Nicole got a subscription to Cooking Light Magazine for Christmas this year, and this is the first recipie we've tried from it. It was quite good, but needed a bit of spicing up. We added about a teaspoon of hot pepper sauce. This wasn't enough to make it hot, but just amped up the flavor a bit.
This recipe came from AllRecipes.com. It had great flavor (I like lamb more than Nicole does), and was quite filling. The lamb was very tender. We had it with flatbread.
A friend from work requested our Butternut Squash Soup recipe, but it turns out we usually make a combination of two of them... here they are:
Butternut Squash Soup
- 1 medium butternut squash (about 2 1/4 pounds)
- Nonstick vegetable oil spray
- 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 Tbsp. freshly grated ginger - optional
- 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1-2 cups water, as needed
- Sour cream for garnish
Preheat oven to 350°. Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Arrange the halves cut side down in roasting pan that has been sprayed with nonstick vegetable oil spray. Bake squash in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until very tender. Set aside to cool. When the squash is completely cool, scoop the flesh from the skin. While the squash is baking, cook the onion and the ginger in the butter in a saucepan, over moderately low heat, for 5 minutes – until the onion is softened. Add the broth and simmer the mixture for 10 minutes, covered. Add the squash pulp to the saucepan.
Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor, in batches, and puree until smooth. Add enough water to achieve the desired consistency, and salt and pepper to taste. Return the soup to the saucepan and cook over moderate heat until it's hot. Garnish each portion with a heaping teaspoon of low-fat sour cream.
Roasted and Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Prep Time: approx. 30 Minutes.
Cook Time: approx. 1 Hour 10 Minutes.
Makes 8 servings.
- 1 butternut squash, halved and seeded
- 2 large onions, peeled and quartered
- 1 medium head garlic
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon mild curry powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (optional)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Place squash halves and onion onto the prepared baking sheet. Wrap garlic in foil and set with other vegetables.
Roast in the center of the oven for 45 to 60 minutes, until the squash is tender. Remove from oven and set aside until cool enough to handle.
Squeeze garlic cloves out of their skin like paste into a food processor. Scrape the flesh from the squash and place into the food processor along with the roasted onion. Puree until smooth. Add vegetable broth if necessary. transfer the pureed mixture to a stockpot and stir in vegetable broth. Season with the bay leaf, brown sugar, curry powder, oregano, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in yogurt.
Remove bay leaf and serve hot. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
TBWITWW and I went to Skyline Chili tonight. We wanted something quick, and it was a block from the hotel, plus as an Ohio institution, we thought it would be good to try. I got the Bean Mix Burrito Supreme, and Nicole got the Coney Bowl. We weren't terribly impressed. I think it's a style difference more than anything, but it doesn't taste like we think Chili should. The spices do hint at the original chef's Greek heritage, and if you think of it as a Greek beef stew sort of thing, rather than Chili, it's quite good. Overall we enjoyed it.
We first heard about Szalas Restaurant on Check, Please!. It sounded like good food and a lot of fun.
We went there last night for dinner, and it definitely was worth the trip. (Although, we would strongly recommend making a reservation, which we did not do.) Because we did not have a reservation, they told us it would about 45 minutes to get a table (we arrived at about 7:15) They told us we could wait at the bar, or if we prefered, we could actually eat at the bar. We decided to wait for a table. We each got a glass of Franziskaner Weissbier, a mild and refreshing German Weissbier, which was served with a slice of lemon (as is customary). The flavor of this one opened up more once it had warmed just a bit. We ended up waiting just over an hour for a table. (We suspect we may have gotten forgotten by the host as we were in the back corner of the bar. The bartender made sure we got seated though.)
The table we got was built from a sled, and was quite cozy. We were given a plate with potato bread, a soft cheese (goat?) and lard with bacon bits. The cheese was very good. For an appetizer, we ordered the Breaded Ship Cheese, which consisted of two rounds of soft cheese with a firm rind, breaded and fried. It was served with a fruit based sauce that was, at the same time, sweet and tart. We each ordered soup as well. I chose the Sauerkraut Soup, which had small portion of ribs in it, and was delicious. Nicole got the soup of the day, which was a fairly thick barley soup. This was very tasty and a bit of a surprise as, generally neither of us is a big fan of barley soups. (Why she ordered it, she can't say.)
For entrees I ordered the Highlanders Stuffed Cabbage Rolls and Nicole ordered the Hunter's Stew. The cabbage rolls were filled with an excellent pork and beef mixture that was hearty with just enough spice. They were served on a potato pancake and covered in a fantastic mushroom sauce. The Hunters Stew was a combination of sauerkraut, sausage, bacon, pork and onion in a tomato sauce. It was quite good although a bit salty, and the sausage was the best part. With the appetizers and beer, we filled up quite quickly, and had enough left to take home for lunches.
The service (other than the wait for the table) was very good, although like many ethnic restaurants, speaking the same primary language as the staff would have been to our advantage. (I have trouble understanding accents.) The atmosphere was fun, and the people watching was fantastic. They also had live traditional music and dancing, which was fun without being distracting.
Szalas Restaurant is at 5214 S Archer Ave in Chicago.