Grilled Salmon with Dill Sauce

Posted on September 24, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

I spied a treat at the shop the other day in the form of Coho wild salmon. I’m not a fan of farmed fish so I love it when certain types come into season. I was in the mood to recreate a dish my mum used to make when I was younger. When I used to work with her she would bring in the previous night’s leftovers so I was lucky to eat well right out of university. At least one decent meal a day! One of my favourites was salmon, peas and potatoes. So I made Grilled Salmon with Dill Sauce with jacket potatoes and peas from our garden.

I chose dill sauce because I had a lot of fresh dill left over from making my husband Hungarian mushroom soup. I’ve realised I have not done a post on that so I shall have to make it again and do up a post to share.

Technique for Grilled Salmon and Dill Sauce

Heat the grill so it’s nice and hot. This will give the salmon a nice sear while keeping the centre moist. Slice a lemon. Place the slices on the grill and place the salmon on the lemon slices. It keeps the salmon from burning and gives it a lovely lemon flavour.

In a small saucepan, heat up some garlic infused olive oil. If you can have garlic, use two chopped cloves and regular olive oil. Sauté the chopped dill for a few minutes.

Add the mustard and the white wine and simmer to reduce a bit. Turn down the heat to low.

Add the cremé fraîche, this is a lovely alternative to regular cream. Stir in the cremé fraîche and keep it warm on low heat. Season with sea salt and pepper.

Spoon the sauce over the salmon and serve. This is such an easy dish to make but you are rewarded with high end flavour.

Grilled Salmon with Dill Sauce

A perfect pairing of dill and seafood.

Course Main Course

Cuisine French

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Servings 2

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

1/2 lb Fresh salmon 226g
1 lemon, sliced
1 tbsp garlic infused olive oil
2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1 tbsp stone ground mustard
1/3 cup white wine 2.5oz
3 tbsp cremé fraîche
sea salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Grilled Salmon

Season the salmon with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Slice the lemon
Heat the grill to high heat. Place the slices of lemon onto the grill and place the salmon on the lemon. Grill until the fish has a nice sear and the centre is cooked to medium. Slightly pink in the centre.

Dill Sauce

In a small saucepan, heat up the garlic infused olive oil and sauté the dill for a few minutes.
Add the mustard and white wine and bring to a simmer. Reduce for a couple of minutes.
Lower the heat to the lowest setting. Add the cremé fraîche. Mix well and keep it just warm. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Putting it together

Place the grilled salmon on a plate and spoon the dill sauce over the salmon and serve immediately.

Moroccan Grilled Steak

Posted on September 17, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

We are getting into cool humidity free weather and I’m loving it. It is so refreshing to be outside and not feel suffocated by a blanket of thick air. While I don’t jump on the fad of pumpkin spice, seriously that is out of control, I do love bringing back warming flavours in our cooking. I needed to come up with a dish to use the aubergines in our garden so I made a Moroccan Grilled Steak dish. Perfect for the cooler evenings, though this weekend we are already under a frost warning. I really hope that doesn’t mean winter is too close! We’ll need to bring out the blankets for the veg so we can keep them going.

I made this with steak but this could easily be made with chicken, lamb or even tofu. I also made this with garlic infused olive oil but feel free to throw in a few cloves of garlic.

Technique for the Moroccan Grilled Steak

At least a couple of hours prior to making dinner, prepare the steak and the marinade. I like using steak tips as I’m grilling and they generally come out nice and tender even after the high heat of the grill.

Put the marinade ingredients into a medium bowl and mix well. Add the steak and make sure it’s covered well.

Cover and place in the fridge for at least a couple of hours. When it is time to cook dinner, grill the steak, giving it a nice sear. I grill my steak about 8 minutes, turning it half way through, as I like it on the rare side. Time it with the rest of the meal so it has several minutes to rest.

Technique for the Veg and Couscous

I prefer Israeli couscous over the regular couscous but using the regular couscous will work perfectly well. Just cook it according to the directions. Cook the couscous while the veg is cooking.

