kabocha konvert

Whew, we made it to humpday, hope all is still well :). I've got a busy day of shooting ahead (video project) so let's get started. I was going to blog about Saturday but with the darling Heather from HEAB in mind, I thought I'd jump to the night. You don't mind do you?

Well, even if you do in theory, I promise you won't by the end of this post. As a beautiful end to a perfect day in Manhattan, the boy and I stopped by the Union Square Farmer's Market for a few dinner ingredients. We each chose one thing: kabocha squash for me, and broccoli rabe for him. Hmm.

It all began with the squash :). After allowing it to soften up for 10 minutes in the 350 degree oven, I cut it open, de-seeded it, patted a little butter on the inside, and sprayed the pan with EVOO. Then I popped it back in for about a half-an-hour or so to roast. The entire apartment smelled wonderful.

With the kabocha squash in the oven for the last 10 minutes, I poured EVOO into a warm pan with a garlic clove. Then I added  the washed and de-stemmed broccoli rabe alongside two handfuls of raisins. I found inspiration in this epicurious recipe, the definition of bittersweet, n'est pas?

This is where the exciting part comes in. After preparing the greens, I took the kabocha squash out of the oven, mashed up the insides in a separate bowl with cinnamon, red pepper flakes, and cumin, and mixed in the broccoli rabe. Next I put all of it back into the tough squash exterior and sprinkled with a tad more cinnamon.

And just like that, two scrumptious dinners were served! This one was the boy's, obviously :). He had two juicy pieces of steak alongside his exploding Bittersweet-Stuffed Kabocha.

I, on the other hand, went my usual pescatarian route and had a filet of salmon seasoned in a mix of spices that I cannot remember :). If I'm going to have a poorly-combined meal this has got, to, be it. I am telling you, kabocha squash is incredible and with this innovative recipe of mine (ha, cut me some slack, I haven't cooked in a while) it may just be my new favorite fall/winter food. Delish.