For example, in my language of Quechua Wanka, we call the moon Mama Quilla (pronounced ma-ma kee-ya, with a double ll sound for the “ya” part)—Mother Moon. She is our grandmother, and farmers in my community use her phases to decide when to plant crops. In the Anishinaabe or Ojibwe Native language, Ojibwemowin, the moon is called giizis (pronounced gee-zis). And each month is named in Ojibwemowin using geezis as a part of the month name. For example, August is Manoominike-giizis (pronounced ma-noo-min-i-kay), or Wild Ricing Moon—the time of anticipated harvest of wild rice.

Artist: Rabbett Strickland, Ojibwe artist. Source: White Earth Land Recovery Project & Native Harvest at http://nativeharvest.com/

Wild rice, manoomin (pronounced ma-noo-min), is one of the sacred foods of the Ojibwe. Bands of Ojibwe people tell a migration story where their ancestors historically trekked far and wide to find the “food that grows on water.” Wild ricing or the harvesting of wild rice takes place in Ojibwe country of Wisconsin and Minnesota generally around August or September. The rice, which is actually not rice but a wild grain, is harvested by Ojibwe people by hand, using canoes and wooden sticks called knockers where the tall rice plants are bent with one knocker while another is used to shake the rice into the canoe. The process is back-breaking, time-consuming and just all-around tough work. After being gathered, the rice must be processed by scorching to remove the hulls, and then finished, leaving a wondrous product ready to be cooked.

Knockers! Passed down from the generations. Courtesy of Cutler-Arbuckle family

So with a fresh harvest of wild rice, chilly Fall days and a striking harvest moon, I decided to heed Nelly’s advice and “go slow.” While this can apply to slow foods, for Indigenous people, it can simply mean being conscientious within one’s ecology. And going slow to me also means taking the time to appreciate some good Northwoods comfort food. Mmmmmm.

I decided to make a wild rice hot dish for my main Ojibwe wild rice harvester, niinimooshe (pronounced nee-ni-moo-shay), or “my sweetheart.” Wild rice hot dishes are a combination of the ancient and the modern, combining tasty wild rice with cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soups. Countless variations on the hot dish are prepared with much gusto for cultural feasts and other community events and vary in complementing ingredients—from chicken to pork sausage to venison, and yes, vegetarian too.

Wisconsin wild rice, freshly harvested, scorched and finished

Preparing wild rice: Boil, then simmer

Being aware of healthier eating, I opted to use a ground turkey and turkey sausage in my hot dish, as well as low-sodium, low-fat ingredients. However, I did top it off with extra crispy tater tots because, well, tater tots are awesome.

Tater tot wild rice hot dish: Just out of the oven!

A big serving, just for you. Eat up! There's seconds!

And, because we had gone to an apple orchard and picked up Honey Crisp apples, I also made an apple pie for dessert. It was the very first apple pie I ever made. In my entire life. For reals.

Honey crisp apples from the orchard

Honey crisp apple pie

So here’s to those who nurture manoomin, to those who do the gathering, to gorgeous harvest moons, to cooking, to eating, and to going slow! Sing it!

Tator Tot Wild Rice Hot Dish

Tater Tot Wild Rice Hot Dish
(feeds

Ingredients:
1 ½ cups of prepared wild rice (see instructions below)
1 lb. of ground turkey
½ lb of turkey sausage
1 can of chicken broth
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
2 chopped celery stalks
½ chopped white onion
1 large bag of tater tots
1 ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese (optional)

Instructions:

1. Wash the wild rice thoroughly to eliminate any chaff
2. In a pot, soften the rice (less than 2 parts water, 1 part rice), bringing rice to a boil for 5 minutes, then simmering on low-medium for 20 minutes (You don’t want the rice to have split yet or to be mushy in consistency, so watch it carefully)
3. Brown the meats, drain grease
4. Brown the celery and onion (I use a little of the grease from the sausage)
5. Combine the meats, celery and onion, rice, chicken broth, cream of mushroom and pour into a casserole dish (You’re going to want about an inch and half depth of casserole, so make sure it’s a big dish)
6. Bake covered at 350 for 1 ½ hours
7. Remove from oven, top with tater tots and bake for another 30 minutes, covered
8. Remove from oven and add mozzarella and bake uncovered for 10 minutes