Sauté the aubergine and shiitake mushrooms in the garlic infused olive oil for a few minutes before adding the scallions and cilantro/coriander leaves. Then add the remaining marinade to the skillet. If you need more sauce, just increase the ingredients of the marinade equally to keep the balance of the flavours.

Add the cooked couscous and the chopped stems of the swiss chard. Cook for a minute or so then add the chopped leaves of the swiss chard. Cook for a minute until the leaves wilt a bit.

Slice the steak and serve over the veg and couscous mixture. This is a great dish to welcome autumn back and to use up the veg in the garden before the frost hits. Fingers crossed we get an autumn longer than a couple of weeks!

Moroccan Grilled Steak

Moroccan Grilled Steak with Israeli Couscous and Aubergine

Course Main Course

Cuisine Moroccan

Keyword Moroccan Grilled Steak

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

Moroccan Grilled Steak

1 lb steak tips 453g
1 tbsp garlic infused olive oil
2 tbsp plain yoghurt
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamin
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tbsp fresh cilantro/coriander leaves
dash lemon juice
1/2 tsp paprika
sea salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

Couscous and veg

1 cup uncooked Israeli couscous 183g
2 cups aubergine/eggplant cubed 130g
2 tbsp garlic infused olive oil
2 cups shiitake mushroom, chopped 60g
1/2 cup sliced scallions 15g
2 cups swiss chard, chopped 40g

Instructions

Moroccan Grilled Steak

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a medium bowl and add the steak. Cover and place in the fridge. Marinate for at least a couple of hours.
When it is time to cook dinner, heat the grill on high and cook the steak. You want the outside seared well. As I prefer the steak to be on the rare side, I cook it for 4 minutes then turn and cook another 4 minutes. Rest for several minutes.

Israeli couscous and Veg

Cook the couscous according to the instructions on the box or bag.
Heat up the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the aubergine and shiitake mushrooms. Sauté for a few minutes.
Add the cilantro/coriander leaves and scallions and cook for a few minutes. Then add the marinade used for the steak. If you need more sauce, add the ingredients of the marinade in the proportions of the original marinade until you have enough sauce. Do a bit at a time so you suddenly don't have soup.
Add the cooked couscous and the stems of the chopped swiss chard. Cook again for a minute or so then add the chopped leaves of the swiss chard. Cook until they start to wilt.

Putting it together

Slice the steak. Spoon the couscous and veg mixture onto the plate and top with the steak. Serve.

Southwest Quinoa Wrap

Posted on August 20, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

One upside to the high heat of summer is this is the time where our veg gardens start really giving up their bounty. This year our 8 tomato plants are acting like we planted 30 plants. On the other hand, our leeks have decided this year is not their year. Thankfully, our local co-op has all the seasonal fresh produce. Plenty to make a Southwest Quinoa Wrap.

This is a vegetarian dish that has loads of protein but it is very easy to add meat or seafood to this dish. This is also low FODMAP if you stick with the portions allowed for the ingredients. For example, I have corn and black beans in this dish. Corn if kept under 38g is good and black beans need to be under 40g. This dish has enough ingredients that this isn’t an issue.

I’m also trying to find meals that are healthy but filling enough for a teenage boy. The way he eats, he should be at least 7 foot tall by now!

Technique for Southwest Quinoa Wrap

Prep all the ingredients while the quinoa is cooking. The quinoa takes about 20 minutes to cook but the rest cooks quickly.

In a skillet, heat up the olive oil and begin to cook the scallions, leeks, corn and black beans.

Add the chili powder, cumin, lime juice and cilantro/coriander leaves. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Mix in the cooked quinoa.

Start layering the fresh ingredients on the quinoa wrap. I included some mung beans that we needed to use up. That’s the great thing about this dish, there isn’t any wrong veg to use.

Add the cooked mixture and top with shredded cheese and sour cream. Salsa would be a nice addition but it’s not always low FODMAP.

