Farewell, Sweet Pomegranate

A visit to my local farmer's market today confirmed my deepest fears. Pomegranate season is over. Yes, yes, I know. Pomegranates are just starting to appear in all of our local supermarkets and we always have a pomegranate salad for Christmas so those pesky farmers must be wrong. Right? Well, I suppose it is pomegranate season somewhere but, unfortunately for me and my granola, not here in Northern California.

This is the first year that I am truly "eating with the seasons". To me, that means eating what is in season within a 100-200 mile radius. I am trying to buy all of my produce at the farmer's market and if it's not there, I make do with something that is. Fortunately, I did preserve some of summer's fruits - dried some strawberries, froze a few baskets full of blueberries, made golden raspberry jam. The citrus fruits are here and I do love so love the oranges, the mandarins, the car cars.

But still, as every season ends, I feel a bit sad, a bit nostalgic for fruits and vegetables past. I know they'll all be back next year. Maybe it is because this is still new to me or maybe because we're facing the darker days of winter, which is just a few short days away. In the meantime, I'll make some pumpkin soup with sides of fresh broccoli and roasted potatoes for dinner. That should take my mind off of my lost pomegranates.