HELLO, FALL 🍁

The weather forecast might not know what season it is, but we're welcoming fall with these autumnal recipes!

Sep 13, 2024

Had to break out my Selk’bag on Saturday

The last few weeks in Chicago have been a mix of crisp fall days in the 50s and 60s and hot summer nights in the high 80s. My larger tomatoes are finally ready to be picked, but I think they are also confused by the weather since they took forever to ripen. Next year, I’m opting for cherry tomatoes only since they seem to thrive and are ready earlier than the larger ones.

the black cherry tomatoes are my favorite

As a lover of Autumn, once the temperature drops into the 60s, I take that as a sign to make a batch of chili and get cozy. I’m currently on a mission to create the best chili recipe for a chili cook-off this fall. Jackson’s friend, Riley, seems to think he has a recipe to beat all recipes….we’ll see about that. My first attempt was already a winner but I think it still has room for improvement…so watch out Riley. And stay tuned for more chili updates :)

Since I also love a craft as much as I love fall, I’ve been learning to crochet. After many many attempts and a lesson with professionals, I’ve finally completed my first crochet little stuffed bunny just in time for my upcoming trip to London to meet my 6-month-old niece, Faye. (I highly recommend Woobles if you’re interested in learning crochet). Now…I just need to advance my skills enough to make my sister the purse she’s been begging for since I picked up my first crochet needle.

Next week, our Digest will feature all our fav English recipes to celebrate our trip to London. But in the meantime, we wanted to welcome the start of the new season with some early fall recipes.

Around this time last year, we went to Greece. Among our favorite meals from the trip was chicken souvlaki- and the best one we had was in a quaint mountain town served on a pita with fries. YUM.

Slouvaki isn’t the most stereotypical fall meal, but since we have a few more warm days left why not grill while we still can?

Chicken souvlaki is simple and flavorful, and just like the one we had in Greece, it makes a deliciously filling meal paired with warm pita, tzatziki, and fries or crispy potatoes.

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And for the chillier days ahead, this colorful roasted vegetable, couscous & kale salad hits all the autumn cravings to get you into the seasonal spirit. The base of this warm fall salad is pearl couscous (also called Israeli Couscous) and kale.

For the roasted vegetables, I used delicata squash (we’re obsessed with delicata squash and it’s just starting to come into season now), cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and sweet potato. You can use any of your favorite fall vegetables here. You can also add leftover or rotisserie chicken for more protein. The salad is then topped with feta, pumpkin seeds, and dried cherries for a delicious fall flavor combination.

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We still laugh about how much I loved my grandma’s pea soup as a little kid (baby me had an adult pallet). The key to this soup is that she always used a smoked turkey leg for flavor. As we got older, we loved filling up mugs with soup and eating it in the living room for an after-school snack lol.

If you can’t find a smoked turkey leg you can use smoked turkey wings, a ham hock, or cubed smoked ham (but you will lose some flavor without adding a bone).

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We’re back at it again with squash, mostly because it’s in season but also because it’s a classic fall ingredient. This easy chicken sausage spaghetti squash bake is especially great for a busy weeknight when you need something substantial but with minimal prep and cleanup. For this recipe, I used store-bought marinara (my go-to for a quality store-bought sauce is either Rao’s or Carbonne) because sometimes preparing a sauce from scratch just isn’t in the cards.

I also like to serve this with a simple arugula salad, topped with parmesan and pine nuts and dressed with olive oil and vinegar.