cucumber and avocado soup

There’s no reason to only use cucumbers raw—they are wonderful sautéed then pureed with avocado for a silken-textured soup that’s good warm or cold.

Makes 4 servings, about 1 cup each

ACTIVE TIME: 35 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 35 minutes
EASE OF PREPARATION: Easy

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil2 cloves garlic, minced1 small onion, diced1 tablespoon lemon juice4 cups peeled, seeded and thinly sliced cucumbers, divided1 1/2 cups vegetable broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth 1/2 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepperPinch of cayenne pepper1 avocado, diced1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish 1/2 cup low-fat plain yogurt

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 1 to 4 minutes. Add lemon juice and cook for 1 minute. Add 3 3/4 cups cucumber slices, broth, salt, pepper and cayenne; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and cook at a gentle simmer until the cucumbers are soft, 6 to 8 minutes.

Transfer the soup to a blender. Add avocado and parsley; blend on low speed until smooth. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) Pour into a serving bowl and stir in yogurt. Chop the remaining 1/4 cup cucumber slices. Serve the soup warm or refrigerate and serve it chilled. Just before serving, garnish with the chopped cucumber and more chopped parsley, if desired.

potatoes - patatas - creiilles

I'm happy with the potatoe recollection, "sputna" - what we refer to as "egyptians"- has been the most sucessful of the white potatoes. A healthy crop from each shaw. Red potatoes to be recollected in the coming weeks. Then sweet potatoes to plant.

Neem

This is the product that the beasties are treated with. It is an organic/natural insecticide called Neem. There is a picture of the tree a couple of entries back.

available from laiaiaverda.com

Huerta Sana - Pedreguer

El Jefe

The project has been aided by El jefe - Jaime Fornes Avella. He is truly a remarkable man. Formidable, possibly even intimidating with his brusque manner and his Valencian sense of volume of conversation.
He celebrates 80 this year, and his passion for fruit and vegetable growing only seems to grow. Maybe its the juice of a lemon with a pint of water first thing in the morning that does it.

Jaime Fornes Avella - Pedreguer

No hay muchos hombres de este tipo.Las cosas estan claras, hay transparencia. Jaime Fornes Avella - una inspiracion, un ejemplo de la fuerza humana, a veces un poco brusco. Jefe, te saludo.

Cosecha - home grown

What can't speak can't lie

Neem - Offside

Thanks to neem. A tree.It is just wonderful. Insecticide, fungicide and mitiside. Offside for bugs that chew our plants yet ok for bees and ladybirds and insects that help our plants = pretty cool.

Potatoes and Gooseberry Trees

Potatoe field doing well!!!

First year in production and the soil looks as if it is a little rich in nitrogen , as the potatoes are about the height of a gooseberry tree.

Talking of gooseberry trees I am reminded of a song, the words similarish to these lyrics I found on the net:


An Englishman, a Welshman and a Hebrew
They were sentenced to be hanged down Texas way
And they each wre asked to choose a tree to swing from
And they started with the Welshman right away
So the Welshman chose a pear tree and was happy
The Englishman said "Any tree will do"
So they chose for him an apple tree to swing from
When suddenly these words came from the Jew
"Hang me please from my favourite tree"
And the judge said "What tree will it be?"
"It's the tree I love best, it's my dying request
Hang me please from a gooseberry tree"
Then the judge said "But surely you know
That a gooseberry tree's awfully low"
"Oh all right then" says Mose
"I will wait til it grows
"Hang me please from a gooseberry tree"
I learned a version of this song many years ago, so long that
I can no longer remember where it came from but these were
the lyrics. The last line is to the tune of "In the shade of
the old apple tree" AZ
AZ
OCT98

Senor A and the Hardware

El Senor A, without his help and assistance - well we wouldn't be eating tomatoes and peppers just now. As the youngsters would say - a big shout to him.