Category Archives: The Garden

by | May 9, 2013

Nettle Soup with Ginger and Miso

Well, I haven’t had any success growing vegetables in my garden yet, but I have an abundance of nettles that are happily growing there ;)

Nettles

What many people don’t realise is that nettles are actually a ‘super food’, packed to the brim with nutrients.

“High in potassium, iron, sulphur, vitamin C, vitamin A and B complex vitamins nettles provide a high amount of dense nutrition with very little calories. The sulphur makes them great for the hair, skin, and nails. In addition, the tiny hairs, besides emitting histamine, also release serotonin and acetylcholine, two neurotransmitters that help to suppress appetite and also settle mood. Finally, nettles have gentle diuretic properties, which help relieve water weight gain, flush the body of toxins, and purify the blood”. [Source] 

 

Obviously you can’t eat nettles raw (unless you want to sting your mouth to pieces) but, by simply drenching them in boiling hot water, their sting is instantly removed and then they can be eaten just like other greens.

Nettle Leaf

One of our favourite ways to eat nettles is blended into a soup, flavoured with onion, garlic, ginger and miso.  We also like to include a large sweet potato in the soup, which adds a touch of sweetness as well as giving the soup a beautiful, silky smooth texture.

Just in case you haven’t come across miso before, it’s a Japanese soybean paste that has this wonderful, rich savory flavour that makes it perfect for soups, sauces and gravies.  I’m currently using the Clearspring Japanese Organic Brown Rice Miso, which is available in the UK in Waitrose and Sainsbury supermarkets, as well as in health food stores. While the jar recommends that you store it in a cool, dark place, I keep my jar in the fridge and it’s lasted months!

Clearspring Brown Rice Miso

If you’ve never picked nettles before, here are a few tips:

  • Make sure you’re wearing gloves, a long sleeve top and trousers (long pants).
  • Use a pair of sharp scissors to snip off the top leaves from each stalk (about four leaves per stalk).  Before snipping, check the leaf to make sure there are no creatures or caterpillar eggs on it.
  • Place the leaves in a colander and thoroughly wash them under running water (remember to keep your gloves on).
  • If you’re using the nettles in a soup, there’s no need to soak them in boiling water first.  Simply chop them up (still wearing your gloves) and add them to the pan.

Nettle Leaves

If you’re not fortunate enough to have a patch of free nettles growing in your vicinity, you can replace them with another green, such as kale or chard.  It’ll taste just as nice ;)

Nettle Soup with Ginger & Miso

While it’s not the prettiest soup in the world, it tastes delicious!  Lil’ L can vouch for this.  It’s his current favourite soup, and he loves taking a flask to school for his lunch once a week.  In fact, last week, he asked if he could have it for his lunch two days on the trot.  I really hope other children enjoy it as much as he does!

Here’s the recipe:

Serves: 4

Hands-on time: 10 minutes    Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
1 onion, chopped
1 x 2.5cm / 1 inch piece of fresh or frozen ginger*, finely grated (or add more if you would like a spicier soup)
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
78g / 2¾ oz / 3 packed cups nettle leaves, roughly chopped
825ml / 28 fl oz / 3½ cups vegetable stock
1 tbsp miso

* I always buy root ginger in bulk, peel it (by scraping off the skin with a metal spoon), then freeze it in 1 inch pieces.  It lasts for weeks in the freezer and I find it’s easier to grate when frozen.

Suggested toppings:
handful of lightly toasted sesame seeds
handful of pumpkin seeds, lightly fried in olive oil
red chilli, finely diced

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion until it starts to soften. Stir in the garlic and ginger. Reduce the heat, add the sweet potato and nettles, cover and leave to sweat for 5 minutes. Add the stock, bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer until the potato has softened (about 15 minutes). Allow the soup to cool slightly, then stir in the miso paste.  Blend the soup until completely smooth, using a jug or hand blender.  Add more stock, if needed.  Return the soup to the stove and gently heat through. Season, to taste.
  2. Serve the soup in warm bowls, with a sprinkling of sesame or pumpkin seeds. For small children, the seeds can be ground up in a coffee grinder and mixed into the soup before serving. Add some finely chopped red chilli, if desired, and serve with some warm, crusty bread.

