Hard to believe that September is almost half over already. Life has sure been busy. Did a minor eye surgery with a week of recovery, then jumped in to travel prep. Looking forward to visiting cousins in Ireland and Naomi in France this fall, plus a few days in Avignon and in Paris just with Sweetie. Since the last time we flew to Ireland (which was our sole excursion to any part of Europe) seven years have passed. We have to remember all over again what is needed for trans-Atlantic fun and games, plus see if we can pack in a small enough suitcase to go in the overhead bin. I have been having a blast looking in lots of guidebooks to see what we might do and see. Hard to concentrate on current life when the future is so alluring.

Still, the current life is lovely. The garden continues to look beautiful and to reward our efforts with squash and beans and tiny grape tomatoes, plus the pumpkins are starting to be ready to harvest.

Sweetie has been (with a little help from me) remodeling the studio so that the storage area is separate from the studio area. We have a new window, new wall, new door into the storage, new steps up to that door and new coat of paint over the whole front wall. Eventually there will be insulation for the studio area and a connecting door, so that the space can be heated and cooled with a space heater and/or fan. I'll be able to keep my art work and supplies out and ready to use!

We had used the space as a kitchen during our main kitchen remodel, so I still have a few kitchen items to relocate, too. It was also the place where I unpacked the things shipped from my Mom's home after she died, so there are a few items of hers to relocate. I will be glad that it will be more difficult for storage items to be left in the studio. I'm often the culprit, but will be more aware after all of this work.

Best of all, the fall is coming! The air is getting a nip to it in the morning and the light is changing too...sort of softening. Today at the paperback bookstore, Paperbacks Unlimited in Santa Rosa...best used books bookstore ever!...they were giving away ripe figs. I took one home and used it in my lunch sandwich. Figs are a wonderful fall fruit! I love the way the insides look with the rosy seeds. I love the way they taste with savory meat or poultry and a fruity and/or nutty bread. So delicious!

Grilled Pork and Fig Sandwich
makes one sandwich

2 slices cranberry walnut bread or similar rustic whole grain bread
3-4 thin slices cooked pork shoulder
1-2 fresh figs, thinly sliced
mayonnaise to taste
salt and pepper to taste
soft butter or margarine

Heat a sandwich press or skillet. While it is heating, thinly butter each slice of bread on one side. Place buttered sides together. On upward facing plain slice, spread some mayo, add the pork (warm it in a microwave if cold), the slices of fig, and salt and pepper to taste.

When the sandwich press of skillet is hot, pick up the filled slice, place it on the hot surface, then top with the next slice, butter side up. Close the press, or press down with a spatula if using a skillet. Cook until bread is toasted a dark golden brown. If using the skillet, turn sandwich over carefully (let's keep those figs inside the sandwich!) and finish browning the bread. Repeat with more bread and fillings and spreads as needed.

Serve each toasted sandwich whole or cut in half. Eat while still hot.

Truly Fall - A Time For Ganache

The signs of fall are all around. It takes the sun a much longer time...til after 7 am...to rise in the morning and evening comes much sooner, too.

The acorns are falling all around the base of the oak tree by the barn and the oak leaves are turning gold and brown and falling.

I collected a whole basket of walnuts on the deck yesterday. I prefer to gather them from the deck than from the ground because they bake on the deck and are ready to shell. The tomatoes are winding down and I harvested almost all of my pumpkins this morning and set them marching up the front steps. I changed out the wreath by the door to my fall one.

Since fall is my favorite season, it's great to see the signs of the season. There are also quite a few family birthdays around this time of year. Happy birthday to each of you...you know who you are, including the great guy in the photo at the top of the post (enjoying his cake with ganache topping)  who started celebrating early, for which I am grateful.

Even though I love the crisp fall air, it was lovely that yesterday was warm and dry. Our darling daughter visited and we sat out at the table on the front deck at lunch time catching up and

admiring her new painted rock art. Isn't she talented?

