Recipe: Best Baked Beans

'Tis the season for hearty comfort foods, and what says comfort better than baked beans? This is an easy recipe that is sooo good. If you want it healthier, omit some of the sugar, and cook your own beans - it's easy!

Best Baked Beans
(Serves 6-8.)

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 pound center-cut thick bacon, cut into 1" pieces

1/2 cup ketchup

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon brown mustard

15 oz dark kidney beans, drained (or 1 cup dry kidney beans - cooked & drained)

15 oz butter beans, drained (or 1 cup dry butter beans - cooked & drained)
30 oz pork and beans, undrained

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Sauté onion in olive oil over medium high heat until it starts to soften. 
• Add 1 pound center-cut bacon and cook until crispy. With a vented spoon, remove bacon and onions from pan and place on folded paper towels. Blot with extra paper towels to remove as excess fat.
• Add ketchup, sugar, brown sugar, white vinegar and mustard to a large oven-proof dish. 
• Add drained kidney and butter beans along with undrained pork and beans. 
• Add bacon and onions to bean mixture. Stir well to combine. 
• Bake uncovered at 350° for 45 minutes.

Recipe: Golden Rum Molasses Apple Compote

This perfect fall dessert recipe makes a warm, light, end to an autumn evening meal, filled with the fragrances of fall. Apples and spices pair with rum and butter to to bring all the flavors of the season to your plate. Try this one with fresh apples from the farmer's market, or pick them yourself!

Golden Rum Molasses Apple Compote

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp light rum
3 apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp molasses
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
dash of grated fresh nutmeg
pinch of kosher salt

Directions:

• Put the ingredients in a large saucepan; stir to combine.
• Place saucepan on low heat, set the pan cover on, tipping slightly to allow some steam to escape.
• Simmer very slowly for about 20 to 30 minutes or until the apples are tender, stirring a few times while cooking.
• Serve over rich vanilla ice cream in small dessert bowls or in the bowl with a dollop of whipped cream.

Fall Cookbooks for Cooking Fall Favorites From Scratch

We may have our first frost tonight, the leaves are gold and red, and the wind is nippy - there's no doubt that fall is here - and with it, my favorite season for cooking! With late-summer veggies still plentiful, and fall favorites available in the garden or at the farmer's market, there is plenty to choose from when making hearty fall recipes to keep you warm at night. Here are several autumn-inspired cookbooks to give you some great ideas for your fall cooking.

Homemade Harvest
~ Gooseberry Patch ~

This is a collection of some of the best seasonal recipes you'll find anywhere. You'll find delicious recipes perfect for tailgating and other Fall family fun as the summer season comes to a close. This book includes hearty home favorites to make the most of Autumn's harvest flavors. Cooking and decorating tips are a welcome plus to this book, with some great ideas for homemade crafts to go along with this warm, welcoming season.



Cooking from the Farmers' Market
~ Jodi Liano, Tasha De Serio, Jennifer Maiser ~

This book from Williams-Sonoma features 245 recipes to create foods using fresh produce and vegetables straight from the Farmer's Market. Shopping at these down-home businesses is a national obsession, and the fresh-picked goodness translates into great-tasting recipes you can share with family and friends all year.


Fall Harvests: Menus & Recipes That Celebrate Autumn's Bounty
~ Martha Phelps Stamps, Meryl Truett ~

This book takes you through the fall and winter months with lots of delicious recipes collected by a veteran Southern cooking author. Within the 176 pages of recipes you'll find treasures like Refried October Beans, Chicken and Apple Sausage with Ginger, Garlic, and Mint, and a delightful Roast Acorn Squash with Maple. This is a book written for the home cook who desires simple, delicious meals made with the freshest ingredients from farmer's markets and home gardens.

Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Markets
~ Deborah Madison ~

This book reflects the public's concern for organic produce grown locally. Our desire to avoid over-processed foods is reflected in this 400 page book dedicated to market-fresh ingredients. You'll learn how to make the most of everything from crucifers, roots, berries, dairy products, cabbages, and so much more. This is a richly illustrated collection of seasonal recipes that highlights the wonders of local produce grown from coast to coast.

