When does Broccoli become Broccolini?

Just a question to ponder over the weekend.

This looks amazingly like the broccolini sold in bunches.

Note to self ....... Broccoli re-growth tastes pretty good too!

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

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HAZEL - yes Hazel, sometimes that is the only decluttering that goes on around here!

Lyndel  - thanks for your kind comment. 

 **Anne** - thanks again - looks like the weather will be kind to us too. 

Fi - thanks too Fi.  Zoe was extra special indeed.  Dexter cute in his own way, but somehow not as devoted as Zoe...

Kim - thanks Kim- yes it was a great day and the photo will always be special too. aid...

muppy - I think it will be! 

Cheers for now - Wendy

Vegetable Garden Self-Imposed Invention Test

Thought it might be interesting to see what I could make just from our garden and took the opportunity last night.  A certain football match was on, a little get-together between Qld and New South Wales.  A game that Qld won 24-14!   Yay Qld - is it a State Holiday today?

This event was so big that apparently both the males of the house had to be in the company of other males to watch that particular football game.  Some sort of tribal bonding I think.  I was quite happy to be home alone, watching the game and cooking.

So I challenged myself to cook a meal just from what I found in the garden - and this is the result.

 I used part of everything here - except the strawberry which wasn't ripe but I had to rescue it from the Creatures of the Night who have managed to chomp into some other large strawberries.

 Clockwise - broccoli, cabbage, jap pumpkin, mixed lettuce leaves, mandarins, silverbeet, rainbow chard,  eggs, chives, coriander, sweet chilli, komato, strawberry, parsley, lemonade, sweet potato

So it was a meal for one (quite a big meal).  I could have easily stretched it to feed the 3 of us I think - maybe using more cabbage and broccoli.  Only used 2 of the 3 eggs and the only additional ingredients were some garlic and a bit of oil for the omelette.  

 I chopped the sweet potato and pumpkin and added some coriander,  silver beet and  rainbow chard.  Then I added the juice of one mandarin - sealed it in alfoil and into the oven.  It was delicious and now I'm keen to try more with the juice.  

Having just read Muppys post on this dish, I'm wondering if I might try something similar but with mandarin juice instead of milk.  What do you think Muppy?   

The dark tomato is a kumato.  I cooked a few slices in the omelette as well as raw.  I've just planted some more tomatoes so I hope they take off - in the shops the other day were $9 a kg!!

The large yellow fruit is a lemonade.  Lovely and mild, not as tart as lemon, I mixed it with the other mandarin for a juice.  Thought I might have invented a new drink, but we didn't have any vodka which would have made it even more interesting!

I've recently had a look funkyfrontyardfarmersfriends and it was certainly a prompt to challenge myself to try and see what I could make.  Certainly it is encouraging to know that I can at least compile one meal - and interesting to see how this could be expanded. 

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Personally, since I've started my blog, it has really made me look around and maybe open my eyes and appreciate it all just a little more!  From the blue skies to the nasturtiums, it is amazing what is around and so easily taken for granted. 

I'd like to sincerely thank those of you who read my humble blog and your comments have been so very encouraging. Welcome too new follower Cathy - which takes it up to 30 - amazing.  Thanks so much!  

Oh - and don't stress -  I will get around to decluttering  again one day soon!

Cheers for now - Wendy

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My reply to your comments on previous post

muppy  - thanks they are lovely - except in bushfire season lol.

Fi  - I love those sort of guilt-free days!  Hoping your feeling better soon.

delia hornbook - I know what you mean, it does seem a little topsy turvey.

Rose  - Hi Rose.  Witty comments are always welcome here! 

saving for travel - I just wish I could knit socks!  Going to tackle that next after I finish my current knitting project. 

Tasmanian Vegan and Minimalist - I can only imagine how cold it would be in Tassie at the moment! 

Produce

I really didn't think we were getting much from the garden of late.  It is the sort of in-between month here.  Too hot to get too excited about planning anything later on in the year, but knowing that it really is that time.  However, these are the spoils from more earlier established plantings.  

Those strange green things are Monstera deliciosa for those who aren't familiar with them.  Very easy to grow, a bit wierd.  The only time to eat is when the outer segments are coming off, otherwise fruit is a little prickly on the tongue.  Nice in fruit salad.

The bananas look a little sad.  Ali how are yours going?  I have made a banana cake bread and decided it was only just passable for a show and tell photo.  Well it's half eaten so that says something doesn't it?  Nigella rest assured your job is not in jeopardy.

 

The pumpkin was picked too early - unfortunately the vine was weighing down a trellis, and will probably be inedible.  Oh well ... the chooks will like it if I chop it up a bit for them.  It is a Qld Blue variety of the incredibly tough skin.  One year we had a really big harvest of them, and I got so tired of trying to cut them that my husband starting using a circular saw to cut them in half!  Don't laugh - I know it sounds a bit rough & ready, but it works.  Once they were tidied up a bit nd over the shock they were fine.

Passionfruit - yep plenty of them.  The yellow ones that is, we can't grow the purple ones for love or money.  Don't know why, must be something lacking in the soil.  

Sweet chilli and hot chilli - always some around somewhere in the garden.  So easy to grow even I can do it.

Eggs - luckily plenty of them at the moment.  'The girls' are now producing at full steam after a lengthy break.

So on the plus side of the learning curve I have now learnt how to push a few more buttons. Note to self - this blog started about decluttering.  I must go and do some! 

Cheers Wendy 

Dexter on Thursday 17/2/2011

Bye Bye Santa - have a holiday

This is the last of the Christmas decorations to finally be put to bed until Christmas 2011.  Finally.  Poor old Santa and his reindeer had been sitting on top of a cupboard on the back verandah and starting to gather cobwebs. 

 

So I gave him a bit of a look at the outside world and then tucked him away with all the other Christmas decorations.  Unfortunately that means the Black Hole of the Garage - but that's another story) {a very scary story}. 

Just as an aside - this is a lovely hand made deco we bought at a market when on holidays a couple of years ago.  A lot of work has gone into it (not sure how much detail can be seen) but it is made from just basically scrap metal with little tea light holders at the top of the figures. Gorgeous and kitschy - we all love it.

That's about it for serious decluttering today (who am I kidding) although I have been busy putting more things online to sell.  Goodness it takes a lot of mucking about just to write an ad sometimes doesn't it?  Getting some background info on the item, working out postage price, waffling on a bit to make it sound interesting.  Hopefully it will be worth it.

Thought I might show off our very first sweet potato harvest.  For some strange reason we haven't really grown them before.  Don't know why - they are surprisingly easy to grow.  Neither or us actually looked up the best time to harvest them (not like other vine crops, this still is growing vibrantly).  However, D decided to dig a few out and presto!  they look great.  I guess this crop is the type you can just pick as you go - which is a bonus.   The hardest part was how to photograph them without making them look like rude objects d'art! 

Cheers Wendy