Fall has been weird, here in New England. For the most part, the leaves are still green, and on the trees. Those that have fallen, have turned brown right away. No pretty leaf-peeping walks this year.

All the same, it is Fall, and Winter will be on us before we know it. Are you stockpiling nuts away for the winter, like the squirrels? If so, these are some very delicious options. (And don’t wait for December, they’re a delicious—and healthy!—treat right now.)

Chile-roasted almonds

1 T chili powder
1 T extra-virgin olive oil
½ t kosher salt
½ t ground cumin
½ t ground coriander
¼ t ground cinnamon
¼ t freshly ground black pepper
2 c whole almonds

Preheat oven to 350°. In a medium bowl, combine chili powder, olive oil, kosher salt, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and pepper; add almonds and toss to coat. Transfer mixture to a baking pan. Bake about 10 minutes or until almonds are toasted, stirring twice. Cool almonds completely before serving. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Sugar-and-spice walnuts

1 egg white
1 T water
½ t vanilla
8 oz walnuts
½ c granulated sugar
1 t ground cinnamon
3/4 t salt
¼ t ground cloves
¼ t ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 300°. Lightly beat egg white with water and vanilla with a fork. Add walnuts to egg white mixture. Stir until all walnuts are coated with the egg white mixture. Combine sugar, cinnamon, salt, cloves, and nutmeg and add to walnut mixture. Stir until all walnuts are coated with sugar-and-spice spice mixture. Transfer walnuts individually to a 12-by-18-inch nonstick baking sheet coated with cooking spray, ensuring that the walnuts are separated and dispersed evenly on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, then transfer walnuts to a clean, flat surface to cool. These are as good on a salad as they are by the handful.

Thai Chicken Wraps

This was quick and yummy! It's from a Back Packing site Manny goes to: http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?61693-Thai-Chicken-Wraps&s=ec5e1b8aa83a921921ea6b59ebafd783

This recipe was designated a lunch/snack recipe due to it's simpleness but of course can be used for a dinner as well.

Ingredients

•1/2 C. Creamy Peanut Butter

•1/2 C. of Prepared Pad Thai sauce (easily found in most grocery stores)

•1 Bunch of Green Onion

•4 Large Tortillas, Wraps, or Flatbreads

•1 Pkg - 7 Ounces of Tyson Chicken (or two 5 ounce cans)

•Leaf or Romaine Lettuce (We suggest Romaine. It's much stiffer and will hold up well in a pack for a day or two as long as it does not get overheated)

Package the above ingredients using whatever method suits you

Trail Preparation

In your cookpot (we suggest using hard anodized aluminum for its non stick properties) stir together the peanut butter, chopped green onions and pad thai sauce. Cook over medium heat stirring until sauce is mixed completely and warm. Do not overcook!

Layout a Tortilla or Wrap, top with lettuce, chicken and onions. Sauce over the top and then wrap burrito style.

Notes

You may also consider saucing the wrap first, then other ingredients but we find personally that having the sauce on the chicken imparts a better flavor.

The inspiration for the virtual dinner group blog originally came from a flurry of emails around salad’s place at the Thanksgiving table. (My family of origin has always been a “No” on this matter, mostly because we have every other conceivable vegetable on the table ... simply no room for salad. My mother-in-law, however, makes the best simple salad, and it is always served at Thanksgiving, and every other meal, mostly as a palate cleanser between all the other very rich and delicious foods.) I have looked in vain for that email chain in my archives, because it was hilarious, and I would love to not only share it with you, but also reread it myself (who can’t use a little hilarity on a daily basis?).

As far as Thanksgiving Salad goes, I usually pass, and I believe that if there is going to be a salad on a table that rich, it should be a simple (palate-cleansing) salad, and not interfere with “the main event.” However, I made a spectacular Fall salad last week, that I proceeded to make again and again for lunch as the week went on. It was inspired by a recipe in USA Weekend last week for Escarole salad with provolone, warm white beans and prosciutto crisps. I added a little sweetness to balance the bitter greens and piquant provolone. The red from the pepper, onion, and cranberries stand out among the greens and beans and it looks like Fall.

Fall salad

2 T extra-virgin olive oil
3 oz thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into small dice2 garlic cloves, minced
1 15-oz can cannellini beans, not drained
1 t crushed red pepper flakes
2 T red wine vinegar
1 T agave syrup
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 head escarole halved, cored, chopped, washed, and dried (or slightly bitter greens that are so abundant in Fall)
½ red bell pepper, stemmed, cored, seeded and cut into short thin strips
¼ large red onion, thinly sliced
16 pitted kalamata olives, halved (about ¼ cup)
3 oz provolone cheese, diced
¼ c dried cranberries

Sauté the prosciutto in the olive oil until crisp. Remove to paper towel to drain.

