June in Bloom.
Welcome to the third instalment of our new monthly Andra blog focused on our instructor Beth’s allotment.
Each month Beth will be talking us through what she has been growing and what we can cook or make with the produce from that month. Beth and her husband have started an Instagram page for their allotment called @pipsandhoes for anyone who would like to know more. Over to Beth…
There is no nicer place to be in June than in the allotment (especially considering cocktails by the pool are a no go again this year)! Everything is exploding to life and it feels that each day something new opens up. You can almost convince yourself that you know what you are doing, until you realise mother nature is doing 100% of the leg work and you are just a happy bystander.
This month it’s time to harvest all the garlic that we planted last year. The saying goes that you plant garlic on the shortest day and pull it up on the longest day. It's not quite gone like this for us, as we were a little keen and got them in, in November! They have needed very little care, apart from the last few weeks when we have been feeding them once a week. So what are we going to do with 20 bulbs of garlic?
Here are a couple of ideas:
Cured Garlic
Once the garlic has been dug up, keep all root and stem (and dirt) on them and find a cool dry place to hang them up in. They should dry out for 6 - 8 weeks and then voila a year's worth of garlic.
Pickled Garlic
- 300 grams of garlic per jar
- 200ml of cider vinegar
- 50 grams of sugar
- ½ tsp of mustard seeds
- Pinch of pepper corns
- Pinch of chilli flakes
Put all ingredients except the garlic into a pan and cook on a low heat to dissolve the sugar. Peel the garlic and place into a jar and then pour over the sugar mixture once it has cooled. Seal firmly and leave for 2 weeks. This will then last for up to a year!
Why use garlic?
Apart from the classic use of scaring away unwanted vampire attention, garlic is great for keeping at bay coughs and colds. Its rich in vitamin c, vitamin B6 and manganese.
What else are we loving?
This month we are also digging up, as needed, our cherry belle radishes. Very quick to grow and they look super pretty. These can be eaten raw in a rainbow salad. Like garlic they are a great source of vitamin c, and because we use them without cooking they retain all of their antioxidant properties.
Beautiful Rainbow Salad
- Handful for thinly sliced radishes
- ¼ yellow tomatoes
- Handful of torn basil leaves
- Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
- Dash of good quality olive oil
- Optional parmesan shavings
Arrange the above and leave to chill for an hour before eating. Great on its own or as a side dish.