About Megan

Megan is a local food fanatic, seeking out the best ingredients Central Texas has to offer. The Greenling Local Box has served as the perfect source for her cooking experiments, and she loves sharing her creations with her family.
Author Archive | Megan

Pumpkin Persimmon Walnut Bread

By on October 24, 2012 in Recipes, Slider

It’s hard to know what to do with persimmons if you’re unfamiliar, especially if you don’t have the brain-bursting soft variety. But these little hard ones, the fuyu persimmons, are darn sweet as well. In fact, they’re a good stand-in for apples, if you happen to like baking with apples. I find they are easiest to prepare for baking by slicing off the top, quartering, and then peeling each quarter with a paring knife before dicing.

Pumpkin Persimmon Walnut Bread

Some like to put icing on tea breads, but to me that’s just taking things a little too far. Most tea (or “quick”) breads are already quite sweet, and I prefer to let the natural ingredients shine rather than pure sweetness. Walnuts are an excellent alternative, as the crunchy-yet-creamy nut is a nice contrast to the pumpkin and persimmon. I added nuts to both the batter and the top, resulting in a bread that is studded with hearty flavor, but you can just put the nuts on top or omit them altogether. Pepitas, pumpkin seeds, are a nice alternative if you don’t like nuts but still want some crunch.

I’m addicted to self-rising flour lately, but if you don’t have it, you can swap in regular flour, and be sure to add 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 3/4 teaspoon salt to your dry ingredients.

Pumpkin Persimmon Walnut Bread

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup pumpkin purée
1/4 cup neutral oil, such as grapeseed
2/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup diced fuyu persimmons (about 3-4)
1 cup walnuts (about 3.5 ounces)

Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare a loaf pan. I like to use baking paper laid across in two perpendicular strips, as it doesn’t require extra oil and makes cleanup easy.
In a small bowl, mix together flour and spices. In a larger bowl, beat together pumpkin, oil, sugar, and eggs. Add flour mixture, a little at a time, until just mixed. Stir in persimmons.
Chop the walnuts and reserve about 1/4. Fold 3/4 of the walnuts into the batter.
Pour batter in the prepared pan and scatter the remaining walnut pieces on top.
Bake for about 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
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Butternut Cheddar Frittata

By on September 13, 2012 in Breakfast, Main Dishes, Recipes, Slider

Frittata is an easy way to not only whip up dinner (or breakfast), but to use up any random vegetables you have lurking in your fridge. Just replace the butternut squash in this recipe with peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, greens, or anything, and you’ll have a delicious meal on hand.

If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, you can also cook frittata in a pie plate or muffin tin. Just increase the cooking time to allow for the eggs to be cooked through.

Butternut Cheddar Frittata

Serves 6

2 cups diced butternut squash
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
8 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup shredded sharp or smoked cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss squash in olive oil, salt, and pepper, and spread onto a rimmed baking sheet. (Note: You can use the same skillet you plan on cooking the frittata in, if you like.) Roast about 25 minutes or until squash is tender and lightly browned, stirring halfway through cooking time. Remove from oven and set aside, and preheat oven to broil.

Whisk together eggs, milk, and herbes de Provence.

Heat a cast-iron or other oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat, and add the butter. Swirl the pan to coat it as the butter melts. Once the butter has melted, add the butternut squash to the skillet, then pour in the egg mixture. Cook on the stove approximately 5 minutes or just until starting to set on top.

Scatter cheese over the top and move skillet to the oven. Cook for approximately 5 more minutes, until cheese is melted and top is set and lightly browned.

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Homemade Bean Burgers

By on July 25, 2012 in Main Dishes, Recipes

Veggie burgers are easy to make at home, especially if you use beans as your base. The hardest part for me is forming the patties and getting that great ratio of liquid and dry ingredients. (If you have any tips, please share them in the comments!) They do cook up quickly, and you can easily prepare the “meat” ahead of time.

