Pumpkin Bread

Tags

baking, fall, Home, Pumpkin, Pumpkin bread, quick bread, vegetarian

Just as suddenly as summer was upon us a few months ago, it has bid us adieux and made its exit. Without further ado, friends, it is fall. The weather says so. The farmers at the market say so. The apples, the squash and the pumpkins say so. It’s here, and it’s time to snuggle in and hunker down. Burrow under a quilt, hold a cup of cider,  and watch the world trade its warm days and green colors for crisp, chilly days and brilliant reds and oranges and yellows.

So, Fall, I tip my hat to you. Welcome. Let’s eat pumpkin bread.

Pumpkin Bread

Adapted from Joy of Cooking

You’ll need three bowls: small, medium and large.

In the medium-sized bowl mix:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. cloves

In the small bowl, combine:

• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla

In the large bowl, beat until it’s nice and fluffy:

• 6 T butter (softened)
• 1 cup honey

Beat in 2 eggs, one at a time. Then fold in 1 cup of canned pumpkin puree.

To your large bowl that now contains the butter/honey/egg/pumpkin mixture, add the flour mixture and milk mixture in three separate additions, folding in until mixed each time. Once it is all incorporated, pour into a greased loaf pan, and bake at 350 degrees for approx. an hour.

Allow the loaf to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully transfer onto a cooling rack. Once cooled, slice and serve.

My new favorite game

Tags

fall, growing, herbs, oregano, plants, Rock climbing

Please ignore me if I’m incapable of lifting my arms over my head for the next few days. I went wall climbing at the Y last night. Why have I not done this sooner? It will officially become my new favorite game. No photos to prove my successful climbs, as I was the one climbing, and the guy belaying me was, well, belaying me and otherwise occupied. But I did it. Pictures to come as I drag my unsuspecting friends along with me next time. Who’s in!?

In other news, I’ve added to my life goals: “learning how to keep a plant alive.” I’m starting with this little guy:

I have been, up until now, for various reason, completely unsuccessful in the quest. I feel like the odds are with me here, and this little herb baby (being that he is presently alive and kicking) to be able to survive me and my less than skilled plant caring abilities. I just have to avoid killing it. Wish me luck.

In even more “other news,” fall is coming to an end here in the WL.

The fierce wind has scared the trees into looking more naked and less painted. The weather is becoming almost-always blustery. ‘Tis the season to rake leaves and then curl up on the couch with a cup of tea. To quote the most recent newsletter of Over the Rhine, “this is the time of year when we squint our eyes and see all the way to New Year’s Day.”

It’ll be here before we know it, friends!

 

Brand loyalty

Tags

brands, chaco, fall, Footwear, marketing, rutabaga, Warranty

Today was a GORGEOUS day. Very un-October, very warm, very wonderful! I enjoyed part of my morning at the farm market (I got a rutabaga; I believe it’s going to become fries) and part of it reading on the back porch.

In very sad news, my dear blue/green Chaco Z2′s bit the dust last week. I cleaned them, packed them up, and brought them to the post office to send them to ReChaco, crossing my fingers that they could be fixed under Chaco’s awesome warranty policy. Considering, however, that the soles and footbeds cracked straight through, I doubted that that was a possibility.

Unfortunately, I got a call a few days later, telling me that they weren’t fixable via the warranty, but that if I wanted, they could sell me a pair of nearly new sandals, a model newer than my last pair, at over 50% off retail price.

Fully recognizing that this was a “we’d really like to keep your business, and thus your product loyalty, as you may not be super-thrilled with us right now” scheme, I decided to buy them. I LOVE these sandals. Really. If you’re in the market for a pair of sandals, check these out. They’re created to be a sport sandal: hiking, paddling, etc. I wear them all the time when it’s warm though. They keep my poor over-pronating feet from over-pronating themselves all summer in flimsy flippy floppies. Also, they are completely adjustable to shape and contour of your foot. The strap is continuous, so you can adjust each strap down to the millimeter.

When I came inside after awhile, what did I find leaning up against my front door? Nothing other than a shoebox from Chaco!

Don’t mind if I immediately adjusted them, and kicked up my feet and read some more!

I’m every marketing person’s dream. Really. Once I’ve decided that I’m loyal to a product. I’m loyal. Fiercely loyal. What claims my loyalty, you might ask? Almost always, it’s based on a product review and recommendation by someone I know, whose opinion I value.

Yeah, yeah, I’m sure that there are other factors that work with that: good design/logo, my actually liking the product, and my own perceived “need” for it (NO ONE will tell me I need something. I’m defiant like that).

Happiness! I’m a big fan, and I’m thrilled that I have a nice warm weekend to break them in. Here’s hoping that next weekend is just as nice; then they can go on an inaugural camping trip.

In other news, check out the colors. Fall is coming to Winona Lake.

Yay! I love fall colors. It feels like fall out there (except for this weekend’s warm temps), so it might as well look like fall out there.

I wanna know: what brands/products are you loyal to? Why?