Autumn Outing: Apple Orchards in Saint-Joseph-du-Lac, QC

Despite being mere weeks from my due date, I couldn't resist a prepartum venture to the apple orchards. Fall is just glorious here in Québec, and since I'll be a lactating zombie throughout October I saw apples in September as my last prematernal hurrah. My checklist was simple: doughnuts, cider, within an hour away.

Mom's Zucchini Bread

My mom, probably like everyone else's, has made zucchini bread for as long as I can remember. Funny thing is we never grilled zucchini, never sautéed zucchini, never even threw zucchini in a casserole. No matter how much zucchini sprung from the garden, it has always been reserved exclusively for quick bread in Mom's kitchen.

Regardless of whose oven it comes from, her zucchini bread conjures up so many special summer memories: 

Country Potato Soup (copycat la Madeleine recipe)

Without a doubt what I miss most about Texas is the food. Naturally, you would expect me to miss the Tex-Mex, the juicy chopped brisket, the deep fried Southern cooking, and the incomparable Mexican food. But I also miss the less expected--like la Madeleine's potato soup.

La Madeleine is a charming bistro style chain restaurant that I first encountered in Texas. Apparently, it was actually started by a Frenchman who found himself in Dallas. (Gotta feel for that guy!) As to the present day authenticity of these "French" restaurants, friends who lived in France for decades merely noted that, "They try very hard." But when you're stuck in living in Texas and unable to cross the ocean, la Madeleine lends even more variety to the already amazing regional fare. 

New-to-Me: Cooking with Leeks

I learned so much by watching my mom in the kitchen. That's where she was (and still is) often found, either scrambling to get a weeknight dinner on the table, mixing up baked goods from memory, or experimenting to recreate something new she tried at a restaurant. She had worked in food service in various capacities over the decades, making her an incredible short order cook and an overflowing fount of knowledge when it came to tips and tricks.

Fall Fun at Cidrerie Vergers Léo Boutin (Mont Saint-Grégoire, QC)

Hoping to make the most of our first Indian Summer in Quebec, Bryan and I visited Cidrerie Vergers Léo Boutin the last Saturday in September. The weather was perfect—high 70s to 80s (mid to low 20s C), bright sunshine, the occasional breeze. While the fall foliage hadn’t yet reached its peak, the countryside was nonetheless adequately adorned in oranges, yellows, and reds. 

Lynnelle's Chicken Salad

We all know cooks who can just make things. No script, no measuring, just experience and instinct. As much as that sort of free cooking baffles little ol' anal, ahem, precise me, that's exactly how Lynnelle's amazing chicken salad came to be. No recipe, no precise measurements, just good taste and know-how.

Like many home cooks, my dear friend Lynnelle loves trying new things in the kitchen. In preparation for a Memorial Day picnic several years back, she decided on chicken salad: quick, easy, and portable. Using fresh ingredients she had on hand and her undeniably good palate, she inadvertently created what was (and still remains) the best chicken salad that I have ever had. 

Me Oh My, It's Mississippi Mud Pie!

Kitchen confession here: I totally make things "for others" knowing full well that it's really want I want to make for myself. Such was the case with my husband's birthday cake. His favorite dessert is probably cookies. So, I naturally decided that the best dessert for his special day would be cookies this überdecadent, over-the-top, chocoholic Mississippi mud pie. Makes sense right? Since I love he can tolerate layer cakes and chocolate? And it was all mine for him?

But just look at this thing! Given how phenomenal this dessert it is, can you really blame me for my selfishness? Reviewers of the Baked Explorations recipe, as featured on the Martha show, as well as numerous food bloggers have all gone gaga over Matt Lewis's Mississippi Mud Pie/Cake.  

Tuna & White Bean Salad

Spring has sprung! At home that means that we have entered our thaw period. There's still frost in the ground (and snow forecasted for tomorrow), but the ice is gradually receding as the days lengthen. It's amazing how refreshing and spring-like the high 30s and even 40s can feel after enduring months below freezing. With seasonal rejuvenation in mind, a tuna and white bean salad seems just right for this transitional weather.

Breakfast Crumble Bars

The past several months found me in a baking flurry. If I wasn't measuring, mixing, or baking, then I was reviewing favorite recipes and pinning new inspiration. While I enjoyed that sweet time of year, all those empty carbs left me feeling bloated and yucky--and that's not to mention the large holiday meals that accompanied the baking. My body's been craving substance, real food that actually nourishes and fuels rather than impoverishes.

The Inspiration of Julia Child

The Julia Child Facebook page recently shared a Slate article detailing a letter written by Child to her cookbook publisher. Apparently, Child and her coauthors were in the last stages of an arduous publishing process. Having labored for years on this project despite rejection by other publishers, she finally found herself ready to name the book. 

Letter page 1 from Slate's article crediting the Ransom Center Archives © 2012

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I distinctly remember the first pumpkin whoopie pie I ever ate. A friend's fall wedding had brought me to her hometown of Lancaster, PA, and her mother graciously treated us out-of-towners to whoopie pies, both the traditional ones and the pumpkin ones. She had a large bowl full of both varieties, all individually packaged with plastic wrap.

I had almost forgotten about pumpkin whoopie pies since immediately after my friend's wedding I met the marvelous man that would become my husband. It was a happy coincidence a year later when, after my own wedding, another friend from the Northeast shared her pumpkin whoopie pie recipe. I made them immediately, and they have since become a fall tradition for our little family.

