Fall is here. Sure, the calendar may say otherwise, but moms know: it is packing peanut butter sandwiches last thing before bed, apples piled up at the grocery store, the swimming pool locked for another year.

Deadhead your flowers, they may yet bloom one last time. But we all know that the pansies are past their prime. The better-kept yards on the block are a blaze of yellow marigolds and black-eyed susans. And there is a pumpkin growing in my backyard.

Actually, there are healthy pumpkin plants (if that is what they are) springing up all over my back lawn - not in any kind of place that makes sense, mind you, but right smack dab in the middle of the grass. Apparently my kids planted them last year after we carved the jack-o-lanterns. I admit, I had no faith that they would grow; nothing I plant on purpose seems to. But the tenacious squash are sprouting up all over, mocking me. And sure enough, there is a hard yellow fruit the size of a golf ball growing on one. I suppose it might not be a pumpkin - it looks like some kind of gourd - but if that's the case I don't know where it came from. Birds that raided the neighbor's vegetable patch?

So what can I do with a yard full of pumpkins? I wish I had a yard full of cantaloupe and blackberries. Maybe next year.

Autumn may be the end of my favorite fruit season, but it's also the beginning of some great things. For instance, I went to Nick's this week to check out their farmer's market. All I really wanted was a bag of apples for the kids' lunch boxes, but of course I came home with more than would fit in my refrigerator. It was all too tempting. (I'm glad to report that the bananas were way cheaper and far more perfect than the ones I saw at the grocery store the next day - at least I get points for thriftiness!)

Over the whole market hung the most tantalizing smell: roasting chile peppers. Huge cages full of peppers spun like cotton candy machines, churning out bushels of fiery peppers. There were wicked-hot habaneros all the way down to the gentle giants, anchos. The chile roasters had even set out recipes to make the whole idea more irresistible, and of course, I caved.

I chose mild peppers so as not to make the children cry. As luck would have it, I'd just gotten two great recipes from friends that I'm dying to try: one for chile rellenos, the other for Mexican chicken roll-ups. Now I just have to decide which to make tonight!

The whole chile pepper sale also got me thinking: wouldn't it be fun to grow my own next year in pots? Little red, yellow, green chiles spicing up the porch? For a buck, Nick's sells a dozen different varieties of pepper seeds; I could have my own red-hot garden next fall. Or I could just shake the seeds out of my ancho peppers and let the kids plant them willy-nilly next to the pumpkins. They seem to have better luck.

Mexican Chicken Rollups

8 boneless chicken breast halves, trimmed
4 whole green chiles, halved and seeded
3 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, cut into 8 strips
¾ c. fine, dry breadcrumbs
1 T. chili powder
1 rounded t. cumin powder
¼ t. salt
¼ t. garlic powder
¼ c. skim milk
Vegetable cooking spray
½ c. picante sauce
¼ c. plain, lowfat yogurt (or sour cream)

Flatten each chicken breast between 2 pieces plastic wrap or waxed paper to about ¼ ". Place a half chili and a strip of cheese in the center of each breast half. Roll up lengthwise, tucking edges under, and secure with toothpicks.

Combine breadcrumbs and spices. Dip chicken rolls in milk, then in crumb mixture. Place in an 8x12 baker (previously sprayed). Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until chicken is done. (You can prepare these rolls and freeze them uncooked; thaw and cook later). Serve each roll with a dollop of plain yogurt and a dollop of picante sauce. Serves 8.