Gardening Book (Continued)

Sharing and Cooking

It's all about the gardening book and a lot more.

Having a vegetable garden patch is fun.  The best time is harvesting, getting the reward from the hard work.  Followed by cooking and sharing.
An inspiring book of  Stephanie Alexander about, Kitchen Garden Companion, has been useful to me (a mother's day gift, it's an excellent book, Sue, thanks).  It teaches me a lot, how to garden, to share and to cook.

Salsa Verde, on page 341, is the recipe that I would like to do.  My herbs garden and potted herbs are at their best right now; however I don't have all herbs that are needed in the recipe.  But it is going to work, the flavour will be slightly different.

marjoram, lovage and garlic chives

Three herbs were missing: French tarragon, parsley and spring onion, instead I used marjoram, lovage and garlic chives.

The salsa verde that I did is delicious and refreshing too.

ingredients for the salsa verde
chopped herbs, sliced cornichons, kippers and halved of lemon

transfer the chopped ingredients
onto a bow,

add the oil, salt, freshly ground pepper
add the juice of prior lemon serving

.  

Vegetables, fruits and harvests from the previous years

Nectarines, the tree is small but harvested
delicious fruits

Freshly picked Kalamata olive
from our backyard.

Beetroot plants

Radicchio in the veg patch

Fresh vegetables

Fresh greens from my veg patch

Fresh strawberries 

Red and fresh tomatoes

Fresh vegetables, radicchio and mixed herbs

 from the last harvest

Fresh herbs from the backyard

The herbs did well last year,  the French tarragon is not here any longer, I did not know what had happened to it.  Today I will improvise the dish that I am going to cook as the herbs are not complete.

My Potted Herbs

Parsley and Salad Green

Rosemary

Lemon Thyme

French Tarragon

Sage

Mint

Salsa Verde, a recipe from Stephanie Alexander's book, has inspired me.  I liked the idea, I made adjustments, as I did not have a few herbs in my garden. Improvising is good, it gives me a chance of being creative.




I indulged my self, enjoyed the salsa verde for my fresh vegetables.  It's so delicious, a very refreshing salad.  Thank you, Stephanie, for the recipe.

Fresh vegetables: iceberg lettuce, Romano endive and radicchio served

with salsa verde

Salsa Verde
Recipe by: Stephanie Alexander

Makes 1/2 cup  This is a wonderfully versatile sauce.  I love spreading it on grilled eggplant or grilled zucchini.  It is sensationally eaten with poached chicken breast or a grilled lamb chopped.  Try it with grilled asparagus or a barbecued or grilled fillet of fish or use it as a sauce for raw vegetables.  There are many version in both Italian and French cookbooks.  The most common variations are to add a slice of day-old bread soaked in water, oil or vinegar and crumbled, or to include finely chopped or minced hard-boiled eggs, although I have done neither.  Sometimes the finished sauce is quite loose, and sometimes it is made quite thick - there is no absolute right or wrong way.

1 spring onion, trimmed and very finely sliced
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped rocket leaves (long end removed)
1 teaspoon chopped French tarragon
1 teaspoon chopped lemon thyme
1 teaspoon chopped chervil
3 cornichons, sliced
1 tablespoon salted capers, soaked in hot water and rinsed.
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground pepper
finely grated zest and juice of 1/2 lemon

As each ingredient is chopped or sliced, transfer it to the same small bowl.  Stir in oil and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.  Don't add lemon juice until you are ready to use the sauce, as it will dull its beautiful green colour.  On the other hand, any leftovers will still taste great, so don't throw them away, just store them carefully covered with plastic film in the refrigerator.

Enjoy the recipe and happy cooking!



Thanks, Susan for the book, it was three years ago. I got it from you, and it has been beneficial to me.  It is an excellent book to have.
Thinking of you Susan, have a happy holiday in Tasmania with Tris, enjoy the break.

Have a Good Weekend 

Thank You For Visiting

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