Ufff… Finally home and back to a regular schedule. Thanksgiving down on the Cape and a few relaxing days up in the New Hampshire White Mountains made for a lovely Thanksgiving weekend, which included my final recipe for the Gourmet-only month of November.

I have to say that my intention for this homage to Gourmet was to be just that, a homage, but I feel like I’m griping about it more than praising it. Here’s the thing about Gourmet… it’s spectacular to look at, day-dream about all of the wonderful urban restaurants and cozy, convivial bed and breakfasts that cure their own bacon, but I’ve found it a touch challenging (and disappointing – I’m sorry!) to cook from.

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….

November is the last month that Conde Nast will publish Gourmet
Magazine. The ending, its Thanksgiving issue, is bittersweet
and complex – how can we be thankful when we’re losing such a beloved
American icon, and, yet, Gourmet gets to go out with a bang, issuing
arguably its greatest and most-anticipated issue of the year.

Like so many other home and professional cooks, I’m
mourning the loss of Gourmet. The loss of those frissons of excitement
I felt when it appeared in my mailbox, loss of the relaxing moments I
would spend, lazily browsing for intriguing and innovative recipes,
loss of the recipes themselves, which did more to inspire me in the
few months that I was a subscriber than the ocean of cooking content
available in print, on the web, and on TV.

It’s officially raspberry season in New England, which feels like finding the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. For 9-10 months of the year, berries are too expensive, not tasty enough, and from too far away to be contemplated…. But then, for a brief window of time, they are profuse, overflowing at farmers’ markets, in farm share boxes, proudly proclaim their local origin in the supermarkets, and are equally boastful of their budget-friendly prices.

If you’re like me, you scoop them up by the armful when they are as sweet and luscious as they are in July and August, get them home, and then wonder what on earth you’re going to do with all of them. Well, this Raspberry Buttermilk Cake recipe should help in some small way to make good use of the now-prolific fruit.

Some people spend Sunday mornings reading the paper (or news online), some go to brunch, some stay in bed, cuddling with their significant others. What do I do? Search for new recipes and dream up ways to use the new basil & herbed dressing I made the day before.

Sounds a bit obsessive, no? Well, it would if you’re accustomed to store-bought dressings with their gag-worthy sodium levels. Thankfully, this dressing was of a different variety and so wonderfully delicious that it trumped even my new farm share lettuces and freshly baked croutons.

It was from this month’s issue of Gourmet, and it was spectacular – light and ethereal, with just the right amount of zing (from lemon and anchovies) and sweetness from basil.