You can find these books at your local library, or just click the links above to buy on Amazon.com.

Recipe: Spiced Maple Glazed Pork With Roasted Sweet Potatoes And Pears

This is a perfect fall recipe! The autumnal flavors of sweet potatoes, pears, and maple combine with spices to make sweet and spicy magic in this hearty roast - perfect for a cool fall evening, or dinner party with guests.

Spiced Maple Glazed Pork Roast With Roasted Sweet Potatoes And Pears
(Serves 8-10.)

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 pork shoulder roast (about 6 to 7 lbs)
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 cup water
2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
2 large firm pears, peeled, cored, and quartered

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Mix together the salt, pepper, and cinnamon, then gently rub this mixture over the pork roast; then put in a large roasting pan, fat side up, and roast for about 2 hours or until the fat is golden brown.
• To make glaze:  Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, then add the maple syrup, brown sugar, cloves, nutmeg, and water, stir and bring to a boil, then immediately remove from the burner.
• Put the sweet potatoes and pears in a large bowl, pour half the maple syrup mixture over them and toss until coated well.
• When pork roast is done, remove the roast from the oven and arrange the sweet potatoes and pears around the pork roast. 
• Carefully drizzle the remaining maple syrup mixture on the pork, coating the top and sides of the pork roast - use a brush if that works better.
• Return the roast to the oven and cook an additional 1 hour.
• After the 1 hour, increase the oven temperature to 425 and continue to cook until the pork reaches 165 degrees with a meat thermometer and the vegetables are fork tender, about 30 to 40 minutes, a bit more or less.
• Remove the roasting pan from the oven and transfer the pork to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil and let rest 8 to 10 minutes before slicing to serve. Spoon sweet potatoes and pears on each plate with pork, and spoon sauce from roasting pan over all.

Fall Is Soup Time - Warm Up With These Tasty & Unusual Chill Chasers

The start of the fall season is usually marked by that first hint of chill in the air.  That chill outside can often translate into a chill inside. This makes fall the perfect time to curl up with a steaming bowl of soup.  But, do you want to have yet another bowl of plain chicken noodle soup?  Why not warm up your body and soul at the same time with some unusual soups?  Here are a few soups that you can try this fall to warm up yourself and your family.

 (Photo credit: 46137)

Harvest Soup With a Basil Bump

If you want a great soup that you can throw together with one trip to the farmers market, this is the soup for you. Get your big pot going with fresh diced tomatoes, zucchini, onion, bell pepper, celery, and carrots. When all those wonderful ingredients have simmered together and gotten all softened, it's time for the surprise ingredient - basil pesto.  Make a classic basil pesto from fresh basil, garlic, pine nuts, and olive oil, blended smooth in a food processor.  Stir the basil pesto into the finished soup, reheat and serve hot. This is great before the basil, but after the basil pesto is added, this soup goes from great to unbelievable!  No more chill.  No more dry scratchy throat after you've settled in with this spicy, satisfying soup.

Pozole Chases the Blues Away

Known as a special occasion dish in Mexico, this is a soup that is often served at large parties where the wine, beer, and other adult beverages flow freely.  As such, this soup is a well-known cure for hangovers and is often eaten in the wee hours of the morning.  Typically, this soup is a combination of pork, beans, and hominy grits in a hearty stock.  But, its curative properties come from an abundance of several other ingredients like garlic, cumin, onion, fresh oregano, and lots and lots of red chiles. Whether you want to sweat out a headache or ward off a chill, having a pozole recipe to turn to is a very good idea.

Wonton noodle soup (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Turkey Wonton Warms You Up

We love our leftover turkey, don't we.  We especially love it when we're looking around for some inspiration to make a warming soup.  This soup starts simply enough with some stock, turkey, noodles,  pork dumplings, and greens.  Use baby bok choy for authenticity, or choose a more bitter or peppery green if you want to impart more of a warming feel to your soup.  Most recipes for wonton soup will have added sesame oil which is tasty and also helps to soothe the throat.  For whatever reason, the more intense the flavor, the more warming a soup seems to be.  Of course, adding red pepper flakes bumps the warming factor up a notch or two, so be sure to spice this soup up to send the chills packing.

