Pumpkin Rice-Stuffed Lamb Roast

When Armenians say meat, they really mean lamb, and I can hardly think of a gathering of Armenians beyond my immediate family that hasn’t include at least one type of lamb dish. So when I was invited to participate in the inaugural Lamb Pro-Am, sponsored by the American Lamb Board and BostonChefs, I knew I would make an Armenian-inspired dish almost as quickly as I knew I would participate.

I was surprised at how fast I came up with a recipe for this challenge. We (me and 9 other Boston-area bloggers) were tasked with cooking a boneless leg, which ruled out any stew-like dish because there are better cuts for that. Immediately I thought of shish kebab – skewers of lamb (usually leg), marinated and grilled. But it was too simple (not to mention that Fall seems to have finally settled upon us with drizzly day after drizzly day). And then I remembered an often-talked-about dish that my grandmother used to make, and I KNEW.

My father’s mother passed away when I was very young, so I never got to experience her cooking, although my life has been filled with stories about her ruling over her kitchen. I spent a weekend this past summer with my horkur (Armenian for aunt, more specifically father’s sister), and after we baked treats that she remembered from her childhood, she gave me a copy of a cookbook she had written, which included many of her mother’s recipes.

One recipe jumped out at me. It consists of rice and pumpkin and onion and raisins, and that’s pretty much it. I had wanted to try it since hearing about it years before, and I knew that my other grandmother had made a similar dish, so it couldn’t be bad if both sides of my family had their own versions. But instead of just serving the pumpkin rice alongside the lamb, I decided to fill the lamb with it.

The rice was surprisingly quick and easy to put together. The only hardship is the chopping of the pumpkin and the onions. I know 3 onions sounds like a lot, but light a candle and get chopping – you really do need 3 onions. Trust me. And because I was planning on putting the rice inside the lamb, I diced the pumpkin up into small cubes; if you serve it just as a side dish, you can cut bigger cubes. Use any kind of pumpkin or winter squash you’d like (I used my favorite, buttercup squash). This can be made a day ahead if need be.

Pumpkin Rice

¼ cup olive oil

3 onions, minced

¾ cup rice

½ cup raisins

2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp sugar

2 cups water

2-pound squash, inside cleaned out, and diced

In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until translucent, stirring often. Add rice, raisins, salt, and sugar, and stir to combine. Push mixture to one side of pan and lay down about a quarter of the diced pumpkin; move rice over the pumpkin and lay down another quarter on the other half of the pan. Even the rice out, then top with the remaining pumpkin. Add water, cover, and reduce heat to low. Let cook until rice and pumpkin are cooked through and tender, about half an hour. Stir together before using or serving.

Now, I’m no butcher. Butchers are trained and know what they’re doing with a cut of meat. Me, I just kind of hack at meat until it looks good enough. I lamely attempted to butterfly my leg of lamb, making sure to cut out the silverskin to ensure a tender roast. I definitely could have done a better job, but I also didn’t ruin the meat (whew!). If you give this recipe a shot (and don’t know what you’re doing, much like me), ask your butcher to butterfly the leg for you. You’ll be much happier.

Once the leg is butterflied, lay it meat side up (fat side down), sprinkle with a little salt, and lay some of the rice mixture evenly over it. There will be plenty of rice left – save it to serve with the meat later. Roll the meat up, trying not to squeeze out all the filling as you go, and tie it together to keep its shape (I found this video helpful, although it was more of a two-person job for me). Place it fat side up in a roasting pan and cook in a 350° oven until a thermometer inserted into the meat (make sure you avoid the rice filling!) reads 150°. Remove from oven, cover with foil, and let stand 10-15 minutes before cutting and serving. Reheat the rest of the rice to serve alongside – the pumpkin will mush a bit as you stir, making it appear more orange than it had before. The rice inside is a bit meaty and has imparted much of its sweetness to the meat, while the rest of the rice has a more pronounced pumpkin flavor, so it almost seems like two different rice dishes.

The rice got plenty of approval from my parents, who said it tasted just like they remembered, and the three of us devoured more lamb than we thought possible. Hopefully my grandmother would have approved as well.

Many thanks to the American Lamb Board and Boston Chefs, who provided me with this wonderful cut of meat. Please take a moment to vote for me here - the top four bloggers move on to the next round!

Kolokithopita

The problem with blogging, as with so many other things, is that the longer you're away from it, the harder it is to get back into it. For literally six weeks, I've come to my computer almost daily with the intent to blog, but every day that passed and it didn't happen, the less likely I was to actually do it. Well, here I am, having had to create a post for a special assignment (you'll read all about it on December 1st), which managed to get me back into the blogging mindset (hopefully).

That doesn't mean that I haven't cooked anything in six weeks. Quite the opposite, in fact, and I kept taking pictures and jotting down recipes with the hope that it would kick-start some writing. In fact, one week I roasted a pumpkin (ok, a buttercup squash, which has more flavor than a sugar pumpkin) and used it in just about everything I made.

