When I taught in the Nutrition Lab at Penn State, each fall semester the chapter on Fruits & Vegetables coincided with the leaf change in the mountains that surround campus. It was a great talking point, to discuss how plants contain pigments with health benefits for humans—anthocyanins (red, purple, blue), carotenoids (yellow, orange, red), anthoxanthins (white and cream), betalains (red-violet, yellow-orange), and chlorophyll (green).
Chlorophyll absorbs sunlight to drive photosynthesis, and most plants contain chlorophyll in some parts of their anatomy (fungi like mushrooms don’t). But the shorter days of fall cause the trees to stop making chlorophyll and the green fades and the true colors of the trees stand on bright display, briefly—until the tannins in the leaves turn them brown. If these factoids are interesting to you, be sure to check out the book The Light Eaters by Zoe Schlanger.
Our Wyoming visit has gone viral, as in, many viruses. John ended up with Iris’s bug and it took him down—two trips to Urgent Care and he finally started an antibiotic yesterday. Maybe this is the beginning of the end.
We kept a big distance to mitigate germ passage, “dining like rich people,” John said.
And I focused on bright colors in our dinners to add every possible phytonutrient. Luckily, Old Dog Farm just south of Alpine has a weekly farm stand, and if you are not in line by the time they open at 4 p.m. on Thursdays, you are generally out of luck for veggies. The rainbow chard that I purchased made a great coconut curry with the beet tops from the previous week.
Following a recipe on a can of coconut milk, I sautéed onion and garlic, added the stems from the Swiss chard and beet greens, cooked until tender, then added piles of the greens and wilted them down. Adding the can of coconut milk smoothed everything into a creamy dish that needed minimal seasoning with salt and pepper. Served on top of red quinoa, (Kirk’s choice) from Whole Foods, with some broccoli on the side, it was a veritable powerhouse of vitamins. A bit of trout added some protein.
Rose was keeping her household healthy with ramen, based on her own batch of chicken broth, and she delivered the noodles, broth, and toppings to us, and we added shaggy manes that John found in the woods and, since we had no Sriracha or chili crisp, horseradish!
These kids are writers. Kirk recorded his recipe for a favorite dish—Sour Apples. And Iris is a scribe as well, busily scratching random letters and numbers and then asking you, “What does this spell?”
Saturday morning in Jackson was a festive affair after Iris’s ballet lesson. We cruised through the market and then enjoyed the least healthy breakfast option from the food truck Provisions, and it was delicious. The Breakfast French Fries were loaded with two eggs, seasoned bison short ribs, and cheddar sauce. Rose and I devoured them in Town Square while parents shepherded their toddlers, who were big fans of the balloon man.
When we arrived back in Alpine, we found that John and Kirk had planted the garlic for next year and the farmers were ready to take a break. John came home to rest and drink more tea and broth; Kirk stayed with Mommy and he and Iris enjoyed their clubhouse.
Sunday morning I picked up the kids for a playtime at our house and we were about to have lunch when my neighbor Michelle, who owns and operates Wild Flour Bakery, delivered a warm loaf of bread to us that she had just made. What a mitzvah! We were grateful.
Rose joined us on the porch at Kelly Lane for dinner that evening, and we had chicken enchiladas (we are rich in chicken meat from all the broth-making) with green enchilada sauce and quesadillas for the kids. They also enjoyed some rice, always with soy sauce, avocado, a couple of beans, and lots of fruit. I had intended to make a pie that afternoon, but it was much more fun playing with the kids. We battled through many rounds of War while Iris ran a nail salon on the side. The pie could wait.
I had picked up a quince at Whole Foods a couple of weeks ago, and it wasn’t fragrant like the ones picked from a tree in PA, but it was time to use it. I saw an intriguing recipe on Kate Hill’s Camont Journal, a Substack that I subscribe to, and it sounded like a glorious autumn recipe. Kate Hill is the author of A Culinary Journey in Gascony, a cookbook Nina gave me many years ago, and one of my favorite little books, with excellent regional recipes and stories. (Come to think of it, I haven’t made the Tomato Tart recipe from that book yet this year. I better fix that.)
Her Sweet Potato & Quince Pie in a Cornmeal Butter Pastry was calling to me, and I gave it a try. Delicious! And I didn’t even make it properly. I used a Cuisinart instead of mixing the crust by hand (because my butter was cold and not at room temp) and I forgot the egg wash on the crust as well as the cornstarch in the filling. But it was still delicious, with tiny, tasty bits of caramelized quince in the luxuriant filling. I will make this one again.
And maybe all those carotenoids in the roasted sweet potatoes will be just what the doctor ordered and make John well. And keep me healthy. But I credit my immunity to the horseradish that I still consume daily. I think that’s it. Fingers crossed.
Time for pie…
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Our mutual friend Jeannie S. gifted me one of her garden mystery pumpkin volunteers that I just baked off. I've been looking for something good to do with it so you've just inspired me!!
Loved the colorful Factoids. Great when food has rich health benefits!! Pie amazing 🍁