I think I can actually do a normal Friday Five this week. Very exciting news, for me at least.

1) I officially embraced everything pumpkin once October began. I had my first pumpkin spice latte this week (it was awesome) and have enjoyed trying pretty much every pumpkin product Trader Joe’s has to offer (I have made two trips in the past week and left with only pumpkin items…and a carton of eggs). You all know of my love of their pumpkin pancake mix — we procured a few boxes — but I have also been loving the pumpkin granola and pumpkin and cranberry crisps. But the real winners are the pumpkin rooibos tea and pumpkin biscotti.

This has been my go to treat for the past week. I brew up a cup of tea with a splash of almond milk and half of a Splenda and then dunk two (or four) biscotti in as I drink. Yum. So perfect for the chilly nights we’ve been having lately. I might have a few backups of each in our pantry just so I don’t run out anytime soon…

2) One last pumpkin thing to share before I move on. I am a big fan of baked oatmeal. It cuts down on prep time in the morning and I find it to be heartier and more filling that regular oatmeal. So of course I decided to make some baked pumpkin spice oatmeal this week. I used this recipe from My Blessed Life and it is delicious.

3) But I haven’t been eating ONLY pumpkin. I’ve been eating a bunch of other veggies as well. I was reading a magazine over the weekend and was inspired to try to make a roasted vegetable salad. Roasting is my favorite way to eat vegetables and I thought this would be a great way to get healthy and filling lunch in.

It was delicious and I wasn’t hungry all afternoon. I might use some of the leftover veggies today to make a wrap with some hummus. Mmmm.

4) I decided the other day that I want a pasta press. I’ve made my own pasta once (gnocchi not included) and while it turned out OK, I envision more perfect noodles in the future. There are a few awesome looking attachments I could get for my KitchenAid mixer, but they are insanely expensive. I’ve been looking at some old school hand crank ones which might be able to do the job.

I might also scour some of my favorite local thrift stores to see if I could find one for cheap too. I foresee a bunch of delicious fresh pasta in my future.

5) I also foresee this Skillet Apple Pie in my future. I’ve been wanting to use my cast iron skillet to bake something in for awhile and maybe pie is the answer. Pie is ALWAYS the answer.