The weather finally feels like October with bright, clear days in the low 70’s after too many days in the 80’s. It’s another week of small harvests as the garden transitions to cool season crops. Almost everything has been planted: snow peas, cauliflower, beets, carrots, radishes, kale, broccoli, bachelor buttons, sweet peas, arugula and six kinds of lettuce; celery and onions later this week.

The leucadendron above is available year-round but the colors vary with the season. This bouquet on my favorite fall tablecloth says the season is underway. I’ve finally shifted from summer salads to autumn soups.

A final fling of autumn color brightens the perennial garden with asters and Mexican marigold.

With so many limes and the lemony French sorrel I was set to try a recipe clipped for Lime-Sorrel Cooler. I cut the sorrel in thin strips and blended them with simple syrup, then strained the solids. Over ice, I added 3 tablespoons of the sorrel syrup, 2 tablespoons of lime juice and sparkling water. It was refreshing after a long walk yesterday.

We gathered about a dozen of the second crop of ‘Dorsett Golden’ apples. They’re smaller than the June crop but still welcome. The less than perfect apples were perfect for an Apple Cream Torte which Sunset aptly describes: “A cream torte is like a cross between a cake, a custard, and a dutch baby.”

Almost every day I find an errant strawberry guava or my husband spots one ready to be picked and brings it to the kitchen. Note the dirt-stained hands. Usually I eat the sun-warmed guavas on the spot, marveling at the flavor and thankful I don’t have 60 pounds of them to deal with. In the background you can see there’s another crop coming.

You may enjoy seeing what other garden bloggers harvested last week at Harvest Monday hosted by Dave at Our Happy Acres.

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