Thai Breakfast Congee

 



some of you may have already guessed, but the isn't a whole lot happening in the garden lately. the big producer at the moment, and even those numbers have dropped, are the hens. i've got 3 busy kale plants,  6 purple sprouting brocolli (yay!), a box of beetroot, and thats it! so eggs are on the menu, along with some kale i used in this recipe. 

 

its been a long month for the hens with non stop rain and freezing temperatures. the prolonged daylength and a small rise in temperature has done a world of good for egg numbers. my young pullet at the moment just started laying last week! it feels like spring is actually coming. which is a great

feeling after the shock returning from holidays in thailand. my first order of seeds has arrived and i've already put a few broad bean seeds in the ground.

 

before the growing season begins, i decided to take the time to repair and finish the fence i started last fall. it's made from pallet wood thats been stained a mahogany colour, with willow branches attached to create a sort of cottagey feel. it looks just about how i imagined it would, which is a relief! all thats left is a gate and possibly a new arbour for vine plants. ill try not to get too carried away!  



the hens out on their first real day of sun in a long time!

Celeriac Remoulade with Irish Bacon

so, after making this classic dish, celeriac remoulade. i realised that 1) remoulade is a fancy word for coleslaw and 2) its pretty tasty! and after a few seconds of wiki research i realised the name stems from french cusine and that remoulade is a sauce like aioli or mayonaise. so celeriac remoulade means: celeriac with a creamy sauce, or - coleslaw, i was RIGHT. i love coleslaw so thats probably why i think this is so tasty. the simpleness of the recipe and the flavours are lovely for a sunny day lunch or a picnic, if you're lucky enough to live somewhere it isn't raining.

preparing a celeriac

i have already mentioned my love of the root vegetable Celeriac before, if you care to read about my celeriac rants you can click, here. in the post i went as far as to claim myself an expert on the subject of celeriac. with some fancy trivia on the misnomer of its nickname: 'celery root.' very exciting and VERY nerdy. im still reserving extra space in the garden for my new root friends this year while cutting back on its stalky cousin. celeriac to me is a very understated veg, and everytime i peel, slice, or grate one im reminded this. what shows itself as an angry knobbly root in the garden is actually a subltle and friendly vegetable in the kitchen. sweet! this post is in a way a fairwell to a good friend, as this celeriac is the last celeriac from the garden this year, until october when the next crop will be ready. i've got the seed packets ready!

Sour Apple Martini

wow! im back after 4 weeks in thailand and im spinning in disbelief! but reinspired for the new year and food and blogging and gardening. it was getting tough to pull it together before i left. the weather had been well... you may already have guessed- rainy. theres been flooding and freezes and wind storms. the garden i have to say is in need of a lot of tlc and a good going over. the hens ransacked the rainbow chard and started on my flower bulb shoots, while i was away. so some chicken defense is in order for this spring.

thailand gave me loads of ideas for the kitchen and garden, i even snuck in a few seed packets!to try in the poly tunnel! while i was in thailand inever had one bad meal, which brings thai food into the top ranking spot for best world cuisine in my book! i mean, really, when were you last on holiday and all the food was perfect? never? most likely, unless you were in thailand.... so of course i'll be doing a few thai styled dishes for the blog, including: thai breakfsat soup, masamam curry, and pad thai.

im also delighted because the hens missed the purple sprouting broccolli, and its nearly ready for the table! i've had my first mini munch on a few tiny sprouts and i can hardly wait! there's one celriac left which ive got eyes on for a winter salad, and really thats it! there are quite a few beetroots left so im going to put my pickler cap on and get busy.

this recipe i started before i left the country last month. for some reason the image upload for blogger wasnt working,  which meant i had to cut it short and jet. but you can imagine me drinking these around new years and testing the recipe with friends and after thorough research (and a few fuzzy heads) we came up with a final mix to my Sour Apple Martini's. If you have been reading along before, I first started my batch of Sour Apple Vodka in November, after 7 weeks of marinating the end result was reached! Its super delicious and syrupy, perfect for this highly drinkable and dangerously potent cocktail. You will be able to downgrade to apple cider once you've enjoyed one or two Appletinis, the recipe only calls for a small amount, so you will have leftovers to finish!

if you are going to make your own sour apple vodka, click here. i recomend doubling the batch! its too good. have fun!!