Dim Sum Gardener

Hampton Court Palace Flower Show

2011-07-11T19:56:00.521+01:00

Billed as the world's largest flower show, the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show was truly inspiring. The centrepiece of the show, the RHS Edible Garden, was without a doubt the highlight of my visit.

Look at these beautiful slug free cabbages.......

and these magnificent kales......

Kohlrabi as big as my friend's hand

Dig for Victory!

I can count 14 aubergines from that one plant...hmm must be an F1

The tropics beckons

The Garlic Lover's Garden

Am definitely growing these as standards next year

My drrream greenhouse.....

Ooh here's a perennial favourite!

Purple sweet potato plants making a strong statement

The potager designs here are inspirational

What a wonderful combination of plants and colours

Great ideas here for an edible border!

And finally, here's my find of the day, the Rosa Doncasterii, a shrub species from the 1930s which flower once and then produce these amazing flagon-shaped hips of orange red. I bet these would make delicious jam!

This was indeed the veggie show of the year for me.

Summer Solstice

2011-06-21T22:54:00.005+01:00

It's the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere today and therefore the longest day of the year. Oh, it's also the first day of summer! Why did I think that summer begins on 1st June? And why isn't the longest day the hottest day as well? Here's a really good explanation from the National Geographic website:

Earth's oceans and atmosphere act like heat sinks, absorbing and reradiating the sun's rays over time. So even though the planet is absorbing lots of sunlight on the summer solstice, it takes several weeks to release it. As a result, the hottest days of summer usually occur in July or August.

"If you think about turning up an oven—it takes it a long time to heat up," explained Robert Howell, an astronomer at the University of Wyoming. "And after you turn it off, it takes a while for it to cool down. It's the same with the Earth."

Bring on the heat! And more strawberries..........

AND PLENTY OF DAYS OUT IN THE SUN FOR MY GARDEN "HELPERS"!

Taiping, Malaysia

2011-03-28T22:35:00.000+01:00

Mountain range stretching from southern Thailand through peninsular Malaysia

After what seemed like a never-ever-ending winter and with the garden frozen solid, it was time to defrost in the steamy tropics of my childhood. It took 24 hours to reach my mum's kitchen, just in time for our all important Chinese New Year's eve family dinner. By midnight the sky was ablaze with flying rockets and fireworks - welcome Year of the Rabbit - may we all prosper and eat well!

Offerings to the gods

Taiping, my hometown in northern Malaysia, is a heritage town with a turbulent past. In the 19th century, the richest alluvial tin found on the Malayan peninsula (indeed the world) were from an area in and around Taiping, in the state of Perak. Chinese immigrants arrived in their thousands to make their fortunes and the descendents of many of these enterprising men and women still live here today.

Chinese miners hard at work in 19th century Klian Pauh (Taiping today)

A series of Chinese clan wars (Larut War) were fought to wrest control of these mines, aided by warring Malay chiefs who were embroiled in their own power struggles. These led to the Pangkor Treaty of 1874: acceptance of a British Residency in exchange for law and order, succession to the Perak sultanate was resolved, the leaders of both warring Chinese clans were made Kapitan China and each clan allocated mining areas. The tin mining area of Klian Pauh was renamed 'Taiping' (meaning 'everlasting peace' in Chinese). A year later, the assassination of the pompous first British Resident of Perak led to a loss of state independence and to absolute British control.

19th century Taiping

Isabella Bird, British adventurer and the first woman to be inducted into the Royal Geographical Society, arrived in Taiping as a guest of the British Resident in February 1879. In her book The Golden Chersonese and the Way Thither, she wrote:

"Taipeng is a thriving, increasing place, of over six thousand inhabitants, solely Chinese, with the exception of a small Kling population, which keeps small shops, lends money, drives gharries and bullock-carts, and washes clothes."

[Note: 'Klings' in this instance refers to the immigrants from the Coromandel coast]

Taiping 2011 - main road leading to the town centre, lakes, waterfall and Maxwell Hill

In 1880, a large part of the town burnt to the ground and was rebuilt by the British from local funds. Taiping became one of the first planned towns in the country, with two main roads and a grid of many cross streets which have remained largely unchanged.

Building contractor, mine operator and philanthropist, Ng Boo Bee, was contracted to rebuild the town. Thankfully, a large number of these shophouses have survived despite some lack of thought to preserve the town's architectural heritage. (Please, town planners, no more ugly multi-storey concrete blocks!)

British red phone box outside the clocktower,
both a reminder of Taiping's colonial past

Taiping became the British administrative centre as well as state capital until 1937. Then came the second World War...the town endured Japanese bombing and terrible atrocities were committed. The Japanese made Taiping its military administrative centre for Perak and Sumatra. Schools were turned into army barracks and torture chambers, and beheadings were a daily event in the town centre.

