November is usually the time in the racing season to start to reflect upon how things are going. It’s also the time of the season where you want things to “click” and really be coming together nicely in preparation for the next 6-8 weeks before Nationals. As I am looking back on the last eight weeks of racing, I can definitely say that I am feeling stronger and more comfortable racing harder this season. I can also say the competition just keeps getting faster and for some unseen reason I keep running into a bit of bad luck. So, despite my improvements, my results are not where I would like them and I’d like to shake the little black cloud now, please.

We left a very mild, rainy Boston and arrived in Louisville late on Thursday evening to chilly temperatures and dry air. It was a bit of a surprise to have it so chilly, but the weekend forecast looked mild and dry. Too bad for me as I was looking for some mud to race in because I have only had one muddy race so far this season!

Friday morning we ran our errands to the grocery store and then headed to the venue for a pre ride. By this time I was feeling some of the telltale signs of a head cold coming on, but thought if I just ignored it, it might go away until after the racing was over.

Getting to the venue the day before the races is a really nice thing to do when we can. Not only do I get the oppotunity to see the course with very little obstruction, but we also get to catch up with our cyclocross family. It’s always good to see SRAM Neutral Race Support super-mechanic and good friend Jose and his daughter Piera.

Despite my pre-cold omens, I felt pretty good on the pre ride.  The course would be fast, technical in some sections and promised to be a real fight in the stacked 50-plus-rider field.

That night we headed out to a new vegetarian restaurant, Roots. We had been to another restaurant by the same owner in years past and the new place was delicious Asian food with in-house made fresh tofu.

At the table next to us we struck up a conversation a fantastic guy named LaMarr visiting from Baltimore.  We had a great night sharing stories of our vegetarian travels.  LaMarr is the president and founder of an amazing organization, the Urban Leadership Institute, a social enterprise based in Baltimore, Maryland. ULI aims to empower youth and adults to create and launch their own enterprises, and through these enterprises, to take greater responsibility for their lives and communities.  Take a minute and check it out.  Great people doing great things.

The morning of the race , I knew I was fighting a cold but still was feeling OK on the bike during my warm up. However, after the first lap of the race when I had begun to dig deep, my energy tank was feeling pretty empty. I started to fade back several spots. My legs were achy and sore and despite a good nights sleep, I was feeling tired. I gave it everything I had but was never really able to dig deep, finishing a disappointing 18th place.

That night I took a hot bath, drank a lot of fluids and made dinner at home. I emailed my coach to let him know that I was under the weather and we decided to play the next day by ear and see how I felt.

If I were at home, I would have skipped training in favor of resting, but being at the race venue and coming all that way meant that I would toe the line and at least give some representation to my fantastic sponsors who make it possible for me to do this! Huge thanks to Bob’s Red Mill and Seven Cycles!

Despite a mostly sleepless night, I started the race and had a very good position into the first technical sections. I was able to stay in a decent spot for one lap but quickly faded again. Into the second lap I knew there was very little benefit to continue the race and would only be disappointed that I was unable to give it an honest effort, so I pulled the plug. I headed back to the car to blow my nose for the 100th time, to get some fluids and rest.

I was able to walk around and spectate the men’s race while Matt worked with the Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld team.  I took a handful of photos and watched the lines the men took at the trickier sections.  As the race started to wind down, I was getting a bit feverish.  I knew I had made the right call to end my race early.

That night we packed up and had another nice dinner at home before heading out to the movies. It’s something we always say we’ll do when we are at the races, but it’s the first time we actually did it! It was quite a nice way to wrap up an otherwise crappy weekend.

Back at home, I took a sick day from work and rested as much as possible and by mid week, I’m feeling close to 100%.  I’ll have this coming weekend off from racing and I’m excited for a little family get together at my sister’s house. Matt will be attending his first RAAM conference in NYC…stay tuned for more details on his next HUGE adventure!

December is a month full of celebrations and gatherings; a time of sharing with your family and friends. In my house- it’s a month full of baking for this, that or the other occasion. I would hazard a guess that as a Bob’s Red Mill customer, your kitchen is likely in full swing all month long, too. To make your holiday baking a little bit easier and inspire you with recipes that may make it a wee bit more delicious, we’ve teamed up with California Olive Ranch to bring you recipes from some amazing bloggers who want to help make your holiday season a bit healthier, too.

