Autumn Colors
October 2021
Bright splashes outside my window ~~ Halloween orange, mellow yellow, harvest gold, the occasional deep purple, and red as a raspberry beret ~~ remind me of why I settle comfortably into this time of year. My parents, migratory in their RV every fall, followed the leaves across the country. My mother rode co-pilot with a pile of maps at her feet; she had stocked the little refrigerator with food and the cranapple juice my dad, the driver, liked. She would send me envelopes of colored leaves gleamed on their journey; notes in her precise cursive gushed about the beautiful landscapes they traveled. After my dad’s death, she cried when she finally signed the papers to sell the RV.
Seasonal colors extend beautifully into the world that feeds us. The orange and yellow squash, red apples and pears, along with tawny sweet potatoes move into our kitchens. Carrots arrive in orange, yellow and purple.
Remember this rainbow promise: color in foods creates flavonoids to act as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents.* The autumnal colors contain flavonoids named Beta Carotenoids.
Beta Carotenoids
Precursor of vitamin A: portion of beta carotenoids converts to vitamin A
Protective of respiratory and lung health
Important for eye health and vision
May protect against macular degeneration
Supports healthy skin
To prevent cognitive decline
Anti-inflammatory
Antioxidant
Aids immune system
Contained in sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, calendula, apricots, papaya and other fruits and vegetables
Found in kale, spinach, and dark bitter greens. The green of chlorophyll hides the red/orange color of beta-carotenoids.
Fat soluble. This means you get the best absorption if these foods are eaten with some fat. Carotenoids can be stored in our body’s fat tissues. That’s convenient to aid our immunity during the upcoming winter. Lord knows we’ve probably gained some extra adipose tissue while we turned into Zoom monsters; this way we put it to good use.
In my raised bed, pink and red zinnias, blasting summer shades in their last hoorah, decorate this season of letting go. What a day here, the trees decked out in their festive fall colors, backlit by the sun. I brought my hibiscus and jade plants inside, finding a sunny spot for them to winter in my pretty little apartment near the ferry dock. During foggy times I can hear the ferry horns’ eerie warnings in the soupy air. Wish my mom were around: I would mail her neon leaves and dried herbs.
Celebrate the season with this carotenoid-rich soup from the Lazy Nutritionist.
Autumn Orange Soup
4-5 whole orange or white carrots
1 sweet potato
1 Starkrimson pear (or pear or apple of your choice)
1 cup chopped fennel bulb
2-3 tsp chopped ginger (with peel)
2 tbsp chopped turmeric (with peel)
Vegetable broth (you can also use white wine or a mixture of both)
1 can of coconut milk
Avocado oil
mint or basil from your garden (optional)
Other options: juice of lime, butter
Soft goat cheese as garnish
Cover the bottom of a soup pot with avocado oil.
Wash carrots completely, but don’t peel. Chop and toss in the soup pot.
Sweet potatoes: you may bake in the oven to add later in the cooking process or chop them raw and add to pot at this point. I like to bake a couple of sweet potatoes: one for the soup, another to use later. They are great in kale dishes or as an entrée heaped with your favorite topping. I like salsa on mine.
Chop the pear, including the peel. You may also use an apple. The peel has 4X the antioxidants and fiber as the inner pear. It also contains the ursolic acid, for muscle strength.
Add the chopped fennel, to feed your microbiome.
Throw in the chopped ginger and chopped turmeric. Add black pepper to increase your body’s absorption of the turmeric.
Cover the ingredients with coconut milk, vegetable broth, white wine or a mixture of your choice. Add more liquid as needed..
Add about 1 tsp of fresh chopped or dried mint if you choose. Salt and pepper to taste.
Cook until vegetables are soft, stirring regularly. Add more liquid if needed.
For a smoother soup, stir in about ½ cup soft goat cheese.
Blend the soup, either in blender, food proecessor or with an emulsifier. Add coconut milk, a squeeze of lime juice or more liquid to create the consistency you like. You may garnish with fresh herbs, a dollop of soft goat cheese or yogurt. The color and texture make a lovely presentation.
For my friends in Hawaii (aloha, Sherri!) this soup is delicious chilled. Try add mango. A pretty little amuse-bouche.
*To read more about autumn eating, see my blog post “Eating Seasonally: Root Vegetables.”
Photos by me: a zinnia in my raised bed and through my window screen.
See you in a couple of weeks. My blog is waking up from hibernation. Marilyn