This was a delicious and filling meal. Though to be honest my son had more before he went to bed. At least he’s not eating junk!

Southwest Quinoa Wrap

A delicious vegetarian dish that fits with the low FODMAP diet

Course Main Course

Cuisine Southwest

Keyword Southwest Quinoa Wrap

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

8 Quinoa Wraps
1 cup cooked quinoa 185g
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup chopped leeks 89g
1/2 cup chopped scallions/spring onions (the green part) 50g
1 cup frozen corn 164g
1 cup black beans, drained 260g
1-2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp fresh cilantro/coriander leaves
sea salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste
lettuce
cucumber, sliced
tomato, sliced
carrot, sliced
mung beans
dollop of sour cream
shredded cheese

Instructions

Cook the quinoa according to the package's instructions. Takes about 20 minutes.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Cook the scallions, leeks, corn and black beans for a few minutes on medium heat. Add the chili powder, cumin, sea salt, pepper, lime juice and cilantro/coriander leaves. Cook for a few more minutes.
Add the lettuce, tomato, cucumber and carrot to the centre of the quinoa wrap.
Add in the cooked quinoa to the skillet and mix well.
Spoon the heated veg mixture over the centre of the wrap. Add the sour cream and shredded cheese. You can also top with salsa. Fold the wrap and cut into two. Serve the dish.

Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

Posted on August 13, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

We’re in the thick of summer with high heat and soup like humidity, my least favourite weather. I feel like we hibernate more in the summer than we do in the winter but the heat just saps all energy out of the body. This calls for quick and light meals such as Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes.

We should be getting a break in the weather this weekend. I really hope for once the weather people are correct. So often we are disappointed given how erroneous the forecast often is. Very rarely we are pleasantly surprised!

Technique for Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

This recipe is low FODMAP as I use garlic scapes instead of garlic. Obviously if you don’t have to worry about garlic, use that instead as it gives more of that lovely garlic flavour.

Garlic scapes are in season at the moment and they do lend a fresh flavour to this dish.

Heat the oil to medium in a skillet. Start slowing sautéing the tomatoes to release their flavour and to soften them a bit. Keep frequently to keep it from catching. I made the error of getting distracted with something else and burnt the first batch of tomatoes.

Add the scapes and sauté for a couple of minutes before adding the lemon juice and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Meanwhile prep the scallops by dabbing them with paper towels/kitchen roll to dry them a bit. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Place into a skillet with the hot oil. Allow to cook for a few minutes until they freely come away from the skillet.

Turn over and cook the other side.

I roasted potatoes in duck fat, such a guilty pleasure! Place the scallops over a bed of greens and top with the sun-dried tomato mixture. As my husband and son don’t like seafood I marinated steak with balsamic vinegar, grilled it and served it with the sun-dried tomatoes.

Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

A flavourful Italian summer meal with garlic scapes and sun-dried tomatoes

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Scallops with Sun-dried Tomatoes

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Servings 2

Ingredients

8 Sea Scallops
2 tbsp olive oil for scallops
2 tbsp olive oil for sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes 1oz
1/3 cup chopped garlic scapes 2oz
1 tbsp lemon juice
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Scallops

Dab scallops with paper towel/kitchen roll to remove excess moisture. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
Heat up the olive oil in a skillet. Place the scallops into the skillet. Cook on one side until the scallops freely move from the skillet. Turn and cook the other side.

Sun-dried Tomato mixture

Heat the olive oil in a skillet to medium heat. Start cooking the sun-dried tomatoes. Stir frequently to keep the tomatoes from catching.
After a few minutes add the garlic scapes. Sauté for a couple of minutes then add the lemon juice. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Putting it all together

On a bed of greens, place the scallops. Top with the sun-dried tomato mixture and serve.

Chicken Saagwala

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

I have had to start a low FODMAP diet for health reasons. I was really worried that would mean a narrow range of foods (which isn’t good if you blog about food!) and bland flavours. Thankfully, as this Chicken Saagwala will show, that is not the case. There are plenty of ingredients to choose from, I just needed to change my habits and learn new dishes. I do have to be careful as just because the word low is in the diet name, it doesn’t necessarily mean low fat or calorie!

