A Month of Sundays

Fall Leaves

 
I'm always disappointed when fall skips right over Texas. We have summer, and more summer, and then it gets really really hot, and then summer continues, and then we get a little crisp air and the temperature cools and then bam. Winter. So I decided I would take matters in my own hands and follow fall to where it lives and see the seasons change this year. So I took trip out to Arkansas to go on an amazing hike and see the leaves changing. It was beautiful. It rained a little, which made it even more beautiful. Listening to rain falling in the forest, magical. 

Rice Pudding

I have a confession....

I love rice. I love rice a lot. One of the best purchases I've ever made was my rice cooker. I use it all the time. Without it however, I find I dont make the most perfect rice. The perfect storm of temperature, time and stirring continues to elude me. But when I saw this recipe for rice pudding I was bound a determined to make rice the old fashioned way. Rice pudding is so wholesome, warm and comforting. It is a blend of sweet and creamy, warm and soothing. We had a little cold snap here over the weekend so I am really revelling in the cooler weather and wanting to make fall weather foods. This is a lovely recipe I found at The Sophisticated Gourmet

Rice Pudding

Ingredients:
¾ cup of long grained rice
2 ½ cups milk
1 cup water plus 1 tablespoon
Pinch of salt
1 ½ tablespoons of honey
3 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract (or ½ the scrapings of a vanilla bean)
⅛ of a teaspoon of ground cinnamon
30 Raisins (optional)

Preparation:

Bring rice, milk, and water to a boil on high heat.

After the rice comes to a boil, place on medium heat.

Add the salt, honey, brown sugar, white sugar, and vanilla to the rice and whisk / stir in until well distributed.

Stir the rice pudding often. Cook for about 40 minutes (still on medium heat) or until the rice is tender and creamy. I would go with the latter because everyone’s stove is different. So, just check your rice every so often to see if it’s tender. Be careful not to burn your mouth!

After the rice pudding has fully cooked, stir in the raisins and serve in a large bowl or serving bowls. You can eat the rice pudding warm or cold (I prefer the latter). I also like to sprinkle some extra sugar on the top of the rice pudding and a dusting of cinnamon, but that’s optional as well.

Cook’s Notes:
• Remember to stir often! You don’t want a skin to form on top of the rice and you don’t want anything to burn, if you rice still isn’t tender after about 50 minutes of cooking and the mixture seems a bit dry, just breathe! As long as nothing has burned, just add a bit more milk and a bit more water. Maybe a tablespoon of each.. And don’t forget to stir often!

Umm.. Seriously, dont forget to stir often. I, early on in the rice cooking stage, remembered I needed to change a light bulb in my closet and scampered off to change it quickly. That was a mistake. The rice got stuck to the bottom of the pan. Argh. I continued on with all the directions, determined to make decent rice on my own. The fragrance created by these ingredients is amazing. Vanilla, honey, brown sugar, milk. Combined together into a soft sweet infusion of earthy and sweet goodness for the rice to soak up. The flavors in this milky sweet broth are lovely. I was filling up spoons of just the liquid to sample and taste, over and over again. Sadly, my rice never achieved the soft and creamy texture I was craving. It kept a little bit of crunch in the rice. I added more milk and water at the end as suggested but Im afraid I never recovered from my error early on, letting the rice stick to the pan. It was still yummy, just not perfect. And I seek perfection. The whole experience left me wondering, could I cook rice pudding in my rice cooker? Perhaps that will be my next experiment with rice pudding. But I highly recommend this recipe. The flavors are wonderful, but dont abandon the rice - even for a moment!

 

Morning Walk

I took Maizie on a morning walk to the park today. The park is really close to home and has a pond, a creek and lots of cool trails to explore. 

Maizie ran ahead of me and decided we should go a different way than usual. She was looking at me as if to say, "Hurry up!"

We came up to the creek. The water was low enough to cross, we had never been to the other side before.

And to my surprise, we happened upon a beautiful waterfall.  

 
I sat waterside while Maizie swam and splashed around. 

After a nice swim for Maizie we headed back on the trail.

Maizie was a happy girl. 

There are few things cuter than a big old dog smile. Good scout work Maizie!

 

Roasted Fall Fruit

 
Its finally fall!

I felt the need the mark this occasion by making something seasonal. I have been looking at all my favorite food sites hoping to find a recipe that would satisfy my need for autumnal flavors and my sweet tooth. I was delighted to find this post at Pictures and Pancakes. This is so delicious and simple to make it would be a great dessert to make when guests come over. 

Roasted Fall Fruit (from picturesandpancakes.com)

serves 4

2 cups seedless red grapes

4 plums, pitted and quartered

2 bartlett pears, quartered and cored

1 pint vanilla ice cream

2 tbs honey

preheat oven to 450 degrees F. place grapes, plums and pears in a single layer in a shallow sheet pan and roast, tossing the fruit occasionally, until the fruit is soft, about 24 minutes. serve in a bowl with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of honey. enjoy!

I did two things differently. First, I bought bartlett pears, but I couldnt resist the gorgeous red pears in the produce aisle as well. Next to each other the two pears looked like the colors of changing fall leaves. I had to get both. And while both were beautiful on the outside, the texture of the red was much firmer inside and I had to cook them longer in the oven after the bartletts were done. 

Second, I added a splash of Bourbon over mine at the end. It certainly isn't necessary but it was tasty. And seemed like a good fall type thing to do. But I definitely would not skip on the honey. It really enhanced the flavors of the fruit and the ice cream. And I have the most lovely local honey with a piece of honeycomb inside the jar. So good and wholesome feeling.

The result of these ingredients is a mixture of tart sweetness from the flesh of the plums and grapes and a rustic earthiness enhanced by the roasting and caramelization of all the fruits. The contrasting textures of soft but crisp pears,  smooth creamy ice cream combined with all the fresh autumnal flavors makes it the perfect fall dessert.  

This recipe will definitely feed four, I had leftovers, which were perfect for breakfast. Served heated up with oatmeal or would be great with yogurt and granola too.