A cook’s ode to the November garden

By By Renee Studebaker

If I had to pick one month that is better than all the rest for cooking and eating from the garden, I would choose November.

But not because that’s when Thanksgiving happens. No, I would pick November because that’s the month when warm weather and cool weather vegetables grow happily side by side in my fall garden. Which means it’s the one time of year when I can count on having homegrown cilantro (cool weather crop) to add to homemade salsas made with tomatoes and peppers (warm weather crops).

It’s also the month when I can have homegrown tomatoes and baby leaf lettuces (cool weather crop) on the same plate. (What a concept! ) And if I want to, I can top that salad with sugar snap pea shoots (cool weather crop) AND green beans (warm weather crop).

Or I can harvest a little of this and a little of that and make a healthy and full flavored vegetable soup, one that’s just right for a light supper on a cool November evening or a first course on Thanksgiving Day.

Thank you, November, for being such a fine gardening month. This fall harvest soup recipe is dedicated to you.

(Giving Thanks For) November Soup

Extra virgin olive oil for sautéing

3/4 cup eggplant, cubed

1/3 cup fennel bulb, chopped (remove any tough outer layers)

1/3 cup sweet potato, peeled and chopped

1 cup onion, chopped

1/2 cup of peppers, a mix of sweet red peppers and hot chilis

3-4 cloves of garlic, peeled, smashed and minced

1/2 cup green beans, cut in 2-inch pieces

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar)

2 cups chicken or vegetable stock (homemade if possible)

1/2 cup, loosely packed, sweet basil leaves

1 fresh bay laurel leaf

3/4 cup kale or Swiss chard or a mix, coarsely chopped

1 cup cooked white beans (navy, cannellini or white runner)

2 cups full-flavored tomato, chopped (or 1 14.5 oz can Muir Glen diced tomatoes)

1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated

Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Greek yogurt (optional)

Heat a large stainless or cast iron skillet and add a generous splash of olive oil. Saute eggplant, fennel, potato, onion and peppers over medium high heat until vegetables are lightly browned. Saute in batches if necessary to keep vegetables from steaming instead of browning. Add more oil as needed to keep mixture from sticking. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, green beans, soy sauce, and lemon and continue cooking for another minute or two. Stir in stock to deglaze pan and then transfer mixture to a soup pot or Dutch oven. Add remaining ingredients, bring soup to a slow bubble, and then simmer for about 20 minutes or until all vegetables are tender. Add additional stock or water to adjust thickness of soup. Taste to correct seasoning and then serve with a dollop of yogurt or a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese. Serves 6-8.

Notes: The basic soup base in this recipe — stock, tomatoes, soy sauce, onion, fennel, garlic, bay leaf and peppers — is a good starting place for all sorts of garden soups, and a good way to use up odds and ends as the garden transitions from fall to winter. (The addition of two lonely stalks of okra to an earlier batch of this soup added a subtle gumbo-like flavor and texture.) To maintain a balanced melange of vegetable and herb flavors, go easy on strong flavored vegetables like broccoli and cabbage, which can overpower the mix. The eggplant I used in this soup was the milder flavored Asian variety. If you’re using large Black Beauty eggplants, reduce the amount.