Signs of Autumn

Today is the first day of fall. 

As we've been saying, autumn is creeping up on us 

with the change of light and cooler mornings and evenings, 

but summer holds on, especially during the day. 

Our neighboring winemakers applaud this two-tiered weather pattern 

saying 2013 will be an especially good year for wine, 

while acknowledging that harvest has come early. 

photo courtesy of Hwy 12 Properties 

And, we just hang in there with Mother Nature at the farm, 

as the summer harvest continues a bit longer, still giving us strawberries, 

tomatoes and cucumbers to inspire the chefs.

strawberries still growing at the farm

inspired a recent dessert finale to plats du jour menu:
cheesecake parfait, fresh berries & vanilla crema

the late morning/afternoon heat has brought us
super-sized heirloom tomatoes

which are still abundant at the farm.

We expect to have harvested 4,000 pounds of tomatoes this summer,

and are amazed that the tomato plants are still flowering for more fruit to grow!

while still relishing the tomatoes we bring them,
the chefs' concession to fall is:
oven-dried tomatoes with fresh mozzarella, frisee,
shaved crostini, fig balsamic & California olive oil

But as we've been saying, we have our eye on autumn.

And in fact, we can now see some of what that will be at the farm 

as the winter squash we planted a few weeks ago has begun to make its appearance.

just a few weeks ago, the squash beds in the upper quad

is now overflowing!

soon this beautiful blossom will be bring us a tasty squash

some are already appearing 

We are looking forward to what our chefs will do with our winter squash.

 honey glazed winter squash photo by Steven Krause for
Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

a sure sign of fall is the gourds and squash at our farm's neighbor
Oak Hill Farm in Glen Ellen

There are signs of fall all over the area, "including the 18,000 pounds of pumpkins 

Jim Groverman, owner of Petaluma Pumpkin Patch and Amazing Corn Maze, 

just shipped to pumpkin sellers around the Bay Area."

His "Amazing Corn Maze" has been a popular fall attraction 

for 20 years and is about to open.

You seriously can get lost in this corn maze, even the man who created it! Take a peek:

What do you look forward to in the autumn season?

And what are you growing for fall?

For Sonoma locals, here are some tips on what to plant in your garden for fall.

Straddling the seasons

During a walk today, I emerged from 

a heavily shaded path to an opening that was bathed in sunlight. 

I take this same walk almost every day and particularly 

love this spot–I can see the light from the sun ahead 

beckoning to me as a greeting for the day. 

What struck me today was how much more golden and a bit sharper the sunlight 

looked than the brighter yellow it has been previously, maybe even yesterday. 

As I stepped into the sunshine, I looked over to where the sun was, 

just over the horizon and noticed how much lower it was in the sky than it has been, 

my first awareness of how near fall is–this visual harbinger to the change of season. 

But knowing that, in a few hours, it would be close to 100 degrees 

which of course would feel oh, so summer, I realized how much 

we are beginning the "straddling of the seasons." 

still on the menu at "the fig"
 both food photos by Steven Krause for
Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

not quite there yet...but soon

So, you can still be refreshed by the popular heirloom tomato and watermelon 

salad at the girl & the fig, and it is way too soon for

 honey-glazed winter squash, but we do have two seasons going at the farm.

the fall garden overlooking the flourishing summer one

lower quad abundant with tomatoes, peppers, basil, beans & squash

upper quad planted with winter & fall squash

We continue to harvest from our 800 tomato plants, 

our "summer squashes on steroids," beans, eggplants, and peppers, 

we even have summer squash growing
around the planters right outside the door of
the girl & the fig!

but once the potatoes in the upper quad at the farm were done, 

we looked ahead to our late autumn/early winter garden and planted winter squash. 

Red Kuri squash

We've planted Red Kuri squash, which is "is thick-skinned pink colored winter squash 

that has the appearance of a small pumpkin without the ridges. 

Inside the hard outer skin there is a firm flesh that provides 

a very delicate and mellow chestnut-like flavor." 

"The seeds of the red kuri squash are quite large. 

They can be roasted like pumpkin seeds and eaten, or saved for next year’s garden. 

A medium to large squash will yield about 200 to 250 seeds.

We also have succre du berry (a nod to our French inspiration), 
table gold acorn and butternut squash.

Butternut squash soup, balsamic reduction, with fried sage
photo by Steven Krause for
Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

Slight changes on the menu at the girl & the fig
as we begin this transition from one season to the next:

Tomatoes and summer fruit continue to be featured:

This week's Plat du Jour is all about summer:

ENTRÉE smoked chicken livers - green tomato jam, padrón chèvre, grilled bread

PLAT grilled ribeye - summer tomatoes, Point Reyes blue cheese

DESSERT cheesecake parfait - fresh berries, vanilla crema

While signs of fall creep onto the main ENTRÉE list:

niman pork chop

pear butter, cornbread pudding, grilled kale, pork jus

What's in your garden now?
Is it still all about summer or have you started to prepare for fall?