September in My Kitchen

48°f this morning. 9°C,  warming to upper 60's, clear.

Time to look back and see what was going in my kitchen last month for Sherry's Pickings.

First, basil vinegar, made by putting basil blooms in a jar of apple cider vinegar and letting the basil infused the vinegar for a few days, then straining it off and bottling it up. It smells heavenly.

This is actually from October 1, but oh well! Homemade black walnut waffles with strawberry-cranberry syrup, also homemade,  and fresh butter from our milk girl. She provides us with fresh milk and butter every week. 

Also October 1, making applesauce which we will turn into apple butter next month. For now it's in the freezer.

Beet salad, which was my lunch one day while on vacation in Colorado. So good.

Another meal in Colorado. We ate well!

A Colorado breakfast, delicious French pastries. 

The Silver Dollar Saloon in Leadville, CO, where I had beignets! Very surprising thing to find in an old West Town.

Canning and preserving wound down this month, but I did make pickled pepper rings, and canned some peaches and fruit cocktail, chili and pinto beans. 

A neighbor brought us a nice Chicken of the Woods mushroom. I sautéed half and froze it, and dried the other half.

It dried beautifully. 

I made quiche twice this month. This one was mushroom, onion, peppers, and cheese. I also made some raspberry tarts.

My flowers are still blooming, so I have been picking a few small bouquets for the house. I found this sweet pottery vase for $1.99 at a thrift.

Our last cherry tomatoes. So sad to see them go!

I picked and dried herbs and peppers on my antique drying rack, found in 1975 at the site of an old house being torn down. It was on the trash pile!

Tea at the amazing teahouse in Boulder, Colorado.

The inside of the teahouse. You can see more photos here.

We got a little over a half bushel of apples from our young apple tree, which i made into apllesauce. All our other fruit trees frosted this year so had no fruit.

 

We harvested our Rainbow corn and the only 2 pumpkins from our garden, and also put away 2 bushels of butternut squash. We bought a bushel of nice potatoes at the farmer's market too, and these are also stored away for winter.

We spent many evenings out here by the firepit, sometimes having wine, and sometimes, on chillier evenings, hot chocolate or hot spiced cider.

Other things I made last month, but no photos:

• chocolate zucchini bread
• banana bread
• peanut butter cookies
• chili
• cornbread
• zucchini pasta casserole
• crockpot chicken and apples 

We also sliced three pork loins, bought on sale, into pork chops, and cut up ten pounds of chicken leg quarters and put all of this meat into the freezer.

I feel ready for the coming cold weather!