unknowingly transmitted some supernatural  zucchini powers to you, dear eater! And what a pickle we’d be in then.

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Kiwi-Papaya Sherbert

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What do you do with four very ripe kiwis, some basil, and an ice-cream machine that’s anxious to be used before autumn descends? Make sorbet! Well, actually, since I couldn’t resist adding in some sweetened condensed coconut milk for a creamier texture, this is actually a sherbert. (In case you’re rusty on your ice-cream classifications, when you add a little fat to sorbet, it becomes sherbert.)

Whatever it’s called, it’s incredibly difficult to stop eating. This sherbert is bright and fruity, but it also has a wonderful, melt-in-your-mouth creamy texture, thanks to the sweetened condensed coconut milk and a little bit of gin. The savory hint of basil goes perfectly with the sweet, tartness of the kiwis, the papaya adds some body, and the lime gives it just the right amount of pop. In fact, it’s a very good thing this sherbert recipe only yields a couple servings because, if left in the freezer, I definitely don’t think it would be safe from eager spoons. (I’m exercising quite a bit of will power now, in fact, trying to finish this post before devouring the couple spoonfuls I have left. If there is some sort of record for the highest number of glances at one’s freezer in a single hour, I’ve definitely broken it today.)

So, in the interest of not making this post too long (and limiting the amount of time I have to wait until I can finish off the sherbert), let’s get to the recipe.

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