Falling...

Last night it rained buckets.

Charlie pulled out his rubber boots, trudged out to the wood pile and built us our first fire of the season. We turned down the lights, turned up Neil Young and sat there for what seemed to be hours watching the flames roar until the embers began to spit and crackle and fall in a glowing pile under the andirons. As Charlie says, we're "fire people" and we love any opportunity to gather our little tribe around the hearth.

This morning, the sun was shining so brightly through my passenger side windshield that I could barely see through Carly's toe print smudges...evidence of last week's 90-degree barefoot weather. Fall in Marin County is officially here and even with its split personality, I love everything about it!

I love the smell of the driveway after the first drizzle and the mad dash to unearth last winter's rain gear. I love the look of surprise and delight on Willy's face when he dons his old jacket, holds up his arms and proudly exposes his lanky little wrists...a sure sign that the escalating Sharpie marks on our makeshift door jam grow chart do not deceive.

I love the neighborhood "fire tree," as we have named it, that we observe every morning on our back road trek to school. As maple trees go, it's actually not that impressive. Not so tall and not so grand, it stands alone amongst a row of evergreens, shouting out loud like an angry little red-headed man with an inferiority complex. Tracking its transformation from the first day of school until the last leaf has fallen has become a morning tradition...watching it turn from lush green to flaming red then stark and bare.

I love the new season of fall shows on TV. Yes, it's true, and I'm not particularly proud to say it, but we do love our TV in the Christensen household. Even though we have a million more choices than when we were kids, I still get a little bit excited about the promise of a fresh dose of our favorite drug of choice (we are so going to miss LOST and "24" this winter)!

Remember when the three (yes, there was a time when there were only three) networks had their Saturday morning fall cartoon previews? We'd gather around the TV to see what was in store, knowing that all too soon summer would be over, the first day of school would come and Saturday mornings would again actually matter.

Saturday mornings were sweet but we also had our precious prime time, complete with new episodes of the Brady Bunch and Partridge Family. Remember the season the Brady men showed up with perms? That was the year they went to Hawaii with Mike on his big architectural gig, I think, and they had all that trouble with the ancient idol. Oh...that Bobby...what a rascal!

Cindy,on the other hand, had nothin' on me...I rocked her pigtails. But do ya think someone might have noticed the whole bow tie thing as I posed for my first school picture! I'm still scarred by this fashion faux pas.

But...I digress...

I love the way our porch looks in the fall...

...and especially how it looks on Halloween...

I love the little paper Jack-O-Lanterns the kids cut out and tape to our stair lights.

And, speaking of Halloween, I love that Charlie carves pumpkins with the kids every year, even if he does use power tools...



...and teaches my son how to make his pumpkin puke...

But, you know one of the things I love the most, permission to eat all of that cozy fall food that seems politically or practically incorrect to eat during the heat of summer. Braised stews, home-baked breads and my favorite sweet and starchy fall vegetables, I love it all with butternut squash at the top of the list. I kind of think of these foods as the "white pants"of the epicurean world: God-forbid you use them out of season.

So, in honor of Halloween and our SF Giants I thought I'd share a recipe that's good and orange...Roasted Butternut Squash Lasagne with Rosemary and Garlic (it also happens to be my most-requested recipe)! PS...it happens to be vegetarian too...but no one will even notice since it's so decadent and delightful.

Happy Halloween and GO GIANTS!!!

Gather your ingredients:

Peel your butternut squash with a sharp peeler or paring knife. 3 1/2 pounds is about 2 medium squash but it will vary.

Cut into 1/2" cubes. This is the most time-consuming part of the recipe. If you want to cheat, have at it. Trader Joe's sells cubed butternut squash ready-to-go but it's quite a bit more expensive. I timed myself and estimate it took about 15 minutes, uninterrupted to peel and cube two squash...you make the call.

Toss your cubes in oil and roast in a hot oven for about 14 minutes, tossing and seasoning with salt 1/2 way through. This is what they should look like. Don't overcook them...they'll  shrivel up!

While the squash is roasting, make your cream sauce. Don't freak out if you've never made a cream sauce. There's really no big mystery. You basically make a roux* then whisk in milk until it becomes cream sauce.

Start by bringing your milk to a simmer with the rosemary for about 10 minutes, then straining it into a large measuring cup with a spout.

