Just over a week ago, Hurricane Irma swept past Haiti; bringing heavy rains, wind, and flash flooding to many of the communities we work in. These have been busy days of travel, hearing the stories of survivors, seeing the damage first-hand, and responding with food and emergency supplies to families who lost everything. My final trip last week was to the small community of Goyave, high in the mountains overlooking the coastal city of St. Marc. Goyave is a farming community that had been devastated by Hurricane Matthew last year. I was there to join in the celebration of a successful harvest and the end of an MCC project to help these farmers rebuild their gardens and livelihoods. Each of the 200 families who participated in the project brought a symbol of their good harvest. Soon our outdoor meeting area was filled with piles of beautiful fresh produce: cabbages, militon squash, corn, beans, avocados, onions, leeks, sour oranges, bananas, plantains, passion fruit, pumpkins, bell peppers, hot peppers, sugar cane, sweet potatoes, and yams. As we finished our meeting, a community elder stood up to speak, he reiterated his thanks for the project that had helped the community rebuild, and added that we all must remember the Haitian proverb, "Men ale, men vini, fe zanmi dire." This essentially translates as 'reciprocity is what makes for lasting friendships.' He advised that there were times when one needed to receive help, such as after a Hurricane, but that one must always work to give back. "It is bad for friendships if only one side gives," he said. So the community celebrated their rebuilding and their harvest by giving freely, to each other and to our group of visitors. It was humbling and beautiful to witness and receive this generosity. Arriving home late at night, dusty and tired, with a bag full of fresh cabbages and onions, I thought back to other celebrations and shared meals. I remembered many potlucks and meals with friends from our Pittsburgh days, and one of the region's classic comfort foods for shared celebrations -- Haluski. While there is much debate on whether Halsuki is authentically Polish (as is claimed by most Pittsburghers), there is little controversy about how simple it is to make, and delicious to eat. It is comfort food at its best: caramelized onions, cabbage, and kielbasa mixed with buttery egg noodles. A hearty and rustic crowd-pleaser, and a celebration of the season's bounty.

Blustering snow and icy rains found us craving a hearty soup this week.   Gazing down the steep cobblestone hills winding down from our house, we opted for caution, and a pantry raid, in favor of driving.  For our winter-storm-fare, we dunked homemade sourdough bread in aromatic bowls of French Cabbage Soup, and dreamed of beaches!   Our recipe for French Cabbage Soup, Garbure Gasconne, is a modified version of this delicious cabbage soup from the French region of Gascony.  This soup smartly employs steaming and simmering techniques to gently extract the delicate flavors from winter root vegetables.  French Cabbage Soup is a warming vegetable soup with a depth of flavor that far exceeds its humble ingredients.

I love sauerkraut, and this is one of my seasonal favorites. The red cabbage, apples, cloves, and black pepper lend it color and warm fall flavors. Homemade sauerkraut is easier than you think, and it is incomparable to the stuff you can buy in the grocery. For a longer discussion of fermentation technique and background, check out our Homemade Sauerkraut With Juniper And Caraway. For this batch I used a beautiful stoneware crock made by our good friend Colin Dyck at Mudslide Stoneware. These traditional European-style crocks are both gorgeous and practical, including a water-lock for fuss-free fermentation. For my all-time favorite use of sauerkraut, check out our Reuben Sandwich.  

Sautéed Red Cabbage with Bacon showcases our only edible crop this year, Paul's guerrilla red cabbages. While we do enjoy a good cabbage slaw in the summer months,  fall has us yearning for our classic Sautéed Red Cabbage with Bacon, a dish which balances the sweetness of caramelized onions and cabbage with tart vinegar and salty bacon. This spring, Paul surreptitiously planted a mini colony of red cabbages in our front flower garden, nestled between daylilies and daisies. With sunny spots in scarce supply, Paul was adamant that winter was coming...and we needed to ensure an ample supply of sauerkraut and cabbages for the lean months!

Creamy cumin lime coleslaw is a dynamic coleslaw: intensely flavored by garlic, mellowed by a base of mayonnaise and buttermilk, perked up with a strong jolt of lime, with aromatics of cumin and cilantro perfuming each bite. This coleslaw came into my life when I was 16, my Mom made it for dinner one night and our whole family quickly became obsessed with it.  At one barbecue, I even went so far as to earnestly tell every single guest, what an outstanding coleslaw this was, noting, with the only the gravity a 16 year old can muster, that it was the best coleslaw they would ever eat. I recall one guest stopped me as he was leaving to thank me for my pointed food recommendation noting that I had indeed been correct and that it was the best coleslaw he had ever eaten.  This, slightly tweaked version of my mothers’ coleslaw, is certainly on our favorites list and may just be the best coleslaw you will ever eat!

There is something magic about fermentation.  Take two humble ingredients (cabbage and salt in this case), combine in just the right way with a hint of spice, shepard the development of specific microorganisims, and a week later you end up with a completely transformed product. The cabbage has softened in texture and flavor, the harsh sulfur notes in fresh cabbage have been rounded out and enlivened with a bright crisp sourness, with hints of earthy, piney spice. Sauerkraut is a traditional comfort food for many people and a health food for others. It is rich in vitamins and minerals, and (if unpasteurized) loaded with health-giving micro-fauna. It is equally at home slow cooked with pork or piled on a hot dog, added to tacos or eaten straight out of the jar.