Fall ruminations
Sep. 22, 2009 2:56 pm
Updated: Sep. 24, 2009 6:54 am
The first freeze of the season withered the leaves of all the summer garden's veggies last night. I'm not too sad about it because our fall garden's thriving and, frankly, I'm sick of picking beans, okra and tomatoes. Time to move on...I'm ready for cool/cold weather (you can take the girl out of Alaska, but not the Alaska out of the girl), brilliant gold, red and orange leaves, the gentle melancholy of fall, my favorite season. I'm ready to bake, bake, bake, and walk, walk, walk off all those extra cake-cookie-bread calories. I look forward to warm, steamy afternoons in the kitchen, cooking big pots of fall vegetable soup, hearty casseroles, and sinful desserts, and sharing the results with friends and family.
As I write, my eye rests on the periwinkle and purples of the butterfly bush flowers and lavender stems I picked yesterday and put in a vase on the kitchen table -- summer's last shout-out. A swarm of gnats does its manic dance just outside the door. Not too many performances left for those little critters. Tonight, the north wind will be blowing down on the high desert and bringing more freezing temps. I love the eerie howl of the wind as it sneaks its way in through the cracks of this cattywampus old house. I'll be staying warm in the kitchen, cup of tea at hand, donning my favorite apron and stirring the garden's last zucchini into a batter for sweet bread.
Would love to hear others' autumn reflections, thoughts, and kitchen stories.
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