The British had left a legacy of wonderful colonial-style architecture, schools, hospitals, law courts, transport systems and even a fondness for the Queen. In stark contrast, the locals were quick to expel the memory of Japanese occupation by destroying any reminder of that dark period in the town's history. A war cemetery was created to honour those fallen heroes from the Commonwealth countries, a large number of whom were unnamed soldiers.

Some of the 19th century shophouses still standing today

Today, Taiping has transitioned from its important past to its 21st century place as a tourist destination. With a population of about 200,000 the town is tranquil and idyllic, finally living up to its name of 'everlasting peace'. It enjoys heritage status and is blessed with clean fresh air, a wonderful mountain backdrop (complete with waterfall), abundant flora and fauna, a unique lake gardens and a largely untouched hill resort. The town has an olde worlde ex-colonial charm and also boasts the first zoo and museum in the country.

Here's the other main road in town, it also leads to the lakes and hills

A local pastime is to gather at one corner of the wet market to bet on the rain. Why? Well, the town does 'enjoy' the highest rainfall in peninsular Malaysia, averaging 4000mm (13 ft) per annum, twice the country's average. When it rains, life comes to a complete standstill - televisions are switched off and landline phone conversations cut short to avoid power surges or electrocution.

Storm clouds brewing in the early afternoon

Taiping thunderstorms must be experienced to be believed.......rain roaring off rooftops to the accompaniment of cracking thunder and blinding daggers of light. Best advice: forget the umbrella for it will not keep you dry! Seek shelter in a kopi tiam (coffee shop), sit back with a kopi-O (Malaysian roasted coffee) or a teh tarik (pulled tea) and enjoy the show.

Taiping Lake Gardens 2011

My favourite part of the town is the Lake Gardens, the first public park to be established by the British in Malaya in 1880. This was created on 64 hectares of disused tin mining land gifted to the public by the last Kapitan China of Perak and Malaya, Chung Thye Phin.

Maxwell Hill (1250m), top left

There are ten lakes and ponds nestled between the town and the base of Maxwell Hill, the oldest mainland hill resort built by the British in 1884. Access was by hiking, pony or sedan chair until WWII when POWs were forced to build a road for vehicles. This is still the only road and Land Rover jeeps provide a thrilling half hour ride on steep hairpin bends through virgin rainforest.

Virtually untouched by developers, the hill and its surrounding areas have enjoyed a largely unspoilt ecosystem....until recently. A RM65 million (approx GBP13.4 million) cable car project is now underway to promote tourism. It will deliver 1,000 visitors per hour to the resort with the government promising "minimal adverse environmental impact".

Tranquillity in the morning light

In 1933, George L. Peet wrote in A Journal in the Federal Capital:

“I know of no more lovely sight in this country than the Taiping gardens when the rays of the early morning sun are shining obliquely through their clumps of bamboo, palms and isolated trees scattered on islands among the expanse of water. One receives in that glorious half hour an experience of light in foliage that is quite unobtainable in England.”

A sight to lift the spirits

Majestic century old rain trees (monkeypod)

Spectacular rain trees provide an incredible canopy of shade alongside a series of lakes. These magnificent trees were planted in 1884 and have survived remarkably well. Laden with giant birds nest ferns, fish ferns and orchids, their branches stretch majestically over the road to dip right into the mirror-like lake.

Branches arching gracefully across the road and into the water

A serene spot to catch up on the news

On any given morning, before the sun rises over the hilltops, half the town (so it would seem) is out walking, running or participating in group exercises. There's always a motley crowd doing aerobics by the lotus pond whilst, a bit further on, a smaller group gets together to 'catch mosquitoes' (tai chi) on an old roller-skating rink.

Locals taking their morning constitutional

Around a bend, the stillness of the morning is broken by the sound of Chinese strings floating across a lake. There, a group of martial arts enthusiasts can be seen wielding swords (sometimes red fans) in jaw-dropping beautifully synchronised movements.

Taiping Zoo lies behind this lush greenery

In the heart of all this tranquility lies the zoo and for me, there's nothing more delightful than listening to the excited monkey 'choir' rising to a fevered pitch during morning feeding time. Macaque monkeys, gibbons and baboons wander freely through the gardens. Occasionally, a Malayan water monitor lizard (among the largest in the world - adults over 2m and up to 25kg), can be seen swimming in the lakes or ambling on the grounds.

Epiphytes thriving on a rain tree

Ferns and orchids sharing this tree

Clingy Ficus Benjamina

This town has kept to a gentler pace of life and is a gem of an inheritance to those currently living there as well as those who have spread their wings a bit further afield. Much can be done to preserve its heritage for future generations.

