These went fast, like within minutes. I’m picky about my squashes, but acorn squash has a soft, yammy texture and is not too sweet. Add in some fall spices, and it’s a savory dessert (before you have dessert, of course). The combination of sugars also caused some giggling and repeated reciting of Steve Brule. Yes, it has come to natural sugar highs. Maybe I’ve graduated from HFCS?

People prefer not to discuss their eating habits. Now that I’m a student of food, I’m finding that even the most vocal meat lovers become suddenly shy at the table with me, and equally so do the vegetarians. The thought of me judging their diet is just as unsettling as any actual argument I might have. I’ve found most people still consider diet a personal choice like birth control, not a public one like religion.

Prior to the 1970′s, philosophers didn’t find the subject of food ethically compelling. Most only touched on it when discussing how best to nourish the body. In today’s culture, Americans are slowly gaining awareness of the political impact of a single trip to the grocery store. They are also starting to look more realistically at the topic of health, beyond the continuously changing landscape of fad dieting. Equally though, the number of obese and diabetic Americans is rapidly increasing. In light of factory farming and industrial agriculture, modern philosophers like Australian-born ethicist Peter Singer are now writing critically on the implications of our diets.

It’s unofficially pepper month in my kitchen. After I roasted them over an open flame, the follow-up seemed obvious: baked. Baking a pepper opens up the sweetness and aroma, but without altering the taste. And stuffing a juicy red pepper with a cheesy, spicy concoction is my idea of a good time.

Even so, I can’t decide whether the peppers or onions taste better in this recipe. The onion is definitely the milder of the two, but there is something really satisfying about eating an Alium like a piece of roasted fruit. Generally these go down in a matter of bites. The key to this recipe is making sure the stuffing is cheesy and wet enough that it doesn’t burn or dry out, but not so wet that you miss the crispiness that forms on the top.

This one was a winner. Sage is a wonderfully rich herb on its own. But pair it with blue cheese, which I had leftover, and then add in some alium and chewy rosemary sourdough, and the taste sort of hits you in the face (in a good way), and then lingers on your tongue. This pairing actually got better halfway through.

The "nightshades" are out in abundance. Members of the Solanaceae family, among them peppers, potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, and mushrooms are being harvested and brought to markets all over the east. Many nightshades are rich in alkaloids, chemical compounds that act as the plant’s defenses and can be toxic to us. The effects of their toxins can range from irritant (chilies) to stimulant (cocaine) to death (mushrooms such as the death cap). So lets just say the nightshade family has given us some of the best and worst of edibles.

On my recent trip to the market I couldn’t resist the brightly colored bell peppers (Capsicum Annuum), the only capsicum with a recessive gene for capsaicin, the heat-producing alkaloid that irritates the pain and heat receptors in the mouth and nose, and basically causes us to sweat and reach for the milk when we eat good salsa.

These scones were baked by Matt in honor of my friend Irene’s birthday, who is a huge fan of cheddar and will partake in a good, savory scone. In addition to a good chunk of cheddar, these lovelies are also stuffed with rosemary, apples, and walnuts. They are crunchy on the outside and moist on the inside, and made only with oat flour, oats, and whole wheat flour, which gives them a much more complex flavor. Matt and I didn’t used to use whole wheat for baking, but now we can’t stand white because we find it to be too bland and cakey. Although we only made the batch Saturday evening, we ate the last two this morning.

This recipe was inspired by the oat scones from my Whole Grain Baking King Arthur cookbook, which we make all the time.

Apples are versatile, in season right now, and come in a wide variety to suit anyone’s taste. I am really liking them stewed right now, with some fall spices, and then put on top of salad, scones, or eaten alone as dessert or for breakfast.

The silkiness of the of the mild butter (or Boston) lettuce pairs well with the spicy lemony flavor of the sorrel, sweet bite of a red onion freshly pulled from the ground, and tangy Macintosh stewed with fall spices. All are currently in season at New York’s Greenmarkets, so take advantage of this recipe before first frost. Paired with soup and some hearty, chewy country bread, this is the perfect Fall meal for still-summer weather.

This dead simple vinaigrette can dress up any savory salad that’s looking for a little sweetness. I’ve used it a lot to accompany spicy greens, onions, nuts, etc, and most recently in the butter lettuce salad with stewed apples, sorrel, red onion, Gruyere, and toasted walnuts.

What is it about New Yorkers having beer and cupcakes for people’s birthdays? Don’t get me wrong, I jump at the chance of bringing sweets to a bar. I relish having inebriated and starving vixens approach me, demanding, “Who are you? Give me a cupcake.” There’s no pause before they snatch one up and lick that cupcake a new asshole. Unfortunately, they don’t make it past the icing, and instead wander the bar looking for a “friend” to “eat [their] cakey part.” But the cake just winds up in a dark little corner, looking like a mouse nibbled on it for a bit and gave up. That rush of sugar must catalyze some kind of positive reaction for the already overworked liver, but this would happen with any lickable sweet. Why cupcakes, New Yorkers?