How are all the parents doing out there with first days of school coming up quickly? Our district is still trying to sort out what to do. They have seemed to settle on dividing the schools in half and one group will go two days and the other two days. They are trying to encourage parents drop off students as they need to reduce those taking the bus. The tricky bit round here is there are several hill towns, up to 45 minutes away, that bus into our district. They state bus windows must be open. That can be a problem as we can have winter start in October. I know there aren’t any easy solutions to this surreal year. Universities are starting to reverse their decision to accept students on campus. Our daughter’s school is one of them so we get to have her home for this semester. I feel for her but am also glad she’ll be safer.

Technique for Chicken Saagwala

I found this recipe from A Little Bit Yummy. Of course I changed it but mainly I was trying to use what I had available. It still follows the low FODMAP guidelines. The only ingredient that I couldn’t fine definitive guidance on was the poblano but it didn’t cause me any problems. But just do your research.

We have lost the plot with the mustard greens we are growing so it was great to be able to use this in a recipe. The greens went like gangbusters but the rest of the lettuce we grew decided to be very indifferent to growing. I love gardening but at times there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason.

In a skillet, heat up the olive oil and begin to cook the cubed chicken breast. Add the garlic chives. Cook for a few minutes.

Add the leek, mustard greens and minced ginger. Cook until the greens begin to wilt down. I really like ginger which is why I put in 2 tbsp. If that is too much for you, just reduce the amount.

Add the poblano, diced tomatoes, cumin, turmeric, ground cloves and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer and cook for several minutes so the liquid can reduce a bit. Season with sea salt and pepper.

While I was cooking this, I roasted a sweet potato to accompany this dish. I really enjoyed this dish with the flavours of the fire roasted tomatoes and the bitterness of the mustard greens. I don’t pretend this is full on traditional as if you look at other recipes, there are a few more steps and it looks a lot greener. They also have dairy in it. But I hope you enjoy my version.

Chicken Saagwala

A low FODMAP dish with loads of flavour and easy to make.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Chicken Saagwala

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

1 chicken breast, skinless and boneless, cubed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh garlic chives
1 cup chopped leeks, the green part only 80g
1 cup chopped mustard greens 120g
2 tbsp minced ginger
1 poblano, chopped and seeded
14 oz fire roasted diced tomatoes
splash of lemon juice
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp ground clove
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a skillet and begin cooking the cubed chicken. After a couple of minutes add the chives.
Add the mustard greens, leek and ginger. Sautè for a few minutes
Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for several minutes to reduce the liquid a bit.
To keep this low FODMAP, serve this with something like a roasted sweet potato. If you aren't worried about low FODMAP then naan would be perfect.

Fish en Papillote

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

My daughter’s school is planning on bringing back students to their campus in a few weeks. Before she heads back to university, I wanted to make sure she gets meals she won’t get there. When there she mostly eats vegetarian as, well, dining hall meat and seafood doesn’t always set a high bar. As she loves seafood I thought I’d make this incredibly easy but delicious Fish en Papillote for her. I do wish I could cook her dishes and mail them to her safely but well, that’s not possible.

I am curious how long open campuses will last. These issues are the same closer to home. Our school system is looking to have in-classroom learning. Not quite sure how they will pull this off when, in the high school, there will be 1400 students walking through the hallways every 84 minutes. Who will be cleaning the classrooms between classes? Not an easy problem.

Technique for Fish en Papillote

I bought a nice piece of fresh cod for this dish and the fresh thyme from the garden was a lovely compliment. This fish was a reminder to pay attention to what the fishmonger is handing you. I pointed to a thicker filet and without me paying attention, I got this thin piece. I didn’t notice until I was back home. Slightly small for two people, especially when one is a teenager.

Place the fish in the parchment paper and twist the ends to make a boat shape. Add the ingredients into the boat.

Seal the package so the liquid is contained.

