Late November....

...and the colours are gone.read more in 'the Greenhouse...'

Veggies from the Botanical Garden of Uppsala

I just wanted to show you som more pictures a took on my visit to the 'Harvest exhibition' at the Botanical Garden of the University of Uppsala. Lovely veggies!

Solanum tuberosum. The potatoes, they are the world's most widely grown tuber crop, and the fourth largest food crop in terms of fresh produce, that is after rice, wheat, and maize. I grew french 'Almond' this year and they are delicious especially new potatoes carefully boiled and with a little butter added when served. Dill of course.

Krusbärsgurka in Swedish, that could be Gooseberry Gherkin or something similar in English. I have not tried to grow them yet, but last year I grew Mexican Sour Gherkin and they are so nice, pretty and easy to grow. I can certainly recommend them.

Är det någon som vet var jag kan få tag i frö till Krusbärsgurkan?

Here we have a selection of different cucumbers and gherkins, all different shapes and colours.

Last but not least a favorite of mine, the Artichoke. Try this recipe. Easy and flavorsome side dish especially nice with food from the middle east.

• Boil the Artichoke in salted water (salt as the Mediterranean)
• When ready pour out the water
• Mix juice from one lemon, garlic and olive oil to a dressing
• Pour the dressing over artichoke (you could add some salted butter as well)
• Let it get cool

This dish can be served cold, lukewarm or warm.

What is the name of your favorite potato? Idaho? King Edward?......

Kommunicera- mera som vi säjer på svenska/ TYRA

Potage d'oignon - Onion Soup

Today it´s time for a classic soup.

Idag har det verkligen varit en sådan där novemberdag man inte gillar. Runt nollan på termometern, snöfall nästan horisontellt och lite blåst. Jag ville inte sätta näsan utanför dörren i dag på min lediga dag. Jag tog och dammade av min 25 år gamla kokbok 'Den franska maten' letade reda på en gammal favorit, gratinerad löksoppa. Nu gick jag i alla fall ut till min potager och hämtade timjan till min soppa och sedan till 'veboa' för lite ved till järnspisen och kakelugnen. Soppan blev jättegod, dessutom värmer både soppan och kakelugnen värmer mej fortfarande. Mysigt!

From France Potage d’oignon. This is how I do it.
2 tablespoon butter or olive oil
6 large onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
75cl chicken/beef broth
1/2 cup white wine
1 1/2 cups water
1 Bay leaves and Thyme
4 slices French bread
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
Salt and pepper

In a large saucepan, melt butter/olive oil. Cook onions in mixture, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, until very soft, translucent and brown on the edges. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir to combine. Pour in broth, wine and water with bay leaves and thymes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 20 to 30 minutes.
Preheat oven . Dice the bread slices. Ladle the soup into 6 ovenproof bowls. Place the bread on top of the soup and top with Swiss cheese. Place bowls under the grill/hot oven until cheese is melted.

Potage d'oignon. Voilà comment je le fais.

• 2 c. à soupe de beurre/ l'huile d'olive • 6 gros oignons, émincés • 1 c. à soupe de farine tout usage • 8 dl de poulet / bouillon de bœuf • 1 / 2 tasse de vin blanc • 1 1 / 2 tasses d'eau • 2 Bay feuilles et de thym • 6 tranches de pain français • 1 tasse de fromage suisse déchiqueté • Sel et poivre

1. Dans une grande casserole, faire fondre le beurre / huile d'olive. Cuire les oignons dans le mélange, en brassant de temps, pour 10 minutes, jusqu'à ce que très doux, transparent et brun sur les bords.

2. Parsemer la farine sur les oignons et remuer pour combiner. Verser le bouillon, le vin et l'eau avec des feuilles de laurier et le thym. Porter à ébullition, puis réduire le feu et laisser mijoter, à découvert, 20 à 30 minutes environ.

3. Préchauffer le four.

4. Dés les tranches de pain. Ladle la soupe dans 6 allant au four et placez les bols bols sur une plaque de cuisson. Placez le pain sur le dessus de la soupe et le haut de fromage suisse. 5. Placer les bols sous le gril / four chaud jusqu'à ce que le fromage .

