Baked Stuffed Butternut Squash

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have been a little obsessed with squashes lately.  The last post for butternut squash was just the beginning.  Here is another recipe for a stuffed butternut squash.  It is based off a recipe from Scandinavian Cooking, but I didn't have the right ingredients for the stuffing.  I really wanted to make the butternut squash so I figured I could come up with something for stuffing from my cupboards and refrigerator and use up some ingredients as well.  So here is my creation.

Stuffed Butternut Squash
1 medium butternut squash
4 oz. neufchatel cheese
1 oz. emmentaler cheese, finely grated
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts, toasted
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.  Cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise.  Scrape out seeds.  Place the halves onto a baking sheet.  Mix the stuffing: mix together the neufchatel and emmentaler cheeses.  Add the 1/4 cup of toasted hazelnuts.  Divide into two and stuff each butternut squash half with the cheese and hazelnut mixture.  Drizzle the olive oil and maple syrup over the two halves.  Season with pepper (and salt if desired).  Bake for about 45 minutes or until cooked throughout.  Check after about 35 minutes and cover if the cheese mixture is becoming too dark.  Serve hot.  This also reheats well, so make a lot so you can eat it now and later.

Chocolate Dipped Marzipan and Nougat (mozartkuegeln)

I saw this recipe in Scandinavian Christmas by Trine Hahnemann.  I knew I had to make it and at least try it the first time with as close to the original recipe as I could before attempting it a second time with modifications.   The basic recipe is really just an assembly of ingredients and then dipped into chocolate.

Every year when I lived in Germany, I would send my mom Mozart balls which are balls of almond paste (marzipan) with hazelnut nougat and usually a whole hazelnut in the middle.  The ones my mom liked best (and so did I) had a pistachio marzipan mixture.  Then the whole thing was dipped into chocolate and individually wrapped.  Fortunately, I can still find them for her in the U.S.  So each year they remain a part of her stocking stuffers.  So instead of just making them and sending them to her without the Mozart balls, this year she gets both.  And next time, I will try making the nougat from scratch since I now know what it is supposed to taste like.  Plus, I know that it will be needed to be rolled out between layers of marzipan, so I know the end goal.

Chocolate Dipped Marzipan and Nougat
about 14 ounces marzipan paste
7 ounces soft nougat, but firm enough to spread
chocolate for dipping (I think I used about 6-8 ounces and used the leftover for Pistachio Almond Cherry Chocolate Bark.)

You can make this in as few or as many layers as you would like.  Due to the softness of the nougat, I decided to make three layer....two with marzipan and one with nougat, but you can do three and two as well.  Roll out each half (7 oz. each) of marzipan into a 4 x 8 (approximately) rectangle.  Smear the nougat on the bottom layer and place the top layer of marzipan on top.  Gently cut into strips and then into smaller squares, rectangles or diamonds.  While cutting, heat the chocolate over water in a double boiler or a bowl which can rest on a small bowl filled with about an inch or two of water.  (Don't let the chocolate get wet from steam or it will seize and you will not be able to use it.)  Once the chocolate is melted dip each marzipan sandwich into the chocolate.  Set aside on waxed paper to set.  (I also refrigerated mine once I complete the tray.)  Once set, you can put into decorative papers and deliver as a present.  My batch made about 4 dozen chocolates.

Lebkuchen (elisenlebkuchen)

I received this recipe when I lived in Germany.  I fell in love with lebkuchen and although this isn't your traditional baked German treat, it definitely hits the spot baked at home.  Plus, those that have issues with gluten can also indulge in these as there isn't any flour involved.  This recipe also makes a smaller batch than many cookies.  Lebkuchen is traditionally sold during the Christmas season and then those shops which had it are turned into other things (like ice cream shops for the summer season).  There are as many different kinds of lebkuchen as you can possibly think up, so feel free to change things up to satisfy your cravings for other flavors.  If you live close to a German market you can buy oblaten which are little edible discs you can eat and makes the lebkuchen a lot easier to get off the pan.  If you don't have them I would recommend baking on parchment paper or a silicon mat as they can get quite sticky without something under then to release them for eating.



Elisenlebkuchen
3 eggs
1 cup sugar (200g)
1 package vanilla sugar (or 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
1-2 pinches of cloves
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon rum flavoring
2 -5 drops lemon extract
1/3 cup candy glazed citron (you can use lemon or orange if you can't find citron)
2/3 cup ground almonds
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2/3 cup ground hazelnuts
8-10 oblaten



Preheat the oven to 375F. Beat the eggs and then add sugar and vanilla sugar (if using).  Mix together until it is light and creamy.  Add the cloves, rum flavoring, and lemon extract and mix.  Then add the candy glazed citron, almonds, and backing powder and mix again.  Then add the hazelnuts, mix and then the dough to settle so it is easy to spread.  Check the consistency and add a little more ground hazelnuts if it spreads too easily.  Put the dough on the oblaten discs and back for 10 minutes.  Let cool and then decorate with chocolate and whole almonds if desired.

Vanilla Kiperl (Vanilla Butter Crescents)

I love simple cookies.  I used to like them with chocolate and other flavors, but my favorite kind right now are simple vanilla cookies.  Vanilla kiperl are German cookies, usually made at Christmastime, but are simple to make.  They are sweetened with a bit of vanilla and sugar and then dusted in powdered sugar when they are warm.  The sweetness comes through just right.  This is a mixture from a couple of recipes.  You can also make them with ground almonds instead of hazelnuts.  

Vanilla Butter Crescents

1/2 cup whole hazelnuts, toasted and peeled

1 cup flour

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 egg yolk

pinch of salt

8 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Your hazelnuts should already be toasted.  Place in a food processor with 2 -3 tablespoons of flour to grind to a fine meal.   In another bowl whisk the rest of the flour with 1/4 cup powdered sugar.  Add the flour mixture to the hazelnut mixture and pulse again.  Add the butter and egg yolk and pulse until the dough begins to come together.  Remove and place in a ball and put in the refrigerator for about half an hour.  Preheat over to 325F.  Line the sheets with parchment.  Form the dough into a ball and then roll into crescents.  Bake for about 9 minutes or until just beginning to brown.  Remove and transfer to wire racks to cool.  Dust with additional powdered sugar when warm and again after cooling.