Seasonal Sundays (Week 40) Fall Sides for Everyday & Canadian Thanksgiving

"Sides" are having a moment, so today's collection includes a lucky-seven side dish recipes for early fall, many perfect for weeknight fare but also for casual Thanksgiving tables across Canada in another week.

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

~ PIN This ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

Hey, all. Thank you for following Kitchen Parade, for checking in on these Sunday recipe collections. It means the world to be welcomed into your InBox and RSS readers and most of all, your kitchens. So thank you, thank you. And if you like this week's recipes, perhaps you'll share this newsletter with a friend or social circle? If you forward this message, others may subscribe for free right here. Thank you!

Happy Sunday! Happy October! Happy Fall! Go free and seek the pumpkin recipes of your leafiest autumn dreams.

We drove 500+ rural Missouri miles this week, appreciating roadsides thick with goldenrod and asters, scanning the hilltops for pockets of leaf color.

And yet. At least here in the middle of the country, we've got another week of windows-closed summer heat.

And so the vegetable recipes I chose for this week are season bridgers, still capitalizing on bell peppers and eggplant and the lighter sides of sweet potatoes and butternut squash.

Enjoy!

PS LOL I'm laughing all over again, remembering how I fell in love with my Canadian family's Turnip Puff only to learn that it's traditionally made with rutabagas, not purple-topped turnips. The good news? Both are great. More in the mood to bake? Try these small bites of Canadian nostalgia, Butter Tart Bars. More ideas? Check out my Canadian recipes.

In Praise Of ... A Really Good, Hard Laugh

• ... I quizzed my husband about what he'd packed (and not packed) for a quick trip to outstate Missouri dark-early one day this week, we were in the car, still in the driveway, about to depart. Hours later, I realized that my entire overnight bag was at home, fully packed, waiting to get loaded into the car. Dang, AK.
• ... an $11 granny nightie, loose and shapeless, a lot like I remember my Canadian grandmother calling a "mumu" and the only thing I could find at Walmart with soft cotton fabric, for somebody who sleeps hot, it's wonderful!
• ... the memory of an older Australian woman, a fellow hiker on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in Peru, who carried a red umbrella and wore the same white (yes!) long-sleeve linen shirt every day and managed to look clean and fresh even by the fifth day of hard hiking, which is not how I felt, wearing a white long-sleeve linen shirt on only the second day of sweat-free driving this week

Made Me Think ...

• President Biden's "Threats to Democracy" Speech last week (best read, I think, as summarized by historian Heather Cox Richardson) vs the MAGA "impeachment" clown show and the GOP presidential debate about "curtains" vs the impending (as of Friday, as I write) Republican government shut-down.
• Frank Bruni's column this week, one withering zinger after another

May I Suggest ... a Link?

Let me just presume that if you're reading this, well, you're both a cook and a recipe collector. Don't the two kinda go together? And that means you tuck aside interesting recipes all over the place and then, dang, where is that chicken recipe that looked so good anyway? Here's an idea. Start a folder on your phone, call it "Kitchen Parade" or "Alanna" or whatever makes best sense to you. Then save the recipes you're most interested in right there in one place. Easy Peasy.

• Start here?
• ~ vegetable recipes ~

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SEASONAL INSPIRATION: Fall Sides for Everyday & Canadian Thanksgiving

• THE RECIPE Peperonata with Potatoes The classic Italian side dish, now with potatoes. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Sautéed Red & Yellow Bell Peppers with Olives A simple, colorful side dish.

• THE RECIPE Sweet Potato Wedges with Rosemary & Lime Juice An unusual summery dish, served either warm or at room temperature.
• ANOTHER TAKE Simple "Sweet Potato" Potato Salad with Hardly Any Mayonnaise

• THE RECIPE Butternut Mac 'n' Cheese Oh, that crispy, peppery topping!
• ANOTHER TAKE Roasted Butternut Squash & Apple Unexpected layers of flavor and color, a very pretty dish. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Sautéed Collard Greens with Bacon For good fortune and good health in the new year. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Swiss Chard Gratin Weeknight easy, weekend special.

• THE RECIPE Ratatouille The classic French baked vegetables, simplified.
  
• ANOTHER TAKE Roasted Mediterranean Vegetables A casual feast, even mid-winter. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Simple Roasted Mushrooms A surprising side dish, easy meal prep. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Easy Easy Grilled Mushroom Appetizer Two ingredients and a real crowd pleaser.

• THE RECIPE Easy Brussels Sprouts Bites Grab the toothpicks! Surprisingly popular at parties!
• ANOTHER TAKE Bodacious Brussels Sprouts Prep ahead of time, then finish just before serving. (PIN This)

• THE COLLECTION Thanksgiving Menus, Recipes & More (PIN This)
• ESPECIALLY FOR VEGETABLE LOVERS My Very Best Thanksgiving Vegetable Recipes (PIN This)

What's New?!

