And here we are – 8:05 p.m. on September 22. Astrological autumn. Of course, if you are a meteorologist, autumn began on Sept. 1 and will run through to November 30. They like to keep things tidy. We are at the time of roughly equal day and night, with long nights creeping in faster now, and twilight getting shorter every week. While I’ll take an early spring by a few weeks, it never quite feels like summer is over on Labor Day weekend, and usually there’s more warm weather to be enjoyed.
Winding down
The garden is tired, and so is the gardener. I’d like not to deal with any more tomatoes or sprouting broccoli; but they keep going strong. I have another big batch of pesto to make (and give away this time, freezer is full), and then I’ll call the basil a season. Here’s the thing about global warming, in the last 20 years, I’ve seen our first frost date get pushed out more and more and we seldom see a freeze before mid-October now. It used to be a mad dash to cover those tomato plants to protect them for a few more precious weeks because there might be a frost in early September, and it made a difference. We did everything we could to protect that garden and keep things growing just a little longer. Now, the annual plants go well past their prime, get leggy and raggedy looking. We got our little longer, and it isn’t pretty. Well, except for the roses. I’ve a lovely late flush of the beauties, almost as good as June, although the blossoms are more fragile. Still beautifully fragrant, and it’s keeping the bees amused.
We needed a break
We took a quick trip to the coast this past weekend, a date I had to reschedule when I came down with vertigo last summer. It seemed like a good weekend at the time, past Labor Day so the big summer crowd would be gone, and before foliage. I got to meet up with Judy at New England Garden and Thread for a delightful lunch at Stonewall Kitchens. It was really nice catching up, and I went home with a beautiful dwarf goatsbeard plant that will live in my garden next to my miniature roses. It’s wonderful to meet up with blog friends!
I guess the tourists didn’t get the memo that the leaves haven’t really started to turn color yet because it was quite crowded, and no foliage of worth to be viewed. But the weather was delightful, sunny and warm, gentle sea breezes, with just some rain and fog on the way home. Two beautiful sunrises, lots of tasty food, some shopping, and relaxing on the balcony. Perfect, and our granddaughter took the weekend break from college and she and her friend joined us, so there was a bounty of youthful energy and exuberance surrounding us.
Upon arrival home, we were greeted by two happy dogs and another thousand tomatoes that are destined for the soup pot and the food shelf.
Toss it all in, it will be good
In the pot went trimmings from the garden – kale, Brussels sprouts leaves, sorrel, broccoli, my last sad little pepper and summer squash, the last few pole beans, and lots of basil – some carrots and potatoes I had on hand, corn from our local farm stand, which is really inexpensive right now, and you get 13 fat ears for the price of 12.
Use what you have, my motto
Nothing is exact here. Just make your base of aromatics, I used onion, carrot, pepper, and mushrooms, but you can use leeks or anything from the onion family, then maybe some celery, fennel, parsnips, and of course a lot of garlic. To this add the vegetables you want to use. In this case, in went some pole beans, corn, and sturdy greens from the garden. Kale, of course, some Brussels sprouts leaves which no one ever thinks of using but are really tasty and nutritious. Cook and use them as you would collard greens, they are tough until cooked. I tossed the those and the kale in along with the potatoes and beans so they could soften nicely from a longer cook time, then added the sorrel and broccoli sprouts in at the end. Since I had a lot of basil to use up, I went with Italian seasoning. Have fun with it, play around, and just let it cook itself.
No frost yet, but still the garden gets tired
And now, it’s time to put most of it to bed for the season. The kale and parsley, Brussels sprouts and sorrel, chard and chives will keep going a long time, but they are definitely growing slowly at this point. It’s time to be done with it so we can make soup and sit by the fire, bake bread, and keep our fingernails clean for a little while at least.
The wheel of the year is turning, and I’m ready. Want some cherry tomatoes? No? How about some harvest soup? You can use whatever you have on hand, it will be delightful.
Trim the Garden Kale and Corn Soup
Everything diced how you like them for soup;
- 1 large onion
- 2 or 3 small carrots or one large
- 1 sweet pepper, or a hot one
- A few mushrooms if you have them
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1 zucchini or summer squash, if you have one
- 1 or 2 cups of chopped beans
- A few potatoes
- A couple of handfuls of sturdy greens: kale, chard, collards, or Brussels sprout leaves
- 2 cups of cooked corn
- 1 or 2 cups of broccoli florets
- Fresh basil leaves, five or six or 25
In a large stock pot, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and add the onion, carrots, pepper, and mushrooms. Sauté until soft and fragrant and add the garlic and Italian seasoning. Toss in the squash, beans, and potatoes and cover with water by about a centimeter, the veggies will exude more liquid. If you have a couple of corn cobs, toss those in for flavor, if not, that’s ok. Any other veggies in the crisper you need to use up? They will work.
Bring to a boil, add the greens, season with salt and pepper, cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about a half hour on lowest temperature.
Once everything is tender, add the corn, broccoli, and basil and cook another five minutes.
Taste for seasoning, and serve it up. I made some cornbread to go along with this and it was a perfect match; of course, I added some corn kernels to the bread, after all, it is the season of plenty.
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And now, for your meditation pleasure, my I present a sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean:
“Odd as I am sure it will appear to some, I can think of no better form of personal involvement in the cure of the environment than that of gardening. A person who is growing a garden, if he is growing it organically, is improving a piece of the world. He is producing something to eat, which makes him somewhat independent of the grocery business, but he is also enlarging, for himself, the meaning of food and the pleasure of eating.” ~ Wendell Berry
With the end of September approaching, I’ll be planting my fall garden.
What will you plant?
