We're still getting battered by wind and rain most days so I've only made one short trip to the allotment this week, to pick a tiny harvest of chard plus some lambs lettuce.
Nice to have some greenery in egg sarnies (These were really huge sandwiches actually!)
I've made yet another spiced apple cake (well, it is yummy) using liz's mum's windfalls
The recipe I've been using is here But instead of oil I use room temperature butter, and only half the sugar and add a bit of nutmeg too. I was going to add chopped dates as an extra too but forgot. I actually did the whole recipe x1.5 this time so I had this big one plus a loaf tin-sized cake.
The Christmas activities are hotting up so I took one cake round a friend's yesterday and the other into work today for our 'Christmas food day', where everyone brings something in to share, which usually ends up lasting the whole week. As you can imagine, a lot of calories are consumed! I try to restrict myself to things that have been homemade and had a couple of nice carrot and caramelised red onion pastry whirls, mmm (plus some of my cake of course, It has apples in so im sure it must be healthy).
Tonight I felt the need for something that was actually healthy (rather than just pretending it is), so made a pan of butternut squash stew- thing with spices, tomatoes and chickpeas. I'm hoping it might help stave off the sore throat that's come on this afternoon too, booo. The squash, onion and garlic were all mine....it's nice to have stored goodies to dip into.
So, on to the beet. It must have been a few weeks ago that I lifted this beet but only got round to using it now (I've kept it in a plastic bag in the fridge). It's one of those chioggia varities so I was interested to see what it would be like inside....
Not quite the circles of colour expected but pretty nonetheless
We've had it thinly chopped and sliced raw, yum
Usually beets are quite juicy but this one wasn't - I don't know if that's just the variety? I was also worried it might be a bit woody as it had got quite large but although it has a bit of crunch it's still good.
I'd sown the beets in spring inbetween my autumn-sown broad beans - the beet plants were teeny for a long time after they germinated but then grew away nicely once the bean plants were cut down, so I might do that again this spring. It means I can sow the beets and forget about them for a while, and then have a follow-on crop already in place after the beans. I've still got a few more beets to harvest this winter but they're not as big as this one. I mustn't forget to harvest them!
(Umm, does anyone else have Beat It in their heads now? Good song though)
Thanks for reading this week. Linking in with Harvest Monday hosted by Dave at Our Happy Acres
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This is the second time this week that I've read about eating beets raw. I've never tried them that way, I'll have to give it a go. The butternut stew thing looks delicious and comforting, just the thing for a cold winter night.
ReplyDeleteHi Michelle, I really like cooked beets as well as raw. I was kind of being lazy not cooking this one, especially as it was big and would take ages to cook! Sliced cooked beets in a cheese sandwich are nice.
DeleteI keep making a similar butternut dish, it goes down a treat. I've got four good butternuts left plus some diced raw squash in the freezer so should be able to make a few more this winter :)
I think it is hard to avoid overeating at this time of year. I know it is for me. Since I retired I miss all the food carry-ins we used to have at work, but I don't miss the calories. I hope you nipped that sore throat in the bud.
ReplyDeleteI have been enjoying some beet/horseradish mix that I bought at a farmers market. It seemed like an unlikely combo but worked quite well together. And yes I now have that song in my head!
Hi Dave - yes it's definitely hard not to overeat over the festive season. I've been quite impressed with my willpower the last few months at work and have resisted most things! - its easier when you think of all the nasty ingredients in the supermarket-bought cakes etc people bring in.
DeleteOoh, beet/horseradish sounds interesting....maybe a bit hot for me though
My beetroot are long gone now. We usually eat them boiled, but grated raw beetroot is nice too. I don't think I have ever tried it raw I slices. Must give it a go some time...
ReplyDeleteHi mark, this is the first one I've lifted, I only have a few more on the plot. Actually I also have a few that I grew under the bean wigwam in the back garden, not sure how big they got though I haven't had a close look.
DeleteThe thin slice was really good, not too strong flavoured.
I love going into the cold cellar and grabbing a potato, onion or carrot, knowing that it came from my garden - it's so satisfying! I was inspired by your squash stews/curries and made a curry with squash and chickpeas loosely based on a recipe from one of Nigella's old books - loved it! It's one of those dishes that actually becomes better as it sits in the fridge - even my son, who is not generally a squash fan, liked it.
ReplyDeleteIt's great isn't it Margaret. I wish I had a cold cellar or larder though. We have a flat-roofed brick shed in the front yard but it has a leak in the roof that I haven't been able to fix yet so is too damp to keep food in - one of my jobs for the new year if it stops raining long enough for the roof to dry!
DeleteOoh, I'm glad you made a squash and chickpea dish. Yes the flavour does get better if it sits for a day or two, yum.
I was disappointed to when we grew beetroot Choggia. Your workmates are really well fed
ReplyDeleteWas it the flavour you didn't like with chioggia sue? Or not get good sized roots? It's interesting how they all taste a bit different - I've grown golden beetroot before but didn't like the flavour as much as red but thought I'd give this one a go instead. I think the seeds were free on a magazine anyway.
DeleteHehe, yep there was plenty of sweet stuff this week in the office but luckily for me I'm not a huge fan of mince pies or cakes with a lot of icing (though I do like marzipan!)