Bake at 350F/175C for 10-15 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. You want the cod to be nice and flaky.

Serve immediately.

It was a lovely pairing with salad and roasted sweet potato. This is also a great dish to whip up for a quick lunch.

Fish en Papillote

Fish cooked in parchment paper

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mediterranean

Keyword Fish en Papillote

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Servings 2

Ingredients

6 oz fresh cod
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp fresh thyme
2 tsp capers
1 tsp butter
sea salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F/175C.
Place the cod onto a piece of parchment paper. Make a boat shape with the parchment paper and add the rest of the ingredients to the fish.
Seal the parchment paper into a packet to hold the liquid in. Bake 10-15 minutes until the fish is cooked and flaky.
Serve with sides of your choice. For example, a salad and roasted sweet potato.

Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

Posted on July 23, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

A big component to my joy of traveling is being able to try new food and get inspiration for new dishes at home. My husband and I aren’t big shoppers, we’d rather budget for experiences. I prefer having a memory of a lovely meal in some far off locale than fill the house with stuff. Though stuff seems to multiply anyway, not sure what happens there! A couple of decades ago I was in Scotland on the west coast. I had a meal that I remember til this day because not only was it delicious but the simple flavours just came together to be amazing. It was Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce.

Prior to this I’d never had duck. I don’t think it was something, at the time, readily available in the States. I was also not a fan of cherries as it was difficult to get really fresh cherries and the flavour that gets stuck in your mind is the awful chemical cherry flavour of ice creams or medicine. Seriously, who taste tests those? But this was a revelation.

Technique for Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

The key to this, as is for most dishes, is fresh ingredients. I love being able to pop into my garden for the fresh herbs and veg.

Coarsely chop the cherries and finely chop the garlic. I really wish I had a cherry depitter but it’s not big deal to cut away the cherry from the pit, just slows it down a bit. Start cooking the cherry in a small pan with a bit of water.

Prep the duck by scoring the duck fat without cutting into the meat. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Place into a skillet face down to start with. Keep the heat just under medium so the fat renders down as much as possible while giving you that really nice sear. Every few minutes flip the duck so it cooks evenly without burning either side.

Add the garlic, thyme and lemon juice to the cherries. Let that simmer for a couple of minutes. Add the butter, sea salt and pepper. Stir well.

I do like a crispy duck. Cook the duck to at least medium. Allow to rest for several minutes before slicing.

Slice the duck and place over a bed of greens. Spoon over the sauce. We also roasted potatoes in duck fat. That is next level good.

Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

Seared Duck with cherries, garlic and thyme

Course Main Course

Keyword Seared Duck with Cherry Sauce

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

1 duck breast
1 1/2 cups cherries, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup water 2-3oz
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp fresh thyme
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp butter
sea salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Cooking the Seared Duck

Score the duck fat without cutting into the meat. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
In a skillet, put the duck face down. Keep the heat just below medium so the fat renders out without burning the duck. Flip the duck every few minutes so it cooks evenly. Cook until it is at least medium in the centre. Let it rest for several minutes before slicing.

Cooking the Cherry Sauce

Sautè the cherries in the water for a few minutes.
Add the garlic, thyme and lemon juice. Simmer for a few minutes to cook the garlic.
Add the butter and stir well. Reduce the liquid by about a third.

Serving the dish

Slice the duck and arrange it over a bed of greens.
Spoon the sauce over the duck.
Serve with potatoes roasted in duck fat.

Slow Cooked Lemon Garlic Pork

Posted on July 16, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

So how’s the year going for everyone? Crazy you say? We all have years that we are glad to see the back of but this is a year, for the first time in a very long time, I think we’re all looking forward to see the back of. It’s been difficult to hold on to some normalcy, especially with our kids. Blogging took a back seat with sewing face masks and headbands, as well with just wanting to do cosy things and make sure the family was in a good and safe space. For a lot of us, the anxiety has been over the top. How there hasn’t been a wine shortage, I’ll never know. We still need to eat, of course! This Slow Cooked Lemon Garlic Pork is very easy to make and has a lovely fresh flavour, perfect for these hot days.