Wondering about a recipe from the last while? Check Recent Recipes from Kitchen Parade and Recent Vegetable Recipes from A Veggie Venture.

• THE RECIPE Twenty-Minute Taco Bar Start to finish, start to feast. (PIN This)

Looking Ahead ...

• October 1st - Today is Alanna's Unofficial First Day of Fall!
• October 9th - Canadian Thanksgiving
• October 9th - Columbus Day
• October 31st - Halloween
• November 1st & 2nd - Days of the Dead (All Saints)
• November 4th - 5th - "Fall Backward" Time Change (an extra hour! nice!)
• November 11th - Veteran's Day
• November 23rd (early! nice!) - American Thanksgiving
• December 1st - Alanna's Unofficial First day of Winter
• December 21st - Winter Solstice (Official First Day of Winter)

Looking Back ...

• Cooking with Apples (Week 39) (PIN This)
• Burger Season (Week 38) (PIN This)
• Fall Is for Vegetarians (Week 37) (PIN This)
• Lazy Weekend Breakfasts (Week 36) (PIN This)
• Summer's Not Over Yet (Week 35) (PIN This)

Déjà Vu

Something useful ... or thoughtful ... or interesting ... or fun ... from Seasonal Sundays, this same week in 2019.

... just read the YA novel, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, the story of Starr, a teenage girl who witnesses the killing of an unarmed black teen by a police man. On the face, if this sounds familiar, it is, all too. But The Hate U Give is intensely personal, to this one place, to this one girl and her family. This is not the story line you'll hear or read about in the news.

I've absorbed The Hate U Give in all the ways: read it; listened to it (recommended, if you have the choice); watched the movie; and especially, pondered on it.

Each added to my understanding. I found the characters smart and human, the issues presented with perspective. It opened my eyes.

That said, it's hard to talk about race and injustice. That doesn't mean we shouldn't.

Is The Hate U Give on your bookshelf? Thoughts?

A Quick Peek Into a Real-Life Kitchen

Just so you know, everything's not all pretty pictures around here, in the background is a pile of dirty dishes. And just like many (all?) of us, come five o'clock, I too draw a blank about what to make for supper, despite so many recipes I so dearly love. Here's a quick peek from the last week, not including the Pumpkin Smoothies, Hamburger Soup and Cauliflower Risotto on repeat this time of year.

• THIS WEEK Okay, okay. I slipped a little pumpkin into, allors, September. But after last week's wonderful Easy Baked Oatmeal with Apples & Walnuts, there was no stopping. This version has more dessert-ish vibes, the texture leans bread pudding vs morning oats.
• THE RECIPE Baked Oatmeal with Pumpkin & Pears Oatmeal baked with pumpkin plus fall fruit, pumpkin-pie spices and nuts.

• THIS WEEK Our garden is still putting out tomatoes! This time I tried the less-acidic yellow tomatoes and yeah, missed that touch of acidity so added a touch of sherry vinegar. I also threw in a cup of canned pumpkin, just to use it up, and at first regretted it but by the time it reached the table with hot pasta and a sprinkle of Parmesan, it went unnoticed. All good!
• THE RECIPE Fresh Tomato Sauce For summer's best tomato-pasta feast or a creamy-tomato bed for eggs or sausage.

Just Updated!

• THE COLLECTION Favorite Recipes for Fall Baking (PIN This)
• AND ANOTHER My Favorite Apple Recipes All my favorite apple recipes, savory and sweet. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Homemade Finnish Mustard How to make mustard at home, Finnish-style. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Famous Mustard Sauce (Carolina BBQ Mustard Sauce) A tiny-bit spicy and a tiny-bit sweet and totally addictive.

• THE RECIPE Homemade Ricotta Two ways to make fresh homemade ricotta. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Homemade Buttermilk How to make thick & tangy, cold & creamy buttermilk.

Something to Read

Little Monsters (affiliate link) by Adrienne Brodeur ... adult children finally coming of age, kinda fascinating.

Drowning (affiliate link) by TJ Newman of Falling (affiliate link) fame ... this falls into that "thriller disaster" category, fascinating if only because it depicts ingenuity in the face of the unthinkable.

NO TIME TO READ? MAYBE YOU REALLY DO How I Read 4X More This Year Than Last What I gave up, how I read so much, what I read.

Don't Be a Stranger ...

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail (my current address is in the FAQs), dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, tuck a question into a plastic Easter egg, whatever.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. When you make my recipes, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below or better still, on the specific recipe's page.

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