Is it summer? Is it fall? Here in northwest Alabama, late September is both!
Fall
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Tag Archives: fall
Fall
The first sign of fall isn't football practice or back-to-school shopping -- it's the "seasonal" aisle at CVS changing from sunscreen and beach toys to pumpkins and scarecrows ... in the first week of August.
Random Thoughts
Random thoughts and things-to-do on this gorgeous fall Saturday morning:
1) Go to Jack-O-Lantern Farms market on the TVA reservation in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and buy some more fresh and delicious Honeycrisp Apples (the two less shiny-red apples in the photo). Honeycrisp apples are exactly as described — like taking a crisp and juicy bite of honey. They’re only available right now, so eat up. Check out the market at http://www.jackolanternfarm.com/. It’s open today from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
2) Watch the Alabama/LSU game on TV today. It makes me remember the night my husband and I accidentally stayed in the same hotel with the Tiger Pimp Nation. It was scary — literally. The Tiger Pimp Nation is made up of … well, intensely enthusiastic LSU fans who adopt these sort of characters, complete with clothes, jewelry, cars and women. The setup is so elaborate that they only travel to one away game a season. John and I encountered them in Memphis this past year after the Ole Miss/LSU game in Oxford. So, imagine rabid LSU fans combined with Beale Street. It was quite an experience. Not easily forgotten, although we have tried. Desperately. Check out the Pimp Nation at www.tigerpimpnation.com. And believe me, what you see there is real.
Fall Decorating
Fall is my favorite season for decorating — I love bringing the outdoors 
in with cheerful pumpkins and vibrantly colored leaves. And when I say “I love bringing …,” what I actually mean is I love seeing what other people do since my fall decorating consists of occasionally throwing away empty Halloween-candy wrappers. I’m not lazy — well, not much, anyway — just creatively challenged. That makes me appreciate others’ decorating talents all the more, such as what I saw in this Decatur, Alabama, home. Betty Sims is a former restaurant owner and wonderful cook who teaches cooking classes in her home in Decatur. Friends and I went recently for a brunch class, and I loved all the fall vignettes Sims created with 
simple elements from nature and her own collections. Of 
course, if I went out to my backyard and cut off a bunch of leaves and stuck them in a pumpkin, it would look pretty much as if I went out in the backyard and cut off a bunch of leaves and stuck them in a pumpkin. I’m just glad that there are other people around who know how to do it right — and invite the rest of us over for brunch. Here’s the Web site for Sims’ cooking school, Southern Scrumptious: http://scrumptiousinc.com/
Tupelo Party
When my husband and I went to a party some friends of his 
hosted in Tupelo, Mississippi, this past weekend, I was blown away by this gorgeous space. It’s the Dance Studio in downtown Tupelo and it is really a dance studio as well as perfect party room. The gleaming wood floors and exposed brick walls were the background for soft fall colors of golds, browns and oranges. There was dancing, wine, good company and good food: Vegetable soup, fried chicken, a mashed potato 
bar — and cake. (Hmm … cake.) Every time we’re somewhere that has a mashed potato bar, my husband and I remember our wedding in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, four years ago. Our caterer recently had returned from a caterers’ gathering in California and was enthusiastic about the latest trend: Mashed potatoes in champagne glasses with a variety of toppings you add yourself. John and I looked at each other and agreed that while it sounded like a fun idea and we would certainly like to go to that party, the folks at our wedding might think it was a little weird. What did we know? Now a mashed-potato bar is everybody’s favorite party food. Check out The Dance Studio at http://www.thedancestudiotupelo.com/. And go vote today! You do not want to miss out.
Fall Parties
I have a friend in Florence, Alabama, who is the most creative and stylish hostess ever. I don’t want to embarrass her here, so I’ll just call her … hmm, let’s see … for no reason whatsoever, I’ll call her 
Cheryl. Every time I go to a gathering at Cheryl’s house, I feel special because of her generous hospitality, beautifully set tables and scrumptious food. In fact, folks are still talking about a cheese party she gave a couple years ago — I only wish Gourmet magazine had been there. Recently she hosted our four-woman book club, and even though she had worked out of town all day, everything was perfect. Her house was glowing with autumn decoration in browns, golds and oranges; the table settings were so elegant; and you could smell the comforting scents of vegetable soup and pumpkin bread as soon as you walked in the door. Since the main decor at my house is cat hair, coffee cups and stacks of newspapers, I’m glad I have friends such as Cheryl to remind me how to live graciously.
