I miss the Fox and Crow, and I get an overwhelming craving for their Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese every fall. I built somewhat of a rapport with the staff while it was still open, and I tried to recreate the dish based on the tips I gleaned from the kitchen staff. Here's the recipe (serves 2 - 4 people depending on how hungry you are)

FOR THE BUTTERNUT SQUASH:

1. Peel 1/2 a butternut squash, and cut it into 1/2" cubes. Place it on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper; toss and bake at 400F for 20- 25 minutes.

2. While the squash is baking, make brown butter with 2 tbsp. butter. As soon as the butter finishes, take off heat, let cool for 1 minutes, and stir in 2 tsp. finely chopped rosemary. Toss roasting butternut squash in brown butter for the last 5 minutes of squash cooking time.

FOR THE MAC AND CHEESE

I repurposed a butterkase Mac and Cheese recipe I found online, but if any former Fox and Crow staff wants to share the secrets of the Mac and Cheese base, I would be eternally grateful

1. Make a roux with 1 tbsp butter and 1.5 tbsp flour. Cook for 3 - 5 minutes, then add 1.5 cup of milk. Cook until slightly thickened, then add 6oz. Butterkase cheese and 4oz. white cheddar (I used Tillamook sharp white). Cook (stirring constantly) until the cheese melts completely; season with 1/2 tsp. white pepper, 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Mix with 8oz of (cooked) macaroni of choice.

ASSEMBLY

1. Cook 4 slices of bacon and crumble.

2. Dish Mac into oven-safe dish, top with butternut squash, then bacon, then a generous slab of camberzola (found at Whole Foods). Place under broiler at 425F until camberzola is melted (approx. 3 - 4 minutes).

3. Top with green pumpkin seeds, and a slight drizzle of maple syrup

Enjoy!

EDIT: Tuesday Nov 3rd
Neighborly post, no rant. FoCo, your ballot is sitting at your house or your apartment right nowwww and in odd-year elections like this one, the margin literally comes down to who walks theirs to a drop box. If yours isn't in yet, this post is the ten minutes you need.

The two measures everyone's arguing about:

Prop 134 requires every team in Colorado to be labeled male, female, or co-ed, from K-12 through college. For Fort Collins that's not abstract: it covers PSD teams AND CSU athletics, including club and intramural levels depending on how the mandate gets applied. Enforcement means sex verification of student athletes the reporting that's come out describes doctor's notes and DNA swabs costing families hundreds of dollars, and any girl can be challenged by anyone with a grudge: too tall, too strong, short hair. The women caught in past sex-testing dragnets in international sport were almost never trans at all. Poudre schools and CHSAA have handled these situations case by case for decades, and nobody in the state even tracks how many trans kids play school sports because the number is tiny. A statewide verification bureaucracy for a problem nobody can count.

Prop 135 does bans gender-affirming surgery for minors. Colorado's own nonpartisan Blue Book flags the language as vague enough to sweep in surgeries for kids who aren't even transgender intersex kids included. Harvard research puts actual trans surgeries for teens 15–17 at roughly 2 per 100,000. And Colorado law already requires parental consent for any surgery on a minor. A near-empty ban with real collateral damage and an insurance knock-on for families!

Context both share: they bypassed Colorado's legislature on purpose lawmakers refused to pass them because national organizers picked our state as a blue-state "testing ground" for a template they want to run everywhere! In Washington, the same playbook is funded by a hedge fund manager bundling the sports ban with repealing the millionaire income tax. Fort Collins doesn't need to be anyone's test case.

The logistics, the actual point of this post:

Your ballot is at your house or apartment. CSU students registered in Fort Collins: check your mail and your old address on file and you can update at GoVoteColorado.com if you've moved since last year
NO on 134. NO on 135. Vote the whole sheet, Prop NN (school funding) and Prop 137 (conservation) matter this cycle too
SIGN YOUR ENVELOPE. Missing or mismatched signatures are the #1 reason Colorado ballots get rejected, and they're fixable through ballot cure if you catch it fast
Larimer County drop boxes are all over town and open 24/7 until 7pm Tuesday there's one right near campus, plus the county offices on Mason St., libraries, and rec centers. No stamp, no line
Lost, damaged, or botched your ballot? Any Larimer County vote center issues a replacement through Election Day
Already voted? Text three FoCo friends and ask if theirs is in. That's the whole margin in an election like this one.
This thread will turn into a debate war by this evening. that's what these measures are designed to do, generate argument instead of solutions. But the actual decision doesn't happen in the comments. It happens at drop boxes by 7pm Tuesday, November 3.

