Autumn

When I see the green leaves of my Bluberry bushes turning to those lovely Autumnal shades of yellows, oranges and red, I know it is time to prepare the garden for the Winter. First, it is picking up the last bounty left from the Summer to ripen, the late Tomatoes, the Sweet Peppers and Chillies which took their time, and the Squashes. Then it is the countdown to keep on gardening up until the first frosty nights and planting the veggies which can cope with the cold days ahead, which are mainly root vegetables. Autumn is a busy season not only in the garden but also in the kitchen: Abundance reaches the table on a successful year. I saw gluts of Chillies which made my eyes water while finding out all sorts of different ways to preserve them for a long time from dried Chillies, to Chilli Oil passing by Chilli Jam, and more. We had also an abundance of green tomatoes one year of a particularly grey Summer which desperately lacked sunshine but by October they turned into a lovely Green Tomatoes Chutney. It is the time of the year when the results are coming in: Some went according to plan and others failed. It is the season of taking stock and learning about what went right and what went wrong during the year. Like the tree leaves which put on a colourful display before laying to rest to nurture the soil, like turning the page of a book enriched by the lecture of the words we found upon it, Autumn sets us towards the close of the year with a fair amount of fruitions and reflections which prepare us towards our next pages in our gardening, culinary and ordinary life. However, nothing is all doom and gloom, despite Autumn warning us of an incoming Winter and being a season having most of the death-related feasts within its months, like the spooky Halloween, or the revering of our passed away members of our family by visiting their graves on All Saints Day in France, Autumn has feasts, because we are celebrating a harvest of some sort may it be big or small... You reap what you sow...

Halloween

About Halloween Food

Harvest

Harvesting Time

Stews and Casseroles

Stews and Casseroles