And then fall swept in just as we flipped the calendar, like it knew we were turning the page on summer. I was ready to heat up my kitchen again after several weeks of warm weather. I was ready for socks again, too.

And then–back to the dinner menu–I came across the Unfussy Apple Cake (101 Cookbooks), and worked backwards from there. It was going to be the perfect dessert centerpiece for an unfussy evening.

After the apple cake was finished baking (the quickest thing ever!), I wrapped the pork tenderloins snugly (like tucking my daughter in for the night) for the Prosciutto Wrapped Pork with Sweet Potatoes and Pears (Real Simple). This is the unfussiest recipe of them all. It literally takes about four flicks of the wrist, eight swift chops, and a creatively messy arrangement of sweet potatoes, pears, and thyme on a baking sheet–then you add the pork bundles.

I whipped up a quick spinach salad with chopped walnuts, pomegranate seeds, and a dribble of oil and balsamic–dinner was done.

The kitchen smelled divine. It smelled like fall.

Fall might just be my favorite cooking season. What’s yours? Do you have a favorite fall menu?

Sarah Fullerton, content marketing & editing. Armed with a masters in journalism from Northwestern, a passion for all things cooking, and a perpetual oven mitt, Sarah loves nothing more than to camp out in the kitchen with a new recipe, interpret it creatively (a dash of this, a dash of that), and then surprise her husband and daughter, her friends, and herself with the results. Sarah’s favorite recipe. She can be contacted at sarah [at] plummelo [dot] com.

Equipment
Roasting pan or ceramic casserole

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Cut the onions into wedges and the potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Spread them over the bottom of the baking dish.

3. In a small dish, combine salt and pepper in a 2:1 ratio.

4. Open the chicken over the sink and let any residual juices or blood drain. Reach into the cavity to see if there are any giblets left inside. If so remove them, and either discard them or save them to make soup stock at a later time. You’ll want to take a paper towel and pat dry your chicken. Please DO NOT rinse your chicken; running water and raw chicken can help spread salmonella.

5. Place the chicken breast side up over the bed of onions and potatoes. Drizzle the exterior and the cavity of the chicken with olive oil, and then sprinkle liberally with the salt and pepper blend.

6. If you have them on hand, you could put lemon or orange wedges, garlic cloves, or fresh herbs in the cavity at this point to infuse a bit more flavor.

7. Put the chicken in the oven, and set the timer for one hour (the general rule is 20 minutes for every pound of chicken you’re cooking).

8. Test the chicken for doneness. This can be done in a few ways. One is to jiggle the drumstick a little and see if the juices run clear (clear juices means it’s done, red juices means it’s not ready yet). You can also insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken. It’s done if it reads 165. If the chicken isn’t ready, put it back in the oven for 10-15 minutes and re-test.

9. Place your chicken on a platter over the bed of roasted potatoes and onions. Enjoy!

NOTE: To flavor your chicken just a bit more you can apply an herb butter. This requires you to chop fresh herbs like rosemary or thyme, and mash them into room-temperature butter. Carefully lift the chicken skin to prevent ripping, and massage the butter under the skin so it spread throughout the chicken.

Laura Troyani heads up Marketing and Business Development for Plummelo. Not content with just being another behind-the-scenes pencil pusher, Laura decided to give blogging a shot and writes practical, everyday tips for the home cook (or aspiring home cook). Laura’s favorite foods are ice cream, olive oil, ice cream, parmesan cheese, ice cream, and occasionally ice cream.

Easy Pasta & Tuna (5 ingredients)
Sauté 3 cloves of chopped garlic in oil, one handful of chopped parsely, and one can of tuna. Add to ½ lb of pasta and enjoy.

Miso Soup (5 ingredients)
Dissolve miso paste in 1 quart of hot water per package instructions. Add ½ pacakge udon noodles, 8 chopped shitake mushroom, 10 julienned baby carrots, and ½ package cubed tofu.

Italian Panini (5 ingredients)
Drizzle olive oil over two slices of Italian bread. Place slices of fresh mozzarella, sliced tomato, and basil between the slices and grill. (If you have a Panini press, use it now. If you don’t, you can heat the sandwich in a skillet, and weight it down with a heavy pot to press it together.)

Upscale Mac ‘N Cheese (4 ingredients)
Cook 1 lb bulgur wheat per package instructions. Add 8 oz. grated sharp cheddar cheese, 5 strips of chopped bacon, and a handful of chopped chives.

The Vegetarian (4 ingredients)
Cook 1 pound of quinoa per package instructions. Top with 8 oz of chopped roasted red peppers, 1 package of wilted fresh spinach, and a handful of feta cheese.

