Summer into autumn

It's September and there's a real sense of being at a turning point of the year. On Saturday we spent the afternoon in the sunshine, and cooked a courgette pasta sauce in the evening. It was one of those dishes you slightly make up as you go along. I started by sweating some diced courgettes and garlic with a touch of chilli. It didn't seem to have quite enough interest to carry the pasta. I could have added some lemon and capers, but I didn't have either. I did have some lovely ripe tomatoes, which were a wonderful deep red right the way through to the middle. Into the pan they went for a couple of minutes while I took the stones out of a couple of handfuls of black olives. Served with some basil on top, it was summer on a plate.

Pasta with courgettes, tomatoes and olives

On Sunday it rained all day, and without the heating on it felt decidedly chilly. I'm not sure if I've ever made a stew in September before, but it felt appropriate - plus, there was some celery lurking in the fridge in need of using. It was a vegetable stew - onions, carrots, mushrooms, celery and leeks. It might have seemed frugal but somehow didn't, with the dumplings I simmered in it adding a comforting touch. The broth is all-important here - it must be full-bodied. You can flavour it to suit your fancy but I like bay leaves, thyme, some stock, soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce, and a bit of cider if I have any (or even red wine).

 Dessert was back to summer again - a peach melba. Perhaps not the obvious dish to follow a stew, but there are still juicy peaches and crimson Scottish raspberries. Two peach halves, a scoop of good vanilla ice-cream (Green and Black's in this case), a sauce of crushed raspberries and a few more raspberries on top - simple yet luxurious, it has been my dessert of the summer.