Harvest Monday

Over the last week i have harvested the following usual veggies from the plot........................


Parsley by the hand full.


A few spring onions.


Assorted lettuce leaves.


A Couple of bunches of Pak Choi


Sprigs of rosemary and coriander leaves.


The girls have also layed 14 eggs.


 and with all this produce I made the following....................


Soup (two pots) , Quiche, sausage rolls and salads.


Banana bread and scrambled eggs (twice) 

                                                     
I pulled the first of my Beetroots................and we both enjoyed it for 
                                         BREAKFAST

                                                     


             There was also celery, apple and carrot in the juice.




And to my surprise while weeding the veggie plot i found....................

                     10 days from Winter................very unusual !!!      








I'm joining in with Daphne  who hosts Harvest Monday, where many gardener's from around the globe share what they have been harvesting , preserving or cooking........................




What have you been harvesting this week?
                                           

Salad Days

For a small cost and a little effort we have continued to enjoy picking salad greens over the last month as apart of the 52 week Salad Challenge.


Our weather has been quite mild for May, dryer than normal so i have had to hand water the plot a few times.
Over the last week we have also experienced a couple of frosts but so far the salad greens are still looking good. 

I transferred a few seedlings of coriander into a pot closer to the back door and the lettuce under the lemon has provided many leaves for sandwiches.

          

       Turnip tops going to seed but the chooks are enjoying their salad fix each day.         

The Pak Choi has been the most impressive salad green, it was quick to germinate, seedlings grew quickly and we have enjoyed the leaves in many salads, stir-fry's and this last week added to soup just before serving.

                  

Italian cabbage seedlings coming along nicely.

Seedlings in the cold frame, Kale. Rocket and Beetroot .

The 52 week Salad Challenge is hosted by V.G  at vegplotting ,drop by and see what other keen gardeners/cooks are doing with their greens.......

Pumpkin Chutney

Today I'm joining with JODY who is hosting The Garden of Eden's Thursday's Kitchen Cupboard.
Each week i read what LIZ at Suburbantomato makes and have enjoyed many of her recipes especially anything spicy so this week i thought I'd join in to and share ..................


I think any cook/gardener appreciates surplus produce that is gifted or swapped and these lovely lemons(i can't grow them) and pumpkin are from friends in Mt Beauty (a beautiful part of Victoria)




                                              

                                                




A month or so ago i made a chutney with one of my only two butternut pumpkins grown this year and was more than happy with the results already finishing 2 jars and giving away a third. 
I'm hoping i will have the same results with this pumpkin.  




If you are looking for something a little different, enjoy a little bit of spice or have a rare harvest like Barb at thenewgoodlife  i think you will love this recipe.

Indian-spiced chutney

900g butternut pumpkin 

seeds removed,peeled and cut into bite sized chunks.

2 onions finely chopped

225g cooking apples, peeled,cored and chopped.

3 zucchini halved length-ways and chopped

50g ready to eat dates, chopped

450ml cider vinegar

2tbsp medium or hot curry powder

1tsp ground cumin

2.5cm piece of fresh ginger, grated or finely chopped

450g white or light brown sugar

1. Put the pumpkin,onions,apples,zucchini and dates in a preserving pan.
   Pour over vinegar,add spices and ginger. Mix well.

2. Bring to boil then reduce heat and simmer for 40minutes or until the
   vegetables are soft, stirring occasionally.

3. Add sugar,stir until it has dissolved,then continue to cook on a gentle simmer for 1-1 ½ hours or until chutney is thick and the liquid has been absorbed. Stir continuously near the end of the cooking time so that the chutney doesn't catch on the base of pan.

4. Ladle into warm,sterilised jars with non-metallic lids making sure there are no air gaps.

Store in a cool dark space for 12 months.

Allow the flavours to mature for at least 1 month and refrigerate after opening.   


ENJOY!

A Year of Posts..................

Drum Roll................................


Harvest with Glee turned 1 this May !!!!!!


 Thanks for coming along on the ride with me, so enjoyed "meeting" you all and a warm thank you to all that take the time to leave such lovely,kind, witty,funny and thoughtful comments, recipes and advice.


 Hope you will all drop by again over the next year........................


Iv'e decided to keep this blog purely for gardening and have started another blog andsotostitch for all things creative......you may like to take a peek.


Unknown to me hubby has been dabbling in a little horsemanship and yesterday surprised me with Young Alfred and Matilda's partnership.....


Now if he can just teach Matilda to pull a cart and Alfred to pull weeds......

How to Make a Woman Happy.

Give her a kitchen sink !!!!!!!!


Well actually it was finally installed this week along with the rest of the kitchens appliances, dishwasher(never had one before) and fan forced oven.
i still don't have any lights but am improvising with a lamp.


So guess who's been up since 5.30 this morning making a batch of banana/sultana (healthy) muffins and filling the dishwasher with all the dirty dishes. 

        Just loving my kitchen bench on wheels that hubby made for me 

                   Rails for my tea towels and heaps of storage.

                   
                   
 A few new cook books...................what more could a girl ask for???


Now that jar of greenish/brown mixture is a lovely gift from my dear friend Deb. Its concentrated veggie stock made in her new thermomix and will last for 6 months in the fridge. One tablespoon is equivalent to one stock cube.

My favourite book at present , divided into the seasons each fruit and veggie is listed and then information on..... When to pick
                                  Eat and Store
                                  How to preserve
                                  Freezing options
                                  Recipes/relish/jams     



So this weekend I'm cooking up a storm , heading out for a big bush walk and hopefully planting a few more seeds in the veggie patch.




Hope you all have a great weekend. x