Electing to eat

As I haven't been able to focus on more autumn vegetables before this, here is a nice blurry photo of the food of our election night victory party, which was entirely local produce, except some cinnamon.
Here's what I made, so easy and good.
Sweet Potatoes--these aren't yams; they're the lighter colour ones, and you can use them like regular potatotes. I just skinned them, sliced, and put them in a pan suitable for the oven. Then I poured a little olive oil on , and threw in a handful each of oat flakes, pumpkin seeds and walnuts, then some thyme, covered it in tin foil, and stuck it in the oven for an hour or so. Then just before serving I put a little grated parmasean on top and put it under the broiler for about 45 seconds.
Onions--I took off their little skins, trimmed the ends so they'd stand upright, scored the top with a knife, and added a tiny bit of butter, a shake of cinnanamon and a wee drop of the extra special balsamic vinegar but you could leave that off it you don't have it. Don't use a salad vinegar as a substitute. These baked for over an hour at a little lower temp than the sweet potatoes. It has to be tightly covered. The onions become soft and sweet and buttery with a fantastic glaze. My father used to make these.
Carrots--My father used to make these too. Just take fresh carrots and wash off the dirt, chop them and steam in a bit of water for a few minutes to make them a little tender. Take them out of the pan, put butter in, and some anise seeds, cook those in the butter for a minute or two and add the carrots. The sweetness of the carrots, and it's warm note, goes very well with anise.
Squash. I think I wrote about these in the last post. I used a mixture of squashes as their textures and even colours vary so when I mashed them, I didn't mash too much--they retained different shades of orange and yellow. I added butter and a clove of crushed garlic.
I should say here that no one should panic. Americans are often scared of butter (although there is far worse than than in most commerical food.) And I cooked a lot of food. Really a lot, and used less than 1/2 stick. It doesn't take much to give a rich robustness and flavor; there is nothing like butter to give an added boost to baking. Incidently, butter has a very short carbon chain and is therefore the easiest fat to digest, even easier than olive oil. True.
Kale. This is a difficult vegetable, irascible and difficult. He doesn't even like to be washed and water just runs off him like a duck's back. I chopped this kale as much as I felt reasonable, and put some olive oil and onions (those flat ones) into a big and heavy pot. Once they were translucent I added this kale, stuffing the pot with it, and then pouring in a cup or so of water. Then I put the lid on of left him to stew in his own juice, so to speak. Since kale is so big and strong, he doesn't take other flavours easily but locking him into a pot with only himself and a spice will work as he has no choice. Kale is an excellent lung tonic, and is helpful in detoxifying the liver as well, as per Traditonal Chinese Medicine. It's a fortifying and strengthing vegetable, and highly recommended for autumn.
Lentils. These, like all the other dishes I've mentioned, are fine at room temperature. Cook the lentils slowly in water, with a carrot and onion as accompaniment. Drain the water but save a bit in case they dry out while sitting. I made a little salad dressing--good olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a wee bit of garlic, and some thyme, salt and pepper. Once the lentils cooled I tossed them in this.
Applesauce. I used golden delicious, an apple I have to admit I have a snobby prejudice against normally. But they are great for cooking! Direct and uncomplicated! I peeled them and chopped them, and threw in a pot with a little water, and I do mean little. The apples release their own liquid as they cook. Cover it tightly to conserve and concentrate the liquid and simmer. Once they are soft, about 20-30 minutes although this could vary, I threw in a handful of dried blueberries and a teaspoon or so of honey. No sugar. You won't need, and if you want it gum curdleingly sweet, you can always add it later.
In addition to this I brought some cheese in--all assertive interesting cheeses, some camembert, aged gouda, a sharp local cheddar, and a nice gruyere.
My friend came with an interesting and delicious appetizer--she is a fantastic cook. I am a mere dabbler, as becomes obvious when I get so excited making things that I need to blog it! She discovered quince preserve I think it is. It's sold in blocks. So it was quince, manchego cheese, watercress and toasted almonds.
Of course the night went well, even with not all the senate races yet counted.

Local Food--Winter Squashes

Most New Yorkers don't eat at home much, unless you count delivery. This has certainly been the case with me as entire years will go by between switching on the oven, and we all know people who have never even been curious to see if their stoves work.

But here it is autumn; the most bountiful time to find fresh local food at the greenmarkets, even and particularly here in New York. There is a buzz generating, starting in California I think, about eating local, and how much more sense that makes on every level. If you think about the utter bizarreness of flying in certified organic produce from South Africa, Chile, New Zealand, well, it's just completely illogical and cancels out the organic experience in the first place, doesn't it?

