An intriguing time of year. Like the squirrels, we have an instinct about saving up, putting away, sorting. The leaves die and fall; many of my closest relatives reached the end of their lives between Labor Day and Thanksgiving -- was it because so many other things were ending? The harvest, the leaves, the monarchs, the hummmingbirds? Actually the harvest is always a wonder time and the inspiration for spicy chili, tomato soup, pumpkin bread, apple pies, onion soup and a batch of boeuf bourguignon. The boeuf is harvest-connected because the recipe calls for leeks, and I grow enough to make a couple of batches of the tasty beef that freezes so well. Once upon a time, shelves in the cellar were full of things to eat in the winter. Now it's all in the freezer for grabbing when it's just not the right day to cook, or when someone comes to dinner. While lavender petals fall from the windflowers out front and the stems of grasses turn tawny, the kitchen takes on a series of aromas attached to fall.
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