Reaping what you sow

I love this time of year. Each season really has its own charm and now it's time to enjoy the gifts of fall. Earlier this week, I picked some of them up from the ground. It's about 5 months since I stood bent over putting seeds in the ground, sun scorching my neck.  Now the seeds have grown into small and slightly weirdlooking vegetables that will soon be found in delicious stews and soups. There is something satisfying about cooking with self-grown vegetables. I know exactly where they come from and what they have been exposed to, or perhaps more importantly what they have not been exposed to.

Although the weather this week has not been typical for autumn, there is a coolness in the air, reminding of what's to come. The evening comes earlier and the candles light up faster. Wool sweaters, scarves and tights have been pulled out from the back of the closet. The thought of curling up under a woolen blanket with a good book while it's raining outside is starting to sound tempting. Actually, curling up under a blanket and taking a nap sounds tempting most of the time these days. But I think it's just the after work blues and not lupus related. I took some new blood test on Monday, meaning it's been 4 days and still no call. Guess it's safe to assume that all looks good. No news is god news!

An effective cure for after work blues is all these recipes I want to try. You might say that I've jumped on the fermentation wagon. With varying degrees of success. I have to admit I'm a little nervous when it comes to tasting some of my fermentation projects. Something has definitely happened to the carrots. The turnip doesn't look too good either! Could it be the rocks I've placed on top to keep them submerged? The whole crop of self-grown cucumbers ended up in the trash. A few floated to the top of the glass while I was away, creating a large lid of white mold. Sauerkraut, sun cabbage and kimchi, on the other hand, turned out ok. The fermented red onion was a big success and is almost finished already. So is this fermented buckwheat bread. The dough smells absolutely horrible, but it's become a favorite. I can't wait until it comes freshly baked out of the oven. And then I'll crawl under the wool blanket with a book!