Sunday 14 August 2011

Voila les oignons

Madame et Monsiuer, voila les oignons de Bladon (les rouge et les blanc) et les shallots aussi.

That's about as far as my French stretches, and that's probably totally incorrect so back to English for the rest of the post. A theme is developing here. I write the blog post while Emily cooks dinner.

Photo54: A barrow full of onions and shallots. Freshly harvested from our plot.

Tonight we will be coating (and then eating) pasta with a lovely roasted vegetable sauce. Red onions, yellow courgettes and shallots from our allotment will be accompanied by Grandad's prize tomatoes. A few cloves of garlic from Waitrose and we'll be on to a winner. It is already smelling fantastic. My future wife is doing a grand job!

Emily headed out to see Alex for lunch today and left me doing manly things with power tools in the shed. I've finally got around to installing a 'potting shelf'. This will hopefully come into its own next year when we start to propagate seeds but for now it makes a rather fine space to dry out the onions. An added bonus of the shelf is the creation of some great new storage space (spot the patio chairs tucked nicely underneath).

Photo55: Onions galore. Occupying pride of place on the new potting shelf in the shed.

Photo 56: Trimmed and drying out together. The reds and the whites.

One final thought for the week. I can't decide whether purple french beans are magical or a tad disappointing. When cooked they turn green - now that's magic. However, when they are on your plate you can't tell the difference between them and their green cousins - that's disappointing!

Monday 1 August 2011

Bladon veggie curry

Since my last post the allotment has blossomed with vegetables ripening nicely.

Tonight is the night for our first home grown vegetable curry. Yellow courgettes, green french beans, purple french beans and runner beans along with a white onion and a fist full of potatoes will make a lovely meal.

Whilst harvesting our beans a rabbit was spotted investigating next doors cabbages. I asked if he was called Peter but before answering he skipped away happily into the evening. There was a small blue jacket lying on the ground so I guess he'll be back for that sometime soon.

Photo51: The raw produce. How lovely they look.

Photo52: Rearranged into an underwater scene with the courgette taking on the role of a yellow submarine entangled in french bean seaweed - a little imagination required for this one.

Photo 52: Ready for the pan (important note - the red pepper is an impostor from Waitrose).

Right, I'm off to investigate the lovely curry smells coming up from the kitchen. Glass of beer required I think. Mange tout, mange tout!

PS - I'm now the proud 'carer' for a Stihl petrol strimmer which Emily's grandpa has let me borrow on semi-permanant loan. Most fun - the untended allotment next door didn't stand a chance.