BLOGTOBER ~ TOP 10 FAVORITE FALL COMFORT FOODS ~ BLOG 365.289B

October is one of those months that the weather can go either way in our neck of the woods. Well, this year does NOT have an Indian Summer in it’s future. Fall is here and winter is close on its heels from what we’re seeing so far!

Because of the sudden onset change in weather I’m thinking comfort foods! So, here are my top 12 favorite rainy and cold weather recipe links.

RUSSIAN CABBAGE SOUP

GREEN CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

CHICKEN CHILE VERDE CHILI

BLACK EYED PEA CHILI

RED CHICKEN CHILI

SPLIT PEA & HAM SOUP

CHICKEN FRIED CHICKEN

CREAMY RUSTIC TOMATO BISQUE & GRILLED CHEESE DIPPERS

SUNDAY GRAVY

SALISBURY STEAK & GRAVY

CABBAGE ROLL aka WAGON WHEEL WINTER SOUP

GRAM’S CHICKEN & NOODLES 

BLOGTOBER ~ FALL FAVORITE REIPCES ~ ALL THINGS APPLE ~ BLOG 365.285B

What would Fall or Autumn be without apples? For me, apples are one of my favorite things about Fall. Today’s prompt was about favorite apple desserts, but instead I decided to share some of my favorite fall apple recipes whether they are desserts or not. As you can see I have a bountiful amount of apple recipes to choose from. 🙂

CARAMEL APPLE SLAB PIES

CHUNKY APPLE SAUCE

ROASTED APPLE PIE

BROWN BAG APPLE PIE

SOUR APPLE SLAW

APPLE PIE CUPCAKES

CRANBERRY APPLE SLAB PIE

APPLE BALSAMIC CHICKEN

APPLE CHERRY SLAB PIE

SALTED CARAMEL APPLE BUTTER

SOUTHERN APPLE WALNUT CAKE

BAKED APPLE STUFFED PORK CHOPS

BLOGTOBER ~ FALL TRADITIONS & ALL THINGS AUTUMN ~ BLOG 365.278B

I’m going to join in on A Simple Life’s BLOGTOBER prompts where I can. Today’s prompt is Fall traditions. I DID BLOGTOBER a few years back and really enjoyed it. I figured this was a good place to do AUTUMN tag questions to get started.

Most importantly – YAY FOR AUTUMN! 

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT FALL?
Weather, nature, pumpkins, spice……When the first geese fly over heading south I jump for joy. Shortly thereafter the mornings and evenings both turn cool and crisp and the fireplace smoke brings a fragrant layer of wood smoke to the valley. And of course all the cute sweaters and flannels come out to play. Oh and don’t let me forget about the apples, and pumpkins and spice… This is truly my favorite time of year. If I could have to Autumns, a winter and a spring I’d be sooooo happy.
DO YOU GET FALL COLORS WHERE YOU LIVE?
I used to live in the Upper Peninsula and REALLY miss the fall colors from there, but we also get them here in the Pacific North West, just a bit differently.
FAVORITE FALL SCENT  (wax melts, candles, anything)
I do change out my wax melt and candle scents to everything apple or pumpkin spice.
FAVORITE FALL FOOD OR DRINK? CIDER OR HOT CHOCOLATE?
When I was a kid I hated cider and it was hot chocolate all the way, but as I got older I fell in love with apple cider! Of course it has to have the perfect spice blend with a lot of cinnamon sticks and oranges. A cup of this with a slice of pumpkin pull apart bread or baked apples is such a treat.
FOOTBALL…YAY OR NAY?
YAY OF COURSE!!! I’m sitting here watching the Colts and the Raiders as I type this!
DO YOU RAKE, JUMP IN OR BURN LEAF PILES?
Rake. I’ve never been one to jump in, but my dogs always have been.
HAUNTED HOUSE OR CORN MAZE?
I’ve done both and when I was younger they were fun with groups of friends, but now I prefer to decorate the house and wait for all the sweet faces of the trick or treaters. I love seeing their costumes.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ON A HAYRIDE?
When I was in girl scouts we did several and they were really fun!
DO YOU CARVE A PUMPKIN? APPLE OR PUMPKIN PIE? 
We no longer carve pumpkins and I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin pies. 🙁 Now I do make an awesome Cranberry Apple slab pie for the season.
DO YOU DRESS UP FOR HALLOWEEN?
Not much since I was a kid in college (only once since then), but I would if the right reason came alone. 😀
CANDY CORN….YAY OR NAY?
NOPE, never been a fan.
FAVORITE HALLOWEEN SEASON MOVIE?
Definitely like the fun ones that aren’t too gory or scary. The movies like Nightmare before Christmas, Hocus Pocus, Practical Magic and the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown are the best!
SCARIEST MOVIE?
The Omen, Amityville Horror, The Exorcist, Halloween, The Shining…
HALLOWEEN OR THANKSGIVING?
BOTH! They are the gateway to Christmas 😀 My favorite months, the “BER” months each have a major holiday in them full of my favorite 3 F’s – fun, family and food.
DO YOU WATCH THE MACY’S PARADE?
EVERY year for as long as I can remember and always followed by watching Miracle on 34th street.
WHITE OR DARK MEAT?
I like them both – but I tend to grab more white meat.
JELLIED OR REAL CRANBERRY SAUCE?
My oldest stepson LOVES the canned sauce only! He says it isn’t a holiday without it, but I prefer the homemade so I make it for the rest of us and buy a can for him. 😀