Photo by RejiK (flickr)

Laura Troyani heads up Marketing and Business Development for Plummelo. Not content with just being another behind-the-scenes pencil pusher, Laura decided to give blogging a shot and writes practical, everyday tips for the home cook (or aspiring home cook). Laura’s favorite foods are ice cream, olive oil, ice cream, parmesan cheese, ice cream, and occasionally ice cream.

For years I assumed that restaurants somehow had better access to fresher fish than I do and saved most of my seafood eating for when we were dining out. Additionally, I am a “once a week grocery shopper,” and I tend to pick up the ingredients to flesh out four or five recipes in one trip. Even when I can find fresh fish that really appeals to me, I prefer to buy fish the day I’m going to cook it. And so making a seafood entree seemed to necessitate an extra trip to the market, which is a total pain with little kids.

Even here in New England, most of the fish we get in even the best markets has been previously frozen. I always turned my nose up at this until I learned that the fish is actually flash frozen while still out on the boat–when you think about it, what’s fresher than that? I took this a step further and asked myself why I would want to buy fish that is previously frozen when I can buy it actually frozen and defrost it myself.

And so a whole new world of possibilities has opened with excellent frozen fish choices. All of the local grocery stores, wholesale clubs, and even Trader Joe’s carry bags of individually sealed frozen fish fillets, shrimp in assorted sizes, and scallops. Now I keep the fish in my freezer, defrost it quickly by running it under cold water, and can cook it all the time.

When fish is really fresh, it will not smell up your house. But even if you’re still nervous about that fishy smell, there are loads of ways to prepare fish and shellfish on the grill. But here is a basic method to prepare classic Boston Baked Cod. Give it a try on a busy weeknight with microwave steamed veggies and rice cooked on the stove; you’ll have dinner on the table in about 20 minutes.

Save this recipe: Roasted Cod with Lemon Parsley Crumbs

Photo by Fine Cooking

Robin Horrigan writes the column Cooking from the Carpool Lane. She lives on Boston’s south shore and is a stay at home Mom to Ryan, seven, and Maegan, three. Her fascination with cooking sprouted from watching Julia Child cook on a little black and white TV; Robin helped her Mom in the kitchen until she was old enough to ask Santa for her very own copy of The Joy of Cooking. She experiments with all kinds of cooking and baking, from quick weeknight dinners and easy cookies to long simmering weekend stews and complicated, fancy desserts. Ryan thinks if his Mom will ever be famous, it will be “for her awesome cookies.” Her friends say it will be for the cocktails. Either way, if she’s not doing volunteer work or shopping for shoes, you’ll probably find her in the kitchen.

1. Healthy Blueberry and Banana Muffins (Epicurious)
2. Easiest Spaghetti and Meatballs (Martha Stewart)
3. Chicken Tortilla Soup (Food Network)
4. Lighter Chicken Pot Pie (Martha Stewart)
5. Chicken Marbella (Simply Recipes)
6. Italian Baked Chicken and Pastina (Food Network)
7. Beef and Quinoa Meatballs (Whole Foods Market)
8. Broccoli Calzones (Martha Stewart)
9. Steak Fajitas (Real Simple)
10. Ravioli with Roasted Zucchini (Real Simple)
11. Sausage Ragout with Linguine (Epicurious)
12. Bean and Pasta Soup (Martha Stewart)
13. Honey Soy Chicken Thighs (custom)
14. Baked Garlic Parmesan Chicken (Allrecipes)
15. Bacon Wrapped Pork Loin with Cherries (Real Simple)
16. Spicy Shrimp and Bok Choy Noodle Bowl (Food Network)
17. Zucchini, Bacon, and Gruyere Quiche (Epicurious)
18. Soy Glazed Salmon (Martha Stewart)
19. Blueberry Zucchini Bread (Allrecipes)
20. Salmon Cakes (Food Network)

Top 5 Desserts

1. Mexican Chocolate Pudding Filled Cupcakes (Martha Stewart)
2. Tres Leches Cake (The Pioneer Woman)
3. Chocolate Puddle Cookies (101 Cookbooks)
4. Meyer Lemon Coffee Cake (Martha Stewart)
5. Molten Mocha Cakes (Martha Stewart)

Recently, a request for salad ideas came across the Plummelo radar (thanks, Melissa Boyd!). So we started hunting. And it has us inspired.

Today is looking to be a scorcher where we are–the kind of day where you want to get your outdoor activities in early and the kind of evening where you want to avoid baking yourself in the kitchen or sweating over the stove. The kind of night where you want to retreat to the patio after dusk with a glass of white that’s been chilling in the fridge. (Maybe even add an ice cube!)