Later we lounged on the wicker couch and in the rocking chair on the newer part of the front deck after gathering morning glory seeds from the little dried pods left on the plant for just that reason. Next year we will have an amazing array of morning glories if all the seeds germinate. In the evening we went into town and ate outside so as to enjoy the lingering warmth of the evening. Soon there will be chilly evenings and (we hope!) rain to keep us inside. The furniture and rug will go inside, too, for the late fall and winter.

When we were back East for our visit, I made my sailing brother his favorite birthday cake ...chocolate cake, chocolate icing and raspberry jam in the middle. Just to make it even more decadent (and because I was using a cake mix and pre-made frosting due to a scarcity of baking equipment, especially a stand mixer, in the Marshall St. kitchen) I left the frosting off most of the top of the cake and instead poured on ganache, a decadent mixture of chocolate and cream. The birthday 'boy' even got to lick the bowl.

The trick to doing this kind of topping on a cake is to let the ganache mixture cool enough that it thickens a bit and doesn't run off the top of the cake, but is still warm enough that it will pour and spread without much help from your spatula. If you pour a little out and it is too thin, just wait a bit more and try again. Those drips down the side of the cake should be drips, not fountains.

I had fun with the decorations, using star shaped multi-colored sprinkles, spiral candles and some tiny silver dragees that everyone decided were about 30 years old. My Mom was not one to throw things away that still had use. She was a keeper.

Chocolate Ganache to top a cake 

4 oz. semi-sweet good quality chocolate, chopped fine
4 oz. heavy cream

Place the chopped chocolate into a medium bowl.
Over medium heat, bring the heavy cream to a simmer. Stir or swirl the cream to make sure all of it is hot. Pour heated cream over the chocolate and stir until mixture is smooth. Let cool, stirring gently every few minutes, until mixture reaches desired consistency.

Pour cooled ganache over the top of your cake. Use a spatula if necessary to smooth the top and encourage some of the ganache to drip down the sides. Chill in the refrigerator to set the ganache.

August BBB Delight Hints at Autumn

 

The days are truly getting shorter and school started in our neighborhood yesterday, so this month's Bread Baking Babes bread, Nut Roll Coffee Cake from our Kitchen of the Month Jaime of Life's a Feast, is perfect because it has the cinnamon and nuts that hint of holiday baking to come.

I only made half the recipe, baking it in a long loaf pan, but this one is so delicious that I urge you to make the full recipe, if only so that you can share it with friends. A rich, brioche-like dough is rolled around a most unusual filling. It's a nut meringue with cinnamon and the combination is amazing. Two of those lovely rolls are stacked, one on top of the other, in a tube pan, then allowed to rise a bit. After it is baked you let it cool a little bit before removing from the pan. You are supposed to let it cool completely according to the recipe, but don't. The warm, buttery, fragrant with cinnamon bread is tender and, frankly, addictive if you eat it while it retains some of the heat from the oven.

 

The remarkable thing about this bread is that it is a no-knead one. Rolling up the bread once you have spread on the meringue filling is about the hardest part of making this. If you have done anything with a jelly roll type rolling up, it will be a snap for you. The results will bring a smile to your face...and a desire for just another piece. The finished roll didn't look pretty when it came out of the pan, and it was a little hard to cut without making a mess since it had sunk a little while cooling, but it tasted so spectacular that we didn't care a bit.

 

Thanks to Jaime for picking such a perfect recipe for August. Do check out the bread baked by the other Bread Baking Babes. I'm also sending this over to Susan (Alumnae Babe) at Wild Yeast for her Yeast Spotting round up of the week.

Last, but not least, come bake with the Babes this month. Make the bread, snap a photo, send an e-mail to Jaime with a brief description of your baking experience (plus that photo) and she'll send you a Buddy Badge and include you in the round-up.

