This would be a spaghetti squash.

http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/cooking/a/spagsquash.htm

Check out this link.

Cranberry Spinach Salad

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ready In: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 servings



INGREDIENTS



1 1/2 t. butter

1/4 c. + 2 T. almonds, blanched & slivered

1/2 pound spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces

1/2 c. dried cranberries

1 T. toasted sesame seeds

1 1/2 t. poppy seeds

1/4 c. white sugar

1 t. minced onion

1/8 t. paprika

2 T. white wine vinegar

2 T. cider vinegar

1/4 c. vegetable oil



DIRECTION



1. In a medium, saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook and stir almonds in butter until lightly toasted. Remove from heat, and let cool.

2. In a large bowl, combine the spinach with the toasted almonds and cranberries.

3. In a medium bowl, which together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, white wine vinegar, cider vinegar, and vegetable oil. Toss with spinach just before serving.

I think this will replace the green beans for Thanksgiving...lol..I don't think anyone will mind.

Spaghetti Squash

Prep. Time-15 minutes
Cook Time-30 minutes
Ready In-45 minutes
Yield-6 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 Spaghetti Squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
2 T. vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 c. chopped tomatoes
3/4 c. crumbled feta cheese
3 T. sliced black olives
2 T. chopped fresh basil

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (l75 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. Place spaghetti squash cut sides down on the prepared baking sheet, and bake
30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a sharp knife can be inserted with
only a little resistance. Remove squash from oven, and set aside to cool enough
to be easily handled.
3. Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute onion in oil until
tender. Add garlic, and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook
only until tomatoes are warm.
4. Use a large spoon to scoop the stringy pulp from the squash, and place in a medium
bowl. Toss with the sauteed vegetables, feta cheese, olives, and basil. Serve warm.

This is really tasty..we are having it for dinner today with some steaks....YUM!!

Susan's Roasted Chicken

As you all know, I've been somewhat obsessed with roasting chickens. They make a perfect day off dinner because they always smell so good when they're cooking, and it feels like you're making a fancy meal even though it's about the easiest thing in the world. So, here is my method, which I can finally say has been perfected.

You'll Need:

• 1 chicken - I usually get a 3-4 pound bird since it's just for me and Shelby
  
• herbs - directions for my herb mix are below
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 12" cast iron pan - you can use a roasting pan but I've never cooked a chicken in one so I can't vouch for the results
• small roasting rack
• kitchen twine
• kitchen scissors

Turn the oven on to 375 to preheat. I usually have a jar full of my chicken seasoning made already, but if you don't, this is a good time to get everything together. I use dried sage and rosemary, pretty much in equal parts plus salt and pepper to taste. I also grind the mixture a bit using my bootleg mortar and pestle (it's a glass custard cup, and a small coke bottle) to make the rosemary bits smaller. Set aside in a small dish. You'll need a decent amount so be generous when you're mixing it together. Besides, you can always save the leftover amount to use later. 

Thinly slice the garlic cloves. Not paper thin, but maybe the width of a penny or nickel.

Get the chicken ready. Set aside the neck and giblets for later if you have a use for them. Wash the chicken under running cold water, inside and out. Pat dry with paper towels. Fold it's wings back by placing the wing tips behind it's back. Set it on the roasting rack in the pan. I usually cut it's little triangular chicken tail off with kitchen scissors.

Combine your garlic slices with the herb mixture, until the garlic is coated. One by one, place the pieces of garlic under the chicken's skin next to the breast in an even layer, I try to get as far up under the skin as I can, and try to fit most of the garlic under there. (If you've never done this before, take the piece of skin at the bottom of the ribcage, pull it up a bit and poke underneath it with your fingers.) Then sprinkle more herb mixture all over the chicken and rub it around so it's pretty even. You can also pour a bit into the cavity, or put some extra garlic, or a carrot in there, or a bay leaf, or some fresh thyme. It makes the whole thing smell even better. Tie the chicken's legs together with the kitchen twine. Stick it in the oven, with the oven rack in the middle.

Cooking time depends on the size of the bird, but use this chart from trusty old Good Housekeeping Cookbook as a guide. All times are for an oven temperature of 350.

• 2 1/2 - 3 lbs -  1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours
• 3 - 4 1/2 lbs -  1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours
• 5 - 7 lbs -  2 to 2 1/4 hours

In any case, because I'm paranoid, I always use my meat thermometer to  check the temperature. It should be at 175 to 180 degrees according to G. H., even though that link says 160.  Also, you can bump up the oven temperature to 375, but that also depends on how your oven heats.

Some tips if you're not a seasoned roaster. (Unlike your chicken. Hehehe.)

• If your chicken is browning too quickly, loosely cover it with a layer of foil. Basting the chicken will make the chicken brown faster, you can use it's own dripping, or chicken broth. I don't really baste my chickens all that much. Maybe once or twice during the last half of cooking time. 
• Make sure you wait a few minutes to carve it. It makes the whole process a lot easier, although I'm still not very good at carving the chicken into pieces, so any tips there are welcome. 
• The leftovers come in handy during the week, I used some in my homemade chicken soup.

I think that's it. Long post for a simple chicken!

Hoisin-Marinated Tri-Tip

i've made this twice and both times it was pretty delicious. i've also used the marinade on portabella mushrooms. i think you can use it on most stuff you would marinade.

the marinade!
1/4 c. hoisin sauce - i bought this at raley's but an asian grocery store will for sure have it
2 t. minced ginger - i used ground. i don't know what to do with fresh ginger. it looks weird.
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. rice vinegar
2 T. soy sauce
Heaping 1/4 t. freshly ground black pepper

whisk together and rub on a tri-tip roast. let marinade for at least 8 hours. i make another batch of the marinade to add to the meat in the middle of cooking and to dip in if i'm feeling like a hoisin addict.

cooking the meat!
oven - 375

pat the meat kind of dry. put about a tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan or skillet and sear the meat on all sides. about two minutes per side or until it's browned. put it in your standard glass baking dish and put it in the oven. cook it for 20-25 minutes - for medium rare the internal temperature should be 125. cover with foil for 15 minutes after it's done.

slice it against the grain. enjoy it. share it. make sandwiches with it. cut it into smaller pieces and put it on a salad. it's tasty!

New Dish

On at least one of my days off, I try to cook a new dish or practice something that I want to learn to cook. My main focus is being able to cook things from scratch. My last couple of days off I made chicken soup from scratch, using a few hours on the first day to boil up some broth, and the second day was used to make the actual soup. It turned out ok, the broth wasn't as flavorful as I wanted it to be but it was good for my first try.

I think today however, I'm going to roast another chicken, which is something I know I'm good at. The whole point is to start practicing making gravy from the drippings in hopes that by the time Thanksgiving rolls around I'll have a good gravy to go with the dinner. I'm not sure where my gravy keeps going wrong, but I'll check with Martha today to see if she has advice. 

Fresh Blueberry Fool

1 pint blueberries

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 cup heavy or whipping cream

Set Aside about 3/4 cup of blueberries. In big bowl, coarsely mash remaining blueberries.

Stir In confectioners' sugar, cinnamon and whole berries.

In Small Bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat cream until soft peaks form.

Gently Swirl in blueberry mixture into cream to create marbled effect.

This recipe works well with lots of different fruits n' berries.

Test Post

Testing Posting is Very Exciting.
Let's test a link too, so I can fuss with the colors.
Any input is welcome.