That was how I stumbled across the wonder that is kolokithopita. I was searching for pumpkin recipes and came across montcarte's recipe from last fall. Most importantly, it was a savory use of pumpkin puree, which is much less common than sweet uses. Less importantly, but still intriguing to me, it involved feta cheese (really, any cheese would make me happy) and phyllo dough (which always produces impressive results).

I ended up making this twice in one week because it was so good. The first time, I could barely hold myself back from cutting into it - I wanted to wait until dinner, but instead I declared it an appetizer (hours early?) and just dug in. I'm glad I didn't wait - the crispy exterior and the creamy interior, the natural sweetness of the pumpkin and the salty goodness of the cheese made this a pretty perfect pumpkin dish. At the end of the week, I was invited to a housewarming party and thought it would make a good side dish. The kolokithopita travels well and is good warm, room-temperature, or cold out of the fridge. Plus, it's fun to say.

Don't let the use of phyllo dough scare you off. I know a lot of people are a bit frightened of using it, as it is known to be a somewhat cantankerous dough. This is a good recipe to learn on, though, since it's got to be roll and twisted. The dough WILL rip in this recipe, but it's not a problem since the focus isn't on laying it perfectly flat (like it is in recipes like baklava). Plus, this recipe uses very little phyllo (less than half a box), so if you screw up a lot, you still have more than enough to get the job done.

Kolokithopita
1 stick butter, melted
2 cups pumpkin puree (I like ambercup or buttercup squash, but canned works just as well)
3/4 cup crumbled feta (about 4 oz)
2 eggs
1 tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp honey
phyllo dough

Preheat oven to 350°. Brush an 8-inch round cake pan with butter and set aside.

Mix together pumpkin, feta, eggs, nutmeg, and honey. Stir well to combine.

Lay one sheet of phyllo dough on work surface and brush with melted butter. Lay a second sheet of dough directly on top of first sheet and brush with more butter. Lay filling in a thin strip along one of the long sides (but don't go all the way to the edge or the filling will squeeze out). Gently roll the dough away from you, forming a long snake. Arrange the snake inside the baking pan, curving it to fit the curve of the pan. Brush the exterior of the snake with more butter. Repeat with remaining dough and filling until the pan is filled (make sure to brush each curve of the dough with butter as you add it to the pan - the butter is what makes it flaky). Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Halloween Chocolates

I've decided that I shouldn't be allowed in craft stores. I walk in and instantly want everything I see. Only problem is that I never have enough time to actually make the crafts that I buy. When they're food-related, though, my chances are a little higher. When I walked into A.C.Moore a couple of weeks ago, I couldn't help but pick up materials for making Halloween chocolates. I mean, who doesn't want chocolate tombstones?!?

Or spiderweb lollipops?

It's been years since I've made chocolates, probably in middle school when my mother and I would use those horrible "chocolate" buttons in an assortment of colors to make candies for her favorite holiday, Valentine's Day. I had forgotten how much fun (and how easy) these are to make, and the results are always impressive. I opted for good dark chocolate this time (and yes, some crappy white chocolate for contrast). And there's something so satisfying about whacking those little plastic trays on the counter to get out all the air bubbles...

But my real achievement with my Halloween candies were the pumpkin cups I created. I wanted to create chocolate pumpkin truffles, but I just couldn't get the consistency right, so I opted for pumpkin cups instead (in mini black and orange paper cups, of course). They ended up working really well, like a little shot of pumpkin pie enrobed in chocolate. The filling was still a little loose, so they're best eaten in one bite to avoid a mess. And yes, the spices may seem strong when you're mixing them in, but the chocolate can be overpowering, so you need that much for the flavor to come out. (I also eyeballed the cream and chocolate, so while I provided measurements, they're not exact.)

Chocolate Pumpkin Cups

1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/3 cup heavy cream
about 1/3 lb white chocolate
about 1 lb dark chocolate
mini paper cups

In a pan over medium heat, mix together pumpkin and spices. Cook pumpkin for 3-5 minutes or until it begins to condense and look dry. Whisk in cream and heat through, then remove from heat and whisk in white chocolate until melted. Transfer to a bowl and freeze for at least an hour.

Arrange paper cups on a tray that will fit in your freezer. In a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate. Add about a tablespoon of chocolate to each cup, and use a small kitchen brush (or a small, new painting brush) to bring the chocolate up along the sides of the cup. Freeze until chocolate is hardened. Add another layer of chocolate to the sides (not the bottom) of the cup with the brush to build stronger walls, then freeze until hardened. Add a small amount of the pumpkin filling (about a teaspoon), then cover with more chocolate. Freeze until hardened, then try not to eat them all at once.

Pumpkin and Spicy Cheddar Souffle

I'm not usually one to make recipes found in advertisements for brand-name products. But when I saw the ad for Cabot's Pumpkin and Habanero Cheddar Souffles in a magazine, I couldn't wait to give them a shot. Nothing says Fall quite like pumpkins, and these seemed like the perfect way to start the season. Luckily, I already had some of Cabot's 50% Light Jalapeno Cheddar at home, so all I had to do was pick up some mini pumpkins.

Before finding this recipe, I would never had thought to cook with mini pumpkins. We're talking about the tiny little things that can be found with the other small ornamental squashes. I didn't even consider how much flesh was actually in them. But each pumpkin has about half a cup of meat to it - good eats! And very easy to deal with!

