Fall

BUNDTS spotato2I always look forward to Thanksgiving. Sharing the holday with my family, extended family, and a handful of friends. Each year, my sister-in-law and I alternate with hosting it. I do like having it my house because it makes me organize my clutter, clean where I wouldn’t normally clean, and repair whatever seems to be broken at the moment.

This year I will be a guest. Yet, I am not off the hook with contributing to the meal. Volunteering to make Rustic Herb Stuffing, Cranberry-Raspberry Relish, Pecan Pie, and a delicious Sweet Potato Casserole with a Pecan Crumble.  YUM!  The rest of the meal was equally delicious; roast turkey, roasted brussel sprouts, butternut squash soup, carmelized string beans with hazelnuts, and the list goes on.

For the Sweet Potato Casserole, I had roasted way too many sweet potatoes and after peeling and ricing them I realized I had gone a bit overboard. With left overs on hand, I was inspired to create something new. In the past, I have made muffins, waffles, and pancakes, but today I chose to make a pound cake.

Using pantry staples, I whipped up the batter in minutes and made 6 mini bundts and 2 small loaves. This cake is so light and airy and down right delicious. To date, this is one of my favorites.

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pomarugulasalad.jpgSometimes lettuce is just not good enough. With its peppery spiciness, arugula has a refreshing bite. In Southern California, even though it gets cold in the Winter, arugula thrives in the year-round sunshine, so we're able to buy fat bunches any time of the year for $1.00/bunch.

Persimmons and pomegranates are more seasonal. When they're all available, our favorite salad is a simple combination of all three. <Suzanne Goin created a complex salad with all these ingredients.  I used her recipe as a starting point, choosing to simplify the ingredients and directions.

The combination of tastes is near perfect: peppery arugula, sweet persimmon, tart pomegranate seeds, and crunchy hazelnuts, all held together by the emulsion of olive oil and reduced balsamic vinegar.

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