Nutty Bites and Nectarines

There’s been quite a buzz going on with the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. I have not been involved although I’ve enjoyed the atmosphere. I’ve been busy in my own way.

You might remember from last week I had a disaster with mail-order grafted tomatoes. Not good, I’m afraid. The plants perished and I panicked at the thought of not having my own tomatoes this year. However, after I sent out an SOS, offers of help came my way and I’m now the happy owner of some gifted plants.

Fruit and veg are coming along well. The strawberries are not quite ready but with the benefit of sunny days they will soon ripen. Celeriacs are growing nicely in the greenhouse and will soon be snugly planted in one of the polytunnels to grow slowly for Winter meals. The onions I planted in autumn are fattening now too.

I saw a beautiful tiny spider on a rose yesterday and managed to take a reasonable photo. I know spiders are not everyone’s cup of tea but just take a look at how colourful it is.

Not many butterflies sadly, but the bees are sipping nectar in the flowers and there was a very busy, shiny, black beetle scurrying about as well.

The roses are opening their lovely blooms and the campanulas with their shining bells are pretty in blue and white. I brought in a few blossoms to enjoy in a vase.

Here are some flowers gracing my garden right now.

It will be good to have ripe fruit in the garden. I bought some nectarines, a favourite of mine, but the fruit was rock hard and sour. These are meant to be ripened at home but they’d been harvested too soon and would never reach a stage of sweet juiciness. All was not lost however! Unripe nectarines stewed with a little sugar are not just nicer, they are a gourmet treat.

I sliced them and removed the stones. Not easy when they’re under-ripe but worth the effort. Placed them in a pan with a small amount of water to prevent them sticking and cooked them gently for about 20 minutes. It’s a good idea to stir occasionally to make sure they all reach the hot juices as they cook. Once they were tender and had turned a lovely pink colour I stirred in a couple of spoonfuls of sugar. Not too much or the flavour would be lost.

While they’re warm, they’re delicious with vanilla ice-cream and when they’re cool, lovely with greek yoghurt. A flavour sensation, a wonderful colour and an amazing transformation from the unappetising originals.

I had an idea for some little sweet treats. These are little baked cookie-type bites.

Nutty Bites Makes 12

2 large Egg Whites
50g Pecan Nuts
50g Plain Flour
50g Caster Sugar

Grease a baking tray.(A silicone sheet lining is a good idea if you have one, as these can stick to the baking tray.)
Grind the pecans in a food processor or nut mill.
Heat the oven to 180C.
Beat egg whites until stiff and no liquid is left.
Fold in the ground nuts, sugar and flour.
Drop small amounts, to make twelve, onto the baking sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes.
Lift off with a spatula.
Best eaten on the day they're made.

Still some showers around but the garden needs them even if we don’t. Here are some glimpses of wet flowers.

I hope everyone enjoyed the Jubilee celebrations and the rain stayed away for you. With you again next week. Bye for now.