November and Orange

 Before we move on to Christmas and all of the red and green I wanted to review my month of orange:  Orange pumpkins, orange persimmons, orange kittens, big bros and Mama cats, Orange apricots from the freezer, orange linens.  Fall has been gorgeous here in Southern California.  I still have  shorts on today.  Honestly I'll have to put on a sweater this evening but I can't remember when the last time I still had tomatoes on the vine and sleeveless shirts on my body on November 29.  Certainly not in Denver.  BRR

The fall sunsets set the color palette:

Even in California we get beautiful sunsets

Lots of purples, a little yellow but mostly orange.

Let me tell you about my orange:

Most of my extra energy was spent discovering and caring for a litter of kittens that was birthed in the back yard of an unoccupied home.  The Mama brought them over the fence to hide them in my orchard.  The Mama is not new to my orchard.  She naps there often and feels pretty safe.  My dog, Charlotte,  has an ongoing conversation with Mama "Ollie" about her hanging around so much.  So I knew that Ollie had brought her kittens to the orchard and where they were hidden.  Ollie is feral but trusts me a bit.  She trusted me enough to transplant her babes from the soggy place in an old trunk to the breezeway of the workshop:

Here's the whole family. Mama Ollie and her 4 three week old kittens - yes three of them are orange just like her.  The visitor to the side is Rodney who is from Ollie's last litter in March.  He's orange too

Rodney is a great babysitter and plays with his half bros quite often ( The white specks in the grass are the remnants of  avian hunting)  Feral cats know how to feed themselves

Lots of orange kittens

The kittens felt adventurous and safe enough to become part of the barnyard,  Axel sneaks in to have a morning conversation with Bullet

Well, Axel is the last kitten to be adopted.  He is finally big enough ( 2 pounds) to be neutered.  Here lies the biggest challenge:  There are many wonderful organizations who offer low or no cost neutering to feral cats but the demand is much higher  than the supply so I have been waiting months on many lists to have these little guys  and their Mama and brother neutered.  It's a real problem.  But guess what, Axel ? We are taking a road trip to Simi Valley and you are returning without the ability to ever be a daddy.  Yay!  

All kittens have been adopted by loving humans now so I'm just waiting for the teenager and Ollie to have an appointment

This has been a big focus of mine this Fall.  I'm not even a cat person.  Lots of orange!!!

Of course there are lots of orange pumpkins that color up the kitchen and good cuisine;

Jarrahdale pumpkins

pumpkin cut up and ready to roast

chunky pumpkin soup

Lots of orange.  Doesn't this table setting mimic all of the colors of the sunset?

Golden beets ready to roast

and a lobster salad- orange

Persimmons are orange too.  I love Fuju persimmons.  Raw they are kind of like an apple...crisp and slightly sweet with lots of fiber.  But they are pricy at about $3 each so a delicacy.  One of my neighbors has a tree and we will swap our harvests.  OMG he brought over nearly 50 pieces of fruit.

What to do now?

So knowing I had a lot of apricots in the freezer from my own bounty in June I decided to make jam

Butternut squash is orange as well.  The persimmon and apricot jam came out delicious...and not too sweet.  I used not only lemon juice but also lime which I will repeat very low sugar and a vanilla bean.

French onion soup is kind of orange.  I had a bounty of onions and some gruyere cheese.  Maybe it's the cheese that's orange.

Nasturtiums are orange among many other colors.  I just sneaked out to take this picture and the following:

My blood orange tree is bearing fruit for the first time since I planted it in 2018.  I just about gave up on it but patience won out.  These beauties will color up and be ready to pick in about January or February.  The tree is planted outside my bedroom window.  It's such a joyful view in the morning and reminds me of hope and anticipation for my next crop of fruit.

I could add some purple but I think this is enough of my sunset colors for my Autumn on the farm.  I am grateful tfor my lifestyle with fresh homegrown food to prepare into fabulous healthy dishes.  I am surrounded by loving animals who bring me great joy and this year a huge challenge.  Spending over an hour each day walking my dog is good for both of us and I get to visit with my neighbors.  Spending time around my goats makes me laugh and calm down with their amazing therapeutic energy.  The chickens are taking a few months off from laying eggs but they love taking dirt baths on these warm sunny days. 

LIFE IS GOOD ON THE FARM

AND VERY ORANGE

OK  time to get in the Christmas spirit

pear & persimmon

pear & persimmon
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

One more look at persimmons through the pear's eyes this time. This ripened Hachiya persimmon was ready to be eaten so I cut it in half and scooped some out. I have eaten many of the Fuyu variety but this is the first Hachiya for me. Delicious!

Persimmons

persimmons
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

Do you see why I love this fruit? They are gorgeous! The small flat cube shaped ones are the Fuyu variety. Eat them like an apple (peel or not). The larger "acorn" shape are Hachiya and must be really soft in order for the bitterness to be gone. Both are available in our local Farmers' Market. I hope you can find them.  Next stop: figs.

Salad of persimmons, pears and pomegranates with grape vinaigrette

Salad of persimmons, pears and pomegranates with grape vinaigrette
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

from Alice Waters' "Fruit"
As you know by now I am on a persimmon frenzy. The ingredients are simple: Fuyu persimmons, pomegranate seeds, ripe pears, grapes (if you can find wine grapes, even better) frisee & radicchio The dressing is not so simple but really tasty: 1Tbs sherry wine vinegar & 1/2 cup grapes mashed together; season with salt and let stand 5 minutes. Then add pepper and 1/4 cup olive oil; blend all together and add to the mix of fruits and lettuces. Enjoy!

Chez Panisse "Fruit"

persimmon, pomegranate & walnut salad
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

Persimmon, pomegranate, walnut & frisee salad:

I received a lovely gift in the mail from my friend, Marjorie, today: Chez Panisse "Fruit" by Alice Waters. I have recently been seduced by persimmons and have been searching for ways to use them. Just peeling and slicing the Fuji variety is perfect but this beautiful cookbook has a whole chapter on persimmons. Heaven! This salad combines the 3 main ingredients with a sherry wine vinaigrette and is served over frisee (curly endive) Besides being colorful it is very fresh and crunchy. Try it! If anyone cares these are my three favorite colors all on one plate (well really, hot pink, but close)

Steamed Persimmon Pudding

Steamed Persimmon Pudding
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

Here is the end result (without the hard sauce which I made with cognac instead of brandy). It is so rich in flavors. Have it with a cappuccino!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/persimmon-pudding-with-hard-sauce-recipe/index.html

The Inside Story

The Inside Story
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

There is usually a lovely surprise inside fruit. Here it is:

Does anyone see the ladybug in the blossom end of the pomegranate?  I did not know she was there until I was midway through my painting.

persimmons & walnuts

persimmons & walnuts
Originally uploaded by cabanagirl

When I was growing up my grandmother had a black walnut tree. We were paid 10 cents to pick them. I found these along with the persimmons at the Farmers' Market for $1 a pound....quite a bargain...there are lots of walnuts in one pound. I found a nutcracker, placed them on a Tuscan yellow hem-stitched napkin and started to sample them. Sophie helped in the cracking. Good doggie, Sophie!