Saturday Snapshot

Saturday Snapshot

For The Love of Fall

You Gotta Love Fall

I love bonfires.  I love s’mores.  I love shivering and then warming up next to a fire with a glass of wine or champagne.  I love burnt hot dogs.  I love orange.  I love pumpkins.  I love the yellow and red leaves falling, ever so gently, from trees reluctant to part with their beauty.  I love seeing Better Half wearing flannel shirts and chopping wood.  I love sitting in my deer stand (yes, I really do!).  Wait; let me clarify that last statement.  I love sitting in my deer stand not shivering and not getting wet.  I love seeing deer grazing casually through the woods.  I love scampering squirrels gathering nuts.  I love that my cat gets to come inside and cuddle with me by the wood stove.  I love gathering and decorating with bittersweet.  I love going to Better Half’s home town and visiting with family and friends that I love so much.  I love chili and stew.

I love knitting pumpkins like that cute ‘lil pumpkin above.  For a free pattern, please visit This Cosy Life Patterns.

I love autumn.

Saturday Snapshot

Savory Pumpkin Crackers

Need crisp. . . and Fall is obviously NOT around the corner, so I must take matters into my own hands.

I went shopping with a dear friend yesterday and, not to veer off the subject at hand, but check out the good karma she is spreading with her homemade elderberry jelly–does that not look divine?!  I’m the super lucky recipient of a prized jar; I so love my Barbie-doll friend!

Back to shopping:  I picked up, among other items, dry-roasted pumpkin seeds and sunflower oil.  I’ve been craving pumpkin bread, but not the typical quick bread; something yeasty that would make scrumptious french toast with a dusting of powdered sugar, and. . . snap, I digress again.  This morning, while trying to decide why Mother Nature is tormenting me with yet another hot and steamy day, I decided to make crackers.  Oh sure, there are lots of cracker recipes floating around, but pumpkin crackers?  Off to the lab kitchen I go!

If I do say so, this are quite yummy and healthful.  I realize there are a couple fancy-pants ingredients listed, but don’t let that sway you.  I just used fancy because I either just bought fancy, or had the realization that rye flour cannot stay in the freezer another three years without me at least trying it!

These are good and they sure beat expensive gourmet crackers; at least in my little nugget of a brain.  You don’t bite into them thinking you are eating pumpkin pie; it’s just the color is crackery (new word) and the smell is yum.  They’re savory, not sweet at all.  I’m thinking a spread of goat cheese with pumpkin butter on top.  Heavens, light the wood stove–I’m experiencing Fall!

1½ cups all-purpose flour (prefer unbleached)
½ cup rye flour (or whole wheat flour)
½ cup pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon sunflower oil (or light olive oil)
⅓ cup water

Topping (opt.): 3 tablespoons dry-roasted pumpkin seeds, few pinches kosher salt

Pre-heat over to 450°.  In food processor, pulse until combined the flours, pumpkin puree, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.  Add sunflower oil and water, pulsing until mixture turns into a ball of dough.  Divide dough in half and set aside.

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit your largest cookie or jelly roll sheet.  Set cookie sheet aside.  Place parchment paper on work surface and place one of the dough halves on paper.  Lightly sprinkle top with flour and using rolling-pin, roll the dough (using tad more flour if needed to prevent stickiness) until it is as thin (preferably 1/8″) as possible and covers parchment paper.  Using pizza cutter, cut dough into preferred bite-sized shape.  Transfer dough (still on parchment paper) to cookie sheet.  Sprinkle with ½ topping mixture and bake 10-12 minutes.

Let crackers cool completely on wire rack and re-use the parchment paper for your next batch.  (For the record, after both batches were done, I mixed them together and popped into my turned-off oven for a few more minutes; helped make them really crisp up).  Store crackers in airtight container.