Technique for the Slow Cooked Lemon Garlic Pork

Preheat the oven to 300F/150C.

Prep the pork by removing any connective tissue and then pierce the pork in several spots. Everytime I think or say “pierce the”, I always think of the movie Birdcage and the “I pierced the toast!” line. Very funny movie. Place the pork in a deep baking dish. Season liberally with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the baking dish.

Cover and bake for about 6 hours. Low and slow is key here. You’ll end up with moist and falling apart pork.

Remove the big pieces of rosemary so you don’t have big twigs in the meal. Shred the pork and stir well so the onion, garlic and rosemary are evenly mixed in.

Serve on a bed of lettuce, top with freshly grated parmesan cheese. I absolutely love roasted potatoes so that was my chosen side with this light meal.

I hope you are all getting through this surreal year and are staying healthy, we will eventually get through this.

Slow Cooked Lemon Garlic Pork

A lemony slow cooked pork served over lettuce

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Slow Cooked Lemon Garlic Pork

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 6 hours

Servings 4

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

2 lbs pork shoulder 900grams
1/2 onion, chopped
2-4 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
2 boughs of rosemary
1/2 cup lemon juice 4oz
1 cup chicken stock 8oz
sea salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 300F/150C
Remove the connective tissue from the pork and pierce with a knife, several times. Place in a deep baking dish and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Add the remaining ingredients to the baking dish.
Cover the baking dish and bake for 6 hours. After about 3 hours, baste the pork every 45- 60 minutes.
Remove the big pieces of rosemary. Remove from the oven and shred the pork with two forks. Mix in the rosemary, onion and garlic evenly.
Serve over a bed of lettuce and grate fresh parmesan over the pork.

Minestrone Soup

Posted on February 27, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

We seem to be in a continuous cycle of warm temperature to bitter cold temperature and back again. Germs everywhere! Minestrone soup is a great antidote to fighting off all the stuff going round. As remedies go, it’s a delicious comfort food.

My husband had sent me an article from the Guardian about Ultra Processed Food. For those that follow this blog, you know we’re big on cooking from scratch and keeping overly processed food out of our diet. I found it interesting when the article mentioned that it’s a good sign to see a container of sugar in the kitchen. The reason is, it’s a sign that home cooking from fresh ingredients occurs. Which is so much better than buying boxed goods.

Technique for Minestrone Soup

While this is a very easy soup to make on a busy night, I do recommend to make it a day or so ahead for the flavours to really come out.

Heat up the olive oil in a large saucepan. Sautè the onions until they soften. Add the garlic, carrots and celery. Cook for a few minutes.

Add the mushrooms and peas. The beauty of this soup is you can add whatever veg you want. I don’t like zucchini/courgettes and the like, especially in soup, so I left those out even though they are more traditional.

For the diced tomatoes I like to use fire roasted for a deeper flavour. Continue to cook for a few minutes before adding the veg bouillon. Bring to a simmer.

Season with the herbs, sea salt and pepper. Add the pasta and bring to a boil until the pasta starts to soften. Turn back down to a simmer.

Years ago, on our honeymoon in Italy, we had taken a cooking lesson and the woman gave us a tip on how to use up the parmesan ends. Throw in the piece into the soup and simmer. It gives a really lovely cheesy balance to the soup.

Serve with fresh bread and butter. Perfect for the whacky winter evenings.

Minestrone Soup

A hearty delicous soup

Course Soup

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Minestrone Soup

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
1-2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 small carrot, chopped
1-2 mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 cup frozen peas
2 14oz cans diced tomatoes
3 cups vegetable bouillon
1 tbsp fresh thyme
1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
sea salt and pepper to taste
parmesan cheese end
1 cup rotini pasta, dry

Instructions

Heat up the olive oil in a large saucepan. Sautè the onions until they begin to soften. Add the garlic, celery and carrots to the pan. Cook for a few minutes before adding the mushrooms and peas. After cooking for a few more minutes add the diced tomatoes.
Add the bouillon and the pasta. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the herbs and season with the sea salt and pepper. Toss in the cheese end. Once the pasta is cooked, it is ready to serve.

