Seasons of Home: Fall Kitchen and a Tea

 I'm always a little sad to bid summer goodbye, and yet each season is such a gift.  Fall is no exception, and I love the subtle shift as the seasons change.  As our new school year begins, and the mornings bring a brisk feel, I love bringing a few elements into our home that welcome the new season.

I'm excited today to be joining a group of talented bloggers (all linked at the bottom of this post) in the first installment of the Seasons of Home tour (hosted by the talented Kristen from Ella Claire blog) starting in the fall kitchen!  For me, it isn't so much about the decor in the kitchen as it is the feelings, the smells, the colors. 

Fall brings about feelings of coziness, warmer colors, smells of cinnamon and pumpkin in the kitchen.  We are so fortunate to live in an area that we have access to so many local fruits, and while it's always a little bittersweet as the fresh peaches fade away, seeing the first sweet apples available instantly makes me excited for fall. 

It's not quite pumpkin season here yet, but just by adding some local apples, a candle, and some cinnamon spiced baked goods, our kitchen is slowly welcoming in a new season. 

 I love adding in little touches of brown here and there... a color that doesn't always fit in so well with other seasons, but is just perfect right now.

Do you find yourself spending a little extra time in the kitchen each fall like me?  There's just something about fall baking! 

The girls obviously have favorite things to look forward to each season.  During the fall season, they love our annual trip to the pumpkin patch, school activities with friends, the county fair, and so much more, but one of their favorite things we start back up in the fall is our little afternoon teas at home. 

 We started doing this several years ago.  We don't have tea every day or even always at a certain time, but we try to fit it in as much as we can, especially as the days get cooler.  The girls love helping me prepare all the tea fixings and sitting around the table together. 

 This year we actually prepared a tea tray, as we have tea often enough to keep everything close by, and I thought this might be a fun opportunity to share our little tradition.

 The girls love adding sugar cubes and milk into (decaf ;-) ) black tea (with British accents of course).  This is also an opportunity to actually use some of my pretty dishes!  ;-) 

 I always include a little treat with our tea.  Since the girls obviously already have quite the sugar intake (the sugar cubes are just too tempting - ha), I try to balance it with a "healthier" treat.  This apple snacking cake actually doesn't have any flour in it, but uses almond butter, which gives us some protein and healthy fats to help us last the afternoon.  I'll share the recipe below!  This is a delicious tea cake, just lightly sweet and very filling.  I like to add in chunks of fresh apple and some pecans.  We have been known to have scones with our tea, but for the most part, I usually try to have something that I feel is a little better for us.

 (Like I mentioned, the sugar cubes are the best part according to the girls!)

 The girls actually refer to our teatime as a "tea party", but as you can see our teas are very informal, and yet feel special with pretty dishes and time carved out.  We often sit at the dining table, but sometimes the kitchen island is a pretty perfect place to land.  We've even been known to read some poetry at our teatimes on occasion.  ;-)

 The sign of a successful teatime... there's always a mess to clean up, but I wouldn't have it any other way.  :-)

Apple Cake Recipe

Recipe from Pamela Salzman
Makes 1 Cake

Ingredients

• Butter (for greasing pan)
• 1 cup creamy, unsweetened, unsalted almond butter
• ⅓ cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 large apple, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼” cubes
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9" round pie plate with butter. If you want to remove the cake from the dish in one piece, you can line the bottom with parchment paper. You do not have to grease the parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl combine the almond butter, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, egg, and vanilla until smooth.
3. Stir in apple pieces and nuts.
4. Pour into prepared dish and bake until just set and a toothpick comes out clean or with dry crumbs. A 9" pie plate will take 35-45 minutes. Allow to cool before eating.

And last, but certainly not least, please visit the following bloggers for some beautiful fall kitchen tours and inspiration!

Ella Claire & Co. | Julie Blanner | Inspired by Charm | Craftberry Bush
 
Boxwood Avenue | French Country Cottage | Zevy Joy | Jennifer Rizzo
 
My 100 Year Old Home | Home Stories A to Z | Keeping it Cozy | Happy Happy Nester
 
Maison de Pax | Maison de Cinq | My Sweet Savannah | Rooms for Rent