Pumpkin and Spicy Cheddar Souffle
4 mini pumpkins
2 eggs, yolks and whites separated
2 tsp flour
1/8 tsp baking powder
2 ounces spicy cheddar (I like Cabot's 50% Light Jalapeno Cheddar), finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°. Place pumpkins in shallow baking dish and add water about halfway up the sides of the pumpkins. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Let cool.

Reheat oven to 375°. With a paring knife, remove tops from pumpkins. Remove seeds and scoop out flesh, leaving about 1/4-inch-thick walls. Place pumpkin meat in a bowl. Add egg yolks, flour, baking powder, and cheese, and mix well. Whip egg whites into stiff peaks, then fold gently into the pumpkin mixture. Spoon mixture into the pumpkin shells. Place on baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until puffed and starting to brown.

How is Pumpkin This Amazing?

So my pumpkin jag continues. I saw these cookies in Everyday Food a while ago, and I got all the ingredients sitting on the counter... and then life got in the way. Isn't that always how it happens? But after long delay, my stomach is filled with moist, cakey, chocolate-covered pumpkin cookies, and all is right with the world again.

Pumpkin is definitely my most-used ingredient this fall. I can't seem to stay away from pumpkin recipes. Savory or sweet, it's just fantastic. Got any good pumpkin recipes for me?

Chocolate-Glazed Pumpkin Cookies from Everyday Food

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder (I can't mix them up if they're both in here!)
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice - you could use more and it would probably taste better
1/4 tsp salt
4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour through salt and set aside.

Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat until smooth. Beating slowly, add flour mixture and pumpkin in small batches, alternating between the two.

Drop dough by heaping tablespoons onto a lined baking sheet. Bake until puffed and edges are golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Once cookies have cooled, melt 4 ounces of chopped chocolate in a measuring cup in the microwave for roughly 90 seconds. Stir until completely melted. Transfer chocolate to a ziploc bag. Cut the smallest of holes in one corner of the bag and pipe chocolate over the cookies. Let chocolate harden before serving.

Pumpkins Galore!

Nothing like a day filled with pumpkin. Camp Sunshine's Pumpkin Festival took place yesterday at Government Center, and the plaza was packed - with people and pumpkins. I'm not sure what the pumpkin count ended up being, but last year, there was over 30,000 jack o'lanterns. There was pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin bowling, and, most importantly, pumpkin carving.











But of course, that wasn't enough pumpkin for me.

Penne with Pumpkin Sauce (adapted from an Everyday Food recipe)


12 ounces penne
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 sprigs of rosemary, leaves taken off stem
1 can (15 ounces) pure pumpkin
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1+ tsp red pepper flakes
coarse salt

Cook pasta in salted water. Reserve 1 cup of water, then drain pasta and set aside.

In pasta pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add rosemary and fry, stirring, until it begins to brown, 1 to 2 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer rosemary to a paper towel, leaving oil in pot.

Add pumpkin, garlic, half-and-half, Parmesan, vinegar, red pepper flackes, and reserved pasta water to oil. Stir until heated through and cheese is melted. Add pasta and toss to coat. Season with salt and additional pepper flakes if desired, and top with rosemary.

Better than Tea with the Queen

The word "crumpets" brings to mind hours-long tea service with polished silver and waiters in white gloves, not me rushing out the door to catch the train. But every morning for the past few weeks, my day has begun just like that - a warm crumpet resting precariously on a paper towel as I dodge traffic and snarky commuters.


Trader Joe's makes these fantastic Cinnamon Crumpets that toast perfectly in the toaster in just a couple of minutes. The outside gets crunchy, while the inside stays moist and chewy. Top it off with Trader Joe's equally-excellent Pumpkin Butter, and it's a fairly perfect breakfast. Quite civilized, to say the least.


I am quite aware that this post is verging on Trader Joe-obsession, but I'm overwhelmed by how well these two things pair together. It will be a sad day when the pumpkin butter disappears for the season - guess that means I better stock up!

Pumpkin Custard

So it's gotten warm again here, despite the chill last week. However, I did all my shopping when it was cold, so my foods for the week reflected that. The weather was putting me in the mood for pumpkin - in fact, I had a pumpkin soup lined up that I didn't get around to.

Anyhow, I've been eating this ridiculously easy custard for breakfast all week, and it's been a real treat. It's healthy, but it tastes decadent (and a lot like pumpkin pie). I especially like the kick the cayenne pepper gives without standing out too much.

Pumpkin Custard adapted from a Weight Watchers recipe

1 cup fat-free evaporated milk
3/4 cup Egg Beaters
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup orange juice
16 oz can of pumpkin
1/2 cup unpacked brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Stir together sugar, cinnamon, cloves, cayenne and salt in a large bowl. Whisk in pumpkin, milk, orange juice and eggs. Divide among 6 ramikins.

Set ramikins in a high-walled pan. Pour in an inch of boiling water. Bake until firm around the edges and slightly puffed, about 40 minutes. Remove from water bath, cool completely and refrigerate.