On a chilly fall Saturday, I was in the mood for cozy fall recipes and a slower day at home. After a busy stretch, I wanted to spend some time in my kitchen, make a few things from scratch, and enjoy being with my family.
Breakfast was pumpkin cottage cheese pancakes topped with caramelized bananas, yogurt, and walnuts. For lunch, I made roasted tomato soup with garlic and red pepper, served with my homemade sourdough bread. Dinner was leftover beef shank pot roast, and my husband also picked up a Costco pizza.
I love making what I can from scratch, and sometimes a Costco pizza is good, too. This weekend had room for both.
Press play below to join me in the kitchen as I make these cozy fall recipes for my family 🤎
Breakfast: Pumpkin Cottage Cheese Pancakes with Caramelized Bananas
I started the morning with a fall version of my lemon blueberry pancakes. This time, I used pumpkin puree, cottage cheese, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
I also used half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour. The cottage cheese gets blended into the wet ingredients, so there are no little curds in the batter, and the flour gets folded in afterward.
I did not add any sugar or maple syrup to the batter. Instead, I topped the pancakes with a banana cooked in butter and cinnamon, a spoonful of yogurt, and walnuts. The warm banana added sweetness, and the walnuts gave the plate a little crunch.
Ingredients for the pancakes
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into the measuring cup and leveled
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour, spooned into the measuring cup and leveled
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup cottage cheese
- ½ cup canned pumpkin puree
- ½ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Butter or oil, for lightly greasing the skillet
Use plain pumpkin puree for this recipe. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sweetener and spices.
How to make the pumpkin cottage cheese pancakes
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.
- Blend the wet ingredients. Add the eggs, cottage cheese, pumpkin puree, milk, and vanilla to a blender. Blend until smooth.
- Mix the batter. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently fold together until no dry flour remains. Keep the flour out of the blender and avoid overmixing.
- Let the batter rest. Set it aside for 5 minutes. The batter should fall from a spoon in a thick ribbon and spread with a gentle nudge. If it holds a stiff mound, fold in a little extra milk, 1 tablespoon at a time.
- Heat the skillet. Preheat a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat, then lightly grease it.
- Cook the pancakes. Scoop about ¼ cup batter per pancake into the skillet and gently spread into a roughly 4-inch circle. Cook for about 3–4 minutes, until the edges begin to set and the underside is golden. Flip and cook for another 2–3 minutes, until the center is set.
- Check the first pancake. Cut one open to make sure there is no wet batter in the middle. If the outside browns before the center cooks, lower the heat and give the next batch a little more time.
The caramelized banana topping
For the topping, you will need:
- Ripe bananas
- A little butter for the pan
- Ground cinnamon
- Plain yogurt, for serving
- Walnuts, for serving
Peel a banana and slice it in half lengthwise. Melt a little butter in a skillet over medium-low to medium heat, add the banana halves cut-side down, and sprinkle with cinnamon.
Let the cut sides turn golden, then gently flip the banana halves and cook the other sides. Use a spatula to lift them out carefully so they hold their shape.
Top the pancakes with a spoonful of yogurt, the warm banana, and walnuts. Adjust the amount of each topping to your liking.
A few tips for this breakfast
Keep the pancakes small. Pumpkin and cottage cheese make a moist batter, so smaller pancakes are easier to flip and cook through.
Use gentle heat. Turning up the heat can brown the outside before the middle is ready.
Check the batter after resting. Whole wheat flour absorbs liquid as it sits. Add extra milk only if the batter needs it.
Blend the cottage cheese before adding the flour. This gives you a smooth wet mixture while letting you keep the final mixing gentle.
Lunch: Roasted Tomato Soup and Homemade Sourdough Bread
By lunchtime, a pot of homemade tomato soup sounded perfect. I roasted ripe tomatoes with onion, red bell pepper, and a whole head of garlic, then blended everything with chicken broth and fresh herbs.
Roasting gives the vegetables time to soften and develop a little color before they go into the soup. I also added a Parmesan rind for extra savory flavor. It is optional, but if you have one, this is a nice way to use it.
