It’s asparagus season – yippee 🙂  We have some very good asparagus farms near here so it is a vegetable I have never grown myself as I know the farms cut it and sell it each day so it is fresh, fresh, fresh.  Which makes it delicious.

I didn’t have breakfast which was not my intention but I had an incredibly busy morning, sorting out the car, a trip to the hairdressers and ferrying Harvey around.  So fuelled by tea and coffee alone I kept going until lunch time.

I enjoyed my first asparagus of the season with a slice of ham and 2 fried eggs.

2 perfectly fried eggs actually.
So good I practically licked the plate. In the afternoon I snacked on an apple with some Gruyere.  This looks like a lot of cheese but it is a very small plate. In an attempt to get us all back on track with healthy eating I prepared a bolognaise sauce for next weeks dinner.  One of my favourite vegetables is tenderstem broccoli but unfortunately that enthusiasm was not shared by everyone in my family so I have to limit what I serve in each meal.  I chopped the stems up and added them to the bolognaise sauce. The base of my bolognaise sauce had tenderstem broccoli stems, red pepper, carrots, onion and mushrooms.  I added minced meat and tomatoes and then simmered it very slowly for a couple of hours which makes a very fully-flavoured sauce so I am looking forward to that next week.  I caught Harvey eating it twice which is a good sign. For dinner tonight we had brown Basmati rice with stir fried veggies (pak choi, spinach, broccoli tips, onions, red pepper and mushrooms) and king prawns.  I cooked the veggies with garlic, a splash of Nom Pla (fish sauce) and Tamari soy sauce and served it with lots of coriander.  It was a popular meal with us all.

Out in the garden the peas I sowed 2 weeks ago have finally germinated and are growing well. The first of the climbing French beans have also begun to emerge from the soil. In the greenhouse the Cosmos I sowed last weekend is beginning to appear. The tomato seedlings are beginning to look like tomato plants – I have so many so if anyone local wants any Pomodoro plants please let me know. The first real leaves on the cucumbers plants are beginning to grow. The Copper Beech’s leaves are growing too – one of my favourite trees.  I am very pleased with my little corner of the garden.  I find it beautiful to look at and a constant source of wonder and excitement (and occasional frustration). This lovely clematis my cousin gave me is still in full and lovely bloom. I am off to relax with a well deserved large glass of Merlot from Bordeaux – cheers!