Fall Culinary Goals

Autumn is, and has always been, my favorite season. There's just something about the leaves turning shades of orange, red and gold ... something about the crisp freshness of the air ... something about settling back into a routine after a fun, carefree summer. I love how summer slowly fades into fall, and how *glorious* fall is, and then comes the quiet calm of November before the hussle and bussle of Christmastime. And of course there are the flavors and tastes of autumn. Pumpkin, apples, spices, warm hearty soups. On Tuesday morning, I stopped by Starbucks and had my first pumpkin spice latte of 2012. That can only mean one thing: autumn's finally here.

Autumn is also a time where I make resolutions, set goals and start new projects. I know most people do this in January, but I guess I never outgrew the whole "back to school" mentality. Flipping the calendar from August to September just stirs that desire in me to begin something.

I have many plans for the next few weeks. They include buying a pretty scarf, visiting a pumpkin patch and finally trying out that organic pizzeria I've been talking about visiting. I also have a few culinary goals. Sometime between now and November 30th I aspire to ...

1. Cook ribs
2. Make a pie (including crust) from scratch
3. Make potato and leek soup

Ready ... set .... go ....