Further reading:
(i) A snapshot of Taiping's history on Journey Malaysia's website: http://www.journeymalaysia.com/MC_taiping.htm;
(ii) The Golden Chersonese and the Way Thither, a 19th century travel journal by Isabella Bird, an English explorer, writer and historian (references about Taiping are in chapters A Chapter on Perak up to Letter XIX): http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bird/chersonese/chersonese.html;
(iii) An article in The Star newspaper about Taiping's architectural heritage: http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2011/3/27/lifefocus/8265513&sec=lifefocus

Copyright Notice: Apart from the two 19th century images on this post, all rights are reserved.

Artichoke - not guilty Your Honour

2010-11-27T21:14:00.040Z

Would you sue a restaurant because you've ingested a whole artichoke? I came across this story whilst reading a Roll On Friday newsletter yesterday. Lets hope common sense will prevail.

Frost covered Violetta di Chioggia

Artichokes were alien vegetables to me when I first set eyes on them in Australia. I had no clue on how to cook or eat one. My first tasting was of the canned and vinegared version which put me off for the next 10 years. Then, three years ago, I was introduced to the real thing: bought fresh from a Greek greengrocers in North London, trimmed and served raw with a bit of olive oil - heaven! Even the stems tasted delicious.

Winter garden installation -
what will the neighbours think?

I tried growing artichokes in the spring of 2009. It was a dismal failure. All four plants melted into a clump of mush within days of arriving from a mail order nursery. Perhaps clay soil is not conducive to the health of these sun-loving mediterranean plants?

This summer, I spotted some magnificent specimens growing in a friend's garden and was chuffed to bits when, a week later, he gifted me with two Violetta di Chioggia. Yep, he also gave me that aubergine plant.

I planted these on both sides of the garden to maximise the chances of at least one surviving. They became total aphid and ant magnets all through summer and autumn, resulting in stunted growth. Then quite suddenly it seemed, when I wasn't looking, they took off, sprouting large healthy leaves.

Sitting snug under it's very own garden chair

Two nights ago, I got a bit worried about frost killing off my 'experimental' artichokes, so I did a bit of research and found some great posts in Toad's Garden's interesting blog. The next morning the entire garden was covered in a sheet of white frost.

Not being able to lay my hands on any clear glass or plastic covering at short notice, I sat plastic chairs over the plants. Hopefully this will protect the heart of the plant from icing over. Will they survive the winter? We shall see.

Maybe I'll grow some from seed next year.....

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness

2010-11-23T21:17:00.002Z

Squash Uchiki Kuri

Early autumn - Munchkins

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells.

From John Keats' poem, To Autumn, 1820

Squash Rolet, ready for harvest

Miniature pumpkin Munchkin

This is a year of many firsts in the garden. Some of these were pumpkins, squashes and ball-shaped courgettes.

Squash Patty-pan

I had developed an inexplicable fascination with cucurbita fruit and although space was at a premium, I managed to tuck a couple of small sized species amongst the beans and sweetcorn.

Young Uchiki Kuri in
a bright lemon shade

Germinated under makeshift cloches outdoors, the seedlings burst forth without fuss and were soon scrambling up teepees, weaving through the broccoli greens and finally spilling onto the footpath to soak up the sun.

My favourite is the red Uchiki Kuri squash. The robust seedling I had raised from seed was attacked by slugs to a stump but miraculously survived. It sat in a state of shock for a week or so, then started producing secondary vines.

There's nothing more exciting than spotting a tiny baby squash (or pumpkin) after weeks of expectant watchfulness.

Two weeks later, it turned to a lovely orange hue

These furry babies appeared in quick succession, one, two, three, along the vine, all looking very perky and pleased with themselves.

Two fell off eventually, leaving one which turned from a lovely yellow to a rich vermilion hue. It sat in the garden for weeks on end brightening up one end of the footpath and now sits in a platter of cucurbits in the living room - I don't think I could bear to eat it!

Courgette Tondo Chiaro di Nizza (left)
- very sweet and juicy

Thankfully I didn't feel the same about the others so they were stuffed with rice, meat, herbs and then baked.

Stuffed and ready for the oven

Friends of the garden

2010-11-19T00:24:00.119Z

The garden was abuzz with all sorts of wonderful insects this year. After such a harsh winter, I wanted to 'grow' lots of pollen and nectar primarily for the bees (as well as seeds for the birds). The garden already had an established California lilac, a honeysuckle and an overhanging buddleia from next door. To these I added chives, thyme, calendulas, borage, nasturtiums, lavender and sunflowers, planted alongside vegetables and fruiting plants. 'Weeds' such as celandines, daisies and dandelions were allowed to grow and multiply with reckless abandon to provide food for our garden heroes.