Honey Crisp Crunch Top Apple Pie

Honey Crisp Crunch Top Apple Pie
(modified from Paula Deen’s recipe at www.foodnetwork.com)

Ingredients for filling:
2 doughs for a 9-inch pie
½ cup of sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
5 Honey Crisp apples, peeled and sliced thinly
14 oz unsweetened applesauce
1 ½ tbsp lemon juice

Ingredients for crunch topping:
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp brown sugar
pinch of salt
1 tbsp of room temp butter

Instructions:

1. Line the pie pan with dough
2. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt
3. Add in apples, applesauce and lemon juice
4. Spoon the mixture into the pie pan
5. Top the pie with the other dough, either making your own designs or criss-crossing
6. Make the crunch topping by mixing together all ingredients with a fork until crumbly and then sprinkle over the crust
7. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, then reduce to 350 and bake for 45 minutes or until the crust is a golden brown

For more information on Ojibwe wild rice, harvesting and language, please see the White Earth Land Recovery Project, WOJB (of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Ojibwe), and the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC).

Check us out on Hearth’ n Soul!

*Zomppa does not endorse sites or artists mentioned in this article. They are provided as resources for your information and interest only.

While I’m having fun splashing in my rainboots (who says you are too old to splash in puddles?), I thought this would a perfect time to try out a warm goulash stew. My inspiration was a photo by Cake Mountain Man’s mom, who spent the last two months in Germany with her family, Ralf and Helga.

I met Ralf and Helga a few months ago – two of the loveliest people with a twinkle in their eyes and a spring in their steps. They were also more comfortable speaking German.

I had to dig deep into my brain, now mostly mush, for the 7 years I spent learning German. I was actually pretty good at it until I stopped learning. Surprisingly and gratefully, Ralf and Helga patiently humored my German, assisted by a tiny English-German dictionary. Thankfully, their English was also far better than my German.

Ralf happens also to be a foodie, and he made a a Hungarian Goulash with a German accent, aka with sauerkraut.

The dish is traditionally served with Bohemian dumplings. For the original recipe and some other wonderful German dishes, check out this great recipe exchange site from Germany, Chefkoch.

I didn’t make the dumplings (yet), but I did have some fresh yellow tomatoes from the farmer’s market, cool weather (finally), and a hankering from German food.

German food often has a reputation for not being good, and I’m not sure where this reputation comes from. When I was in Germany, I couldn’t get enough of everything that was there. Hearty, wholesome, flavorful. Savory, rich meats. Warm, thick loaves of bread.

You can use beef or turkey, but I used ground bison in mine, which made for an even richer flavor. While my Goulash is no where near as good as Ralf’s, it was nonetheless a simple, healthy way to warm up your insides on cool, rainy, Autumn days.

Danke schoen, Onkel Ralf und Tanta Helga. Guten Appetit!

Galoshes Goulash

Galoshes Galoush
1 lb. ground bison (or beef or turkey)
1 lbs. pasta (egg noodles, elbows, twists)
20 oz. strained tomatoes
3-5 tomatoes, chopped (depending on how thick you want)
1 large onion
5 loves of garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil

1. In Dutch oven, heat olive oil and saute onions and garlic until translucent and fragrant over medium-high
2. Add ground bison and brown
3. Add strained tomato and chopped tomatoes, lower heat to medium-low
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta
5. Add water accordingly until consistency is as desired
6. Add pasta into the stew and simmer for 10 minutes
7. Season with salt and pepper
8. Serve with dumplings or thick, hearty bread

Check us out with our new friends here!

If you haven’t seen this yet, it’s a wonderful inspiration that it’s never too late to find your passion. In honor of Julia as well as the last days of autumn, I decided to try an easy way to impress with those last remaining golden globes of fall: pumpkins.

