Sunday, November 9, 2008

It's Cold and Time for some WARM food!

Late fall/early winter has finally hit here in Chicago. After having incredibly beautiful weather for Halloween (I mean 75 degrees!!) it was raw and damp yesterday and today. Which of course means - comfort food time!

Tonight for dinner I went back to an old reliable - roast chicken with lemon (pre-heat oven to 425. Slice a large onion - toss with a bit of olive oil in the bottom of a roasting pan. Clean whole chicken and pat down. Cut 2 lemons into quarters and shove into cavity of chicken with salt and pepper. Put chicken on top of onions. Brush with olive oil, bit more salt and pepper. Roast for 1 hour 15 minutes or until juices run clear. Yum!).

But, what to go with it? Winter type squash of course and a salad with some cucumbers, carrots, dried cranberries, dried blueberries and a light vinagrette!

Acorn Squash "flowers" with cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar

1 acorn squash, cut into 1 inch diameter "circles" (cut squash in half the "round" way, scoop out seeds and cut disks about 1 inch thick)
2 granny smith apples, cored and cut in half
2 tbsp vegetable oil (olive oil is too strong a flavor here, I think)
1/4 cup light brown sugar
3-4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
1 tsp kosher salt
fresh pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 425.
2. Place acorn squash and apples on lightly oiled cookie sheet so they are in a single layer.
3. Brush tops of squash with veggie oil and sprinkle evenly with light brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, as well as a bit of salt and pepper.
4. Roast squash for 30 minutes. Turn over squash circles after 30 minutes and roast another 30 minutes.
5. Serve and enjoy!

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