Welcome to the October Seasonal Living Guide: Savoring the Month Ahead! There is something about this time of year where I suddenly notice the quiet whisper of the changing season as the sun begins to rise a little later (and, to my delight, the kids start to sleep in a little later!). I spy the persimmons and pomegranates along with abundant squash. Honey Nut and Butter Nut. Koginut and Delicata. Cool weather greens are beginning to arrive and cozy meals become front and center with our meal planning.
October is where we really see summer has bid us farewell and fall gives us permission to slow down a little. I am reminded of these five simple actions to be more present this season:
Grow. Shop. Cook. Gather. Savor.
I lean on questions like:
- What is starting to come into view in the garden?
- What is worth bringing home from the farmers market?
- What is a cozy dinner I want to make to ring in this season?
- What small pleasures are worth slowing down, even for a moment, to take notice?
October is not going to be about rushing toward the holidays. Those advertisements can wait! It's about settling into the season we're already in and I, for one, welcome this invitation to take my foot off the gas pedal for a moment or two. Scroll on for the ways I'm savoring this month ahead.
What is in Season in October?
October is giving us all the autumn squash and dark leafy greens. In the garden, I'm seeing the last round of radishes sprout and the leaves of our own winter greens come into view. Persimmons and pomegranates are growing in more abundance at the farmers market and in our CSA box. Cooler temps have finally arrived and I'm noticing the changing leaves across the vineyards marking the end of harvest season.
What we might find at the farmers market or in the garden this time of year:
Early Fall Favorites
Apples, pears, grapes, figs, persimmons, and pomegranates.
Cool Weather Vegetables
Brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, chard, cilantro, root vegetables, leeks, onions, autumn squash.
Summer's Final Call
The last of summer squash, zucchini, jalapenos, peppers, and possibly the last of late season tomatoes.
GROW
What to Plant in the Garden in October
October is still giving us a month of overlap. We might be roasting slices of delicata squash while also slicing up the last of the zucchini for a late season ratatouille. We might savor the first apple crisps while savoring the remaining berries.
October in the garden also feels like we're in a bit of visioning work. Instead of asking: "what do I want to eat this week?" This is a good time to consider:
What do I want growing in my garden when November and December arrive?
To that end, here's what I'm planting and how I'm intending to use them in winter:
- Kale for soups, pasta, and grain bowls
- Brussel sprouts for roasting and shaving into crunchy salads
- Cilantro for taco nights, soups, and rice bowls
- Winter squash for soup, pasta, and roasting until just caramelized
- Herbs for easy, effortless weeknight cooking
Garden Notes: Garlic and shallots are also going into the garden bed this month as they'll need a long on ramp to growing into maturity for harvesting come early summer.
What We're Harvesting from the Garden in October
When it comes to growing a kitchen garden I have one rule:
Grow what you'll actually cook.
Before filling every available space in a garden bed with fall vegetables, consider the meals you'll want to make.
- In favor of roasting? Tend to root vegetables like beets and carrots or cruciferous types like broccoli and cauliflower.
- Make soup every week in fall and winter? Grow kale, spinach, chard, and herbs like chives and parsley.
- Eat salads year-round? Consider lettuces, spinach, arugula, and easy to harvest radishes.
- Love a weekly pasta dinner in rotation? Give yourself plenty of chard, kale, or spinach to make an easy seasonal pesto or wilt for easy pasta dishes.
What to Harvest Before the First Frost
We're counting down to the first frost date in our area and I've paid keener attention to how that impacts what we'll continue to grow and where I'll lean on my local farmers market more in the months ahead.