Nettle Soup with Ginger & Miso

In addition to the nettles, we’ve had great success growing dandelions this year.  Dandelion pesto will be on the menu next week ;)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone! xx

Are there any ‘weeds’ that you enjoy eating?  If you have any family recipes, please do share below :)

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by | June 25, 2012

Weekend Highlights – Spray Painting, Bike Riding & Roasted Vegetable Risotto (with Recipe!)

Hi everyone! I hope you had a great weekend :)

We managed to fit in lots of fun activities this weekend, starting off with a trip to the library on Saturday morning where Lil’ L returned his book and came out with another seven! You can guess who ended up carrying those round Bath. Luckily he had lots of books to keep him occupied while we went for coffees in Neros ;)

I’m still getting a real kick out of how much Lil’ L is enjoying reading.  In addition to the library books, he’s also currently reading a chapter of Lemony Snicket to us every night and, on his own, he’s reading Philip Pullman’s ‘The Subtle Knife’ (both books that he picked up from the charity shop for a couple of pounds each).

 

In the afternoon, after a quick visit to a local village fete, Lil’ L and his friend T did some stencilling and spray art with M in our garage.

T did a space-inspired picture, while Lil’ L sprayed an underwater scene with a scary looking fish!

On Sunday, it actually stopped raining for a few hours and the sun came out. We decided to grab the opportunity to go out for a bike ride along the Kennet & Avon Canal.

 To make it more interesting for Lil’ L, we said we’d cycle to the Angel Fish Cafe at Limpley Stoke for lunch.  That sure got him moving!

 Both the boys fancied baked beans on toast but we were surprised to find that the Cafe only served white bread. No wholemeal, no granary, no seeded bread.  That’s no good! Bike riders need big chunky doorsteps of wholemeal granary bread to refuel them, not thin anaemic white slices ;)

Lil’ L asked if he could have an ice cream for dessert. I told him he could have one at the Canal Boat Cafe in Bathampton (back where we started our journey). This was a sneaky move on my part to make sure he peddled fast rather than dawdled all the way back. It sure worked ;)

We’ve had an unbelievable amount of rain lately but, on the plus side, the countryside is looking beautifully lush and green!

The muddy bike bottom really isn’t a good look is it? I’m so glad I’ve finally had mudguards fitted to my bike.

 The face was pretty muddy too (and chocolatey!)

And look at those legs!

 Back home, Lil’ L headed straight to the shower while I made the most of our sunshine and did a little gardening. I was amazed to find that we’ve actually managed to grow some strawberries that haven’t been eaten by a slug … or snail … or blackbird!

And look what else I came across… a beautiful shimmering blue damselfly taking refuge on Buddha :)

 He stayed there for ages!

After a great day out, I cooked us a large pan of roasted squash and red pepper risotto. It was very yummy indeed. Unfortunately, Lil’ L isn’t a huge fan of risotto (he isn’t keen on the texture of Arborio rice) but I pre-empted any negative comments by serving it with some toasted wholegrain tortilla segments. He then proceeded to tuck in with enthusiasm, piling the crispy tortilla high with the risotto, and ate every last grain!

I often find that the addition of a ‘bready’ side dish, like a flat bread, tortilla, or piece of garlic bread can transform a meal for Lil L. I wonder if this is the same for all children?

At the weekend, I made the risotto with an old packet of Arborio rice that needed using up. Next time I make the risotto, I’m going to try the Riso Gallo 3 Grains Risotto Rice which consists of Italian Rice, Spelt and Pearl Barley. As this rice contains wholegrains, it will have a lower GI than regular white risotto rice, as well as other nutrients such as Iron and B Vitamins.

