Rich and I are definitely feeling our age. After our rapid trip down to our granddaughter and back and then going straight into fair week and all of that work and those late nights, we took until nearly Thursday to start recover even a little bit. We took it more easily this weekend.

Last week, the winds of change came right on schedule. This week we are officially in fall. While I love autumn, it is usually so short here, and is a harbinger of the brutal winter, so it always makes me a little sad now. We are trying to get the most out of our garden, and spend some time preserving foods so we can still eat the fresh foods of our area during the winter and spring next year.

We had fantastic burgers last week, and I want to share what we did with them, in case you want to try something like that. Rich grilled the burgers, just plain beef with the Spice House's House Blend Turkey Seasoning on them, we toasted some ciabatta rolls, and spread them with homemade mayonnaise, dijon mustard, and a little ketchup. We layered gruyère cheese, sautéed onions, fresh arugula, avocado slices, and crisp bacon on the burgers, and ate them with cherry tomatoes from our garden and cornichons. We had planned on eating potato wedges with it, but were a little full of fried and oily foods, so we grilled fresh squash and peppers from our yard to eat with them, as well.

That was one of our successful meals last week. We tried a historic apple recipe that was Lenten for one of our breakfasts. Let's just say that there is a reason it was left in history. We will not be making it again. Besides that, I have realized that I simply cannot cook for fewer than eight people. So, we are planning a leftover day at least once a week, and if, by some miracle, we don't have enough, we will make sandwiches or some other quick and easy meal. I've set that for Thursdays, as it is a meat day on which I usually have something happening in the evening, which leaves me with more time that night.

We are so excited to have two of our granddaughters this coming weekend. We will fill them with good things and let them enjoy the outdoors as we can. They will come to church with us, and we can love on them for a couple nights. It is good. As for this weekend, our parish family is yet again coming along side us and giving me the rest I need from our rather busy few weeks by providing the meal Sunday. We are so grateful for them. In the meantime, we are still trying to eat down our freezer so we can fit that mutton, a steer, and our birds in there for winter and next year. I'm even planning a turkey dinner and some roast lamb over the next month or two, so we can make even more room. Rich wants to have a poultry day each week, to eat some of our birds in the freezer which were butchered last year, to make room for the new harvest. Shelftember will begin this week, and aside from milk and produce, I am trying to eat only what we already have here, to make room for preserved foods and the meat in our freezer.

Thank you for your prayers and support over these past few months. We are getting close to resolution and are praying for the best outcome.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Sausage and Egg Bagel Sandwiches, Suprèmed Oranges and Grapefruit, Coffee, Tea and Milk
  Dinner: Chili Cheese French Fries, Parish brings Sides/Salads/Fruit/Dessert
• Monday - Feast of the Saint Aidan
  Breakfast: Lenten Apple Oatmeal Muffins* with Cashew Butter, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Potato Dressing, Sausages and Gravy, Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Flourless Chocolate Truffle Cake
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs with Cheese, Toast, Fruit Plate, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Chicken Fried Steak, Cream Gravy, Steam Sautéed Zucchini and Corn, Green Salad, Lime Cookies
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Cashew Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Black Bean and Potato Enchiladas, Salsa Rice, Strawberry Sorbet*
• Thursday
  Breakfast: 'Aish Baladi ou Joubneh, Sliced Cucumbers, Brined Olives, Fruit, Milk, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftovers or Hot Dogs, Fried Potatoes, Peppers and Onions, Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Friday
  Breakfast: Mana'eesh bi Za'atar, Fruit Plate, Tea with Mint and Rosewater
  
  Dinner: Florida Style Black Beans and Rice, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Waffles with Buttermilk Syrup, Cottage Bacon, Fruit, Coffee, Tea and Milk
  Dinner: Meat Lasagna, Green Salad, Ice Cream

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Prayer Requests, Shelftember, Tales from the Kitchen