WILL YOU HOST OR TRAVEL FOR THANKSGIVING?
We’ve been invited to a friend’s house this year. I’m bring my dad traditional dressing and dessert, my Carrot Blueberry Bundt Cake. 😀
I hope you enjoyed and will join in! I look forward to reading the answers of others. 🎃

PEAR WALNUT CRISP ~ BLOG 366.331

Tender fresh pears topped with a crunchy crumb topping make this a favorite fall comfort food. Top it with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of fresh whipped whip cream to make it extra special.

PEAR WALNUT CRISP adapted from THE KITCHEN IS MY PLAYGROUND

FILLING
6 cups sliced pears (about 3 pounds)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon QUALITY ground cinnamon

  • Preheat oven to 375°.
  • Core pears and cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick slices.
  • Combine pears and lemon juice in a large mixing bowl, tossing to coat well.
  • Combine sugar, cornstarch, and the ground cinnamon in a small bowl until well blended.
  • Sprinkle sugar mixture over pears, tossing to coat all sides.
  • Pour mixture into lightly buttered 2-quart baking dish OR 8X11 baking dish.

TOPPING
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon QUALITY ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons cold butter, cut in small pieces
1/3 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

  • Whisk together the flour, ground cinnamon, brown sugar, and salt.
  • Cut in the butter pieces until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  • Add oats and chopped walnuts.
  • Sprinkle mixture evenly over the pears.
  • Bake 40 minutes, or until pears are tender and crisp topping is golden brown.
  • Serve warm, at room temperature with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

NOTES:

  • Instead of plain cinnamon I like to jazz this up with either Apple Pie seasoning or Pumpkin Pie seasoning sometimes.
  • You don’t need to peel the pears unless they have a thick skin, or you just prefer them skinless.

HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY, MENUS & RECIPES week 44 of 2024 ~ BLOG 366.309

Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

WEEKEND RECAP

I don’t know about you, but I always sleep weird the first few days after a time change! I wish they’d go back to standard time and leave it alone!!! Or even Daylight Savings time, but either way, leave it alone after that!

My weekend was good!

Friday started with meeting a repairman to try and get the stove at the Eagles handled (FINALLY!) While we were there waiting for the repairman during a 4 hour window, a friend and I de-decorated Halloween in the lodge. It POURED down rain ALL day long and according to the rain gauge we got almost 2 inches that day alone!