Birdwatching in the UK

Posted on January 30, 2020 by Our Growing Paynes

It was a lovely surprise to find how plentiful the variety of birds were when we went birdwatching in the UK over the holidays. And such a tonic as the few months building up to the holidays were high stress and very busy, hence me being absent for so long.

Most of my time was taken up with knitting a shawl for my mother-in-law for her Christmas present. It’s my own fault really, I am not a fast knitter but because I waited until October to start I was dedicating up to 8 hours a day. I did not take after my Grandma, who could knit up a cricket jumper for my dad in a week, including cables! So I would be knitting like a mad woman at a somewhat snail’s pace.

It was the smallest yarn I’ve used to date. I had to wear my readers over my bifocals to see what I was doing. Thankfully I had it done in time and she loved it.

That meant, by the time we arrived in the UK, I was ready for a break and relaxation. Because the winters there are so mild, we spent a lot of time outside. Where we live currently, the winters are harsh and bitterly cold most of the time so we were wandering round without many layers while the locals were in their arctic fur. I felt hot most of the time! Makes for a welcome break in the winter.

Being able to spend so much time outside allowed for some really good birdwatching. I know in the UK the songbird population has taken quite a hit but compared to where we live, it was wonderful hearing all the different songs.

There were three main spots where I had the best luck. The first spot was at Harmon’s Cross. Swanage Railway had a winter event that they put on before they start the January maintenance. The times between the trains was enough that we found ourselves with an empty platform. There was a spot where bird feed was left out and the birds were flitting about. I stood very still and I was rewarded.

This blackbird was doing its best to eat all the birdseed.

The Blue Tit proved to be elusive. I have loads of blurry pics of this bird.

My mother-in-law took us twice to the RSPB Arne in Dorset. It’s an incredible conservation area that covers many different types of environments. You have woodland, grassland, heather, water, etc. Such a variety of birds to find.

At the car park, they had several feeders and it was like rush hour with the songbirds rapidly flitting in and out. Again I took loads of pics in the hope I could get some good ones. I’m amazed, given the speed of some, that they managed to actually get bird seed.

I particularly like the Goldfinch, the colours are gorgeous.

A Coal Tit in the front with a Goldfinch looking to land.

A House Sparrow (which looks like a mini hawk) and a female Chaffinch.

This Robin was eye level and only a few feet away giving us quite the concert.

A Pheasant minding his own business as we walked by.

The areas for watching birds in the water were breathtaking. It was so calming just sitting in a hide and watching them go about their day.

The white bird is an Avocet which is making a comeback in the UK. It is surrounded by Eurasian Wigeons and there is actually a Common Teal Duck in the mix.

An Oyster Catcher making a graceful landing.

We did see spoon bills but they were too far away for me to capture clearly with my 300mm lens. We discovered that many birds were just beyond my lens. I would love to hear from those that do bird photography, the pros and cons of a teleconverter vs a 150mm-600mm lens. Trying to decide which direction to go in.

The end of the holiday was spent in London with my son as he had to get back to school. I was taking him to Churchill’s War Rooms and we cut through St James Park. I was taken aback at all the different birds there. I only used my phone for these pictures as I wanted to make sure my son had time at the War Rooms. If I’d taken out my proper camera, we would have been there a long time.

My mother-in-law had joked I needed to get pictures of pelicans. Imagine my surprise at seeing pelicans in the middle of London.

Tame Greylag Geese and Ring Necked Parakeets

We also saw a Black Swan, Blue Heron, some Coots, Barnacle Geese and Moor hens.

I can’t wait to explore more RSPB areas and coastal walks. We will probably have to do a boat trip along the cliffs in Dorset as that’s what you have to do to see Puffins. That would be fascinating.