This time of the year I spend so much time in the kitchen I like to start my day with a quick walk, one lap around the cemetery and head for home. It's been my track for over 40 years and is exactly 1 mile per lap; a good warm up. If I'm feeling especially ambitious, I finish the day with a second lap.... and a knee brace. LOL!
A sure sign Fall is here. The asters and golden rod are blooming. The geese are flocking in much bigger groups and move daily and the light is something to behold in the early morning hours.
This morning we had that amazing autumn glow in the early morning hours. The zinnias looked to be on fire and so worth getting my boots wet to run into the back garden.
The lettuce is beyond ready to pick too..... later.
The thyme needs to be harvested and dried too. Making copious notes of tasks that needed to be done yesterday, so I quicken my step and feel the urgency of Fall in full swing.
Beans are yelling to be picked!
Raspberries too.....
Squash needs to be picked and cured for winter storage.
There is also honey nut and acorn squash waiting patiently.
I feed the chickens, linger a bit too long with the girls and quickly resume my chilly walk around the gardens and back to todays tasks.
Fruit Cocktail a winter time favorite! Peaches, Pears, Grapes, no maraschino cherries.
A late Spring freeze decimated our NE Ohio peach crop and there was not a peach to be had for miles around. During our garden tour several gardeners reported a variety of peach; Contender, blooms later and the freeze missed them. They reported bumper crops of peaches this year. I guess I need to add that to the back orchard as soon as possible!
The fruit cocktail shelf is completely bare so I bit the bullet and bought peaches from the store 😞. This will be a first for me so not sure what to expect, pears too. Well fingers crossed and hope it's worth the time and effort. I gotta say this just about killed me. And as I loaded them in my cart I think we are entering the time of: "I know you want that but you can't have it." Pick something else. In this uncertain climate there are going to be years some crops just fail and peaches are my first lesson. Stay tuned.....
Yesterday was fairly productive and the shelf for split pea soup and caponata are full again. I can make split pea soup anytime of the year but I was completely out and since all the equipment was out it just made sense to get this done.
Caponata served with a tin of sardines, a bit of feta cheese and I'm sitting in a bistro somewhere on the Mediterranean. One of my favorite lunches!
But is there anything better than chickens in the early morning light of Autumn?
I have an abundance of eggs I need to deal with too! I have been freezing many of those for mid winter baking but at last count there were 5 dozen eggs waiting to be spun into something....
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