Hello friend! My name is Amy. I am so happy you have stopped by ✨ If you are new here, a warm welcome to you! This space is where I meander through midlife, connecting to my true self through the seasonal shifts and simpler living, and seeking my inner wise woman. If you are also on this path and looking for someone to walk gently beside you, I see you and am here. Let’s color outside the lines together.
After a unusually warm and wet summer, we have entered a space of cooler fall like days. The air is crisp in the mornings and the skies have been magnificent. I am sure it is a ‘false fall’1 and we’ll get warm weather again before the season truly changes. This gentle shift is a nudge toward the turning inward that accompanies fall.
This time of year is harvest and store season, and I love doing these things not only so that we have the fresh taste of the season in the long winter months, but also working with friends, sharing the labor, and fruits thereof. A few weeks ago we harvested the bulk of our two basil plants, the leaves filled a 13 gallon bag! A dear friend and I then had an assembly line pesto making session, and put up masses of pesto. Amazingly, those plants have come back again and I have more to harvest! I’m thinking about pureeing the basil with olive oil and then freezing into cubes to toss in soups and stews this winter.
Years ago, we gardened a full 1/3 acre and grew anything and everything. During this time we also offered ‘farm bags’ weekly for sale and supplied produce to 9 families. For a peak at this time check out this article. As time has marched on, we are now only growing for ourselves and trying to experiment with denser planting in smaller spaces so we can still can surplus but don’t get overwhelmed with the volume.
The windows in the house are wide open and I am immersing myself in finding new recipes for our bounty of eggplant. The first tomatoes were just starting to ripen when we returned home from vacation last Sunday night, and I’m looking forward to utilizing them in this delicious looking Tomato Pie Galette this evening.
Food storage is not the only thing that I’ve been working on. A couple of friends came over yesterday and we peeled lots and lots of lemons. In a few weeks I’ll be able to finish it with a simple syrup (using the honey we just harvested) and it will become a lovely limoncello! I also just strained and finished a ‘clarity and calm’ herbal tincture blend recommended by
at Awaken Apothecary here on Substack; I’m looking forward to adding it to my regimen!I would be grateful if you’d like this post with a ❤️, share your thoughts in the comments, or share and restack it. Thank you for helping my publication reach more people.
All of these little things feel bit like nesting. Soaking up every last bit of sunlight and seasonal love and saving tastes of sunshine for the months ahead.
Until next time,
Wow! Gorgeous, Amy. Would love to have that basil. My plant is so wimpy. Enjoy it all.
Basil is such a winner in the garden, it just keeps giving! I really enjoyed all your yummy food pictures Amy, and I’m thrilled you tried the calm and clarity tincture. Let me know how you feel after a few days of using it 💕💕💕