Autumn kitchen ~

 

 

 

 

It was cool and foggy this morning and I had a craving for soup and cookies. So from The Art of Simple Cooking I made minestrone soup but with my additions of leftover spaghetti sauce with meat and ditalini pasta, otherwise known as salad macaroni. It was a spur of the moment idea so I used canned beans as well. As that was simmering on the stove I put together pumpkin cookies from an older cookbook,  Blue Ribbons Cookies, published by Consumer Reports in 1988 I believe. I drizzled them with glaze made from confectioners sugar and light coconut milk. No cow's milk for me. But I know this would be fantastic with a cream cheese frosting too.

 I love this time of year. I get to wear socks and watch the leaves fall from our liquid amber tree.

Pumpkin Cornmeal Bread and pumpkin cookies

October 2010


October Breads


Since fall is here and who doesn't like the smell of freshly backed bread I went to Beth Hensperger book A Bread For All Seasons for a tasty fall bread. This recipe includes pumpkin puree, cornmeal and rye flour for a unique flavor and texture. For some reason I measured out 1 cup pumkin instead of 1/2 cup pumpkin. At first I panicked but then continued on to see how things went. It was moist but that how I prefer the dough. Half the recipe I made into rolls while the other half I shaped into a round. Both came out fine. So I would include a full 1 cup pumpkin in the future and perhaps substitute white whole wheat flour for the rye  to see how the flavor turned out...Yummy

A Bread for all Seasons

gathering the ingredients

rising dough

bread and rolls

Out of the oven and ready to wrap in coth

Rolls

So I had some pumpkin puree left over so I opened a second can and made pumpkin cookies. Also very yummy. More like a muffin top or cake than a cookie and tastes like pumpkin pie. When stacked on top of each other they stick to each other. I haven't quite figured out how to store these cookies. Sometimes I drizzle icing on the top although it doesn't call for it. This cookie dough stores quite well in the refridgerator for a couple of days and in the freezer for longer. I love freezing cookie dough. I find we eat fewer cookie and it is faster to have a batch ready a week or so later. The recipe is in a set of cookbooks my father had given me 20 years ago and many of the recipes have become family favorites.

Pumpkin Cookies

I also made a couple of loaves of white bread to satisfy my family.

white bread

And Ms Hensperger's Fresh Apple Walnut bread which tastes a bit like cinnamon raisin bread without the guilt of being loaded with sugar

Fresh Apple Walnut Bread

moist & yummy

November looks like cranberry, oranges and rice in the breads from the book. I have to say that I have my recipes gathered for Thanksgiving and my shopping list compiled so I hope this provides me with more time to sew and bake!

Gratefully
Ileen