Frost and popovers.

I was up early, as usual, so I took a drive to Cup A Joe for a latte and the paper. I had forgotten The Raleigh Christmas Parade is today so there was a detour around Hillsborough Street and through an old Raleigh neighborhood. I then realized there was a light frost on the some roofs. Note to self: house plants must be cleaned and brought inside today!

So much color in the yard. Trees are golden or red. Perennials are colorful, as well. Some are yellow. Many are brown.  Many are decorated with beautiful seed heads.

Some plants are still blooming:

Cosmos                                                             Rubeckia

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Autumn Clematis                                      Some kind of salvia/sage. I think it is                                                                             Salvia puberula ‘El Butano’

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Yellow leaves of a Kwazan Cherry

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All this seems like a good reason to make simple popovers!

I was cruising all the clearance end caps at Target one day and found a popover pan for $6.00. The recipe was simple.

1.5 tablespoons of melted butter
1.5 cups of flour
3/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
3 large eggs
1.5 cups of milk

Allow ingredients to warm to room temperature. Mix ingredients and pour into buttered pop over pan that has been preheated in the oven for a few minutes. Only fill the pans half-full. Cook for 30 minutes. The pop overs will pop out of the pan as they rise. They are very light and fluffy.

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Welcome to Fall!

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Fall favorite things!

Pumpkins!

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Brightly colored trees!

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Falling leaves.

These large leaves are Paulowina tree leaves, also known as Empress Tree because of the purple trumpet flowers in the spring and very fast growth with large leaves. I cut them to the ground about every other year to keep them under control and they will shoot back up to 20 feet in one season.

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Mums

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Everyone piling into one bed to keep warm!

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Can’t watch another minute of election coverage. Gonna cook!

I can’t watch another minute of election coverage! Lets see what’s in the kitchen.

Hmm. White wine reduction sauce. Onions. Garlic. Spices. How about French onion soup or more like an “Indian Onion Soup”?

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1) Begin with sweating the onions in oil. I love that phrase but basically you are just sauteing or softening them. About 15 minutes.

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2) Add the white wine reduction sauce. A half cup of water and stir to incorporate and cook for about 25 minutes. I also added turmeric, ground cumin, a green cardamom pod, and a dash of ground red pepper.

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3) I had to taste test it with some French loaf. It was so yummy. The white wine reduction sauce was almost as flavourful as Marsala. The spices added some extra flair.

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4) Ladle into bowls. Top with a slice of French bread. Sprinkle some shredded cheese on top. I also sliced the last cherry tomato from the garden and placed it on top!

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5) Place the bowl under the broiler to melt the cheese. Serve with torn bread on the side to sop up that wonderful broth!

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Ahhh. I think I will avoid all election coverage and just watch some gardening or nature programs. Check in with me in the morning after I find out the results. I might be moving to Canada or Israel where they are more progressive with healthcare and social issues!

🙂

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