Category: COOKING
Once the weather returned to some kind of normal summer-esk conditions, I took the opportunity to process the harvest I was able to salvage. While not everything did well this summer – namely my tomatoes, some things have done exceptionally…
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: beetroot, Beetroot muffins, Coastal gardening, February, GARDENING, Growing Vegetables, Late Summer, New Zealand, pickled beetroot, Understanding pickle recipes
This weekend I did something I’d been putting off for absolutely ages. During the summer I grew French Red shallots. Every year I hold back my biggest and replant them in the hopes that I end up with something a…
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: Coastal gardening, GARDENING, Growing Vegetables, Late Autumn, Making salt, May, New Zealand, pickled onions, Sarah the Gardener, shallots
Day one of giving kitchen gardening a higher priority was slow to eventuate. Life has this great habit of getting in the way. I either over did it in the garden and landed in a crumpled heap on the sofa,…
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: celeriac, Coastal gardening, Cooking with vegetables, Eating vegetables, fennel, Fennel and Celeriac Soup with Orange Zest, GARDENING, getting stuff done, Growing Vegetables, mid spring, New Zealand, October, River Cottage, Sarah the Gardener, The last of the winter crops
Not in the garden – that still fills me with joy and keeps me busy – although just last week I had barely been out there as the temperatures dropped, the wind picked up and the rain came in sideways! …
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: Coastal gardening, Cooking with vegetables, Eating vegetables, GARDENING, getting stuff done, Growing Vegetables, mid spring, New Zealand, October, Sarah the Gardener, The last of the winter crops
Every year I sow melon seeds with great anticipation. I like a bit of variety with my melons and I have the room, so I start off with Sugar Baby Watermelon. It is always reliable and even in a poor…
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: Coastal gardening, Don't let things go to waste if you have taken the time to grow it, Early Autumn, GARDENING, Growing Vegetables, Making jam, March, Melon Jam, melons, New Zealand, Rockmelon, Sarah the Gardener
We are still in summer, repeat after me ‘we are still in summer’. It is becoming a little bit hard to believe right now. After the rain eventually came there has been a perceivable shift in the way things feel. …
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: basil, Coastal gardening, February, freezing onion, GARDENING, Growing Vegetables, Late Summer, meal planning, New Zealand, okra, Processing the harvest, Sarah the Gardener, scallopini
October is such a gauntlet to run for us. With birthday’s, school holidays and then the obligatory back to school haircuts, stationary kit refresh and new shoes, the garden can become a little neglected. Not intentionally, but life can get…
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Category: COOKING, GARDENING
Tags: Coastal gardening, GARDENING, globe artichoke, Growing Vegetables, mid spring, New Zealand, October, Pickled globe artichoke, Recipe, Sarah the Gardener, spring
I do love it when you find an unexpected treasure in the garden. I’ve been clearing out the old brassica bed to make it ready for the new season sweetcorn. There is heaps of time before need the bed for…
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I have been determined to get things straightened out ready for the spring. However, my biggest weakness is procrastination and the bigger the mess the more likely I will put things off. The most pressing need right now is the…
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Category: COOKING, Uncategorized
Tags: Coastal gardening, GARDENING, Growing Vegetables, July, Mid Winter, New Zealand, pickled onions, Pickling shallots, procrastination, Sarah the Gardener, shallots, Winter gardening
I need to start by saying I am not a baker. When a small child came home from school with that little paper plate with a piece of paper stapled to it with the instructions to return the paper plate…
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Category: COOKING, Uncategorized
Tags: Catching wild yeast, Celebrating Easter in challenging times, Coastal gardening, Easter, GARDENING, Lockdown, making flour from wheat, Making hot cross buns, Mid Autumn, New Zealand, Sarah the Gardener, stay safe