sweet miscellany

You’re probably wondering how I can follow an autumn and pumpkin inspired post with some summery peaches and raspberries. Yeah, me too. Our local peach season (sadly) ended a couple of weeks ago, but we still have some late summer peaches out of Austin trickling into our market.

I was going to be ambitious and make some sort of peach and raspberry pancakes for my lazy Sunday breakfast. I was feeling inspired because it was pleasant enough to have my windows open. But, to tell you the truth, I got a little too lazy for lazy Sunday and went a different route than pancakes. I love raw almond butter, and since peaches and almond butter work really well together, I decided to combine them in a breakfast panini. Since I had a few raspberry stragglers in my fridge, I decided to throw them in the mix, too.

The resulting panini is pretty amazing. It’s almost like an homage to the peanut butter and jelly sandwich but in a grown-up panini form. After I finished eating it, I had to exercise a bit of restraint not to immediately go and make another one. You can probably tell by the photos that it’s a bit messy (and a little un-photogenic), but it’s totally worth it.

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My favorite time of year is just over the horizon. The slight change in both the scent and feel of the air tells me that autumn is just around the corner. I feel a new, inspiring energy permeating my mind and body. The pumpkin spice latte has already returned and the days are slowly growing shorter. I tend to welcome autumn with open arms as it means a much needed relief from the sweltering heat and humidity Texas summers are famous for.

I’ve been craving comforting, warm foods lately despite the weather outside. Maybe it’s just my body hoping beyond hope for cooler temperatures. Or maybe I’m in denial. Or maybe both. Whatever the reason, comfort food arrived in the form of this pumpkin polenta. Creamy and warm, it hit the spot and made me want to curl up under a blanket in the chill of my AC.

I suppose it’s my duty to tell you this won’t be the last recipe you will see in the coming months that features my good buddy pumpkin. I am indeed a lover of this particular squash and not afraid to say it. I think one of my favorite things about the arrival of autumn is that it is appropriate for pumpkin anything. If you feel the same, here are some pumpkin-centric favorites from the archives:

– baked pumpkin oatmeal with pomegranate molasses
– pumpkin biscuit cinnamon rolls
– spiced pumpkin butter
– vegan/gf millet pumpkin breade
– whole wheat pumpkin pecan bread
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Almond Butter, Peach, & Raspberry Panini

Pumpkin Polenta with Wilted Spiced Greens