Add the white beans to the sauté pan with the crushed red pepper, and bring to a simmer. Cook until beans are warmed through.

While beans are warming, add vinegar, agave, and olive oil to a jar and shake to combine. Pour dressing into bottom of a large salad bowl. To the salad bowl, add escarole, pepper, onion, olives, cheese and cranberries.

Just before serving, add beans and prosciutto and toss.

Crockpot teriyaki chicken

I recently offered Crockpot teriyaki chicken as part of my Crockpot Tuesday selections. Maureen, in California, wanted the dinner, but didn’t want to spring for the airfare to get me there. So, because I love her, and because I am such a good sister, here’s the link to the recipe from a fabulous web site full of fabulous, interesting crockpot recipes, Crockpot Girls.

Crockpot teriyaki chicken recipe

1 small bag of baby carrots
1 head of broccoli, chopped
1 20-oz can pineapple chunks
½ large red onion cut in chunks
2 cloves garlic
6 thighs
½ teriyaki sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Layer vegetables, fruit, and garlic first, then add the chicken on top. Drizzle teriyaki sauce over the chicken and add salt and pepper to taste.

knead, [NEED] A technique used to mix and work a dough in order to form it into a cohesive, pliable mass. During kneading, the network of gluten strands stretches and expands, thereby enabling a dough to hold in the gas bubbles formed by a leavener (which allows it to rise). Kneading is accomplished either manually or by machine - usually a large mixer equipped with a dough hook (some machines have two dough hooks) or a food processor with a plastic blade. By hand, kneading is done with a pressing-folding-turning action performed by pressing down into the dough with the heels of both hands, then pushing away from the body. The dough is folded in half and given a quarter turn, and the process is repeated. Depending on the dough, the manual kneading time can range anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes (or more). Well-kneaded dough is smooth and elastic.

I recently read the novel The Baker’s Apprentice. Until then, I’d never really had the desire to bake bread. In fact, friends who know me well, know that this is way too much work for me. I need to get dinner on the table, but quick! Anyway, something about this book made me want to bake my own bread, to knead bread. I tried a few recipes, with mixed results.

Finally, I focused on breads that resembled the rosemary rolls at Annarosa Bakery, the treat that Grace and I love to pick up for 50¢ apiece. These rosemary rolls are so good. Once, in fact, when I had picked them up for a party my sisters and aunt and I were throwing for my mother’s 70th birthday, I had to pull over to the side of the road and move the bag of rolls to the back of the car, because I just kept reaching in and eating roll after roll after roll (which explains my roll after roll after roll).

The recipe that resulted is a rustic, hand-shaped loaf that has kalamata olives, rosemary, olive oil, and kosher salt. When warm out of the oven, it needs no butter, or anything else. It is dangerously simple to eat the entire loaf on one’s own, so I divided it into two loaves. That way, you can eat one, and still have one for dinner, or gifting, or whatever your original purpose for baking the bread was.

Rustic black olive and rosemary bread
adapted from Mediterranean black olive bread from allrecipes.com

3 c bread flour
1 T active dry yeast
2 T sugar
1 T kosher salt (additional may be added in when kneading)
½ c kalamata olives, chopped
1 T fresh rosemary, chopped (additional may be added in when kneading)
3 T olive oil
1¼ c warm water (about 110°)
1 T cornmeal

In a large bowl, mix together flour, yeast, sugar, salt, olives, rosemary, olives, oil, and water.

Turn out dough onto a floured board. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 or 10 minutes (with an additional teaspoon or so of chopped rosemary and kosher salt, if desired). Set dough aside in an oiled bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise for about 45 minutes, until doubled in size.

Punch down and knead well again for about 5 or 10 minutes (with an additional teaspoon or so of chopped rosemary and kosher salt, if desired). Place in an oiled bowl, covered with a damp towel, and allow to ruse for another 30 minutes, until doubled in size.

Line a baking sheet with parchment dusted with cornmeal and kosher salt. Divide dough into two loaves. Rub each with a little olive oil, and sprinkle with a little more chopped rosemary and salt, if desired. Let rise about 25 minutes, until doubled in size. Meanwhile, place a pan of water on the bottom shelf of the oven, and preheat to 500°. Once loaves have doubled in size, bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 375° and bake for 20 minutes longer.

Try not to eat both loaves in one sitting.