Fall

We are well into fall around here and I am loving every minute of my favorite season of the year.  Cooler weather and leaves changing colors mean more time outdoors for our family.  Pumpkin has begun to once again find its way into many of our baked goods and eating them under a big blue sky makes them that much better. A trip to a local pumpkin patch was a recent field trip for my little 6 year old filled with lots of hay, best friends, and pumpkins for our doorstep. Oh, and soups galore have made their way onto our table to help warm us up from several recent weekend cold snaps.  Yes fall is in the air and we are doing all we can to try and keep it from passing by too quickly.  Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

*For those who might ask here is the Chicken Quinoa Soup (pictured above) recipe from Big Oven...

Ingredients

	2 tablespoonsolive oil
	1/2 cupcarrots; chopped, optional.
	1/2 cupcelery; chopped
	1/2 cuponions; chopped
	2 cupswater
	3 cupschicken broth or stock
	1/2 cupquinoa; rinsed
	2 cupschicken; cooked and diced
	1/4 cupparsley; chopped fine
	1/2 teaspoongarlic powder
	1/2 teaspoonfresh black pepper
	1/2 teaspoonSalt

Directions

In a large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add ½ cup chopped carrots, ½ cup chopped celery, and ½ cup chopped onions or scallions to the heated oil and fry for about 5 minutes or until the vegetables just start to brown. Stir in 2 cups of water and 3 cups of chicken stock or broth and bring to a boil. Stir in ½ cup of rinsed quinoa, 2 cups of cooked and diced chicken, ¼ cup finely chopped parsley, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon black pepper, and ½ teaspoon salt. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 20 minutes. Adjust the seasoning if necessary and serve. This recipe yields approximately 8 one-cup servings.