Ahhh….. Autumn

A cold front is coming through tonight, and it got me thinking about autumn. Autumn is my favorite season. Here in North Texas, it is almost a second spring. The cooler weather and increased rainfall results in things greening up before the leaves change. Already, my tomato plants have started a second set of blooms. This will hopefully mean a second and better harvest.

I love the holidays that fall during this time of year. Halloween, as it is celebrated now, is about celebrating your inner child and thumbing your nose at all the irrational fears in the world. Thanksgiving is about getting together with family and celebrating the bountiful harvests we have in the USA. I enjoy both of the holidays for their celebrations of life.

One of the other things I love about the fall is the food. We start seeing traditional recipes celebrating hearth and home. We have all of the flavors of the harvests traditionally made at this time of year. At this time of year, in more rural and traditional settings the harvests would be brought in and the animals not selected for breeding stock would be butchered. We have hearty dishes made with meats, vegetables, and fruits. We have the spices and sweets that bring to mind home. We have all of the traditional “comfort” foods.