I had never encountered bumblebees until I came to this country. They were mesmerising and demanded instant attention with their noisy arrival to claim the garden's airspace. Showy, dizzy, clumsy, cute little furry blimps....how do they manage to stay airborne? How? Everytime I had seen one, I half expected him/her to crash drunkenly into the shrubbery....then I found this great series of short video clips produced by the BBC, check out Impossible Flight. If you have time, watch musicians play Flight of the Bumblebee on this YouTube clip (7 pianos)...and this (trumpet)...and this (percussion) and finally this (iPad)!

White-tailed bumblebee

Red-tailed Queen bumblebee

Ladybirds are my favourite beetles. They are considered by some as a harbinger of love, good luck and good fortune. I am just so glad that they have taken up residence in the garden. They were the first insects to come out of hibernation this year, tumbling out of the patio umbrella to stretch their little legs and wings. That umbrella is never going to be moved into the shed again!

A wonderful surprise from within the patio umbrella

Ladybird larvae: a most welcome sight anywhere.....though I must admit to wanting to swat this ferocious looking creature the first time I laid eyes on it. Luckily, I left it alone, made some identification and was then able to welcome hordes more which were hatching all over the aphid infested honeysuckle.

Ladybird larvae

Hoverflies were everywhere from mid-spring to mid-autumn, busily feasting on the nectar and pollen of plants such as calendulas and borage grown to attract them. Still, I had trouble telling the difference between hoverflies and wasps. A quick research on the internet gave me my answer: hoverflies HOVER over the same spot (hence the name - duh!), wasps don't.

Hoverfly feasting on a calendula

Borage heaven

I'm not a great fan of spiders but I know they are an essential part of the eco-system. As a child, I used to be frozen to the spot in terror at the sight of one. Later on, living in Australia, the land of the deadliest spiders and snakes, I did my utmost to avoid spiders. My last encounter was with the Redback Spider in Perth. I rented a lovely old house surrounded by trees and bushes but soon enough Redbacks were dropping from the ceiling, everywhere! Read this Metro article about Redbacks arriving in the UK.

Can anyone identify this spider?

I am so glad that British spiders are harmless. Today, they weave their webs all over the garden with my blessing. I am now brave enough to relocate spiders out of the house without breaking into a cold sweat!

Fab location to catch insects - this web was spun

between raspberry canes.

Common Garden Spider

Blackberry and Apple Butter

2010-11-10T12:03:00.005Z

What does one do when one's freezer is full? Make jam! Out of the bottom drawer came 2 kilograms of 'wild' blackberries picked from the back garden last summer.

These were exuberant and unforgivingly thorny plants which seemed to thrive on pickaxe type clay soil in the summer. I was very glad to dig these up to make way for vegetables which do not bite at harvest time!

The recipe for this came from a recently published book, The RHS Allotment Journal by Mitchell Beazley which I had come across at the Shoe Lane Library (you've gotta love the name!). The ingredients: 1kg blackberries, 1kg apples, 1.75kg sugar, 125ml lemon juice and 300ml water.

Here's how my jam evolved into butter.....

Peel and core two large Bramley apples, these weighed about 1.8 kilograms.

Cover with water and simmer for about 10 minutes to a fluffy consistency.

These blackberries were rinsed a couple of times and left to defrost.

After half an hour, cook these on the lowest heat until soft enough to press through a sieve.

The softened blackberries were sieved directly over the apple pulp.

Press, scrape, press, scrape, press, scrape: slow cooking at its most mind-numbing....unless someone could put a spin on its meditative qualities! Out of 2 kilograms of blackberries, 500 grams of seeds were eventually extracted.

Here, one was supposed to add a 1:1 sugar to fruit ratio. I reckoned I ended up with 3 kilograms worth of pulp. I could only find three 500 grams bags of organic demerera sugar in the pantry, so I figured this would do the trick, plus the blackberries were very sweet. I added the rind of one large unwaxed lemon and the juice from two lemons, approximately 200 milligrams.

Thought I'd try out this newfangled jam thermometer but things got complicated when the blasted needle hovered forever at 100°C (we all know setting point is at 105°C). Then after about 15 minutes, the needle started dropping even though the jam was boiling merrily away!? At this point I reverted to the freezer spoon n plate method which is possibly the most effective after all.

Mmmmm I could dive into this purple black heaven! After spooning this luscious jam into eight mid-sized jars, I spotted the third 500 gram bag of sugar which I had forgotten to add to the pot. OMG, the ratio was actually 3:1! I googled for some answers and found a most enlightening article on the Allotment Vegetable Growing website - I've unwittingly created fruit butter instead of jam.

