The other day I told you about two of the people who were responsible for my decision to write a blog.

Well, there is one other person that I have to credit for getting me started. Lisa, who writes A Fork On The Road and happens to live in my town, gave a talk at our library last November about starting and writing a food blog. She and fellow food blogger, Carol Egbert, described the basics of creating a blog. An overhead projector was used to illustrate Lisa’s own WordPress program and she walked through the different components involved in getting started.

Previously, I had mulled over whether I could actually set up a blog myself. After hearing Lisa talk, I gained the confidence that I really could do this. And I did. I’m go grateful to her for being my green light to give it a go.

I am also so grateful to Lisa for introducing me to these sandwiches. The library talk included lunch and Lisa made these unbelievably good Cheddar, Cucumber and Chutney Mustard Sandwiches. They are just the thing to eat with a hot bowl of soup on a brisk autumn day.

Vermont Cheddar, Cucumber And Chutney Mustard Sandwiches

Ingredients for the sandwiches:

8 slices seven grain bread (or other sliced grainy, seedy bread)
1 pound sharp Vermont Cheddar cheese, shredded (I love Cabot’s Seriously Sharp)
2 cucumbers sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
1 bunch watercress (1 cup), rinsed, dried well, and trimmed of tough ends
1/2 cup Chutney Mustard (recipe follows)

Directions:

1. Put the bread slices on your work surface with four slices in one row and four behind in a second row. Arrange the cheddar in an even layer on the first row of bread slices. Add a layer of cucumber slices on top of the cheese, then the watercress.

2. Spread at least two tablespoons of chutney mustard on the remaining slices of bread (these will be the tops). Close the sandwiches and, using a serrated knife, slice on the diagonal.

Chutney Mustard

(Lisa makes Apple, Pear and Ginger Chutney for the sandwiches. Yum, but purchased mango chutney is a fine substitute.)

Ingredients:

1 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup mango chutney

Directions:

1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, purée mustard and chutney.

Recipes from A Fork On The Road

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

3 to 4 cups chicken stock (Ina Garten prefers homemade. Her stock recipe is here.)
1 quart Roasted Winter Vegetables (recipe follows)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, heat 3 cups of chicken stock. In 2 batches, coarsely purée the roasted vegetables and the chicken stock in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.

2. Pour the soup back into the pot and season, to taste. Thin with more chicken stock and reheat. The soup should be thick but not like a vegetable purée, so add more chicken stock and/or water until it’s the consistency you like.

Roasted Winter Vegetables

Ingredients:

1 pound carrots, peeled
1 pound parsnips, peeled
1 large sweet potato, peeled
1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled and seeded
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425℉.

2. Cut the carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and butternut squash into 1 inch cubes.

3. Place cut vegetables in a single layer on 2 sheet pans. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss well. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once with a metal spatula.

Recipe from Barefoot Contessa Family Style Cookbook

Duke Special is a band out of Ireland. I thought a song about Courage would work here.

Wow is this tune epic. The drama! I love it. (Except for the lice lyric. Ew.)
Duke Special-Mother Courage

Check out Duke Special on the band’s Website. You can see upcoming tour dates in Ireland and buy their music, too.

Cheers!