Pumpkin Ravioli, by Kara Naylor

Today, I had to layer my outerwear, a true sign that fall is completely and officially here. So instead of just wishing I lived in a warmer place, I am going to embrace all things fall. I decided to cook up a delicious homemade pumpkin ravioli with brown butter sauce. I cannot tell you how worth it is to make your own pasta from scratch, it’s a hundred times better, but if you really don’t want to, you can use those won ton wrappers instead. I did a little research, but couldn’t find the recipe that matched my ingredients on hand (grocery shopped BEFORE looking for a recipe…not too smart!)…so I made my own recipe based on a generalization of those available on the web. Everything was purchased at the Food Dimensions and Mr. Kiwi’s.

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Jamaica Me Hungry — photo by Kara Naylor

Bushwicker Kara Naylor plans to send recipes for food she’s making at home — as always, all the ingredients can be found in Bushwick, most at local bodegas.

Back from my vacation in Jamaica, and not happy about it, I decided to cook up a Jamaican Feast for dinner to help ease the post-vacation blues. I had picked up a little jar of jerk seasoning and some Appleton Rum at the duty free, so I had my start. On the menu:

Jerk Shrimp, Golden Fried Plantains, Jamaican Style Rice and Peas, Simmered Cassava Root, Appleton’s Spiced Tea

There ended up being quite a few dishes to wash, so I recommend inviting a friend over to “cook for” so they feel obligated to do the dishes for you.

I researched recipes and techniques a little online, combined that knowledge with what I had been eating and seeing in Jamaica, and came up with this: it ends up being enough for 2, with leftover rice and peas for lunch tomorrow.

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