September 10, 2012

Fall Has Arrived

Well, fall seems to have arrived here in Victoria and I am more than okay with that.  I recently got back from my vacation visiting Francis' family in California (was an AMAZING trip, I will post about it soon...trying to gather all of my pics first!) and it feels nice to be home.  There is something about September that I just love.  Everything is fresh.  A new school year has begun (in my case anyways), the air gets cooler, cozy sweaters and scarves come out to play as well as warm and comforting meals, most of which include some of my favourite things: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, curry, cumin, PUMPKIN, candles, warm drinks! You also don't have to worry about sweating profusely in your sauna of an apartment like you do when the temps are super hot (TMI?).  

I am finishing up my degree in the next three months (I will be a certified teacher, AHH!), which means I am going to be extremely busy but I am super excited about what's to come.  Including...delicious recipes, like this bad boy...


On Sunday morning I decided to try a little something different.  As you all know, I am a TRUE oatmeal lover and could eat it every.single.day, however, when I was away I was eating more cereal and toast and then when I got home I got a sudden craving for eggs.  I remembered seeing something online about baked eggs so I played around a little bit. 


I sprayed a small onion soup bowl, or other small oven safe dish (I used a brie dish) with oil and cracked in two eggs.  Sprinkled them with salt and pepper.  Topped with some steamed kale, chopped fresh thyme and rosemary and freshly grated cheese.  Baked for 13 minutes at 375 degrees.  Oh man...SO SO SO easy and yummy in the tummy! I may or may not have made this again for Francis and I again this morning...


 For dinner on Saturday night I made this simple Mulligatawny soup with panfried chickpeas.  I actually followed a recipe almost to a tee, so here is the link.  I topped it with some greek yogurt, green onions and a little cayenne pepper! I ate it alone but I think the spices would balance nicely topped over some brown rice, quinoa or any other grain of your choice.  Bulgar or barley are always great, too!

Now onto a pumpkin related recipe...


It started with some freshly brewed french press coffee...


While I waited for it to steep I made...drum roll...PUMPKIN SPICE creamer!!!!!!!!! Crazy, right? Who would have known!

Pumpkin Spice Creamer

1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup half and half
2-3 tbsp canned pumpkin
1/2 - 1 tsp pumpkin spice
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla
sweetener (maple syrup, stevia, brown sugar, sugar, maple flakes, agave etc)

Directions:

1) Add milk, cream, canned pumpkin, pumpkin spice and cinnamon to a frying pan over medium heat.
2) Whisk all ingredients together (as they warm up they will blend nicely)
3) After it has steamed for a bit and is nice and warm, taste and add sweetener to your liking.  
4) Allow to cool, transfer to a glass jar and refrigerate
5) The next day the pumpkin will be at the bottom on the jar so you can shake it up and then strain the pumpkin out before you add it to your coffee!

Last night, my friend Bri came over for a hang out.  Her and I have been good friends since high school but haven't spent a lot of time together in the past few years so it is great to have her back again :)  We went for a nice hilly walk around Thetis Lake, came home and had some Butternut Squash and Parsnip Soup and salad for dinner.

This is Bri, isn't she a cutie patootie? 

Soup topped with a dollop of greek yogurt and garnished with some chopped green onion! Delish!

Dinner tonight actually turned out extremely well!  Again, another recipe followed to a tee.  This doesn't happen very often because I normally like to change things a bit to suit our taste buds but the last few I have made have worked out perfectly! I also like to experiment with my own recipes most of the time, but when you come across some amazing recipes you can't wait to try, why not, right?


I made a fabulous pasta with sautéed zucchini, cherry tomatoes and a creamy lemon yogurt sauce.  It is a Jillian Michael's recipe, which I found here.  


It turned out pretty tasty if I do say so myself and it took about 20 minutes from start to finish to put together.  Score!

Okay, I am not off to enjoy another cup of tea before settling in for the night.  I am off for a lovely run around Elk Lake in the morning and then a stroll along the water with a pumpkin spice latte in hand, with one of my faves!  I also get to meet my grade 4 class for the first time tomorrow.  Super excited/nervous! Wish me luck :)

Sweet dreams...

xo


Can I please live here?? It's so adorable...

































1 comment:

  1. OH.EM.GEE. Neeeed to make that creamer ASAP. ahhh, it looks so amazing. Well, that and everything else you made! And man, I REALLY wanna a) run with you at Elk Lake and b) walk along the water with a pumpkin spice latte!!! September is technically almost over (or I can just keep telling myself that) sooo only 3 more months now!! Have a great time meeting the kiddies! :D

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