What is the dinner solution for a hot summer night? We’re serving up salad. We found some great ideas. The bonus? You get your fill of fiber-rich, heart healthy veggies. (Okay, some of these salads have a few extra not-so-good-for-the-figure yummies like bacon and cheese, but everything in moderation, right?)

Photo from Epicurious

If you haven’t tried quinoa yet, add it to your list. It is a grain-like crop, much more readily available now than it was even a few years ago, probably sold with the rice and barley in stores that carry it. We kind of think of it as a cross between couscous and barley–it tastes more like barley with the consistency of couscous, and therefore lends itself to lots of great uses.

Use this recipe as more of a guide than an absolute. Cook the quinoa according to package directions. If you use the recipe instructions to cook the grains (covered and over high heat for 20 minutes) your result will be a burned mess.

Mix the cooked quinoa with as many colorful and crunchy raw or blanched veggies as you like. If you toss the quinoa with the spinach while it is still hot, you’ll get the very nice wilted effect. It’s a great idea for a new CSA shareholder like me, who is all of a sudden buried in scads of vegetables I might not buy all together in one week.

The instructions are somewhat elaborate as to how you should arrange the salad, but there is no need to stress about this. You can make it as artful and composed as you like, or do what I did: toss the hot quinoa together with the spinach and some roughly chopped dill, and then add in the vegetables all mixed together. Toss with the vinaigrette. It looked lovely.

Raw pumpkin seeds are not something I see often in my travels, but this is a nice element in the salad, so I think you can improvise with toasted pine nuts or almonds for a similar effect. I also added a quarter of a red onion I had leftover in the fridge. Sub asparagus for the broccoli or increase the quantity of radishes if you have some to use up. Try a red or green pepper in place of the cucumber, or skip the beets if you don’t care for them.

There is no reason why this dish can’t be a meal in itself, and I would definitely make it for girlfriends for lunch. However, serving it as dinner would absolutely not fly in my house, so tonight we had it with grilled mahi mahi skewers and that seemed to do the trick. I think it would be a great side dish to bring to a summer party.

Save this recipe

Robin Horrigan is a stay at home mom to a 6-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter. She is the cruise director for her busy family, keeping the calendar full of the stuff that makes life worth living, but leaves plenty of time to shop for shoes. When they’re all at home, you’ll find the Horrigans knee-deep in chocolate chips and cookie racks, baking treats together that celebrate the four seasons and even the silliest of holidays.

Quick, name the first three eggplant recipes that come to your mind. Go on! I’ll give you a minute.

OK? Let’s compare lists:

Baba ghanoush, I bet you got that one! That’s the smoky-sweet Middle Eastern dip made with roasted eggplants and tahini. Excellent barbecue side dish.

And eggplant parmesan, another good one even though it tends to be on our no-no list these waist-watching days. It’s a rich and gooey casserole made with slices of deep-fried eggplant layered with sweet tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella.

What other recipes did you think of? Maybe ratatouille? Possibly Greek moussaka? For such a sexy vegetable (yes, sexy! Just take one look at those glossy curves and tell me otherwise!), there seems to be a surprising lack of ideas about what to do with these purple globes. At least until we step outside of the box–or recipe–and start getting creative!

Pick eggplants that are very firm, feel heavy for their size, and have very taut skin. Older eggplants tend to get bitter, so try to buy them as fresh as possible and then use them within a few days. Also, smaller eggplants are usually sweeter than those huge hulking ones and have fewer seeds to deal with.

Once you get them home, there are a few ways we can go about preparing them. I love to roast whole eggplants until the skin is crispy and the insides are creamy. You can do this on the grill, in a 400° oven, or even in a dry skillet on the stove top. Just keep turning the eggplant until the skin is completely blistered and the vegetable starts to look collapsed. When it’s cool enough to handle, I split the eggplant and scoop out the insides for baba ghanoush, soups, pasta sauces, and even quick stir fries.

Alternatively, you can cut eggplant into thick slices or cubes. Salt them first to draw out some of the bitterness and season them throughout, and then rinse off the pieces before cooking. Thick slices can be roasted on the grill or under the broiler, while cubes can be sautéed in olive oil or stewed in a tomato sauce.

No matter what, the key to creamy, delicious eggplant is giving it time to cook. This might take longer than you expect! Taste a piece of eggplant every so often or poke it with a skewer–it should be completely soft with no sponginess or resistance. If the eggplant seems like it’s burning before you think it’s done, turn down the heat a smidge or add a little water to the pan to help it steam.

