This last side-dish from our Thanksgiving in May roundup comes from Ellie Krieger, who often features lower-fat versions of classic recipes.  Since we had about two gallons of butter in our stuffing, it was nice to pretend that we were having a light meal with the addition of this Sweet Potato and Pecan Casserole.  The pecan topping was delicious and crunch-tastic.

Well, it’s over, this Thanksgiving of ours… 

Lisa says:

Noooo, it can’t be! 

Chris says:

Don’t worry, it’ll live on in leftovers and blog posts. 

Lisa says:

Blog posts? Yeah, right… with the kid coming, we won’t have time for that. 

Chris says:

Don’t you see? It’s perfect! We probably won’t get to posting it until late spring, or even summer! Then we’ll be able to look back upon these dishes and salivate all over again! 

Lisa says:

Oh, so like instead of “Christmas in July”, we’ll have “Thanksgiving in May”? 

Chris says:

Exactly. 

Sweet Potato-Pecan Casserole
3 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes (about 5 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1/3 cup honey
1 large egg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
salt
1 tbsp packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Mist an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a pot with a large steamer basket in place. Put the sweet potatoes in the basket, cover and steam until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and let cool slightly. Add the honey, egg, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, the nutmeg, ginger and 1/2 teaspoon salt; whip with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread the sweet potato mixture in the prepared baking dish.

Mix the brown sugar, pecans and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl; sprinkle over the potatoes. Bake until hot and beginning to brown around the edges, 40 to 45 minutes.

Eat.

8 Servings

Welcome back to Thanksgiving in May! This is the most buttery, herby, shroomy, deeeelish stuffing we’ve enjoyed in a long time. I went searching for a new stuffing recipe and when I stumbled upon this one at food52 I knew I found our winner. The most difficult part of this recipe was tracking down a loaf of challah in the days leading up to the holiday.

Oh my god, I forgot about this one. 

Chris says:

Not me — I loved how buttery it was, and the texture was awesome — almost like a bread pudding. 

Lisa says:

Yeah! Crisped on top and soft inside, SO GOOD. 

Chris says:

Holla back, challah bread! 

Lisa says:

Unnecessary. 

Chris says:

Oh I don’t think so. 

Challah, Herb and Mushroom Stuffing
1 large loaf of challah
2 cups celery, diced
2 cups onion, diced
2 cups cremini mushroom, diced
8-10 sprigs thyme, chopped
1/4 c chopped flat leaf parsley
3 cups vegetable stock
4 oz melted butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish and parchment
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground

Cut the challah into 1″ cubes. Leave the cubes out on a parchment lined sheet pan, on the counter, to get stale, at least overnight and preferably 3 days.

Melt 3 oz of butter in a large heavy pan. Saute the onions until wilted, add the herbs, celery and mushrooms and cook until just slightly cooked thorough.

In a large bowl, combine bread cubes, vegetables, melted butter and vegetable stock, and salt and pepper. Test for seasoning and adjust.

Press stuffing into a large buttered baking dish. Cover with buttered parchment and then foil. At this point, the stuffing can be held for several hours, but should be at room temperature before baking.

Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes, the last 10-15 minutes without the foil and parchment, to crisp the surface.

Devour and collapse into a butter-coma.

I find myself turning to epicurious more and more often when I have something sitting in the fridge that I just don’t feel inspired by. We had an eggplant from our CSA box hanging out for a few days, and a few minutes at epicurious turned up this recipe from Gourmet Magazine a couple years back. Eggplant, zucchini, and mushrooms are oven roasted and then tossed with barley cooked in stock, green onions, and spices, cooled, and tossed with a lemon vinaigrette. Delicious!

Oh, happy day!

Lisa says:

What? What?

Chris says:

I figured out what to make with the eggplant, and it ain’t baba ghanoush… not only that, you’re gonna love it.

Lisa says:

Why, is it some sort of grain salad with a bunch of veggies?

Chris says:

How the — what? Hey!

Lisa says:

Man, I’m good. Yum — so is this dish! You’re right, I love it.

Chris says:

I’m still trying to figure out…. whatever. Yeah — I really like the tomatoes… and I’m glad I threw in those mushrooms, too.

Lisa says:

That’s good for the blog, too. It missed featuring shrooms.

Chris says:

If we didn’t know so many picky eaters, I’d suggest we bring this to parties.

Lisa says:

Hey, more for us.

Chris says:

I love the way you think.

