Extra popover batter for a rematch

[infryq]

On Thanksgiving, we did a Zoom with P’s folks and M & A, which was lovely. A mostly chill day, and late afternoon started prep for popovers and a stuffed pumpkin. We are both out of practice; the popovers didn’t pop and the pumpkin was still not bubbling after an hour, but we ate anyway (I had extra stuffing going on the stovetop) and everything was delicious. Called my folks after for a nice long chat, played some scrabble, a very relaxing day.

For the pumpkin: use a small pumpkin or squash meant for eating that sits nicely with the stem at the very top. I used a UFO squash, dark green shell and dry rich flesh something like a buttercup squash. Take the top off the pumpkin and clean out the guts. 1/3 cup each lentils and wild rice, soak in 2 cups boiling water with a healthy pinch of saffron. 2T each chopped marcona almonds, red bell pepper, mushrooms, and dried cranberries, and sizzle in olive oil until the mushrooms brown. Mix everything up, add thyme and sage. Use a measuring cup or tiny ladle to fill the pumpkin no more than half full of solids, then top up with liquid to a finger thickness short of the bottom of the cap. Bake uncovered at 350 until boiling (I did not uncover for this step and that was a mistake; squash is an excellent insulator), then cap and bake 30 minutes or until liquid is absorbed, wild rice is beginning to split but not curl, and pumpkin is soft. Meanwhile, simmer remaining mixture on stovetop 30-50 minutes until wild rice is done. Reduce away any remaining liquid. Serve to normal people with crispy garlic and shallots or to Katies straight up.

Yesterday we ate leftovers (the stuffed squash made great soup) and puttered around. I transferred the pattern for the gearbox to a sheet of brass and started learning how to/how not to drill holes in it (do put something behind it; do use a power tool; do back off frequently; do drill more sizes of pilot holes than you think you need). We went through the FedCo seed catalog, and started looking online for missing bits (we want to grow rue so we can try some of the ancient Roman recipes from one of the historical cooking channels we watch). I finished Avatar and started hemming another dish towel. A good day.