Life in Another State

I always forget how much chaos moving causes. I think it's just a week of moving things into boxes, then a week of moving things out of them.

Maybe it's crazier than usual this year because we moved out of state. We're no longer Massachusettians! (I refuse to acknowledge "Bay Stater" as the "correct" term, since I never ever heard someone from MA use it.) We've gone north, to the lovely state of Maine.

I've noticed neglected, prolific-branched apple trees tucked everywhere around here. I couldn't resist picking a few and photographing the drops. I hope your fall is filled with apples and pumpkins and beautiful foliage as well!

Homemade Apple Crisp

It's not officially fall to me until I've baked apple crisp! When the nights turned really chilly last week, it was finally the perfect weather for this warm, sweet, and crunchy dessert.

I usually use all Northern Spies or Macouns, but this time I went with half Spies and half Opalescents (another great baking apple). To make up for all the butter in this, I use whole wheat flour instead of white. That makes it healthy, right?...

In all honesty, I mostly use whole wheat flour for the extra nuttiness it gives the crisp. Try it for yourself, I think you'll like it better this way as well!

I also use more spice than you see in most crisp recipes. I just can't get enough of fall and winter flavors like ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom in my baked goods! I increase the amount of apples as well - the recipe originally called for only 4 cups, but I use 6 to 8 cups instead since I like a thicker apple layer. Use whatever you like, this recipe is very flexible!

Amy's Homemade Apple Crisp

(Adapted from Betty Crocker. Serves 6.)

6 - 8 cups sliced apples (I get about 6 from four large apples)

3/4 cup packed brown sugar, light or dark

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup rolled (not quick) oats

1/3 cup butter, softened

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Grease an 8 inch pan if using 6 cups of apples, or a 9 x 13 inch pan if using 8 cups, and preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, flour, oats, spices, and salt. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixtures resembles medium-sized peas.

3. Spread your sliced apples in the greased baking dish. Evenly spread the topping over them.

4. Bake for 30 minutes if you like your apples to still be firm, or 40 - 45 minutes if you like them softer. (I usually go with 40 minutes, it seems to be just right!) Serve warm.

Fall Decor, Projects, and Food

Minus the little blip of the 82 degree day we had yesterday (let's not talk about, that's how much I dislike hot weather!), it's definitely full-on fall in Boston. I'm loving the cool days and crisp nights. I've already pulled out my fall leaf banners and lantern pumpkins from last year, but I'll definitely have to add a print of this Kerria japonica illustration to my decor. I love how it has bright autumn yellows in it, but is versatile enough to be left up all year if wish.

How goes does this Hungarian apple cake by "From My Mother's Kitchen" look? In case you were wondering, yes, the entire middle is a big fat layer of baked apples. I don't think I'd be able to wait until dessert for this - I'd make it a weekend brunch treat. It'd be perfect alongside a steaming mug of cider or pumpkin spice coffee.

This paper strip pumpkin project by MerMag Blog is so different than most fall crafts projects I've seen. It's also simple yet modern, and you could use the basic paper strip idea to make wreaths for Christmas, eggs for Easter, shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day, and so on. 

I want to make this crispy kale autumn salad from Half-Baked Harvest asap. Butternut squash, pecans, kale, and grilled cheese croutons. What more could you ask for? You could also sub regular croutons for the grilled cheese ones and add in chicken or pork for extra protein. I'm sure it'd be delicious either way!

What are you making and baking this fall?

Unofficially Fall

It's finally starting to feel like fall around here, and the chill in the air has me practically skipping around! I love crisp, colorful autumn days and cold nights and I can't wait to start baking everything and anything featuring pumpkin and apples.

Here's a photo I took of a festive pumpkin patch in an apple orchard to help celebrate the arrival of a new season. Cheers!

Roasted Sugar Pumpkin and Apple Soup

I made this soup earlier this week with sugar pumpkins from a farmers' market. The recipe is simple and can be easily tailored to your own flavor preferences!

2 small sugar pumpkins (about 2 lbs. each), stems removed, cut in half, and pulp removed
1 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 clove of fresh garlic
1 medium apple (I used a Macoun, you could use a Granny Smith if you want more of a tart flavor), cored and diced
6 c. low-sodium chicken stock
few dashes of nutmeg
few dashes of ginger
salt and pepper to taste
plain yogurt or sour cream (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

2. Toss the pumpkin halves with the olive oil and place the pumpkin halves in a pan (you may need two, depending on their size). I like to place them cut side down. Roast until they can be easily pierced with a knife (about 45 mins). Remove them from the oven, turn the oven off, and let them cool.

2. While the pumpkins are cooling, heat the 2 Tbsp. oil in a large pot. Add the onions, and saute them until they are translucent.

3. While the onions are cooking, if the pumpkins are cool enough, remove their skins and dice them.

4. Add the diced pumpkin, garlic, and apple to the pot. Add in the spices. You may use cinnamon in addition to (or instead of) the nutmeg and ginger if you would like. Allspice, mace, cloves, or curry powder would also be great additions!

5. Pour in the chicken stock, and bring the mixture to a boil.

6. Once it's boiling, turn down the heat. Let the soup simmer for 45 mins. to an hour to let the flavors meld together.

7. Remove the pan from the heat, and use an immersion blender to turn the chunky mixture into a lovely, velvety one! Your pot should be less than halfway full, so that you don't splash yourself with the very hot soup. If your pot is not big enough, pour the soup into a larger vessel. If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a masher instead. You can also use a blender, but you will have to do it in batches. Do not fill your blender more than halfway! Hot liquids will expand too much, and the top will fly off. You don't want to get burned!

8. Put the blended soup back on the stove, and bring it back up to temperature. Add salt and pepper to taste.

9. Ladle into bowls. For a fancier presentation, swirl in a dollop of plain yogurt or sour cream. Serve and enjoy!

Autumn Apples

One of the best parts of autumn is all the apples at the farmers' markets! These are Shamrock apples, which were created by crossing McIntosh and Golden Delicious varieties.

They taste like sweeter Granny Smiths to me, and are one of my favorites this year. If you see them in your area, I suggest you buy one and see what you think!