Autumn Has Arrived
Welcome! My Kitchen Table has moved to My Cozy Corner. I’m looking forward to the times we will have together. If you have been with me before, rest assured that this will continue to be much like My Kitchen Table. If you are new to this blog, WELCOME! I hope you will enjoy the time you spend here. Hopefully, our cast of characters will rapidly become old friends.
I’m grateful that I live in a place that has four seasons. If I have a favorite, (and I’m not sure about that), it’s autumn. Truthfully, I love each season for the change and newness of each day. Right now, I’m enjoying the cooler days and the changing colors. Each day has new blessings. Being a country girl at heart, I love harvest time. This year, we have enjoyed abundant apples and grapes. I so enjoy our little piece of paradise. Our ancient apple trees are producing abundantly. That doesn’t always happen.
But my name is not Pollyanna, and I love being positive and upbeat in these blogs, but my life has not always been easy. If you are going through a hard time, I’m here to tell you, there is life outside of the trials. I was recently given what became the final charm on a necklace that symbolizes my life. The first charm is from an organization that gives support to victims of domestic abuse. I am a domestic abuse survivor, so that symbolizes that part of my life. The second charm was given to me by my husband. It reads: Fate whispers to the warrior, you cannot withstand the storm. The warrior whispers back, I am the storm. The third charm was given to me as a thank you gift from a friend. It is a dragonfly, which is the symbol of hope. My future is hopeful. That is my life in a nutshell. I am a warrior and you are, too!
Back to life in real time. My retired lady friends have joined together to have lunch together. We have not been able to meet together since before COVID. We were finally able to have our 2020 Christmas party in August. As of this writing, I’m preparing to have the ladies here for lunch at my house. By the time you read this, it will be a thing of the past. We are celebrating all things APPLE. I am in charge of appetizers, beverages and dessert. Our appetizers will be a variety of cheese and crackers, with fresh apple slices. In addition to coffee and tea, we will have champagne flutes of sparkling cider. As I was planning the day, an advertisement came that included a recipe for apple tarts. The recipe is here, but I will tell you in advance, chopping the apples is time consuming.
Apple Pie Bites
1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 1/2 Cups of finely diced apples (peel if desired)
2 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the puff pastry into a 15 inch by 10 inch rectangle. Cut into 24 squares. Fit each square into one of the wells of a muffin tin. (I found it helpful to spray the pan first, and respray it for the second batch).
Stir the apples, sugar, and cinnamon together and spoon into the pastry lined muffin tin.
Bake until the pastry is golden, about 15 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing from the pan. Top with caramel sauce and lightly sprinkle with kosher salt.
Even after 4 edits, I made two mistakes in last week’s recipe. It should have said 1 1/2 pounds of chicken breast or thighs, and the sauce should have included 1 Cup of chopped cilantro.
I hope you are enjoying the bounty of this harvest season.
Until we meet again,
Helen
My Quiet Place 