bison chili in a squash bowl

Oh, man! Let's chalk that one up to the folly of youth.

Yesterday the Trainer and I lounged around for most of the day. Between the cup of coffee I really shouldn't have had around 4:30 Saturday and daylight savings time i didn't get much sleep and was pretty zapped by the time we decided to go to the gym. When I shuffled out in the late afternoon to fetch some cinnamon the weather was a perfectly nice fall day.

It didn't occur to me, as I was hauling the bikes out of the basement, that the sun was going to set earlier and that the temperature would drop along with it. I was concentrating to hard on the machines, and then the warm fuzzy feeling I got when the Trainer called me his "strong woman". However, this strong woman forgot her gloves

The ride to the gym wasn't to bad, although my fingers were cold and stiff when we arrived. I prised them from the handle bars and fumblingly help the Trainer with the lock. The ride home, after the sun set, was seriously cold. Riding through Queens in the cold and dark felt like we were doing something forbidden. Besides the frigid fingers it was a great ride. I love feeling my body working, pushing toward my goal.

But, back to those frigid finger. As mush as tried to pull my sleeves down over on fingers, but it's awfully hard to shift and break with your fingers pulled up inside your fleece. I was afraid that I would lose the use of my fingers for the rest of the evening, having suffered from raynauds phenomenon before going gluten free. I was pleasantly surprised that my fingers did not turn white and I did not lose feeling in them for hours. Very exciting! Of course, this does not mean that I'll be running around without gloves all winter.

The best part of the whole ordeal was the bison chili baked in a squash that was keeping warm for me in the oven. A little grated cheese and I had the perfect dark cold night dinner.

Bison Chili in a Squash Bowl

3 smallish acorn squash or pumpkins,
1 Lb ground bison
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, mined
1 carrot, diced
1 large celery stalk, diced
2 vine ripe tomatoes, diced
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
salt
fresh ground pepper
sharp cheddar cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 350°F

In a skillet add the onion, garlic and spices. Saute for about 5 minutes, until onions are tender. Add the carrots, celery and tomatoes, reduce heat and simmer while you prepare the squash.

Wash the outsides and cut the tops off the squash. Try to cut on an angle so that the tops will fit back on, like a jack-o-lantern. Scoop out seeds and pulp, try to get as much pulp out as possible.

Fill each squash as full as possible with chili. Press the chili firmly into the squash and fill them completely.

Place tops back on squash and place on a sided baking sheet on pan. Pour enough water into the pan to cover the bottom.

Bake for 45 minutes

Allow to cool for several minutes and garnish with grated sharp cheddar cheese.

*Eat the squash along with the chili, the contrasts in tastes is amazing! If you aren't going to bake the chili in the squash I recommend peeling, dicing and cooking the squash along with the rest of the chili.