With the butternut squash and red pepper pieces, our risotto did look quite pretty. I also added some peas to add more colour and lovely nutrients :)

 Here’s how I made it:

 

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Pepper Risotto

Serves 4
Preparation: 10 minutes 
Cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
400g / 14oz / 2 cups of Arborio rice (or wholegrain equivalent)
1 litre (1¾ pints) hot vegetable stock
300g / 10½ oz / 2 cups butternut squash, cut into small slices or cubes
1 red bell pepper, chopped
60g / 2oz / ½ cup peas
27g / 1oz / ¼ cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200C / 400F / Gas 6.
  2. Place the butternut squash, red pepper, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 cloves of crushed garlic in a roasting tin and mix well. Roast for 25 minutes or so, until the vegetables are cooked.
  3. Gently heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and 2 remaining crushed garlic cloves, and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the rice and mix well to coat it in the oil.
  4. Now you have a choice… you can add the stock the authentic way … one ladleful at a time, waiting for the liquid to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful … or you can do what I do… which is simply to pour all the stock in at once, bring it to the boil then cover it and gently simmer over a low heat for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes I stir in the peas and continue cooking for another 5 minutes or so, stirring occasionally until the rice is tender. I’m sure the ‘authentic’ way is the best way to cook risotto, but I find that pouring in all the stock at once works fine for us. The risotto turns out creamy with a little ’bite’, just how risotto should be. Anyway, please choose whichever method suits you best ;)
  5. Once the rice is cooked, mix in the roasted butternut squash and pepper pieces. Serve in warm bowls with a garnish of toasted almonds.
  6. This risotto is delicious served on its own, or with segments of toasted tortilla. 

Have a great week everyone! :) xx

This time last year… Glastonbury!

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by | May 16, 2012

WIAW Party Time! I’ll Bring the Veggie Burgers (& Recipe!)

Hi everyone!  I hope you’re having a great week so far! :)

It’s Wednesday again!  Time to party!!! 

For this week’s WIAW party, I’d like to show our eats from yesterday (Tuesday).  Thanks as always to our gorgeous girl Jenn over at Peas and Crayons for being such a great host.

Breakfast
- Hot lemon and water (pre school run)
- Post school run: Large bowl of muesli made with spelt flakes, barley flakes, oats, ground linseed, chopped brazil nuts, hazelnuts, pecans, dates, goji berries, and a splash of Alpro Almond Milk.  This milk is really sweet so I didn’t need to any other sweetener to the muesli. 

I love home-made muesli so much!  There’s something really satisfying about making it yourself.  I mix the grains together and store them in a container. We then use our ‘pick and mix’ jars of nuts and dried fruits to create our own favourite muesli combinations :)

Lunch
We all had pasties for lunch today.  Since the sun briefly came out at lunch time, I took the opportunity to sit in the garden.  The timing was perfect as, an hour later, we had a thunder storm and hail stones!

The peonies have just opened.  Aren’t they beautiful?

We’ve also got lots of Forget-me-nots growing all over the place.  The bees love it!

Snacks & Drinks
Pistachios when we got in from school (one of Lil’ L’s favourite snacks)
Nettle tea, 1 black coffee, water, apple juice, chocolate banana chia smoothie (with lettuce hidden inside it ;) )

Dinner
For dinner, I made a Thai curry from scratch.  Last Friday, we’d been to one of our favourite restaurants in Bath – Thai Basil - and we had the most amazing banquet of veggie dishes, including a beautiful Mussaman curry.  It was a touch too hot for Lil’ L, so I though I’d attempt to make my own, milder version.  It turned out really well and Lil’ L absolutely loved it!  He even asked if we could have it again tonight!  I think we have another winner :)

Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to photograph it but I’ll make it again soon and post the recipe.

Instead, I’ll show you another of our favourites dinners… so nice that we’ve eaten it twice in the past week…

home-made veggie burgers and baked butternut fries

Veggie burgers are SO easy to make!  You can use all different types of beans, nuts and veggies in them, but the recipe below is our all-time favourite.

