Excited About Seeds

Now that the days are growing longer I am getting super-excited about my spring vegetable garden.  I can hardly wait to have tomatoes and sweetcorn and peppers and cucumbers waiting to be picked just outside my back door.   This will be my first vegie patch since we moved to Adelaide and my fingers are very, very itchy to get working.

Unfortunately, it's far too early to plant summer vegies but I can still think, plan and dream.

I can also keenly watch the growth of the things I have already planted: broccoli and onions, garlic, broadbeans, radishes, cos lettuces and silverbeet (Swiss chard).  On the weekend I even planted out a few early potatoes under compost and straw.

By the way, is it 'veggie' or 'vegie'?

I always thought the latter spelling was correct until I saw the kids' TV show Veggie Tales, and now I alternate between the two - which is traumatic for a spelling pedant such as myself.

Do you grow your own vegetables?  If so, what kinds?

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Sea Fever

 Palm Cove July 2010 

This post is dedicated to my mum, who used to quote 'Sea Fever' to me when I was a little girl.

Sea Fever

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.


I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.


I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

by John Masefield, 1902

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Birthday party!!

Aqui estão algumas fotos da mesa que criei para o aniversário da Carlota. Não imaginam o imenso prazer que me deu!.. Adorei planear todos os passos, pensar na decoração, nos bolos, nas crianças e nos doces de que elas tanto gostam!

Este é o bolo mais bonito que já vi!... Obra-prima da Francisca, da Cupcake. Muitos dos doces nas jarras foram-me enviados pela minha amiga Vanessa, que foi incansável a ajudar-me no meu sonho. Thanks Vanessa, you're the best!

 

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Obrigada a todos! Pela amizade e atenção que deram à Carlota, pela vossa presença e alegria, pelas palavras lindas.

Here are some of the photos of the party table that I created for Carlota's birthday. You can't imagine the pleasure I got from the whole preparation thing: the planning, thinking about the decor, the cake, the candies!

This is most beautiful cake that I have ever seen... It's a master piece made by Francisca, from Cupcake.com.pt. Most of the candies on the jars were sent by my friend Vanessa, who did all her best efforts in helping me to pursue this dream. Thanks Vanessa, you're the best!

Thank you all! For your friendship and care, for your presence and joy, for the beautiful words.

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HaPpY BiRtHdAy!!

Hoje a Carlota faz 8 anos. Está quase tudo pronto para a festinha de amanhã...

Parabéns, Carlota! És a razão disto tudo.

Today Carlota turns 8. Everything is almost ready...
Happy Birthday Carlota! You're the reason of it all.

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Egg Carton Seedling Trays

Rather than starting seedlings in commercial peat pots or plastic seedling trays, a cheaper alternative is to use cardboard egg cartons.  Once your seedlings are big enough, you can cut the cartons up and plant them straight into the ground, which will reduce transplantation shock.  Eventually the cardboard will break down, leaving you with healthy, strong plants.

In a month or two, when the weather warms up, I'll be planting my tomato seeds in egg cartons - it's much less expensive than buying tomato seedlings.  This method also reduces plastic waste as commercial seedlings inevitably come in plastic seedling trays.

The seedlings in today's photo are baby cos lettuces from my winter veggie garden.  As they needed thinning, I dug some up and put them in an egg carton to give to my friend Lisa.  She's just starting her veggie patch.

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Orange and Apple Jam

I was looking for a way to use some of the oranges on our orange tree when I found a recipe for Orange and Apple Jam in a Country Women's Association cookbook.

I had never thought to cook oranges and apples together to make jam until I saw this recipe, but since I had a good supply of Granny Smith apples in the fridge, I thought it was worth a try.  The reason for the apples, I imagine, is to provide pectin to help the jam to set, as the oranges dominate in the finished product.

First published in1937, the cookbook assumes that you will know to peel, core and slice the apples before cooking them. I love the minimalism of very old cookbooks, although it's sometimes not very helpful!

Orange and Apple Jam

3 large oranges, 3 Granny Smith apples, 2.7kg (12 1/4 C) sugar

Cut the oranges and soak for 36 hours in 2.75 litres (11 cups) water.  Put in a saucepan with the apples and boil until tender.  Add the sugar and boil for about 30 minutes, or until it jellies.

From The Country Women's Association Cookbook: Seventy Years in the Kitchen, (reprinted in 2009).

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After School

When I looked around me after school today I could see my 11 year old with his feet in the air reading a Horrible History book about the Normans.  My seven year old was snuggled up under a quilt with his older sister and he was reading to her.  My eldest boy was at the table doing homework.

I looked at them all, happy and peaceful, and thought that this is exactly how I wish all our afternoons could be: happy and busy and calm and industrious.

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