Despite the fact that we run Inn Serendipity B&B and “breakfast” is part of our business, we find the average American breakfast is, well, boring. With the same old, same old about everywhere you go, we wanted to give breakfast a makeover with a dash of serendipity: spinach and egg stuffed burritos; fried green tomatoes; a side of beets and root crops roasted with thyme. The delighted look on B&B guests’ faces when served a plate of the unexpected inspires us to keep experimenting creatively with the most important meal of the day using a smorgasbord of seasonal produce.

Breaking the rules a bit and leaving room for the unexpected proves to be Inn Serendipity’s appeal. Most of our guests are experienced foodies, flavor and health-conscious sleuths who appreciate the difference between heirloom tomatoes and those found on supermarket shelves wrapped in plastic. We’re eager to savor cuisine prepared in unique ways, or combinations. Foodie travelers don’t want a cookie-cutter motel room, cable TV and continental-style doughnuts for breakfast. They seek out places like our B&B, where a homemade cordial and chocolate greets them for a bedtime nightcap and our young son leads enthusiastic s’more making sessions around the campfire. They smile when roasted turnips and rutabagas appear at the breakfast table from the fall harvest. Authenticity drives culinary travelers off the Interstate and a few of them through our doors. Our tastebuds and our souls crave the real thing.

Wisconsin leads the nation in recognizing this growing market of travelers seeking authentic experiences that don’t ruin the planet in their process of enjoying them. Spearheaded by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, Travel Green Wisconsin (travelgreenwisconsin.com) invites tourism-related businesses to undergo a certification process based on a range of environmental and social criteria, from sourcing food locally to adopting energy conservation measures. Restaurants showcase local cheeses and lodging establishments like ours are powered by renewable energy. Travel Green Wisconsin leads travelers to places that offer unique experiences that may help sustain, restore or enhance the very features that attract visitors, be it natural or cultural.

The movement is also afoot in Minnesota, spearheaded by the non-profit organization Renewing the Countryside under the moniker Green Routes (greenroutes.org). Their website provides an easy-to-use tool to help you find one-of-a-kind places to eat, play, shop, sleep and learn in Minnesota (and soon, to a place near you).

This green travel movement, echoing that of the organic foods movement, revitalizes small family farms and fuels interest in real food and flavors. Local farms are the ones saving seeds and sowing the Cherokee Purple Tomato and Royal Burgundy Bush Green Beans. Taste some, and you will be a believer in God’s true intentions. The real thing doesn’t come in the form of a dark-colored soft drink.

By stripping away packaging, processing and predictability, authenticity shines through. Jump-start your day with a dose of something different and smile when a turnip turns up on your breakfast plate. This flavorful, unusual recipe from our cookbook, Edible Earth: Savoring the Good Life with Vegetarian Recipes from Inn Serendipity, prompts folks to rethink their assumptions about rutabagas. Be sure to boil turnips and rutabagas first till they are tender yet firm since they don’t cook as fast as the other root vegetables.

Roasted Root Vegetables (Vegan)
Ingredients:
8 c. beets, turnips, rutabagas and potatoes, cleaned, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces
2 ¼ t. garlic salt
2 ¼ t. dried oregano
1 ½ t. sugar
1 ½ t. dried thyme

Directions:
* Mix spices and oil in a glass jar and let set for about an hour or more.
* Place veggies in a 9-in. x 13-in. baking pan. Drizzle spice and oil mixture over veggies and toss to coat.
* Bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.

Serves 8.

Don’t call us the Grinches of Halloween just because we eat our pumpkin rather than prop it up as a doorstop decoration. Actually, we’re on a mission to resurrect the reputation of the poor pumpkin. Once a meaningful Fall mealtime staple, pumpkins epitomize seasonal autumn eating with hearty flavor that have, unfortunately, been relegated to craft supply.

For those wanting to incorporate more local and seasonal foods into their diet during the fall season, try pumpkin. These autumn wonders represents key qualities to look for in seasonal foods this time of year:

• Locally grown. Chances are there are pumpkins growing near you. Cultivated throughout the world, the hearty pumpkin adapts well to various climates.
• Great taste. Steer away from pumpkins bred for Halloween carving because these aim for size and not flavor. Seek out colorful and poignant heirloom varieties at your local farmers’ market, such as the French Cinderella pumpkin, vibrant orange-red in color and flat in shape, ranging from one to two feet across.
• Nutritionally dense. Think like a squirrel and stockpile items that will provide powerhouse nutrients into the lean winter months. Pumpkins rank as an important winter vegetable (although, technically, pumpkins are botanically classified as a fruit) for the seasonal eater as they provide high levels of an important antioxidant, beta-carotene, which converts to vitamin A in the body, in addition to providing high levels of iron and potassium.
• Easy to store. Keep a pumpkin at a moderate 50 to 60 degrees (dry basement storage works well) and make sure there the shell is hard and the stem unbroken. Once a pumpkin starts to soften, we cut off the rind, clear out the inside seeds and pulp and cook the pumpkin by placing small cut chunks in a steamer over boiling water, simmering until tender. After mashing either with a potato masher or in a food processor, the pumpkin puree readily freezes for later use in soups or breads.

These moist muffins regularly appear on our fall Inn Serendipity Bed & Breakfast menu. This recipe, from our cookbook, Edible Earth: Savoring the Good Life with Vegetarian Recipes from Inn Serendipity, also works with other pureed winter squash, such as butternut and acorn.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 c. pumpkin fresh purée
1 stick (½ c.) butter, melted
2 t. ground cinnamon
½ t. ground ginger
½ t. ground nutmeg
½ t. ground allspice
1 t. baking soda
½ t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
¾ c. sugar
1 ¾ c. flour
¾ c. chocolate chips

Directions:

• Grease 12 standard muffin cups.
• In a large bowl, mix together eggs, pumpkin and butter.
• Add spices, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar and flour. Mix until well blended.
• Fold in chocolate chips.
• Fill prepared muffin cups until almost full.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for about 5 minutes before removing from pan and placing on wire rack.

Yield: 12 muffins.

When it comes to food, there are two main areas that you can focus on so that your eats are better for the environment, and often better for you. First, you'll want to "eat local" whenever possible. This concept has been highlighted recently, as two people went on a 100-mile diet for one year and chronicled their journey. That's right - they only ate food that came from within 100-miles. What's the big deal? When you sit down to eat, most ingredients on your plate have traveled 1500 miles to get there. That's a lot of fuel.

Secondly, you'll want to look for organic food. This means that no pesticides or chemicals have been used. This is a plus for the soil, water supply, farm workers, and you.

You don't feel like cooking or washing dishes - you are definitely heading out to eat. Ask around and make a last minute reservation at a restaurant that utilizes local produce and organic ingredients. It will probably taste fresher than you've eaten in a long time, and you'll have the extra benefit of knowing that you are supporting an important cause. Don't know which restaurants in your area do this? Check out the Green Life Guide section on restaurants.

You don't want to mess with crowded restaurants and long waits - you are going to have a nice meal at home. We recommend the same advice - try to use local and organic ingredients whenever possible. Check out organic.org to find stores near you that sell these types of products. It also lists local farmers markets - there might be one happening as you speak! Maybe you could sneak out at lunch time and get some local goodies. Organic.org even recommends a special Valentine's Day recipe of Piri Piri Pomegranite Chicken.

Rebecca says: I'm making a homemade pizza using local tomatoes and basil from my windowsill garden. Yum! Whoever you are spending tonight with, be it your sweetie or some friends, enjoy yourself!