You can reasonably claim any arguement for eating local--the food is fresher, you support local farmers, the food is more alive, has more local nutrients, more local vitimins, more local minerals, has more chi (prana,) and don't you think it makes sense that foods grown in certain locations will help build immunity and strength in the climate and conditions that surround it? I think sometimes we are obsessed with preventing: lose weight, slow down aging, stave off cancer, whatever. But maybe we forget that the best way to do any of those things is to feed and nourish your body in every way, to build strength, immunity and vitality.
That means food and water. For a normal person in the US there shouldn't be any need for supplements in day to day life. It's not like we can be malnourished here, unless we eat crap. And even for those of us who do occasionally eat junk, if the bulk of your diet is vegetarian, fresh, grown in a respectful way, and prepared with intention and love, then you will feed your soul, your spirit and your mind as well as your body.


Certainly, if one lives in a Mediterranean climate, the year round choices are ample and delightful. Here in the American Northeast we have a limited selection in the late winter and early spring. But limited availibility, like longevity, can only enhance enjoyment! Seasonal variations are right and natural. How delicious is our early corn? Our heirloom tomatoes? We have a wonderful selection of produce available here! And you will not find most of this at Whole Foods. Most of their produce is labeled as being from California and while that might be understandable in the winter, we have plenty of small scale, organic, and biodynamic farms all over New York, New Jersey and New England.

So in case it's not obvious, I am cooking a lot this autumn. I finally opened my mother's Joy of Cooking and have all my old family recipes as well. I tend to make enough to last a few days, and am trying to remember to bring it in to work as well as having at home. Here's an example of what's being trucked into the city daily.

Winter squash. Pumpkins, Hubbard, Acorn, Banana, etc. These mostly grow on vines and last a really long time as well as looking very autumny and pretty so it makes sense to buy a few and keep them around, cooking them whenever inspiriation strikes. They tend to intimidate most most people. But preparing them is ridiculouly easy. And you can use the same basic guidline for all of them. Turn the oven on to about 375. Wash the squash and then pour a little dab of olive oil onto a paper towel and rub the squash with it. Make sure you prick the squash with a fork once or twice (to let steam escape.) Then stick him into the oven and check on him an hour later. It may take up to 2 hours to cook but should be soft and pliable. So do this while you are otherwise occupied with household things. He smells really good as he roasts, mouth watering. Once he's taken out, let him cool for a little while on the counter then cleave him in two.

This is the only labourious part--the removing of the seeds. Using a spoon, scoop the seeds into a mesh colander and scoop the flesh into another pot or bowl. Then you just mash the flesh easily with a fork, add a bit of butter (or olive oil,) and maybe a tiny bit of cinnamon, or garlic, or whatever you think might be interesting. Salt and pepper over the top and you're done. You have it for several days, and it can easily be reheated in the oven with a little cheese on top, or on the stove, or served as a topping for pasta. Some other good things to add might be walnuts, oats, pumpkin seeds....but if you haven't made winter squash and are curious about him then just do what I've already written and once you've experienced how he is, and how he cooks, and his flavor, fragrance and texture, then you will probably be more inspired to try new things.

I think Americans in general are usually tied to the idea that this is a dish that needs sugar added, a special, difficult dish that is only made at Thanksgiving perhaps. I certainly was. Well, nothing is further from the truth.

Now, what to do with the seeds? It can become a pain if you get too fussy about them. But just slipping them through your fingers will separate most of them from the squash. Then the seeds, which will likely have a bit of orange clinging to them, can be run under water, still in that little colander. Then you put them out to dry, on a cookie sheet if you have one. On a bit of foil if not. You can hurry the drying process by putting them in the oven at about 200 for a while, until you leave the house or go to bed. Then just leave them out on the table, if you don't have vermin, in the sun if your windows allow (New Yorkers will not think this last sentence strange.) After a few days, once they are dry and you have about 5 minutes to spare, stick them in a little frying pan over medium flame and STAY RIGHT THERE turning them with a spatula. It will only be 2-4 minutes you are doing this but you must not turn away because these seeds will burn in a heartbeat. So let them brown a bit, and keep vigilent and then you're done. Put them in a jar for safekeeping and you can sprinkle them on top of other dishes, salads, or whatever. Once you taste them you will see how they go. You can also fry in butter or olive oil but it's not necessary. Pumpkin seeds have a buttery rich taste anyway. And they are generally known to help kill parasites so munching on a handful for a snack is healthy as well as tasty and satisfying on many levels.

You can also boil squash (after cutting and skinning it) and then mash it, or use in chunks in a stew. Or you can stuff them, or whatever. They are versatile, mild in flavour and take accompanying flavours happily. There are lots of things to do with members of the pumpkin family. But this is the easiest.

Squashes contain lots of beta carotene (Vitamin A,) vitamin C, potassium, folate, manganese and are known to be good for lungs, helpful in autumn as always. Click for more information on the health benefits of these sweet little squashes.

Here is the link to NYC Greenmarkets. They are all over the city!

Looks like I ran out of time here, so will add other fruits and vegetables later.