Fall is... pumpkins, football, chili

I love fall!  Even though here on the central coast of California we are having our belated summer right now (finally) there is something about the air that just feels like fall.  I remember walking out of my house last week heading to take our pups for a walk and fall hit me.  I can't put my finger on it because it was a warm sunny day, but fall was definitely in the air! So after our walk I came home and made my shopping list to cook up some delicious fall food. (see some of my favorite recipes later in the post!!!) Of those delicious fall foods pumpkin is a staple. I came home from the grocery store with 6 cans of pumpkin last week and hubby laughed, but I am now down to just 1 left! 

Since Halloween is approaching and since the weather has been so glorious, we took Q to the pumpkin patch, picked out this beauty and carved our first family pumpkin! How is it that we have been married over 5 years and yet to carve a pumpkin??? Oh right... we're a Navy family and for some reason our relocations typically leave us homeless during the fall/pumpkin carving season:-P

Our inspiration for our pumpkin design is another fall staple... football!  The background noise to our life on fall weekends is football on the TV. I am not one that likes always having the TV on but for some reason in the fall the sound of a game broadcast is almost as comforting as a big bowl of chili. Even better if I can eat the big bowl of chili while watching a good game! (see my favorite chili recipe later in this post!)

Since we are so fortunate to be from Maryland, home of the BEST NFL team in the country... we carved a Raven on our pumpkin. (I use the term "we" here very loosely... what I actually mean is my husband carved a raven on the pumpkin. He's pretty good with a knife don't ya think?)

If you need a little inspiration for fall cooking, look no further!  I've included my favorite chili recipe and a yummy (and easy) pumpkin mousse recipe passed on to me from a good friend.  Enjoy!

Black Bean Chili (adapted from Boston Uncommon cookbook)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 lb ground turkey
1 large onion
2 carrots, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 cans black beans
4 cups chicken broth
1 6oz can tomato paste
1 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp ground red pepper
1 can corn
1 cup cooked brown rice

Heat oil in a large pot. Add turkey, crumble and brown till cooked through. Add onion, carrots, celery, garlic and cook for 10 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add beans, broth, tomato paste, cumin, and red pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours, adding more broth if the chili gets to thick. Stir in the corn and rice and enjoy!

Anna's Pumpkin Mousse

1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 16-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin (not pumpkin-pie mix)
1 package vanilla flavor instant pudding and pie filling for 4 servings
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 cups heavy or whipping cream

In large bowl with wire whisk, mix pumpkin, pudding mix, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and 1/3 cup packed brown sugar until well blended. In another bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat heavy or whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Fold 2/3 of the whipped cream into pumpkin mixture. Spoon pumpkin mixture into 8 10- ounce goblets or into a large serving bowl. Top with reserved 1/3 of the whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Pumpkin mixture tastes best if refrigerated for at least 30 minutes before serving.