Concord Grape Syrup

The colors of fall are deep and rich, golds and bronzes and deep russet reds. And then there are the rich purple colors of Concord grapes. Throughout my childhood, baskets of these grapes were part of the fall harves, and the smell of my mother’s simmering grape juice often met us as we burst home…

Barley with Butternut Squash, Apples, and Onions

  With an extended Indian Summer season this year, it is hard to believe that we are well into the last half of October. But the leaves–more brilliant than even the beautiful normal here in the upper Midwest this year–are quickly showering down, glowing in the sun, making colorful confetti against the clouds of the…

Apple Butter Bread

This has been a busy week, with two large batches of raspberry apple jam and one even larger batch of apple butter finished and ready for winter. While apple butter is wonderful on toast, French toast, and pancakes, I wanted to try using it in some baking as well. The following bread has a lot…

Apple Raspberry Jam

As the end of the raspberry season approaches, I wanted to use some of the last pickings to make some Apple Raspberry Jam. I have been making No Pectin Raspberry Apple Jam for several years, but this time I wanted to up the ratio of apple to raspberry, in part to see if I could…

Applesauce Banana Cake with Peanut Butter Topping

Don’t laugh at this really long name for today’s cake. I often end up with a few bananas at the end of the bunch that get too soft to eat, and applesauce and peanut butter are staples in my pantry, so the ingredients are all right here for a relatively healthy dessert. Another advantage? If…