The Beauty of Fall

Adam playing on a hay bale at the Plumper Pumpkin Patch.

The days are cooler and things are winding down in the gardens, the leaves are changing color and the mornings are foggy sometimes. Fall is here and we are all enjoying it very much. It brings us inside to enjoy delicious food together more and we love the coziness of fall days. I am happy that we live in a place where we can truly appreciate each season. Although my favorite season is summer because I love growing a garden, enjoying the sun and all of the lovely flowers I like to have a chance to slow down in fall and winter and enjoy the bounty of the harvest.

Suburban Garden:

Although this week I did not really work in the garden and I did not harvest anything either since we are getting busier with work, preschool activities and seasonal things such as making Halloween costumes I did appreciate some of the lovely changing colors happening outside. I love the colors of the leaves and some of the flowers that linger and and change color. There is still a lot of beauty to enjoy outside.

A beautiful purple hydrangea bloom in our front yard.

The beautiful yellow leaves on a tree in our front yard.

The top of the pumpkin that Adam picked out.

Country Garden:

Last Friday we did not visit the country garden because my Dad got sick. It is unfortunate because we missed the plum harvest and seeing many other plants and happenings around the garden and orchard. However, I did talk to my mom and find out about some of the happenings about the place.

My parents harvested a small cantaloupe and watermelon and ate them. They thought that they were nice and ripe and had excellent flavor. They plan to grow more next year and apply more fertilizer and put them in a sunny spot so that they will grow larger.

Also, they plan on harvesting the rest of the corn very soon as well as harvesting more apples to make cider with this coming weekend. My mom dried the plums that they harvested and has continued to can tomatoes and preserve other harvests. It is a very busy time trying to harvest the rest of the bounty from the garden and orchard this time of year!

A Trip to the Pumpkin Patch:

This past weekend we decided to go to a pumpkin patch. We decided to go to Plumper Pumpkin Patch located in Portland on Old Cornelius Pass Road. It was a great choice because there were a lot of activities and Adam had a great time there! He really honed in on a particular pumpkin that he liked as soon as we arrived. He tried to lift it and carry it with him right away! Later on, Paul was able to purchase that same one to take home. We also rode the barrel train which was made of hollowed out plastic barrels fashioned into a train which was pulled by a tractor. It was so much fun and Adam got a huge kick out of it!

Adam by some of the pumpkins he liked at the patch.

Me with Adam at the pumpkin patch.

Me with Adam on the barrel train ride!

Adam by some cornstalks. He loved going in and out of his hiding place!

Paul with Adam and the pumpkin he picked out.

Cooking:

This week I made some baked goods out of whole grains, pumpkin and zucchini. I hope you try these recipes too and enjoy them!

Oatmeal Whole Grain Pancakes:

This is a recipe that I cut out of the Oregonian newspaper quite a while ago. It makes very wholesome pancakes that are also delicious! I upped the amount of cinnamon in them though. Also, I used some uncooked whole grain cereal instead of the wheat germ since I didn't have any.

Oatmeal Whole Grain Pancakes!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup old fashioned oatmeal, uncooked
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons wheat germ or whole grain cereal
2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup whole milk, or as needed

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the oatmeal, flour, wheat germ or whole grain cereal, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Whisk in the egg and enough milk to just combine the mixture.

2. Heat griddle, skillet or electric frying pan over medium heat (or around 300F on your electric frying pan which I used).

3. Brush the griddle or skillet lightly with butter.

4. When the pan is hot, pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. Cook pancakes until small bubbles appear on the surface and the bottoms are golden, about 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until golden, about 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining batter until all of the pancakes are cooked.

5. Serve the warm pancakes with syrup, butter or jam. Enjoy!

Making Pizza:

On Saturday evening Adam helped me assemble the homemade pizzas. He had a lot of fun spreading the sauce and putting on the toppings such as pepperoni. He is a great pizza chef! We all enjoyed the pizza along with some spinach salad. The recipe for the pizza is the same as the one I used for grilled pizza in the summer in an earlier post.

Adam helping put some pepperoni on the pizza. He loved helping out!

