Eating Seasonably: November

Oh, dear, we are now halfway through November and have we been eating seasonably? Well, no, not exactly. We have been eating lots of healthy, home-cooked meals, but I'm afraid my energy levels did not stretch to experimenting with lots of new seasonal vegetables. However, all is not lost: we have simply added October's edibles to November's list. Much of the autumn/winter veg overlaps by a good few months anyway, so we are still in the game! For November, we have: red cabbage, Jerusalem artichokes, clementines, pomegranate, chestnut, quince and potatoes. I made a beautiful potato dauphinoise on Sunday night, but forgot to take a picture, so you will just have to take my word on that one!

You will also have to forgive me for cheating slightly on the chestnut and quince. Now, I am all for going back to basics, but I do not have the energy for making quince paste from scratch just now. I still wanted to enter into the spirit of things, though, as well as introduce my daughters to this tasty delicacy, so I have bought a pot to support the lovely people who are making good use of these extraordinary fruits. I like mine with a bit of Manchego cheese, and possibly a biscuit….

The chestnuts, too, are pre-prepared and I am thinking chocolate-chestnut cake. I realize this doesn't overly highlight the chestnuts, but really, who doesn't think "cake" at the beginning of any new venture?

And, finally, I am sure most of you are aware of the Jerusalem artichoke's fearsome reputation for giving people wind, so I thought I'd try a recipe I came across recently that makes crisps out of them! I will, of course, let you know how we get on with all of these wonderful, seasonal goodies, but do bear with me if I don't manage it by December 1st!