101 in 1001 - Grow 5 Types of Fruit & Vegetables

Seed packets

Above are some seeds that I got for number 14 on the 101 in 1001 list:

014. Plant and grow 5 types of fruit & vegetables.

Spring onions, spinach, kale and kalettes

I planted them yesterday, so it will be a little while before I find out whether or not they're growing. If they don't, I have some seeds leftover, so I can amend my growing technique and try again.

Peas

Kale & kalettes

Last week, I also planted two shallots, as they had already started sprouting in the vegetable cupboard!

Shallot in the back garden

Shallot in the front garden

One was planted in my front garden and the other in a pot in my back garden. I'm not sure which way is best, but both of them have grown a lot since being planted, are now headed straight up instead of to the side, and seem to be doing well (the front garden shallot was bigger to start with).

Shallot growing in front garden

As I had an avocado seed I looked up how to grow them. It seems that the best way to germinate them is in water, with the root side down and the sprouting side facing upwards. The water should only cover the very bottom of the seed and needs to be changed every 2 days. Apparently avocados take 3-6 weeks to start showing any signs of growth, so we'll see what happens!

Avocado seed "planted" in water

I also grow potatoes, apples, strawberries and blackberries, but I'm not including those in this goal because I started doing that a long time before I began the list.

101 in 1001 - Persimmon, Longans, and a Ball of Energy

Persimmon

In the last post I wrote about three different films, and this entry is about three different foods. This is, of course, for the 101 in 1001 list goal:

• 039. Try 10 foods/drinks I haven't tried before.

First up was a fruit that I know has been in my house before, but I've never actually tried for one reason or another: persimmon (the photos above). There are apparently different varieties of these, but the one I tried had a texture that was halfway between a soft pumpkin and an unripe (but still pleasant) peach. The flavour was quite muted but there was a definite sweetness to it. I liked these and will probably eat them again in the future.

Next came another fruit: longans.

Longans

I hadn't actually heard of longans before, but I was told that they're similar to lychees, so decided to get them. (I should point out that I don't like lychees, so that was an odd decision to make, haha).  Longans certainly don't look like lychees on the outside, but they both come from the soapberry family of fruits, and once you get beyond the outer casing the similarity becomes more obvious. They have the same clear colour and texture - something like a gelatinous grape crossed with yokan - and a dark, shiny seed in the middle. 

The flavour, however, is what I think is different. Longans are sweet at first and then have a somewhat mildly spicy aftertaste, in the same way that red bell peppers do, but there's another taste as well that I can't quite put my finger on. They don't have any bitterness to them at all, like lychees do. As with the persimmons, I'd definitely like to have these again, and perhaps lychees too, just in case I've changed my mind about them!

The third and last food for this time wasn't a fruit, but was still made mostly of fruit (and nuts). 

Deliciously Ella Cacao & Almond Energy Ball

These cacao & almond energy balls from Deliciously Ella are amazing. They're vegan (for me, this is important), reasonably healthy, filling, and taste, well, delicious! They have a flavour and texture a bit like brownies, but they're just made with almonds, medjool dates, raw cacao powder, almond butter and coconut oil. They're so good! The best part is that they come sitting on a little piece of card that has a link to the recipe, so you can try making them yourself. I haven't tried it yet, but I will soon!

Inktober Day 18 & 365 Days of Art - Strawberries

Inktober, Day 18 & Strawberries

Day 18 of Inktober was a day of little inspiration for me. Still, I came up with something, using theme number 298 (Strawberries) from my 365 Days of Art list.

Music:
Position Parallèle - Pas Plus Loin (No Further)
Position Parallèle - Mon Plus Bel Echo (My Most Beautiful Echo)
Position Parallèle - Quel Q Ues Aiguilles (A Few Needles/Minutes/Seconds)

100 Happy Days: Day 54 - Plums, Cherries & Apples

Plums

Seeing trees fruiting is always a happy moment, especially when they're in your own garden!

Cherries

Apples

100 Happy Days: Day 35 - Dinner for Three

More simple things for the 35th day of my 100 Happy Days; the fact that I am fortunate enough to to have fresh fruit and vegetables for dinner on most days, and that they look so vibrant and colourful against the pale chopping board.