Butter or jam, the end product is my summer of 2009 bottled and waiting to be savoured on wintry mornings. The taste is reminiscent of sun-warmed berries with the occasional burst of citrus from the slivers of lemon rind. Perhaps I'll introduce a thornless variety to the garden next year......maybe a loganberry.....or a tayberry.....or even a sunberry.

Tomato harvest

2010-10-24T20:19:00.004+01:00

Tomato growing was one of my most exciting projects this summer. Having tried planting tomato seeds many times in the tropics as a child and watching the seedlings flop over at about 3 inches high, I had never attempted growing this fruit again until now.

Early this year, whilst unpacking some boxes, I found a packet of unopened heritage tomato seeds from Diggers Club Australia. It had been in a box for three years but I thought I would stick some in compost to see if they would germinate.

It was a lottery as there were eight types of 'heirloom' varieties in the packet. Amazingly, every single seed germinated.

I tucked some amongst the calendulas as I've read that these plants would help to repel pests. Others were grown next to the sweetcorn further down the garden and one was planted in a pot.

It was exciting, watching and waiting, not knowing what variety each plant was going to be until later in the season.

In the end, one tomato plant grew into a bush variety called 'Brown Berry'. The fruits were juicy and very sweet. I'd definitely grow more of these next year.

Brown Berry amongst the calendulas

Another plant turned out to be a vigorous growing Grosse Lisse with big potato leaves. The fruits grew so large and heavy that the entire plant, even with stakes, eventually collapsed onto the calendulas and pea plants behind it. Stronger stakes next year!

Grosse Lisse in early summer

Four fruits were left after pinching out

Mid-summer after rain

Early autumn

The rest were mid-sized plants which I 'stopped' at 2-3 feet high. The fruits were elongated with light green streaks but as they ripened, the lot turned to a lovely yellow colour. It was quite a mystery at first why one yellow fruit would taste so different from another yellow fruit. After some 'Googling' the penny dropped: they are two different varieties, Cream Sausage and Banana Legs!

Banana Legs ripening in late summer

Both varieties were prolific and very showy. The Banana Legs tomatoes thrived in the ground as well as in a pot on the warm patio, the fruit turning into a beautiful canary yellow which remained hanging on the plant like big pendulous baubles until harvested. The fruit is meaty with a very subtle flavour. Apparently yellow tomatoes have less acidity and this variety definitely fits the bill.

Pot grown Banana Legs in early autumn

The Cream Sausage tomatoes are, true to their name, a light creamy yellow when ripe. They are juicy, full of flavour and great for salads. They grew very well in clay soil and required additional staking when the fruits got bigger. Due to its thin skin, this variety is favoured by slugs and snails and must be kept off the ground!

Cream Sausage ripening in mid-summer

The last tomatoes were picked today and none had suffered from blight. Was it beginner's luck, companion planting with calendulas or wind direction?

Grosse Lisse, Banana Legs and Cream Sausage tomatoes

All in all, a very worthwhile effort and a very tomatoey summer was had by all!

Brown Berry and Banana Legs tomatoes

Rose hip jam

2010-10-08T11:16:00.009+01:00

I had not considered roses as being 'edible' until recently when I noticed that the rose bush by the front door was absolutely dripping with rose hips. The hips had turned a beautiful fire engine red and I thought it would be a terrible waste to let them fall to the ground.

Having read that jam, syrup, jelly, soup, pie and even wine could be made out of rose hips, I decided to give jam-making a go.

I 'googled' and found this popular recipe from the 1700s: 1 pound prepared rose hip pulp, 1 cup water and 1 pound sugar. There were no specifics on how to 'prepare' the hips - it seemed everyone had a different method. Here's how I made mine......

Harvest carefully, wearing gloves and an old jacket to prevent scratches to oneself.

Put the very ripe and soft fruit aside. Select fruit which are firm and trim off both ends.

Cut these in half and scrape off the seeds with the sharp end of a vegetable peeler or knife. Try not to touch the hairy seeds (more on that later).

To prepare the softer fruit, hold firm the stem of the fruit and gently pull the 'bunch' of seeds off from the other end - easy!

Rinse the cleaned fruit to remove any leftover hairy bits. Here's the thing about the fine hairs on the seeds: they work like itching powder. Rub some on the skin and you will feel it! If you're very sensitive, wear gloves when processing the fruit.

Pour the prepared hips and water into a heavy-based saucepan, cook until soft enough to press through a stainless steel sieve.

Sieve the pulp in small batches into a large bowl.

These were the skins left over from 1.5 pounds of rose hips. Flick these onto the garden beds.

