Butternut Squash and Cheese Bread Pudding with Tamarind-Coconut Crusted Salmon

Eclectic, yes? This meal features a most unusual creation for me - a savory bread pudding. I've long been a fan of dessert bread puddings, particularly when they include banana bread, bailey's irish cream, or any form of chocolate. I had never thought to create a savory one, however, until this one presented itself to me. It is made like a dessert bread pudding but instead of a sweet flavor you add butternut squash and instead of a creamy topping or sauce, you add cheese. It's delicious and filling and makes quite a lot, so prepare this easy comfort food when you have guests and learn that bread pudding is always a good idea - whether for dinner or dessert.

I paired the bread pudding with a generically international salmon entree. The salmon was crusted in coconut but featured an augmented tamarind-based sauce as well. It's faintly Indian but new-age and fusion-y. You can debate whether that makes it better or worse, but in the end I really just care about taste and this one definitely qualified in that category.

Difficulty: medium-easy
Time:1 hr 30 min
Cost: $18.51

Curried Coconut Thai Shrimp with a Mango-Papaya Salad

I need a bigger kitchen. Seriously, despite having a massive kitchen for an apartment, I am utterly and completely out of cabinet and other storage space. Don't architects know that I need to store a dozen types of oil, a dozen vinegars, and a vast array of cooking wines and sauces? I mean, what's a chef to do?

My forays into Asian food are delicious, exciting, and often surprisingly simple to prepare, but they do feature a number of new ingredients. I often find myself scouring the aisles at my local groceries, trying to find the exact type I want. Unfortunately, D.C. lacks an Asian market, so I have to depend upon my Giant and Whole Foods. Luckily, this dinner makes it easier! You'll need a good fish sauce, a staple to most Asian cuisine, but that's about it. And if you can't even locate fish sauce, well, good luck trying to cook much of anything from China, Japan, Thailand, or any other neighboring nation! If you can find it, invest in the better quality one and whip out that wok to start cooking.

Difficulty: easy
Time: 50 min
Cost: $30.08

Sweet Dumpling Squash Stuffed with Dried Cranberry-Almond Quinoa

Quinoa is a South American grain. The leaves of the plant can actually be enjoyed as well, but here quinoa typically refers to the seeds or grain portion. They're small and circular, but with a distinct almost thread-like piece around each little grain. Think of it as a blend of rice and cous cous with some unusual twists of its own. It's hearty and yummy, but does not carry much of a flavor on its own. Usually its served with sauces, nuts, berries, spices, or even as a risotto-style dish.

In this case, I mixed it with some dried cranberries, nuts, and other tidbits and then stuffed it into sweet dumpling squashes. It was delicious and different. The savory flavors of the quinoa paired perfectly with sweetened dried cranberries and the naturally sweet flesh of the squash. I paired this vegetable-side dish with catfish crusted with cornflakes and served with a cilantro aioli. I made this once before with Halibut and you can find the recipe here.

Difficulty: easy
Time: 45 min
Cost: $14.01

Chocolate Babka

Wow. Chocolate. Pastry. More chocolate. Warmed and melty. And, as a bonus, Jewish grandmothers rejoicing everywhere. This is a recipe that hits the spot. Make extra and freeze it if you want any to last, because you'll be gulping down these pieces as fast as you can.

No idea what babka is? Basically, it's a Jewish chocolate roll-type cake. Or, at least most commonly made in chocolate but beware if the word chocolate is not written before babka. You would not want to end up with a non-chocolate one! The dough is made, a chocolate filling is prepared, and then it's rolled up into a log shape then twisted from there. You eat it in bread-type slices with rich chocolate swirls emblazoned throughout. Just trust me - it's yummy.

Obviously, a babka can only be so healthy. i did my best to lighten in a few places, but in this case you'll just need to suck it up and go to the gym for an extra long workout. It's chocolate. It's cake. Enjoy it in moderation, hit the gym or take a long walk, and all will be fine in the end. And it's worth it.

