Monday 9 August 2010

Haddock's brimeth over.

It's the time of year when everything seems to come in a rush, and the only way to cope is to preserve. The tomatoes are just beginning to over-produce, the aubergines are plentiful, the peppers dripping from their plants, and courgettes are just everywhere. It's time to make Ratatouille.

I don't bother with recipes. I simply take equal amounts of the above mentioned vegetables, cut them into cubes, and cook until of the right consistency. Depending on my mood, I add olive oil, red wine, salt, pepper, dried herbs, garlic, basil, chilli, etc. Then I sterilise for 45 mins and leave the bottles to cool in the sterilising pan.

We still have a few 500 gm jars from last year, so those are being used up as quickly as possible. When the tomatoes become really troublesome, I shall also be doing aubergines in tomato sauce; a wonderful standby for stews, curries, and casseroles throughout the winter. All I need now are a few 36 hr days.

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8 comments:

  1. Oh, those summer vegies would go down well here. I put thinly sliced courgette with homemade tomatoe sauce on my pizza. Delicious. All of those vegies would be wonderful though.

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  2. I'm just trying to keep up with everything... not too successfully.

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  3. Mother Nature is a wickedly fast woman...I'm not sure what sounds more delicious Cro, the process or the end product.
    One of my visions of Heaven, is a steamy hot kitchen, filled with friends filling jars.

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  4. Hope I can join the club. I come with my own jars too.

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  5. Looks wonderful, Cro. The only thing you need is a nice crusty loaf of bread, some cheese, and a nice bottle of wine.

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  6. Oh wow, Cro - your garden's looking good. I like Ratatouille - going to give that recipe a try. Like Amy said - nice crusty bread, cheese and a good bottle of wine - can we all come around to another family cyber party and enjoy the harvest goodies?

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  7. Great veg patch Cro - I totally dig your garden.. I mean, not literally.. But you have a cool garden.. I always admire people who take the time to cultivate their own crops. You must have a lotta patience.. Do you find this an enriching pursuit, I hear it's good for the soul?

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  8. Enriching? Not so sure. Personally I do it because I like to have unadulterated vegs at the bottom of the garden. We have the space, we have the weather, and luckily my back is still holding out!

    Oh, and I won't buy any vegs until April/May.

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