My Fall Food Favorites

It's Fall Y'all <-- haha, I think it is sooo funny to say that.

Anyway, with the changing of the seasons, there are always new seasonal foods to try out! Here are a few of my new favorites! I am including the recipes of a few, here! Try them out and let me know what you think!

1. Oktoberfest stew - tastes like all of the best German foods, in one dish *recipe below
2. Homemade sparkling apple cider - so deliciously delightful *recipe below
3. Pumpkin cake with cinnamon cream cheese icing - double yum
4. Apple Cider Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream Icing
5. Salty Addictive Nuts - y'all you cannot stop eating these!!! And let me just note, these are not just for the fall but I just happened to try them this fall :) *recipe below
6. Pumpkin snickerdoodles - like a pumpkiny version of a chewy spice cookie
7. Chicken Pot Pie - comforting flavors without the heaviness; this one is light and full of flavor

Oktoberfest Stew

1 T olive oil

1 package of smoked sausage, sliced into bite size pieces (we used Oscar Mayer uncured turkey sausage)

1 large onion, cut in 1/2 and sliced thin

1/2 of a cabbage, cored and sliced thin

1/2 t fresh ground pepper

1/4 t caraway seeds

2 garlic cloves

1 c Oktoberfest lager

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed to bite size pieces

2 1/2 c hot chicken broth

1 1/2 T apple cider vinegar (use 2 T if you like more vinegar like me)

• Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pot; once the oil is hot, add in the sliced smoked sausage, and allow the slices to caramelize and brown in the oil, for about 4-5 minutes.
• Add in the sliced onions, stir, and allow the onions to caramelize with the sausage for another few minutes, until the onions are golden-brown and softened.
• Add in the sliced cabbage, stir to combine, and allow the cabbage to soften and take on the flavors of the sausage and onions for a few minutes.
• Add in the black pepper, ground caraway seeds and the pinch of salt, and stir to combine; next, stir in the garlic.
• When the garlic becomes aromatic, add in the cup of lager, and stir the mixture to combine; allow the beer to slightly reduce for about 3 minutes or so.
• Add in the cubed potatoes and the hot chicken stock, stir, and allow the mixture to come to the boil.
• Place a lid, slightly askew to allow just a little steam to escape, and reduce the heat to low to gently simmer the stew for about 40 minutes.
• Turn the heat off, and finish the stew by stirring in the apple cider vinegar.

Homemade Sparkling Cider Recipe

1 Liter of sparkling water per

1 can frozen apple juice/apple cider from concentrate

• Apple slices for pretty-ness (optional)
• Mix together and serve chilled or over ice in fun cups. 

Salty Addictive Nuts!

4 cups pecan halves

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 Tbsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (double of you like spicy!)

• Preheat oven to 325.
• Toss together melted butter & pecans. Spread in thin layer on jelly roll pan. Toast about 25 min, or until fragrant and toasted, stirring halfway through (I really watch them in the last few minutes, as they go from toasted to burnt very quickly.)
• Remove from oven, sprinkle with salt and cayenne, tossing to coat. Cool completely. Will keep for up to 1 week.

Paella - Oven Style

Paella can be an intimidating dish to make because a) it's something we are typically unfamiliar with because it's not served in many restaurants b) it has quite a few unfamiliar spices (saffron) and c) it can take some time (stirring rice as it slowly cooks does not quite qualify as fun to me).

All of that being said, I have a paella pan and maybe make the dish 1 time per year. Which is a bummer because Cory & I LOVE to eat it!

Each week, I receive email notifications from Conde Nast. They sent out the recipes that are trending across various food websites. As I was scrolling through this past week's, I found a recipe for Sheet-Pan Paella. I have read recipes (Ina Garten's) about doing risotto in the oven instead of stove-top but had not tried it yet. I quickly added it to our menu for the week and Monday night was Paella night!

It turned out beautifully and I recommend you try this at home. The original recipe can be found on epicurious at this link but I have made some alterations to it :) The ingredient list looks long but it is very simple. I have divided the ingredient list into sections, by step.

Sheet Pan Paella with Sausage, Shrimp and Mussels

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350
Step 2: Spray large rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray then spread the rice on the sheet. Toast the rice for about 5 minutes.

• Nonstick vegetable cooking spray
• 1 c short-grain rice (such as Arborio) - you can find this in stores like Walmart now

Step 3: In a medium sauce pan, combine the following ingredients and warm over medium heat. Bring to a low boil then remove from the heat. 

• 2 1/4 c low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 t freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 t smoked paprika
• 1/2 t rosemary 
• 1 t sea salt

Step 4: After the rice has been toasted, pour the liquid mixture over the rice and add the diced tomatoes and sliced onions to the mixture. Stir well. Cover the baking sheet with another baking sheet or foil, then put back into the oven for 20 minutes. 

• 1/2 c white onion, thinly sliced
• 1 c diced tomatoes

Step 5: Toss shrimp with 1/2 t salt and set aside. 

• 4 oz medium shrimp, uncooked, peeled, deveined, tails left intact
• 1/2 t kosher salt, divided

Step 6: As the rice is cooking, prep the rest of your ingredients in a bowl:

• 1 smoked sausage (recommend an original flavor or something with spice if you like that) - sliced into 1/2 inch rounds (you can slice thinner if you desire)
• 1/2 c sliced roasted red peppers (jarred)
• 1/4 c green olives, pitted, sliced
• 1 lb mussels, recommend you buy the precooked mussels at the store
• 1 can of cannellini beans, drained

Step 7: After the rice mixture has cooked for 20 minutes, remove from the oven and stir it well. Bake for 5 more minutes, uncovered. If the rice looks a little dry to you, add a little bit more water. 

Step 8: After the rice has cooked for 5 more minutes. Add remaining ingredients to the pan & stir (shrimp & sausage/veggie mixture). Heat for 8 - 10 minutes more, covered, until the shrimp is cooked through. 

I also recommend buying a lemon or two to serve on the side, to squeeze over the seafood. 

Bon appetit!

Additional ideas to customize your paella - if you don't like seafood, you can substitute chicken in place of the shrimp and mussels. Dice about 1/2 - 1 pound of chicken and after the rice has cooked about 10 minutes of the 20, toss the chicken into the mixture to cook.