Black Eye Bean Burgers 

Make 5 burgers (I often double the recipe and freeze half the burgers)

Hands on time: 15 minutes
Chill time: 30 minutes (can be left overnight)
Cooking time: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp cayenne pepper
70g/ 2½oz / 1 cup finely chopped mushrooms
400g / 14oz can black eye beans, drained and rinsed
1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
1 tbsp tahini
50g / 1¾ oz / ½ cup rolled oats
½ tsp sea salt

Method

  1. Brush the bottom of a frying pan (skillet) with oil and sauté the onions for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, spices and mushrooms. Cook on until the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated.
  2. Meanwhile, roughly mash the beans in a large bowl. Mix in the mustard, peanut butter, tahini, salt and oats. Add the onion and mushroom mixture and thoroughly combine. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to firm it up (can be left overnight).
  3. Preheat the oven to 190C (170 fan) / 370F / Gas 4. Lightly grease a large baking tray. Form the mixture into burger shapes using your hands or a burger press. Bake for 20-30 minutes, turning once half way through the cooking time. Alternatively, place in a lightly oiled frying pan (skillet) on a medium heat and cook for 6 minutes or so on each side until heated through and lightly browned. 
  4. We love to serve these burgers in buns with relish, and a portion of baked butternut squash fries and crispy kale on the side.

Butternut Fries

These are a healthier, nutrient-rich alternative to regular fries.  Since reading Jenn’s tips on how she bakes them, I’ve started to do the same.  

We coat our fries with a little olive oil (1 tsp) and season with salt and smoked paprika.  The fries are placed on the wire rack that sits on the grill/broiler tray with foil placed in the tray, and then baked in a preheated oven at 230C (210 fan) / 450F for about 30 minutes.

Jenn’s instructions and pics are really great, so do check them out. 

Dessert
Strawberry ‘Fro Yo’ which I made by blending a cup of frozen, chopped, organic strawberries and Alpro plain soya yoghurt.  The immersion (stick) blender works best for this job, as the strawberries just bounce around in the jug blender!

The fro yo was topped with goji berries and pecan nuts, and a drizzle of maple syrup.  Totally delish!  And Lil’ L loves it… even though he tells me he doesn’t like strawberries ;)

Well, that’s me done for another WIAW! :)   Time to head over to Jenn’s and get inspired!

Happy Wednesday everyone! xx

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by | March 5, 2012

Spring is in the air! The Joys of Blossom… and Living in the Moment!

Hi everyone! I hope you had a great weekend! :)

On Saturday we had glorious weather in Bath, so I took the opportunity to get out into the garden and do some tidying up.  It was so warm that we even managed to eat our lunch outside :)

It really does feel like Spring has arrived in Bath.  The crocuses and primroses are popping up everywhere in our little garden…

along with the daffodils and cute little narcissus :)

 

One of my favourite things about Springtime is blossom.  Trees look so severe in Wintertime without their leaves, but come Springtime, their bare branches are covered in the most delicately coloured, beautiful flowers that are an absolute joy to see.

One of my favourite types of blossom is found on the japonica tree. 

This tree is situated outside Lil’ L’s bedroom, and it’s such a nice sight to be greeted with as  I open his curtains first thing in the morning.

To reach school, we have to walk up a very steep hill.  Even though I consider myself to be pretty fit, I’m totally out of breath as I reach the top!  But what I focus on as I’m climbing (and huffing and puffing!) is the cherry tree that marks the end of the hill.  This tree is absolutely glorious at the moment… 

with the most beautiful blossom :)

And check out how blue the sky was on the school run today!

