Another adventure in Autumn’s produce, this soup combines rich butternut squash and tart Golden Delicious apples with a touch of curry and cinnamon. The produce used below was grown locally. There were several recipes online for this type of soup, but none really matched what I was looking for, so this is more of an original creation with a little help. Great for a rainy day! This is also going to be Turmeric-mania Recipe #8.

1 butternut squash, peeled and seeded, cut into 1-inch chunks
3-4 small or medium tart apples, peeled and cored, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 tbsp butter or oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 cups vegetable stock (chicken broth can be used instead)

In a large stockpot over medium heat, melt butter or heat oil and add onion and garlic. Saute 3-5 minutes until tender and fragrant. Add salt, curry powder, and cinnamon. Saute 2-3 additional minutes.

Add vegetable (or chicken) stock, butternut squash, and apples. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 25-30 minutes, until squash and apples are tender.

Working in batches, puree soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. Reheat if necessary. Serve with roasted pumpkin seeds and a pinch of nutmeg (if desired).

This recipe originally appears as Onion-Apple Glazed Pork Tenderloin from the Lipton cook book, and here is my updated version. I added fresh onion and sage, instead of the soup mixture, and also added lots and lots of mushrooms. As apples come in season, I will probably add some fresh apples instead of using juice.

1 (1 1/2 to 2 lb) pork tenderloin
2 tbsp olive oil
ground black pepper
2 pkg (8 oz each) whole mushrooms, rinsed
1-2 sprigs fresh sage
1/2 yellow or Vidalia onion, roughly chopped
1 cup apple juice

Preheat oven to 425F

In a small roasting pan, arrange pork. Season with pepper and rub with 1 tbsp oil. Arrange mushrooms around pork and drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp olive oil and toss. Sprinkle with sage leaves and chopped onions. Roast uncovered for 15 minutes.

Add apple juice to pan, pouring over pork and mushrooms. Cook an additional 10-15 minutes, until pork is done. Serve with drizzle of juice from pan.

If you like oil and vinegar on your salad, you will love this vinegarette. Based on a basic recipe in Everyday Food: Great Food Fast, I whipped up this vinegarette using fresh basil and garlic and apple cider vinegar.

1/4 cup fresh basil
2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
pinch of sugar
2/3 cup olive oil

Place all ingredients in a blender, food chopper, or processor and combine. Refrigerate vinegarette in an air-tight container up to 2 weeks.

My favorite salad mix: baby spinach, sliced cucumbers, shredded carrot, raisins, and walnuts topped with this tasty dressing.

Here is my first attempt at cooking a pork tenderloin. The recipe I used comes from Lipton Recipe Secrets Soup Mix Magic cook book. I added mushrooms to this recipe and roasted them right along with the pork, and were they ever tasty! I saved the leftover pan gravy to use as a marinade for more mushrooms.

1 (1 1/2 – 2 lb) boneless pork tenderloin
ground black pepper
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 envelope Lipton Recipe Secrets Onion Soup Mix
1/2 cup apple juice
2 tbsp firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup dry red wine (or water)
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 package whole mushrooms (optional)

Preheat oven to 425F

In a small roasting pan or baking pan, arrange pork. Season with pepper and rub with 1 tbsp olive oil. If using, rinse mushrooms in lukewarm water and arrange around tenderloin. Add more oil if needed to prevent burning. Roast uncovered 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine remaining 1 tbsp olive oil with soup mix, apple juice, and brown sugar. Pour over pork and mushrooms, continue roasting 10 minutes or until desired doneness. Remove pork and mushrooms to serving platter and cover with aluminum foil.

Place roasting pan over medium-high heat and bring pan juices to a boil, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan. Stir in water, wine, and flour. Boil, stirring constantly, 1 minute or until thickened.

To serve, thinly slice pork and drizzle with gravy.

Shown below, with mushrooms:

Original title: Bok Choy, Carrot, and Apple Slaw from the book Everyday Food: Great Food Fast.  This is a quick and easy side dish on a hot summer day. My cutting skills aren’t the greatest, so my salad wasn’t as uniform as the one pictured in the recipe, but it still tastes good. Try using toasted sesame seed oil instead of vegetable oil for Asian-style flavor.

1 lb baby bok choy (4 to 6 heads), halved lengthwise
1 apple, peeled and cut into matchsticks
2 large carrots, shredded
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp finely grated peeled ginger
salt and pepper, to taste

Rinse bok choy under cold water to remove grit. Cut crosswise into thin strips and place in a large colander. Sprinkle with 1 tsp salt. Toss to coat. Top with a heavy plate that fits inside colander and weight with skillet or another heavy object. Set in sink to drain.

In a large bowl, mix apple, carrots, lemon juice, oil, and ginger. Add bok choy, season with salt and pepper as desired.

Tip: to easily grate ginger, freeze prior to using. Also, toss apples in 1 tbsp lemon juice prior to mixing all items together to prevent browning. Toss remaining 2 tbsp with the rest of the ingredients.