Saturday also poured, though a little less. I worked on the sewing machine drawers a bit, but it got so cold in the garage that I came inside to watch a NASCAR race and get warm. I tried to convert a favorite recipe to a slow cooker recipe and wasn’t thrilled with it at all unfortunately.

Sunday’s weather started out gorgeous and then turned gray and cold so that was also a day spent inside. My THRIVE grocery order arrived with quite a bit of damage (the kosher dill pickles were broken along with the pickled jalapenos and a bag of flour – what a mess!) so I spent an hour on the chat line getting that handled and then went to a late breakfast with hubby that was horrible! Well, the food was good, but the service was the problem. I spent the rest of the day working on menus, doing laundry and watching football.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

The thought works for forwards AND backwards, fall or spring 😂

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE

It’s official, flannels and turtlenecks are back! A little bit of rain today and then sunny and cloudy until the new storm moves in on Friday. The whole week should be in the mid 50’s for highs and high 30’s for the lows.

TO DO LIST, APPOINTMENTS & PROJECTS

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS & APPOINTMENTS
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING All caught up! YAY!
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS I think it’s going to be a boring week on this front as we leave Friday for the weekend and I’m not doing much before the trip.
  • PROJECTS & TRAVELS We’re going with a friend for the weekend to a big HOLIDAY MARKET we like and are splurging on a fun Jimmy Buffet hotel. I’m looking forward to the relaxed pampering!
  • RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING Recipes are scheduled through Thanksgiving, but I’ll start making a December menu plan next week after we get back.

DVR/TV TIME

WHAT’S ON THE DVR/TV
  • STREAMING We’re watching BONES and then next weekend the FINAL episodes of YELLOWSTONE begins.
  • CABLE Lots of Hallmark movies on the DVR that I’ll get to after Thanksgiving. Holiday baking shows are taping also.

READING TIME

I just started reading THE KEEPER OF STORIES by Sally Page

FUNNIES

MENU PLANS

BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀

MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
DINNER
 CHICKEN TOSTADA CUPS and SALAD
CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
RB BAKED BEANS & HOT DOGS
CAMPFIRE CASSEROLE
 CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
 CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own
DESSERT
 
PEAR GINGERBREAD PUDDING CAKE
 

FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA

I’m going to do up a separate post that is more in depth, but I have always LOVED this little church and was FINALLY able to see it from the inside when I went to their annual Christmas Bazaar last Saturday.

INSPIRATIONS

LIFE TIP

HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP

I found a FUN link I found for making your own Thanksgiving centerpiece.

RECIPES FROM LAST WEEK

RECIPES COMING UP THIS WEEK

  • SNAP PEA SALAD
  • PEPPERONCINI CHICKEN & RICE
  • PECAN PIE BROWNIE BOMBS

WEEKLY FEATURED PARTY LINKS

HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY, MENUS & RECIPES week 43 of 2024 ~ BLOG 366.302

Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

WEEKEND RECAP

4-6 PM Saturday was TRUNK or TREAT in our little town. The weather really showed up with a pleasant 71° and sunny which was great because Halloween itself is supposed to be pouring down rain and only 50° so Saturday may be the only Halloween some of these kids see.

TRUNK or TREAT has taken on a life of its own the past couple years. Surrounding towns bring their kids to our little area. It has also become quite an expensive endeavor. The kids have a great time and so do the businesses, but where and how do you draw the line on events like this? Our population is only 8,200 so how is we now have upwards of 2,500 kids participating? We did the math and between the candy, extra employees needed to man the booths and decorations it’s costing the average business between $500-$1,000 or more for a 2 hour event, especially if you’re located near the haunted house where the lines are long.

Sunday rained and the temperature dropped 20° so it was the perfect day to watch NASCAR, read a little and just do what you want kind of day. 😀 We did have a bit of a momentary break in the rain and we went and fed stale bread pieces to the peacocks and the deer that had wandered down into the park.

