Hello Reader, darling!

Every autumn, I think, “This is the year I’m going to ease into the holidays.” Then I look at the calendar, and apparently, we’ll be easing in by being fired from a cannon. How are we already halfway through October?

Before long, there will be things to bake, buy, wrap, mail and attend.

Somewhere in there, we’re supposed to make memories, preferably in a clean house while wearing something without an elastic waistband. I’m willing to make memories. Let’s leave my waistband out of this.

It’s easy to spend until we’re spent. Money, yes, but also time, energy and the patience we’d hoped to save for the people we love. I would rather have enough goodwill left to enjoy their company than another centerpiece to work around.

So this week, we’re making a little breathing room. A few ways to stretch what we have, make dinner easier and enjoy our homes without adding another shopping trip.

Perhaps we can leave a little space on the calendar, too, before someone notices it and volunteers us for something. Or as we say in our family home "volun-told" as in, "I volunteered you for something, and now I've told you".

There will still be room for holiday fun. I have a chocolate dessert with pear skulls to prove it. Apparently, my idea of taking the pressure off includes serving a cake that looks like a crime scene. You’re in good hands. Slightly suspicious hands, but good ones.

In other news - Rinella Produce

If you’re in the Portland, Oregon, area and like to save a few bucks on food, you must know about Rinella Produce. And their delivery territory stretches well beyond Portland!

They deliver throughout the Portland metro area six days a week, with delivery routes reaching north to Longview, Washington; south to Eugene, Oregon; along the coast from Waldport to Seaside; and east to Sandy and Troutdale. Check with Rinella for availability and delivery schedules at your address.

Follow their Facebook page to hear about specials - Rinella FB page​

Yesterday I totally scored some amazing bargains there.

I got (drumroll please. . .) a 50-pound bag of beautiful russet potatoes for $5.00 (.10 cents a pound!), Strawberries, eight pounds for $4.00 (.50 cents a pound!) and large cage-free chicken eggs, 15 dozen for $10 (.66 cents a dozen). Can I get a WOOT? Doing the Diva Happy Dance!!!

Before you tell me you can't use that quantity of food, I urge you to share with family, friends and neighbors. Split the cost! Even cheaper!

NEW FROM THE DIVA KITCHEN

Ghoulishly Good: Spiced Dark Chocolate and Pear Skull Brownie Cake

Some desserts have a charming backstory. This one looks like it’s withholding evidence.

With pear skulls emerging from a spiced dark chocolate brownie cake, this Halloween dessert is wonderfully unsettling and entirely too tempting to leave alone.

Along with this recipe are tips for making a boxed brownie mix taste like homemade, so don't miss that!

Chocolate and pear make an elegant pairing; the hollow eyes and little noses simply give everyone something to discuss between bites.

This is my kind of Halloween magic: ordinary ingredients, a little imagination and a delightfully dramatic result.

Creativity instead of cash, wearing its Halloween costume.

Serve it to people you love. Let them wonder about you a little.

Get the Recipe:

Pear Skull Brownie Cake HERE

Diva Tip - Give expensive ingredients an understudy.

Before buying a pricey ingredient, consider what job it does in the recipe. If prosciutto adds a savory bite to a cooked dish, a little ham or smoked turkey may work nicely. Blended cottage cheese can often stand in for ricotta in lasagna or stuffed shells. Expect a slightly different flavor or texture, and a much friendlier grocery bill.

NEW - Butternut Bliss: Creamy Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

This turned out so delicious! Creamy butternut squash mac and cheese with a golden panko top. Butternut squash melts into a sharp cheddar cheese sauce for a cozy, budget-friendly fall dinner that sneaks a vegetable into every bite. So why not turn that golden goodness into something creamy, cheesy, and downright cozy? Bake it as a side or the star of the table.

Get the recipe here:

Butternut Mac and Cheese Recipe

Diva Tip - Give takeout some freezer competition.

Keep a few easy dinners tucked away for evenings when your energy has already left the building. Homemade soup, an extra portion of casserole or a favorite supermarket freezer meal can give you a welcome alternative to ordering dinner. (Looking at you frozen Mandarin orange chicken.) Choose something you’ll actually look forward to eating. Emergency provisions should offer comfort, not another reason to order pizza.

NEW - Fuss-Free Festivities: 3 No-Bake Peanut Butter Delights for the Holidays

Today, we’re giving the oven a break while crafting three delightful and affordable no-bake peanut butter treats: creamy peanut butter fudge, chocolate-dipped truffles, and crunchy cracker sandwiches.

They’re simple enough for little helpers, festive enough for gifting, and delicious enough to make everyone hover around the platter (you’ve been warned).

No-Bake Peanut Butter Treats Recipes

WHAT SEPTEMBER’S FOOD PRICES MEAN FOR YOUR GROCERY CART NOW

I read the latest Consumer Price Index so you don’t have to.

It contains 38 pages, many impressive tables, no pictures at all and still not one useful dinner suggestion.

The encouraging news: Grocery prices edged down 0.1% in September and were just 1.8% higher than a year ago.

Restaurant food, meanwhile, rose 3.5% over the year. Cooking at home continues to be one of the most reliable ways to make our money stretch.

But the averages hide some very different stories.