If you have kids going to school between now and the 29th, I can assure you that they will be thrilled to arrive home to the warm fragrance of cinnamon which will perfume the house when you bake this Nut Roll Coffee Cake.

 

Here is the full recipe from Jamie:

NUT ROLL COFFEE CAKE
You will need a stand mixer or beaters to whip egg whites for the meringue filling and a 10-inch (standard) tube pan.

For the dough:
2 packages (1/4 ounce/7 g each) active dry yeast
¼ cup (@ 65 ml) warm water (110°F to 115°F)
16 Tbs (225 g) unsalted butter, melted
½ cup (125 ml) warm 2% fat/lowfat milk (110°F to 115°F)
4 egg yolks
2 Tbs sugar
¾ tsp salt
 2 ½ cups (350 g*) all-purpose flour (I use French regular flour), more as needed

* when I measure flour I spoon lightly into the measuring cup and then level off so 1 cup usually weigh approximately 140 g 

For the filling:
3 egg whites
1 cup + 3 Tbs sugar, divided
2 cups ground walnuts
2 Tbs 2% fat/lowfat milk
2 tsps ground cinnamon

The day before, prepare the dough:
In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add the butter, milk, eggs yolks, sugar, salt and flour. Beat until smooth – the mixture will be sticky. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The day of baking, prepare the filling:
In a small bowl, beat the egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in 1 cup sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, on high speed until the sugar is incorporated and dissolved.

In a large bowl, combine the walnuts, milk, cinnamon and remaining sugar; fold in the meringue.

Prepare the Coffee Cake:
Grease a 10-inch tube pan.

Divide the dough in half. On a well-floured work surface, roll each portion into an 18 x 12 –inch (45 x 30 cm) rectangle. Spread half of the filling evenly over each rectangle within 1/2 –inch (1 cm) of the edges. Roll each up jelly-roll style, starting with the long side; pinch seam to seal.

Place one filled roll, seam side up, in the greased tube pan. Place the second roll, seam side down.

Let rise for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).  Bake in the preheated oven for 40 – 45 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before removing the coffee cake from the pan to a cooling rack to cool completely. Top may crack when cooling.

Eat as is or drizzle with glaze or dust with powdered sugar.

Fall Fling

Not sure why but October and May seem to be the months when wanderlust really hits. Since it has been a while since I've seen the fall color on the east coast, I'm leaving Sweetie and Pi for a few days to visit with my Mom and other family members and get my fall color fix. Won't be doing much blogging while I'm gone but I'm sure to have some stories when I get back. Hope you have some good times in the kitchen until then!

Here is some fall color nearer to home, at the place where we like to walk the dog. Those are wild grape leaves...very colorful!

XO Elle.

Fall Fun

Just back from a visit to Seattle. We were lucky (or perhaps brought California sunshine with us?) because all the rain that had been called for as I packed never happened. It was great fall weather with a nice chill to it. That's probably why the fall color was fantastic!

One of the places I visited was the U Dub (as it is known around here) Arboretum where there were lots and lots of fully colorful trees of all sorts. Bliss for me since our fall color is more muted.



We also made sure to check in at Trophy Cupcakes so that we could try the current seasonal one...Candied Yam with a Toasted Marshmallow topping. It was sort of like a good carrot cake but with yam flavor. We also shared a Mocha Chocolate one that was amazing. They really know how to do butter cream frosting at Trophy. They are shown in the photo at the top, surrounded by the leaves we collected on the walk near there. We used to collect fall leaves when the kids were young and iron them between sheets of waxed paper, then hang them up in the windows on cords to let the sun shine through.

All of this indulgence had been preceded by two good sized walks, not counting the walk at the Arboretum the day before. One of the things I love about Seattle is that is seems like a really walkable city to me.

I'm going to be making a dish (or my version of it at least) that we tried at a restaurant in Wallingford area called Smash. I'll post it in the next day or two. It involves two of my favorite flavors: butternut squash and spinach.