Apple Pumpkin Soup Strategies

If there are two ingredients to put in your soup that scream Autumn farmers market, they would be apples and pumpkins. There are quite a few variations on soup recipes using these two fall favorites.  You may be looking for a soup that closely resembles pumpkin pie.  Or, maybe, you want the tart apple flavor to come through first.  You can make a country style soup with big chunks of pumpkin and apple swimming in a sweet and sour broth to warm you inside and out.  You can make a smooth pureed soup with a surprising kick of curry to help clear a stuffy head and chase away the chills.  This is a combination of two powerhouse ingredients that can go from one end of the flavor wheel to the other with no problem at all.  Pick your favorite flavors and create a soup that fits your needs.

When it comes to chasing chills away, nothing beats a big steamy bowl of soup.  But, choose the right ingredients and you can do more than make a warming bowl of soup – you can create a big soup hug!

Be sure to check back later this week for some hot and tasty soup recipes.

Fall Recipe: Cranberry Apple Harvest Time Chicken Salad

The flavors of the harvest come together in this zesty and delicious chicken salad. Citrus, apples, spinach and cranberries bring the taste of fall to your table, and the light, flavorful dressing kicks everything up a notch, and without a lot of calories. Visit your local farmer's market and pick up some fresh ingredients for this tasty salad recipe!

Cranberry Apple Harvest Time Chicken Salad
(Serves 4-6.)

Dressing Ingredients:

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

2 oranges, zested and juiced
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp coarse ground mustard
1 to 2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 small garlic clove, grated

Salad Ingredients:

6-8 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves
2 cups diced cooked chicken
1 cup diced celery
2 medium apples, ripe but crispy, washed, cored, and diced
1/2 cup finely diced red onion
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1/2 cup toasted pecans

Directions:

1. Into a glass bowl, measure 2 teaspoons orange zest, then add the mayonnaise, mustard, sugar, salt, black pepper, and garlic, and whisk until combined.
2. Keep whisking and slowly drizzle in 1/2 cup of the orange juice, whisking until dressing is smooth and comes together.
3. To assemble salads, place spinach in a large salad bowl.
4. Add all the remaining salad ingredients, then drizzle dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat all the ingredients.
5. Serve immediately.

Fall Recipe: Braised Brussels Sprouts In Dijon Butter Sauce

The bane of every child's existence, Brussels sprouts often can become an adult favorite - and can lend themselves to surprisingly sophisticated dishes. Try this one for a simple but flavorful take on this healthy fall vegetable - available at many farmer's markets across the US this time of year. And if you hated Brussels sprouts as a kid and haven't tried them since, maybe it's time to revisit this nutritional powerhouse food!

Braised Brussels Sprouts In Dijon Butter Sauce
(Serves 2-4.)

Brussels sprouts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh Brussels sprouts
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt and black pepper

Directions:

• Rinse and remove any discolored leaves, trim a small piece of the bottom off, then cut an 'x' in the bottom with a small knife.
• Put salt, water, and Brussels sprouts in a large saucepan over medium-heat and bring to a boil, lower heat, cover tightly, and simmer, shaking pan a couple times during this cooking time - do NOT remove cover to stir, just shake the pot.
• Simmer for about 8 to 10 minutes or until Brussels sprouts are tender.
• Take the cover off just long enough to poke a Brussels sprout with the tip of a knife to see if they are tender. When they are tender, drain well through a strainer or colander.
• After you dump the Brussels sprouts into the strainer, put the saucepan back on the stove over medium heat, add the butter and melt it, then whisk in the mustard until it is smooth.
• Immediately add the drained Brussels sprouts to the saucepan and stir to coat well with the sauce.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe: Autumn Squash Baked Chicken And Rice

This tasty fall casserole uses yummy fresh fall veggies from the farmer's market or your garden to add a healthy twist to a standard chicken and rice dish. It's a simple dish with mild flavors, so feel free to add some red pepper or a fresh Anaheim if you want to spice it up a little. Otherwise, it's a tasty fall dish for the kids or those who don't like a lot of spice to their food.