Thyme from Tyra's Garden.....brrr it was cold outside.

Bon Appéttite

Skriv en rad! Kommentera här nedan./Write a comment- don't be a stranger.

Tyra

Irresistible Botanical Tulips

I have managed to do some last minute planting today, last but not least important were the botanical tulips. They have a given place in Tyra's Garden. This year I had to move my existing tulips because I needed the space for another project. I dug them up and left them on the ground for a few days. Big mistake someone, probably a rabbit had a feast, a giant bulb party! So...I had to buy some new one's. The botanical tulips are so delicate, small and sweet, and a big plus are that they are early. I think because they are early in bloom is why I find them simply irresistible.

Botanical tulips, Tyra's Garden

Tyra's Garden with the greenhouse (more spring? another perfect day in paradise)

Tulip History
The tulip, much beloved flower of spring, brings to mind cheery, brightly coloured, cup-shaped flowers held on smooth green stems. Before tulips became practically ubiquitous in every springtime garden, they were grown and prized by the Turks of the Ottoman Empire and later the Dutch during the late 1500's and early 1600's. However, tulips also inspired an insidious side in people that coveted them. The Dutch tulip craze from 1636 to 1637 is a good example. Later in Holland, tulips were gradually bred and cultivated into the many forms we see today.

Botanical tulips in Tyra's Garden

En av mina favoriter i Tyras Trädgård är Tulipa humilis 'Lilliput' kallas också violtulpan. Violtulpanen tillhör de låga botaniska tulpanerna. Blomkalken är vackert vinröd eller kanske roströd till färgen. De flesta är knappt 20 cm höga och härligt rosa till mörkt cericeröda. Mittfläcken kan vara gul eller svart. De flesta av mina botaniska tulpaner har jag faktiskt plantrat i grusgången, just där tulpanerna står har grusgången en svag lutning åt sydost. Jag tror att det är en stor fördel med det för vatten blir aldrig stående och så 'steks' de under sommaren. (Synonym T. pulchella, T. violacea.)

Tulipa humilis

Gillar du tulpaner så kan jag rekommendera att kika in hos Solveig i Göteborg en som har 'Tulpanfeber'

Tyra

Requiem aeternam, Alla Själars Dag

Requiem aeternam

Réquiem aetérnam dona els,

Domine,et lux perpétua lu'ceat eis.

Requiéscant in pace.

Amen.

This picture is from Nerja , southern Spain.
Den här bilden är ifrån ett liten kyrka eller rättare sagt ett litet kapell i Nerja, södra Spanien

Alla själars dag , Alla helgons dag firas den lördag som infaller mellan den 31 oktober och den 6 november. Då brinner ljusen på kyrkogårdarna till våra anhörigas minne. Men den seden är bara drygt ett halvt sekel gammal i Sverige. Urgammal är däremot dödskult, själskult och helgonkult vid vinterhalvårets ingång.
........

Alla Själars Dag, kommer efter Alla Helgons Dag. Vi tänder ljus till alla våra avlidna nära och kära. Jag har en mamma och en hund som jag idag tänker extra mycket på. Hunden, lilla Bessie vilar under äppelträdet i Tyras Trädgård och Mamma, Karin Maria Eleonor ligger ute till havs närmare bestämt på Kanholmsfjärden. Jag tänker på er ofta och speciellt idag, saknar Er båda jättemycket.

'Tant Bessie' ute på en klippa i Stockholms Skärgård.

Mamma, sista sommaren, vilar i min hängmatta en månad kvar...

Alla själars dag

Herre, ge dem den eviga vilan,

och låt det eviga ljuset lysa för dem.

Må de vila i frid.

Amen.

TYRA

Bad weather...kill some time with Slowbaking....

.....this bread takes two days to make, but it IS worth waiting for. It is from the most southern region of Sweden, Skåne. Rather dark and quite sweet bread made from rye, flavoured with caraway seeds.

Black rye bread, Tyra baking bread...no

Tyra baking bread! no...but it is a pretty picture. Today I baked four loafs of this marvellous 'Skånsk Kavring'. I found the recipe in one of my bread books, a very well read book called Landskapsbröd by Karl-Johan Börjesson.