California Olive Ranch is a purveyor of the finest olive oil this side of the Atlantic (they would probably argue they’re the best anywhere, but we’ll give ‘em the western hemisphere for now). Grown and pressed in California, their olive oils have consistently held their own in international competitions- taking top honors year over year at tasting events. California Olive Ranch offers eight different varieties of olive oil, including a seasonal Limited Reserve oil and an every day oil. We don’t often pair with other brands unless we can truly get behind who they are and what they’re all about. After getting to know the great folks over at California Olive Ranch and tasting their superb products, the partnership was a natural fit for us.

For December, we’ve challenged eight bloggers and our very own recipe specialist to create holiday recipes that use olive oil and either whole grain flours or gluten free flours. Using olive oil in place of butter is a fantastic way to boost the healthy fats in your recipe while cutting down on the saturated fats that can contribute to high cholesterol and heart disease. As an added bonus,  olive oil can add new depth of flavor to your favorite recipes.

In addition to the great recipes, California Olive Ranch is having a Facebook contest to bring the joy of olive oil and whole grains to your table. From December 1st through December 8th, Facebook fans will be asked to share their favorite pairing of California Olive Ranch Olive Oil with a Bob’s Red Mill product. Our top 3 favorite pairings will win a gift set of olive oils and a $50 gift card for Bob’s Red Mill. How fun is that? To get all of the info and make sure you don’t miss out, subscribe to the California Olive Ranch newsletter (top right corner of screen) and “like” them on Facebook. You can also keep up to date and get the recipes from us in a few different ways- you can keep following here and/or “like” us on Facebook if you haven’t already. We’ll be posting all of the recipes throughout the month of December and will have them archived on our website. We’ll also have links out to all of the participating bloggers so that you can get to know them a bit better- they’re truly an inspiring bunch of writers.

You can find California Olive Ranch oils using their store finder or buy directly from their website. These would make wonderful hostess gifts in lieu of the traditional bottle of wine. You could even pair their oils with one of our gift sets for an inspiring Christmas (or any holiday!) present for the foodie on your list.

Quinoa, how I love thee! I could write sonnets and love songs to quinoa. It’s the perfect grain- it cooks up quick, packs a nutritional punch the likes of which are rarely seen, and tastes pretty darn great too! Truth be told? It’s not even technically a grain (shhh! don’t tell!). Quinoa is actually a seed. I’m not one to quibble over the details and for all intents and purposes it might as well be a grain.

Quinoa takes a back seat in this recipe, simply bolstering the protein and adding some structure to the filling, but it’s an easy way to make a quick and classy vegetarian entree. If pine nuts are priced too high (seems like they just keep getting more and more expensive), use any chopped nut you prefer or try with sunflower seeds. This recipe actually comes from our cookbook, not the one we’re giving away today.

Portobello Stuffed with Quinoa and Pine Nuts

• 6 large Portobello Mushroom Caps
• 1 small Onion, finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/2 cup blanched, drained, squeezed and chopped Spinach
• 2 to 3 Garlic cloves, minced
• Kosher Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper
• 2 cups cooked Quinoa (see package directions)
• 1 cup Ricotta Cheese*
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan*
• 1/4 cup Pine Nuts

Preheat the broiler and cook the mushrooms for about 5 to 8 minutes, turning once, until tender. Drain the mushrooms, pat dry and set on a baking sheet, gill-side up.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.

Sauté the onion in the olive oil until tender, then add the spinach and garlic, season with salt and pepper, mix well and cook just to heat through. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the quinoa, ricotta and Parmesan. Mound 1/2 cup of this mixture on each of the prepared mushroom caps, sprinkle with pine nuts, season with additional salt and pepper if desired. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve hot.

* To make this recipe vegan, use mashed silken tofu mixed with a dash of lemon juice in place of the ricotta. Or try this recipe for making vegan ricotta from cashews. Substitute parmesan with a vegan variety (such as Parma! ), make your own or simply leave it out.

Now for a giveaway that most certainly does NOT put quinoa in the back seat. (Nobody puts quinoa in the corner! Sorry, just couldn’t help myself.) Quinoa 365 by Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming contains over 170 recipes featuring quinoa for everything from breakfast to dessert. Recipes include beautiful photos and have designations for gluten free, vegetarian and kid-friendly.  Filled with recipes for everything from Italian Wedding Soup to Quinoa Temaki, this book also includes a slew of tips for how much dry quinoa will yield, sprouting quinoa and how to cook quinoa in the slow cooker.

