An Open Apology to the Spaghetti Squash

Dear Spaghetti Squash-

I'm so sorry I made you so mad. I know, I know....its that time of the year, isn't it?  I pay no attention to you all year until Fall when you are most abundant, most flavorful and let's face it, cheaper.   

Sure, you are a little large and sometimes hard to find in the grocery stores. I know people just walk past you--its not you though, it's them. They just don't know how to handle you or know what to do with you. I wish I could tell everyone just how easy you are to handle and that your deliciousness comes through when baked or microwaved. Or that you bring a smile to everyone-young and old-when I comb your lovely strands of flesh out with a fork.  You blend ever so sweetly with any kind of marinara or spaghetti sauce and take to a sprinkling of Parmesan ever so gently. You are full of fiber, vitamins and minerals (Vitamin A, Vitamin C and calcium) and have only 42 calories per cup.

In fact, if you compare yourself to pasta (which you really shouldn't as you both have exceptionally redeeming qualities), you are lower in calories, lower in fat and lower in carbohydrates.  You can save 179 calories per cup by hanging out with you.

So I apologize to you, my friend. I hope you can forgive me. I promise to pay more attention to you now that you are front and center. I get that you are angry--but did you really have to do this to my microwave today?

I'm in Love Again! First Name Brussel, Second Name Sprouts

The brussel sprout, a member of the cruciferous vegetable family (you know, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage) has finally made it onto the scene with avengence. Look at recipe websites, menus of top tier restaurants, grocery stores that now carry the entire stalk of sprouts all way to microwavable, ready made bags of the goodies. I remember brussel sprouts in the freezer growing up-only for my Dad-as he was the only one who like them. They made an appearance every once in a while, but not as often as Dad would have liked.

A month ago, I bought a bag of frozen brussel sprouts in honor of expanding my cooking horizons and in honor of dear old Dad. That bag is still sitting in the freezer. Yesterday, I bought one of the microwavable, ready made bags at the grocery store. That bag is now gone. Instead of microwaving it, I heated about 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a non stick pan, cut the bottom of the sprout off, cut it half and sauteed them for about 10 minutes. Seasoned with salt and pepper. I have to say they were the most delicious things I've had in a while. They caramelized well and looked beautiful on the plate next to roasted chicken and a baked sweet potato. So delicious! I was even able to get my husband to try one! (Try moving a mountain!). It's an on going effort to find veggies he enjoys. The fact that he tasted it is big news.

I'm ready now to tackle the bag of frozen sprouts to see how they hold up during the same cooking process. Obviously, they are less expensive than the microwavable ready made ones, so if they work just as well, I'll be using them until it's sprout season.

I can't encourage you enough to put these little nuggets of nutritional goodness on your grocery list and just give them a try. You'll be shocked at how tasty they are and you'll wonder what took you so long to prepare them at home!

Tell me, what other ways do you prepare brussel sprouts?