When it comes to flavorings and recipes, we can take some inspiration from world cuisines. Eggplant can be found in almost all of them, from Indian curries and Italian pastas to Chinese stir fries and Middle Eastern braises!

In what recipes do you love using eggplant?
(Images: Emma Christensen, top, and Martha Stewart)

Emma Christensen quit her office gig when the cooking obsession started taking over and got herself enrolled in culinary school. She is now a full-time freelance food writer with a mild obsession for making complicated and finicky recipes (Exhibit A: homemade croissants). Working from a small apartment kitchen, she dreams of one day having an actual pantry and a garden bigger than her windowsill. More of Emma’s writing can be found on Apartment Therapy: The Kitchn, the Chicago Tribune, and the Columbus Dispatch.

My father carving a beautifully roasted lamb, my brothers exclaiming over the silky texture of the chilled soup, the children relishing their brussels sprouts… it just doesn’t happen.

What does happen is that the kids are hungry long before the meal is ready, they need their plates of food dished first, something spills to soak the tablecloth and there are 17 requests for refills and other accompaniments all at different moments. By the time my sister in law, my Mom and I all sit down to actually eat our own meals, we’re sweating and exhausted. And our chilled soup has actually gotten warm.

For Easter this year, my solution to the usual chaos is a Barefoot Contessa-inspired casual brunch buffet that has foods to please the adults as well as the kids with very few modifications. I’ll do a station outside the kitchen for coffee, juice and the Peach Bellinis. The Sour Cream Coffee Cake and dessert will be made a day ahead of time. I have a double oven, so the Orange Baked Ham can go in one while the asparagus roasts in another (small kitchen hint: if you only have one oven, try steaming the asparagus instead of roasting–it will still please people). Hands’ on tasks: arrange the salad, carve the ham, and scramble a huge pan of eggs. This will leave me plenty of time to enjoy the short as well as the tall folks in my family, no sweating required.

I’ll put aside a little bit of fruit from the Fruity Spinach Salad for the kids, and I’ll need to omit the nuts from the coffee cake recipe because of an allergy, but otherwise this menu will please the entire crowd. Lastly, my friend Eleanor’s genius idea of turning a simple pan of brownies into Easter Brownie Cups would charm even the most hard-hearted adult. View her instructions here. I found the edible Easter grass at Target.

The great thing about brunch is that it is so easy to add to and change without messing with the overall theme of the meal. If this menu is too sweet for you or you need another dish, try a wild rice salad. Need more bread? Brioche and fruit butter or fresh bagels and flavored cream cheeses would be perfect. Happy Easter!

Photo courtesy of Eleanor Touchet

Celebrity chefs, magazines and cookbooks inspire me to strive toward better end products in the kitchen. But if I hear one more time about homemade chicken stock that I can “just throw together when I keep a bird carcass and vegetable trimmings in my freezer,” I might throw in the towel and call for pizza. Sometimes I like to pretend I’m Rachael Ray making a 30-minute meal, and I’ll really time myself. It’s doable if I’m organized–and many of her ideas are inventive and delicious. The caveat is that sometimes I use every pot, bowl and spoon in my house and subsequently spend an hour cleaning up. After all the time I have spent channeling Rachael, do you think she might let me borrow her staff to take care of the aftermath?

I am constantly looking for shortcuts that cut down on shopping, cooking and cleanup time that will not result in a lower-quality end product.

Three ingredients I rely on that allow me to pull together my favorite dishes on the fly are bottled minced garlic, bottled minced ginger and boxed broths. Sure, garlic keeps for a while, but eventually it does get that green sprout; the stink is impossible to get off my hands after I’ve minced it; and every garlic press I’ve ever owned has kicked the bucket within a few months. A piece of fresh ginger does keep in the freezer for months–just as Rachael says it does. Wonderful! If you can remember that you’ve got it and then find it behind the popsicles.

Homemade stock? I do this after a holiday when I have roasted a turkey. But 360 days of the year at my house are all about boneless skinless cuts of meat that cook quickly at the dinner hour. Homemade stock is just not a regular occurrence. Boxed broth adds flavor to so many things I cook without adding any extra fat.

Purists may balk at the use of these shortcuts. I’ll readily admit that as much of a food snob as I have become, I don’t notice the difference when I’m whipping up a quick sauté at 6:30 on a Tuesday night. Keep an open mind and experiment with these three shortcuts. I have a favorite brand of broth (Whole Foods 365) and bottled minced ginger (The Ginger People), but the garlic seems to be the same no matter which brand I try. I throw it in salad dressings, mash it into softened butter, make garlic bread… my family is none the wiser that I didn’t peel and chop the stuff.