It is a cooking day!

When my friend Tracy sent this picture of her grand dog Coltrane, she said I would smile. I did more; I laughed out loud and thought how much I could learn from him. Coltrane was a feisty pup with a great personality. But a few months ago, he lost his sight. But Coltrane never lost his cheerfulness, his good disposition, his loving nature. I think we could all learn something from this blind dog!






The beautiful vegetables of harvest season are our compensation for losing summer sun, gardens, and brightly hued flowers. This morning we went to the farmer’s market on our town square which was only two vendors today. But I got luscious red tomatoes, three kinds of squash, Gala apples, and the last of this year’s peaches from a local orchard.  They are all lovely representations of nature's colorful palette.

Earlier in the week we had visited the new Mennonite store outside of town. This proved to be a wonderful place as well, and we will go often I am sure. They sell bulk grains, fresh produce, have a bakery, sell dairy, and will even make you a sandwich if you want out one made from the meats in their case that looks like an old time butcher’s showcase. We bought a small loaf of apple bread that was so good I may never make my own again.

Last night we ate the last of a  light lemon chicken soup which put me in the mood for other fall like foods. So today turned into a cooking day. I made a new recipe called kidney bean casserole. Its ingredients were risky for DH’s taste buds, but he liked it. Two unusual ingredients for us were Coleman’s mustard and sorghum. I learned that the British Coleman’s mustard, which you make with water as needed, is much spicier than our prepared mustard here. The sorghum I had picked up at the Mennonites. I had hated sorghum as a kid, but age has made the strong earthy flavor more palatable, and it worked wonders in this casserole.

I also made four dozen of my favorite fiber muffins from grains I bought from the Mennonites. This recipe uses oat bran, ground flax, and wheat bran. It also uses two ground oranges, peeling and all, along with golden raisins. I tossed in some dried cranberries too and baked them all in muffin top pans which makes for dandy eating early in the morning with a cup of hot tea on the deck.


I cooked the last of my wild rice from Minnesota for later use, and I have enough beans left to make a nice chili pot for tomorrow which will go well if the weather stays cool yet one more day. I also baked and pureed a butternut squash and an acorn squash which will be come our supper in a new recipe for curried squash soup.

Now I think I will pour the last of the iced Caribe tea, take a book, and go to the deck to soak up air that smacks of autumn's coming.