How to enter: leave a comment on this post with some fun fact about quinoa. We could all gain from learning more about this special seed (ha- see, beat you to that one!) then be sure to click on “I DID THIS” in the application below. This is what enters you into the drawing, but don’t worry- I check all winners to be sure they complied with the rules for entry. In addition to this lovely book, I’ll also kick in a package of quinoa to get you started. Contest runs until 12:01 on 12/5.

I love music. As I kid, when the New England weather was really crappy, I roller skated in my basement to Diana Ross and spun awesome 80s hits on my record player. I made mix tapes in high school and college and decorated the tape covers. Now I download music, burn CDs and make monthly playlists.

Listening to music gets my legs spinning and gets me psyched to race! Music also helps me keep what’s left of my sanity when I’m stuck inside riding Mr. Trainer or the rollers when it’s 20 below and snowing outside.

November 2011 playlist:

• Intro: The XX
• Arrow: Tegan and Sara
• Ageless Beauty: Stars
• Kids: MGMT
• Sick Muse: Metric
• Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough: Michael Jackson
• Hidden Track: Scissor Sisters
• Gold Guns Girls: Metric
• Ursula 1000-Disko Tech: Ursula 1000
• Where Does the Good Go: Tegan and Sara
• All Fired Up: Pat Benatar (she’s making a comeback, btw)
• Galang, M.I.A.

Looking for new music? John Richards’ Morning Show on KEXP is a must listen; NPR’s All Songs Considered features live concerts, new artists and old favorites; and Pandora’s Funk station is super fun, especially at dance parties.

Tune in to music—it’s good for your soul.

In lieu of yet another turkey sandwich,  why not try one of these fabulous recipes with all of your leftover bounty? Here are 10 great ideas, in no particular order for putting some zing back into your leftovers.

1. Cranberry Turkey Enchiladas: If you’re sick and tired of the Thanksgiving flavors- this might be just the thing for you. This dish uses leftover turkey and cranberry and puts a pretty creative spin on them. (Courtesy of Recipe Girl)
2. Linguine with Turkey, Thyme and Petit Pois: A nice pasta dish that blends peas, turkey and thyme into a creamy (and EASY) delight. (Courtesy of Under the High Chair)
3. Barbecue Pulled-Turkey Sandwiches: take that moist, delicious turkey and make a totally different kind of turkey sandwich- one that is perfect for watching football and lounging about. (Courtesy of Bon Appetit)
4. Turkey Pot Pie: this combines leftover turkey, onions, butternut squash and cranberries to create a whole new food perfect for dinner after a tiring day of work (or shopping if you’re one of those folks). (Courtesy of The Food Network) Allergen friend version available here from Cybele Pascal.
5. Turkey Banh Mi: why not take that turkey sandwich to a new level with a little Asian flair. Crusty baguettes filled with turkey, cucumber, carrot and spicy Sriracha mayo. (Courtesy of Martha Stewart)
6. Turkey Empanadas: these little pockets of puff pastry are not for those looking for a break from Thanksgiving flavors, rather they celebrate all that is wonderful about Thanksgiving. Turkey, stuffing, gravy and mashed potatoes mingle together in a delicious pocket of goodness. (Courtesy of Bon Appetit)
7. Potato Croquettes: tasty little potato appetizers made from leftover mashed potatoes.  (Courtesy of The Food Network)
8. Turkey, Sweet Potato and Watercress Salad: use up leftover turkey and sweet potatoes for a lighter take on some of those heavy Thanksgiving foods. (Courtesy of Martha Stewart)
9. Turkey Gumbo: put a Southern flair on your turkey soup. After the indulgence of Thanksgiving, this soup is a perfect way to get yourself back in order- not only does it use up some leftover turkey and vegetables, but it’s healthy and flavorful too. (Courtesy of Steamy Kitchen)
10. Turkey Shepherd’s Pie: almost all of the Thanksgiving leftovers go into this dish.  A lovely, warming dinner on a blustery cold day. (Courtesy of Simple Bites)

Happy Thanksgiving!

In honor of tomorrow, we’re sharing this great recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins. Thanksgiving is one of our favorite holidays here at Bob’s Red Mill. Who doesn’t love a holiday based around family and community and filled with delicious food? We hope you have a wonderful holiday tomorrow and we’ll catch back up with you on Friday!

