Autumn
WHY I LOVE FALL MENU
Breakfast:
Blueberry Pancake Oatmeal
Put a half cup more milk than called for into a saucepan. Add a teaspoon of sugar, a pinch of salt, a big dash of cinnamon, and a large handful of frozen blueberries. Bring to a boil, so the milk is purple, a few blueberries have exploded, and your dogs are crowding around you to find out what that good smell is. Add oatmeal (no, not instant. Rolled oats take 5 minutes to cook. You can wait 5 minutes. And if you want to send me some steel cut, I'd be grateful because we don't have any stores that sell it down here, and I'll revise the recipe...) and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Serve.
Lunch:
End of Summer Salad
Open a bag of salad greens and put them in a bowl. Add whatever herbs you have on hand; I love fresh dill in salads, but if you served me basil, oregano, parsley, I would be perfectly happy. Add thinly sliced apple, walnuts, goat cheese (something mild... don't drown out your herbs). Dress with good EVOO and even better balsamic, salt and pepper. Serve with a big hunk of good bread.
Dinner:
Parmesan scented Orzo w/ butternut squash and pinenuts
Bring a pot of water (with a pinch of salt, but the oil is really unnecessary) to boil. Add a couple of roughly crushed cloves of garlic and a parmesan rind. In the meantime, chop half an onion into tiny pieces and start sauteeing in EVOO. When the slivers are beginning to brown and caramelize, add equally tiny pieces of butternut squash. When you have orzo sized pieces of squash, they cook in no time. Add a little more oil and throw in a big handful of pinenuts. Season with salt and pepper, and continue to sautee. Add the orzo to your broth, and cook just under the suggested time. Add the (well drained) orzo to your pan, and cook for a minute more so all of the flavors meld. This dish is simplicity itself, but perfect.
Dessert:
Apple Crisp
Peel and core more apples than you need, and cut into hunks. I like hunks better than slices because they cook better (in my mind, at least) and because I never have to get out the cutting board. Add cinnamon and allspice and a little brown sugar. Don't overdo the spices... even though I always want to throw in everything. Add a splash of lemon. Taste regularly, and give out tastes to anyone who happens to be hovering around you. This is why you started with extra apples. (A side note on apples- I like galas and fujis as my all purpose apples, but the only requirement is that you use a variety) In a side bowl, mix flour with some uncooked rolled oats, throw in sugar, a pinch of salt, and a healthy jolt of cinnamon. Melt butter (don't be shy) and stir into your dry mix. This should turn into big crumbs, which you can pour over your apples. Bake until it smells wonderful, there is apple juice bubbling at the sides, and you can't wait any longer. If you serve this with ice cream, use vanilla hagen daaz.
Breakfast:
Blueberry Pancake Oatmeal
Put a half cup more milk than called for into a saucepan. Add a teaspoon of sugar, a pinch of salt, a big dash of cinnamon, and a large handful of frozen blueberries. Bring to a boil, so the milk is purple, a few blueberries have exploded, and your dogs are crowding around you to find out what that good smell is. Add oatmeal (no, not instant. Rolled oats take 5 minutes to cook. You can wait 5 minutes. And if you want to send me some steel cut, I'd be grateful because we don't have any stores that sell it down here, and I'll revise the recipe...) and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Serve.
Lunch:
End of Summer Salad
Open a bag of salad greens and put them in a bowl. Add whatever herbs you have on hand; I love fresh dill in salads, but if you served me basil, oregano, parsley, I would be perfectly happy. Add thinly sliced apple, walnuts, goat cheese (something mild... don't drown out your herbs). Dress with good EVOO and even better balsamic, salt and pepper. Serve with a big hunk of good bread.
Dinner:
Parmesan scented Orzo w/ butternut squash and pinenuts
Bring a pot of water (with a pinch of salt, but the oil is really unnecessary) to boil. Add a couple of roughly crushed cloves of garlic and a parmesan rind. In the meantime, chop half an onion into tiny pieces and start sauteeing in EVOO. When the slivers are beginning to brown and caramelize, add equally tiny pieces of butternut squash. When you have orzo sized pieces of squash, they cook in no time. Add a little more oil and throw in a big handful of pinenuts. Season with salt and pepper, and continue to sautee. Add the orzo to your broth, and cook just under the suggested time. Add the (well drained) orzo to your pan, and cook for a minute more so all of the flavors meld. This dish is simplicity itself, but perfect.
Dessert:
Apple Crisp
Peel and core more apples than you need, and cut into hunks. I like hunks better than slices because they cook better (in my mind, at least) and because I never have to get out the cutting board. Add cinnamon and allspice and a little brown sugar. Don't overdo the spices... even though I always want to throw in everything. Add a splash of lemon. Taste regularly, and give out tastes to anyone who happens to be hovering around you. This is why you started with extra apples. (A side note on apples- I like galas and fujis as my all purpose apples, but the only requirement is that you use a variety) In a side bowl, mix flour with some uncooked rolled oats, throw in sugar, a pinch of salt, and a healthy jolt of cinnamon. Melt butter (don't be shy) and stir into your dry mix. This should turn into big crumbs, which you can pour over your apples. Bake until it smells wonderful, there is apple juice bubbling at the sides, and you can't wait any longer. If you serve this with ice cream, use vanilla hagen daaz.