All Things fall!

The summer days have drifted away, the days are getting shorter and there is a chill in the air, that’s right fall is here. The first day of fall is next week, Wednesday September 23rd.

Don’t let the change in season get you down; there are plenty of reasons to love fall and so many things to do.

12 family must-do activities:

1. Leaf jumping. Jump into a freshly raked pile of leaves.
2. Visit a local family farm. A visit to the farm gives you the opportunity to learn and explore so many things like tractors, animals, and food.
3. Apple Picking. Head to a local Apple Orchard and pick some apples.
4. Tree Rubbing. Place a piece of paper against a tree and rub your crayon onto the paper and it will reveal a design from the tree’s bark.
5. Homemade Halloween Costumes. Why not get a head start and make your own Halloween costumes.
6. Read fall Themed books. Cozy up and read some new books, check out some fall themed books.
7.  Go for a walk. Head out for a family walk or hike, explore the beautiful colours of fall and collect some pretty leaves or pinecones.
8. Paint Pinecones. Collect pinecones and paint them all crazy colours.
9. Visit a pumpkin patch. Pick some pumpkins and then decorate or carve them when you get home.
10. Scavenger hunt. Get outside and go on a fall themed scavenger hunt.
11. Pumpkin Seeds. Roast and salt the pumpkin seeds that you pull out of your pumpkin.
12. Fall Fairs. Fall is a busy time of year for fairs. Plan a trip to a local Fall Fair.

Another favourite thing about fall is indulging in some delicious comfort food, chilli, apple crisp, warm apple cider, pumpkin pie, fresh bread and homemade soups.

5 Ingredient Crockpot Chilli (2 quart crockpot)

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef or ground turkey
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 small can tomato sauce (or half a large can)
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 package chilli seasoning

Instructions:

1. Cook the ground beef or turkey in a pan and add onions to the mix.
2. Add cooked meat, diced tomatoes, kidney beans and small can of tomato sauce to the crockpot.
3. Add the chilli seasoning and mix together.
4. Set crockpot to cook on low all day.

5 Ingredient Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• ½ cup of butte
• 2-4 large apples
• Ground cinnamon

Instructions:

1. Grease a casserole dish with butter.
2. Peel your apples, cut them into bite size pieces and layer them in the buttered casserole dish.
3. Sprinkle apples with cinnamon.
4. Combine flour, brown sugar and butter into a bowl.
5. Mix ingredients with a fork or a pastry tool. Mix until crumbly.
6. Spread mixture over apples and bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes until golden brown.
7. Allow apple crisp to cool slightly and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Warm Apple Cider

Ingredients:

• 64oz Apple Cider
• 3 Chopped Apples (optional)
• 3 Cinnamon Sticks
• 1 teaspoon Whole Cloves
• ¼ cup Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon whole allspice
• Small square of cheesecloth.

Instructions:

1. Add bottle of apple cider to crockpot.
2. Add chopped apples and brown sugar to crock pot.
3. Place the whole cloves, allspice and cinnamon sticks onto the square of cheesecloth and tie.
4. Add to crockpot and cook on low for 2-3 hours.
5. Discard cheesecloth, allow time to cool and use a ladle to serve!

Happy fall everyone!