Everything you ever wanted to know about Chestnut growing; but were afraid to ask.

Two weeks ago the Chestnut trees were in flower. If you enlarge the above, you should be able to differentiate between the 'wild' Chestnuts, and their cultivated grafted cousins. The cultivated ones have the paler (flowered) canopies, which look like below.

The bees were brought in, the plantations mowed and pampered, and fingers crossed throughout the area.

                                  

Now it's the beginning of July, and the flowers have all dropped. The ground resembles the passing of a dreadlock clipping ceremony.

Next stage (about 4 months away) will be the harvest, when the fruits will look like this and taste wonderful.

                                  

But for the moment, let's all enjoy summer to the fullest; autumn seems a long way away.

Couscous 2.

                                  

For my piece about COUSCOUS, please see previous posting.

No, I don't understand it either!

Couscous.

The very first time I encountered Couscous, I knew that it was to become an important part of my life; rather like Pasta.

Oddly, this encounter did not take place in Morocco (I slept through my early visits to N Africa, on account of the soporific quality of certain illegal substances), but here in France where we have a large Moroccan and Algerian population.

These days it would be unimaginable for us not to eat Couscous several times a week; often in summer as cold Taboulé, but usually hot accompanied by a spicy Lamb or Chicken Tagine.

I have never been taught the art of Couscous preparation; I've just muddled through by looking, tasting, and experimenting.

The Couscous itself I mix with dried mint, cumin seeds, and olive oil, before I re-heat in the microwave. My Tagines always contain tomatoes, courgettes, chick peas, potato, carrots, harissa, preserved lemons, ground cumin, and cinnamon (the one above contained Lamb). 

On warm summer evenings, to sit down with friends to a big dish of perfumed and spicy Couscous (and a plentiful supply of rouge) is as good as it gets. 

Monsieur Bok Magnon; si'l vous plait!

I've come to the inevitable conclusion that Bok is a human being inside a dog suit.

Unlike many dogs he is extremely attentive, patient, and loving. 

He's also something of a sports fanatic. He enjoys Hare coursing, Deer hunting, and Athletics. He's not over keen on ball games, but Monty is trying to encourage him.

He is contemplative, wiley, and sometimes devious.

If he was to reveal his real self, he would probably make a very good writer.

I was reminded recently of the Romany expression 'Kushti Bok'...... Kushti Bok indeed.

Red Currants.

As you can probably see from my unopened 2010 jar of Red Currant Jelly, we don't go overboard for the stuff.

It's knowing what to do with Red Currants that is the problem. There's Jelly, or Jelly, or even Jelly.

I think this year I'll just eat them 'fresh' with some Yoghurt. I might even dig-up the bush; no-one's really interested, and that includes me!

Vile Bodies.

                                        

Mine is the Summer of 1946 Gold Star model, but very similar to the above.

Everything seems to be working reasonably well. Some bits better than others, but nothing to give too much concern.

The brain is still active. Perhaps too much 'common sense' has crept in to replace the 'safety last' attitude of my youth, but I still manage several irresponsible and inappropriate thoughts each day.

The long side bits both work well, with the extremities in fine fettle. The long lower bits are less good, especially where they bend, but they've done more miles than the side bits. Maybe some WD40 is required in places.

It's the main central bit which gives slight concern. The 'rutting' mechanism is less active than in previous times (20 year olds with pretty smiles once wreaked havoc with my affections), both the air and blood pumps are OK, the filters do what's required, and the waste system is adequate. The sugar management bit could be better.

Obviously it doesn't look as good as once it might have (?), but I wouldn't be able to cope with huge paternity duties anyway. Perhaps it could do with being a bit trimmer, but what the hell; as long as all the main bits keep working, I'm not complaining.

I have to tolerate it, so others will just have to do the same.

Fruit and veg; June.

Fruit-n-vegs are rather like London Busses, they all turn up at once. Now that our Calabrese is finished, we are inundated with Cauliflowers. Lady Magnon suggested that we freeze some, but I'm not convinced; these things tend to loose much of their quality when de-frosted. I think we'll just have to eat them, give them away, or make curried pickles (see here, and below).

I planted this 'yellow' Cherry about 8 years ago because someone told me that the birds become confused thinking that they're still unripe, and leave them alone. There may be some truth in this (although I doubt it), as the huge murmuration of Starlings that have recently taken up residence nearby have yet to descend on them. They are slightly firmer than the usual red ones, but the flavour is the same. The tree is loaded, delicious.

We also have a good supply of red cabbages. These will be eaten as an instant pickled cabbage for lunches. About an hour before eating I shred them finely and lightly sprinkle with vinegar salt and sugar, I turn the mix over a few times, then hey presto; instant pickled red cabbage.  

Also on the Magnon table are Courgettes, Beans, Tayberries, and Salads. We are still awaiting the first Tomatoes.

And here's that curried pickle I mentioned above; just made. The very light pickle, combined with the curry flavour is surprisingly good; eat after about a week.

p.s. Our new Fridge-Freezer has arrived. Thank goodness, in this heat it's essential.