So, I’m almost two-thirds of the way through my self-imposed Fall-2009-Gourmet-only restraint for November, and I will admit, it’s a lot harder than I thought. I’ve been staring longingly at my Bon Appetit’s, knowing, as I assume the editors at Conde Nast did, that the recipes in BA are a lot more home-cook-full-time-worker friendly. While Gourmet has made the after-thought attempt at the weekday-friendly recipes (and some are quite good), the majority of the magazine is dedicated to 3 hour+ long recipes with ingredients that, quite frankly, I’ve often not heard of. And this is (or, I suppose, was) Gourmet’s tragic flaw – so achingly aspirational, beautiful, untouchable, but in no way practical for the busy home cook trying to eat well on a budget.

Firstly, let me apologize for the lengthy delay. I, like many Bostonians, was felled by the flu (swine or similar) this past week. And, even after the symptoms are long gone, the exhaustion tends to linger – hence my pathetic and ragged 1.5 mile run yesterday, all of which felt like the last leg of a 10 mile run. It was so sad that I was forced to cheer myself up with a margarita and filet mignon sliders with Dr. S before going to my film debut (shameless self-promotion) in TEN9EIGHT – as an aside, if you’re in need of a little uplifting, kick-your-butt inspirational story, go see this movie. These kids are amazing!

PT and I went apple picking last weekend and for the price of a dinner for two, were allowed to roam through a local orchard in Ipswich, chomping on apples, and occasionally dropping the most perfect red, round orbs into a peck-sized bag.

It was a gorgeous day, bright and crisp, and the orchard was helpfully marked with signs indicating where the various tree varieties – fuji, macoun, macintosh, golden delicious – were located. After a visit with the farm’s miniature horse, Possum, who was delightfully sweet and gentle, and a satisfying afternoon snack of fried whole belly clams and clam chowder, PT and I were headed home with more apples than I knew what to do.

As promised, November’s posts starts with a recipe made from Gourmet’s October issue, what they called Scarlet Carrot Soup, but which I’ve modified to more of a Vibrant Veggie Soup. When I described the contents to PT – tons of carrots, beets, and parsnips – he crinkled his nose and grabbed a carrot cupcake with maple frosting, presumably to soothe himself from the raw shock of so many vegetables.

As it turns out, the soup was delicious, thanks to a liberal dose of coriander, which playfully and spicily tickled the back of my throat. And while I hope that you do try this soup, as it is incredibly easy, healthy, and tasty, it’s not really what this post is about….