These fall days beckon me to cook soups, stews and chili.

I like hearty beef meals and this one fits the bill nicely.

The recipe for this beef, barley and butternut squash stew with blue cheese croutons calls for boneless beef chuck, but I personally use beef tenderloin tips.

This meal is so tasty – it conjures up images of eating it by the fire while watching my favorite team get crushed in football.

I like the stew so much it doesn’t even matter that my team stinks.

Get this stew recipe here and try it at home! Nice and cozy!

Photo courtesy of FineCooking.com.

No, not Hammer Time – HAM TIME!

Although Hammer Time is fun, too.

These autumn days always have me craving a lovely smoked ham. So filling and fulfilling.

And one of my favorite things to do with a ham is dress it up with a special glaze. Certainly you can enjoy a tried and true, never-miss pineapple ham glaze, but I REALLY like this maple bourbon glaze.

It’s got a robust kick that makes it really feel like fall to me. You can get this yummy ham glaze recipe here. And try some of your own creations, too.

What are some of your favorite fall cooking traditions?

Photo courtesy of KansasCitySteaks.com.

People are always trying to come up with new things to put on top of burgers. But the newest trend taking shape is creating crazy buns for the burgers.

This one, conceived by Rockit Burger Bar, pairs fried macaroni and cheese and a nice, juicy beef patty.

I like both of those. I’m just not sure if my stomach can handle them both at once, though.

Granted, it does look delicious. But it may be too many things going on at one time in my mouth.

What do you think? Are you willing to try this? Could you replicate this at home?

Photo courtesy of Rockit Burger Bar via People.com.