I am in love with quails eggs, duck egg blue pre-loved plates, Easter trees, and shared brunches! A change of seasons is here, the apple and pear buds are bursting in my small garden, and I am ready to sow the seeds and plant out my shallots, beans, peas and edible flowers – I encourage everyone to plant something edible in their garden/on their balcony, or even their window sill, this spring! You can grow it, yes you can! Start with chives, parsely and thyme, move onto mint, bayleaf and coriander, pansies, nasturtiums, borage and shizo. Add them to your summer salads for a burst of colourful taste. A pot, some soil, seeds, water – hopefully a bit of sun, and off you go! I do have a little problem in my garden that has amazing digging paws and the sweetest expression in the world plus taste for succulent spring plant tips. Our inherited French dwarf rabbit, Peta Bunnypaws is one of the most cunning escapologists I have ever met. She has a lovely huge house with 2 levels and a large run carpeted with fresh hay (with the odd carrot top hidden in it) but she spends her days hatching houdini like escape plans, intent on thwarting my inferior rabbit fencing expertise. The score stands at Peta 22, me nil. Tip: edible gardens and bunnies don’t mix so you would be bunny owners, beware!! She makes a fine living Easter decoration though!
Yesterday at the wonderfu farmer’s market in The Hague I purchased a gorgeously aromatic white spring truffle. I nipped home with it and a buxom bouquet of tall Tulips and other goodies and secreted it in the fridge close by to my eggs (it is supposed to perfume those as well!) and today we had it for breakfast. Sliced thin, popped into sizzling organic butter, salted slightly and smelling like fresh earthy soil on a dew-wet day … it was a little like heaven on an egg. I didn’t share it my holidaying children, it was just too good. Maybe one day…. if they are really good.
I can’t really tell you how wonderful the simple combination of scrambled eggs, truffle and spelt bread was…. you will have to try it yourself. Meanwhile, the kids are making chocolate eggs in a real egg shell in the kitchen, I am thinking about making my own wholemeal hotcross buns and wondering if Peta Bunnypaws is out yet and if she is in my herb section!
My friend Yvonne at the market who has a superb vegetable (and flower stand) now has a new website – http://www.tuinderijdeknotwilg.nl – say hello if you visit her stand, such a lovely person! And don’t you just love it when you can buy stuff without plastic wrapping yay!!! Happy Easter how ever you celebrate it but do try and share your food with friends and loved ones! Below Peta is considering plan 23!
