FALL kiss...

Thursday Recap:

Breakfast- 1 1/2 biscuits with gravy + turkey sausage from Cracker Barrel

...where I usually get a workout thrown in the mix since Katie LOVEEESSS to run around the Cracker Barrel store and see (and play!) with 'all the stuff' (and EXTRA running when she heads for anything made of GLASS...eekkkkkk!)...

And after a visit to the mall...

...and a visit to the little play area...

...we had a rather UNconventional lunch, since my Mom & I had been DYING to try the ice cream from the Godiva store at the mall..

We split a small cup of vanilla and a twist cone among the three of us and, aside being surprisingly a little icy, this was some of the most flavorful ice cream EVER.  The vanilla almost tasted like it was made with browned butter from its deep flavor and was speckled with vanilla beans (which I LURV!).  While the chocolate, well, I didn't expect Godiva to mess THAT up.  Creamy, smooth and decadent, it tasted like melted chocolate.  Every flavor was a winner here, I must say.

Dinner- FALL nachos with caramelized apples, smoked gouda & warm maple drizzle

Ooooooooohhhhhhh yes...I've had this variety of nachos on the brain for nearly a YEAR and I finally was able to make them come to life last night.  

First, into a heated pan went some onions to caramelize.  This was probably the 'hardest' part of the whole dish because you have to let them cook on medium-low for nearly 30 minutes.  Ya just gotta give em a quick stir ever so often, but caramelized onions are definitely a labor of love.

Once the onions had about 5 more minutes, I tossed in a diced apple...

...and then went in 3 diced links of this...

Let everything cook together while you crisp up the 'chips...'

Slice 2 burrito sized tortillas into 8 chips and place on a sprayed cookie sheet and pop in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until they begin to lightly brown.  Once they are done, load each chip with a pile of the onion/apple/sausage mix...

...and top with your cheese de jour.  For me, it was this smoked gouda, but feel free to use whatever you have on hand/or feels FALL-Y to you!

Pop em back into the oven to let the cheese melt.  Meanwhile, I poured about 1/4 cup of maple syrup into a small pot and brought it to a boil for a few minutes to warm & reduce a bit.

Once the melty nachos come out of the oven, give em a little maple drizzle for the ultimate FALL kiss...

Sweet & salty, crunchy & creamy....you get it all in these pretty little nachos.  Not to mention all of the yumminess of FALL.  You MUST give these a try this season!

Hope you guys have a great weekend.  Mine is going to be ALL-CONSUMING and OVERWHELMING!  I'll share on MondayJ

Workout:  Hatha Yoga

Until then...have a great weekend!