Thursday 13 November 2014

Late nasturtiums and persimmon salad

It's almost mid-November, but amazingly enough I still have some late blossoming nasturtiums and marigolds in my greenhouse. I have planted them among the tomatoes and cucumelons (now the last ones were a big mistake, never again) to keep the slugs away. I had a fabulous crop of tomatoes this year, and it seems to be the only veg which produces great results consistently from one year to another.
Nasturtiums always remind me of my childhood. One of my earliest memories is of our nursery yard with a cheerful carpet of nasturtiums.
They are very pretty to look at, and make a lovely addition to salads too - both flowers and leaves.


I don't have a proper recipe to share, as I didn't take any notes on the exact weight of ingredients, but roughly it was half a big juicy persimmon, sliced, a handful of baby tomatoes, a half of goat's cheese and roasted cubed squash and sweet potato, with a scattering of nasturtiums, drizzled with a dressing made of the olive oil, honey and cider vinegar.


Tomatoes are also the remnants of my crop, there are still a few tomatoes left on the vines in the greenhouse. Khaki or persimmons are from Spain (bought at the local fruit market).


This was a light and very satisfying lunch. I wanted to keep it as a palette of orange, with only the whiteness of the goat's cheese breaking the pattern.


Next year I will be planting the nasturtiums again, for a splash of colour in the garden and on the plate.


9 comments:

  1. Looks beautiful! I love persimmons.

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  2. Orange on a plate. That looks delightful Galina and very tasty too. What didn'tt you like about the cucamelons?

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    1. Thank you Choclette! The cucamelons are supposed to be the size of grapes, mine were plentiful but miniscule. The plants took a valuable space in my greenhouse, I should have planted something else instead.

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    2. We used to grow them outdoors, under the name melothria. They weren't quite as big as grapes. They tasted OK, but I found the skins were a bit tough, so we didn't persist for more than a couple of years. They were pretty though.

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    3. I bought them on a spur of the moment in the garden centre, haven't seen them before. If anything, I should try mini cucumbers next year.

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  3. wow such a beautiful presentation :)

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  4. Ooh it looks beautiful, even if I still haven't been brave enough to try eating flowers ! I was intrigued by cucumelons and had to go and google - I'd never seen them before !

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