XO Elle

Goodbye October!

I'ts getting chilly at night around here...and our new stove is taking the chill off in the morning. We won't be making s'mores using that stove, but maybe a Halloween pumpkin will do the trick.

Happy Halloween dear reader!

Starting to Look Like Fall

For some people the time of new beginnings is at the beginning of January...all those New Year's resolutions feel so cleansing. For some the turn of the year marked by their birthday sets them thinking of the year past and the year to come. For me new beginnings often come with the fall. Since summer is and was my least favorite time of year I guess that the return of cooler air, fall colors and, for many years, the beginning of school is a cause for celebration...summer is over! Feeling the light turn more golden and the air more crisp often starts me thinking of new ways to do things and new experiences to enjoy.

In the spring I'm tuned in to the garden...weeding, setting out new plants, trying to visualize the garden-to-be filled with big tomato plants spilling over their cages, rambling cucumber vines, squash plants with huge fans of leaves hiding those baseball bat sized zucchini, while all I can see now are puny little plantlets with just a few tender leaves surrounded by large areas of cleared soil. Sometimes I've had enough time to cover that soil with wood chips for mulch. In some ways that just makes the tiny plants look even smaller.

Come fall and the realization of those dreams of a bountiful harvest I suddenly find myself with the energy and interest to do 'spring' cleaning which is a good thing since it usually didn't happen in the spring. Garden cleanup is easy. Months of accumulated clutter in the house is more challenging.

Invariably when I'm cleaning up and getting rid of junk I'll come across a recipe or two that I intended to make until the doldrums of summer got in the way. That, too, is part of the excitement of fall. Now it's cool enough to do a bit more baking. Spending more time in the kitchen is fun now that I'm feeling more energetic.

It's a good time to experiment, too. On our trip back from a wedding this past spring Sweetie and I enjoyed a multi-grain cracker that I later tracked down at our Whole Paycheck store. As expected, it was too expensive to purchase very often so I've been wanting to make something similar at home.

The latest catalog from King Arthur Flour has a recipe for canape pumpernickel bread. That seemed like a good jumping off place since the crackers we enjoyed were dark brown and looked like they started out as little loaves of bread that were sliced thin and then baked again to make them crisp.

You understand that I'm mostly using their recipe for proportions, right? I have a vision of my version even before I begin. My version will probably include a little rye flour, but also some buckwheat flour or maybe some of that KA Ancient Grain mix, along with regular unbleached and some stone ground whole wheat flours. There will be a little molasses for color and flavor, sea salt, some nuts...maybe pecans since they are soft enough slice well, perhaps some pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds and dried cranberries.


Doesn't that sound delicious?

I have some mini bread pans to bake the dough in and a very sharp serrated bread knife to use for making the thin slices. If these work I may have to splurge and buy some triple cream cheese to have with them. Yum!

The crackers turned out almost like I had hoped. Next time I'll up the add-ins a lot because there was too much dough to 'nuts and seeds' ratio. I'll also use more rye flour and less all purpose for a deeper flavor and slightly denser crumb. I might even try it as a quick bread although I do like the tang from the sourdough starter.


A big mistake was to forget to score the top of the dough to allow for oven spring. Mine blew out dramatically which made cutting super thin slices a challenge.

Freezing the loaves before cutting them thinly might also be a good idea.

I loved the mixture of grains and the flavors of the nuts, seeds and cranberries. These make a nice late afternoon snack with some creamy mild cheese. Bet they will be good with some blue cheese, too.

I will make these again and keep trying for a cracker that meets my expectations. These were close, and ever so delicious. Sweetie even liked thicker slices toasted with his breakfast. He asked that one of the little loaves be saved for regular use, not crackers. I think he was right. Fortunately, the weather is getting cooler...time for some more fall baking!

Au revoir dear readers.



