rosemary olive peasant bread

so, if you have been reading this blog for a while now you already know that i love bread!

in the summer it is waaaay to hot to bake bread, plus my local farmers market and csa supports my bread addiction during the summer months so i kindly allow them to heat up their kitchen to support my habit -

i am so nice aren't i?

but once the cooler months move in i start to get that bread making itch.

i love everything about the bread making process - the yeast, the kneading, the rising, the baking and of course the eating!

beluga lentils + butternut squash

a few weeks ago i went a little "bean & legume" crazy at williams sonoma.

i am a sucker for any unique, out of the ordinary ingredient

and if they look pretty, then i know i am in big trouble.

so 4 bags later of unique beans & legumes, paired down from 8 - i was beyond excited for their arrival

(really do i need 8 bags of beans, probably not) 

a few days later they arrived. to sya the least i was not disappointed 

i already showcased my old mother stallard beans in the autumn chili

(click here in case you missed it!)

so this week i wanted to share with you a recipe made with the beluga lentils from that very same mini shopping spree

pumpkin pistachio cranberry sweet rolls // cinnamon cream cheese icing

mmmmm sweet rolls.

say it with me, mmmmmm sweet rolls.

doesn't that just sound and feel so good to say.

its even better when you are shoveling one after another in your face - no that really didn't happen, well maybe it did

but who can resist pumpkin, pistachio & cranberry all wrapped up and drizzled with "cream cheese" icing - if you can then you are super human

 share your super power with me....please

heirloom bean + acorn squash chili

yes! chili season is here - one of the best parts of fall & winter.

i love chili, the funny thing is my mom never made chili. i am pretty sure i had my first homemade chili experience at my uncles when i was about 10 - and let me tell you it was hot....super hot.

let me back up here - i did always order chili from wendy's, i loved the little packages of saltines it came with - but lets face it, its is nothing compared to the goodness of a homemade bowl of chili.

plus, i get boozy with mine - beer in chili?

YES!

acorn squash ravioli // thyme garlic "butter"

do you ever head into a project thinking - hey this will be a piece of cake, i'll be done in no time!

only to find out that it was a little more tricky than you thought?

this is exactly what happened with this recipe. you see, i have never made homemade ravioli and after researching the process it seemed simple enough.

yeah - simple once you get the hang of it, not so simple the first go around.

i was totally sweating it, wondering if i was going to be able to actually get the hang of it.

the second go at it was much more successful - thank goodness, totally worth it.

like pie crust and making bread, the more you do it the easier & quicker it becomes.

you'll be a ravioli making queen before you know it!

smokey tempeh sliders

i am in love...

with these sliders - i know i say this a lot, but really, these are incredible.

plus, they are so much fun to eat - mini foods are just so adorable.

this was my first time preparing tempeh, i have no idea why i allow certain foods to intimidate me. 

i watch from the sidelines, let everyone else play for a little while - then when i gather up the courage i go for it.  this is after a few packages of tempeh have been thrown out because i didn't muster up the courage soon enough - expired, good as gone.

well, i'm glad i took the leap into tempeh making - seriously guys, if you too have been intimidated don't be. preparing tempeh is super easy and fun - you just have to plan a little ahead for marinating.

really, do it - make that tempeh work for you!

apple caramel cake // cinnamon frosted

it's official - i am ready for fall.

i tried to hang onto summer as long as i could, but i am so ready for 60 degree days, foliage, apples, pumpkins and winter squash.

on monday fall teased us with bright blue skies and cool weather...but summer isn't ready to leave us yet, as of tuesday we are back to 80 degree days.

in last weeks csa there were 4 apples tucked away - a sure sign of fall. i had this cake logged into by post que, an idea that was dreamt up at the beginning of summer.

so, there it patiently waited for me to welcome fall with open arms -  it was originally developed to contain bourbon, but i still had 1/2 a jar of vegan salted caramel and no bourbon - so salted caramel it was!

green curry corn chowder

there is nothing better than a steaming bowl of soup after coming back from a fall hike.

once we enter into the Fall and Winter months Justin and I have soup at least twice a week - quick, easy and delish. plus we are usually left with a couple bowls worth for lunch the following day.

i have been making corn chowder since we have been together - it was one of the first "go to meals" I learned to make when we started living together. every now and then i like to put a new spin on our classic corn chowder. the building blocks of the classic are still found here but also tucked away are a few additional flavors that bring this soup from humble to incredible.

eggplant caponata

i have never eaten so much eggplant in a year, let alone in a month. we, meaning my farm CSA apparently has had a stellar year for eggplant - add in the one i grew in the garden and i have more eggplant than i know what to do with!

then i remembered an amazing meal justin and i enjoyed on one of out trips to church street in burlington. we found a great little restaurant that sources as many local items as possible and creates all their meals from scratch - that night i went for the eggplant caponata and it was amazing. so i decided i would recreate this dish at home, and you know what - it was even better than i remember.

roasted winter squash + arugula salad // toasted curry croutons

you know fall is just around the corner when beautiful winter squash starts popping up at the farmers market. truthfully, i look forward to the transition into each new season. winter to spring, spring to summer & summer to fall all have something special to offer us and bring with them a renewing energy.

fall is definitely my favorite season - warm sweaters, skinny jeans with boots, apples, pumpkins & winter squash are just some of my favorite things about fall - really i could go on and on....cool crisp fresh air, fall foliage, halloween & thanksgiving. okay, i am sure you get it - i ADORE fall!

tomato tart

oh my, is it nearing the end of summer already? it truly feels like yesterday that i was writing my first post about how excited i was to venture to the first farmers market of the season.

now we are knee deep in bushels of ripening eggplant & tomatoes, abundant basil and the last of our "hot" weather crops are making the final push of producing before the cooler weather moves in.

this time of year , the transition from summer to fall has me craving warm fall soups, pies and tarts.

with summer still forging on and fall knocking at the door i decided to combine the two into what i think is the perfect dish combining the best of summer and a little hint of fall.

blueberry nectarine pistachio "yoghurt" cake

are any of you just curious? i am all the time.

i am not planning on having my own family any time soon, however i am always curious how other people and cultures choose to raise their children. my curiosity was sparked over at leslie grahams blog while reading one of her "what I'm reading posts"- Bringing Up Bebe. it sounded interesting and it is, it is written from an ex patriots point of view and narrows in on the differences of how the french raise their children from the start than many american parents do. well anyway, in this book they go on to say how the french begin baking with their children from a very young age. it is meant to teach them patience, independence and a life skill. the very first recipe many french children learn to make is the yoghurt'cake. so here it is, my vegan version of the yoghurt cake.