For those of who you are wondering, Autumn?, you might be thinking I’m off my calendar especially since the Christmas season is…like next week.

Well, I’m a New Englander and my winters are known by the three feet of snow, blizzards requiring candle-lit baths when the power is out, and lost mittens.

Now that I live in the South, I’m still not used to a “winter” with 60 degree weather and no snow. My skiis sit idly by, waiting…so I might as well celebrate the transition of the seasons…even at this “late game.”

If you are looking for a way to get the “Whoa” from your dinner party guests, try this. It’s super easy and you can jazz it up with adding whatever you want.

Baked Stuffed Pumpkin

Baked Stuffed Pumpkin
Adapted from Julia Child

1 3-lb pumpkin
1 onion, chopped
2 TB butter
3-5 slices of baguette
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 sage
Salt
Pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup Cheddar or Gruyere cheese, grated
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup heavy cream
Olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Cut out small top from pumpkin and clean inside
3. Brush outside of pumpkin with olive oil
4. Cut baguette into 1-inch cubes and bake for about 5 minutes to get a little crisp
5. Meanwhile, saute onions in butter
6. Combine onions with bread crumbs
7. Mix chicken stock with heavy cream, add seasoning
8. Layer bottom with bread crumb mixture, then cheese mixture, then stock/cream mixture; repeat until about 1-2 inches from the top
9. Put the “lid” back on the pumpkin and bake until it bubbles
10. Reduce to 325F and bake for about 1 1/2 hours

After a week of cold downpours when the sun took a vacation, my dear friends came over for a comfort supper. They are far too kind in their accolades (which by the way, I never discourage them from dispensing), but the best part for me is when they keep going back for seconds (and thirds and fourths) and I know that they have truly enjoyed the meal I have wholeheartedly prepared for them.

As you know, I love cooking seasonally…and tis the season for apples, squashes, and root vegetables. I went searching from some recipes and got inspired. I decided to use apple as my theme and found seasonal, organic, and local ingredients, a roasting bird raised with compassion and vegetarian feed. The trick for me is that I like to prep earlier in the day (all the chopping) and put them in little bowls back in the fridge so they are easy to pull out when ready. This meal needs a bit of planning but trust me, it’s EASY. Don’t let the long list turn you away – I’m just being wordy.

Just prep ahead: start the day (or night before) by brining and then chopping things that need to be chopped. Then when you’re ready to cook, start by roasting the butternut squash for the soup FIRST. When they’re done, roast your chicken and vegetables in the oven while you make the soup on the stove top. They both come up nearly the same time and ready to be devoured.

Cider Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables
Adapted from Je Mange la Ville and Cooking Light

Make the brine in the morning, stick it in your fridge and you can forget about it until ready to cook supper. The brine makes the chicken oh-my-gosh-juicy. The juices from the chicken give the root vegetables this unbelievable flavor and heartiness.

The brine:
3 1/2 quarts water
1/2 quart apple cider
1/4 cup kosher or sea salt
1 TB peppercorns
1 bay leaf

The chicken:
2 cups apple cider
1 3-lb roasting chicken (organic or free-range tastes great)
1 red onion, chopped in large eighths
1-2 tsp dried rosemary
2 TB butter, softened
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

The vegetables:
3 carrots, chopped in 2-inch chunks
6 red potatoes, quartered
1 turnip, chopped in 2-inch chunks (I’m not a big fan of turnips, it turns out. You can use parsnips or other hearty root vegetables in place)
2 shallots, quartered
10 cloves garlic (peeled, whole)

