While we hunkered down to wait for the hurricane to brush by last weekend, I roasted a whole chicken and made meatloaf. Couldn’t help my Pavlovian behavior – the skies darkened, the winds began to howl, and I turned on the oven. It's a good thing that the power did not go out and that our unreliable refrigerator stayed cold, because it was stuffed to the gills.

I had also gone up to Beetlebung Farm and Mermaid Farm and collected purple sprouting broccoli, Tuscan kale, leeks, Japanese turnips, red onions, feta, and lamb riblets. Haven’t cooked the riblets yet!

Since our favorite Glazed Market Meatloaf has both feta and kale in it (though no one knows the kale is there), I decided to make that this weekend, except in several mini loaves instead of one big one. I used to do this when I worked as a cook making prepared food in a gourmet market long ago, because commuters stopping to buy dinner loved a single-serve meatloaf. Not only are mini loaves adorable, but they travel well and keep well for leftovers, too. A meatloaf sandwich is great, but I sometimes also serve small slices or cubes of the cold meatloaf as a country pâte-style appetizer.

I had extra kale and feta, of course. So I ventured into fall soup territory (forgive me!) and made Tuscan Kale, Leek, and White Bean Soup with Bacon, Parmigiano and Rustic Croutons.

A good destination for the rest of the feta would be this Warm Baked Feta with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Olives and Herbs. Especially nice while local cherry tomatoes are still around. Mermaid Farm had plenty. With crostini or toasted pitas, this is a great dish to have around for the football game.

True to form, the first thing I did with the purple sprouting broccoli was to roast it, along the lines of these Crispy Broccoli Florets with Tamari Lime-Ginger Dipping Sauce. I cut off a little of the thickest end of each stalk and then sliced each lengthwise into halves or quarters, depending on thickness. I roasted everything, leaves included, for about 15 minutes, so I got crispy leaves, caramelized florets, and nicely cooked stems. Delicious.

You could also put that sprouting broccoli into Curly Pasta with Broccoli, Sundried Tomatoes, Garlic-Chile Oil & Goat Cheese, and you could sub feta for the goat cheese.

With fall cooking, it’s also time to break the coconut milk out of the pantry again. I'm planning to make Thai Peanut, Lemongrass and Coconut Roasted Chicken Thighs soon.

And it won’t be long before we’re making Mussels in Tomato-Coconut Curry Broth with Spinach, Cilantro, and Lime.

Not to forget that coconut milk works in sweets, too; Abby Dodge’s Coconut Cinnamon Tea Cake is just the thing to have around on these rainy days. And the blue-sky days, too.

Start your ovens and I’ll see you on Instagram @cookthevineyard.

What's Open, What's Happening

If you're looking to make a dinner reservation or wondering which farm stands and markets are open, visit What's Open on Martha's Vineyard for regularly updated listings.

Big News! The ArtCliff Diner reopens tomorrow, Thursday, Sept. 21. Hours for now will be 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

S&S Kitchenette on Main street in Vineyard Haven has added lunch service, Weds. - Sat., 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday brunch, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.