Wednesday 16 July 2014

Summer Eating

  

Welcome to my kitchen on this bright morning. Sit down and have a cup of tea - smoked salmon and crowdie (cream cheese) on the menu today. I've been breakfasting alone lately. Well, its the summer holidays, so boys sometimes like a long lie, and morning isn't the best time of day for John at the moment, so he tends to get up a bit later too. I'm always too hungry to wait for them, so have come to relish  these few moments of calm before the busy-ness of the day starts.


I've been making up these concoctions too - which we jokingly refer to it as the "chemo-therapy". Its a blend of coconut oil, fermented cod liver oil, matcha powder, turmeric, kelp and shitake powder, surprisingly pleasant and full of good cancer-fighting stuff. I have absolutely no idea if it will have any effect, but it feels like a positive thing to do, while we wait for the actual treatment to start.



But, still - there is some elderflower liqueur on the go. No-one really likes the cordial in this house, and I had great success with the fennel liqueur I made last year, so I thought I would give this a go too. I'll let you know around New Year :)
(Put 20 heads elderflower and zest of an unwaxed lemon in a litre kilner jar and fill with vodka. Make sure the flowers are submerged.  Seal jar and store in a cool dark place for 3 months. Strain out elderflowers and return liquor to the cleaned jar. Add 300 grams caster sugar and stir well. Re-seal and return jar to storage place for another 2 months, give it a shake every now and then to help dissolve the sugar. The same recipe can be used forthe fennel liquer - except use a couple of handfuls of fennel instead of elderflowers.)



We planted a wild cherry tree a couple of years ago, but not much seems to be happening with it yet, so it's always nice to see cherries at the crofter's market.  This batch disappeared quite quickly...


There are lots of salads too - straight from the polytunnel. Its such a relief, after all our unexpected travels to be able to pop out and pick a bowlful for dinner. I'll do a garden update sometime soon.


But the main ingredient just now is garlic. I have a great crop this year and I am just picking it and using it fresh, rather than dried. To be honest I lost a lot of my garlic harvest last year because I didn't have a cool dry place to store it - this year it can stay in the ground until I need it.


Although that is not going to be for long, as it is so sweet and mild that I am using lots of it in every savoury dish that I make. Two bulbs went into this kale and bacon tortilla, which was extremely delicious indeed.


Cloves from 2 bulbs fresh garlic, some pancetta, gently fried together - add a couple of good handfuls of chopped kale and allow to wilt into the garlic/bacon mix. Whisk 8 eggs with a splash of cream, add a good handful of a strong cheese, salt and pepper and add this to the pan. cook until still soft on top then add another handful of cheese - finish cooking under the grill.


Hungry boys love it.


Still picking the garlic scapes too. I use them in many dishes - salads, stuffed into chicken or fish, roasted in olive oil like asparagus spears, in soup... the possibilities are endless. But at some point, pesto has to be made. I think it is the law...
I cup basil, 1 cup scapes, 1/4 cup walnuts, 1/2 cup Parmesan, 1/2 cup olive oil. Whizz together until nicely pulverised. Add more Parmesan or oil to get consistency you prefer, and season to taste. And it does.. taste.. delicious.


I made a batch today and it fair pepped up a summer salad soup (just chicken stock with leeks, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms and some leftover salad leaves from yesterday)



For dinner, I covered some salmon fillets with a good layer before baking them, in a hot oven for 15 minutes. What a fantastic meal.  I'll need to make another couple of batches before the scape season is over once more.


And then James discovered, after many years of never eating them, that he actually like mushrooms! In fact - he loves them! It was like Green Eggs and Ham... they are so good - so good you see!
Hope you are enjoying good appetites this season xxx

22 comments:

  1. I want to know about elderflower liqueur! I am also not a great fan of the cordial but liqueur ... I think you are on to something! It is a great moment when one's child decides they like mushrooms. (Ditto olives.) xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi joanna - i have edited the post to include the liqueur recipe. Funnily, James has always liked olives from a very young age, but liking mushrooms is a very handy thing x

      Delete
  2. Thank you for the visit to your lovely homely kitchen. Looks like it is full of good food and a great atmosphere.
    Shauna.x

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous16/7/14 23:57

    From Margie in Toronto - enjoy your quiet time in the morning, you deserve it. It must be very comforting to you to be back in your own kitchen and enjoying the fruits of your garden - everything looks wonderful.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am very curious about this coconut oil, ect. concoction you are drinking and would like to add it to my daily food intake. Now I have never heard of fermented cod liver oil so will be keeping an eye out for it.
    I love that you start out your day with cream cheese, oh yum.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lovely post! I wonder how hard it would be to find an unwaxed lemon here. Perhaps organic? Enjoy your early morning time - that's the best time for me!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes I think they would be unwaxed,but if you can't get them, pour some really hot water over them and give them a scrub and the wax should come off xx

      Delete
  6. All that food looks delicious especially your breakfast of salmon and cream cheese - absolute bliss. I do hope things continue to improve for John.

    ReplyDelete
  7. T truly enjoyed my visit to your kitchen, salmon and cream cheese a delight.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Pesto on Salmon - why didn't I think of that? Have both in the fridge so will give it a go, thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Praying your healthy concoction will be of benefit for your dh. FCO is a health wonder...we take it every day. Blessings to you and yours, xo Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  10. your pesto looks fantastic! thanks for the recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Our scapes are done, they were wonderful this year... Enjoying our community garden so much this year, a lot of rain so not so work intensive. Be well, so much healing in fresh foods. :) Lois from Canada...

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thanks for the recipes! Fermented cod liver oil? You're a brave soul!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I like your super healthy foods which do such wonderful things for the body and soul :) I could eat just about everything you photoed! Yum :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. It must be a real comfort to be back home, especially in the kitchen. Lovely photos...thinking of you !

    ReplyDelete
  15. A post full of wonderful things.....really enjoyed it.

    ReplyDelete
  16. One of my favorite dishes, it is very tasty. thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Cool post and cute child

    ReplyDelete
  18. Since the kids are enjoying (pic says so) , i think it will be good to give a try ..

    ReplyDelete

Many thanks for visiting me. I love to read your thoughts and appreciate each one. I will respond to comments and queries here, so please check back xx

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...