Mill Hill Meadow Messenger. * Edition 5 *

 

 By: Kerin

                                        Mill Hill Meadow Messenger Correspondent

 

Well readers, it's here!
At last, it's October!!
 My most favorite month of all.

*October is the month for Pumpkins.

There are so many wonderful varieties of pumpkins, gourds and squash!

So many colors and shapes, and lets not forget about the flavors!

 

Do yourself a favor, and click on the link to learn all about pumpkins!

http://www.allaboutpumpkins.com/index.html

You will find  a ton of great information all about pumpkins, including recipes, tips to preserve pumpkins, carving tips, etc...

 

All across the country, there are pumpkin carving contests, and pumpkin festivals.

 Maybe there's one in your area!

*Link to Pumpkin Festivals

:http://www.bobvila.com/articles/pumpkin-festivals-not-to-miss/#.VDKWiuktDVI

 

Here at Mill Hill Meadow, we didn't have a chance to grow our own pumpkins this year.

The first picture  in this post is of our pumpkins that we grew last year at the homestead. 

 Next year, we will have a pumpkin patch.... even if it's a small one.

 

*Decorate with pumpkins:

Pumpkins decorate not only the front porch, but mantles, kitchen tables, and hutches. 

I love to decorate with pumpkins! I have pumpkins on my t.v hutch, pumpkins on my island, and pumpkins on my front porch.

Ceramic pumpkins on shelves in the bathrooms, and wicker pumpkins on the console table.

 

When I was young, my parents only bought pumpkins for carving on Halloween. 

 My mom never used pumpkins for decorating with, and she certainly never brought pumpkins indoors.

How times have changed.

 

*Poem for October:October

By:  Robert Frost      

O hushed October morning mild,

Thy leaves have ripened to the fall;

Tomorrow’s wind, if it be wild,

Should waste them all.

The crows above the forest call;

Tomorrow they may form and go.

O hushed October morning mild,

Begin the hours of this day slow.

Make the day seem to us less brief.

Hearts not averse to being beguiled,

Beguile us in the way you know.

Release one leaf at break of day;

At noon release another leaf;

One from our trees, one far away.

Retard the sun with gentle mist;

Enchant the land with amethyst.

Slow, slow!

For the grapes’ sake, if they were all,

Whose leaves already are burnt with frost,

Whose clustered fruit must else be lost—

For the grapes’ sake along the wall.

* Bake it!
Bake up something with pumpkin in it!
How about Pumpkin Scones?

 

 

             

Pumpkin Scones

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 13 minutes

Yield: 36 scones

Ingredients

For the Scone:
• 4¼ cup flour
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp ground cloves
• ¾ tsp nutmeg
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• ¾ cup butter, cold, cut in cubes
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 eggs
For the Vanilla Glaze:
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp heavy cream
For the Cinnamon Glaze:
• 1½ cup powdered sugar
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp allspice
• 2-3 Tbsp heavy cream

 

Instructions

1. In small bowl, mix the pumpkin, heavy cream and egg with a whisk. Set aside.
2. In mixer, using paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and spices. Add in cold butter cubes and mix until crumbly. Slowly add in pumpkin mixture and mix until thoroughly combined.
3. Divide dough in half, and form the dough into a 12x5 inch rectangle. If it’s too sticky, using hands, mix in enough flour so it is easier to shape.
4. Cut dough into triangles by making three vertical cuts (you should now have 3 rectangles. Cut each of the rectangles by making an X, I use a pizza cutter. Then make ONE horizontal cut across the center. You should have 18 triangles.
5. Place each triangle onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in a 425 degree oven for about 13-15 minutes. Repeat with other half of dough.
6. Cool on rack. Make sugar glaze by whisking the sugar with heavy cream. Using a brush, paint the tops of each scone with the glaze.
7. To make the cinnamon glaze, whisk all the ingredients together until smooth. Pour into a ziploc bag and cut the corner. Drizzle the glaze over all the scones. Allow to dry (about 15 minutes). Eat and enjoy!

(adapted from The Shoebox Kitchen)http://www.shugarysweets.com/2011/09/pumpkin-scones

 

I'm giving this recipe a try today!

I'm not a coffee drinker, but I have heard rave reviews about Starbucks pumpkin scones.

So, on a recent shopping trip to the big city, we stopped by a Starbucks, and my sweet husband bought me a pumpkin scone to try.

Yummy!  Loved the pumpkin scone, and now, I just have to make some of my very own.

 

Have you ever made pumpkin scones before? If you have, then by all means email me your recipe!

 

Well readers, just remember to enjoy this wonderful month of October, and enjoy all things Pumpkin!