Fall Favorites

At this time of year, we are surrounded by Fall: the sight of amber colored leaves, the chill that makes you put on a sweater, the fireplaces lit for warmth, and most importantly, the tastes of comfort. Fall is a time of hot, hearty dishes that will fill you up and leave you satisfied as you enjoy all that the season has to offer. On the menu are seasonal favorites including cranberry appetizers, sweet potato fries with a spicy dipping sauce, pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese icing, and an apple cider spritzer. Fall is the perfect time to cook and bake with produce straight from the harvest that will only be here for a short amount of time, so let’s beat the Falling leaves and get cooking!

First up are two appetizers that utilize cranberries, an ingredient commonly used this time of the year. First up is a cream cheese cranberry dip perfect served alongside crackers, chips, or pretzels at your next gathering. To make the dip, add softened cream cheese, orange juice and orange zest to add a zip of freshness, and a dash of cinnamon to a food processor. Once this is combined, you want to mix in some dried cranberries so that they don’t break apart while you mixed the other ingredients. Store this dip in the refrigerator, and eat whenever you want (it’s perfect for a snack, lunch, or even breakfast)! The next cranberry appetizer that I cannot get enough of are cranberry brie bites. These are legitimately so addictive, so take caution! Not only are these delicious, but they are super simple and can be made in a flash. There are only three ingredients (yes, you read that right!). You want to start out with the phyllo dough shells which can be found in the freezer section of your supermarket. Then, you want to spoon about half a teaspoon of cranberry sauce into the middle of each cup or enough to fill the cup about half way. On top of the cranberry sauce, add some cubes of sliced brie, my all-time favorite cheese. Pop in the oven for five minutes on 350 degrees, and you will have the perfect appetizer that can just be popped in your mouth and enjoyed. Seriously though, be careful!!!

The next Fall favorite that we will be cooking up are sweet potato fries. Recently, these have become a lot more popular because they are a healthier option compared to regular fries. Sweet potatoes are also an item specifically harvested in Fall, so you want to take advantage of these now. To make the fries, you want to start out by slicing your sweet potato into thin strips and arranging them onto a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle a bit of salt on top, and bake for 20 minutes in the oven at 450 degrees. Let cool, and get started on the dipping sauce, because we all know that every good fry must have something to be dipped in. Start out with a little bit of mayonnaise, then add a sprinkle (or depending on how spicy you want it) of cayenne pepper, a squeeze of lemon juice, and finish with a dash of salt. These are perfect served alongside a meal or just by themselves as a snack.

Now a Fall food blog would be nothing without something pumpkin, so the next treat that we will be making are mix and match pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese icing. I say mix and match because I take two recipes, one for the cake part and one for the icing and put them together to make a truly decadent Fall delight. Once you spread the icing onto the cupcakes, you can top them with chocolate chips, colored sprinkles, candy corn, or any other Halloween candy. You can also make these really festive by using specialty Halloween wrappers with decorations to make these fun to look at and even more fun to eat. Pumpkin Cupcake Recipe Cream Cheese Icing Recipe

The last seasonal Fall favorite for this blog is a chilled apple cider spritzer. Apples are a great Fall harvest food because they are super versatile and can be used in basically everything from apple pie to applesauce to apple fritters to apple cake to apple doughnuts…I think you get the point! You can even go to a farm and pick apples yourself. This season, I went with my family, and we ended up picking more than 21 pounds of apples. To make this drink, you want to start with some of your favorite chilled apple cider. To that, you’re going to add some cranberry juice, orange juice, cinnamon sticks, and some seltzer to add some bubble and fizz to the drink. After you stir the drink together, remove the cinnamon sticks. Serve in a big pitcher with ice and some orange peels for presentation.

The harvest has brought us some treats that fall straight from the farm to table within seconds. We’ve got cranberry orange dip, cranberry cups, sweet potato fries, pumpkin cupcakes with icing, and an apple cider spritzer sure to please. With the leaves on the ground and Fall spirit in the air, you can whip up all of these delicious seasonal favorites, all when you’re Cooking with Carly!