I know it's now autumn when I see scenes like these on my walks with the dog. It's not cold yet, even though our central heat has come on several times over the past week, with the thermostat set at 18.5ºC — about 65ºF. That's our wintertime temperature inside the house.
Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle... Well, not these, actually. They're chestnut leaves that will slowly disintegrate over the course of the winter.Along with almost all of the chestnuts themselves. Nobody seems to want them.
There are patches of mushrooms of various varieties all around the edges of the vineyard, thanks to recent, repeated rains. These have come up just outside our back gate. I wish I knew whether these are edible or not. Dans le doute, abstiens-toi, they say.
Here's where bunches of grapes hung until recently. Nearly all the grapes have been harvested now. That's the surest sign that autumn is here. These were red-wine grapes — Gamay Noir, I assume. They are harvested mechanically, not by hand, so the woody structures the grapes grow on are left behind.
Our "fall colors" are mostly grape leaves, though chestnut and maple leaves are colorful too. Different grape varietals produce autumn leaves of different colors, from bright red to golden yellow. It won't be long before all the grape leaves will be on the ground, and wintertime pruning will start.
And finally, fall food. This is a slice of Greek moussaka, made with potatoes, eggplant (aubergines), lamb cooked with tomatoes and spices including cinnamon, and a firm, cheesy béchamel sauce on top. The weather is cool enough now that we can enjoy cooking foods in the oven, though Walt actually cooked the slices of eggplant (from our 2019 vegetable garden) on the barbecue grill for this moussaka.
I'd be freezing in your house in wintertime. I keep the thermostat at 75*F here in Arlington, and it's fine. Frilosité runs in the family; my older brother feels the same. He will turn 100 years old next March! So, heat is good for you!
ReplyDeleteDo you wear bermuda shorts around the house in wintertime? I wear sweatpants and flannel shirts.
DeleteNo, and just like you I wear sweatpants and sweatshirts. I wear shorts in summertime, do you?
DeleteYes, I do wear shorts, especially during the summer heatwaves we had this year. I wish wearing shorts during heatwaves would make the temperature ressentie about 65ºF!
DeleteGot to remember that horse chestnuts (marrons) are not edible. The edible ones are chataignes. However, we still use the word marron for the food from chestnuts: marrons glacés, marrons grillés, purée de marrons, ... Why is that?
ReplyDeleteYes, marrons are horse chestnuts (marrons d'Inde) and are inedible. Marrons are also the cultivated form of châtaignes, and the word is use for those cultivated châtaignes (marrons) that have been prepared for eating. That kind of marrons has a single large nugget inside rather than two, three, or four smaller nuggets in each chestnut.
DeleteMarron comes from the Italian marrone, large edible chestnut. The nut gave its name to the color and to the tree, the so-called marronier d'Inde, because its fruit looks like the marrone.
DeleteI'd be freezing in your house in the wintertime, too LOL. My husband would love it, though. I'm used to wearing layers :)
ReplyDeleteThe Moussaka looked great!
Judy
The moussaka looks like a slice of heaven. Kind of the same concept as shepherd's pie, but with lamb and bechamel instead of ground beef. Can't read those words Les feuilles mortes without thinking of that song.
ReplyDeleteI needed this.
ReplyDeleteI look out the windows and see green forest and an occasional palm tree.autumn has always been my favorite time of year,,the colors and teperatures invigorate me.
Walt and I really like autumn too. It's important to have a bright, sunny, warm summer, but the change of seasons is refreshing and invigorating. Vive l'automne !
DeleteAvoid Play Bazaar repetition in your workouts. You will want to change it often and add new and exciting things to it as Satta King you go along.
ReplyDelete