Note that this recipe calls for fresh beans, but you can easily swap in a can of black or pinto beans if fresh beans aren’t available.

Homemade Bean Burgers

1 1/4 cup fresh pinto beans or field peas
1/2 cup diced red onion
1 cup diced mushrooms
1 clove garlic, diced
1 tablespoon barbecue sauce or ketchup, plus more as needed
1 egg, beaten
Breadcrumbs as needed

Cover beans with water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer until easily mashed with a fork, about 20 minutes. Drain and let cool in a large bowl.

Meanwhile, saute onion, mushrooms, and garlic together in a shallow pan until softened. Remove from heat and set aside.

Mash beans with a fork or potato masher, leaving slightly chunky. Stir in onion mixture. Mix in sauce and beaten egg. Use a small measuring cup to form patties – add breadcrumbs or more sauce as needed to get a moldable patty.

Heat saute pan with a small amount of oil over medium. Once oil is shimmering, drop patties from measuring cup into pan and slightly press them down to create a flat burger.

Cook for approximately 5-7 minutes on each side.

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Pasta-Free Summer Lasagna

By on June 27, 2012 in Main Dishes, Recipes

Pasta is one of my husband’s favorite foods, and lasagna is high up there on his lists of requests. I like lasagna too, but I often feel like it is too heavy, especially in the summertime. Staring at a drawerful of yellow squash and remembering the homemade ricotta in the freezer easily led to this pasta-free version that is perfect for summer. The squash stands in for noodles, creating a veggie-rich main meal that won’t weigh you down at the end of the day.

Pasta-Free Summer Lasagna

  • 3-4 small yellow summer squash or zucchini (about 8 inches long)
  • 1 cup ricotta cheese
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for sprinkling
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped basil
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella
  • 1 slicing tomato
  • 2 cups pasta sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Trim ends off squash, and slice each lengthwise into about 4 pieces, depending on thickness. Salt both sides and let squash sit in a colander set over a sink or bowl for 10 minutes.

Mix together ricotta, egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper, and basil. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed. Rinse salt off squash and pat dry.

Spread 1/3 cup pasta sauce on the bottom of an 8×8 baking dish. Arrange one layer of squash on top, covering as much of the sauce as possible. Spread on half the ricotta, then sprinkle on 3/4 cup mozzarella. Top with 1/2 cup pasta sauce. Repeat layers. Add a final squash layer and spread on remaining sauce.

Slice the tomato into approximately six thick slices and arrange on top. Sprinkle on any remaining mozzarella.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes, until cheese is browned and sauce is bubbly. Let cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Comments { 2 }

Loaded Skillet Potatoes

By on May 18, 2012 in Recipes, Side Dishes, Summer

I don’t normally cook things like this, but every once in a while I get a real craving for skillet fried potatoes. Growing up in Wisconsin we ate a lot of potatoes, and one of my favorite dishes was simply potatoes and onions cooked in butter. This recipe improves on that with the addition of cheese and, like any other respectable loaded potato, bacon.

If you don’t have chives, you can use swap in the green part of a bunching onion, or scallions.

Loaded Skillet Potatoes

1-2 slices thick cut bacon
3/4 pound new potatoes
1 clove garlic
1 small white onion
2 tablespoons cream cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Salt and pepper

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Set aside on a paper towel. Do not drain the skillet.

Slice the potatoes into rounds and add them to the hot skillet with the bacon drippings. Mince the garlic, and dice onion. Add the garlic and onion to the skillet. Cook over medium until potatoes are tender but not mushy.

Stir in cream cheese and cover briefly to help the cheese melt. Once the cream cheese is fully incorporated, season to taste. Scatter on the cheddar cheese. Crumble the cooked bacon and sprinkle it, along with the chives, onto the potatoes. Do not stir. Remove from heat, and let potatoes rest about 5 minutes before serving.

Serves 4-6

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