early hint of autumn

Autumn gave us an early glimpse this year in the form of a cloudy, upper-50s weekend which is rather odd for this part of NC during the middle of September. You won't hear any complaints from me though! I'm sure we'll have another warm snap or two before the weather cools down for winter, but this peek of autumn's coming did not pass without us taking full advantage of this opportunity to curl up inside with a warm mug and some knitting.

In the mug at the beginning of the weekend, this pumpkin spice latte with real pumpkin (and no fake orange-y color). Delicious! And the perfect way to start the weekend. I'm sure I'll make this recipe many more times this fall as it is the perfect combination of simple to make and heavenly to drink.

On the autumnal eating front, I had some cream cheese pastry left over from the apple galette of a few days ago, so I thought it might make delicious apple turnovers. I rolled the dough a bit thinner than the apple galette and the half-recipe of dough that usually makes one galette made 4 turnovers. The filling is 3 medium apples sauteed in 2 tbsp of butter for about 10 min then mixed with 1/4 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and a sprinkle of nutmeg. I let the filling cool for a few minutes before adding it to the dough, folding the dough and crimping it with a fork. The turnovers were baked at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes until lightly brown.

The knitting was with this beautiful autumnal yarn acquired at the Greenville Farmer's Market the other weekend.

Outside, the trees were clearly getting the message of the cooler weekend weather. I spied a few leaves beginning their autumnal parade of color.

The berries on the back fence continued ripening.

My favorite fall leaf mug made an appearance with some deliciously spicy local chai.

And by the end of the weekend, my 2011 autumn hat was complete. After looking for a slouchy hat pattern to make a cozy autumn hat and showcase this lovely hand-dyed, nubby yarn, I found one that fit the bill.

Ok, Autumn, I'm ready for your full descent! I have my hat, and I'm eager to wear it incessantly!