For Gary Trevisani, director of curriculum development at the Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, perhaps the most important kitchen utensil is the calendar. "I have passion for seasonal cooking," he says. "I tell the students that if you cook in season you'll make both the customers and the boss happy. Customers don't need to be gourmets to know something tastes better — which it always will if it is in season and fresh. And bosses will always be happy if the materials are cheaper — which they are when they don't need to have long-distance shipping tacked on to the price."

Trevisani traces this passion to his first trip to Europe in 1978. "I was amazed — even in the bistros, the quality was amazing. I had beets with the taste of the earth and thought, wow, we don't get this at home." This was in the days when supermarkets were about the only choice if you couldn't get to the country to shop from a roadside stand. He bemoans the fact that the little farmers are going out of business because they can't afford to compete with agro-conglomerates — and insists that the best sources for full-flavored ingredients are small local farmers because their produce reaches market soonest.

Since that European epiphany Trevisani has been on a mission to reacquaint all of us with the taste of the earth. He gives high praise to fellow restaurateurs for their efforts. "The White Dog with the Fair Food project is trying very hard to connect farms to restaurants." You can do your part by patronizing the various Food Trust farmers markets, www.thefoodtrust.org.

In teaching mode, Trevisani ticks off the delights of the season. "Fall is the season of canning, of drying the beans, butchering the pig. The tender cuts would be used right away, with hams and sausages made from the tougher parts," he says. "Game birds and venison are available in the fall. When the animals have eaten through the summer, they are plump and ready to be taken." Speaking historically, he notes that gourmet dishes like patés and confits were invented to preserve this bounty in the days before freezers.

Trevisani sounds positively dreamy as he runs through the produce possibilities. "November brings pumpkin. Broccoli rabe is at its best right after the first frost. One of my faves is dandelion. In the spring the green doesn't need a lot of attention, but in the fall it wants to be cooked and wilted to cut the bitterness." He says the bitter lettuces hold better in the ground: escarole, kale, mustard greens — "They are good once they are wilted." In addition to parsnips, turnips, brussels sprouts, winter squash and spaghetti squash, Trevisani looks forward to salsify — also known as oyster plant — which is not available until after the first hard freeze, and great for a seasonal soup. And a trip to Linvilla Orchard to get a basket of apples or pears right from the tree is one of his great fall pleasures.

Want somebody else to do your seasonal cooking tonight? Abbraccio takes pride in its seasonality. Duane Ball, one of Abbraccio's owners and its menu planner, says, "By the time November gets here I want things that have nothing to do with Thanksgiving, to keep it special. Instead we'll make the pumpkin marble cheesecake." Look for neck and butternut squash baked as a side dish. Ball reveals the key ingredient in another favorite side dish: "Rutabaga! People can't believe they are eating and liking rutabaga. We make a combination of rutabaga, white rice and a bit of potato, put through a sieve, whip with a bit of cream and butter that people love." Ball continues, "We tend to have more comfort-type food in the fall. Something like roast loin of pork with apples and onions."

"Since we try to keep seasonal and local, the cold months from November to February have the cooks doing a lot of peeling," says Andrew Brown, executive chef at the White Dog Cafe; he lists different types of squash from Green Meadow and Branch Creek Farms among the veggies to go under the peeler. "Last year I was grilling lamb and serving it with parsnip brown butter puree," says Brown. "We use an organic mushroom farmer who grows the most beautiful shiitake and oyster mushrooms." Look for them in a savory tart shell with an heirloom neck pumpkin puree, slow-roasted Oley Valley mushrooms and a little melted asiago, with perhaps a parsley salad on the side. "We also tend to use more grains and tougher meats at this time. I am thinking about braising venison shanks in coffee and veal stock and serving it with chestnut polenta and orange gremolata for New Year's Eve."