Redwood Forest Crackers
1 1/2 oz (1/4 cup dark rye flour1 1/2 oz. (1 cup) KA Ancient Grains flour
1 5/8 oz. (1/4 cup) buckwheat flour
6 1/4 oz ( 1 1/2 cups) Unbleached all-purpose flour
7 1/4 oz. (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons) KA Irish wholemeal wheat flour (or whole wheat flour)

1 cup sourdough starter OR 2 teaspoons instant yeast dissolved in 1 cup lukewarm water
2 tablespoons mild molasses (not blackstrap)
1 1/2 cup lukewarm water
3 tablespoons vegetable or mild olive oil
1/2 cup pecans
1 teaspoon flax seeds
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
1 tablespoon light colored sesame seeds
3 tablespoon sunflower seeds
1/4 cup dried cranberries

In a bowl, mix together the flours until combined.
In another bowl combine the sourdough starter, water, molasses and oil. Stir to combine.

In another bowl combine the pecans, flax seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and cranberries. (Note: Next time I'll double the quantities of these...less dough, more add-ins will create the crackers I dream of.)

Combine the ingredients from all three bowls in another bowl (of a stand mixer if you have one) and mix and knead to make a stiff, sticky dough. Let the dough rise until it's almost doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Divide the dough into 4 pieces and shape them into loaves. Place in greased mini loaf pans, cover with oiled plastic wrap and allow the loaves to rise about 30 minutes. (Note: Next time I'll make sure to score the top of the dough to allow for oven spring. The photo above shows the error of neglecting that step...although the crackers still tasted great.)

Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until the crust is brown and the internal temperature registers 190 degrees F. Remove the bread from the oven, and cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a rack. When completely cool, preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Place a loaf on a cutting board. Use a sharp knife to slice in very thin slices. (Note: Next time I may freeze the loaves to make it possible to slice them even thinner, although these were beautifully crisp and crunchy.)

Just Short of Two Years

This is the two hundred and fifty-fifth post on this blog. It's been almost two years since the first post (which was October 23rd) and the first posted recipe is just as good today as it was then. When you post something as basic and wonderful as vegetable soup, it has a good long shelf life I guess.

Maybe it seems like I'm rushing the blog birthday a bit (and I DO love birthdays). Since October has proven to be the busiest month in 2008 so far, it's possible that I won't even have time to post next Thursday on the 2nd blog birthday, so I'm repeating the October 23, 2006 recipe for your enjoyment.

Blogging continues to be a super hobby. My skills and exposure to new ideas, foodstuffs, techniques and perspectives continue to grow, I've 'met' wonderful, creative, generous people from all over the globe. Looking back at the earliest posts, I think that my photo skills, and even my writing skills have improved over time.

If you have enjoyed this blog, and have the time and interest to do so, consider making one of the recipes from the last two (almost) years, blogging about it and sending me a link. My e-mail address is in the upper right corner of the blog. If life slows down a bit I may even be able to do a round-up if there are a few willing to play along. Here is your chance to try out a Daring Baker Challenge even if you are not a Daring Baker, to try your hand at tomato tarts, a bacon-lover's salad or apple pie or myriad other offerings. If nothing else, here is a good, healthy, fine tasting soup for your fall lunches or dinners.

This recipe is my variation of Weight Watchers zero point Garden Vegetable Soup. With the changes I've made, it's no longer zero points, although it's still pretty healthy. If you prefer to not use canned stuff, you can make broth and cook white beans ahead of time and use fresh tomatoes. If you have no problem with shortcuts, you can use frozen green beans and pre-chopped garlic, too. It's hard to mess this soup up.

