As I sit typing up this post, I can see what remains of our garden...the flower beds...beautiful bright fuchsia and white cosmos dominate the scene, with warm toned zinnias and orange calendula dotted here and there. I love this colorful transition from summer into fall every October. The pumpkins are in at the farms and the cranberries are ready for harvesting in the bogs. Those first baked squashes and pies and pies and more pies are a welcome tradition in the kitchen.

The local farm had these beautiful bosc pears from a farm in MA, and I couldn't resist them. When I saw the sweet dumpling squashes I knew right away I wanted to pair those flavors together. If you can find sweet dumpling or carnival squash from your local farms or farmers markets, give them a try over acorn squash. The flavor of these heirloom varieties surpasses that of acorn squash by far in my humble opinion.