Bacon & Potato Frittata

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Frittatas really are a magical beast. Leftover pasta? Throw it in there. Roasted veggies? Why the hell not. 7 cheeses slowly rottingĀ in your fridge? Lay it on me, sister. These statements may not inspire you to ever eat one of my frittatas, but I hope they have the potential to send you eagerly to your fridge to find your next combination of random foodstuffs.

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12 Holiday Food Comas: Butternut Squash Galette

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Did anyone else just realize that Christmas is less than a week away? Even though I’m in the middle of posting all these holiday recipes, it only hit me last night as I was pouring over my gift-giving Google spreadsheet and realizing how many people I had left to shop/craft for this year. That’s right, folks. You may be the lucky recipient of a handmade, gold-filigree pine cone dipped in glitter and mounted on a stand composed of bedazzled Popsicle sticks and Play-Doh.

In other news….

Deb did it again, that clever girl. This isn’t one of her newer recipes, but it’s definitely a favorite amongst her many, many followers. And how could it not be? Joyous squash. Merry caramelized onions. Fancy sage leaves fluttering everywhere. It’s a sexy dance of flavors that may cause excessive selfishness and gluttony.

The only alteration I would make is to the cheese, which I thought was a bit melty with all fontina. Maybe half Gruyere and half fontina would strike the right balance for my gentle palate.

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Butternut Squash Galette

from Smitten Kitchen

Pastry:

1 1/4 c flour
1/4 t salt
1 stick butter, cut into 16 pieces
1/4 c sour cream
2 t lemon juice
1/4 c ice cold water

Filling:

1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-1″ dice
2 T olive oil
2 T butter
1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced into half moon slivers
1 t salt
pinch sugar
1/4 t cayenne
3/4 fontina cheese, grated (or half fontina, half Gruyere)
1 1/2 t chopped fresh sage leaves

For the pastry: In a bowl, combine the flour and salt. In a separate bowl place the cut butter. Place both bowls in the freezer for one hour. Remove and place flour/salt in a Cuisinart. Scatter the butter over and pulse (about 10 1-second pulses) until no large bits of butter appear (should appear like cornmeal). Place in a large bowl and make a well in the center. In a separate bowl, stir together the sour cream, lemon juice, and water, then add to the flour mixture. With a spatula, gently fold the liquid in until incorporated. Do not over mix! Remove lumps as they form so that you do not overdo them. Pat the dough into a ball inside the bowl, cover with saran wrap, and refrigerate for one hour.

For the filling: Preheat your oven to 375. Toss the squash with the olive oil and 1/2 t salt, then place in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until tender. Stir halfway through. Meanwhile, melt butter in a heavy-bottomed skilled and add onion slivers, 1/2 t salt, and sugar. Cook over low heat until soft and golden brown, about 25-30 minutes. Stir in cayenne.

Raise oven temperature to 400. Mix squash, onions, cheese, and herbs together in a bowl. Set aside.

On a floured surface, roll the dough out into a 12-inch round. Place onto an ungreased baking sheet, spread squash mixture into the center (leave a 1 1/2″ border), and fold the edges over the squash. The center will be open and glorious. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown, melty, and delicious looking. Nom!

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Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Word on the street has been that this is just one of those “must try” recipes. I am very glad to have satisfied my curiosity, since the result was very tasty and satisfying. It is by no means pizza, but we can’t hold that against it. I’m glad I chose to make it without tomato sauce, for any more moisture and it would have been quite wet through.

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Err on the side of overcooking this, to ensure the crispiest crust possible. I would also recommend using rubber gloves to squeeze the toweled cauliflower, since the steaming substance nearly burnt my hands and it’s very unpleasant to be upset with a recipe at the very beginning.

I used Deb’s toppings with my own twist, and for the base combined a couple of different recipes (here and here). Adjust to taste!

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Cauliflower Crust Pizza

1 large head cauliflower
2 eggs
2/3 c goat cheese
2 t salt
1 clove garlic, minced
1 t oregano
pepper
red chili flakes

To rice the cauliflower, cut the head down into chunks and process in batches in a food processor. Do not overdo it or else you will have mush on your hands. Meanwhile, heat a pot on the stove with about 1 in of water. When the cauliflower rice is ready, place in the pot and cook, covered, for 4-5 minutes over medium heat. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and prep two baking sheets with parchment paper. Pass the cooked cauliflower through a fine-mesh strainer, then place in a dish towel or cheese cloth. Squeeze as much of the excess moisture out as possible (this is key, so don’t skip it. And don’t forget your gloves!) and then put the cauliflower in a large bowl. Mix in the eggs, cheese, garlic, oregano, pepper, and chili flakes. Mix very well. Divide the “dough” in two and shape each portion into a rectangle on the baking sheets. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven, place on your toppings, return to the heat for another 10 minutes, remove and cool slightly.

I went with caramelized onions (made a kind of “sauce”), shaved asparagus, grated parmigiano, discs of mozzarella, and thinly sliced green onions. Superb!

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