Let’s get on with Monday!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE

We’re supposed to get quite a bit of rain this week which we REALLY need, so I’m okay with that. The highs are supposed to be in the 50’s and 60’s with lows in the 30’s and 40’s.

ON MY MIND

I know Halloween is this week and we haven’t even celebrated Thanksgiving yet, but because Thanksgiving is late this year I am trying to get a jump on ALL things December! BLOGMAS is one of those things that keeps me happy and motivated through the holidays and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

That said, I did condense a bit and I have come up with my BLOGMAS timeline for 2024. Doing as many of the posts in advance that I can also helps me keep my sanity through the busy holiday season. I REALLY hope you can and will join in whenever possible.

TO DO LIST, APPOINTMENTS & PROJECTS

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS & APPOINTMENTS
  • LAUNDRY & CLEANING I thought I had finished the laundry and then I realized we were wearing clothes and it wouldn’t stay done 😀 for very long.
  • GROCERIES & ERRANDS I’m making a list for a very few things I need for this next week. I’ll pick those things up on Thursday when I head in to town for my pedicure appointment.
  • PAPERWORK & PHONE CALLS I have a couple calls to make this morning for information for my meeting tonight.
  • PROJECTS & TRAVELS I’m working on a painted pot and repotting of a Christmas cactus for a friend’s surprise birthday party on Wednesday. And I’m working on a “new” antique set of sewing machine drawers (pictures in the favorite photos section). I made reservations for a weekend getaway with a girl friend for a large Holiday Market we like to go to each year.
  • RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING My menus are planned through November, but I’m beginning to research some hearty soups, stews and casseroles for December and January.

DVR/TV TIME

WHAT’S ON THE DVR/TV
  • STREAMING We finished watching FRINGE and NIGHT COURT. We’re currently trying to figure out our next binge watches.
  • CABLE I have been taping the new Hallmark Christmas movies, am about to finish the Halloween season of the baking shows and will start the new holiday shows next week.

READING TIME

I started reading RECIPE FOR A PERFECT WIFE by Karma Brown

FUNNIES

MENU PLANS

BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀

10/28 MONDAY
10/29 TUESDAY
10/30 WEDNESDAY
10/31 THURSDAY
11/1 FRIDAY
11/2 SATURDAY
11/3 SUNDAY
DINNER
 STREET CORN CHICKEN ENCHILADAS
 PEASANT BEEF STEW
RB BAKED BEANS and HOT DOGS
CORN/YOYO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATOR NIGHT or YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN
 SLOW COOKER LEMON CHICKEN
 GARLIC ONION SLOW COOKER CHICKEN & RICE
LASAGNA SOUP & GARLIC BREAD
DESSERT
 
 SALTED CARAMEL BROWNIES
 

FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA

I found a cute “set” of sewing machine drawers at a friends store recently. They even had the rare “secret” top drawer fairly intact. The drawers had been “finished” by her brother, but they were in sad shape with too dry wood, missing drawer guides and “gummy” areas that were dried and yucky. They were also done as two separate units. I’m in the process of rejuvenating them with oil and putting the two towers into a single piece. Hubby is making me a top and a bottom for them, but this is a start for now.

And just a few pictures from the TRUNK or TREAT event. Many of the parents dressed up also. I have to say the Jack Sparrow was one of the more popular ones. He would accept candy from the businesses and then seek out one of the shyer kids to give it to. I also love the BIO HAZARD scarecrow and McDonalds pulled out the stops with their drive through window.

The deer joined the peacocks today for some joint snacking time.

Living in the country gives us some fun local displays for holidays also.

INSPIRATIONS

LIFE TIP

HOMEMAKING / COOKING TIP

With Thanksgiving coming up and so many stories in the news of bacterial diseases on the rise I thought it would be helpful to remind us all that food safety is so very important.

RECIPE LINKS FROM LAST WEEK

WEEKLY FEATURED PARTY LINKS