Landskapsbröd av Karl-Johan Börjesson, biolog och jounalist bosatt i Göteborg tror jag.

Country Bread is another favorite, a wonderful book that really inspire you to make your own bread. It's by Linda Collister och Anthony Blake. Bread is best baked in wood-fired ovens, using traditional methods to ensure a natural, country taste. That's why I love to bake whenever I'm my country house.

Här kommer receptet! Är du intresserad av andra landskapsbröd och vill ha receptet, hur bara av dej så ordnar jag det. Slätkakor, Bohuskaka eller kanske en Sirapslimpa från Närke.

Send me an e-mail if you're interested in the recipe in english.

TYRA in Vaxholm

Skriv en rad!

Coffee, Stuart Little and Red Hot Chili....

....you must come and visit my Greenhouse.

....

Squash and Pumpkin Parade

CLICK TO ENLARGE!

Cucurbita maxima Duchesne 'Blue Hubbard' and 'Marina di Chioggia' are the green ones at the bottom. The yellow/orange one I think really looks like a how pumpkin should look like, it's a Pumpkin Racer F1. The rest are just small one's that I grow purely for decorations.

Blue Hubbard has got this wonderful bright orange flesh, good for cooking.

More about 'Blue Hubbard' in Swedish.

Pumpkins and Squash in Tyra's Garden

Colourful pumpkins are perfect for Autumn decorations.

This one is .....Ugly Betty

Ha det bra! Have a nice day / Tyra

The Greenhouse.....coffee, Stuart Little & Red Hot Chili Peppers.....

Brassica - a Favorite in Tyra's Garden and Kitchen

Brassicas are definitely my favorites in Tyra's Garden. This big family adds colour and structure to my potager. All those lovely colours of green: pale, soft, blueish green, purple green etc.

Brassica a huge group of plants. DESCRIPTION: This is a group of plants belonging to the Mustard family, Cruciferae. It includes vegetables that are commonly grown and known as Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Collards, Kale, Kohlrabi, Mustard, Rape, Rutabaga and Turnip. Many can be grown for their ornamental leaves. (from. Botany.com)

BRASSICAS are highly nutritious full of antioxidants, Sulforaphane exists in cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage. Brassicas are really good food and cheap to and if you grow them yourself they are ever cheaper and taste wonderful.

Kålsoppa - Kohlsuppe - Cabbage soup

1 small cabbage, sliced/chopped
1 liter chicken broth
4 diced bacon or kabanosse würst/Polish Kielbasa
1 minced onions
4-5 diced potatoes
salt and pepper, thyme and caraway seeds, to taste
Sour cream

Put the chopped cabbage and the broth in the saucepan/pot, simmer for 1/2 hour.
In a saute pan, cook the diced bacon/würst,
Saute the onion in the bacon drippings until soft.
Add the chopped bacon, onion, potato, and S & P to the sausepan/pot.
Cook for an additional 1 hour, until the cabbage reaches the texture you prefer.

Serve with of sour cream and a nice bread

Smaklig måltid - Bon Apetite

TYRA

The Big Dig part II. The Roses

The Roses

Done, 39 roses are down ready for the long rest.

Det var verkligen ett slavjobb. Tungt och skitigt rent ut sagt. Längst ner i botten under själva planteringsgropen lade jag stallgödsel, ingen rolig historia, sedan jord, vatten, ros och jord igen kupat upp runt rosen. Hoppas att det blir bra. Jag är ju definitivt novis på rosor. Men man lär så länge man lever.

The list of the roses in the order they were planted in The Big Dig in groups of three. They are all quite tall and wide and the most important... really fragrant.

1. Rosa rugosa (white)
2. Maigold
3. Rosa rugosa 'Hansa'
4. Louis Bognet
5. Lichtkönigin 'Lucia'
6. Rosa 'Quattre Saison'
7. Ritausma
8. Rosa rugosa 'Hansa'
9. Henry Hudson
10. Frülungsluft
11. Stanwell Perpetual
12. Rosa 'Anna'
13. John Davis

......and then came the rain, thank you Lord.

Have a great weekend!

TYRA