I just about froze in the garden this morning, despite wearing a jacket over long sleeves. Although I try to appreciate the changing seasons – it’s such a beautiful cycle – I find it difficult to get excited about gardening when I have to bundle up to go out.
But a breeze brought leaves twirling down through golden light on my way back across the yard, and once inside, I discovered how to make a black tea “mocha.” Mmm, yes, the cozy months may come. They will find me curled up with a hot mug of tea and a large pile of books.
In the meantime, though, the butternut squash are ripening, as you can see in the photo at the top. These striking heirlooms turn a wonderfully vibrant orange, inside and out. “Orange butternut,” they’re aptly, if unimaginatively, named.
Thought it will be a few weeks before the butternuts are market-ready, I still have summer veggies coming from the garden. At the Broadway Community Market tomorrow (9am-1pm), you can find:
- celery
- okra
- tomatoes
- cucamelons
- jalapenos
- fishbowl toys
- pumpkin baskets
- skillet handle covers
- dish cloths
- Swiffer covers
- notecards
Wait, celery? Yes! Some of you may remember that, long ago toward the beginning of the growing season, I mentioned experimenting with celery this year. Well, after overcoming some problems with slugs, I ended up with a rather healthy (if somewhat small) crop of celery!
I chose an heirloom variety called Chinese pink celery, and although the stems don’t get as large as the more common grocery store varieties, they make up for it in flavor and crunch.
I like to freeze celery to use throughout the winter. Just chop it up and spread the pieces on a cookie sheet, then freeze them until solid and transfer to a container. When you need celery for a recipe, just scoop out however much you need.
Due to the aforementioned small crop size, this might be the only Saturday I have celery. So if you want to try Chinese pink celery, make sure to come get some tomorrow!
See you at the market!
P.S. I see you, fellow chocoholics. Here’s how I made my black tea mocha: Brew a cup of black tea* as you normally would, but add a rounded teaspoon of cocoa powder. Remove the tea bag or strainer and mix in honey (or sugar) to taste and plenty of milk or cream.
*Good quality black tea, like English breakfast tea. Lipton probably wouldn’t be as good, with its distinct flavor.