Thrifty Thursday: Cinnamon Sticks

It's about to get ugly on this blog! That's because for this post I'm leaving the safety of precise recipes and carefully styled photographs. I've gone out into the wild of grocery store land to document some great savings and am back to report.

I just adore whole spices such as cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and star anise. Adding whole spices to a dish always intensifies the seasoning and enhances the overall flavor. However, buying whole cinnamon hits the wallet pretty hard for just being one ingredient. What to do? Time to put that home cook DIY spirit and thrifty know-how to use!

Indian Summer Part 2: Lemon-Yogurt Mousse

I'm pushing the limits of an Indian summer theme here, seeing as how it's nearly October! Blame it on a hectic move this weekend. Then again, Indian summers seem to be obsolete in Texas. We'll enjoy 80° days well into November here whereas back home they've already gotten their first frost. So, maybe it doesn't matter that I'm posting a summery dessert at the end of September! Whatever the case, Indian summers mark my favorite time of year, a final heat wave before autumn reaches its peak and quickly declines into winter. And a refreshingly light dessert seems an ideal way to salute the end of the season. 

So, let's say you're squeezing in one last cookout--burgers, steaks, buns, potato and pasta salads. Heavy food. Yummy but still quite dense. It hurts my tummy just thinking of eating layer cake on top of all that cookout fare! Trust me, you and I both will enjoy more than our share of holiday baking in the next three months. Why not see the warm, sunny weather out with something less dense?

Indian Summer Part 1: Petticoat Tails

I really should wait to share these petticoat tails until I finish my Indian summer post, but I just couldn't help myself. I just had to sneak in these crumbly shortbread wedges a wee bit early!

In the past the closest I had come to shortbread was those tinned butter cookies gifted around the holidays. Since we don't have any Scottish blood in our family, I suppose it's no surprise that I'm not familiar with shortbread. I decided to give it a go, however, because I wanted something subtle and slightly sweet to pair with other sweet things (fresh fruit, airy mousses, etc.). And shortbread turned out to be just what I I needed.

Gingered Apple-Pear Crisp

The advent of pumpkin spice lattes has signaled the arrival of fall. In days gone by it was the harvesting of crops, turning of leaves, and cooling of temperatures that got me excited about fall. But when your climate doesn't provide such delightful seasonal variation, autumn becomes more a state of mind than an actuality. Thus, in keeping a thankful view on things, I'm taking advantage of the pears and apples being harvested, and I'm choosing to stir the mood of fall.

I was determined to do something with apples and pears but reluctant to do a crisp. Crisps are usually the only dessert that I can actually refuse. They just don't do much for me. My problem, though, was that the process of elimination wasn't leaving me any other options. I didn't feel like rolling out a crust which meant no pie, tarte, or dumpling recipes. I also wasn't in the mood for cake or quick breads. But a crisp?

Herb Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Wilted Green Beans

There are few scenarios that rain on a home cook's parade like fixing dinner after an exhausting day of work. In my experience weeknight cooking has not been the hobby type of pull-every-gadget-out-and-labor-hours cooking but the I-just-got-home-and-everyone-is-hungry-NOW type of cooking. Oh, yeah. Been there, survived that.

With the back-to-school bustle underway, this herb stuffed chicken breast recipe is a great solution to quick weeknight cooking. I've only made it a handful of times, but it's so simple that I don't even use the recipe anymore. You can easily play around with different herbs and specialty goat cheeses. (I recently tried a peppadew variety on closeout at Kroger.) And if you're not up for experimenting, the recipe (click here for the original) will do just fine. 

Now, is this a first class dish? No, it's not. I would love to tout this picture perfect meal otherwise, but I've been let down by the hoity toity descriptions of too many recipes to likewise disappoint (ahem, deceive) other home cooks. What I can say is that it's a great standby. It feeds hungry tummies. It uses ingredients you may already have on hand. And it can be thrown together in about 30 minutes. Oh, and since it's from Cooking Light, it's around 300 calories per serving. 

Vanilla Cream-Filled Doughnuts

Nothing says Saturday morning like doughnuts. 

Growing up, Saturdays meant catching up on chores and errands that had been put off during the work week. This was particularly true for Dad. He could often be seen hauling firewood up to the woodshed, repairing the tractor, or puzzling over a project in the granary. Occasionally, we'd all chip in with bigger  projects like chucking wood off the wagon just returned from the woods. 

Breakfast Power Sandwich

If you're like me, you need a hearty breakfast to pull you through a busy morning. Boxed cereal just doesn't cut it! My go-to power breakfast food usually involves eggs. Thankfully, around here there are always a few eggs close by.

The ducks and three breeds of chicken in our backyard keep the egg supply flowing. Each morning the eggs are gathered, up to 3 or 4 eggs daily as of late. The variety of fowl accounts for a beautiful array of shells. I suspect that the different colors are due to the difference in breed, but I couldn't say for sure. 

Old-fashioned Tomato Pie

It's hard to say much good about Texas summers. I've learned to tolerate and endure them but not look forward to them. While I can't say I enjoy this sultry season, it's brought me to appreciate certain things. One of those things, thanks to my gracious hosts, is the early arrival of garden vegetables. I've been tasked with harvesting Mary's tomatoes and have been quite pleased to reap the rewards of her year-round efforts.

I've noticed that these home-grown tomatoes are less pulpy than the store-bought variety. Less juice was released than when I normally cut tomatoes. Their cross sections were beautiful, too, and held together marvelously when processed.