It’s a busy time of year; the leaves need raking, the gutters need cleaning, and the pumpkin spice lattes need drinking! You have probably gone to at least one farmer’s market to pick up pumpkins and local produce, you unpacked the storage bins of fall coats and boots, and you are probably also thinking ahead to the upcoming holidays! Plus, there is still the matter of the Covid pandemic spreading throughout our campuses, complexes and country.

Take a deep breath.

If fall has you stressed, then I hope you will do whatever you need to do in order to appreciate these short and beautiful days and enjoy what is most important to you. I can get pretty worked up by the idea of checking off everything on the fall to-do list but, as I grow older, I am learning to appreciate experiencing the joys of the season at my own pace instead of rushing through as many fall activities as possible. If I don’t get to go apple picking, AND decorate the porch, AND carve jack-o-lanterns, AND jump in a leaf pile, AND take my niece to the maze, and, and, and… well, I will be alright.

So far, I’ve gotten apples and Dunek’s Maple Syrup so that I can make my healthy apple crisp recipe, and I have planned my drive up the Mississippi River to look at the fall colors. (You can view where the colors are changing in Wisconsin, and predictions of color change timelines in your county via Travel Wisconsin’s Fall Color Report). I haven’t done much, but I also didn’t get ahead of myself and start Pumpkin Spice Season - #PSL - in August like Starbucks (as far as I am concerned, it is STILL paddle boarding season)!

If you find the time, and enjoy playing around in the kitchen, then try this simple recipe that combines the pumpkin spice spirit with our sweet black garlic! The Recipe of the Week: Roasted Pumpkin and Black Garlic Hummus by Chef Eliana from ChefEliana.com is a one-step hummus recipe with only eight ingredients, and it’s so pretty that it will easily double as a fall table decoration (for the brief five minutes it takes for your family to devour it)! Chef Eliana has a printable version of this recipe on her Recipe Page, if you prefer paper to tablets in your kitchen.

 If you are crafty in the kitchen, let us know how you are combining Pumpkin and Black Garlic! Have you tried our Black Garlic Powder on Pumpkin Seeds, or attempted The Kelly Diet’s hearty recipe for Quinoa Pumpkin Chili? Send us a DM on one of our socials, we would love to see what you create (links in the footer)!