October descends on us with that autumnal air. Hues of burnt oranges and reds litter the landscape from the trees to the fallen leaves. Dahlias and nasturtiums heighten these colours and make this month a delightful one to be in the garden. Even the pyracantha shrubs show off their orange and red berries.
Summer gave us a glut of courgettes. This month brings an abundance of squashes and pumpkins. They all belong to the same family called cucurbitaceae. These vegetables encapsulate autumn with a diversity of shapes and colours. Now is the time to harvest them and they store well if the stalk is left on them when picked.
It is a good time to use up all the excess pears and apples by making chutneys and jams. I have made runner bean chutney which will accompany the roasts for those dark winter days. I make use of the dry October days of which we have had quite a few to rake up the fallen leaves and make leaf compost.
I have started using my pumpkins which I have harvested to make delicious food. Roasted pumpkin is versatile and can used in a variety of stews and cakes. Pumpkins and squashes can be roasted by cutting them into 2-3cm chunks. Put in a roasting tray and coat with oil and season with salt and black pepper gas mark 6 or 200 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes.
Recipe: Pumpkin, goat’s cheese and spinach pasties
Ingredients:
1 red onion, olive oil, 1 garlic clove, 250g fresh spinach, 300g puff pastry, 400g diced roasted pumpkin, 80g hard goat’s cheese, few thyme leaves, pinch of nutmeg, salt and black pepper, 1 egg.
Method:
Fry onions until soft, add garlic, and add wilted spinach. Mix all ingredients. Fill into pastry and bake gas mark 6 for 20 mins.
