Given that the weather isn’t too cold, January is one of my favorite months, with February a close second. December and Christmas are fun but hectic, and for me, January is a time to settle in, cook (of course!), do a little organizing, and take walks with the dog.

The light in Maine in January is so clear that the sky seems to be an impossible shade of blue, and unless a storm is coming, there are usually few clouds. If there are clouds, they often settle low on the horizon, and at dusk they are illuminated with colors ranging from orange to red to lavender to black. Sometimes a dazzling combination of all four.

In the afternoon, after chores and writing are done, I bundle up, wearing a hat crocheted by my grandmother, down gloves, and plenty of layers. The dog—Liam—is a Sheltie, and he is naturally bundled up, always ready to go.

In rural central Maine, the landscape is not what you would call breathtaking or beautiful or dramatic. Still, there are pleasures to be had. On the way up the road, we pass a little swamp, covered by a skim of gray ice and quietly waiting for warmer weather. Just past the swamp is a large field, white with snow but dotted with the brown fringes of Queen Anne’s lace and other plants that have gone by.

Up the hill we go. I’m happy to say that despite surgery and radiation treatment, I can still pop right along without losing my breath. Liam, of course, is in the lead, and would gladly run up the hill, if he were allowed to do so. One of our nicknames for him is Liam Lightfoot.

In one of the houses on the hill lives a golden retriever named Sadie. She always barks a greeting, and Liam answers in kind.

When we crest the hill, we come to the part of the walk that my husband, Clif, and I have dubbed “the tundra,” a broad, broad field where the wind gathers force as it blows, making the day seem at least ten degrees colder than it really is. We hurry on, the wind nipping at us, around the corner, but I always take time to look at the expanse of sky over the field.

On this road, there are expensive houses, modest house, and in-between houses, and this mix is one of the things I love about central Maine. The dog and I go by a long, low stonewall, a patch of second growth forest, in its tangle-wood phase, and turn around after a mile or so. When we come back down our road, I look for the large patch of dried fern stalks in the woods not far from our house. With their little brown clusters at the top of stiff stalks, the dried ferns almost look as though they are growing in the snow, and they cast dark lines that appear both casual and planned.

After the walk, my cheeks are cold, and I am ready for my usual snack—popcorn, popped in a kettle on the stove. When the popcorn is popped, I settle on the couch. The orange cat is on my lap, and the dog is beside me, waiting for his share of the popcorn. Outside, the sky gets darker and darker. While I have my snack, I read either the New Yorker or the New York Review of Books.

Then it’s time to make dinner. Yesterday, after my walk and snack, I decided to make squash soup, using one of Farmer Kev’s acorn squashes, which he kindly gave to me this fall. Actually, he gave me quite a few, and I’ve stored them in the spare bedroom, which, with the door closed, is an excellent cool place for them. In the fall, when I got them, they were dark green. Now they are orange, but still perfectly good.

And what to make with the soup? Bran muffins, made with Maine maple syrup. This is a meal that takes only an hour or so to prepare, is very nourishing, economical (even if you don’t get free squash), and tasty. It’s a variation on a carrot soup that I often make, but the squash gives it a more mellow taste.

Hot squash soup on a cold January night. Very satisfying indeed.

Squash soup

1 acorn or butternut squash. Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, and place the squash face down on an oiled pan. Cook at 350° for an hour or so, until the squash is very soft.

While the squash is baking, prepare the soup base.

1 large carrot, diced

2 large potatoes, diced

1 small onion, diced

1 clove of garlic, cut in large pieces

2 cups of water

½ teaspoon of dried tarragon

½ teaspoon of cumin

½ teaspoon of celery seed, if you have it

¼ teaspoon of white pepper

Salt to taste

A tablespoon or so of oil

Heat the oil in a large soup pan, then add the carrot, potatoes, onion, and garlic. Cook and stir for several minutes, until everything is sizzling nicely. Add the water and spices and simmer until the vegetables are very soft, about forty five minutes. (The soup base and the baked squash should be done roughly at the same time.)

Into a medium-sized bowl, scoop the baked squash from the skins, and mash the squash with a fork. Add the mashed squash to the cooked vegetables in the soup pan. Blend, using an immersion blender (my favorite way!), a food processor, or a blender. If you use a blender or food processor, the soup will have to be blended in several batches. You, of course, will need a bowl to hold the blended soup before returning it to the soup pan for its final heating. When the soup is blended, add salt to taste. Also, at this point it will be very thick, and you will want to add more water, in small batches, until you get a thickness you like. It could be anywhere from a ½ cup to a cup of water.

Oyster crackers go well with this soup, as do homemade croutons.