Golden Days, Good Life

Pudding and me under the arch

Pudding and me under the arch

There is a certain feeling in September and October that you need to “get square” before the winter settles. This past month I’ve been focusing on not only keeping on top of all the millions of tasks to keep The Smallest Smallholding ticking over before the growing season comes to an end – harvesting, mulching, pulling up perennials, pruning – but also just simply enjoying it, while the sun is still warming the earth. These golden days are getting fewer and far between, so it’s imperative to get out there and experience every last possible second.

Gryffindor scarf

Gryffindor gardener!

If you’re a Harry Potter fan, you’ll know what I mean when I say that my garden is a bit like a horcrux for me; it’s a place where I can store a little bit of my soul and when I get overwhelmed or the anxiety builds, there’s a part of me contained within it that’s protected and nurtured. Growing, harvesting, and tending to The Smallest Smallholding is remedial work. No, scrub that, it’s not work. It’s just a part of life that’s shaped me and kept me at times from falling apart at the seams but also brings me a sense of achievement, satisfaction and peace like nothing else can.

I just love Autumn and I could write for hours and hours about all the reasons why. Here are a just a few…

Morning light

Morning light

Spanish flag enveloping the arch

Spanish flag enveloping the arch

Bertha my knucklehead pumpkin

Bertha my knucklehead pumpkin

Polka raspberry bush

Polka raspberry bush

I wish I could have eight days a week to work full-time on my little slice of England, but for now I’ll just have to cram in as much as possible as the daylight hours shorten and the nights draw in.

Spicy autumn soup recipe

Root vegetables and cucurbits rule in Autumn, which is partly why it’s one of my most favourite times of the year. Here’s a hearty, warming spicy autumnal soup recipe for these chilly September days and nights.

Spicy autumn soup recipe with butternut squash, sweet potato and carrot

SPICY AUTUMN SOUP RECIPE (VEGETARIAN AND VEGAN)

Ingredients

Light olive oil blend or rapeseed oil
1 x medium butternut squash
1 x medium-large sweet potato
3 x medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 x floury potato (Picasso/Maris Piper/Desiree etc)
2 x large onions (red or white), peeled and diced
Salt & cracked black pepper
Generous heap of curry powder (or garam masala and cumin) plus sprinkle of ground cayenne pepper
Vegetable stock (Marigold)

Method

1. Preheat oven to Gas Mark 6/400F/200C
2. Chop the butternut squash into thick wedges, chop the carrots and sweet potato into chunks, sprinkle with salt and cracked black pepper if desired and roast in the oven in the oil until soft and slightly charred on the edges – this should take about half an hour.
3. Meanwhile, boil the potato until fluffy
4. When the roasted veggies are almost done, start softening the onions in a pan.
5. Once the veggies have roasted, if you’ve left the skin on the squash, allow to cool and scoop away the squash flesh from the skin. Then add into the saucepan with all roasted veggies and potato.
6. Add a generous splash of vegetable stock (make sure the water is boiling) to cover the vegetables with about half an inch over the top. Add the curry powder, cumin or ground cayenne pepper. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 5-8 minutes to reduce the water content down.
7.Take off the heat and blend with a hand blender. If too thick, add some more vegetable stock and blend again.

Serve with thick, crusty bread, grab yourself a book or find a film, and enjoy!