Basil pesto

basil1I had the sincere joy of of prancing through a huge greenhouse of culinary herbs yesterday. And I picked a shopping bag full of deliciousness – mainly basil. All destined for pesto…

My pesto recipe isn’t a strict one. Basically, I chop a whole lot of basil, a couple of cloves of garlic and pinenuts by hand. I then add shaved parmesan, salt and olive oil. My amounts depend largely on how much I have at hand and what tastes right. It’s not so much the amount of each ingredient, but a really good balance and it will taste absolutely sublime.

I chop everything by hand, which takes more time, but is so worth it. It’s much easier to get quantities and texture just right. I really don’t like pesto made in a food processor. It tends to turn into green goo. Don’t get me wrong, it still tastes mighty fine – but hand-chopped looks better.

It takes about 30 minutes. All that added love, care and attention that goes into each tasty morsel is totally worth it!

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Brussels sprouts

Brussels sproutsSo I’ve been getting all angsty about my Brussels sprouts Brassica oleracea var. gemmifera. It turns out I planted them at the wrong time – curse you garden stores with attractive looking punnets. Apparently, I should be planting them now instead of 3 months ago.

Second thing I got wrong – they require a much firmer soil then the bed they are in right now. Well-limed, well-drained, well-firmed is the advice I’ve just received on the topic. Apparently, they’re a bit fussy. But I reckon these babies are going to be sooo worth it.

I realise this can be a very contentious issue. They are one of the least liked vegetables. But I think Brussels sprouts have just had really bad press. They’re delicious when grown well and cooked properly, with a really nice nutty flavour.

More on the joys of Brussels sprouting with recipes and nutritional info after the jump… Read more

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Make Your Own Herbal Multi-Vitamins

Treasure! I’ve just been sorting out some old books and this piece of paper dropped out of it. A recipe for herbal health capsules given to me about 20 years ago.

All the ingredients are pretty easy to get. I have most of them in my garden or cupboard and I’ll sprout some alfalfa especially for it. Watercress and kelp usually aren’t a problem to find in NZ. Considering good quality multi-vitamins cost about NZ$40 a month right now, I’m really keen to give this a go. This should only cost me the gelatine caps, or if I wanted to cut it down even further, use one of my husband’s cigarette papers to wrap it up in to swallow (not half as bad as it sounds).

88888 Disclaimer: I haven’t tried this, I don’t vouch for it. I am not a trained nutritionist, doctor, or herbalist. But since these are all things I would eat anyway, I’m willing to give it ago. 88888

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Food not Lawns – Heather C. Flores

Heather Flores is a green garden goddess. She has a vision – for lawns to give way to gardens and those gardens to feed and sustain communities. And she’s written down the blueprint for this garden revolution in Food not Lawns: How turn your Yard into a Garden and Your Neighbourhood into a Community.

Food not Lawns starts by putting you in the right headspace, a good non-preachy ‘why you should’. Flores then kicks into a really sound overview of the practical elements – how to gain ground, the water cycle, the living soil, plants, polycultures and seed stewardship. All this in a really friendly, engaging style. Then we go beyond the garden, reaching out into the community and working together, for and with the next generation.

More review and lots of links after the jump…

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Drink tea

I drink a lot of tea. It doesn’t seem so next to my British in-laws who seem to constantly sip sugary, milky gumboot tea. But nearly all my fluid intake consists of pots of aromatic gorgeous brews of green or white teas, florally-infused blacks or herbal concoctions. Plants all brewed in water, imparting nutrients, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants into my diet.

For years I’ve been assaulted with messages from the media about how I should be drinking far more pure water, and how drinking tea is bad for girls because it strips away iron from the body, or how tea is so dehydrating because of all the caffeine.

Researchers at Kings College London have thankfully said “poppycock!” to the aforementioned bologne. After reviewing numerous studies on the benefits of drinking tea, they’ve concluded that tea is a superior drink.

Dr Ruxton said: “Drinking tea is actually better for you than drinking water. Water is essentially replacing fluid. Tea replaces fluids and contains antioxidants so it’s got two things going for it.”

As for caffeine in teas being dehydrating, the research team says:

“Studies on caffeine have found very high doses dehydrate and everyone assumes that caffeine-containing beverages dehydrate. But even if you had a really, really strong cup of tea or coffee, which is quite hard to make, you would still have a net gain of fluid.”

I am starting to make my own blends but my favourite source of fine, fine tea is Wellington’s t Leaf T They’re delish!

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