Our favourites are BROADBEANS (eating raw and smashed with salt and ricotta on sourdough bread)
and SPINACH.
We have spinach already growing - and to avoid an attack from grubs as happened over summer, we have opted to encase the spinach in a mini hothouse/snail protector as shown below...
It is a 2 lt drink bottle, cut so we just have the cylindrical part, pushed into the ground. It works well, with the plant thriving through some less than ideal weather and it remains untouched by grubby fingers or sluggy mouths. Nearby broccoli have been viciously attacked, so I need to extend my zones of protection.
ie I need more 2litre soft drink bottles. We could all start drinking more coke (eeeiik) or could have a party and feed the visitors coke.
Which leads me neatly to my next thought.... Another party.
Like lots of people, I'm often inspired to cook as shown on tele cooking shows. Last week, we had a three course cacao dinner party inspired by the tv show 'Willie's Chocolate Revolution.' Afterwards I was exhausted, and have had made minimal efforts in cooking this week, resulting in fairly bland, boring dinners, with no new cooking ideas whatsoever. (Though there is a particularly nice smelling kangaroo bolognese on the stove right now).
Until last night - I was watching Heston's Feasts. Until now, I've avoided the show because I didn't think that cooking food that was made to look like other food (which I incorrectly thought was Heston's whole aim) was particularly clever. But I was pleasantly surprised as I watched him (and his staff of hundreds) prepare a Mad Hatter Tea Party, complete with special glassware, drink me potions, turtle soup and an amazing edible garden.
The closest I've ever gotten to being inspired to cook from a children's book was considering having a 'Very Hungry Caterpillar' Party for a toddler complete with 1 slice of watermelon, 1 ice cream cone, 1 slice of slice of swiss cheese, 1 slice of salami... The Mad Hatters Tea Party was such a clever idea and beautifully executed, but what he chose from the book wasn't reflected in my memories of it- I liked the 'eat me' cookie and the caterpillar on the mushroom. Which lead me to think that for my next trick, I might like to do a Mad Hatter's Tea Party as well, focusing on the bits that resonated with me as a child, which clearly won't be nearly as spiffy and sophisticated as Heston's but should be nice all the same...
Let me know what you think? Would you be interested in reading about my variation on this theme? For my friends - you know who you are - Is anyone interested in being a white rabbit?
If there is interest, I'll get planning:
Step 1: Reread Alice in Wonderland.
I'll read this with my son, though he generally is not a huge fan of books featuring girls. If he voices any protest, I'll rename Alice as Allan and we'll begin.
If there is no interest in this party, I'll throw myself down a rabbit hole and see what happens...
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