Mediterranean Eggplant and Barley Salad
1 1/2 lb eggplant, cut into 1/2″ cubes
3/4 pound zucchini, cut into 1/2″ cubes
6 oz cremini mushrooms
10 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 cup chopped green onions
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 1/4 cups pearl barley (8 oz)
1 14-oz can reduced-sodium chicken broth (1 3/4 cups)
3/4 cup water
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp sugar
1/2 lb cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and halved
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, rinsed and drained if desired
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 425°F.

Cook barley:
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot, then cook green onions, cumin, coriander, and cayenne, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add barley and cook, stirring until well coated with oil, 2 minutes more. Add broth and water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all of liquid is absorbed and barley is tender, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes.

Roast eggplant and zucchini:
Meanwhile, toss eggplant, zucchini, and mushrooms with 5 tablespoons oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper in a bowl, then spread in 2 oiled large shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pans. Roast vegetables in oven, stirring occasionally and switching position of pans halfway through baking, until vegetables are golden brown and tender, 20 to 25 minutes total. Combine vegetables in 1 pan and cool, reserving other pan for cooling barley.

Transfer the barley to reserved shallow baking pan and spread to quickly cool, uncovered, to room temperature, about 20 minutes.

Make dressing and assemble salad:
Whisk together lemon juice, garlic, sugar, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 3 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Add barley, roasted vegetables, and remaining ingredients to bowl with dressing and toss until combined well. Eat, eat, eat.

4 Main-dish Servings

When I spotted this recipe for Tahini Brownies on Taste of Beirut, I knew it was just a matter of time before we would tackle it ourselves.  Actually, “tackle” is very much an overstatement; this is one of the easiest brownie recipes we’ve ever made.  It literally took more time to figure out the approximate grams-to-cups conversions than to throw everything together and get them baking.  A birthday party was the perfect excuse to make, and give away (lest we eat them all ourselves), these egg-free, butter-free, sesame-sweet treats.

Yay, we’re finally making these!

Chris says:

I know it — the batter is awesome.

Lisa says:

You sure it’s a good idea to bring these to a party with kids? There’s rum in here.

Chris says:

Heck yes — I’m sure there will be plenty of kid-friendly treats. Besides, I’m sure most of the alcohol is gonna burn off during baking.

Lisa says:

True! Um, I think we should cut these before the party.

Chris says:

Well of course, how else are we gonna taste-test them?

Lisa says:

Wanna split one?

Chris says:

Yes please…

Lisa says:

Ooooh, they’re good… you can definitely taste the tahini!

Chris says:

Yeah, at the end… not overpowering, but you can definitely place it. Okay, these were a success.

Lisa says:

*Totally* — and so easy! Now let’s go before I eat any more of them.

Tahini Brownies
1 Bar of cooking chocolate, such as 60 or 70% bittersweet, 100 g
1/2 cup, plus one tablespoon of tahini
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 heaping tsp baking powder
1 cup powdered sugar
~ 2/3 cup combination of rum and orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350F.
Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler. Meanwhile, mix the tahini, orange juice and rum in a large bowl.
Add the melted chocolate and the powdered sugar. Mix well.
Sift the flour and baking powder into the mixture, and again mix well.
Grease an 8 inch baking pan and line with parchment paper. Pour in the batter, spreading it as evenly as possible.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the outside is crispy, and still slightly gooey inside.

We heart larb, and we used to make larb gai all the time, but with Lisa being on a veggie kick lately, we introduced this version into the mix. Instead of chicken, I used a mix of various mushrooms we had on hand — shiitake, cremini, and good old white button. It was delicious! One thing to note is that after sauteeing the mushrooms you should try to get as much excess liquid out as you can — you’ll be adding more liquid via lime juice and fish sauce, and you don’t want to end up with a soupy mess. Also, I noticed this version warranted a greater fish sauce to lime juice ratio than when done with chicken.

How about we don’t talk about this one, and just eat it instead?

Chris says:

I’m *so* okay with that. Also, “om nom nom nom nom”.

Mushroom Larb
1 lb mixed mushrooms (shiitake, cremini, white, etc.), roughly chopped
1 tbsp roasted rice powder
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 green onions, chopped
2 tbsp chopped shallots
3 tbsp chopped mint leaves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp garlic and red chile paste
cabbage leaves
cilantro

Spray a nonstick skillet with oil and heat to medium. Add in the chopped mushrooms and cook until they release their water and start to brown.
Remove from the heat and put in a strainer to drain excess liquid. Add the mushrooms to a large bowl and stir in the rice powder, cilantro, green onions, shallots, and mint leaves.
In a separate small bowl, mix together the fish sauce, lime juice, chile paste, and cayenne pepper. Taste for desired levels of spicy/salty/sour.
Add to bowl with mushrooms, stir, and adjust seasonings.
Garnish with cilantro sprigs and serve with cabbage leaves to scoop.