1. Put all the brining ingredients in large stockpot that is big enough for the chicken but small enough for your refrigerator.
2. Bring to boil, then cool.
3. Put rinsed chicken into brine (make sure it sits under the brine), stick in the refrigerator for about 7-8 hours.
4. Drain chicken, rinse, dry, and toss out brine.
5. Preheat oven to 375F.
6. Put chopped vegetables on bottom of oven-proof casserole or roasting pan. I used a casserole dish and a metal trivet big enough to hold the chicken just high enough over the vegetables and it worked beautifully.
7. Drizzle vegetables with olive oil, season with salt and pepper.
8. Add garlic and dried rosemary to butter and add under the skin of the chicken breast. To ensure you don’t break the skin, use one hand to pull the skin taut and using the index finger of the other, gently use a hooking motion to tear the connecting fat tissues to loosen the skin.
9. Stuff the chicken with the red onion.
10. Putting the chicken wing side up on the trivet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
11. Roast for about 40 minutes (check and if need, cover loosely with aluminum foil so not to burn).
12. Meanwhile, boil apple cider and reduce to about 1/4 cup.
13. Turn chicken breast side up and drizzle the apple cider reduction and roast for another 30 minutes (thigh should be about 170)
14. When done, remove chicken from vegetables and let cool.

Your home will also smell amazing.

Roasted Butternut Squash Apple Soup
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa and ZomppaPatty

This soup freezes really well and perfect for cold days. The apples make it delectably sweet – don’t use as many apples or cider if you want it less sweet. The ginger and curry adds layers of flavors. While the squash doesn’t have to be roasted, it brings an extra depth and nuttiness that makes the soup something else. I also made some homemade croutons by simply chopping up sunflower bread and baking them in the oven until crispy and crunchy. Sunflower bread works perfectly with this soup because of the nutty saltiness.

2 medium-sized butternut squash
4 McIntosh (or other sweet cooking) apples
2 TB unsalted butter
2 TB olive oil
2 large yellow onions, chopped
2 TB curry powder
1 TB ground ginger
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 cups organic chicken stock
1 cup apple cider
3 TB heavy cream
Parsley, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Peel and chop squash and apple to 2-inch chunks.
3. Lay butternut squash on two foil-lined cookie sheets, drizzle with olive oil and bake for 45 minutes or until tender (fork will pierce)
4. In large stockpot, add butter, olive oil, onions, curry powder and ginger, cooking over low heat for about 20 minutes until onions are translucent. Stir.
5. When squash and onions are done, add the squash, apples, and stock to the pot. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Bring to boil, then cover and cook over low heat for about 40-45 minutes or until squash and apples are really soft.
7. Mix immersion blender while on low heat and blend. Add apple cider until it is as smooth or thick as you want it.
8. Blend some heavy cream.
9. Season with salt and pepper according to taste and garnish with parsley.

Our meal didn’t end with apples, but my friends brought over a pecan-pumpkin pie from Whole Foods baked in a graham cracker crust. It was amazing. We topped it off with some tea I had bought in Oman – it was quite heavy at the first pour, but the second in the French Press was so smooth and perfectly steeped.

What a comforting way to spend a cold rainy week. As long as you’re willing to play by these rules.

My favorite season.

When someone says ‘porridge,’ most people think: 1) Goldilocks and the Three Bears, 2) peasant food and 3) Yuck!  Tastless! Oats?  Bleck!?  Porridge?  Disgusting.

Well, I’m here to change your mind about this porridge business.

Growing up, my mom used to make a very hearty rice porridge for us, particularly when we were sick, using very starchy, left over sticky rice (rice used for sushi) and just enough steaming hot chicken/beef broth to create an almost rice pudding/risotto consistency.    She’d then serve it to us with some homemade kimchi using cabbage.

Sounds strange?  It was delicious  – and just the right comfort food to boost the immune system and warm the insides.

The dramatic drop in temperature not only mustered nostalgia, but also inspired this Chicken and Leek Porridge recipe.  It is a jazzed up replica of my mother’s soup, fortified with sweet carrots, woodsy baby Bella mushrooms, big chunks of roasted chicken and brown basmati rice.  Perfect for a very cold autumn day or when you need a boost.

Chicken and Leek Porridge

Chicken and Leek Porridge

Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

1 chicken breast, bone in, skin on
1 large leek, thinly sliced (make sure you thoroughly wash your leek!  Lots of sand!)
1 medium onion, diced
3 medium garlic gloves, minced
2 small carrots, diced
2-tablespoon olive oil
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp chili pepper flakes (optional)
½ cup of brown basmati rice*
5 cups of low-sodium chicken stock
1 cup of baby Bella mushrooms, sliced
½ cup of green peas
salt/pepper

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Rub your chicken with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle on 1 tsp of salt and ½ a tsp of ground black pepper.  Put in oven for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and let sit.  (if you don’t’ have time to cook your chicken, you can buy a rotisserie from the store and shred about a 1 ½ cup of the chicken.)

