real simple harvest dinner

this might not be a 'real simple' dinner, but it was easy enough, and tasted so good!  we had two people cooking which made it go by fast and was more fun.  this summer, the real simple magazine was a great gift from a special friend for being a part of her wedding.  recently, we decided that a great night to hang out is wednesdays when her husband is out at the bowling league.  so what a great excuse to experiment with some recipes, sharing tasteful meals with great friends, and using a unique gift!  oh...and as any normal cooking club has, it comes complete with leftovers to take home.  

the magazine this month featured so many great recipes for fall, and we tried to choose one's that might have complimentary flavors.  for this meal, we cooked up chicken with acorn squash as an entree, and two sides, butternut squash bread pudding and bourbon-cranberry compote.

note to new-to-the-recipe: the acorn squash was very hard to cut up, and the bread pudding took a while to prep and cook, but it was awesome!  we also shared the oven so we manipulated the time a little.  if we had made four more pieces of chicken, the dinner would easily serve 6.

chicken with acorn squash and tomatoes

hands on time 20 min total time 30 min serves 4

1 small acorn squash (about 1 1/2 lb) halved seeded and sliced 1/4 in...

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

4 cloves garlic, sliced

3 tablespoons olive oil

4 6-oz boneless skinless chicken breast

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano

salt + pepper

+heat oven to 425.  on a large rimmed baking sheet, toss squash tomatoes garlic with oil salt pepper. roast until squash is tender, 20-25 min

+heat oil in large skilled on med heat. season chicken with coriander salt pepper.  cook until golden brown and cooked. serve with squash and tomatoes and sprinkle oregano

bourbon-cranberry compote

hands on time 5 min total time 1 hour incl cooking serves 8

1 12 oz bag cranberries

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup apple juice

1/4 cup bourbon

+in sauce pan combine cranberries sugar apple juice and bourbon

+simmer, stirring occasionally until the cranberries begin to burst and the sauce thickens, 20-25 min

butternut squash bread pudding

hands on time 30 min total time 1.5 hours serves 8

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 med onions (used one large red onion)

1 1/2 lb butternut squash (bought this peeled and seeded) cut into 1/2 in pieces 

2 tablespoons fresh sage

6 large eggs 

2 cups whole milk

3/4 lb french or italian bread (used fresh french-1 loaf) cut into 1 in pieces (about 7.5 cups)

1/2 lb gruyere, grated (2 cups)

salt and pepper

+heat oven to 375. oil a 2.5-3 quart baking dish.  we used 4 and that fit perfectly.

+heat the oil in a large skillet over med high heat. add onions and cook, stirring frequently until beginning to soften, 4-5 min.  add squash, season with salt and pepper and cook until tender, 8-10 min more.  stir in the sage.  let cool for 10 min.

+in large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper.  add bread cheese and squash mixture and toss to coat.

+transfer to the prepared baking dish and bake until golden brown and set 55-60 min.