As for what our gardens might afford us this month, we might be in the place where we're harvesting:
- Zucchini
- Persimmons
- Pomegranates
- Apples
- Pears
- Figs
- Jalapenos
- Tomatoes
- Brussel Sprouts
- Cool weather greens
What to Remove from the Garden in October
October is a good month to do a little garden clean up. It doesn't have to be perfectly tidy, but it's worth removing:
- All the finished summer squash
- Any spent annual vegetables no longer producing
- Diseased plants
- Plants that are taking up space needed for fall crops
- Dead or declining foilage
Don't feel like you have to pull everything out of the garden bed simply because the calendar has changed. This is a good time to keep flower seeds from the dead heads of your favorite blooms. I am also working on my first ever cold compost pile by taking off the decaying debris and adding it to a designated corner of the garden with brown bits to begin a compost pile I'll use for spring plantings.
Garden Note: A fall garden doesn't need to look immaculate to be productive. There's beauty in the expired plants breaking down and feeding their nutrients into the soil.
What I'm Saving and Preserving from the Garden in october
This month is another great month to do a little food preservation where applicable. Here I'll focus on:
- Saving seeds from appropriate open-pollinated crops
- Dry herbs like basil, rosemary, thyme, and sage
- Freeze peppers
- Freeze fruits like grapes and figs for future uses
- Preserve fruit in jams or compotes
- Roast and freeze autumn squash puree
- Make apple butter or sauce
- Prepare and freeze pie filling for holiday baking
A seasonal garden isn't just about this year's harvest. It's also about paying attention to what is worth carrying forward into the future.
SHOP
What to Look for at the Farmers Market in October
We are really seeing autumn's harvest come into view at the farmers market and in our bi-weekly CSA box. Here's what I am looking for and buying up at the market this month:
Buy for the week:
- Pears and apples for snacks
- Carrots for kid snacks and roasting for sides
- Leafy greens for autumn salads
- Buy a few extra pounds of tomatoes to freeze for future roast sauces.
- Purchase green beans, trim the ends and give them a rinse before storing in freezer safe bags for easy holiday meal prep.
Buy because it's fleeting:
- Persimmons for Persimmon Butter
- Figs to freeze for Fig Jam
- Pomegranates for jam and for a Pomegranate Cranberry Sauce to freeze
Stocking the freezer:
- Peppers for fajitas and breakfast scrambles
- Freeze cubes of butternut squash for future soup prep
- Freeze herbs that don't do well in cooler temps
- Fruit for compotes, jams, pie fillings
Prepping for Holiday Entertaining:
- Cheese, nuts, and bread for platters
- Build the wine list for party planning
- Vegetables for the classic holiday sides for menu planning
The beauty of shopping the farmers market is the potential for discovery. This list of what's in season will no doubt vary depending on where you live. And, the access to a farmers market also will depend on the seasonality in your area. Here in Napa, we're fortunate to have a number of year-round farmers markets that feature in season, locally grown produce. This has made cooking and eating with the seasons all the more enjoyable.
COOK
What Recipes to Cook in October
Cozy Season is here and I'm leaning into the recipes that illustrate cooking with the changing seasons while embracing the ingredients available. Here are the cooking practices I'm employing this month:
- Roast Something
- Roast Chicken or Turkey is a quintessential fall dinner and this Dry Brined Roast Turkey Breast is versatile for a variety of seasonal side dishes.
- Make a Big Pot of Something
- I like making soups in batches to freeze. This Maple Harissa Roast Carrot Soup Recipe with Crispy Mushrooms and Turkey Chili are a couple I keep in rotation for easy weeknights after busy kid activities.
- Bake Those Apples and Pears
- This can be in either an upside down cake or in a spiced pear butter, perfect for freezing!
- Savor the Season's New Fruits
- Pumpkin puree comes in handy for sweet Pumpkin Muffins for easy afterschool snacks.
The October Dinner Formula
The more I think about meal planning, the more I realize I rely more on a "Multi-Meal Map". Here, it's all about finding multiple uses for the ingredients we prep in mix-and-match fashion. Those use cases are going to shift with the changing season and October is no different.
