I just said the same thing earlier today on the Healthy Lifestyle thread -- you are not alone! I don't ever remember being this hungry in the fall. The cold weather did come on quickly this year-- maybe that's it? Maybe it's all the stress and bad news? I don't know but I am struggling to behave and eat well!

Yes, we’re all in need of a big dose of comfort food.

Not me, but the squirrels sure are. It’s a bumper-crop year for acorns here.

Bpath, i have three huge oak trees acros the street. Some years they positively rain acorns. I hear them bouncing off the cars and crunching under the tires. Not this year, though though.

Ive seen many busy chipmunks.

My appetite doesn't seem to change with the seasons. I could use a few more acorns 😁

Seriously, I don't seem to react to change with food. I don't eat in response to stress, but rather the opposite. I don't care for Fall and feel the effects of the shortening daylight hours. Again, food doesn't fill that void for me. Wish a had a little bit of a hibernation gene and could increase my intake without it being a conscious effort. I'm about to resort to more exercise, add some heavier muscle to my numbers on the scale....

I met my sister for lunch at a nice restaurant today. She's been trying to gain following an illness and is finding herself successful while I don't even have that excuse. I ordered a steak and blue cheese salad that I especially like, steak medium rare and just my luck, the steak was still tough!

I didn't complain since she was buying, but what a disappointment. I could have cooked steak medallions better at home.

I have it a little bit but it’s still very warm here in SoCal. That being said, I did make a pretty tasty, comfy meatball dish yesterday.

We’re surrounded by old oaks. LOTS of acorns for the BUSY squirrels!

No but my oak tree is dropping them like crazy. I picked up some leaves this afternoon to fill one of my raised beds. I pulled up the remaining sweet potatoes and with all the rain it had sunk quite a bit, maybe 10 inches. Added the chopped up leaves of the potatoes and then straw.

I haven't been super hungry lately, think it's stress over the house.

Yes! The carb craving is real. I need to back off!

I need to harvest apples from my Fuji apple tree and dehydrate a bunch of them.

Last weekend, we went to two Japanese markets in the neighborhood in order to stock up on different kinds of noodles, and I bought yakisoba, rice, bean, and two types of soba noodles, but I could not find any tapioca noodles, which I used to find easily a few years ago. I found sweet potato noodles, but I don't like those as much.

I made bok choy soup with the yakosoba noodles, and I used liquid soup base that I bought. I had been out of that for a while, and it really makes a difference in the flavor of the soup. I also stocked up on wakame and ginger. I use several kinds of ginger, including minced ginger in jars, which I find very convenient to use, even though TV shows tell me not to use it. I store fresh ginger in the freezer and then mince it when I want to add it, but peeling and mincing ginger is a bit labor intensive, which is why I like to buy minced ginger in jars. I'm okay with the flavor when I add it to soups.

I also recently stocked up on dehydrated vegetables: cabbage, peas, carrots, red bell pepper, and mixed soup vegetables. I always have fresh red bell pepper on hand, but not cabbage or carrots. I do keep frozen peas in the freezer (as well as corn), but not cabbage or carrots. I don't use much of these, and I like to add small amounts to soup or rice that I am making.

DH had a month off from work. We took on updating a rental we own...8 hour days. 👅We're eating cinnamon rolls, egg-sausage-cheese on an English muffin. Meatball sandwiches. Heavy caloric food! Haven't gained a pound! And sleep! I wake up after 3-4 hours...but fall right back asleep.

OMG, comfort food—- yes! Today I made soup, a pan of cinnamon rolls and a focaccia. The rolls went in the freezer after we each had one, but the focaccia is out on the counter waiting for DS2 to arrive and have a late supper. The soup is Italian sausage, okra and other veg, and goes nicely with the bread. But there are still some of Ina Garten’s short ribs in red wine and linguine in the fridge so he may opt for that.

I put sauteed minced garlic and thyme on top and within the focaccia. The small container has some of my homemade tomato jam. a savory concoction of cherry tomatoes roasted with salt, pepper pepper, EVOO and a drizzle of thick balsamic glaze. They are cooked until they become a jammy mess on the parchment paper, then scraped off and mashed up a bit. They are delicious on bagels, bagel chips, pita, and of course focaccia. The second picture is what I had for dinner with a mixed greens salad.

Well lets just take dinner tonight. Yogurt with blackberries and raspberries with granola. Not bad. Two cupcakes and potato chips. I think I am in trouble.

I have started baking again; breads, cookies, muffins, loaf cakes, pies. I started around the first of October - I don't know what it is but I like to think of it as hibernation mode!

ETA: I do have lots of friends, neighbours and kids to share with so I'm not eating it all myself. Sometimes, I don't even taste what I have made but come fall, I just feel the need to bake!

In last 3 days I've made scallops with 5 cheese tortellini in cream sauce, split pea & ham soup & brownies! Tomorrow will have to be salad.

A beautiful new grocery store just opened about two blocks away from. Lots of good bread, baked goods, some prepared foods. I thought it would be a good thing but now Im thinking not so much.

satine100 - hahaha

@bothell - I must have carbs on the brain because I read your comment as I've made scallops "POTATOES" with 5 cheese tortellini in cream sauce and thought OMG scalloped potatoes and tortellini, now that sounds delicious.

Yes, totally feeling it and trying to fight it off for as long as I can. So sad as I am in So Cal where it is still warm, yet somehow my body still knows winter is coming.

I know that craving will re-surface soon. DH and I are recovering from Covid and I really don't have an appetite. Paxlovid causes a lingering metallic taste which further reduces your appetite. So far we've had lots of scrambled eggs and home made chicken noodle and minestrone soup.

There's even a container of Breyer's mint chocolate chip that I haven't opened and that's normally one item I devour.