Fall Soup

1 Tablespoon olive oil
2/3 Cup sliced carrots
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 Cups (2 cans) 99% fat free broth (I used chicken, but vegetable and beef work too)
1/4 to 1/2 medium head green cabbage, diced (depends on how much you like cabbage)
3/4 Cup green beans
2 medium tomatoes, diced or 1 can Ready Cut style diced tomatoes and juice
1/2 teaspoon dried basil or twice as much fresh
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano or twice as much fresh
1/2 Cup diced zucchini or 1 small summer squash, diced

In a large saucepan heat the olive oil, then saute the carrots and onions over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring every minute or so. Add garlic and saute another minute.

Add about 1/2 cup of broth to the pan and deglaze pan (scrape up the browned bits from the bottom and sides with a wooden spoon), then add rest of broth, cabbage, tomatoes, basil and oregano; bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, covered, about 10 minutes.

Add one can of cannelli beans or other cooked white bean, including the soft stuff at the bottom of the can. Add the squash and green beans. Stir. Put the lid back on and heat another 5 minutes. Check beans. If too crisp, cook another minute or two. Serve hot.

Spicy Pumpkin Muffins for Fall

Yep, the long awaited season of Fall will officially be here...I think tomorrow...and I'm welcoming it with open arms. The cool air, bright colors, and harvest flavors are such a delight in the Fall.

A local bakery used to have a pumpkin muffin with a sweet cheese surprise inside each fall, usually through Thanksgiving. The crumbly topping was part of the charm, too. Now the bakery is owned by someone else and the pumpkin muffins no longer have the cheese filling and the topping isn't as copious, but the muffin itself continues to be one of the best. The pumpkin flavor is intense, the spices are rich and they add walnuts for crunch.

Baking and cooking things that require long oven time, or roasting and braising become a favored activity in the autumn. Last week I tried making my own version of the pumpkin muffins, although I didn't do a topping, just a sprinkle of broken toffee walnuts. I used canned pumpkin, which is so easy, but the pumpkin flavor wasn't quite as intense at the bakery's. I added some molasses and maple syrup for sweetness and flavor, sour cream for moistness and tang, and applesauce to add moistness and cut the amount of oil needed. They must have been good because Sweetie ate three of them barely out of the oven. I thought they tasted better the next day.

So here's to Autumn - more baking weather, brisk walks through fallen leaves, brilliant blue skies and new recipes.

Spicy Pumpkin Muffins

started with basic muffins in Joy of Cooking, then went wild

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 large eggs ( or ½ cup egg substitute)
1 cup canned pumpkin – not pumpkin pie filling
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
¼ cup maple syrup
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup molasses
¼ cup sour cream or nonfat sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup raisins
¼ cup chopped walnuts or chopped toffee coated walnuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease and flour (or use baking spray) one 12- cup muffin tin. Set aside.

In a large bowl or on a large sheet of waxed paper, measure out all of the dry ingredients and spices: flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, ginger, nutmeg. Mix together with a fork. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, pumpkin, oil, applesauce, maple syrup, granulated sugar, molasses, sour cream and vanilla.

Put the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture bowl. With as few strokes as possible, combine the wet and dry ingredients. Do not over mix. Fold in the raisins just to distribute.

Fill the muffin cups ¾ full with the batter, dividing evenly among the cups. Sprinkle the tops with the chopped nuts.

Bake in the preheated oven 20 – 25 minutes, or until muffins spring back when the center is gently pressed.

Makes 12.

Seasonal Salad

The green salad is a boon for keeping the calories at bay and adding some nutrition to the meal at the same time. I tend to use mesclun, a mix of small sweet and bitter lettuce. It's sold at our local store as 'Spring Mix', even when it ought to be 'Fall Mix' because you know those tiny leaves have not been growing since the spring.