Then melt your butter over moderate heat in a large heavy saucepan, soften your garlic in the butter (for this recipe, not all cream sauces), add an equal amount of flour and cook it until it darkens and thickens a little (don't burn it!) and it starts to smell great. *You've just made a "roux"...the basis of your cream sauce.

Next, take the pan off the heat, add your milk in a stream in batches, whisking in between to keep out the lumps. Cook about 10 minutes or so until thickened to the consistency of melted ice cream.

Add the roasted squash and season with salt and pepper.

Butter your Pyrex and begin to build your lasagne in this order: start with a cup of sauce (it will not cover the bottom...no worries), layer three sheets of pasta, add half of the remaining sauce, 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese, three more sheets of pasta, the rest of the sauce, 1/2 cup more of Parmesan, three more sheets of pasta...

...then, yes it's true, whip 1 cup of heavy cream with 1/2 teaspoon of salt to soft peaks and spread it over the top with no apologies. Sprinkle with 1/3 cup more Parmesan.

Tent with foil and bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for about 10 more minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes and enjoy!

Roasted Butternut Squash Lasagne

with Rosemary and Garlic

Preheat oven to 450° and oil 2 rimmed baking sheets.

Toss and roast in the two pans for 7 minutes:

• 3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed into 1/2" chunks.
• 3 Tbs. vegetable oil or olive oil

Season with salt, toss, switch racks and roast for 7 more minutes. Remove from oven, set aside then lower oven temp to 375°.

While squash is roasting, add to a small saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes:

• 4 cups milk (I used 2% but whole is probably better)
• 1/4 cup loosely packed fresh rosemary or 2 Tbs dry

Strain through a fine sieve into a large measuring cup with a spout.

In a large heavy saucepan over moderate heat melt:

• 4 Tbs butter

Add and soften:

• 1 Tbs minced garlic

Stir in and cook for a few minutes:

• 4 Tbs. all-purpose flour

Take the pan temporarily off the heat and add rosemary milk in a stream in batches, whisking till smooth. Put back on heat and cook until thickened, stir in the roasted squash and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Layer lasagne as described above using:

• prepared sauce
• 9 sheets dry no boil lasagne (7" x 3 1/2")
• 1 1/3 grated or shredded Parmesan cheese

Then whip to soft peaks and spread over the top of the lasagne:

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp salt

Bake as directed above. Serves 6 hearty main course portions.

Adapated from Gourmet Magazine December 1995

Dr. Looney and The Brain...

Whoever said Halloween is all about the kids hasn't seen it go down in my house. Sure, sure the kids have a blast and everyone's happy and sugared-up in the end...just how it's supposed to be...but the month that leads up to the "big night" consists of a complex series of parent/child negotiations all centered around the kids' costumes.

Carly consistently can't commit until the last minute but Will, like most little boys, is enamoured with all things involving some sort of store-bought, polyester cape, large molded headgear and, most importantly, one or more highly destructive weapons.


Sorry kids...none of this fits in with my completely ego-driven conviction that any costume coming out of my house must be an original...the product of my blood, sweat, tears and Singer Classic. What would Halloween be without that tireless EBay hunt for an official NASA logo patch or that last minute, late-night run for silver spray paint critical for transforming last year's rain boots into footwear suitable for space travel?

It was much easier when they were babies. Carly was the easiest, of course. After the bumblebee and clown, every year that followed was some form of princess: Medieval Princess, Fairy Princess, Snow Princess, Just a Princess-Princess, Mermaid Princess, and Ballerina Princess...in that order, I think. For years, it was all about satin and glitter and tulle...I was in my zone.

With Willy, I got away with murder those first couple of years too. Year one, I made him the devil to Carly's angel (a prophecy still unfolding), followed by Baby Elvis (more satin and sequins...yes), then Cowboy, Astronaut and Mad Scientist (we'll come back to that) with a minor store bought Power Rangers slip in year-four. This year, I find myself battling the Evil Empire...all things Star Wars! The force just may be too great. He has his eye on some Stormtrooper-looking plastic get-up he spotted in a catalog but I think that Carly and I might have him convinced to go with Yoda (much more Zen don't you think?) and he is considering letting me make it...we'll see...


Hummm...how could this obsessive notion of costume control have been planted in my brain? Perhaps it has something to do with the Flying Nun...