 In last week’s Wednesday Workshop (a little primary school Buddhist class that I teach each Wednesday) we read the story of the Four Princesses and the Kingshuk Tree (a beautiful story!) and I used the example of blossom to teach the children about impermanence and the importance of living in the moment.  Most of us are so busy in our lives, with our heads filled with a million and one thoughts and plans, that we risk losing sight of all the beauty that surrounds us in our natural environment.  When we do live in the moment, everything becomes brighter, clearer, more beautiful.

Time to enjoy the blossom… it’ll be gone before we know it!

Has Spring arrived where you live?  What’s your favourite thing about this season?

 

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by | January 16, 2012

Project Garden Tidy Up & Slug Resistant Flower Review

Hi everyone!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend!  :)

For us, the focus of this weekend has been ‘ project garden tidy up’.  I’d been waiting for everything to die back before I tackled the big garden tidy up, but due to the crazy warm weather we’ve had during the past few months, everything’s just kept on growing.  I’m sure the plants are as confused as the ducks ;)

While some winter plants have just started to bloom, such as the beautiful snow drops…

two sets of purple flowers have kept on growing out of the cracks in the walls and blooming non stop since LAST SPRING! 

  Can anyone help me with the names of these flowers?  I’ve no idea what they’re called!

Saturday was one of those freezing cold, but gloriously sunny days with a cloudless blue sky.  It was truly beautiful… and totally invigorating! :)

Whilst busy chopping back the shrubs, I reflected on how the garden has evolved over the past 12 years since we moved here.  For the first few years, I was constantly battling with the huge amount of slugs and snails that appeared every night in the garden.  Each new plant that was introduced to the garden would last a matter of days before it was totally munched.  Nightly patrols of the garden ensued, with slugs and snails collected up and re-homed.

In the end, I worked out that it would be far better to simply grow plants that that slugs and snails aren’t partial to rather than enduring the nightly hassle of ‘slug patrol’.  It’s been a case of ‘trial and error’ over the years, but I’m happy to say that the garden is now filled with flowers and shrubs that can be left to their own devices, while there’s plenty of vegetation in the undergrowth to keep our slimy friends happy :)  

Here are some examples of plants that seem to be slug and snail proof (in our garden anyhow): 

1. Roses. I adore roses, especially the heavy scented ones.  Have you ever experienced the scent of roses carried on a gentle warm breeze.  It’s heaven!

2. Fuschias. We’ve got 4 hardy fuschias in the garden, which have lived there longer than we have!  Apart from a severe prune in the winter, we just leave them to their own devices and they bloom in abundance, year after year.

3. Equinops.  Incredibly, the slugs and snails manage to eat the super spiky leaves of this plant, but leave the flowers alone.  The bees absolutely love them!

4. Sweet William.  My mum gave me one plant originally but each year it self seeds, I’ve now got about eight!

 

5. Lavender.  I adore the smell of lavender and the bees love it too!  I can’t wait to try some baking some lavender cupcakes and cookies this summer!

6. Hardy Geraniums.  I’ve got baby pink, magenta and purple hardy geraniums in the garden.  They are so resilient and the slimy ones seem to stay right away from them.

 7. Astrantia.  A delicate white flower on tall stems that the bees adore!
 

 8. Monbretia. This plant is so resilient.  I try to dig it out every year but it keeps coming back.  On the plus side, it has beautiful orange flowers that the damselflies love sitting on throughout the summer! 

9. Sedum.  These buds turn a deep pinky-red when they bloom.  The bees adore them!

10. Salvia.  I believe salvia comes in all different colours and sizes.  Our’s has a very delicate head of purple flowers on a tall green stem.

 Other plants that are slug resistant in our garden that I’ve yet to photograph include Snapdragons, Penstemon, Heuchera, Cyclamen, Bluebells and Aquilegia.

 I’m happy to report that I now have a garden where all the plants and critters can live happily together… including me ;)

Next job is to review the 2011 veggie growing experiment and plan what we’re going to attempt to grow this year.  Me thinks this review won’t be so positive as the flower review.  Hmmm… we’ll see…

Have a great week everybody!  Hope the sun’s shining wherever you are :)   xx

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