Difficulty: medium
Time: 3 hr 45 min (much of it rising time)

Hanukkah: Turbot with Caramelized Leeks and a Garlic-Shallot Puree with Brussels Sprouts Au Gratin and Apple Kugel

Hanukkah! Alright... not quite Hanukkah. It's January. But since I'm a few weeks behind on my blogging, I'm finally getting to my Hanukkah meal, prepared on the last night of Hanukkah in Dec 2010. It's a fairly traditional meal but with some new-age twists on it. This may not be the healthiest meal I've ever prepared, but I did my best to incorporate vegetables and lighten up the heavy stuff as much as possible. I'll detail other thoughts below. Just keep in mind, while some of these foods might not be great for you, all is okay in moderation. If you're only enjoying latkes once a year then you'll be okay to have a few extra this time!

Hanukkah meals revolve around traditional Jewish foods, but also around oil. The Hanukkah miracle is that the candles burned for 8 days when there was only enough oil for one, keeping the synagogue's flame going after the victory of the Maccabees. To commemorate that miracle, much of the food is made in oil.

I prepared a main course that utilizes oil (but just a little) in cooking the fish, caramelizing the leeks, and making the puree. It's a delicious meal, plated with care, which provides unique flavors while keeping tradition. To go with the Turbot I made some classics: apple kugel and latkes, which are always amazing. The latkes, of course, are a traditional Hanukkah dish and are fried in oil. Finally, to ensure some vegetables were included, I made brussels sprouts au gratin that incorporated olive oil into the cheesey-crispy recipe.

Difficulty: medium
Time: 2.5 hours
Cost: $28.65

Crab Benedict with an Exotic Winter Fruit Salad

Breakfast for dinner! Or, at least, very gourmet breakfast for dinner. One of my favorite brunch places prepares absolutely delicious eggs benedict with crab cakes, so I decide that I had to try to re-create it. I leave out the full-fledged crab cakes and instead use jumbo lump crab meat. The jumbo lump gets quite pricey, but you do not need a ton of it here to create a delicious meal, so splurge on the good stuff and then just use less of it. This dish also forced me to try poaching eggs for the first time. Growing up, I had those silly plastic dishes that allowed me to poach by microwaving, but here I went the genuine route. It's surprisingly easy, and actually quite fun to see how the egg cooks. I recommend giving it a whirl right away, even if you're not making this meal!

To complete the idea of breakfast for dinner I paired this meal with a winter fruit salad, full of some staples and some more exotic varieties of fruit, but don't be limited by my recipe below. Add in more options and write in the comments below if something works especially well. The fruit is dressed in a simple lime-honey sauce, very light, to add a little extra pizazz. And, of course, breakfast would not be complete without some good ol' potatoes so I roasted up some fingerlings to serve as a "breakfast potato" type item.

Difficulty: easy
Time: 30 minutes
Cost: $24.22

Herb and Mustard Trout with Rosemary-Shallot Smashed Sweet Potatoes and Sweet Dumpling Squash in a Citrus Sauce

I love this fish. Trout is one of those tasty light, white fishes that does not have a strong flavor of its own so it can be prepared in vastly different ways. This easy and quick version combines fresh herbs with a slight zing of mustard that melds perfectly today to have a little party with your taste buds. It's light, full of flavor, and healthy. Oh yeah, and quite easy to make.

To go with the fish I prepared some smashed sweet potatoes in true fall/winter fashion, but included some fresh rosemary and sauteed shallots for extra flavor and texture. Finally, I whipped up some roasted sweet dumpling squash in a light citrus sauce. The citrus sauce also included some fresh herbs, tying all three pieces of this meal together perfectly while still showcasing different flavors for each piece.

If you haven't tried sweet dumpling squash before, I highly recommend it. It's flavor and coloring is very similar to the delicata squash, but it is shaped like an acorn squash instead of being long and thin. The skin is tender enough to be enjoyed, making this a cinch to prepare. The "flesh" of the squash is very sweet and practically melts in your mouth when cooked. Buy it in the late fall and stock up so you can keep cooking this all winter.

Difficulty: easy
Time: 50 min
Cost: $19.70