Stuffed Delicata Squash with Ground Veal

I got inspired to write this recipe when I thought about how delicious the combination of a cream sauce and dill is with delicate humanely raised veal. I also love the texture of delicata squash as well as the fact that you can eat the skin of it, too! Truly a seasonal meal with squash as the base however if you HAVE to eat this on top of a pasta, I’d recommend Ferme Reveuse’s home made spaetzle that you can order off of their website.

Stuffed Delicata Squash with Ground Veal Cream Sauce
Serves 4

2 delicata squash
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper

8oz mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 lb Ferme Reveuse ground veal
3/4 cup Ferme Reveuse bone broth
1 tsp dried dill
1/2 cup cream
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp corn starch or arrowroot starch

Cooked and seasoned swiss chard and rice for serving, optional

Preheat oven to 350F. Meanwhile, cut delicata squash in half length-wise and scoop out the seeds. Poke flesh of the squash in several places with a fork. Brush with 1 tsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down onto a piece of parchment paper and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 25-30 min until tender and be pierced easily with a paring knife. The timing can increase if the delicata squash are bigger.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 tbsp olive oil to the pan and add half of the mushrooms. Season immediately with salt and cook until each side is seared and golden brown, this takes about 2 minutes per side. Set aside in a bowl and repeat with the remaining mushrooms.

In the same skillet add remaining olive oil and sautee chopped onion and garlic for 2 minutes over medium heat, or until softened. Add in ground veal and 1/2 tsp salt. Break up with a wooden spoon and cook for 5 minutes until browned, stirring constantly.

Add in bone broth, dill and cooked mushrooms. Bring up to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix cream together with lemon juice and corn starch and stream it into the meat mixture slowly while stirring the meat. Allow to simmer until thickened.

Remove squash from oven and turn cut side up onto the baking tray. Carefully pour over meat sauce into the crevasse of the squash and broil on low in the oven for an additional 5 minutes if desired.

Blueberry Kombucha Jellies

We all love Olga’s kombucha, right?

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you have to try Olga’s kombucha sold through Ferme Reveuse if you’re in the Ottawa / Montreal region.

Either way, this is a really great sweet treat for the holiday season. You can add whatever berries you’d like in the jellies, just don’t start substituting with other fruit such as kiwi. Kiwi and pineapple have a particularly strong enzyme that will dissolve the gelatin and it will never set.

I know gelatin based desserts may remind you of powdery jello packets but you will not get the same result when you make your own! I think it’s time to revive the art of gelatin! Just make sure that when you warm up the kombucha to not bring it to a simmer or a boil. You still want the kombucha to have its beneficial bacteria in tact.

Kombucha Jellies
makes 12

• 2 cups Ferme Reveuse kombucha (my favourite is Raspberry-Bee Balm)

• 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

• 2-4 tbsp maple syrup

• 12 sheets gelatin, see notes for using gelatin powder

Step 1. Soak gelatin sheets in plenty of cold water, placing them in the water one sheet at a time. Allow to soak for 5 minutes.

Step 2. Bring maple syrup and kombucha to about 40C - 50C, a little warmer than body temperature. If the kombucha boils, it may adversely affect the setting quality of the gelatin sheets.

Step 3. Add gelatin sheets carefully to the warm kombucha. To do so, remove the soaked sheets and squeeze out water well. Stir the sheets into the kombucha until the sheets dissolve.

Step 4. Grease a 8” x 8” square baking dish with coconut oil or a neutral vegetable oil. Pour in the kombucha mixture, add in blueberries and chill overnight.

Notes. For this recipe use 3 tbsp powdered gelatin. Instead of Step 1 above, sprinkle gelatin overtop of the cold kombucha and whisk. Resume steps above except for adding gelatin sheets into the mixture.