These last couple of days have been of the indoors- and outdoors variety. As soon as the weather permitted and the sun showed its face, we could be found outside. Because the garden still looked a little wintry, we bought some new plants to make things a little cozier: we got violets and forget-me-nots. Each year, the gorgeous blue and lilacs of these plants play an important part in our spring garden. Besides being in pots, you’ll also find them as perennials in my garden.
During my daily garden inspection, I noticed that I’m not the only ‘fan’ of these, as they seemed to be growing a little smaller each and every day. I first point a blaming finger towards the usual suspects (snails or mice), but to my amazement I noticed that it was the sparrows who were the perpetrators! Each day I feed them, but it turns out that they love the leaves of the perennials. Somehow, they leave the fresh ones that are in pots alone. We’ve made a deal though: we keep the plants, and in return we feed them nice seeds. Let’s hope they understand our deal as well…
Besides working in the garden, we took a leaf out of Frida’s book, and simply enjoyed the spring sun. The advantage of a walled garden is, that as soon as the sun is out, it is pleasant enough to sit outside.
Last week we made a delicious onion and mushroom loaf, and the simple recipe I’d like to share with you here. The nice thing about the recipe is, that with the basic dough recipe you can make infinite variations. Earlier I made one with onion and tomato.
Ingredients for 2-4 people (depending on how peckish you are!)
The filling:
5 medium sized onions
250g mushrooms
1 tbsp Italian herb mix (basil, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, paprika, laurel, garlic)
some salt and pepper, to taste
The dough:
200g wholemeal spelt flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda in the UK)
approx. 150ml water
a little coconut oil for baking
Preparation:
Preheat your oven to 200ºC. Cut the onions, and fry them in the coconut oil. Add the chopped mushrooms. Add herbs, spices, and salt and pepper, to taste. Leave to simmer for about 15 minutes or until the unions are soft. Whilst the onions and mushrooms are on the hob, you can prepare the dough for this bread. Add flour, baking soda and salt into a bowl, and mix. Slowly add water. First stir, then knead with your hands. The dough shouldn’t be sticky. If it’s too sticky, add a little flour – if it’s too dry, add a few drops of water until the required consistency is reached. Lightly flour your workspace, and roll out a slice of dough the size of your baking tray. At this time, your onion and mushroom mix will probably be ready. Grease a 1 litre oven dish, and ad your mixture to it. Top it up with the bread mix. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 15 minutes. Then take it out of the oven, and leave to cool for a few minutes. Turn it upside down on a flat plate. Enjoy either hot or cold!
- Geertruida
