Oktoberfest, Harvest Festivals & Pumpkin Patches!

Yes!  The weather is starting to cool down, the mornings are brisk and there is a hint of fall in the air! It's also October, so I have decided to hunt down the Oktoberfests to see what is going on where.

• Huntington Beach: 09/04/2011 - 10/30/2011 Complete with German bands from Europe, dancing, imported beers and tasty German foods--from bratwurst to potato salad to hot pretzels and apple strudel--Oktoberfest has something for everyone.
• Fall Harvest Festival 10/8-10/31, Mission Hills - 4 acre cornstalk maze, farm activities, farmer's market & pumpkin patch. 
• Calabasas Pumpkin Festival - Oct.15-16
• Pomona Pumpkin Festival - Oct15-16 - admission is free and you can buy a pumpkin!
• Autumn Harvest Festival in Lake Forest - October 22 at Heritage Hill.
• Pumpkin Patch at Faulkner Farm, Santa Paula - October 1- 30 - Weekend harvest festival with pumpkins, hay rides, mazes, crafts and others.
• Pumpkinliner Trains, FIllmore. Weekend train rides to "Ichabog" with haunted hay maze, food arts and crafts.
• Moorpark Fall Harvest Festival - October 1- 31
• Ventura Fall Harvest Pumpkin Patch - October 1- 31
• Oaktoberfest in Avila Beach - October 15th. - special oak aged beer, live polka music and Oktoberfest fun!
• Del Mar Harvest Festival - October 21-23. 600 vendors, live music and entertainment and a kid's zone.
• Harvest Festivals listing.

Other great fall adventures also include going to Julian to pick apples, eating some of their famous apples pies, drinking cider and also picking apples at Oak Glen!

Enjoy the fall weather and enjoy time with your families!

Ta ta for now...

Recycling the Halloween Pumpkin

Well Halloween is over and there is left over candy in the bowl and an uncarved pumpkin on the stoop!  No worries, I'll just take the candy to work and put it out on the counter for the customers to enjoy and hope that I personally don't take too many side trips to see what looks good!

As for my pumpkin, I purposely didn't carve it because I have a special plan for it this time of year. I cut it up, scape out the seeds and then pressure cook the insides to use in my home made pumpkin bread. I used to love to bake, but now I am down to a few special recipes that have become holiday traditions. I don't know why it's called "bread" there is so much sugar in it that it actually is more of a pumpkin pound loaf!  The seeds are recycled also. After rinsing, I place them on an oiled cookie sheet, sprinkle with salt and bake at 300 degrees for around 20 minutes or until they look lightly tanned.

I follow a recipe that is actually for zucchini bread, but I substitute the pumpkin instead. I make a large loaf to share at the Thanksgiving table, and  a couple dozen mini loafs to send home with my family or pass out to friends. The starting quarterback for the University of Hampshire Wildcats has gotten a loaf every year for as long as I can remember, since he grew up with my daughter. I will have to see if I will be able to get him one this year as it is his senior year and I want to keep the tradition going. I'm trying to sending along a loaf to my daughter who is abroad in school, via a friend who is lucky enough to be visiting her! Hopefully it will remind her of home and her family a little bit.

Ta Ta for now...