It definitely smells of pumpkin in the Bob’s Red Mill Bakery this time of year. We have Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Quinoa Muffins, Pumpkin Orange Currant Bread and Pumpkin Cranberry Scones selling out daily in the pastry case. Not to mention our vegan pastry case has a delicious Pumpkin Raisin Walnut Bread and the wheat free case holds a Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffin that has been a definite hit.

There have been many requests for an item free of starch or bean flours, so here it is! Below you will find the recipe for the Wheat Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffin. The mixture of brown rice flour and hazelnut meal makes for a satisfying flavor and appealing texture. Almond meal could be substituted in place of hazelnut meal for a different flavor, as well as, raisins or nuts for chocolate chips. As far as making this recipe vegan, we would recommend using a flaxseed mixture to replace the eggs and substituting rice milk for the whole milk. Thanks for reading and Happy Holiday Baking! Enjoy!

Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

• 3 cups Brown Rice Flour
• 1 cup Hazelnut Meal
• 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp Baking powder
• 2 tsp Pumpkin Spice*
• ½ tsp Salt
• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Oil
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract**
• 1-½ cups Pumpkin Puree**
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1-1/3 cup Whole Milk
• 1 cup Chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl and set aside. Combine egg, oil, vanilla, pumpkin and sugar with a whisk. Mix in dry ingredients with a spatula, alternately with the milk. Fold in chocolate chips. Using a flat muffin scoop, portion out into 12 lined and greased muffin cups. These portions will be heaping, so divide accordingly. Bake double paned with a sheet pan underneath at 375°F for 25 minutes. Muffins will brown, but will stay soft when done.

Yields: 12 muffins

*Make your own pumpkin pie spice.
**Make sure to check the ingredients as some brands of  vanilla and pumpkin puree have been known to contain hidden sources of gluten. Neilsen Massey’s Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla is certified gluten free. If you’re unsure about pumpkin puree, you can make your own with Alton Brown’s help.

If you ask me there is no more fun version of bike racing to watch than cyclocross.  Road racing is great if you’re an aficionado or have a really long time to sit in front of the television.  But cross?  Cross is pure magic bike racing fun.  And most likely it’s happening in a park near you all fall long.

What do you need to have a super duper spectator experience?

Boots.  Splendid, warm boots to keep your toes toasty when you are stomping around in the mud and rain.  The cyclocross boot of choice is the Wellington.  Nice tall waterproof rubber boots.  Pick em in traditional hunter green for a classic look or something a bit more colorful if you’re looking to make a statement.  When it’s truly cold and wet look for chemical warmers to put in your wellie’s first.  The racers may be mud-covered and hypothermic but your feet will be nice and warm!  Boots should be worn with a puffy jacket, wool socks and preferably something waterproof.  A hat with a frog on it is always the right accessory.

Cowbell. Cross is about noise. Clanging cowbells to encourage riders up slippery run-ups.  Cowbell to encourage riders up off the ground when they tumble in the mud.  If playing in the mud makes us all feel like kids again then making a ton of noise just adds to the fun.   And of course more cowbell…well just because we all need more cowbell. (Watch how much these cows love their cowbell.)

Quality taunts and heckles.   One of the most fun ways to watch cross is to stake out your territory on the course – preferably at a run up or barrier section and watch the action lap after lap.  After a lap or two you’ll recognize the riders and it’s important to taunt them for encouragement.  See a rider with longish hair ripping the legs off the field?  Perhaps start a chant of HIGLANDER every time he comes through.  Believe me, it helps!

A STANLEY Vacuum bottle / mug.   They’re awesome.  You can take your Bob’s Red Mill Steel Cut oats and put them in your trusty STANLEY with hot water the night before the race and voila!  in the morning oats are ready.  Take ‘em on the go and you’ve got a hot breakfast to keep you warm at the races and you’ll be there on time.   Once the oatmeal is done, rinse that bad boy out, fill it with hot coffee and you’ve got hot beverages all day until you are ready to….

…Switch to Beer.  Beer is an essential element of the cross spectator experience.  And no crappy light beers allowed.  Cross is Belgian in tradition – and those Belgians do NOT drink Michelob Ultra.  Find yourself  your favorite tasty Belgian quaff and enjoy.  Just make sure you shut it down in time to get yourself home responsibly.  No wonder this is the most fun type of cycling to watch.

