My Favorite Things

I don’t know if it is because I was born in the fall, or because I love to garden as well as to cook, but autumn has always seemed special to me.   As much as I hate to see the summer end, the transition from humid heat to crisp, clear days and cool nights of autumn are revitalizing.  And the late summer and early fall is the time when the earth yields so much of her bounty.  The peaches and other stone fruits, apples, tomatoes, even the lowly zucchini — all are a delight for the eye and the palate. 

What is more wonderful than a fresh batch of pesto made from the basil in your own garden?  And if you freeze it in an ice cube tray,  you can defrost portions of it all winter and enjoy that luscious fall delight again.  When I am overwhelmed with late season tomatoes,  I cut out the bad spots and chunk them up in bags to be frozen and used over the winter in soups and stews.  They are ever so much tastier than canned ones.

So enjoy this fleeting season to the fullest.  After all,  it only comes around once a year!