Better buys than one year ago:

• Eggs: down 20.6%
• Butter: down 10.3%
• Pork: down 0.7%
• Chicken: down 0.6%
• Cheese: down 3%
• Flour and flour mixes: down 1.1%
• Sugar and sugar substitutes: down 1%

Items requiring a little more strategy:

• Turkey and other uncooked poultry: up 8.4%
• Candy: up 7.7%
• Apples: up 7.5%
• Coffee: up 7.1%
• Rice: up 7.1%
• Fish and seafood: up 6.9%
• Tomatoes: up 6.8%

The holiday takeaway is especially useful: This remains an excellent year to make treats from scratch. Eggs, butter, flour and sugar all cost less than last year, while store-bought cookies rose 3.6% and candy rose 7.7%.

Build meals around chicken, pork, eggs and cheese; compare produce prices instead of shopping by habit; and choose holiday recipes that use our lower-cost baking basics rather than expensive nuts, specialty chocolate or enough imported ingredients to require a passport.

The grocery cart isn’t universally cheaper but it is giving us some very clear directions.

Source: September 2026 Consumer Price Index and detailed food-price table. These are national averages; local prices will vary.

Redecorate without checking out.

Before buying something new for your home, try moving what you already own. Shift a chair, trade lamps between rooms or gather a few favorite objects into a fresh arrangement. Leave some open space, too, especially before the holiday decorations arrive. Sometimes the room needs less stuff and you need somewhere to put your coffee.

Great Stuff on the Website:

Two Ingredient Pumpkin Muffins A ridiculously easy recipe for pumpkin muffins. Mmmm! Pumpkiny!

Pumpkin Spice Whoopie Pies If a cake, a cookie, frosting, and a sandwich somehow managed to have a baby, it’d be a whoopie pie. I must be craving sweets

One Bite Apple Pies with Salted Caramel Sauce Yup. Craving sweets.

Your Mission This Week:

Freshen Your Home (Without Buying a Fragrance!)

Before we close up the house for the colder months, let’s give it one more opportunity for a little breathing room. Choose a task below or combine a few if ambition strikes. No need to turn this into a cleaning campaign.

• Let the outdoors in. On a mild day when outdoor air quality is good, open windows and/or screened doors to let fresh air circulate. Skip this if it’s smoky outside. Fresh air shouldn’t come with a campfire scent.
• Capture the dust instead of relocating it. Use a lightly dampened cloth on suitable hard surfaces, working from higher shelves downward. Fold the cloth to expose a clean section as you go. Dust has enjoyed its tour of the house. Let’s show it the exit.
• Wash one overlooked soft furnishing. Choose a washable throw, cushion cover or pet blanket and follow its care label. Something can look perfectly respectable while smelling faintly of doggo stinko.
• Investigate that mystery smell. Check the trash can, forgotten produce, damp towels and pet bedding. A persistent musty smell deserves a search for moisture or a leak. Covering it with “Autumn Orchard” just gives you an autumn orchard with a potential mold problem.
• Give your filters some attention. Check your heating-system filter and clean, vacuum, or replace it according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If you already own an air purifier, check its filter, too. It cannot keep doing its job indefinitely on the strength of your good intentions.

Skip the scented sprays, plug-ins and candles for this mission. Added fragrance can bother sensitive people and trigger asthma symptoms in some. Find the source of an odor rather than asking perfume to negotiate with it.

Pick one task, finish it and enjoy the improvement.

Diva Tip - Put a little warmth within reach.

Keep a sweater, cozy socks and a favorite throw handy for chilly evenings. Those simple comforts may help you feel comfortable at a slightly lower thermostat setting. Keep your home warm enough for everyone’s needs, of course. The goal is a cozy evening, not an endurance event with throw pillows.

Well, Reader. That’s it and that's all for today.

This week, I hope you find a good meal, a freshly aired space and a few dollars still keeping company in your wallet.

Thank you for spending a little of your day with me.

With love and a little mischief,

Onward and awkward!
​Diva Patti D.

Grace Notes:

• Fix the thing you wrestle with daily. Tighten the loose drawer pull, put a nonslip pad beneath the wandering rug or move the hamper to where the clothes actually land. One less tiny battle is a lovely gift to yourself.
• Make the good pen easy to find. Put it beside a small notepad where you usually need to jot something down. A pen that writes on the first try shouldn’t feel like winning a raffle.
• Improve your next seat. Move a lamp closer to your reading chair, add a cushion behind your back or find something sturdy to rest your feet on. Let comfort happen where you already sit.
• Give one everyday object a better home. Put the scissors where you open packages or the reading glasses where you read the mail. Store things where your hands keep expecting to find them.
• Turn a small surplus into someone’s supper. Offer a neighbor a portion of soup, a few garden herbs or those extra apples. Be specific: “I have enough for two bowls. Could you use them?” An easy offer makes accepting easier, too.
• Rescue a favorite from the repair pile. Sew on the button or replace the shoelace that’s kept something you love out of service. It’s rather satisfying to get an old favorite back without buying it again.
• Give yourself a better view. Move one purely practical item off the windowsill or table and put something you enjoy seeing there—a photograph, a small bowl or a branch from the garden. Let your eyes land somewhere pleasant.

See you next week! xx