Yes, this is me in the upper left hand corner, Sister Bertrille, posing alongside my fellow Cayuga Playground preschoolers circa 1968. Could I have simply donned a plastic bunny mask and fire-retardant jumpsuit from Woolworth, just like my other classmates...sure...but where would the fun be for Mommy in that?

I was only four but I swear I can still picture my mother perched on the edge of our black Naugahyde sofa wrestling with the burlap, cardboard and starch that would become my official Daughters of Charity nun habit . She still talks about the less-than-nunly language she mumbled under her breath as she twisted and glued and pried that headpiece until it bowed to her submission.

Mind you, as the awestruck baby sister of an official parochial school second grader, the notion of posing as a nun...a flying one at that...was beyond my wildest dreams. As you can see by the photo below, I was generally less than amused that my older brother was allowed to go off to Catholic school every day without me. "Yah...dressing like a nun for Halloween...that'll show him who's more holy!"


Mom made him a My Favorite Martian costume that year by the way (complete with homemade boingy, glittery antennae and a silver lame spacesuit)...pretty cool for a 7-year old who carries a briefcase to school, don't you think?

So, what does all of this have to do with Dr. Looney? Well, last year, we again entered into much discussion around Will's costume and settled on a Mad Scientist. Most of the elements were borrowed or handed-down but we did have fun creating some quicky custom accessories like a freaky specimen beaker and a Dr. Looney name tag retrofitted from one I borrowed at the last minute from a nice guy working the counter at Comforts.

But you know what...I still didn't feel like I had suffered enough on this one so I thought I'd bake a cake, of course, for good measure. Here's the one I came up with (one befitting the maddest of scientists, I think): a brain with electrodes sticking out of it and some bloodshot eyeballs thrown in for good measure. Just in time for Halloween, I give this "recipe" to my friends...and I know who you are...who share this need to express our love through stuff we create with our hearts and our hands. Thanks Mom for all the years of costumes and cakes and for showing your love for us in a way we appreciated then but understand even more today.

Dr. Looney's Brain and Bloodshot Eyeballs
(this is really more instructions than a recipe...)

Supplies:

• 1- 8" or 9" cake pan
• 1- 8" or 9" stainless steel bowl to match
• 2- boxes of cake mix plus whatever you need to make the mix...usually oil, eggs and water (I used one white and one chocolate)
• white frosting...I used a combo of a couple of tubs of store-bought plus homemade buttercream frosting (recipe follows) Can't remember exactly how much...sorry!
• Food coloring (black and red, note: the gel type available at Cake Art works best vs. liquid
• red decorator's gel (available in a little white tube at the grocery store)
• 2 wooden craft dowels
• bendy wire
• green gummy lifesavers
• dark purple Skittles

Directions for the brain:

Prepare the cake mix as directed and bake one in the cake pan and one in the stainless steel bowl. Use the left over mix to make as many cupcakes as you can. Cool.

Tint one tub of frosting pink.

Generously frost top of round cake pan cake then top with bowl cake, flat side down! Carve the dome with a serrated knife into a brain shape that pleases you. Coat the entire now-brain-shaped dome with pink frosting and place on a foil-wrapped piece of round cardboard (the pink shows through the grey a little which creates a cool fleshy effect).

Make your homemade buttercream (or try the tub-stuff...not sure of results) and tint with black food coloring to make it look like grey matter. Put in piping bag with large hole tip or improvise with a Ziploc with the end snipped to create the proper opening. Pipe squiggly lines on both hemispheres of the brain. This was my first attempt...you can probably do better by looking at diagrams of the brain on the Internet.

Now, wrap the bendy wire around the handle of a wooden spoon to make a coil then wrap the ends around the craft sticks as shown above to make your electrodes. Stick them into the brain then...voila...Dr. Looney is ready for his experiment!

Directions for the eyeballs:

Frost with white frosting. Place one green gummy lifesaver in the middle of the cupcake then insert the pupil (I think it was a dark purple Skittle that looked black-enough).

Use red gel icing to make the bloodshot eyes...that's it...easy huh?

Buttercream Frosting (the scariest part of the recipe...can you say hydrogenated?)


Cream with an electric mixer:

• 1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
  
• 1/2 cup butter
  

Add:

• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  

Gradually add and beat in:

• 4 cups sifted confectioners sugar

Add at medium speed unitl light and fluffy:

• 2 Tbs milk