Autumn Squash Baked Chicken And Rice
(Serves 4-6)

Ingredients:

 (Photo credit: Darice)

8 free-range chicken drumsticks or thighs (1 1/4 lb), skin removed
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 package (6 oz) long-grain and wild rice mix
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut in 1 inch cubes
1 medium zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1 inch slices
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups water
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking pan.
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat; when hot add chicken, cook about 3 minutes, turn and cook 3 more minutes, or until chicken is browned slightly. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.
3. Put rice, contents of seasoning packet, squash, zucchini and bell pepper in baking pan.
4. Turn heat on under skillet, add water and bring to boiling, then pour the hot water over rice and veggies in baking pan and stir to mix.
5. Add the cheese and stir, then arrange the chicken on top of the rice mixture. 
6. Cover pan with foil and bake 25 to 30 minutes or until rice absorbs the liquid and is tender and chicken is no longer pink at all.
7. Remove and let sit for 3 minutes, then take off foil and serve hot.

Recipe - Pumpkin Dip

Pumpkin may be a fall vegetable, but this dip is delicious any time of year! Creamy pumpkin blended with garlic, chilis, and cool yogurt, and offset with the tang of lime juice, makes this a treat for the taste buds. Great with pita bread or chips.

Pumpkin Dip

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups pumpkin, peeled and cut into chunks
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 red chili, seeded and finely chopped
2 tbsp natural yogurt
Dash of fresh lime juice
Olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit.
• Arrange the pumpkin chunks in a baking dish and drizzle with olive oil. Season well with black pepper and a pinch of salt and mix well. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until the pumpkin pieces are tender. 
• Place the pumpkin, garlic and chilli in a food processor, add the yogurt and lime juice, adjust seasoning and process until smooth. 
• Serve at room temperature with tortilla chips or toasted pita bread.

Fall Recipes Collection

Image via Wikipedia
Fall is one of my favorite times for cooking. There is still a great variety of fresh vegetables available (both from my garden, and the last few weeks of my CSA share), and it's time for my favorite seasonal recipes - namely, soups, stews, and chilis! Long, cool nights make me want to snuggle up with a hot bowl of something yummy, and whether it's a new chili recipe with fresh poblanos, or a hearty vegetable beef soup, it's all good to me.

In honor of the season, here are some great, healthy, from-scratch fall recipes to check out, as well as some gorgeous pictures that will make you drool! (And see below for some tasty recipe book suggestions.)

Fall Recipes | Eliza Domestica - Healthy recipes and ideas for ...
I apologize for the late post - it has been a little crazy here on my end. In lieu of a new recipe I thought it would be nice to compile all of my favorite.
Publish Date: 10/16/2010 19:28
http://www.elizadomestica.com/2010/10/16/fall-recipes/

My Favorite Fall Recipes | fANNEtastic food
I'm currently en route to Texas for my friend Jessica's wedding, so in the meantime I thought I would share some of my favorite fall recipes with you all! I just rediscovered a few of these I posted last fall – yum! ...
Publish Date: 10/15/2010 10:18
http://www.fannetasticfood.com/2010/10/15/my-favorite-fall-recipes/

Healthy Fall Soup Recipes | Natural Detox Diet and Cleansing ...
It's fall! There is nothing quite like the changing seasons to make me crave soup! Here are some healthy soup recipes to keep you warm and keep you.
Publish Date: 10/17/2010 16:16
http://www.totalwellnesscleanse.com/blog/851/healthy-fall-soup-recipes/

Fall Cooking: 12 Classic Comfort Food Recipes | Apartment Therapy ...
Fall Cooking: 12 Classic Comfort Food Recipes. 1. Beef and Barley Stew with Mushrooms. We can't help it. The cooler weather and shorter days make us want to hole up in the kitchen and cook things like beef and barley stew and chocolate ...
Publish Date: 10/07/2010 7:00
http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/recipe-roundup/fall-cooking-12-classic-comfort-food-recipes-128875

Related articles on Fall Recipes:

• Recipe Linky: Delicious Fall Soup Ideas (momblognetwork.com)
• Fall Vegetable Recipes: 3 Red Pepper Ideas From Food52.com (huffingtonpost.com)
• Fall favorites: Bittman's one-pot comfort soups (today.msnbc.msn.com)