Fall is Here

I know. Officially, it began a week or so ago. But, today it really feels as if it's here. It's downright cool and my feet are protesting these smothering objects called socks, "Let us out! Let us breathe!"

Last night for dinner, I ended up making a meal that paired summer and fall together, even though two nights ago I made a cool weather meal (turkey leek soup from last winter that I had to move out of the freezer to make room for the applesauce, to which I added corn and orzo).

Anyway, here is what we had last night. First, my summer staple...

Summer Pesto Pasta Salad

12 oz. pasta, cooked according to directions
drizzle of olive oil
3 fresh tomatoes, chopped
a handful of fresh basil, chopped
4 cubes frozen pesto, thawed
salt, to taste

Drain the pasta and transfer to a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and toss with remaining ingredients. Eat warm.

(I will likely put this into my fall dinner rotation by leaving out the fresh basil and using roasted tomatoes instead of fresh ones.)

Ironic it's a summer meal. It looks rather like Christmas.

Mixed greens and spinach, topped with cooked and salted beets, raisins and dressing.

Secret Chocolate Cake (from Simply in Season) topped with applesauce and red raspberries. The 'secret' in this recipe is that there are pureed beets inside. Shhhhh. Don't tell the kids. I skipped adding the chocolate chips and didn't ice this cake, because, as I told you yesterday, I don't keep those things on hand. You won't miss them if you top this cake with applesauce and red raspberries, but if you don't, you may want to include them.

Happy fall, all!

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