Autumn is my favourite season. Crops mature slowly and their full ripeness always reminds me of my favourite poem by Keats. ( see below for memory jolt ). The tomatoes have slowed down, only to be superseded in abundance by glossy eggplants, onions, and chillies. The zucchini persist, with ridiculously rude specimens hiding under leaves, slowing the flowering and fertility of the plants. Basil of all varieties perfume the pick. It’s time for a simple Pasta d’ Autunno.
Ingredients ( for two)
- extra virgin olive oil, large glugs as required
- two small red onions, chopped into large chunks
- two or more garlic cloves
- one long red chilli, roughly chopped
- one small zucchino, cut into small chunks
- two large tomatoes, ( 4 small ), as above
- two large handful of rugola ( rocket) leaves
- generous grinds of salt and pepper
- 200 grams of pasta ( 100 grams per person) I used a short pasta
- grated parmigiano, reggiano or grana padano
Method
- Place a grill on the stove top, heat on high, adding a good slurp of oil
- grill the onions, remove, then grill the chilli pieces, remove, then the zucchini chunks.
- Meanwhile, heat a small frying pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil, then the sliced garlic, followed by the chopped tomato. Cook until the tomato disintegrates, then reduce heat to simmer.
- Cook pasta in plenty of salted boiling water until al dente (as per packet instructions). Save a little pasta water.
- Add the grilled vegetables to the tomato mix, stir through, season well, then add a little pasta water to loosen.
To assemble,
Heat a large serving bowl. Add the rocket leaves, then the pasta, followed by vegetable mixture. Toss lightly. Then add some grated or shaved parmigiano.
The grilling of autumn vegetables seems to enhance the flavour. The three processes, boiling pasta, grilling, and frying, can happen simultaneously, making it a 15 minute dish.
And now for that Keats poem.
Ode To Autumn
Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves run;
To bend with apples the mossed cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o’er-brimmed their clammy cell.
Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;
Or on a half-reaped furrow sound asleep,
Drowsed with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers;
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady thy laden head across a brook;
Or by a cider-press, with patient look,
Thou watchest the last oozings, hours by hours.
Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,—
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;
Then in a wailful choir, the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
The redbreast whistles from a garden-croft,
And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.
ALMOST ITALIAN 
Your vegetables look truly glorious Francesca!
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Grazie.
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I love that plate your onions are on. What a beautiful poem. That harvest basket looks heavenly. What a gorgeous meal xx
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The plate was given to me by a dear friend, Judy Jaques, after the fire. I should display these gifts more often.
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Love it! The Ode to Autumn is beautiful, as are your vegetables!
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Liz, its a poem that always comes to mind when picking autumn vegies.
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I have to rely on Farmers Markets and my fantastic greengrocers for high quality autumn veg, but it is my favourite time of the year, hands down. Now you get to reap the rewards of all your effort in the garden. Delicious pasta sauce…
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Every now and then, the downsizing thought comes my way!
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Lovely colourful vegetables, makes me almost wish for autumn (even though we are entering spring here on the other side of the world). Keats is one of my favourites, too. The plate is lovely – Spode? The pattern looks familiar.
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The plate isn’t Spode- I couldn’t distinguish the hallmark. Fans of Keats unite. Hardly heard of these days.
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That basket of vegetables looks so colourful and appealing!:)
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How gorgeous is that basket of vegetables from just outside the kitchen. I’m very jealous.
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Oh my, the photos have me drooling for a bowl of the pasta! Lovely recipe 🙂
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Your comment on Smitten Kitchen’s broccoli casserole post made little sense. She used the phrase “like, whoa” once to describe her childhood reaction to a forbidden food. Why would that annoy you? I noticed no other superfluous use of the word “like” in her writing, so what were you referring to? Your criticism of her writing was not constructive, nor was it accurate. I would like to know what you were thinking when you wrote that comment.
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Thank you Noemi for even noticing my comment. The use of the word “like” once or more in a piece of constructed and considered writing must meet two criteria. Firstly, it can be used as a simile by way of comparison, and secondly, it may be used as an expression of desire. The expression ” like, whoa” does not meet either of these two criteria. I do understand that teenagers use and abuse the word ” like” in oral dialogue but it is rarely expressed in writing by adults. I am considering writing a piece on the word “like” soon and would certainly like you to join the debate if you feel inclined. That blog writers are popular doesn’t preclude their writing from criticism. Regards, F
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