Lettuce of various sorts, various Asian mustards, peas, carrots, Beets maybe, collards and turnip greens.
Sounds wonderful!
What a luscious bowl of soup …. and cornbread is exactly what this needed! Of course, you were right. Beautiful sunrise, D. 🌅
Glad you enjoyed it all!
Love your autumnal story and the relaxing sunrise and the little-bit-of-this-and-a-little-bit-of-that soup which makes total sense and tastes just great! Enjoy your Fall and the waiting for a comfortable winter ahead . . .
Thank you my friend! I’m finally seeing a little color on the leaves!
So lovely to meet a blogging friend. I have often found lots in common when I meet them in person.
Yummy delicious soup? You’ve won me with any variety.
You may have written about dealing with the tomato oversupply but I might have forgotten or missed that post. I remember that feeling of inundation when the tomato plants just keep ripening and ripening and ripening. I got into the habit last season of slicing them and throwing them in the oven on a tray with some seasoning, garlic, herbs and a splash of red wine vinegar til soft and roasted and then blitzing them with the stick blender. Once cool, I froze the portions of the sauce for pasta, soups, or rattatouille or any dish I liked. It became a habit when I made the nightly dinner meal and that way the tomato plague didn’t overwhelm me so much. Sorry to read you suffered vertigo. Hubby suffers from it. Have you identified a specific trigger?
Thanks Amanda, that’s a great tomato tip! Won’t take up as much space in the freezer.
The vertigo lasted for over a month and was of the benign variety that manipulation of my head got the crystals in the inner ear. Sick in place. I hope I never go through that again, and I sure feel empathy with anyone else who has suffered from it. Is your husband’s chronic?
My husband’s has bouts from time to time. Triggers seem various but it is a genetic trait. His sisters and mother suffered from it.
Well, after my bout, I completely sympathize! Hope he is doing well!
This is a beautiful ode to autumn, Dorothy. It is a bountiful time of year and the rich colours are wonderful. Your comments about climate change are correct everywhere. Our trees barely changed colour this past autumn and spring came very early – mid-July. The changes in the weather are very noticeable. We haven’t had any frost for several years. When we first moved to this house in 2004, we got a lot of frost.
Yes, everything has changed and the poor beautiful planet and all its residents are struggling to adapt. The droughts,, the floods, and the fires all reflect the struggling. Let’s hope a million positive steps can help cure .
I hope so too 🙏💛
❤️
Such a beautiful post, Dorothy, you have captured the turn of the season perfectly. Your ‘Want some cherry tomatoes?’ had me smiling in complete empathy, we are at saturation point here, too; musn’t grumble, we’ve had a spectacular harvest, but I find myself looking longingly at the leeks and squash now! I love the idea of an all-in soup and I think your recipe bridges the gap between a light summer bowl and the starchier ones to come. A perfect balance for the equinox! 😊
Thanks Lis! Yesterday was my husband’s day volunteering at the food shelf, so I packed up six pints of cherry tomatoes and it was great! They appreciated them, and I found homes for a lot of my bounty.
Wonderful, tasty, comforting soups! I like them all year round. 🥣🍃
We do too! Always a delight, hot or cold!
Always! 👏
It’s certainly soup weather in our part of the Country. It was 41℉ when I made coffee this morning. Brr. Love the sunrise, and the smiling faces in your photos. Roberts has good food that is for sure. Thanks for taking the time for lunch. It is always great to see you and share a lively conversation. Looking forward to our next get together. I haven’t been to VT in a while so maybe I need to head your way and enjoy some of your state’s beautiful scenery. Enjoy the rest of September.
Sounds like a spring date to me my friend!! It was great seeing you! Always wonderful to catch up.
Beautiful.
Merci!
Your story with food always nourishes love in abundance. Family + community.❤️☕️☕️
Thank you my dear friend!
Gosh you have been busy but how lovely to have your freezer full with your garden produce for the winter. Great soup. I’ve started making soup again as well as the weather has got much cooler in London too.
Today, sunny and warm and beautiful, who knows what next week will bring! Thanks for traveling by!
I so enjoyed the bees and flowers, having seen neither in a while here. The soup and cornbread is such a delightful way to use up all your veggies. I am always uplifted by your words and focus on environment and sustainability! You rock it!
Thanks Suz! I’m always encouraged by the willingness of people to do what is right, and the time is now to make some positive changes. One thoughtful action at a time.
I love your sentiment of caring for the environment and gardening. It has been a rough summer here in NM. We are just now seeing a monsoon season that usually comes in June or July, we’ve been through extreme heat and drought conditions and the Rio Grande River was completely dry for over 100 days so the farmers were not able to water their summer fruits and vegetables as needed. This last week the monsoon rains have come, a little late but welcome. I enjoy your take on using what you have, storing or freezing the rest and getting a little bit creative to thrive and experiment with new recipes using your bounty year round!
Oh, what a terrible summer Jan! So much to endure.
Thank you for your kind words. We all have to do what we can and hope collectively we can find some way to make the solutions work.
💕
That soup looks delicious! My mouth is watering. Wish I could have joined you at Stonewall Kitchen.
We certainly missed you, but there will be next spring/summer, and we’ll have a lovely three or four hour lunch!!
Thank you for this delicious, hearty, and healthy, fall soup, Dorothy.
You are heartily welcome!
Oh, I love Stonewall Kitchens! What a wonderful highlight to a coastal vacation. Your trip sounds like it was filled with wonderful food and even better company with your granddaughter and blog friends. This garden kale and corn soup recipe looks amazing!
Thank you my dear friend! Blog friends can be the best, like old fashioned pen pals, and when you get to meet up, it is a lovely gift!