Fall Food
Take advantage of fresh fall produce and cool fall days and whip up some squash soup. Sherry Campbell, the director of the Shoals Commercial Culinary Center in Florence, Alabama, http://www.shoalsec.com/facilities/SCC_index.html, showed us how to do to it in less than an hour at a recent Lunch and Learn cooking class. Even if Sherry weren’t a friend I’d go to her classes — she teaches how to create tasty dishes using seasonal ingredients and time-saving shortcuts and doesn’t mind if you ask stupid questions. (Plus, she’s the fastest acorn-squash peeler I’ve ever seen — it only takes her seconds.) Then when she’s done teaching, we eat the results. In fact, some non-cooks (and I am not naming names here) admit to coming to class only for the eating. And can we blame them? This Acorn Squash Soup with Fresh Sage was so incredibly delicious and easy. We also had Rustic Rosemary 
Tarts, which was herbed goat and cream cheese spread over thawed puff pastry — so simple and good. Coming up are Lamb Entrees with locally raised lamb, 6-9 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 13, $35; and Lunch and Learn on potatoes and other root vegetables, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 18, $16. Pre-registration is required. Call Sherry at 256.764.0044 or e-mail her at scampbell@shoalsec.com
While you’re in downtown Florence, go to McGraw’s Coffee House for a healthy pumpkin bar. It’s packed with nuts and oats and pumpkin. Don’t want a healthy pumpkin bar? What about a muffin, scone, cookie or slice of melt-in-your-mouth cake? And of course you have to have some freshly roasted coffee to go with. McGraw’s is a friendly hometown gathering spot that attracts a lively mix of University of North Alabama students, downtown workers and coffee fans. Check it out at http://www.mcgraws.shoalsonline.com/
Fall Jackets
One of the best things about fall here in Alabama is wearing jackets. I love jackets! I feel more pulled together when I’ve got one on, plus, it hides the 
dreaded middle-age pooch that persists in hanging around no matter how many crunches I do or chocolate-covered creme-filled Krispy Kremes I give up. Since my usual cold-weather outfit is a simple and lazy turtleneck with jeans, jackets jazz things up and help me look less basic. Shop for great jacket deals in the early spring as retailers get rid of their winter stock. That’s how I got these three great finds. One of my favorites is the orange embroidered wool. As soon as the temperature gets down to the 50s and 60s, I pull it out. I wear it so much I’m sure everybody gets sick of seeing it. But I 
don’t care! I feel happy as soon as I put it on. I got it on sale at Audie Mescal women’s boutique in Tuscumbia, Alabama, two or three years ago. The soft green quilted jacket is a velour-like brushed cotton in such a pretty shade. It’s from a clearance rack at specialty store Marigail Mathis in Florence, Alabama (http://www.marigailmathis.com/). I also lucked up on a near-matching long-sleeved green T-shirt. But the best buy is this fantastic gray jacket from Theodora women’s shop in Homewood (Birmingham), Alabama. I coveted it all season two years ago but could not pay the $300 or so price. I guess nobody else could, either, because I found it on the sale rack at such a discount that I bought it immediately before the store owner changed her mind. Score!
Pumpkin Mania Part 2
Fresh Market grocery stores just make me happy. It’s destination shopping for me — 
even if I don’t need anything, I never pass up a chance to walk in one and breathe it in: The gorgeous fresh produce, the tempting bakery, the beautifully arranged meat, the cheeses, the oils … I can’t stop! My long-range goal is to actually live someplace where I can visit one every day — I envy anyone who can do that. I especially love Fresh Market in the fall, because apparently the folks there share my love of pumpkins. And why not? Pumpkins are cheerful, colorful, tasty and good for you. 
On a recent visit to Fresh Market in Huntsville, Alabama, I found pumpkin-spice coffee, a pumpkin-spice scone mix from Sticky Fingers Bakeries, Doctor Kracker pumpkin-seed cheddar flatbread (crunchy and hearty and perfect for spreadable cheese) and my favorite cereals: organic FlaxPlus pumpkin-raisin crunch and organic FlaxPlus pumpkin granola from Nature’s Path.
But even though I love Fresh Market, sometimes (well, really, almost all of the time) I cringe at spending $5 for a box of cereal. The secret is that you can find most of these products much cheaper at other non-Fresh Market places. Nature’s Path cereal, for instance, is at Wal-Mart for practically half of the Fresh Market price. And I found some Doctor Kracker crackers in my other favorite food-browsing place: T.J. Maxx, where you can pick up oils, syrups, jams, jellies and other goodies for a fraction of what you’d pay normally. Just make sure to check expiration dates. And then, with the money you save, you can go back to Fresh Market!
Orange Rolls and Hay Bales
Yum — what about some orange rolls for Sunday brunch? The best ones, of course, come from All Steak Restaurant in 
Cullman, Alabama. These delicious creations literally melt in your mouth when they’re warm and gooey in the restaurant– and they’re sensational even a couple hours later when you dig into your to-go dozen on the way home. You go to All Steak for the rolls but you’re rewarded with a full menu of fresh and homemade food served with a smile. All Steak has been a Cullman tradition for years, and with reason: It’s good food at a good price made and served by some of the friendliest folks around. And while you’re in Cullman, wander around downtown for some fun shopping. Younger daughter Carolyn and I recently did that. After lunch (with orange rolls, of course), we paid a visit to Biggest Hay-Bale People Ever Made, who were hanging out on a Cullman sidewalk. You just never know what you’ll find! Check out All Steak at www.theallsteak.com
Coffee with Cathy 