When planning my meals, I keep these four elements in mind:
PROTEIN + PRODUCE + STARCH + FLAVOR ACCENT
Here is a chart that outlines what some of those meals could look like:
| Protein | Produce | Starch or Grain | Flavor Accent |
| Roast Herbed Turkey Breast | Caramelized Delicata Squash Rings | Herby Polenta | Pomegranate Jus |
| Slow Roasted Salmon | Carrots, Celery, Shallots | Braised Lentils | Herby Dijon Compound Butter |
| Crispy Marinated Tofu | Roasted Vegetables | Cooked Farro | Umami Accented Sauce |
I may prep some of the above (mostly the vegetables and the starches or grains) with the option to swap or substitute throughout the week to make meal assembly even easier. In the coming months, and in my weekly newsletter, I will go into more depth here on what this looks like in practice.
GATHER
An October Dinner Plan to Savor
September marked out final weeks of being able to enjoy dinner al fresco. Now, in October, it's time to bring the "party" indoors.
This time of year, I seek out moments to slow down. A little less hurry. A little more stillness. Dinners now may take a little more time That said, a dinner with friends in September doesn't need a complicated menu. If you were coming over for dinner and it's been a challenging work juggling the family and work, here's what I'd make for you:
The Dinner Plan
| Simple Starter | Baked Brie with Crostini and Sauteed Mushrooms |
| Main | Braised Lamb Shanks with Herbed Polenta |
| Side | Caramelized Delicata Squash Rings |
| Dessert | Fig and Rosemary Olive Oil Cake |
| Wine We'll Enjoy | Unoaked Chardonnay to start; Sangiovese or Napa Valley Cabernet for the main |
Setting the Table for October
The holidays are right around the corner and I'll lean into more formal table sets as family and friends gather during the final months of the year. But when it comes to a table set in October, I want to keep it warm, not complicated.
- Use whatever linens are readily available and on hand. I love a neutral tablecloth with a linen table runner. Place settings have white or ivory ceramic plates and beautiful linen dinner napkins.
- Autumn greenery and marigolds for our Dia De Los Muertos celebrations.
- Light a few candles and create a fun, relaxed playlist.
The goal isn't to craft the perfect dinner party, but to simply set the table to gather over good food, delicious wine, and plenty of encouraging conversation as we usher in this next season of living.
SAVOR
The Rituals We Hold in October
October has me leaning into the Cozy Vibes of the season. This month, I'm aiming to do more "cozy things" like:
- Lighting a candle during breakfast prep
- Putting on music (maybe jazz?)
- Making something warm to drink
- Simmer pots on repeat
- Pulling out my favorite sweaters
- Cooking something "low and slow"
- Noticing the later sunrises and the earlier sunsets
- Stargazing with the kids as the sun sets earlier
- Farm visits for apple and pumpkin picking
In the years since moving to Napa, I've become more present in noticing the changing seasons and am slowly creating moments to sit in its stillness and savor the season we're in.
Your October Seasonal Living Checklist
If you're wanting to make this month feel a little more intentional, check out my free printable: The Seasonal Living Checklist for October.
Download and print the the below checklist.
An Invitation for October
As the months march on, I'm trying to remind myself to not rush towards the next season. I really want to savor the season in which I'm situated: as a mother, as a wife, as a friend, as a career balancing professional, as a curious homecook. There is value in sitting in the stillness that the season invites us to relish now.
Now, I seek to take notice of how things are changing all around me. The early morning hot air balloons that delight my children. I relish the first autumn crisp air and rainy day forecast to make a batch of soup. I take a little longer to set a table for my family to enjoy. And, I finally tackle that TBR (To Be Read) list building on my nightstand.
I'm going to continue to pay attention and notice the ways nature is reminding me to be present and patient here. In many ways, I think that's at the essence of seasonal living:
Grow what we will carry us forward.
Shop what's beautiful now.
Cook something warm and nourishing.
Gather 'round the able because... it's time to savor the beginning of fall.
Let's savor this month, together.
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