Evelyn’s Pantry is hometown deli on Monterey’s main street

Autumn was on full display on the patio of Evelyn’s Pantry on Monterey’s main street the last day of September 2014. The warm days of fall are an invitation.... (Photos, read more here)

Finding autumn in Highland County, Va.

Over four dozen photos of the autumn colors, scenic farms, and brightly-colored mountains in Highland County, Virginia's "Little Switzerland." Leaves, sheep, clear blue skies, cool air ... bringing fall to you....  (Photos, continue reading here)

Carter Mountain Orchard offers Virginia apples, pumpkins, and views

 

Last night’s low temperature west of Staunton was 39 degrees so today seemed perfect to visit Carter Mountain outside Charlottesville. The mountaintop orchard offers not only apples, pumpkins, gourds, and country store goods but it also provides one of the most outstanding long-range views in central Virginia — east toward Richmond and west toward.... (Photos, continue reading here)

Fall Cooking: What to do with a butternut squash?

My sisters and I love to cook so when my Richmond sister married a guy from Colorado who also loved to cook, he fit right in. Jon regularly adds dishes to family get-togethers, or grills some delicious outdoor fare, or whips up new recipes.

This morning he sent a recipe for cooking butternut squash in a humorous email that made me laugh as I read it -- I've never cooked butternut squash -- so asked if I could share it on my blog complete with his commentary. With his permission, here it is for those who like recipes (especially all those homeschool moms out there).

Jon's Fall Butternut Squash
by Jon Phillips

Jon says, "What happens when you decide to buy a butternut squash for no particular reason? Use this for a fall-ish dinner side dish instead of potatoes!"  

You’ll need: 1 butternut squash, olive oil, pumpkin pie spice,* salt and pepper

Preparation: First off, getting the skin off of the beast is like whittling the bark off of a log. Thankfully, the bark is not too thick. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the rind. Cut the ends off of the squash, then cut in half both directions. Remove the seeds and the softish stuff around the seeds, then chop into 1” squares.

Place the chopped-up squash into a 9x11 baking pan with a little sprinkling of salt and cover tightly. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.

Heat some olive oil in a skillet and add the baked squash in a single layer. Unless you have a giant skillet, you will have leftover baked squash chunks. No worries, we can deal with those in the morning.

After you have the squash sizzling in the olive oil, sprinkle some pumpkin pie spice* on the squash and some salt and pepper (a little cayenne would probably be a good addition). Don’t be too heavy-handed with the pumpkin pie spice ... we are not trying to make a pie here. Cook the chunks until browned and slightly crispy on all sides.

Serve with roasted chicken or pork chops or whatever. (This was perfect with leftover roasted chicken from the store.)

Jon adds, "Now for the leftover Squash chunks...."

Jon's Butternut Squash Breakfast Hash Browns
Don’t be scared, this is really good!

Stuff to have: 1 butternut squash, tart green apple, 1 fresh green chile, onion, bacon, salt, pepper and pumpkin pie spice.

Preparation: Cook some bacon until crispy.

While the bacon is cooking; dice up some of the squash (1/4” - 3/8” cubes). Dice some onion and one green chile. The ratio should be about 2-to-1 squash to onion. Also dice up a half of a green tart apple. Drain the bacon on paper towel and drain off most of the grease.

In the same pan you used for the bacon, saute the onion and chile until soft. Add the diced squash and apple. Add salt and pepper, cook until brown and crispy (it should look like hash browns).

Add in 2 slices of crumbled bacon. Serve with eggs. WOW!

*Homemade pumpkin pie spice:
Much better than premixed and you probably already have everything. 4 Tablespoons ground cinnamon, 3 teaspoons ground nutmeg, 3 teaspoons ground ginger, 2 teaspoons allspice, 2 teaspoons ground clove. Mix together in an airtight container and store with other spices.

"Two Gourds Up" review from my sister: "The crazy breakfast 'hash' was delish! I was totally leery when he told me about it. It was better than the squash last night (which was good) . I give it 'two gourds up.' "

Chilly morning in Shenandoah Valley

View looking west from Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, near Big Meadows

September 12, 2013

Thursday while visiting Shenandoah National Park, the temperature was 90 in the Valley and around 80 in the park -- unusually warm for mid-September. This morning, just three days later, it was 41 degrees at sunrise with heavy dew in my corner of Augusta County.

We're one week away from the first day of fall on September 22 and the weather this weekend has certainly felt like we've slipped into the next season. Temperatures in the low 40s the past two mornings are preparing us for cooler temps, sweat shirts, sweaters, and brisk walks.

One week left of summer with daytime highs predicted in the 70s. It's going to be a busy week so we'll get out and enjoy the waning days of summer. It's almost fall in the Shenandoah Valley....

Photo by Lynn R. Mitchell
September 12, 2013