Una Lezione Speciale

La settimana scorsa abbiamo avuto una lezione d'italiana, molto speciale.  

Invece della grammatica, le due ore le abbiamo passate in cucina, e a tavola. L'atmosfera della cucina era piacevole, noi studenti eravamo molto eccitati and socievoli.

La prima cosa che la signora ci ha offerto è stato 
“Ferro-China-Bisleri”, un aperativo italiano per la nostra salute. 

Gaia ha portato un’insalata Caprese chi lei aveva già fatto a casa. 
Che sorpresa!  Silvia, la figlia della signora, Lita, che insegne italiano anche, ha passato la serata con noi.

La prima cosa che abbiamo fatto è stata “La Bruschetta Al Pomodoro”. Gli student hanno tagliato  i pomodori e quando hanno aggiunto l’olio di oliva, la professoressa li ha rifiniti aggiungendo più olio dicendo:-
“I pomodori devono essere lucidi”

Roberto ed io abbiamo avuto l’incarico di fare il Ragù alla Bolognese.  Per il ragù, ci vuole molto tempo.  La signora aveva già preparato gli odori prima: le carote, le cipolle and il sedano erano già tagliati.
Noi due abbiamo soffritto la carne. Poi abbiamo aggiunto i pomodori, il pepe nero e il basilica.  Il ragù ha continuato a cuocere per quasi due ore.


La lampada della cucina emanava una luce molto colorata creando una bella atmosfera.  Io ho fatto delle fotografie della bella serata, le due professoresse e gli studenti.  La storia continua settimana prossima.

Great Nutrition Ideas

Here is a great web address to check out for high nutrtion interesting food ideas.  The New York Times
here is the link:-

 nutrition ideas NYT

I grow my art

This is the fruiting body of a red toadstool.  Too crazy for words.  Someone told me it looks like surgery gone wrong.

Another Hydroponic Garden

I think, as we become more and more urbanized, and at the same time, we yearn to have fresh, healthy food, the hydroponic garden will take off. The hydroponic garden looks like it could be dismantled fairly easily. So it may suit a renter. 

Here is another idea which Barrie sent to me. This garden has a very small footprint compared to the large  yield.  This would work in a very small space, indeed.  The structure would need to be strong. Though , it looks like the bottoms of the tubes are resting on the ground, which would help with managing the weight.

I am going balmy at my place with the weeds.  But look at this...............no weeds in the hydroponic garden.

Thanks Barrie for this great picture. This looks amazing.

 And another thing.

Speaking of going balmy, I found a 21 metrre vertical garden in the middle of Barcelona, alas while surfing the net.  I went looking for "vegietecture"and found this.  Here is the link:-
http://popupcity.net/2012/08/vegitecture-a-supersized-green-wall-in-barcelona/http://popupcity.net/2012/08/vegitecture-a-supersized-green-wall-in-barcelona/

just click

Other People's Gardens - Ted & Kay's Excellent Adventure

Easter Sunday, was a lovely day, a morning coffee with friends at a special garden. 

The garden looks finished and truly beautiful.  It is set in a sweeping landscape and the house and garden take advantage of that vista.

 A quick trip to the veggie patch.  I think I am on the set of "Gardening Australia"

 Plenty of wow factor here. If you don't like it..........

 You have the goat to answer to!

Speaking of silly goats

What is that purple bank on the left?

Look more closely

They are Tibouchina

Back to the patch, it's roses and rhubarb

Asparagus and Artichoke

Here is the lovely gardener

Time to say goodbye and head up the beautiful drive.

Thanks Ted and Kay for a lovely Easter Sunday morning

 

House Warming Party

Happy House Warming Chris and Marcia

Other People's Gardens, Helen & Gary

Helen's and Gary's Garden is a labour of love

Such a great garden that is brand new.  It was mostly set up at the end of 2012. year.  It meant some hard yakka from Gary and his dad, but now it is well and truly up and running.  The results have been amazing.  Helen says I am not even seeing it at its prime.  Before Christmas, they had a great crop of corn,  tomatoes and beetroot.  Once again, anyone who can raise a garden crop through the summer we have just had deserves a medal.

The driveway looks like a prizewinner from a magazine

Even doggie loves being in the garden

Helen has preserved some of these little beauties as a pickle. 

Yummy. I must get the recipe.

Look carefully for these beauties.  So fresh and tasty

This is very gourmet

 what a great crop of miniature capsicums.  

I have a recipe which I adapted from ABC Delicious Magazine, March 2013.  My versions uses Haloumi instead of a tuna/capers blend.

Preserved Haloumi Stuffed Capsicums

Makes 1 x 500ml Jar

This well keep in the fridge for 2 months. Bring the jar back to room temp. before serving.

Ingredients

 200gm Haloumi

300 to 500gm mini capsicums

1 clove garlic

2 thyme sprigs

1 rosemary sprig

1 - 2 cups olive oil

1/4 cup white vinegar

Method

Slice the tops off the capsicums and set aside.  .  Scoop out the cores and the seeds. 

Cut the haloumi into small cubes.

then press a piece of haloumi into each capsicum and press the top back on firmly.

Place the capsicums, garlic, thyme and rosemary into the jar.  

