Things I’ve been making: fall recipes

by Jen on November 24, 2013

My kitchen is looking very different from a few months ago. The last time I wrote about what I’ve been making, it was August and the summer produce was vibrant and plentiful. These days, my kitchen is decidedly less colorful. (Let’s just call it winter squash orange.) No surprise, pumpkin tops the list of ingredients I’ve been using. Since it’s cold, which makes me feel obligated to bake, I decided to make pumpkin muffins using almond flour. I used my Almond Flour Banana Muffin as a base recipe. This is what happened:Hmmm…the muffin recipe is not quite ready to share!At least I put the leftover pumpkin from my muffin fail to good (and delicious) use. Check out these Pumpkin Chia Pudding cups! Usually I make a pretty basic Vanilla Chia Pudding. This time I wanted to make a more fun, tricked out version of chia pudding flavored with pumpkin and topped with creamy coconut milk and bittersweet chocolate. They did not disappoint.Since we don’t live in a world where all chia recipes can be topped with chocolate, I’ve also been making Strawberry Chia Smoothies. I seriously love adding the chewy, teeny tiny seeds to smoothies. The chia makes them so much more filling.The other thing I’ve been making nonstop is salads. Salads. Salads. Salads. I’ve really been making an effort to bring a healthy lunch to work. (If I don’t, I usually end up missing lunch and snacking on less than ideal foods when extreme hunger strikes in the late afternoon.) This Togarashi Tofu and Mushroom Salad is hands down my favorite salad I’ve made this week. I tossed some crimini mushrooms and extra-firm organic tofu with some olive oil and shichimi togarashi spice blend, then roasted them. I served the roasted tofu and mushrooms over romaine lettuce with cucumber and tomato. (Adding avocado makes it even better.) To finish, I drizzled lightly with plum vinegar, soy sauce and olive oil and then sprinkled with gomasio sesame seaweed blend. I will be making this salad again.