Family Food Blog: See you later garden.. Thanks for your byootiful produce!

Morning all,

I am in the UK now. Hurraaaayyyy!!

It was really good to come out the other end of the Eurotunnel yesterday *sigh*....!
Apart from the fact that EVERYONE was driving on the fast lane. Will you ever learn it..;-)?

Sitting in Lilly's part of the bunk bed now (yes - the bottom bed!) writing this post on my phone. We had a delicious buffet lunch with our friends Matt & Ruth and their kids Lilly, Dottie & Freddie yesterday - keep those yummie hams coming Miss B!!! Were you ever really a vegetarian.....???!!
Super to see Tom and Emily too and to meet their very handsome little boy Iestyn for the first time. Generally very good to catch up with everyone. Thanks very much Ruth & Matt!!

Before we left yesterday, we spent Saturday making sure that the garden was in good nick (amongst packing, cooking, etc.) so that Michel (local gardener) only has to worry about watering it (IF needed.....BIG IF...!!).

Some of you might have seen my tweets with garden pictures on Saturday already but I will include some here too.

I noticed that, having spent every day doing SOMEthing in the garden for a while now, I was finding it very difficult to let go for 12 days...
What if ALL the broad beans were ready to pick in the middle of those 12 days? What if I missed the awakening of the next dahlia ('Dutch Explosion')...? What if all the beetroots were ready to harvest well before we would come back? What if all the rhubarb chard would grow the size of giant rhubarb..? What if there was a blackfly infestation (not unlikely!) on any of the other young greens...?

Well...actually...so be it! Just let go Bee....

I tend to be 'a bit' of a worrier... Always have been. But I had to let go because in the end I was going on two super mini holidays: first to Southpool in Devon with my lovely friend Ruth and the delightful 9 month old 'rugby prop to be' Freddie and next to see my friends Jeremy & Nicole in Letterfrack, Connemara. Fresh fish here I come in both cases :-)!!!

By the way, Susie & Matthew are off to North Devon with aunty Annette and uncle Stevie - doing some surfing with their big cousins. Duncan has to finish one more week of work and he and I will reunite on Friday eve to fly to Knock (West Ireland) together on Saturday morning. Soooooo nice that I get to go away to my beloved Connemara with just my lovely husband for 5 days.... What a treat!!!

So......back to the garden. I know that Michel will take good care of it and I have told him to take home and eat any fruit/veg that need picking, harvesting.

I did however make the most of it on Saturday and took quite a few pictures in the garden of:
- the second dahlia: 'Crème de Cassis' (a beautiful deep purple)
- the pumpkin flowers
- the 'caged' 'Nigella Moody Blues'
- the last crop from the garden before trip to UK/Eire (beetroot, chard, radish, rhubarb)
- the most amazing (almost 'artistic') beetroot on the planet: Barabietola di Chioggia
See all the pictures below.

Ended up making a salad with the (very thinly sliced raw) beetroot, radish and rhubarb chard. Dressing with olive oil, lemon, honey and grainy mustard. Looked great - tasted even better!
We had it with a bowl of (Doves organic gluten free) pasta with fresh chorizo, fennel and red onion. Bottle of Barbera d'Alba.... All of it enjoyed outside during a dry spell between two showers: very lucky!

When I checked the fridge earlier that day, I discovered 4 eggwhites (from ice cream making the week before) so I quickly whipped them up with some sugar to make meringues for individual pavlovas. We had one each that night. Can't beat it. Always a good option. And so incredibly easy.

Spent the rest of that evening packing and getting organised. Went to bed a bit shattered but too hyper to fall asleep quickly... You'll always see that ;-).

Anyway, I'm here now :-). And loving it! I do think that somehow I belong here in England....more than anywhere else....perhaps Ireland....

We checked the situ in Southpool last night and eventhough it was flooded on Saturday it seems to be fine now so we're heading off at lunch time to make sure that the lovely Freddie will sleep in the car for a large part of our journey.
Can't wait to also visit the 'Millbrook Inn' - a very good gastro pub indeed with amazing food and lovely atmosphere. Whenever you're near Southpool: an absolute MUST!

That'll be it for now. Will try and keep you posted on Devon and Connemara - am sure there will be enough to write about!

Hope you can all keep the floods at bay...........

Love,
X Bee