NO on 134. NO on 135. Get it in the box, FoCo.

There have been some posts here on r/FortCollins about restaurants using AI to create their posters and I thought this article from the Denver Post made some interesting points. Mainly, the problems using unrealistic or unrepresentative images of the foods offered.

Edit: I didn't realize this article is a reprint from a Chicago article (even though the Post article said so), but I'll leave it up anyway for the thoughtful replies.

I'm a single bi woman in my 30s who would like to find LGBT women to date but don't know where to go. I've been more attracted to women and feminine presenting people my whole life and knew about my attraction 10 years before men but have never dated a woman, only men. I am feminine presenting myself so most people don't believe I'm attracted to women even when I tell them. I'll be leaving to a relatively red state small town in half a year and would like some casual experience dating women beforehand because I probably won't get the chance there. I don't prefer much drinking or loud noises/lights because of neurodivergence so the r bar is stressful for me. I have a "dumb" phone so I can't even download a dating app... Any advice for a hopeless bi woman in Fort Collins? Where do the LGBT people congregate? 😆

Hi neighbors! An orange cat has been stopping by our house regularly for the past few weeks. He's friendly and looks well fed, so he may have a home, but we wanted to check in case he's lost or a stray. We're in a neighborhood off Prospect and Lemay. If he's yours, or you know whose he is, please comment or DM me. Just want to make sure he's being looked after :)

Does anyone know which shops in town are doing Friday the 13th tattoo specials? Thanks so much.

The city and its contractor tend to move the photo radar bots* on the last Friday of the month. That's this Friday. Let's have some fun with it and put down our best predictions for where they'll move to next.

Or, if you like, where do you think they're most needed this month?

I'm predicting they move the one on Ziegler to the southbound side of the street. That's a nice, easy, move for them. The other one I think is currently somewhere on Lemay. I don't think I've ever seen one on Shields but Shields also has two stationary photo radar cameras**. Maybe somewhere between the two like northbound between Horsetooth and Drake?

* Talking strictly about the two cabinet looking ones here; not the Jeep / van.
** Three if you count the one at Mulberry but I'm not since it doesn't get Shields traffic.

Just a reminder to vote.

You can check your registration status here (reminder you can register up to election day):

https://www.sos.state.co.us/voter/pages/pub/home.xhtml

If you have not already sent in your ballot today (Monday) was the last day to mail in your ballot. You can still drop it off at a ballot box. These are not handled by USPS, but rather collected by the county. You can find ballot box locations and other information here:

https://www.larimer.gov/clerk/elections/where-to-vote

On a personal note, I am a serial procrastinator and currently work (more than) full time and have kids. I know we are all (extremely horridly) tired and it can feel like spending the time to vote is futile, but it is not and that only works in the favor of those who benefit from an unengaged electorate. I feel your pain, but I promise it is worth the time.

is anybody here going to this show? my wife is sick and already sold her ticket. I'm a huge grateful dead fan and would love to make more like-minded friends in foco to attend these types of shows with. i just don't want to go solo. i'll buy the first round!

Hello, I am still somewhat new to the Fort Collins area are there any nature, pagan, reiki or similar groups that get together for moon phases or changing of the seasons and what not

This is kind of embarrassing. I know there's a week to go, but it's too easy to vote to have an excuse not to. Step it up, people!

Or as Cascadia might say, "Now get out there and vote, vote, vote."

Just carried on going, didn’t pull over… are all Tesla owners just complete and utter cock sniffs?

I have a very simple custom ductwork job that I'm trying to get hired out. So far, I can't get any local providers to respond. Ideas?