So now you’re armed.  Your belly is full of oats, your feet are warm, you’ve had a few beers and your pity taunts and heckles are at the ready.  You’ve staked out the action during the amateur racing.  It’s time to watch the pros.   Oh.  They’re faster.  Much faster.  And there is a ton of action to catch.  Time for your workout.  Stake out a spot near the first turn – the holeshot.  Watch the mayhem as the riders fight to make it through the turn first AND upright.  Then it’s time to book it to the first interesting course element.  Barrier section?  Run up?  Sand pits?   Race across the course in time to see the race action come through.  Hang out.  Drink a beer there.  Hear a ton of noise coming from elsewhere ?  Time to head in that direction.

…insert serious race talk here… please, please cross the course in pursuit of exciting race action at the pre-determined official course crossings.   They’re there for your safety and the safety of the people racing.  Nobody wants to get clobbered by a racer who runs them over because they’re crossing the course where they shouldn’t….

Check out the next section and the next.  Watching cross is active, kinetic.  You get to run around and check out all the interesting, fun, technical or tactical sections.  Or at the very least, the sections where people fall down a lot.  Have fun.

Suddenly you’ll hear a bell.   If you’re at one of my races you’ll hear ONE TO GO ONE TO GO ONE TO GO.  Time to head to the finish line.   Cheer like mad and ring your cowbell when the mud covered winner comes down the finishing straight.

So. Much. Fun.

And remember:

I don’t know why I didn’t pick up this book sooner and now I’m loathe to give it away! Seriously- this book is awesome and I’m so excited to share it with one lucky winner. The Complete Whole Grains Cookbook by Judith Finlayson is the perfect thing for a whole grain beginner or anyone who just wants to explore cooking with whole grains.

Not only does it have 150 recipes that cover everything from breakfast to dessert, but it has tips and tricks for each. Finlayson also includes the nutrition facts and health benefits of each recipe, which is a huge bonus in my book. She has tips for the rice cooker, slow cooker and pressure cooker for each of the whole grains and a brief synopsis of important things to know about each. It doesn’t contain as many pictures as I prefer in a cookbook, but it does have quite a few beautiful images where it counts- such as what rye berries really look like.

This is definitely not geared towards those on a special diet, so I wouldn’t recommend it for a gluten free eater or someone who is strictly vegan. But for the rest of you all-purpose cooks, this book gets you started right with cooking all of those funny grains you keep hearing about such as quinoa, spelt, amaranth, and  sorghum to name a few.

How to Enter:

I had some issues with our last giveaway, but I’ve sorted those  so we’re trying it again with this giveaway app.  Read the directions below and make sure to click on “I did this” after you’ve completed the entry requirement.

As I sit here typing this post season report, it is early November (sorry for blowing my deadline, oops) It’s hard to imagine that just two months ago I won my 10^th IL State time trial championship with an average speed over the 33 kilometer course of 28.7 miles per hour.  And then the following week, I teamed up with 3 team mates to compete in a 4 person team time trial of 55 kilometers and we averaged over 30 mph!

I did a 100k ride on Saturday and ran into a racing friend out on the route.  We were riding along at around 18-22 mph and it was genuinely a struggle at times!  It’s amazing how quickly competitive form is lost.  I find it difficult to reflect on the season past without wondering if I’ll ever be able to make a bike go fast again next season or was this the last year that I’ll win a race?

I generally struggle through the winters.  Living in Chicago makes it tough to get much training in other than what I can do indoors.  So, moored to my trainer, I play music sets that I saved from my days as an indoor cycling instructor at fitness club trying to pass the hours pretending I’m not on a trainer in the basement.  Last winter was a record year for snowfall in Chicago.  I get my upper body off season strength training by shoveling snow.  This photo of the alley behind my home will give you an idea.  The city doesn’t plow the alleys so I and the neighbors had to shovel and snow blow the alley just to be able to get our cars out of the garages.  It took 3 days.

At some point in January, I’ve generally had all I can take of indoor training and snow shoveling so I make travel arrangements to head to warmer weather.  I’m fortunate to have a good friend and former team mate as well as my bicycle sponsor Leader Bicycles in San Diego.  Between the two I can generally get lodging and food while I ride my bike up and down the coast and in the inland mountains.  In March I go back out to California.  This season, my March trip was to Ventura where my brother lives.  I was able to log over 600 miles and 30 hours of bike time in 6 days of riding and was beginning to feel like a bike racer rather than a pasty, chubby, Midwestern shut in.