One of my favorite ways to uses these cute greens is to mix in some sort of cheese, some sort of fruit and some sort of nut. Recently I made a salad that seemed perfect for the autumn. To the lettuce mix I added some slices of 'Red' Gravenstein apples from the tree down by the garden...they have a little more red on the skin and they ripen later than the greener Gravs...plus some tangy blue cheese crumbles and walnuts from the tree out back. I toasted the walnuts first to bring out their flavor. A handful of chicken chunks from an earlier meal (although you could buy a cooked chicken at the market and use some of that, too) added some more protein and flavor. I dressed the salad with a sprinkle of rice wine vinegar that was seasoned with a little balsamic vinegar. The salad was refreshing, savory, and seemed just right for Fall. (I know there is no chocolate in this post...a girl has to have low calorie meals sometimes... but there will be some soon :)

The Days Are Just Packed

Sweet Autumn! So much to do but lots of it fun stuff. Harvested a huge basket of English walnuts before the rains came. Still picking the last of the summer tomatoes, plus I put in a dozen green bean plants. Not sure if I'll get any beans, especially if this cool, rainy weather keeps up, but who knows? Fun to try. We also installed another window in the farmhouse to keep grandma warmer this winter, did some pruning and pulled some depleted squash plants. Imagine my surprise when, after pulling a spent squash plant out of some tall grass, I found a zucchini the size of a baseball bat at the end. I had thought that the plant was dead weeks ago, but it had this hidden asset growing larger and larger. Now that fall has come, I'm very busy with the scholarship group, P.E.O., raising money for scholarships for women. We just awarded over $5,000 to women students who will be in college this fall. It takes a lot of time, but is very rewarding. The title of this post is from Calvin and Hobbes, the old comic strip. Calvin said that very thing so enthusiastically, that it makes me smile, even when I'm feeling a bit exhausted from what is being packed in the days.

The sky was a deep blue and the sun was bright and the air was clean and sweet on Sunday as we drove through the autumn colors of dun colored hills and bright orange, gold, yellow, and red foliage on the trees. We visited three artist's studios as part of Art Trails, an annual event in our area. There are so many participating artists that we can only get a taste of the talents. We purchased a mouth blown glass pitcher which the artist said is perfect for maple syrup; it can even be microwaved. We also purchased a salt glazed bowl just perfect for fall side dishes like mashed potatoes or polenta. It has warm, earthy colors...very fall like.

In keeping with the fall theme, I have a recipe for Apple Crunch, made with apples from our tree, walnuts from a different tree in the yard, and lots of good, healthy rolled oats. Since it is a sweet baked good and pretty healthy, it makes a good addition to the event by Joanna called Heart of the Matter. This time the heart healthy recipes should be baking recipes. This one uses fresh, unpeeled apples for lots of vitamins and fiber, plus a crisp topping that uses a tiny amount of butter, but that butter could be replaced with a heart healthy kind of spread or margarine. The nuts and oats add more fiber and good vitamins and minerals. Serve it with hot apple cider that has been seasoned with a little sprinkle of cinnamon and you have a fall treat that is good for you.

Elle's Apple Crunch

tart apples, unpeeled, washed, quartered, and cored, then each quarter cut into slices about 1/2 inch thick to make 4 cups

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

4 tablespoons butter or heart healthy spread or margarine

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup flour

1 cup rolled oats, quick cooking if possible

1/8 teaspoon each baking powder, salt, & soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg or allspice

1/4 cup coarsely broken walnuts

Stir together apples, lemon juice and the 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Place in a shallow baking dish that has been sprayed lightly with cooking spray. Place in a preheated 350 degree F oven and bake, covered, for 25 minutes. The apples will be soft and some juices will form.

While apples are cooking, melt the butter or spread or margarine in a small pan. Combine the 1/2 cup brown sugar, flour, rolled oats, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg or allspice in a medium bowl, mixing well. Pour the melted fat over the dry ingredients and stir well to mix completely. Add the walnuts and stir them in.

Remove the hot apples from the oven, uncover, and spread the crumby mixture over them, spreading evenly and covering the apples.

Bake another 25 to 30 minutes until the crunch topping is golden brown and crunchy.

Serve warm or cool and serve at room temperature or cold. (I think it tastes best warm)

Serves 6-8