Innehållsförteckning för Autumn Bliss 2016 från Victoria

Don’t Forget For even more inspiration for gracious living, visit our website, victoriamag.com. You’ll find photos, tips, and how-tos on our social media sites, so follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. P.S. Make sure to visit my blog, theribboninmyjournal.com. I have a tradition of changing the wreath on my front door at least four times annually. I sometimes try my hand at making these embellishments; I look for them at end-of-season sales and sometimes splurge on a magnificent piece that I feel matches the exuberance of the moment. Decorating for fall allows me to give full expression to my love of this period, and my affinity for pumpkins. As September, October, and November come around again, I think of sharing my home and my table with friends and…

“Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.” —GEORGE ELIOT “Every blade in the field, every leaf in the forest, lays down its life in its season, as beautifully as it was taken up.” —HENRY DAVID THOREAU…

Autumn’s cornucopia of fruits and vegetables lends to some of the most delightful and memorable dishes of the year. Our pumpkin, squash, and fig recipes— so appetizing you will want to make them time and again—may well become favorites of your guests. “Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all.” —HARRIET VAN HORNE Harvest-season favorites, pumpkins and squash have been centerpiece vegetables in sweet and savory dishes for centuries. The early settlers included pumpkins in their Thanksgiving meals and made a custard by scooping the seeds from a pumpkin, then filling it with honey, eggs, cream, and spices. The top was replaced and the pumpkin buried in hot ash near a fire. When the contents were cooked, the delectable interior was spooned out…

Fall’s gold and crimson foliage glows, radiant, before making its descent in anticipation of the wintry months. September and October usher in the vivid bounty of the harvest season, bringing a wealth of pumpkins and fragrant florals—gifts that brighten our homes. “For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together. For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scathering abroad.” —EDWIN WAY TEALE With the arrival of autumn, leaves are transformed into a luminous fanfare, and gusts of air feel cooler. Apple trees are laden with vibrant fruit, persimmons and pomegranates grace both hearth and table, and wreaths are hung. Now is the time for a certain gourd to make its debut. Few things are as versatile as the pumpkin—equally at home in pies and décor. They…

Sparkling crystal goblets glimmer next to china, an elegant vase, and an heirloom tea service; place cards pinned to linen napkins are softly refined. A seasonal bouquet as the final touch, and everything is perfect. Browse our table settings, designed for every occasion. “Autumn burns brighthy, a running flame through the mountains, a torch flung to the trees.” —FAITH BALDWIN Pomegranates, rich and stately, nestle in an elegant bowl, enhanced by sprays of chartreuse, crimson, and citrine florals on a table that celebrates the season. Guests entering from the brisk outdoors bring with them laughter and conviviality. A delicate scent of cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange hangs lightly in the air. Over steaming cups of tea, friends and loved ones compliment the gleaming beauty of the table service; perhaps heirloom and…

“Once more in our morning walk we tread upon carpets of gold and crimson, of brown and bronze, woven by the winds or the rains.” —JOHN BURROUGHS “Our tree-lined streets are set ablaze, our kitchens filled with the smells of nostalgia: apples bubbling into sauce, roasting squash, cinnamon, nutmeg, cider, warmth itself.” —SHAUNA NIEQUIST THE Recipes Winter Squash Panzanella p.73 Makes 6 servings ¼ cup butter, divided 2 (8-ounce) packages Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved 1¼ teaspoons coarse salt, divided 1 teaspoon ground black pepper , divided ⅓ cup water ¼ cup olive oil, divided 6 cloves garlic, peeled 2 shallots, peeled and quartered 1 (10-ounce) package purple pearl onions, blanched and peeled 4 cups peeled, seeded, and chopped calabaza squash 2 cups quartered baby turnips 2 cups quartered yellow…

“At the close of a long hot summer, the appearance of the pumpkin heralds the welcome arrival of autumn.” —KARI SPENCER “A TANGERINE AND RUSSET CASCADE OF KALEIDOSCOPIC LEAVES CREATES A TAPESTRY OF AUTUMN MAGIC UPON THE EMERALD CARPET OF FADING SUMMER.” —Judith A. Lindberg “Autumn is the mellower season, and what we lose in flowers we more than gain in fruits.” —SAMUEL BUTLER “FIERY COLORS BEGIN THEIR YEARLY CONQUEST OF THE HILLS, PROPELLED BY THE AUTUMN WINDS. FALL IS THE ARTIST.” —Takayuki Ikkaku, Arisa Hosaka & Toshihiro Kawabata…

“Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves; we have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!” —HUMBERT WOLFE “The ornaments of your home are the people who smile upon entering time and time again.” —MARALEE MCKEE “Every house where love abides And friendship is a guest, Is surely home , and home, sweet home For there the heart can rest.” —HENRY VAN DYKE…

“Bear figs for a season or two, and the world outside the orchard is very unwilling you should bear thistles.” —KATE DOUGLAS WIGGIN “One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” —VIRGINIA WOOLF THE Recipes Fig and Prosciutto Sandwiches with Maple-Rosemary Mayonnaise p.88 Makes 6 sandwiches ¾ cup Maple-Rosemary Mayonnaise, (recipe follows) 6 croissants, sliced in half 1 (4-ounce) package prosciutto 1 (8-ounce) package Brie, sliced 6 figs, sliced ½ cup baby arugula 1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. Spread approximately 1 tablespoon Maple-Rosemary Mayonnaise onto each cut side of croissants. On bottom half of each croissant, layer 2 slices prosciutto and 2 slices Brie. 3. On prepared baking sheet, bake croissant halves until cheese is melted,…