This eggplant curry recipe is perfect for a simple late summer or autumn meal, and you can add whatever other vegetables you have in your garden at the time. In an earlier post I talked about how I hadn't had much luck growing eggplant but then realised that they really needed lots of summer heat so were not likely to produce their crop until well into the autumn in my garden. It is such a treat when they finally do produce a harvest and I'm always looking for new ways to use them. 2 … [Read more...]
Easy Vegetable Tarts
When you've got a glut of vegetables from your garden and are looking for something a bit different to do with them, these easy vegetable tarts are great. Quick, easy and versatile. A great way to use up leftovers and you don't have to stick with just vegetables - you can add leftover chicken, shaved ham, feta - whatever takes your fancy. Vary the recipe depending on the seasonal vegetables you have. Start with a sheet of flaky pastry and fold up the edges, pinching the corners together. … [Read more...]
Growing Pumpkins or Butternut Squash
I've never grown pumpkins or butternut squash before because they take up too much precious garden space but this year I decided to plant one and see whether it could grow in amongst my other plants - with a surprising result. This worked well to start with and the plant trailed its way around, producing lots of flowers and little butternuts started forming. But it succumbed to powdery mildew very quickly and the little butternuts dropped as the leaves shrivelled up and died before I had a … [Read more...]
Growing and Enjoying Edamame Beans
I had never even heard of edamame beans until a couple of years ago when they started appearing in the 'trendy food' scene. Now I know that they are the green immature pods and seeds of soybeans. The USDA states that edamame beans are, "a soybean that can be eaten fresh and are best known as a snack with a nutritional punch". Edamame and other preparations of soybeans are rich in protein, dietary fiber, and micronutrients, particularly folate,manganese, phosphorus and vitamin K. The balance of … [Read more...]
Pasta with Mushrooms and Broad Beans
Last year I wrote about how my broad beans had turned into triffids and had started to take over the garden. Earlier this year I proudly showed how I had tamed the broad beans in this winter's veggie garden and had them growing straight upwards using garden stakes and string. Well I gloated too soon. Now I am having to use a ladder to pick my broad beans! And they have burst out of the string and are leaning all over my raspberries. But I can't really complain as they are producing lots of … [Read more...]
Growing Broccoli
Broccoli is a Superfood. It is one of the most widely researched members of the brassica family (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts) and is renowned for its health giving properties. Broccoli is known to have a protective effect against cancer. It also contains a wide range of phytochemicals which protect against many chronic diseases. Broccoli is also a good source of beta carotene, vitamin C, folate and fibre. Broccoli is a wonderful vegetable to grow in the winter - it … [Read more...]
The Winter Vegetable Garden
Although my backyard is north facing, it is on a south slope and in winter a lot of the garden is in shadow. For years I assumed I wouldn't be able to grow any vegetables because they wouldn't get enough sun. About 4 years ago I decided to just put some vegetable seedlings in and see what happened. Much to my surprise and delight everything grew just fine, so I have been planting them every winter since. I must admit that sometimes I question my sanity and wonder whether I should just … [Read more...]
Spiced Beetroot Relish
This is a really tasty relish that you can make when beetroot are plentiful in the shops or, as I did, cook and grate beetroot in smaller batches when you have extra in the garden and freeze them to make relish later on. The recipe uses 500g of whole beetroot; I had about 750g of peeled and grated beetroot so I made double the recipe. The double recipe only made 5 small jars of relish. 500g beetroot* *You can use fresh peeled and grated beetroot or if you prefer roast the beetroot first … [Read more...]
Crispy Zucchini Flowers Stuffed with Herbed Ricotta
Although I had previously tried a boiled stuffed zucchini flower recipe because I wasn't that keen on deep frying, I had to try this recipe just once to see what the fuss was about. And it was delicious so I might do it again for a special occasion (or keep my eye out for where someone else will do it for me). This recipe is adapted from Jamie Oliver to fit with what I had in the garden. 4 zucchini flowers, with baby zucchini still attached 100-200g Ricotta cheese, preferably home-made … [Read more...]
Stuffed Zucchini Flowers
With my recent interest in edible flowers and a couple of very productive zucchini plants, I just had to have a go with stuffed zucchini flowers. Many of the recipes are deep fried, but this boiled one caught my eye. Of course getting enough flowers all at the same time was a problem but I reduced the recipe down to what I was able to harvest at once. The flowers certainly make a different and colourful presentation and the stuffing was very tasty (if a little fiddly). 8 zucchini … [Read more...]