stacey . smoore . the staceyfish . 
Life in a Northern Town: the exploits of an ecstatic Alaskan
Lens: the adventures of a girl and her camera
You may be sad because summer has come to an end, taking with it delightful foods like nectarines, plums, berries, and locally grown vegetables like greens, cauliflower, chard, beets, and carrots.
But don't fret! Fall has its place in a foodie's heart because it brings delights like root vegetables, butternut squash, pumpkins, an untold number of apple varieties, Bartlett pears, and pomegranates.
I recently celebrated fall by having a harvest dinner (suggested by my most wise and venerable husband). On the menu was a roasted pear salad with candied walnuts, blue cheese, and homemade balsamic vinaigrette, cabernet-glazed shallots, butternut squash risotto with wilted spinach and toasted pine nuts, sauteed pork tenderloin with an apple-sage sauce, and stuffed baked Jonagold apples with vanilla bean ice cream for dessert. I love this menu -- it's so autumn-y with its warm, subtle flavors and unifying themes. Sage and apple are present in many of the dishes but are different and subtle enough to not get old or tiring. And as my guests pointed out last night, there's plenty of booze in every dish! So dig in and get to love autumn as much as I do, and share it with some good friends too.
With, oh, about four days to spare, I'm finally sitting down to plan my Thanksgiving dinner. This may seem odd because I put way more effort into planning dinner parties, but Thanksgiving? Eh! To me, Thanksgiving is more about delicious but traditional food that is simple by necessity (I don't know about you, but preparing a huge feast with only one oven is a daunting task), whereas when I'm having people over, well, to be honest, I'm generally cooking and plating to impress.
So this year, the first without Adult Supervision, I'll present a menu comprised partially of (eek!) untested recipes, without (gasp!) photos, before the event has actually occurred! Because, really, posting a Thanksgiving menu after the fact has questionable value.
I've decided to include breakfast on this menu because in my family we always overlook it. Me, I think it's important to start the day right and some savory breakfast scones would definitely qualify in that regard. Sometime in between-ish we'll enjoy a simple cheese course. When it comes time for dinner we'll have a turkey version of The Herbed Bird (be on the lookout for an awesome soup made with the leftovers), a bread (undecided between beer rolls, Parmesan whole wheat bread, or a roll version of the delectably light whole wheat buttermilk loaves I made last Sunday), roasted shallots with thyme and butternut squash, roasted pear salad with candied walnuts and blue cheese, mashed potatoes (garlic? Will I use russets, reds, or yukon golds?) and some sort of stuffing or cranberry sauce or relish that Cory will decide upon since I'm not much of a fan of those things. We will finish, of course, with pumpkin pie. The wine will be flowing all day, and it will be a glorious celebration of, well, gluttony.
Enticed? OF COURSE YOU ARE. Let's get cookin'!
Click here for the recipe for "The UNTESTED (gasp!) Thanksgiving menu!" »