I managed to tackle some of my vegetable glut. Several dishes of courgette and tomato bake were made for the freezer, a large courgette frittata was made to take to our picnic and I even made a courgette and lettuce soup for lunch which used four large Cos lettuces!
To make the soup... slice and saute several spring onions in some olive oil and butter. (The onions were from the garden too and were starting to look like leeks!)
Add some sliced courgettes... and because I happened to have them, a handful of peas. Saute for about 5 mins until cooked. Add lots and lots of chopped lettuce - I used four plus some sorrell just because I had it! Stir until wilted and add about a litre and a half of good vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer and then take off the heat and liquidise. Forgot to say that I added lots of fresh mint before I liquidised!
Return to the pan and warm through with a couple of tablespoons of creme fraiche. Serve with a good helping of grated parmesan cheese. A lovely summery soup using vegetables from my garden!
It turned into a beautiful summer evening... perfect for our picnic concert as you can see (Don't understand why my glass is empty)
We were treated to a spectacular display by a Spitfire accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra playing the theme from The Dambusters.
And then we listened to the wonderful singing of Katherine Jenkins, who was in fine voice. This is about as close as we got but close enough to see she had many different beautiful frocks!
All the usual Last Night of Proms tunes were played and the evening finished with fireworks that looked as though they were coming out from Audley End house.
All in all the day turned out fine... if it wasn't for the hour and a quarter it took us to get out of the car park! 
Lovely eggs! Lovely vegetables!
ReplyDeleteGhastly horrid nasty red mites - they're in our hen-house too! The eradication regime seems to be working, but they breed quicker than rabbits, so constant vigilance and spraying often, is the only way to beat them.
Thanks for showing us the photos of the concert. Lots of cars were leaving early - I think they knew what it was going to be like later!.
Celia
x
What a wonderful day and a wonderful soup! Looks and sounds delicious! I love Katherine Jenkins too - my friend actually works for the company who manage her - hear she is a really nice lady!
ReplyDeleteIt all looks fabulous! And thank you for the soup recipe - do you feel like sharing the courgette and tomato bake one too as we will be eating courgettes nearly every day for the rest of the summer?!
ReplyDeleteLucy x
Your garden soup sounds spectacularly yummy.
ReplyDeleteHi Gina. good to see you back and to see the hens are doing so well. Lovely concert for you. No chance here of the weather being so forgiving...sigh x
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your double yolk eggs! And so glad the mites are under control.
ReplyDeleteG and I visited Audley End last year for the first time. I loved the restored kitchens and kitchen garden. The concert sounds amazing.
And always good to have another courgette recipe. Goodness knows our production seems to be picking up all the time!
K x
Hello from New York. I have found your blog via Magic Cochin, and have very much enjoyed the cooking and the knitting and crocheting, and everything else that I just quickly scanned through.
ReplyDeleteSee you again soon!
Oh, the satisfaction of using vegetables from your own garden! My courgettes sll seem to turn into marrows, but are still delicious - we had them plus runner beans with our roast chicken this evening - delicious. I just cannot grown spring onions though!
ReplyDeleteWhat a super concert - glad the weather stayed fine for you. There are always nasty things to be eradicated where there is livestock. How obliging of your hens to lay different sized eggs - perfect for recipes requiring only half an egg! The soup sounds delicious - underneath the ink and dye stains your fingers must be really green!!
ReplyDeleteGlad it stayed fine for you Gina. I last wne to Audley End when I was at school, just a year or two ago!
ReplyDeleteSo that's what a courgette is! I've always wondered!
ReplyDeleteYay for the chickens - its so lovely collecting eggs! glad your evening and picnic was a success - it all looks lovely.
ReplyDeletex
Thise big eggs look so nice! Nice to read you again. x
ReplyDeleteOooh, it looks like a fabulous evening - and a wonderful picnic!
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