SQUASH

Roasted Squash Soup with Coriander-Spiced Yogurt

1 butternut squash, (about 2 lbs)

2 cloves of garlic

a small handful of thyme sprigs

2-4T extra virgin olive oil

2 leeks

1 medium bulb of fennel

1.5 qts light vegetable stock or filtered water

Celtic sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds.  Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Place a few sprigs of thyme and 1 garlic clove in the hollow of each squash.  Place cut side down on a lightly oiled baking sheet and roast until tender. 

While the squash cools, slice the leeks and thoroughly rinse to remove any grit.  Cut the fennel bulb in half, core and thinly slice.  Heat a small amount of oil in a 3 quart pot, add the leeks, cooking until translucent, then add the fennel and cook for another 5-7 minutes.  Scoop out the flesh of the squash and add the saucepan.  Add about 1.5 quarts of water or light vegetable stock and simmer lightly for 10-15 minutes, allowing the flavors to mingle. Meanwhile prepare the coriander-spiced yogurt.

When the soup has cooled, lightly puree in a blender.  Gently reheat adjust the seasoning to taste and serve with a dollop of the coriander-spiced yogurt and grate some fresh nutmeg on top.

Coriander-Spiced yogurt

1/2 cup whole milk yogurt

1-2 teaspoons ground coriander

Celtic sea salt to taste

Fresh nutmeg

Whisk the yogurt until smooth.  Stir in about a half of a teaspoon of coriander and a pinch of sea salt to taste.

CARAWAY

According to The Spice Bible, by Jane Lawson, caraway is "thought to be the oldest cultivated spice plant from Europe".  I find the sharpness of this aromatic, warming spice to be a wonderful foil for the sweeter qualities of cool weather vegetables like winter squash, turnips, beets and carrots.  Caraway seeds were valued by ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman cultures for both their culinary and medicinal uses. Caraway is in a family of spices, along with fennel and ajwan,  known as a useful remedy for digestive trouble and indigestion. It is, in fact, often combined with foods that are known to be difficult to digest, such as cabbage, and fatty meats, like pork and duck. I have also recently read that, in Elizabethan times, apples were baked with caraway as a stomach soothing dessert

CARAWAY DIGESTIVE
Bruise a teaspoon of caraway seed in a mortar and pestle.  Pour two cups of boiling water over the seeds and let stand for 15-20 minutes.  Sweeten with a little raw honey if desired and take about a half cup 3-4 four times during the day to settle your digestion.


I've taken to tossing it with sweet carrots and shallots for a satisfying autumn side dish

Roasted Carrots with Shallot and Caraway

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
Gather about 12 4" long carrots, I like a variety of colors, ranging from crimson to yellow and deep purple.  Cut them in half lengthwise, not too thin, but cut in half again if they are very thick.

Peel and thinly slice 3-4 shallots
Toss the carrots and the shallots with some fruity olive oil and season with 1/2 t salt and 1 t of caraway seeds.  Add a bit of freshly ground pepper if you like, but I often do that after they are roasted.

Roast for about 20 minutes or until you are able to pierce with a fork.

Serve with a squeeze of lemon juice.  This is also delicious with a crumble of goat milk feta

AUTUMN EATS

Squash.  Persimmon.  Figs. Concord grapes.  Kale. Walnuts. Cauliflower. Fennel.  Keith's Rocambole Garlic. Turnips. Pears.

The list goes on.  Most of these foods I source from the Union Square Farmers Market, some are not native to the East Coast, but so evocative of this time of year, that I know adding things like figs and persimmon to some meals is as good for the soul as choosing my greens from the market is for the local farmers. And anyway, Keith, of the eponymous, Keith's Farm, did grow some miniature persimmon last autumn.   The yield was so low he actually limited you to two or three on any given trip.  But the fruit was so distinctive of musk and that fifth flavor, umami-fleshy and ripe, you were happy to get the few mouthfuls available.

This Autumn I've been enjoying the fruit in a very different way at Il Buco, a place that has become a second home over the last 15 years.

Here is my riff on their Persimmon Salad

For Two
Choose one slightly under ripe Fuyu or Hiro persimmon, slice into 1/8" rounds.  Drizzle with cold pressed olive oil and sprinkle with a bit of Himalayan salt.  Next core and cut a bulb of fennel into 1/4-1/2" wedges. clean some mint and reserve some fennel fronds. Toast a small hand of hazelnuts or walnuts.  Finally toss the persimmon, fennel, walnuts or hazelnuts with a bit more olive oil and a dash of champagne vinegar.  Top with a few shavings of Parmesan cheese and  mint and fennel fronds.