Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/426101
taste of health T raditional foods are the foods of our great-great grand- mothers—the foods of gardens and farms. They repre- sent a system of balance, emphasizing the value of meat and milk, grain and bean, vegetables and fruits. The traditional foods movement celebrates the connection between the farm that produces the food, the cook who prepares it, and the indi- viduals who eat it. It is a system of connection, emphasizing sup- port for time-honored ways in farming, cooking and eating, and finding a place for fat and lean, animal and vegetable, raw and cooked. Emphasizing whole and minimally processed foods, the traditional foods movement calls you back to the kitchen, to real home cooking. ROASTED PUMPKIN WITH SPICED SORGHUM SYRUP Gluten-free sorghum syrup has a flavor resembling molasses, with subtle fruity undertones reminiscent of pineapple. I like the way it pairs with pumpkin and other sweet autumn squash. I typ- ically use Black Futsu pumpkins, an heirloom winter squash with a deeply ribbed and beautifully bumpy skin. Like most winter squash, its flavor is strikingly sweet, though a subtle and faint nuttiness follows its sweetness. Of course, any winter squash should work well in this recipe. Serves 6 Roasted Pumpkin 1 pie pumpkin (about 6 pounds) 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted 1 tsp coarse unrefined sea salt Sorghum Syrup 2 tbsp sorghum syrup 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg 1 tsp ground allspice ½ tsp ground cinnamon ¼ tsp finely ground unrefined sea salt Pinch of cayenne pepper Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scrub the pumpkin well to remove any residual dirt cling- ing to its skin, then split it in half and scrape the seeds from its flesh, composting or otherwise discarding the seeds. Slice the pumpkin into thin crescents about ½-inch thick and arrange in a single layer on the baking sheet. Drizzle with the melted but- ter and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes until the flesh softens and the edges of the slices caramelize just a touch. While the pumpkin roasts in the oven, warm the sorghum in a small saucepan over low heat. Whisk in the nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, salt and cayenne and continue whisking for about 2 minutes. Plate the roasted pumpkin and drizzle with sorghum syrup. PORTUGAL CAKE Immensely popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries, Portu- gal cake fell from favor as white flour replaced the more luxuri- ous, and expensive, blanched almonds. It's a pity, really. A Por- tugal cake is an exquisite confection, incomparably rich owing to the inclusion of a pound each of butter, almonds and sugar. Spiked with sherry and rosewater and dotted with currants, a slice of Portugal cake tastes impossibly moist and rich and is best reserved for special occasions. This recipe makes two 8" cakes, and is easily halved to make just one cake. 2 c unsalted butter at room temperature, plus more for greasing All-purpose flour for dusting 2¼ c unrefined cane sugar 12 eggs, beaten 2 tbsp sweet sherry 2 tbsp rosewater ½ tsp finely ground unrefined sea salt 4 ¾ c blanched almonds, finely ground 1 c dried currants Powdered sugar for dusting (optional) By Jennifer McGruther Like Momma Used to Make TRADITIONAL HOLIDAY RECIPES 16 wholelifetimesmagazine.com