Using a large soup pot (large creuset is nice), turn  heat on to medium.  Once pot is hot, add the 1-tablespoon of olive oil, the onions, carrots  and the leek.  Add 1 tsp of salt and ½ a tsp of ground black pepper.  Once the onions are translucent, add the garlic and stir for 1-2 minutes.

Add the bay leaf, thyme and chili pepper flakes (if using).  Stir for 1-2 minutes.  Then add the rice.  Stir the rice until well coated with oil and well combined with other ingredients.  Add 5 cups of the chicken stock.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and put the cover on the pot.  Stirring occasionally (so the rice doesn’t settle), let simmer for about 45 minutes.

In the meantime, shred your roasted chicken breast into bite-sized pieces.  After 45 minutes, your rice should have a porridge-like consistency (slightly more liquid present than in a risotto, but not as much as a soup).  Add your shredded chicken, mushrooms and peas.   Stir and cook for another 3-5 minutes.

Serve with a little parsley on top and enjoy hot!

* The basmati rice is not nearly as starchy as a shorter grain rice, so you won’t fully get a porridge like consistency here if you use it.  However, I use it in my recipe because it has greater nutritional benefits.

Ultimate symbol of autumn.

Not really sure what happened during the past week, but the temperature dropped from the mid-90’s to the mid 70’s.  Perhaps it has something to do with the hurricane weather threatening the Caribbean?  Baja California?  Who knows.  I’m no meteorologist.  But what I do know is that historical, seasonal data for the region suggests that the current, crisp, autumn-like temperatures will quickly revert back to the sticky, humid, hell-on-earth temperatures  we’ve been dealing with over the past few weeks….

In any case, with all this cool weather, my taste buds have abandoned the crave for chilled white wines, grilled pizzas, pasta salads and watermelon.  I, along with the rest of my family, crave something more comforting, soothing and wholesome.  And that something is my Chicken and Chickpea ‘Chili’.

To be very honest, this recipe is less of a chili and more of a thick soup/stew, primarily because of the orzo pasta.  However, don’t be afraid of this interesting twist on chili.  While this spicy dish would be fabulous without the additional starch, the pasta makes this dish a one pot meal that is super nutritious, delicious and filling.

The other reason I love this recipe is because my 14 month old also loves it.  For her, this dish is simply her beloved spaghetti on steroids and with a bit more zest.  She may not have any molars, but that certainly doesn’t stop her from mashing the hell out of the meat and chickpeas with her gums.

Chicken and Chickpea Chili

Chicken and Chickpea ‘Chili’.
Inspired by Dave Lieberman’s, Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 large onion, medium diced
8 cloves garlic, pressed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons of chili powder
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon of paprika
1 pound of ground turkey, chicken or beef
1 (28-ounce) can of crushed tomatoes
2 cups of chickpeas (preferably, dried beans that have been soaked/cooked)
5 cups reduced-sodium chicken stock
1 cup of whole-wheat orzo pasta
1 teaspoon of sugar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 cups of baby spinach, cut into thin strips

Directions

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or soup pot.   Flame should be medium to low.  Add onions and cook for about 5 minutes, or until soft and translucent.  Add the garlic.  Cook for about 1 minutes.  Add the spices and move around pot for about 1-2 minutes.  Add the ground meat, 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ a teaspoon of pepper.  Cook meat until completely cooked thru.  Then add the chickpeas.  Add the tomatoes, sugar and chicken stock.  Bring the soup to a bowl.  Then reduce heat and allow to simmer for about 40-45 minutes.  Taste.  Add more salt and pepper if necessary.  Add the orzo pasta.  Cook for 6 minutes.  Turn off heat and add the spinach.  Serve with crusty bread or crackers.