Your First Big Cook Or Bake

 Autumn is officially here and with it cooler weather. That makes it easier to cook and bake. What will be on your to make list? Will it be cookies ? A big pot of chili Homemade soup or an entire toast?Will you look forward to baking pies and spice cakes?

My first major fall cook was a huge pot for chili.It's an easy one with a lot of stirring and tasting for the tight spicy flavor.However risotto Milanese and baked  caramel apples along with poached pears in wine are also going to be made during these cooler times.

What are you looking forward to cooking and baking now that it's fall? Let us know here.

A Real HalloweenTreat: The NYT Magazine Food Section

Foodies received a real Halloween treat today - the New York Times Magazine food issue. If you haven't received or bought it yet,HALT- go no further. If you're still curious , read on.It's one of the best compiled culinary centric so far. It's truly a goodie bag filled with yummy articles.

One of the best pieces was written by Francis Lam, who wrote about radical chef, Edna Lewis.Mr. lam himself, is pretty famous, having been a judge on Top Chef masters. Chef Lewis was an amazing woman, even  without the food aspect. She was part of the Harlem Renaissance ,along with being a seamstress to Marilyn Monroe and model Doe Avedon It is  her cooking and her quest for redefining Southern cooking that is her legacy. It is the cooking of both plantation and plantation kitchen, combining African vegan cooking with the elite French cooking that Thomas Jefferson brought from France.There are also good recipes that feature poached pears and biscuits It is  the fried chicken recipe though that sounds amazing. It involves frying the pieces with a slice of country ham for more flavor along with not frying in deep fat but rather a sautéing method  in which the pieces are piled on top of each other. Brown the breasts first and then lay on  top of the sizzling legs . Doing this will let the legs cook up evenly.

One of the most colorful is the reinterpretation of those wacky Betty Crocker recipes from the Fifties. Tamar Adler wrote the accompanying article but the real credit goes to photographers Maurizio Cattalan and Pierpaolo Ferrari, Their accompanying photo shoot is trippy and Fellinisque with gilded lobsters alongside a tongue in cheek made cheeseburger pie and chicken salad in melon rings.There is also a salute to fondues, from the original Swiss to a wild variation involving British breakfast meats. On the serious side there is also the story of food historian Barbara Ketcham Wheaton interviewed by Bee Wilson.MS Wheaton ,a former librarian , has quietly compiled a database entitled "The Cook's Oracle". Her goal is to catalog every recipe ever written along with every ingredient ever used and every technique that was ever employed. There are all sorts of interesting gems in this articles, such as food trends and long forgotten cooking methods. The issue also holds sweet personal essays on food that must be read as well.

Sit back, grab a handful of leftover Halloween candy and read this issue. This is New York Times Food reporting at it's best.It's definitely a yummy treat.

A Holiday Feast In Eight Hours

The holidays are a time of great feasting and partying. Tomorrow's New York Times Sunday magazine has a great party prep how to regarding a holiday dinner.Thanks to Times food gurus Mark Bittman and Sam Sifton , anyone can make a lush mea from appetizers to dessertsl in just eight hours.

This is a spoiler alert for tomorrow's Times however as soon as you get the paper tear it out or printit it. I like the variety of different flavors and foodsThere is lobster along with chicken liver on toast for lush holiday tastes and texture.To balance it ou there the the simple poached pears and the refreshing chopped herbs.Another simple yet delicious dish is the roast chicken with lemons. Both it and the lobster can be served with roasted root vegetables. these are winter veggies such as parsnips,potatoes, and carrots. There are celebrity asides too. Everyone from Joan Rivers to Marlo Thomas has suggestions about entertaining.Al Roker also has advice on eating at parties( eat nothing but vegetables,limit the good stuff such as pigs in blankets. Marcus Samuelssen ,the great chef, weighs in on how to pick a good cheese for a holiday table. he recommends both soft and hard to serve with figs and dates.There are also good holiday decorating tips as well as how toss when working with helpers. IF you're planning on a holiday feast ,use tomorrow's Sunday New York Times as your guide. It"s a great how to guide ,chock full of recipes and advice. Definitely cut it out and save, not just for this season but for many other holiday seasons ahead.