In Our Fall 2023 Issue

Grist for the Mill

While writing this Grist in early August, the first signs of the approaching fall season have begun to appear. That first cool night, which makes some desperately cling to the remaining, waning days of summer like a reluctant first grader clamped to a parent’s pant leg on the first day of school. Others feel that chill and eagerly await the cooler days, quieter roads, and harvest time that fall brings. Gardens brim with produce, and friends can once again gather to share in the bounty as many work schedules relax. Appreciating the four seasons on Cape Cod, I consider those of us who live here to be luckier than most. The seasons seem to be just the right length. Just when you think it’ll never get above 50 degrees in the spring, June arrives. Now, the heat and humidity of summer has finally broken, and in its place comes many people’s favorite season (me included) – the fall. The “-ber” months also bring with them oyster season. Sure, you can enjoy local oysters year-round, but they are at their plumpest, juiciest glory in these four months.

Hundreds of oyster grants dot the Cape Cod coastline from Bourne to Provincetown, bayside to oceanside, and every nook and cove in between. In Monk’s Cove, Pat and Jenny Ross’ quest to grow the perfect oyster has blossomed into a burgeoning seafood enterprise with their recent purchase of Cataumet Fish. We caught up with the pair to find out how it all came to be in “Curiosity Grew the Business”.

Each business has its own origin story. Beginning as a purchase of a dozen chickens for her son, Wellfleet Chick Koop has hatched into a thriving enterprise of 150 birds for Victoria Pecoraro. Andrea Pyenson shares the story “Wellfleet Chick Koop: An Egg-cellent Endeavor” where the organic landscaper and farmer specializes in heritage and endangered species of chickens whose eggs have become sought after at area markets on the outer Cape.

From the outer Cape to the upper Cape, there are plenty of restaurants to explore and enjoy. All too often, we settle into our own usual haunts, and don’t try nearly enough fresh experiences. When a first-time voice to these pages, and “lifelong mid-Cape guy” Bill O’Neill, moved to Buzzards Bay with his family in the spring of last year, a new world of dining options was awaiting him. In “The Main Attraction: A Newbie Explores Buzzards Bay”, O’Neill checks in with his culinary discoveries from the western front of Cape Cod.

The new season brings new recipes to discover and try. John Carafoli shares his “Fall Treats: Mushrooms, Chestnuts & Figs” along with a bittersweet update on Jeff Deck from Not Enough Acres Farm. Karen Bento adds two recipes to this issue, featuring an absolutely eye-opening squash in “Tromboncino: The Saucy Squash”. You’ll see why this vegetable is such a head turner. Jeni Wheeler is back at her “Table” and sitting with Matt Tropeano of Spoon and Seed, who graciously offers his pulled pork and cheesy grits recipes, and Jeni does her magic with the leftover ingredients.

Thanks to the temperate waters surrounding us, we pay in advance for these warm lingering days of fall by enduring the raw and rainy spring. Make the most of these days before the “-ber” months turn to the “Brrr” months.

Cape Cod in the fall. Why would you want to be anywhere else?

Larry