Sharing my experience at the 7-Eleven at 1600 Lemay in Fort Collins because both the transactions and the way management handled my concerns were troubling.
On Sunday, October 25, I purchased $20 worth of gas and noticed three separate $120 transactions on my account, totaling $360. The store insisted these were authorization holds. My bank, however, specifically told me these were actual merchant charges, not authorization holds, and described the activity as fraud. That is what my bank told me; I’m still trying to resolve the situation.
I called the store immediately and was transferred to an employee who said she had never seen anything like this. She said she would contact the owner, provide my contact information, and call me back. I told her I would follow up in 10 minutes. When I called back, I was told the owner was at temple. I never received the promised callback.
When I called again Monday, October 26, an employee was relaying the manager’s responses while I could hear the manager speaking loudly in the background. I eventually asked to speak directly with her.
The manager, Komal, confirmed which employee I had spoken with Sunday. When I asked about the missing callback, she told me that “no one works 24 hours.” She said she didn’t believe me about the transactions and instructed me to come into the store to prove it. During my phone interactions with her, Komal hung up on me multiple times.
I went into the store with my banking records as requested. Despite telling me to come in, Komal stayed in the back and had an employee speak with me instead.
The same employee who had told me Sunday that she had never seen this happen now told me it “happens all the time” and insisted it was an issue with my bank.
She also showed me an already-printed copy of another customer’s confidential bank statement from that day, showing three separate $916 charges, as proof that this happens regularly. Having it already printed made it appear another customer had raised a similar concern, although I can’t confirm their circumstances. Regardless, showing me someone else’s private banking information was deeply concerning.
Another customer experiencing similar transactions did not explain mine or resolve the conflicting information from the store and my bank.
After I left, I called the store again to ask for the manager’s name and was hung up on again. They would not provide her name, so I ultimately contacted 7-Eleven corporate, who identified her as Komal and took my complaint.
I wanted an explanation and help resolving three transactions for one $20 purchase. Instead, I received conflicting answers, no promised callback, repeated hang-ups, and a manager who told me to come in but would not speak with me when I arrived.
Has anyone else experienced multiple transactions for one gas purchase at this location? If you got it resolved, what steps helped? I’ve already contacted my bank, the store, and corporate.

Hi! i'm a mom and im feeling stressed and burnt out. I was looking for a female therapist, also a mom, to help. I found the bloomhouse women's counseling collective.. does anyone have experience with them (hannah dorsher or kelly sinning?)

I found a decent amount of cash today. If it's yours and can convince me I'll give it back

Hi all. I got this e-mail about data center draft regulations feedback in Larimer County. Just getting the word out to add any comments or concerns you have.

"We Want Your Feedback on Draft Data Center Regulations

Larimer County’s proposed data center regulations are now available, and we want your feedback! Analysis, research, and the key issues the public identified over the last nine months are the foundation of the current draft.

The proposed regulations are intended to set clear, enforceable boundaries on any data center development, ban hyperscale data centers in unincorporated Larimer County, and uphold the community’s safety and quality of life.

Sharing constructive and specific feedback now is critical. Your input will help us address concerns and refine the draft for upcoming work sessions with the Planning Commission and Board of County Commissioners. These work sessions will be followed by public hearings in December 2026 and January 2027. How to Provide Feedback

1) Read the proposed data center regulations. Visit Larimer County's Engage Portal to read an overview of the draft regulations in plain language. You can also read the draft data center Land Use Code amendment as written.

2) Provide feedback on this draft by November 24, 2026, by: Leaving comments on Larimer County's Engage Portal. Emailing datacenter@publicinput.com

Due to the volume of messages and interest in this project, staff will not be able to respond to all messages. Future Opportunities to Engage

December 16, 2026: Planning Commission Hearing, Public Comment January 11, 2027: Board of County Commissioners Land Use Hearing, Public Comment

Future dates are subject to change.

For more information on the project's background, FAQs, and timeline, visit the Larimer County Engage Portal."

I’m M 26 and recently moved to the U.S. to pursue my education. Being in a new country on my own can get a little lonely sometimes, so I’m looking to meet new people, make friends, and find fun things to do with different communities around here.
I’m pretty laid-back, open-minded, and always down to try new things and have fun. I’m a gym rat and love sports in general. I also play soccer in different tournaments around Fort Collins and Loveland. I’m always up for meeting new people, exploring new places, or just hanging out and having a good time. Feel free to hit me up if you’re looking for a friend or someone to do things with or play pool

And im not sure if this app will help me or i should go to different app😅

Traffic light at Prospect and Lemay is out. Avoid at all costs.

Looking for an old school paper city map of Fort Collins that I can purchase in town. An actual foldable map, not like an art print. Do these still exist? I don’t have a printer and a need a physical copy so an online download won’t work for me. I’m going to go check out the bookstores and maybe some gas stations but if anyone knows for sure where I will find one that would be awesome. Thanks.