Pour the fine pulp back into the saucepan, stir in the sugar and bring to a boil. Boil for several minutes and then simmer until there's a 'jam-like' consistency.

Rose hips have plenty of pectin, so there's no need to add anything else to help it set. Once the mixture is thick, glossy and silky, test for setting point.

Voila! Only four bottles after all that work but the taste is well worth the effort.

As I prefer a less sweet jam, I used 1 pound organic natural demerera sugar to 1.5 pounds rose hip pulp and two cups of water. This jam is soft and silky and has just the right balance of tartness.

Malaysian Night at Trafalgar Square

2010-09-27T11:43:00.011+01:00

Ok, so Friday was grey, a tad wet and absolutely freezing. Never mind that. I read about 'Malaysia Night at Trafalgar Square' in a Time Out newsletter and decided to join a gaggle of diehard foodies to support this event. Braving arctic conditions (by my calculations, that would be anything below 10˚C), I arrived to the sounds of Malay traditional music and the heady smells of hawker food.....

and it looked like the entire expatriate Malaysian (and Singaporean) community had decided to follow their stomachs as well! A huge festive crowd was already there, tucking into Penang laksa, char koay teow, beef rendang, ayam percik, satay, chendol.....

Most people sat around the fountains to eat their food but this gentleman here has demonstrated a most elegant way to tuck in standing up.....

What style!

Mmm.....check out the menus! In my haste to satisfy my taste buds, all thoughts of food photography flew out the window.....until the very last dish, rojak.

Rojak is a salad made from cucumber, jicama, bean sprouts, pineapple, green mango, Malay apple, guava and fried tofu puffs - ingredients will vary. The dressing, the vital part of this salad, is dark and viscous and made up of shrimp paste, tamarind paste, sugar, chilli and lime, topped with crushed roasted peanuts and a sprinkling of sesame seeds - salty, sour, sweet and spicy - the flavour is out of this world!

Rojak

Imagine buying kicap manis or fresh birdseye chilli in the middle of Trafalgar Square!

Maggi chilli sauce for sale here

.....and kicap manis here

Champion carver Weng Kit Ho flew in from Paris to present a stall full of fruit and vegetables.....

Royal stamp of approval

I might add that the entertainment was pretty good too: traditional music and dance, parade of ethnic costumes, demonstration of the martial art of 'silat'.....

Folk dance

Silat

Malay musical instruments

Unfazed by the steadily dropping temperature and spurred on by the tantalising smells of food, the crowd grew and grew.....

The brightly lit National Gallery overlooking the event

Foodies are a very patient lot!

This event was part of a year long campaign by the Malaysian government to introduce the British to Malaysian cuisine (http://www.malaysiakitchen.co.uk/). All participating food stalls in this event were run by Malaysian restaurants based in the UK. A jolly good idea well executed!

Mooncake Festival

2010-09-22T23:15:00.007+01:00

Lotus seed filling with double salted yolk mooncake

The Mooncake Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, Lantern Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival, is celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. The date is never the same as it is determined by the September equinox – when daylight and darkness are equal in length. This year, the festival falls on the 22nd September. [According to Wikipedia, the equinox occurs on the 23rd September at precisely 03:09 UTC. UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) replaced GMT as the basis for the main referene time scale in various regions on 1 January 1972.]

This festival is celebrated by many East Asian and Southeast Asian cultures. On this day the Chinese pray to the Moon Goddess for protection, family unity and good fortune. Round mooncakes are eaten as it is symbolic of family unity and closeness. Today, this custom has become less popular with 'city folks'. In fact, the Moon Goddess had ceased to exist for some in the late sixties when some astronaut placed his big fat footprints on the moon!

Red bean (adzuki) filling with salted yolk mooncake

My best memories of living in the tropics were of going to my grandparents’ house on festival night where four generations gathered to eat, pray and play (for the adults, some small scale gambling!). We sat outdoors to watch the moon rise, formed a procession of lanterns, played with sparklers and fireworks, listened to stories and sang. Vast quantities of mooncakes, pomeloes, sugarcanes, groundnuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, sarsaparilla, orange squash and beers were consumed. When the moon had risen high enough, we gathered at the altar to light joss sticks and prayed for the family’s health, wealth and happiness through the year. This would include asking for good exam grades for the children! Then it was all hands on deck to build a mountain of joss paper to be burnt as offerings. These were folded paper creations in the shapes of lotus flowers and taels (ancient Chinese gold ingots) that had taken days and weeks to make. The bonfire was the highlight for me.

