It was an eerie feeling arriving at a nearly deserted Two Lights Lobster Shack for lunch the other day. Parking was a cinch. No waiting on line to place my order and the few diners there—mostly Out of Towner’s, judging from the license plates—were eating inside. It was too damp and raw to enjoy the view from those outdoor picnic tables. Of course, we are nearing the end of October, and it’s no surprise to find the Lobster Shack in repose and readying to close by the 23rd.

I thoroughly enjoyed my last lobster-joint lunch until next season with a very decent cup of clam chowder and a crab roll.

Just as well that we live in a climate of four distinct seasons because in terms of food and its enjoyment thereof, the change in weather brings on variety.

I’ve been spending more time than usual preparing foodstuffs for winter. I’m not sure why, as though I were expecting a food shortage

For the fun of it, I’ve put up tomatoes, made tomato sauce and ragus and stored them in freezer bags. I have corn kernels, blueberries, strawberries and raspberries in their respective freezer receptacles. All this bounty is from various farmer’s markets that I’ve been to this summer and fall.

Today at the farmer’s market I bumped into a friend who was buying loads of Brussels sprouts. I asked what she was going to do to them.

“I blanch them and freeze them.”

What a good idea, I thought. I bought some already off the stalk and
others on the stalk. I must have prepared 100 this morning. It’s very easy. Bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil and plunge the sprouts into it. Let it blanch for about one minute once the water comes back to the boil. Drain and let dry thoroughly before storing in freezer bags for freezing.

Sometimes I wonder if it’s worth all the trouble. After all, frozen food is frozen food. But this much I know: the source, quality and taste of all the farm products that I’ve saved to put away are wholesome and the best quality.

Restaurant menus are changing for the season too. I wrote last week about the great new menu at Five-Fifty Five. And the other night I was at Cinque Terre for a wonderful meal of foie gras with a strawberry jam on crostini that was absolutely delicious, followed by swordfish over a bed of Brussels sprouts.

I stopped into Two Fat Cats today, too, and the selection of baked goods is getting geared up for fall. I picked up a sour cherry pie, but it's the Red Velvet Cake that they make which I really want to try.

I’ll be sampling other fall menus this week on my trip to the Blue Hill Peninsula. There are a few restaurants still open that I’m eager to try.

To use up a big basket of tomatoes recently I began my search for the perfect tomato soup recipe.

Surprisingly, after reviewing many of my cookbooks I came up short. I found a few that sounded interesting. But they all turned out to be disappointing.

Most of the recipes tried to go beyond the basics and resulted in being too gussied up with fussy ingredients and convoluted cooking methods. One had so much garlic that it was barely eatable and I threw it out.

I figured I would just make it up myself. Sauteed onions, some spices, peeled and seeded tomatoes seemed like the appropriate beginning. Chicken stock and cream—what else could I possibly need?

Then I came across the book American Classics compiled by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated Magazine. There it was: the perfect all-American tomato soup recipe.

It called for canned tomatoes, but I substituted the fresh variety.

It turned out to be just what I was after. And if you like tomato soup, I urge you to go to the next farmer’s market to buy the last of the tomatoes for this soup. I have adjusted the recipe somewhat. Here it is. It’s wonderful.

1 3/4 pounds tomatoes, peeled and seeded
About 3 cups reserved juice
1 ½ tablespoons dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large shallots
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Pinch ground allspice
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 ¾ cups homemade or canned chicken stock
½ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons brandy or dry sherry
Salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper to taste

Adjust the oven rack to the upper middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Over a strainer set over a bowl to catch the juices, squeeze the peeled and cored and halved tomatoes, squeezing with your hands so all the juices and seeds are emitted. Roughly cut the tomatoes into large chunks or quarters, making sure to reserve any leftover juices. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Spread the tomatoes over the foil in a single layer. Sprinkle evenly with the brown sugar. Bake until all the liquid has evaporated and the tomatoes begin to color, about 30 minutes. Let the tomatoes cool slightly, then peel them off the foil; transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

Heat the butter over medium heat in a large saucepan until foaming. Add the shallots, tomato paste and allspice. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are softened, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds. Whisking constantly, gradually add the chicken stock; stir in the reserved tomato juice and the roasted tomatoes. Cover, increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer to blend flavors, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

Pour the mixture through a strainer and into a medium bowl; rinse out the saucepan. Transfer the tomatoes and solids in the strainer to a blender; add l cup strained liquid and puree until smooth. Place the pureed mixture and remaining strained liquid in the sauce. Add the cream and warm over low heat until hot, about 3 minutes.

Off heat, stir in the brandy and season with salt and pepper and a pinch of cayenne.

The soup can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Warm over low heat until hot; do not boil. Serve immediately.

Note: I have made several batches of this to freeze for later use. I’m not sure how the frozen version will be, but I’ll let you know. Also, the original recipe calls for 2 28-ounce can whole tomatoes in juice.

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