Fall Meals

 Now that fall has arrived and the weather is cooler, I thought I'd share a few favorite autumn dinners with you. Many of them are easy to put together and they are filled with flavor! Soup,pasta,protein and fish are on the menu today!

When their is a chill in the air, my go to dinner is often soup. It is a great way to use leftover vegetables and  is just comforting. I always have enough to save for lunch the next day which makes it an even better option. I am sharing three favorites in this post.

 One dish on repeat in our house is this  Vegetable Tortellini Soup

Another soup that I love to make is Butternut Squash Soup. The recipe is an easy one and the flavor is amazing.It has apple,potato and pumpkin spice in it making it the perfect fall soup. Find the recipe here

  We also love  this Minestrone Soup. It is loaded with vegetables and is hearty enough to be a meal in and of itself, but a little additional bread never hurt anyone !

This Pasta Pie involves a few steps, but the end result is so delicious. Makes a great meal along with a side salad,and is a nice way to use any leftover pasta and vegetables you may have.

Here is another pasta dish that is quick,healthy and delicious. Pasta with Zucchini is a winner served warm or at room temperature.

On a cool night, this comforting meal hits the spot. These Glazed Pork Chops  are so simple to make,and can be served with any sides you like. Here they are paired with mashed potatoes and a salad.

  If you are looking for lighter fare, this Lemon Sole makes a wonderful dinner with minimal effort. Pair it with a salad and/or potatoes and you have a satisfying,healthy  meal for your family.

I hope you are enjoying the autumn weather and have an opportunity to try a few of these recipes!Have a great day!

My Garden

Many of you know that I am an avid gardener. I became interested about 15 years ago and started with one strawberry plant and one cherry tomato plant. Needless to say,our garden has evolved and we have grown,or attempted to grow, everything from lettuce to vanilla beans. While we have yet to master the vanilla beans, we do grow a tremendous amount of produce and it has become something my family looks forward to every spring. This season,while not one of our best, did provide us with some wonderful vegetables.
  One of the first things we plan when we start each spring is our tomato selection. We have grown many varieties of heirloom tomatoes and have found that we do very well with heirloom cherry varieties.We love to grow larger tomatoes as well, but the small ones are the favorites.Some of our favorite large variety tomatoes are Black Krim, Brandywine,Big Rainbow,Genuwine and Green Zebra. The smaller varieties we love are the Sunrise Bumblebee, Sunchocola, Indigo Rose and Tiger Stripe.
   When we start in the spring, we usually purchase a mix of plants and seeds. One of my boys loves working in the garden and germinated many seeds in his room during the early months of the year so that they were ready to be planted in the garden when the weather warmed up. Once they are planted and spend a month or two outside ,this is usually what we see...

  Before long, we were picking the smaller varieties daily.How gorgeous are the colors?

  I love the smaller varieties for making bruschetta,which tastes incredible with homegrown basil,tomatoes and garlic. We also make a lot of sauce ,which I freeze so I can have a taste of summer all year long.

Here are a few more pictures from our tomato harvest this year. The larger ones didn't fare as well this summer due to a lot of rain. They were cracked and not very pretty, but they sure did taste delicious!

 Along with our tomatoes, we planted a variety of squash,eggplant ,peppers and garlic. Only my cupcake squash did well this year,again,the rain caused some rot in my zucchini plants. I managed to harvest one zucchini. Here is a sample of what we were able to pick every few days.

We also found a few surprise tomatoes.

 

Salad greens are also a favorite in our house. Spinach,arugula,romaine,kale,mesclun mix and some heirloom lettuces made up our lettuce beds. We plant these very early in the spring and all from seed. We never buy lettuce plants. 

This was the first harvest from the lettuce patch.

 This spring,our strawberries were beautiful, our garlic didn't make it to harvest(we are currently planting another bed ), and we had a lot of other assorted vegetables and herbs.

  All in all , we did well, but definitely not our best. We also have peach,nectarine,lemon,lime and apple trees, all of which are grown in containers.  Many flowers and plants were planted as well, which I will share in another post.
   One of the things I did for the first time this year was use a product called  Growtrax. We removed an old swing set that my boys had long outgrown, and I was left with a big patch of dirt. My first thought was sod, but I saw this product and gave it a try. I have to say,I was skeptical,  but it worked! It is simply a roll of grass seed,fertilizer and mulch. You cut it to size and lay it down on top of the dirt(rake the dirt first) then water up to three times a day. The birds cannot get the seeds out and I was amazed at how quickly it grew! It is supposed to take a few weeks to start growing, but mine grew within a week...thanks to more rain! I found it on QVC,and I highly recommend it.

As you can see, the mat itself is starting to disappear and the grass is growing. I am hoping it survives, but right now,it looks like it is doing well.
    I will have another gardening post next week. Enjoy your day!

Amazon Purchases

 

As a busy mom, Amazon is usually my go to online store. I like being able to find exactly what I want,and know that as a Prime member,  it will usually arrive at my door within two days. Here are a few of my recent purchases.
   I love to cook, try to stay healthy and have been a longtime admirer of Cristina Ferrare,so naturally,I had to pre-order her new book. It is set for release in October,and I cannot wait for it to arrive. I will be sure to let you know all about it once I get a chance to read it.

    I have been working hard to take care of myself these days,which isn't always easy when you have a large family to care for,but so far,so good. Every morning,well, most mornings, I exercise once everyone leaves the house and then I make myself a protein shake. This is my go to protein powder .

I add in a little peanut butter,flax seed,cocoa powder and almond milk. It tastes like a chocolate shake but is much better for me.

