High Summer 2020

A fresh spring garden, all bright green and friendly, became a lush summer solstice one which is now becoming a glorious mature profusion but not surprisingly showing signs of wear and tear. Watering, weeding, and deadheading will prolong the abundance for a while.

There are three large pots of orange/yellow calendula and deepest blue lobelia, all sowed from seed, throughout our garden. They did need to be sprayed with sulfur to combat a fungal disease called calendula smut. And they may need to be dosed again in order for them to continue flowering all through summer.

For years now social media images of a pot on its side spilling out lobelia visually simulating a small stream intriqued me, and this was the summer I finally got around realising this clever concept.

The 'stream' flows amidst cannas and dahlias. I love it so. It was just a matter of burying one quarter of the depth of an empty pot put on its side, filling it one thirds with soil, and planting by laying the roots laterally with the flowers placed beyond the pot's opening before topping up with more soil. 

It is now the fourth summer that this fragrant tuberous begonia has graced a small sous sol window sill. I hope it will bloom yet again in 2021.

Pots of miniature roses have found their home in a large tub along with a blueberry bush. In this way, not only does the display look full, when the roses are watered/fertilised so is the blueberry!

Hydrangeas are now fading into glorious subtle tones/texture and by autumn will become much like silver lace which always is a treat to behold.

The ivy topiary heart is being shaped gradually.  I just love it! Sculpting greenery is fun and gives so much joy. The structure on which it grows is a thick honeysuckle trunk that gave up the ghost nearly a decade ago. Requiring both patience and decisiveness makes topiary quite a learning experience.

Beets are putting out foliage which when thinned are added to minestrone.

Green beans are flowering. Soon tiny pods will appear and in several weeks they will be ready for picking.

À la prochaine!

Deep Fried Green Beans With Blue Cheese Dip

Luscious green beans keep coming in. They are young, smooth, slender and succulent, that is, with hardly any bumpy beans forming within the pod which is perfect for tender, battered fries. Don't wrinkle your nose in health-conscious disdain at deep frying because when it is done right, the food is closer to being steamed.

How to do deep frying correctly? Choose oil that is fresh, but add a large slosh of used oil. Heat it to the right temperature which is around 177 to 190 degrees C  (35o to 375 degrees F). No thermometer? Then insert a wooden skewer or end of a wooden spoon into the oil from time to time. Eventually a steady stream of tiny bubbles will be noticeable at the skewer's/spoon's bottom tip which takes about ten minutes. Make sure excess oil is swabbed off the fries with paper towels before serving. The fluffy quality of the batter which resembles bits of baking powder biscuits/scones sticking to the green beans is that way because baking powder is one of the ingredients.

For two ample servings, the ingredients are in bold: For a large fistful or two of trimmed and rinsed green beans, beat an egg with a dash of vinegar and a large pinch of baking powder. Put in a shallow bowl. Mix 1/2 cup of white flour with salt and freshly ground black pepper (I used a couple of large pinches of each) to taste on a plate. Dip all the beans at once into the egg and then scoop them up and heap on the plate with flour. Toss till mostly coated. Repeat, that is, toss them again in the egg mixture followed by the seasoned flour. Add more flour and seasonings if necessary. I used my fingers for mixing but the tossing and coating can be done with two forks. A heavy bottomed pot or in my case a cast iron casserole was filled with 5 cm (2 inches) of vegetable oil (no olive please as it doesn't get hot enough without smoking). Heat to the right temperature using a thermometer or with the trick described above. Tip the battered beans into the hot oil and fry for around four to five minutes or until golden brown. Fish out with a metal mesh strainer or a metal strainer spoon. Drain on paper towels. A few of the fries will stick together and can be coaxed apart. I prefer some clumping, more bang for the taste buck!

The fries are fine are their own, especially if well seasoned, but kissed with the blue cheese dip, oh my, another realm of pleasure is for the taking. For the dip, mix two heaping tablespoons of crème fraîche into two heaping tablespoons of  well-mashed, good quality blue cheese (I used Bleu d'Auvergne) and add enough cream (I used 3 T) to get the desired consistency. The final blending can be done with a stick mixer. If by hand, blend any lumps by mashing them against the side of the bowl with a spoon.

These were delicious and fun to eat. The texture is a cross between crunch and soft scone. The salty dip brought out the sweetness of our garden's green beans. The ingredients for both the fried green beans and dip can be increased to make a bigger quantity.

À la prochaine!