Moon rising over the back garden during the September equinox

There are many legends relating to this festival. The one told to me by my dad and which made the most sense relates to the overthrow of Mongol rule in China. During the Song dynasty when the Mongols invaded and captured Southern China, the rebel leaders came up with a plan to communicate with the people without raising suspicion. Cakes shaped like the moon and stuffed with sweet fillings were made. Inside each cake was a piece of paper with the message: ‘rise against the Tartars on the 15th day of the 8th Moon'. On the night of the rebellion, the full moon lit the way and those who were unable to fight or were injured hid in sugarcane plantations to escape slaughter by the Mongols. The Mongols were eventually overthrown and the Ming dynasty was created.

Happy Mooncake Festival!

Mangetout 'Golden Sweet'

2010-09-16T18:00:00.001+01:00

In recent months, I've been thoroughly entertained by this yellow-podded mangetout pea, my first foray into mangetout growing. The peas were a rare heritage variety supplied by the Real Seeds Catalogue. Fifteen peas were sown in mid-April and fifteen plants transferred to the pea patch in May. The plants grew very fast, climbing to the top of the 5 foot high netting in no time and would have kept on going if there were something to cling to!

Mauve flowers

I don't know if this is true of all mangetout but this variety does put on quite a show.

Purple flowers

Every single flower dances through hues of light pink, magenta, mauve, purple, blue.....

Blue flowers

... and finally fades away to reveal the loveliest lemon yellow pod.

'Golden Sweet' mangetout

What a feast for the eyes as well as the tummy!

Bountiful

Aussie Green Man

2010-09-15T08:49:00.002+01:00

Here in the UK and in other cultures, the mythological Green Man has a face made up of leaves, sometimes with branches or vines sprouting out of its head and/or body. I discovered this wonderful not so Green Man in the form of an old gum (eucalyptus) tree near a busy street corner in Leederville, Perth, Western Australia. Can you see his sleeping face? Small flocks of noisy cockatoos, rosellas and King parrots would take turns to perch on his head where I suspect there's a natural hollow for nesting.

Aussie Green Man

Garden security

2010-09-14T15:07:00.001+01:00

A helping hand from my mates.....

Border patrol

Keeping an eye out for vermin

Whoops...asleep on the job

Karate cat

Knackered

Tumbleberries

2010-09-12T12:30:00.002+01:00

The tumbleberry is a remontant strawberry - it crops heavily all summer and autumn. I planted these last year, dotting them all over the garden, some in shade and some in full sun, in good compost and in damp, clay soil. All survived and grew into big clumps. These do not produce runners. To 'make' more plants, just break the clumps up, ensuring each bit has roots attached.

Tumbleberry flowers

Bountiful

The most successful clumps were those grown in pots in semi-shade as fruits were allowed to grow to a full size. Those in the ground were usually half eaten by slugs, snails and creepy crawlies before they had a chance to grow any bigger. Soil quality did not seem to matter. Being buried under 6" of snow for a couple of weeks did not matter at all!

Breakfast!

The fruit is sweet and very fragrant, described by a friend as tasting like "bubblegum wine". Definitely worth having in the garden.

A tale of two cherries

2010-09-11T09:36:00.001+01:00

I planted a bareroot 'Sunburst' cherry tree in the spring of 2009. It was grafted on Gisela dwarfing rootstock and expected to reach a height of 3-4 metres when fully grown. 'Sunburst' is a dessert cherry and has large, almost black fruit. Some say it is sweeter and has a more intense flavour than 'Stella'.

'Y' shaped sapling standing proud in 6" of snow

It pulled through the coldest UK winter in 31 years and burst forth with blossoms this spring.

White cherry blossoms

Spring 2010

I eagerly anticipated a tree laden with juicy black fruit. The weather got warmer, the petals fluttered to the ground, the fruitlet dropped off...... leaving............

Just two!

Hoping that the birds and squirrels would leave these alone, I watched the colour change.....

mmm...juicy red

getting darker

ready!

Ooh yes, I did get to taste the fruit and it was absolutely divine - the rich flavour of the almost black, juicy fruit was worth the wait. Note to self: water and fertilise regularly = bumper crop next year!

Salad greens

2010-09-10T09:53:00.000+01:00

Direct from garden to plate, now that's what I'd call a garden salad!

Greens n flowers

Pampered 'aubergine'

2010-09-09T09:13:00.003+01:00

In late spring, my friend Kyri gave me an aubergine (eggplant) seedling from his greenhouse. I placed it under a cloche surrounded by other seedlings on the patio. On cold nights, I worried about it's ability to survive and even considered placing a hot water bottle by it's side. Anyway, it pulled through and gradually this handsome plant emerged. Anyone recognise it?

Young 'aubergine' with green fruit

By mid-summer, I was ready to give up on my aubergine plant. It was grown in a luxurious pot and fed copious amounts of potato fertiliser but the fruits were minute.....

The smallest ripe 'aubergines' I've ever seen.....

