When it comes to autumn fruit, the pumpkin is king. From the flickering grins of jack-o-lanterns on Halloween to the mouth-watering pumpkin pies that grace many a Thanksgiving table, the rotund squash is ubiquitous at this time of year. Not only is the pumpkin festive-looking and delicious to eat, but it is also healthy for our bodies and for our state's economy. Grab your carving knives folks, it's time to celebrate and Illinois is pumpkin central! more ›

Halloween is tomorrow which means there's lots of pumpkins all carved up. Last week, we asked to see your pumpkins and many of you were kind enough to oblige. Enjoy! more ›

We're in the full throes of Fall and Halloween is this weekend which means pumpkins are everywhere. And some animals at Brookfield Zoo were the recipients of a special Halloween treat. more ›

One of the things we love most about Halloween is carving pumpkins and the creative ways our friends and readers decide to carve theirs. So we'd like to ask you to share your pumpkin carvings with us. Between now and next Thursday, October 30, if you get your carvin' on, take a photo and share them with us, either in our Flickr pool, or simply tag them with "Chicagoist Pumpkin" in Flickr. We'll flip through the submissions and post our favorites next Friday, October 30. Now get carving! more ›

• The latest parking meter issue has Mayor Daley annoyed, calling the issue "unacceptable."
• The Sun-Times' union workers will shortly assemble to vote on concessions requested in Jim Tyree's bid for the paper's parent company. A smaller paper in the STMG family - the Post-Tribune - voted against the concessions last night.
• The IHSA has reinstated all levels of football at North Chicago High School after the program was suspended following a brawl with Simeon High earlier this month.

After all the carving is complete and your floors are covered in pumpkin guts, the temptation is to pick up ALL of that newspaper (or garbage bags or tarps) and toss it all in the trash. But wait! You have, within your grasp, a tasty, nutritious snack! And best of all? You’ve already paid for it. more ›

Many pumpkin beers taste too sweet, as though the brewers are afraid to let the flavor of the autumnal gourd stand alone. Since this is the brief time of the year where all things pumpkin are in season, we found a worthy selection for "BotW" at Risqué Café, home of the deep-fried bacon and an obnoxiously overpriced beer menu. more ›

When we headed off to Daley Plaza this morning, we didn’t expect to find much that we hadn’t seen the week before. But the market always manages to surprise us and this morning was no exception! Some new items had come into season, and we found some new varietals to try out in the coming week. more ›