It’s the end of April, which isn’t exactly peak harvest season. However I’m already being able to enjoy at least some of the harvest from the garden.
First off there’s things like herbs – the rosemary finally found a space it seems to like and is thriving. Freshly cut rosemary goes well with so many things and the you really cannot compare fresh herbs with their dry cousins. I’ve also got various other herbs and seasonings dotted around the place, like thyme, mint, oregano, sage, basil, parsley and bay.
I did leave a few things in the ground last year. Mostly because I didn’t do a great job with thinning them and then I forgot to harvest them. The “wonderful” Irish weather probably helped a little too! It’s kind of hard to collect anything when you’re getting absolutely drenched!
But what’s really come into its own this year is the rhubarb.
I planted a couple of crowns of rhubarb a few years ago. I found a spot along one of the walls, shoved them in there andhave more or less forgotten about them since. I only remember from time to time when the leaves of the plants get so big that I can’t really ignore them anymore! Last year I gave away some of the rhubarb, froze some and made one or two crumbles, but that was about it. This year, however, I’ve been doing quite a bit more.
If you pull a small amount once a week or so, then the plants will keep growing and you’ll still have plenty to make tasty things with or give away to friends and co-workers!
I’ve also been experimenting a bit with different recipes for rhubarb. Sadly I keep coming back to crumble, as it seems to be *the* best way to use rhubarb. It’s not the only way of course. I could try my hand at some preserves or other things and maybe I will. But for now I’m playing around with different combinations of fruits with the crumble, as well as different ways of making the crumble itself.
This evening’s version will be a combination of strawberries (reduced to clear in a local supermarket) and rhubarb, with a flour and oats based topping.
I’ve no idea what the best topping for a crumble is – I keep trying different ones and liking different aspects of them. What I still remember, however, is the cobblers that they used to serve in The Standard in DTLA. Now that was a crusty topping!
In any case I’ll probably have this evening’s crumble experiment with some cream or Greek yoghurt. Either way it’ll be a nice option to go after the slow cooked beef short rib that I plan on having for dinner this evening.
I’m hoping to be able to do a bit of work in the garden over the next few days, though it’ll be a lot easier to do if the place isn’t completely waterlogged. The downside to Irish weather!
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