Sunday 6 June 2010

Summertime and the cooking is easy



I love summer! Especially when we have hot sunny days and balmy nights. Right now the weather is gorgeous and the temperature just right at 22 degrees (9am!). The climate really does impact upon the kitchen and our recipes as well as on our students. We are far more inclined to consider new menus and experiment with new recipes when the sun is shining! Out door grazing is so much fun too after a winter of being stuck indoors! Now we have the chance to sit in the gardens under the trees and enjoy our cocktails, trial new drinks and experiment with new ideas! Incidentally have you ever tried cold beer with tonic?! Well it's not as bad as you might imagine and in fact some people actually enjoy it! That was more accident than design though. The elderflower is out in full blossom again and so we are planning to make another year's supply of our wonderful elderflower cordial. You will find the methodology in last year's blog and some of the wonderful ways you can serve it too. My favorite is elderflower champagne or Kerrouet Royale as it is known to our students! The linden tree is also about to blossom and we will be collecting the flowers and new leaves in order to make a tasty and healthy tea! All this takes time when the vegetable garden is demanding constant attention and those weeds keep jumping up overnight! The flowers also demand attention if only to smell those beautiful scents and admire the colours of summertime. Yes summer is here at last and when we are not cooking you can find me in the garden listening to the sounds of nature, the smell of summer and the delights of the garden! Did I tell you we are also designing a swimming pool or is it a posh garden pond?

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