Pour over vinegar,

Pour enough oil to reach 1cm below the top of the jar.

Seal tightly with the lid.

Place a tea towel in the bottom of a stockpot, then place the jar on top.

Pour in enough water to cover the jar.  Place over medium heat and bring it to the boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 1hour 20 minutes, topping up the water to ensure the jar is always completely covered. 

Cool the jars slightly in the pan, then remove from the water -  the lid should be slightly concave in the centre.  This means the jar has an airtight seal.

Keep the preserved capsicums in the fridge until ready to serve.  

At the Gym

This is Barrie and Me at the gym.  Barrie has assembled a great hydroponic garden on his back garden wall.

Other people's gardens, Barry's Hydroponics

Anyone who can grow anything in S.E. Queensland this summer deserves a medal.

With the extraordinary weather here, firstly no rain to speak of until mid January, then EX T C Oswald which blew everything to smithereens and dumped an incredible amount of rain in a short space of time.  Then no sunshine in February, at all, it is a miracle we have any gardens left.  Certainly here at Domicilio Verde things are looking very crook indeed.  Just about cancelling all crop harvests until spring.  We are just battening down for a good spring.  For us that means adding goodies to the soil, like mushroom compost, dump mulch and worm wee, blood and bone.  We are trying to build up the soil food web and fortify the soil for a good spring.  Without the sun for nearly three weeks, soil temperature has dropped to winter levels - so tomatoes are staying small and green, The exceptions are the weeds.  The wandering Jew,  the sticky chickweed, cobbler's peg seedlings and kikuyu lawn are loving the conditions.
This post is all about the triumphs of others.  Barry, Helen and Deanne

  

Barrie's Hydroponic Setup  -  Clever

Thanks for letting me share this on the blog, Barry.  Here is Barrie's Hydroponic arrangement.  Minimum space required, just a fence.  It means that people with zero back yard can grow good stuff.  It also means that some of  the nasties are avoided.  These include soil borne pests, like nematodes and the impact of extreme weather on soil is also minimised.  Enough chat.  A picture says a thousand words.

Barrie says there is enough sunlight, even though it is against the wall

A simple loop of water.  This shows the water leaving the growing pipe

Here is the pump which returns the water to the start of the growing pipe.

Very clever. 

Ex Tropical Cyclone Oswald

 Ex TC Oswald.  

The tree across the road came down on Saturday morning.

We knew that the big ex tropical cyclone was coming.  Surprising to see a tree down before it really even started.

This one came down Saturday evening

Okay. this was a scary amount of wind blowing - felt very cyclonic. I felt like one of those idiot journalists reporting to you, live, from .....

Still another came down Sunday morning. That made three.

 

Corn is blown right over here.  But it is still okay.  Corn rocks.  We have been eating corn ever since.  It is so sweet and tender that we don't have to cook it. This was a precious crop. It took four attempts at sowing the seeds to get this.  We were aiming to have it ready for Christmas.  Alas February corn is delicious, too.





A funny thing.  - (Picture looks fuzzy? it's raining)
Do you see the overflow spout of the tank being blown sideways.  This is our new tank. We had  eagerly awaited its filling. Filled up Friday afternoon 25th January.  This is picture is Sunday afternoon.  Unbeknown to us, this overflow was washing away the foundations of the tank which caused a crease in the join in the bottom. By Thursday water was spurting out of the bottom.  We had to get the guy in to fix the tank - the tank needed to be emptied first.

The rain is falling today and the tanks is refilling.  Oh bliss.

Australia Day, not in the garden. It's too wet

So dry for so long and now......................

 That's us in the blue

We are certainly having a lot of weather lately. This is the rain depression from ex Tropical Cyclone Oswald. The "bom.gov.au" has had so many hits that it has stopped working for a while. According to the radar, a large golden patch passed over us just now and that means heavy rain.  We have had non-stop rain for about 36 hours now.  A large tree branch has fallen right across the road right here, but some good Sam. has chopped it up and thrown it aside.
Our water tanks were filled to overflowing at 4.00pm yesterday.  The ground is getting a good soak.
Worse to come tonight, they say. 
I picked every red tomato I possibly could, yesterday.  They will split with all this rain.
We smoked some tomatoes, zucchini, spring onion. I made a little chicken casserole with the smoked tomatoes in amongst the sauce.  I added an eggplant and a red hot chilli. I served it with cous cous.

Recipe Chicken with Smoked tomato Casserole
Chicken breast Fillet sliced thinly
Spring onion
Clove of garlic, crushed and chopped finely
1 Cup of fresh tomatoes
1 Cup Smoked tomatoes
1 Chilli
1 grated zucchini
100g haloumi chopped into thick slices
or 1 teaspoon blue vein cheese, crumbled

Method
In a saucepan, fry the spring onion and then the crushed garlic. Remove from the pan.  Lightly fry the chicken.
Return the onion and garlic to the pot
Add all the tomatoes, smoked tomatoes, eggplant, chilli
Cook for 5 minutes so the eggplant softens a little
Then add the zucchini, and haloumi,
Serve with couscous, rice or pasta. sprinkle with parsley and the blue vein