The combination pizza ready to put into the oven.

Spinach Salad:

This is a recipe that I found online. It is like one of those "fancy" salads you get at restaurants. I cut the salad dressing ingredients down enough to make a smaller salad to serve the three of us. However, I included the original version here.

A yummy salad to go with the pizza!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered
• 1 pound spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons minced onion
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook and stir almonds in butter until lightly toasted. Remove from heat, and let cool.
2. In a large bowl, combine the spinach with the toasted almonds and cranberries.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, onion, paprika, white wine vinegar, cider vinegar, and vegetable oil. Toss with spinach just before serving.

Pumpkin Pie Bars:

This is a recipe that I found online at Joy of Baking. I love their recipes but I decided to change the recipe just a bit by adding candied ginger to the hazelnut shortbread crust and adding some nutmeg to the filling. I love the flavor of the ginger! It worked very well! I love being able to have a nice small piece of pumpkin pie with a delicious, nutty crust!

Delicious pumpkin pie bars!

Hazelnut Shortbread:

1/2 cup (50 grams) raw unpeeled hazelnuts

1 cup (130 grams) all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 cup chopped candied ginger

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup (110 grams) light brown sugar

>1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pumpkin Filling:

2 large eggs

1 - 15 ounce can (425 grams) pure pumpkin (2 cups)

3/4 cup (165 grams) light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/2 cups (360 ml) heavy cream

Garnish: (optional)

1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream

1 tablespoon (15 grams) granulated white sugar

Pumpkin Bars: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place the rack in the center of the oven. Line the bottom and sides of a lightly buttered 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) baking pan with a 22 inch (56 cm) long piece of aluminum foil that has been buttered and floured.

Hazelnut Shortbread: Place the hazelnuts on a baking sheet and bake for approximately 15 minutes or until brown and fragrant and the skins are starting to peel. Remove from oven, place the hot hazelnuts in a clean dish towel, roll it up, and let the nuts 'steam' for about five minutes. Then briskly rub the nuts to remove most of their skins. Set aside to let the nuts cool and then coarsely chop.

Place the chopped hazelnuts, flour, candied ginger and salt in the bowl of your food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process the mixture until the hazelnuts are finely ground.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (2 - 3 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat until a soft dough forms. Press the dough evenly and firmly onto the bottom of the foil-lined pan. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the shortbread is set and beginning to brown around the edges. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack.

Pumpkin Filling: Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the pumpkin, sugar, vanilla extract, spices, and salt and whisk to combine. Gradually stir in the cream. Pour the filling over the pre baked crust and bake for about 30 - 35 minutes, or until the filling is set in the center. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

Run a knife around the inside edges of the pan. Lift the pumpkin bars from the pan by holding onto the edges of the aluminum foil. Place on a cutting board, peel back the aluminum foil, and cut into 32 bars. The bars can be covered and refrigerated up to three days. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Garnish: Whip the cream with the sugar until stiff peaks form. Place the whipped cream in a piping bag fitted with an open star tip and pipe a small rosette of cream on top of each pumpkin bar.

Makes 32 pumpkin bars.

Source: This recipe was originally from the following book:

Rodgers, Rick. Autumn Gatherings. William Morrow. New York: 2008.

Pumpkin Zucchini Bread:

I found this recipe online. I just added dried cranberries instead of the chopped walnuts and also added cardamom and more cinnamon. This is a deliciously moist bread that is so good with soft butter on top!

Pumpkin Zucchini Bread with Cranberries.

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon cardamom
  
• 1 cup zucchini, shredded
• 1 cup dried cranberries, chopped

Directions:

1. Before beginning, preheat your oven to 350 F and grease and flour two loaf pans.
2. Mix eggs and sugar together, then stir in the pumpkin, butter and vanilla.
3. Stir dry ingredients together and add to egg mixture.
4. Mix well.
5. Stir in the zucchini and nuts.
6. Divide into pans and bake 45 to 50 minutes or until the loaves test done.
7. Cool in pans ten minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

I hope all of you enjoy your week!