Sights in Autumn!

Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere!

Yesterday was a beautiful autumn day!  Today is too!  The end of September is here, so it's the perfect time for the annual visit to Meadowbrook Farm in East Longmeadow (MA) for the bushel of Butternut Squash.  Nothing like purchasing the delicious orange veggie direct from the farm where it is grown.  It's a tradition to take the short drive and make the purchase.

The greenhouses are filled with assortments of pumpkins, too.

Inside a greenhouse.

Sights of  the Fall season are everywhere.

Another collection!

The cornstalks show us that the fresh native corn season has - ended.

More decorations for Autumn!

The bushel of Butternut is now in our garage.  It just would not be autumn if we did not make this purchase.  A few at a time the squash will be prepped.  The mashed yummy vegetable will be placed in freezer bags to enjoy during the other months of the year.  There's always a special place for it on our Thanksgiving Day dinner table.

Is Butternut Squash Bread in my future, maybe, also??  Sure is! 

These are some of the sights of Autumn in Massachusetts!

Enjoy!

Butternut Squash Bread

Butternut Squash Bread
flavored with Cinnamon & Nutmeg

Every Fall a bushel of Butternut Squash is purchased from Meadowbrook Farm in East Longmeadow.  Sometimes a Mum or two is also purchased.  That depends on if our perennial Mums in our garden have sprouted again this year.  Usually they do.  However, this past year had been different.  A warm day in early Spring followed by cold weather stunned the Hydrangea.  The cold snap also had effects on the Forsythia Bushes in my area.  They never flowered.  This year only one Mum in the back perennial garden sprouted & it was time for a little autumn color!  During our visit to Meadowbrook Farm a few weeks ago Butternut Squash & Mums were purchased.

Meadowbrook Farm

Preparing & freezing this mashed orange vegetable is a tradition with me.  We freeze our supply to enjoy all winter.  This habit began with my family.  (Click here for Freezing Butternut Squash Instructions.)  Our garden had a great spot to grow these vegetables that grow on vines.  Canning & freezing veggies was all part of summer back then.  Now, I purchase them at the bountiful area roadside stands. 

The last 3 Butternuts in the bushel were prepped 2 days ago.  1 Cup was saved out & stored in the fridge for a special bread- Butternut Squash Bread.  I was reminded of it whenever I opened the fridge door.  Yesterday was the day to bake the bread!  It's delicious!  Cinnamon & a bit of Nutmeg give it a great flavor.  Egg Whites are used rather than Whole Eggs.  Quite often I bake 2 breads & place one in the freezer after cooling.  At Thanksgiving, we enjoy Butternut Squash Bread rather than Pumpkin Bread!

Butternut Squash Bread

Oven:  350°F         Time:  55 Minutes 

Ingredients: 
1 and 1/2 Cups Flour
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
1  Cup Sugar

4 Egg Whites (= total of 2 Whole Eggs)
3/4 Cup Olive Oil for sauteing & baking
1 Cup Butternut Squash, cooked/ mashed/ cooled- defrosted if frozen
PAM

Method: 

1.  Spray 1 large bread pan with PAM. 
2.  Preheat oven to 350°F.
3.  Combine all dry ingredients in large bowl.
4.  In smaller bowl, beat Egg Whites until frothy.
5.  Mix in Olive Oil.
6.  Add mashed Butternut Squash to Egg Whites/Olive Oil & stir.
7.  Pour liquid mixture into dry ingredients and stir until combined.
8.  Pour batter into bread pan.
9.  Bake at 350°F for 55 Minutes or until toothpick/ cake tester comes out clean when inserted    in middle of loaf.
10.  Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 Minutes.
11.  Then remove from pan & continue cooling.
12.   Later, place on plate & cut into slices.

If you can wait until the next day before sampling this yummy Butternut Squash Bread, the flavors combine even more.  However, we never can wait, so we always enjoy the first slice later in that day.

Have you baked a Butternut Squash Bread?

Enjoy!
Yummy!

     

Freezing Green Peppers

Ready for the freezer!

Fresh locally grown Green Peppers!  They taste so good!  During the colder months I really miss the opportunity to purchase a Pepper grown locally to include in a dinner recipe.  However, these days there is a Plan B going on with me & Green Peppers.  At this time of year when they are very plentiful, a quick trip to Meadowbrook Farm in East Longmeadow makes Plan B happen very quickly.

Sunday was that day.  After a great time relaxing at the Cape, I was ready to get busy & freeze the Peppers.  It is a very easy process.

Cutting Pepper Slices
(File Photo)

 Freezing Green Pepper Strips 

1. Rinse Peppers under cool running water.  Dry.
2. Cut off tops.
3. Discard seeds.
4. Cut each Pepper in strips. 
5. Place a handful of Pepper strips in a plastic sandwich bag.   (I do not use exact measurements.) I "eyeball" the amount I'd get from 1 whole Pepper for each bag.
6. Close the sandwich bag and fold over. 
7. Carefully, place all sandwich bags in a Ziploc Freezer Bag.
8.  Seal, label and place in freezer. 

***Usually from the "cut off" Pepper tops a few chunks of Pepper can be saved to freeze, also.  These chunks are also placed in sandwich bags & then in a Freezer Bag.  (See photo above.)

During the harsher winter months whenever a Green Pepper is an ingredient in a recipe, I head to my freezer to remove 1 sandwich bag.  They are already cleaned & cut into strips/ chunks.  So tasty!  Well worth the small amount of time to prep them in the summer!

It did not take long to find my kitchen!  :)

Enjoy!
Yummy!