Friday, July 25, 2008
First tomatoes!
yes I realise that a picture should support this wondrous event but it might have to wait till I have a camera in my hands :-)
All in all I got about 5 or 6 tomatoes including a wonderfully knobbly Marmande and some smaller salad tomatoes.
I popped down to the lottie before work (probably quite sinful, as I was then late) And came away with a fistful of rhubarb sticks, a big handful of beans, some radishes (the last of them), 3 lovely yellow courgettes and a box of strawberries. Not to bad for a 30 minute visit!
This week has been fiendishly hot and I can see that some of the weeds are dying off - the pumpkin vine is also shedding some excess leaf and the ripening pumpkins, green and orange are a treat to see. The melon plants are romping awaybut some of the other plants are looking a bit tired by all that sun. Today there is a sprinkling of rain that should relieve them.
Tonight I will make a big batch of ratatouille and freeze some and I guess make a big veggie bake (mmm did I not give that recipe?)
Veggie Bake
In a deepish ovenproof dish (e.g Pyrex) I butter the dish then place layers of the following in any order, quantity or combination you like:
Then pour a little cream or milk if you are on a diet into the spaces, or a few spoons of creme fraiche as you layer.
I tend to top it off with some thinly slice onions and tomatoes if possible.
Either cover and bake in moderate oven for 45 minutes or in the microwave on 600w for 25 minutes. In oven, sprinkle cheese on top and uncover and cook for another 10-15 minutes or in m'wave, top with cheese and under the grill.
It's quite quick, not much work and is good when you have lots of different veg lying around that need using up.
All in all I got about 5 or 6 tomatoes including a wonderfully knobbly Marmande and some smaller salad tomatoes.
I popped down to the lottie before work (probably quite sinful, as I was then late) And came away with a fistful of rhubarb sticks, a big handful of beans, some radishes (the last of them), 3 lovely yellow courgettes and a box of strawberries. Not to bad for a 30 minute visit!
This week has been fiendishly hot and I can see that some of the weeds are dying off - the pumpkin vine is also shedding some excess leaf and the ripening pumpkins, green and orange are a treat to see. The melon plants are romping awaybut some of the other plants are looking a bit tired by all that sun. Today there is a sprinkling of rain that should relieve them.
Tonight I will make a big batch of ratatouille and freeze some and I guess make a big veggie bake (mmm did I not give that recipe?)
Veggie Bake
In a deepish ovenproof dish (e.g Pyrex) I butter the dish then place layers of the following in any order, quantity or combination you like:
- Potatoes
- carrots
- courgettes
- turnips
- parsnips
- celery (stem or root)
- pumpkin
- cauliflower
- broccoli
- (I tend not to put fennel, too strong, or cabbage, too all-pervading or aubergines, a bit soggy cooked like this, but I guess you could if you needed to)
Then pour a little cream or milk if you are on a diet into the spaces, or a few spoons of creme fraiche as you layer.
I tend to top it off with some thinly slice onions and tomatoes if possible.
Either cover and bake in moderate oven for 45 minutes or in the microwave on 600w for 25 minutes. In oven, sprinkle cheese on top and uncover and cook for another 10-15 minutes or in m'wave, top with cheese and under the grill.
It's quite quick, not much work and is good when you have lots of different veg lying around that need using up.
Labels: harvest, recipe, summer, tomatoes
# posted by antipodesgirl @ 10:46 AM 
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