'Tis the season of baking

Now that it is cold enough to start baking, I have decided to track some of my time in the kitchen and share the recipes. This is a butternut squash/pesto gratin that was perfect for Thanksgiving. All of my friends at the dinner loved it and wanted the recipe, so here it is with step-by-step photos to go along.
Ingredients
3-4 pounds of butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (parmigiano reggiano for best taste. Expensive, but worth it)
1/4 cup purchased basil pesto (used Trader Joe's pesto genovese...less than a jar)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, plus more for greasing



Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Lightly butter an 8-inch baking dish and set aside. Fill a large pot with enough water to come 2 inches up the sides of the pot. Set a steamer rack in the pot, cover, and bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the squash and steam over medium heat until the squash is very tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer the squash to a food processor (I mashed by hand, which meant more texture) and blend until smooth and creamy. Season the squash to taste with salt and pepper.


Spoon half of the squash evenly over the prepared baking dish. Dollop half of the pesto all over the squash in the dish. Sprinkle half of the cheese over the squash. Repeat layering with the remaining squash, pesto, and cheese. Using a skewer, swirl the pesto decoratively into the squash. Dot the top with butter and bake until the gratin is heated through and golden brown around the edges, about 40 minutes.

2 photos because it's just THAT beautiful


Today, I bought a pomegranate. Buying one pomegranate every winter, I believe, stems from my mother's ritual of doing so. Every time she'd pick up the dull looking fruit that held little treasures inside, she'd recount her memory of getting one around Christmas every year from her father (my grandpa) in her stocking. I've never tired of her forgetfulness in telling me countless times of her pomegranate winters with grandpa because I know the importance and meaningfulness of simple memories such as these.

Pomegranates are quite a process to open up but well worth the effort. They are a complex bundle of little rubys that swell with tart crimson juice and are great for eating as is, or in my home-made yogurt granola combo as seen above.

Warm bread pudding with vanilla bean sauce and raspberry coulis hit the spot on a cold night such as tonight. I usually don't get bread pudding, but they were out of pie (I'm a pie girl. I'm known not as a cookie, but as a "pie monster" at work. This ended up being tasty when I destroyed the pretty design and sopped up the sauce with it.