Right around this time of year, two years ago, I started this blog.
It was fall, and I felt warm inside. I wanted my own little corner of the internet. A place I could colour in and edit, use as I like.
And here I am two years unwiser, a much better cook/baker, yet just as sappy and sentimental with my pros.
Hm. Fall.
How is it that I write about it every year, without fail, and never feel content with the way I've described it? It always seems to be one step ahead of me, this sneaky season. And yet I take so much comfort in aimlessly trailing behind it, trying to keep myself as close as possible to it before it runs away and I'm suddenly knee-deep in snow and missing sunshine. Winter makes me feel like a plant craving water: all bent over and lifeless, looking forward to the spring as though I'm not really sure if it'll make it back this year. But this year is going to be a little different: I get to spend December camping out under a shady coconut grove, yoga-ing, quite literally, from sunrise to sunset, and coming back to this city as a certified yoga teacher in the new year.
As my dear friend Devin said,
"Seriously Marls, you're gonna transform into a lotus bud or something after all of this".
Wouldn't that be a surprise?
So what have I been up to? Fall. It's the beginning of November, what else could you possibly expect...
A little plaid...
A little hybrid squash which may or may not have required a butcher knife to cut open...
And some curiously large apples...
But if you know me, and I'm assuming you do, you'll know that I can't say it's truly fall until I've made a vegan pumpkin pie. Or two. These were for my floor potluck at work:
Vegan Pumpkin Pie
-1 8-inch or 9-inch unbaked pie crust (homemade or storebought)
-2 cups pureed pumpkin (or one 15-oz can)
-1 cup plain nondairy milk (soy is best, though coconut creates a creamier texture if you don't mind a little coconut flavour seeping through)
-3/4 cup sugar
-2 1/2 – 3 Tbsp cornstarch
-1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
-1/2 tsp ginger
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp ground cloves
-1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine pumpkin, non-dairy milk, sugar, cornstarch, salt, and spices in a large bowl, and mix very well.
3. Pour into unbaked pastry shell, and bake for about an hour. Don't worry -the pie will firm up as it cools. Let cool completely on a cooling rack and refrigerate under plastic wrap for several hours before serving.
4. Scarf down and digest fall with utmost happiness -preferably with someone who makes you feel warm and fuzzy (and appreciates your baking skills).
Happy Fall!