The soup gets its creamy texture from the blended vegetables. There is no cream in this version.
I served it with my homemade sourdough bread on the side for dipping. A warm bowl of soup and homemade bread was exactly the kind of lunch I wanted on a chilly fall weekend.
Ingredients for the roasted tomato soup
- 3 pounds ripe tomatoes
- 1 whole head of garlic
- 1 large onion, peeled and quartered
- 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and quartered
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs, such as basil
- 1 small Parmesan rind, optional
For serving: Homemade sourdough bread.
How to make the roasted tomato soup
- Preheat the oven. Heat the oven to 450°F. Set out a large rimmed baking sheet.
- Prepare the vegetables. Wash the tomatoes. Cut smaller tomatoes in half and larger ones into quarters or eighths. Place them on the baking sheet with the onion and bell pepper.
- Prepare the garlic. Remove any loose outer papery layers, keeping the head intact. Slice off the top to expose the cloves. Place the garlic cut-side up in the middle of the baking sheet.
- Season. Toss the tomatoes, onion, and pepper with most of the olive oil, salt, pepper, dried basil, and dried oregano. Drizzle the remaining oil over the exposed garlic cloves. Spread the vegetables out so they have room to roast.
- Roast. Roast for about 25 minutes, stirring the vegetables after 15 minutes. Check that the vegetables are softened and the garlic cloves are tender. A large head of garlic may need longer; if necessary, set the ready vegetables aside and continue roasting the garlic, loosely covered with foil, until soft.
- Add a little color. Broil the vegetables for 3–4 minutes, watching closely, until some of the tomatoes have lightly charred edges. Keep the garlic out of the broiler if it is already browned.
- Combine with the broth. Let the garlic cool enough to handle, then squeeze the softened cloves out of their skins. Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a large pot, then reduce the heat. Add the roasted vegetables, their pan juices, the garlic cloves, and the fresh herbs.
- Blend. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup until smooth. If using a countertop blender, let the soup cool enough for your blender’s instructions, work in batches, and follow its guidance for venting steam. Return the soup to the pot.
- Finish the soup. If using the Parmesan rind, add it to the blended soup and gently simmer for about 10 minutes to let it flavor the broth. Remove the rind before serving. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.
- Serve. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with homemade sourdough bread on the side for dipping.
If the soup is thicker than you like, stir in a little additional broth. If it is thinner than you prefer, let it simmer uncovered until it reaches the consistency you want.
The garlic should be soft enough to squeeze from its skin before it goes into the soup. Use that as your guide even if it needs a few extra minutes in the oven.
Dinner: Leftover Beef Shank Pot Roast and Costco Pizza
For dinner, we had leftovers from my beef shank pot roast with olive oil mashed potatoes.
The original meal has beef shanks cooked slowly with onions, garlic, and carrots, with the sauce spooned over simple mashed potatoes. Having some left made dinner easier because I already had a meal ready to warm up.
My husband also picked up a Costco pizza.
And honestly, that fit right into our Saturday. I had enjoyed being in the kitchen earlier in the day, and by dinner we had a mix of leftovers and something easy that sounded good.
Making Room for Homemade Food and Easy Meals
I love cooking from scratch when I have the time and feel like doing it. On a chilly weekend, spending time making pancakes or roasting vegetables for soup can be something I look forward to.
I also appreciate having easy options. Sometimes we are busy. Sometimes we are tired. Sometimes pizza just sounds fun.
As a dietitian and a mom, I want feeding my family to feel sustainable. That includes preparing foods we enjoy, using what we already have, and leaving room for convenience.
There is room for whole wheat pumpkin pancakes, homemade tomato soup, leftover pot roast, and Costco pizza. I can enjoy cooking and appreciate a meal that someone else made.
For me, balance includes the time and energy that go into feeding everyone, along with the food on our plates. This Saturday, I got to spend time in my kitchen, make a few homemade meals, and enjoy being with my family. The pizza was part of that, too.
What is a meal you love making when the weather turns cooler? Let me know in the comments.