Finally a call came through - the 'aubergine' was actually a weed!

P.S. Kyri also gave me a pepper plant.

First steps in May

2010-09-08T08:00:00.073+01:00

I started sowing heritage and non-hybrid seeds in early May in recycled receptacles. These were then left on the patio under cover of upturned clear plastic containers to do their thing. Germination rates were surprisingly good and amazingly, most seedlings were in the ground by month's end.....

Bog rolls rule!

'Champion of England' climbing peas, 'White Emergo' runner beans,
'Summer Crookneck' and 'Pattison Orange' Patty Pan squashes,

'Russian Mammoth' and Aussie sunflowers, 'Hestia' dwarf runner beans,

'Golden Sweet' yellow mangetout, 'Cupidon' dwarf beans,
dwarf sugar snap peas, 'Double Standard' bicolour sweetcorn,

2 yr old Digger's Club heritage tomato seeds - every single seed germinated!

'Sanguina' beetroot,

Rocket in the fig pot,

and 'White Lisbon' spring onions

Climbing frame for tall peas

Teepee for beans, net frame for mangetout and yes,
the grass needed cutting!

Furry friends

2010-09-07T08:00:00.016+01:00

Introducing the local 'help'.....

The Supervisor

The Soprano

Creating a dunny to discourage too much feline 'help'
in the vegetable beds.....

Result!

In praise of the celandine

2010-09-06T09:00:00.001+01:00

In 1802 William Wordsworth wrote this poem about his favourite flower.....

To the Small Celandine

Pansies, Lilies, Kingcups, Daisies,

Let them live upon their praises;

Long as there's a sun that sets

Primroses will have their glory;

Long as there are violets,

They will have a place in story:

There's a flower that shall be mine,

'Tis the little Celandine.

Celandine - the herald of early spring

Spring blossoms in April and May

2010-09-05T22:08:00.000+01:00

Flowers from the fruit and vegetable garden .....

Purple sprouting broccoli

'Sunburst' cherry

Chive

'Brown Turkey' figs - inverted flowers

'Bluecrop' blueberry

Pear tree

'Conference' Pear

'Azure Star' purple kohlrabi

Real food

2010-05-08T23:08:00.002+01:00

I am interested in good food, cooked the slow way and served steaming hot, preferably three times a day. I blame my parents. Let me tell you why......

I grew up in tropical Malaysia with parents who were incredibly passionate about food. Most conversations would swirl around what dishes to eat or to cook, where to find the best ingredients or the best restaurant for a particular dish, how to cook such a dish and what subtleties of flavours to look out for.

My parents were fussy about food provenance and would go to great lengths to source the freshest produce. There were bone rattling trips on pot-holed roads to pick vegetables from a farm or select seafood ‘off the boat’ from a fishing village. Every outing was an adventure in tasting and sourcing ‘real’ food.

Earliest childhood memories were of harvesting fruit from my grandfather’s trees and of collecting warm eggs from my grandmother’s chickens. Once, my dad took me to a durian orchard at nightfall to wait for the fruit to drop off the trees! We sheltered in a wooden hut with the orchard owner and listened to the ‘thud’ of these huge spiky fruit hitting the ground from a great height.

On my most recent visit home, I overheard a mobile phone conversation my mum had with her greengrocer. She wanted some papayas and discussed at great length the preferred taste, colour, fragrance and texture of the fruit so that he would know exactly from which tree to harvest the fruit. How wonderful if this was a way of life everywhere else!

We ate ‘village chickens’ – chickens which roamed outdoors pecking at worms and greenery (they were caged at night for protection from snakes). When I eat these now, I would get confused about what I’m eating. The meat is dark, tasty and very lean, quite unlike the fatty, bloated chickens now available at the supermarkets.

My mum could grow anything (and still does) - we lived three floors up on the main street of a noisy, bustling town and one third of that flat was an oasis of lush greenery. Monkeys, birds and once, a civet cat found their way to our sanctuary. Dad’s friends wanted to cook the civet cat for ‘medicinal purposes’ but we fed it bananas and at dusk, released it back into the wild, next to the zoo.

Food and gardening were part of the fabric of my life. When I left home to further my education abroad, I could not cook but I knew without a doubt what real food should taste like. A lesson in how to cut up a whole chicken with a large cleaver (!) was the beginning of many little steps towards cooking for self and loved ones.

I Skyped my mum this morning. The first thing she asked was: ‘Have you eaten?’ followed by ‘What did you eat?’. Later, I spoke with dad, you've guessed it......

The launch

2010-05-06T19:18:00.000+01:00

A historic day today for Britain as it goes to the polls. A historic day for me as I quietly launch my blog (and secretly hope that no one notices).......