Skillet enchiladas, butternut squash pizza, three books worth your time, and a few links worth clicking
The weather this week has been exactly what I want fall to be. Cool, crisp mornings where you actually need a jacket, sunny afternoons that manage to be warm without being hot, and evenings cool enough to sit around the Solo Stove with something warm in hand. We have been out there several nights running. No s’mores, I am sorry to report, but there was spiced apple cider, which was delicious and perfect for a Fall evening.
I have been soaking all of it in and loving every minute.
One more thing worth mentioning: we spring our clocks back on November 1st. I know opinions on this are strong, but I will honest, I am one of the people who looks forward to it. Cozy season is here. Are you a fan of falling back, or does it throw you off completely?
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Friday Food
Skillet Poblano and Pumpkin Enchiladas from Dishing Out Health. Everything comes together in one pan, which is the kind of weeknight meal I am fully on board with. They are vegetarian, gluten free and protein-packed and look better than takeout.
Chicken and Root Vegetable Soup from Eating Well. This is the soup I want every October: good chicken, nutty wild rice, and whatever root vegetables I have collected from the market that week, all in one pot.
Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Roasted Butternut Squash Pizza from Half Baked Harvest. I have been looking at this pizza recipe all week and I cannot stop thinking about it. Roasted butternut squash, cider caramelized onions, thin slices of apple, sharp cheddar, blue cheese, and bacon. Tieghan Gerard has never steered me wrong yet.
Something Sweet
Applesauce bread is an easy, delicious and moist quick bread made with Fall spices and topped with crunchy cinnamon nuts.
Read, Watch, Listen
What is PHP and why did it spark a global cyber-security scramble?
The Best Places to Travel in 2027 According to Nat Geo
Have scientists finally found a way to save the banana from disaster?
Are We in a Reading Monoculture?
The ‘Tavern-Style’ Pizza Takeover
Need a smile? This livestream features 6 puppies all day long
380,000 Colorful LEGO Flowers Seem To Spill From an Art Center in Shanghai
Where did Grace Kelly live? A deep dive into the life and houses of the actress-turned-princess
On the Nightstand
The Second Bloom of Emily Norris. Emily Norris is 52, six months out of a marriage that ended badly, sleeping in her sister’s guest room next to nine boxes she has never once unpacked. On the worst morning of an already bad year, she spends every dollar she has on a 114-year-old art supply shop that has been shuttered for 16 years. Sagging roof. Working waterfront. A hand-lettered FOR SALE sign that nobody has touched in a year. The town of Anders Landing has already watched four newcomers fail on that street and is waiting, politely, for a fifth.
What follows is a story about what it looks like to stop being frightened and start building something — not a business, it turns out, but a room. A community. A reason to stay. There is no inheritance, no rescue, and no man who fixes anything. There is a woman who figures out, slowly and somewhat chaotically, that what she bought is not a shop but a beginning. For readers who love small coastal towns, found family, and heroines who earn every inch of their own way.
Olivia Twist by Lori Langdon. You know Oliver Twist. Now meet Olivia Brownlow, born in a workhouse, raised among London street gangs disguised as a boy, as tough and quick as anyone in Dickens’ original. When a caper goes wrong she is taken in by her uncle and suddenly finds herself navigating the world of society dinners and debutante balls — which, if you think about it, requires roughly the same skills as picking pockets, just with better clothes.
Jack MacCarron came up from London’s East End too, now installed as the adopted nephew of a society matron while the two of them rob her guests blind at every opportunity. When Jack keeps crossing paths with Olivia, he cannot quite figure out why a society girl keeps helping a band of orphan thieves — or why she looks so familiar. This is a clever, charming retelling that gives the story’s best elements to the girl.
The Christmas Chronicles by Nigel Slater. I share this every year. This year I am sharing it early so you will have it in hand when the season begins, rather than in the middle of it when you are already deep in the chaos.
Nigel Slater’s love letter to winter runs from November 1st all the way through to the end of January, and it covers everything from Bonfire Night to Epiphany with more than 100 recipes woven in along the way. But it is not really a recipe book. It is a mood. Ghost stories with a glass of sloe gin. Beeswax candles and shadows on the ceiling. The scent of fir and spruce and something simmering. The classics you want every year alongside the things you did not know you needed until you read about them here. If you have not read Nigel Slater, this is where I would start. If you have, you already know.
If you have already read these book you can find more in My Book Shop.
Outfit of the Day
Corduroy pants, a whimisical fox sweater and a tweed jacket, the English have been wearing this combination for years. Today’s heritage outfit is made almost of British brands and believe it or not it was not intentional. The only piece that is not is the ruffled blouse from J.Crew. The pants and shoes are Boden, the bag Moncreif and the coat and fox sweater Joules. The outfit is whimisical, cozy and warm, perfect for Fall and Winter days ahead. Swap the shoes for a pair of wellies and you are ready for a country walk.
I own the bag in burgundy and I love it! This one is chocolate brown.
Outfit Seperates Below
That is what I have for you this week, friends. The weather is cooperating, the recipes are bookmarked, and I have a stack of books and nowhere I need to be this weekend except exactly here.
Tell me: are you an early adopter of the cozy season? And is there a recipe or a book you keep coming back to every October?
I hope that you enjoyed Friday Favorites. Do not forget to come back tomorrow for Weekend Meanderings with Kim at Northern California Style and Juliet at Make Mine a Spritzer. We always have something good to share.
Find me on Pinterest and Instagram for more during the week.
You may also enjoy:
Gift for Book Lovers: The Best Bookish Gifts to Give
The Season That Asks You to Stop
Classic Christmas Gifts for Women Over 50 She’ll Love
On My Radar
Advent Calendars
Poyyrty Barn Chirstmas
Thanks for the reminder to get my Nigel Slater book out and ready. I am going to make your applesauce bread today, but I will use the Penzey apple pie spice. Have you tried it? I give Penzey spices for holiday gifts, and everyone loves them. My favorites are the pumpkin pie spice, the English prime rib rub (which I used on every meat), Ruth Ann’s Muskego Ave Chicken/Fish Seasoning, and the Pork Seasoning. Their cinnamon is the only one I buy.