This easy nut and seed snack mix can be made ahead of time for your next party. Serve it during cocktail hour or make it a special addition to the dessert table.
I had my fair share of store-bought, flavored nuts before I realized just how easy they are to make at home. A little of your favorite sweetener, some butter or coconut oil and a few spices, plus some relatively low maintenance time in the oven, and you have a holiday gift for friends or a party snack.
If you are looking to try a new dessert this holiday season, you can’t go wrong with bourbon poached persimmon. The seasonal fruit is spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, anise and clove, then served with warm vanilla custard sauce.
My heart belongs to pumpkin pie, but I’m not at all opposed to trying a new dessert for Thanksgiving. Since I hold pumpkin pie in such high regard, though (my grandmother’s version, specifically), it’s always so hard to choose what to try.
Since no other pie can compare for me this time of year, and I save cookies for Christmas, I decided to do something completely out of the ordinary for me — poached fruit.
These lettuce wraps make a quick and easy seasonal dinner. They are filled with my favorite fall ingredients and served in beautiful red leaf lettuce that is full of nutrients. This post was sponsored by Coastline Family Farms.
Don’t mind my deer-in-the-headlights look. That is just my reaction to how quickly the end of October and most of November have flown by. I’ve been finding myself staring blankly from time to time trying to get my brain to catch up to the date.
It’s not necessarily a bad thing. There’s been a reason for it – events. Lots of awesome, new experiences, meet new people, have fun while learning, eating and drinking, events.
Add a twist to your holiday stuffing! This recipe takes my favorite combo of pears, walnuts and Gorgonzola and turns them into a delicious version of one of my favorite holiday sides.
Friends of ours hosted a Thanksgiving potluck and I was put on the stuffing list. Since mine was stuffing number 2 at the dinner and stuffing number 1 was straight up traditional, I was given free reign to get creative. So I volunteered to bring this.
I made this recipe before…in 2009! 2009?! To be honest with you, I can’t believe I’ve been blogging that long. But there that post sits, with some pretty ugly photos and in need of some revision.
This fall salad is loaded with seasonal fruits and topped with candied pecans and blue cheese. The rich molasses balsamic vinaigrette has a mild spice from cayenne pepper.
I have the strangest pattern for salad cravings. For some reason throughout the end of the summer, despite all the light and refreshing produce, salads did not sound good at all. But all of a sudden fall hits and I’m ready for some leafy greens.
Maybe it’s the seasonal fruits like grapes or the heavier toppings like blue cheese that make fall salads surprisingly comforting. That must be why my cravings have finally come around, especially since the temperatures dropped a bit today and the leaves are starting to fall.
This hot tea combines ginger and black peppercorns for a slightly spicy drink that will warm you up. A recipe I learned from friends while living in Brazil, it is a non-alcoholic twist on the Quentão we used to drink there during the winter.
During one of the Julys we spent in Brazil, I helped a friend host a party for her English students and she made this tea. I know what you are thinking — hot tea in July? But remember, U.S. summer = Brazil winter, and where we were in the south, it did get pretty fall-like.
It is a non-alcoholic version of the warm wine drink, Quentão, that is enjoyed during Festas Juninas celebrations. This drink, often described as a mulled wine, was made in large volumes with very, um, affordable wine and often cachaça so it’s surprising that I liked it, but the spicy flavor of the fresh ginger won me over.
This savory pumpkin recipe combines the puréed winter squash with white beans to create a warm dip with the rich flavors of sharp cheddar cheese and a mild heat from pickled jalapeños. It’s the perfect starter for fall dinner parties and makes a great snack for game day.
I’ve already started on my 2014 Winter Squash Collection. The first one, usually a pie pumpkin, enters the house in late September or early October. After that it’s a spaghetti squash here, a kabocha there and I can’t turn down a new variety. They begin to pile up in the corners of the kitchen or on the cool tile in the entry way. I keep them until: 1) I’m hungry for squash, or 2) we get frustrated from tripping over them. At that point, into the oven they go to be roasted and turned into puree.
The small pie pumpkin I bought last week bit the dust pretty early. Half a week into October and I was way overdue for something pumpkin.
Switch up your cold grain salads and add some sorghum! In this recipe, the chewy grain is combined with pomegranate and walnuts, and then topped off with tangy goat cheese.
I was cooling down from my run last week, taking a nice leisurely walk back to the house, when I saw it. Tucked between two houses was a tree with long branches that were bending under the weight of beautiful red pomegranates.
I see fruit trees around here all the time – figs, citrus, persimmons – and while I’ve seen a pomegranate tree before, I had never seen one in our neighborhood. It was gorgeous.
And I want some!
When I see trees loaded with fruit that seem to be untouched I am so tempted to knock on the door and ask if the owners are going to use the fruit. But I have never gotten up the courage. Then again, the stakes have never been quite this high. A pomegranate might be just enough to get me out of my comfort zone.
So here is the plan. I’m going to watch the tree for the next few weeks and if none of the fruit disappears, I’m doing it. I’m going to walk up and ring the doorbell.
I think. Maybe.
Have you ever been the victim of being labeled the healthy eater at your workplace? If not the healthy eater, than the fancy eater?
I thought being teased by peers was something that I’d leave in grade school, but some of my jobs as an adult proved me wrong. I worked in public health so a lot of people were healthy eaters, but I quickly became labeled as a fancy eater in the lunch room.
I was the one who would bring in leftovers of Asian noodle dishes, black bean burgers or grilled pastured, local chicken. It was usually balanced out with some greens, fruit, some healthy fat — all the major food groups. I’d get comments about how healthy I ate and that I must cook, etc.
You never really know what to say to these things. Sorry? I promise I’m not trying to get attention, I honest-to-goodness just eat like this.
This chipotle tomato soup comes together in minutes. It is rich and smooth with a hint of spice from chipotle peppers.
I love the little cans of chipotles in adobo. I do. But every time I buy one I’m reminded that they may be the reason that phrases like – a little goes a long way – were created. I can never seem to find use for more than one pepper out of the can at a time.
My point being, I have another chipotle recipe to share. So here’s to hoping you like things spicy!