   I also recently purchased this trampoline .

Originally,I bought it for my son,who has autism,thinking it might be a fun thing for him, but he isn't really interested, so I use it every day to exercise and love it. It takes up a little bit of room, but I can move it around easily,so it works for me.
   In our house, the kids have a habit of opening cereal boxes or chips and not wrapping them up well after, which leaves us with stale food. I ordered the set of two Oxo Good Grip containers this is the set of ten and used these labels and these chalkboard pens to label and organize everything. Now ,we aren't wasting as much cereal! Woohoo!

    As many of you know,I decorate cookies. I usually run to the local craft store to pick up supplies, but sometimes ordering online is just so much easier. I run out of meringue powder regularly, so I just order a few containers online now and save myself a trip to Michael's. This is the brand I use.

  I also have recently discovered Mud Pie products. So many cute things! Lots of home decor, bags, etc., and most are very reasonably priced. I picked up this bag for my trips to the farmer's market each week. It is sturdy and I've received a lot of compliments on it!While looking through all of the Mud Pie inventory,I came across many holiday items. I always love to plan ahead,so naturally I am already thinking about Thanksgiving and Christmas. When I saw these cute turkey napkins,I couldn't resist. They come in a   set of four and are a neutral linen color with a white embroidered turkey. I think they will make a nice addition to my holiday table.

  

Well, those are all my recent Amazon purchases. I'll share more in a few weeks and definitely before the holidays.

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Favorite Fall Dessert Recipes

Today I want to share some of my favorite fall desserts. They are not too difficult to make, and will leave your house smelling heavenly. As we head into the time of year when we are busy with homework,sports,and invites to a variety of gatherings, it is always nice to have a few tried and true recipes that come together quickly and are enjoyed by all.

When fall begins and the weather is cool, I love to turn my ovens back on and start baking. This quick bread is one of our favorites and is on repeat in our house throughout the fall and winter months. We love it. It is also a great treat to bring along to a friend's house or to give as a gift. Just wrap,add a tag(see above) and you are ready to go!

  We are also big cheesecake fans. When I made this and tried it for the first time, I knew it was a keeper. I found this pumpkin shaped mini cheesecake pan years ago at Williams Sonoma but am not sure if they even make it any more. Any mini cheesecake pan will do, or just make a large one instead. It's a delicious cake!

  Naturally, fall brings with it many,many apples. If you and your family have been apple picking, or you've found some beautiful apples at your local farmer's market, this pie is as easy to make as it is delicious. I like to make my own pie crusts, but in a pinch ,store bought is fine. No one will know, and if it makes your life easier,I'm all for it!

   This recipe is one that I make frequently. It is very basic, absolutely delicious and loved by everyone. The choice of nuts is entirely up to you, but I tend to stick with walnuts or pecans. The great thing about it is that you can make the dough ahead,place it in the mini muffin tins and freeze it until you are ready to fill them. The filling comes together in minutes,and before you know it,you have mini bites of deliciousness. This is a great go to treat for fall gatherings, visits with friends,bake sales or any other festivities you have planned. Keep a pan with frozen dough in your freezer and you will always be ready for unexpected guests!

I hope you enjoy the recipes! Have a sweet weekend!

Fall Decorating

My favorite time of year is here again! I love to decorate for fall. The colors, the pumpkins and the falling leaves all make me very happy. Today I wanted to share some of the new things I've found for the season . I am hoping to get out this weekend and pick up some mums and pumpkins so I can finish decorating, sit back and enjoy it all.
  I ordered these galvanized buckets (see above) and love them! I plan to fill them with mums,pumpkins and gourds, and place them on my front porch.
I purchased this   fall garland which I will hang around my front entrance. I ordered two, but as it turns out,I have to order another to cover the entire space. I think it will make a nice addition to the front of the house.

   At the end of the summer,QVC always has fall decorating shows which really have some nice  items. I found this Pumpkin Pot  and  am using it to store pretzels and other treats for the kids. So cute! Another great item I found was this beautiful pierced pumpkin. I picked up two of them and they are quite substantial. The color is gorgeous as well. I planned to place them outside, but since my porch is not covered, I am going to keep them inside instead. They are currently sold out, but there is a waiting list if you'd like to purchase them. They had white pumpkins as well.

   These adorable candy corn paper placemats are from Hermann Furniture. They are located in Texas, but if you call them, they will ship their items to you if possible. These come in the form of a pad,set of 24 placemats,and easily tear away and are ready to use on your table.

   While browsing  the web, I came across this Hello Pumpkin Pillow,which I  picked up,and is still in stock.

I also found this beautiful set of tiered pumpkins.I had a gift card so I ordered it online and found out that I was able to have them sent to my local Kirkland's store without having to pay shipping fees. When I went in to pick up my order, they also told me I was entitled to an additional discount( I think it was 15%) on anything in the store because I 'd place an online order for in store pickup. I wound up buying two fall signs..I mean,why not? Win-win.I am not sure if they still have the tiered pumpkins in stock.

 One of the things I love most about the fall is the cooler weather.I enjoy curling up with a cup of herbal tea,a good book or magazine and a warm blanket. After reading many positive posts about this  throw , I decided to give it a try,and they were right! It really is one of the softest,coziest throws I own. I plan to buy some as Christmas gifts this year. It is so soft and I  love the color as well. I chose the rust clay color,which is perfect for fall.

    Well, those are a few of my latest purchases. I will be back tomorrow with more fall fun decorating ideas. Have a great day!