One of my favorite simple-simple desserts, just pears sautéed gently in a little maple syrup and flecked with ginger. It's a light touch for a bite of sweetness for a weeknight dessert, also wonderful on pancakes and in smoothies. So yes, autumn is settling in here in Missouri, the leaves showing signs of color to come. Soon those leaves will flutter from on high. Soon, as we walk, the dog will push her nose into piles of leaves that line the streets. Is that the scent of a mouse? another dog? or just the fun of nosing crackly bits of fresh air and dying chlorophyll? The sounds of crickets – or are they katy-dids? – emerge from cracks alongside the house. A box turtle has taken up winter residence in a window well. Here in eastern Missouri, we’re blessed by four seasons. Is fall the most wondrous of all? ALANNA’s TIPS My favorite weeknight dessert is a small serving of Greek yogurt topped with a little fruit, savored one tiny spoonful at a time. With Easy-Easy Pear Sauce, I allo…

My sister's recipe for a simple, rustic apple cake that’s dark with cinnamon and then, to top it all off with a little heaven? drizzled with a sweet cinnamon and butter sauce. And look who helped "Auntie Al" bake the cake, that's Bella! “Have you seen our new cookbook?” asked my sister as we sipped coffee the first morning of my visit last week. We were both still in PJs and the sun had yet to appear across the Texas great plains but yes, already we were talking recipes. :-) Adanna is rightfully proud of her church’s efforts. The new cookbook has a hard cover but keeps the familiar plastic comb that makes church-style cookbooks so easy to keep open on the counter. (For anyone looking to publish a church or group or family cookbook, she says her church had great luck with their publisher, Morris Press Cookbooks from Kearney, Nebraska.)Adanna contributed five recipes but it was her recipe for Apple Pudding Cake that first caught my eye. “Haven’t you made that yet?” sh…