Last night’s supper could be called a mostly Maine meal. To narrow it down even further, it could be called a mostly Farmer Kev meal. I made a green bean casserole with his beans and with it I served a baked potato and delicata squash, again both from Farmer Kev. There is nothing like eating a meal of fresh, local vegetables, and the crops that come in the fall are so good and so abundant. I love root vegetables—potatoes and carrots—and those that grow on a vine—all the varieties of squash. They are such good keepers that I order them in bulk from Farmer Kev and store them in baskets in my basement.

I’ve already posted the recipe for the green bean casserole, which has a homemade white sauce spiffed up with either yogurt or sour cream—no cream of mushroom soup, if you please. I’m sure I don’t need to give instructions on how to bake a potato. The delicata squash is so easy to prepare that it doesn’t even need a formal recipe. I cut the squash in half, lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds. Usually, one half is good for one person. I brush a pan with vegetable oil and set the squash halves in the pan. I brush more vegetable oil on the squash, sprinkle some brown sugar, and then season it with salt and pepper. I bake them until very soft in a hot oven—400 or 425 degrees—for about 45 minutes.

Last night, as I ate this harvest meal, even though I am neither religious nor spiritual, I was reminded of the lyrics of “All Good Gifts” from Godspell: “We thank thee then, O Father, for all things bright and good, The seedtime and the harvest, our life our health our food, No gifts have we to offer for all thy love imparts But that which thou desirest, our humble thankful hearts!”

Religious or not, spiritual or not, it is only fitting to give thanks “for all things bright and good, the seed time and the harvest, our life, our health, our food.” And to have a humble, thankful heart.

Good food should never be taken for granted, and yearly, at harvest time, I am reminded of this.