Autumn Color on La Bella Vita!

Oh my gosh, October has just been a crazy, busy month for me . . . on top of it being the time of the year when I advise students for spring semester, my parents have been settling into their apartment upstairs where they will begin spending more time with us away from the blistery winters of Iowa. It is wonderful to have them here and to help them in their 'golden years'.
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My mother has been doing alot of the cooking due to my very late days and nights at work, so I have no updates on 'la cucina' (the kitchen) or cooking!
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However, I DO have a few photos that I snapped lately that I just had to share with my nature lovin' friends. Aren't you just loving the eye-popping color that is such a FREE gift and natural treasure to enjoy during autumn?? To be able to capture these fleeting moments of beauty is just a delight!
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So grab a cup of cinnamon tea and take a walk with me around the acreage!

Yesterday, I woke up to this! It was truly a "grab my camera" moment!

My roses are still perfectly in bloom and will be until a hard freeze comes our way.

But, how can you celebrate fall without some happy, cheerful mums?

A close-up of a lovely pink rose bud! Luscious, huh?



When the sun sets, it shines through the leaves of the dogwoods and the reds are so vivid!



This is our Tigger, a 14 year-old grey Tabby, that we took in as a stray about 10 years ago.

He truly does sleep on his back. We have very entertaining pets!



Here's another shot of roses growing through a pergola that hubbie built for my garden.
This was taken just today, yup, October 30th!

Intense color from our young Maple tree (Autumn Blaze).

All of our friends come in the BACK DOOR . . . my parents balcony of their apartment is above the garage. We completed it this spring. It's just so cozy and sweet!

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I just think that this is such a sweet autumn arrangement to greet us

when we come home each day . . .

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I picked it up at a local Hobby Lobby . . .

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I stopped along the Interstate on my commute home to snap this picture.

It is a bit blurry, cuz I took it very quickly while standing on the side of the freeway!

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And lastly, one more view of yesterday's sunrise.

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I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE REMAINING DAYS OF THIS BEAUTIFUL SEASON!!!

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Zucchini Cake Combination

Now, here is the NEW re-do recipe of 'girlichef' plus my friend's recipe above. Here's my thoughts of each cake (plus my taster-husband's as well).

The new combo recipe is more moist when it first came out of the oven, but drier later on . . . we think it is because of the use of butter and not oil PLUS the use of brown sugar (which contains molasses) and not just white sugar alone. The new cake recipe is also more sweet and less nutty.

Which one did we like better?

Both my husband like the FLAVOR my friend's recipe (above) better, but I like the moistness of the new 'combo' recipe better (however, it did dry out faster as well. We both decided that my friend's recipe was the real keeper of the two. So here's the new combo 'bella/girlichef Zucchini Cake' recipe:

Bella/Girlichef Cinnamon-y Zucchini Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

What you need for the cake:
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1 stick of butter (from girlichef's recipe, instead of oil in my friend's recipe)
1 cup brown sugar (added from girlichef's recipe)
1 cup white sugar (granulated)
3 jumbo eggs
NO HONEY -- (eliminated from girlichef's)
2 tsp. vanilla (added from girlichef's recipe)
NO YOGURT -- (eliminated from girlichef's)
2 cups flour -- (and NOT 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour from girlichef's)
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt (added from girlichef's)
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups shredded zucchini
NO CHOCOLATE CHIPS, NO NUTELLA -- (eliminated from girlichef's)
1/3 cup walnuts or pecans (less nuts from my friend's recipe)
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No cream cheese frosting was included for this recipe, so I ADDED THE SAME FROSTING!
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What you need to do to prepare the cake:
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The procedure is identical to my friend's recipe that I provided above.

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Signs of Autumn! Hello October!

Wherever you are, you're probably feeling a little chillier temps, maybe shorter daylight time (sigh!) and possibly decorating your home and gardens with autumn colors. Don't ya just love the cooler nights to sleep with the windows open! Ahhhh, the fresh air does a soul good!
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I stepped outside my classrooms and kitchen yesterday to snap a few shots of some signs of fall on the acreage. I'll cook something up later this weekend, but for now I'm just in the mood to savor the beauty and the splendor of Mother Nature's slowing down outside.
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Who doesn't love mums in the fall? This huge monster of a mum was planted last year and came back even bigger!

Hello Yellow....the blooms looks so happy and this is my favorite mum color of all!

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Next stop on the acreage, a photo of our garage turned into barn . . . we only have a stable for the horses, so our cars stay outside in the winter while the horses' hay stays dry in the garage! We have to stock up on hay to get the horses through the winter months when the grass goes dormant in the pastures.

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And lastly, some of those gorgeous tall grasses! These have a slightly "Italian" name: Adiago! Sort of close to Asiago (cheese). They are so shimmery and wispy when the breeze sweeps through them. We know that autumn is here when these plumes are displayed in the grasses.

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Well, that's my welcome post for October . . . it will only get more beautiful as the month goes on.....yes, the colors do change down here in the Carolina's....and although it may not be as vivid as the colors in the Northeast, its still pretty stunning!

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