the thrill of the countdown

this weekend the clouds rolled in, bringing with them gradually cooling air. today the world is bright, sunny, crisp - and almost 40 degrees colder than it was 3 days ago. a welcome change for the new season.

the cooler, overcast weather made for the perfect backdrop for lots of cozy last-minute holiday preparations. this weekend we enjoyed...

~ a family holiday evening downtown, armed with travel mugs of spiked apple cider, wandering the streets and enjoying the holiday sights and sounds


~ deliciously crusty homemade bread, made with the assistance of this amazing book

~ the final farmers market of the year, at which we picked up our final csa box of the season


~ creating two handmade ornaments for my little one's first christmas - a tradition i am adopting from my godmother, who made me a handmade ornament every year for the first 18 years of my life (see inspiration here)


~ attending an ugly sweater party. alan was in charge of finding the sweaters and this one he picked up for me - but i think it looked much better on him, don't you agree? we especially love the detail on the sleeve

~ finishing the holiday baking...this year i made spiced vanilla cookies, mini pumpkin loaves, and good old recipe-off-the-bag chocolate/peanut butter chip cookies


~ a treat for our lazy sunday morning: cinnamon rolls, made with the same dough as the previously mentioned deliciously crusty homemade bread

~ a treat for our lazy sunday evening: stew made by hubby using all the veggies he could fit in from previously mentioned csa box


gifts are wrapped, holiday greetings are sent, laundry is...well...guess that's the excitement that today holds.

safe travels and happy holidays to all!

apple afternoon

 

my baby's been sick and the weather's been cold so that made for an inside day today. we're still moving through that peck o' apples and this is what i found to do with them today - spiced apple cobbler. i actually think this recipe was a little heavy on the sugar and flour so next time i'll go lighter in that department, but other than that, pretty scrumptious! and yes, i do occasionally indulge in the afternoon talk shows...what can i say, they're good company for a sewing mama while baby naps...and sometimes you get a special treat, like today's oprah: brad pitt. need i say more.

anyway, back to the cobbler. just look at how cute my assistants are...

 

 

an apple (or 3) a day

we were on a trip up north last weekend and on the way back stopped in a sweet roadside apple shed. the man working there asked about a dozen questions about where we were coming from, where we were going, what we were doing...i think we were a pleasant interruption to his day. then he let us mix and match our own peck of apples. yes, a peck - finally a visual to the lullaby that i sing to olivia about 7 times a day!

anyway, we ended up coming home with this...

 

which created the perfect simple centerpiece for the table in our little nook like this...

 

and best of all, then i made this.

what more could you want?

i love soup

 

as the days get cooler and evenings get cozier, there is nothing better than a big pot of homemade soup. i love soup any time of the year, but there is something about fall soups that is especially comforting. we are members of a csa, and it is exciting to see what each week's box will bring - and thus what kind of soup we will be eating that week! a recent box brought us an acorn squash, and supplemented with a butternut squash from the local market, my talented husband came up with this scrumptious soup. i have attempted to capture his masterpiece in the following, very loose recipe:

roasted squash and garlic soup

preheat oven to 400-425

cut the top off a bulb of garlic, drizzle a little salt and oil on top and wrap in foil

cut each of the squash(es?) in half, scoop out the seeds, and dust with the following: salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg (pretty much whatever looks good in your spice cabinet - a mixture of the sweet and savory flavors of fall)

place garlic and squash in oven for about 20 - 30 minutes (until you can easily stick a fork in each)

towards the end of baking the garlic and squash, take a big pot and cook up a bunch of pancetta or bacon. render out the fat and cook until crispy. take out and set aside. when cooled, crumble it up. if cooking pancetta, you can leave the fat in the pot; if using bacon, you'll want to get rid of most of the fat.

in the same pot, saute one chopped onion with salt, as well as some celery and carrots (if you haven't noticed yet, hubby doesn't measure. just use what feels good to you.) add some thyme and a bay leaf.

when the squash is cooled off a bit, scoop out the insides and add to the onion mixture in the pot. open up the garlic - the bulbs will be soft and squishy, so scoop them out with a fork and add to the pot. pour in about 4 cups of stock (we use chicken). cook for awhile (maybe 20 minutes), adjusting the seasonings as needed. hubby likes to add sage towards the end.

puree (we use this nifty device to puree our soups). you can add a little cream to thicken and add body to the soup. garnish with some sage leaves and your crumbled pancetta or bacon.

we enjoy our soups with paninis. we recieved this panini grill as a wedding gift and it has been very well loved. the paninis in this picture are simply homemade crusty bread, soppressatta, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil. oh, yum.

now i must run as tonight's white bean soup is about finished!

 

happy day before november 1!

 

 

halloween...in the past few years this has not been my favorite holiday, as i've gained, in my adulthood, a strange fear of all things creepy and spooky. but i know that in a few years i will again be able to enjoy, through my little one, the excitement that comes with costumes and candy. and i do look forward to this day because it means the next day is november and that means...the day i can officially start playing holiday music! got the cd's down from the attic yesterday and can't wait to pop in ol' john denver and the muppets.

but in honor of today's holiday, i'd like to pass along a scrumptious pumpkin bread recipe:

3 c sugar
1 c oil (i use canola)
4 eggs
1 can pumpkin
2 1/2 c flour
1/2 t baking powder
1 t salt
2 t baking soda
2/3 c water
1 t each: ground cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice

mix and pour into 2 ungreased pans (i like to line them with parchment paper). bake about 60 minutes at 350.

enjoy!!