At least we have what I consider a mild case. The first 2 days I slept most of the time but then rapidly improved. I don't know if it was the Paxlovid which we started immediately or the fact that we had the latest Covid, flu and RSV injections 2 weeks ago. But I'm not complaining and I guess that the few pounds that I lost these last 10 days will probably re-appear when my appetite returns. I'm just waiting for 2 negative test results so that I can leave the house again.

Ded - I think you mentioned a while ago that you were getting a McCaffrey's. Does your new one have a liquor license?

Maire

Maire Cate— sorry to hear you are sick but glad for you it was not horrible! That metallic taste lingers awhile 🙁

Kswl, you have given me ideas! I've been making a wonderful side or vegetarian main with blistered cherry tomatoes (Farro with blistered tomatoes, spinach, pesto) and I can see that if I roast them just a little longer I will also have a delicious jammy mess. They are so sweet.

Aw, Maire so sorry you and DH arent feeling well. Hope you’re up and about and eating ice cream soon.

Yes. McCaffrey’s sells beer and wine. Indont drink much but my son is looking forward to the craft beers.

I just ate two big donut holes. 🥴

We could sell this thread to True Confessions magazine...if it still exists.

Maire -- Sorry your contracted Covid, but glad you got your vaccines (and the Paxlovid), and happy to know that you're improving.

DH and I are trying to keep weight on -- and add to it. Doctor says to eat more snacks. (Jealous now?)

I was reading this thread earlier and thought, hmm, I can't really relate to this. Then I just realized that for lunch I inhaled a giant sandwich - turkey, arugula, and provolone on whole grain bread with mayo. I love sandwiches but I rarely eat them because carbs and I are not friends. We'll see how I feel later!

I also eat sandwiches, esp. for lunch most every day. Been on a cucumber salad kick lately - well, it's just sliced cucumbers with Ken's Sweet Vidalia Onion salad dressing, but oh so good. Last night I got a craving for chocolate. A bag of mini chocolate bars was begging me to come buy it and this was around 7pm. at night. I caved in. Hey, if my 93yr.old aunt can keep a bag of candy bars on the floor beside her recliner so can I !

This year I have SO many walnuts. I don't think I've ever seen this many. So far I've picked up and raked three times in order to mow. Now we are to have rain and a thunderstorm this weekend so the rest hanging on the tree will (I hope) come down. It's not too bad picking up as I bought this handy little gadget several years ago. It's called a Garden Weasel Steel Nut Gatherer.:

Just roll it over the walnuts and the wire basket scoops them up and stores them inside until full, then you just dump them out. Lots of walking, but good exercise just the same. Also luckily I have lots of squirrels and chipmunks who help to clean up.

We are eating through the last few grill-able things in the freezer, and we will be done as of Friday. Then, it's clean the grill and winterize! Soup season rapidly approaching!

Yes, it has hit me too! I baked brownies last night, and bought some ginger snaps this afternoon. It has been hitting the mid 40s overnight & I am not prepared!

I agree that the news isn't helping.

My basement is still under reconstruction from the termite infestation, so I have stuff that normally lives there all over the house - if it gets any colder, my citrus trees in pots will have to come in and sit in the middle of the living room until I can get everything back into the proper storage places.

I wish some of the abundant critters around here ate honey locust pods! The tree that overhangs my patio and parts of my roof and flower beds produced a massive abundance of them this year - so far I have filled two 45 gallon trash bins just cleaning off of 1/3 of my patio. I think I likely will fill that bin 3 if not 4 more times with what is already on the rest of the patio and the surrounding beds and turf - and it isn't finished dropping them! I learned that if I leave them in the grass or beds, they sprout, if I pile them up they don't compost down much, just get slimy - and sprout.

Squirrels have been busy planting walnuts and hickory nuts - from some nearby yard - in my lawn and flower pots. I am finding the shells of eaten nuts in the flowerbed also.

raee, that's funny. I often find peanuts (in the shell) that the blue jays have hidden, tucked into flower beds or buried under a thin layer of soil in the yard or even gravel driveway. Years ago I once found a peanut hidden in an old butterfly cocoon on a butterfly bush in the orchard. I wish I would have taken a photo or even saved it.

Schoolhouse, I had no idea that jays would do that! I know about the squirrels because I see them in the lawn - and have to tidy up the flower pots after they've dug into them!

Mr. & Mrs. Maire, Please feel better.

I like the comfort, warming foods also, but I am not eating many carbs, only 20 carbs a day for the last year. The other day I had crustless pizza and it was so good and I use Palmini hearts of palm noodles to make spaghetti with a rich meat sauce. I sometimes miss bread but Chaffles (cheese and egg) make a good bread substitute for sandwich so I had a pork roast sandwich. We had Thanksgiving on Monday so I roasted a fresh local turkey something I haven't done in a few years. It was a great fall meal, just what I needed. No pumpkin pie though but I did have butternut squash and that was a treat, pureed cauliflower instead of mashed potatoes and cranberries sweetened with Allulose which tastes just like sugar. I love all the comfort foods/fall foods/foods to fill my belly that I want to eat in the fall. I am so happy I broke the carb habit and gave up junk food and foods high in carbs. A year ago most of my meals consisted of all high carb foods. I still want comfort food but have learned to find new ones. 75 pounds lost so far just by giving up carbs and eating real food instead of highly processed food. My cousin on the other hand who lives with me can eat as many carbs as she wants and she is lean and fat free haha

Bunny I have made that minus the cheese and added artichoke hearts and with whatever green I have around, it is absolutely delicious. And you’re right, another 20 min or so is enough to cook the tomatoes down perfectly for jam. I use it in the winter on sandwiches in place of sliced tomatoes when I can’t find Camparis.