The racing in the Midwest starts in March, but I generally skip the early season races unless the weather is good.  We had an absolutely miserable spring so I wasn’t racing.  Something about racing in two layers of tights, thermal jackets and wearing a balaclava under my helmet is less than appealing.

My racing started in April with a road race in the St Louis area in Southern IL.  My early season training paid off and I was able to break away with 21 time national champion on the track Curtis Tolson and another rider.  We built a good time gap and I finished 2^nd.  A week later I won another tough road race in brutal weather conditions.  It was a good start.

After those two races, my season went into shut down mode as I promote a race weekend in my home town of Champaign and a two person time trial in May.  Those events require a good deal of planning and my ability and time to race was greatly diminished.  Those races were quite successful but my racing fitness was shot.  I am a guy that in addition to training, I need to race a lot to be sharp.  Add in more off time with a Memorial Day weekend vacation with my lovely wife and dog and a graduation ceremony for a daughter who had earned a Masters degree in Education and well, you can see I wasn’t getting much racing in.  In June, I was able to ride to a 3^rd place in the Illinois state road championship which was won by a team mate of mine but I never felt really on top of things.  Then, it was back to off the racing scene with another daughter marrying in June.  Mind, you these are diversions from racing of the best kind and I am so proud of my girls.

I was finally able to get back to racing regularly in July, doing 10 days of the International Cycling Classic in Illinois and Wisconsin.  My best race was a 4^th place finish at the Evanston Grand Prix criterium.

Photo @ Josh Dreyfus

The last week of July, I did RAGBRAI for the first time.  It was a blast to do this and believe it or not, it was one of the best training weeks of my life!  Something about sleep deprivation combined with alcohol abuse and heavy miles for a solid week leaves the body stronger after a week of rehab

In August I won the IL State road race sanctioned by American Bicycle Racing had good finishes in a couple of Pro 1, 2 criteriums and did a 40k time trial on the road bike you see in the photo and rolled a time of 54:06.  This indicated to me that I was on what we call diamond legs.

In September I set the course record and won the state time trial championship and that put a good bookend on the season.  Since then I’ve been playing more golf that riding. So, here it is November again. I wonder when the snow will begin…

This recipe comes from Pooja Mottl of Pooja’s Way. Pooja’s Way is filled with recipes, fitness tips and videos for a healthy lifestyle. Her philosophy is that healthy food should be delicious and simple to cook. We hope you enjoy this recipe from her. We love it because it adds whole grains to a classic favorite. Make this gluten free by using our Gluten Free Rolled Oats.

Creamy Vegan Butternut Squash Soup

Yield: Approx. 3 ½ cups

Can creamy be healthy and delicious? Absolutely! By substituting rolled oats for butter and cream, this seasonal butternut squash soup recipe takes on a beautiful creamy consistency while staying entirely plant based. Star anise adds a beautifully sweet flavor and aroma to this hearty Fall and Winter go-to.

[Updated: 11/21/11: 9:30 am]

Ingredients:                                                                                                   

• 1 tsp organic Expeller Pressed Canola Oil (preferred) or Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 ½ cups Yellow Onion, diced (about 1 large onion)
• 4 cups Butternut Squash, skin removed, roughly diced into ¾ inch cubes (about ¾ squash)
• 2 ½ cups organic Vegetable Broth
• 1 ¾ cup organic Apple Cider
• ½ to ¾ tsp Sea Salt
• ¼ tsp ground Black Pepper
• 1 star Anise
• ½ cup Bob’s Red Mill Regular Rolled Oats
• ¼ tsp ground Cumin
• 1/8 tsp Cayenne
• ½ cup Water

  Procedure:

  1. Warm oil in a large heavy bottom saucepot or dutch oven over low-medium heat. Add onions and sauté until soft and translucent, making sure not to brown.
  2. Add squash, stock, 1 ¼ cup cider, star anise, ½ teaspoon salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, covered, for 10 minutes.
  3. Uncover, remove star anise, add oats, spices, and continue to simmer, covered for another ten minutes. Or until squash softens and begins to fully dissolve.
  4. Turn off heat. Add water and remaining apple cider and immediately transfer to a large mixing bowl to cool for a few minutes.
  5. Transfer to a strong blender, and blend until creamy smooth. Blend in batches if necessary. Transfer back to sauce pot, add remaining salt (optional) and warm again as desired. Ladle into your favorite bowl and enjoy!

Copyright  © 2010  Pooja Mottl.  All rights reserved.