It is such a pleasure to see these very positive results after four years of hard work developing healthy soils, starting with clay, plastic covering and pebbles (something the previous owners thought you require in a garden), to producing wonderful healthy and fresh organic food.
Category Archives: Vegetables – Growing
Porro Sott’olio
Summer being the season of abundance should result in a busy kitchen preserving for the leaner months. Today the leeks were harvested, cleaned and boiled for 5 minutes in apple cider vinegar with some bay leaves and black pepper corns. Drain and discharge the vinegar. Neatly pack the leeks, bay leaves and pepper corns in preserving jars and fill and cover completely with extra virgin olive oil. Wait one moth before using.
Spud Planting Time
Fiori di Zucchini (Fried Zucchini Flowers)
If one has space to grow pumpkins (I dug up some of the front lawn to plant mine), gorgeous, fresh, yellow flowers are a great perk this time of the year. Fried simply they are spectacular on the plate and the crispness of the batter and tasty flower make them the best starter for any meal.
Fried Pumpkin Flowers
Luke warm water
salt to taste
white flour
vegetable oil
Method
Use a whisk to mix the salt and flour well. Add small amounts of water and keep whisking until a batter forms that is the consistency of cream. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, the oil should be about 3 cm deep and very hot. Dip each flower in the batter, top and bottom, shake off excess batter and slip the flower into the oil. When crisp and slightly coloured remove an drain on kitchen paper. Do not overcrowd the pan. When done arrange all the flowers on a serving platter, serve hot.
ENJOY with a glass of home made wine!
Carciofi Bolliti ( Boiled Artichokes) – Three Ingredient Dinner
The joys of fresh organic produce straight out of the garden. The less complicated a dish is, the more chance there is of it being superb. I go so far that before looking at a new dish, I count the ingredients and if the list is too long, it does not even warrant my time to read any further. Carciofi bolliti is the ultimate of simplicity, and in our house probably the favorite way to eat these wonderful flowers. Boil the already cleaned and prepared carciofi in water until the leaves are easy to pull off with a gentle tug. Drain and serve with a bowl of very good extra virgin olive oil, salted to taste (about a teaspoon of salt per 1/2 cup of oil) Pull the leaves off one by one and dip in the olive oil salt mixture and rip the flesh off with your front teeth – discard the hard part. Of coarse the younger the flower and the closer you get to the heart, the more and more of the leave you can eat. When all the leaves are gone and the heart is exposed, make sure the choke is not stringy, and if so, remove and discard before eating the heart – soft and creamy.
Enjoy!!! Do not forget a piece of home made bread to mop up all the olive oil and wash it down with good home made wine.
Back Yard Farmer 