A little tour in the garden and a mint syrup recipe

 The garden is growing so much, we had our first eggplants, tomatoes, raspberries, and black currants. The plants grow fast and every week there is a new plant we could use in our cooking or to preserve. 

It's a question of good timing and make time for it. 

I wanted to give you a little tour of the garden. The flowers, it's such a delight to smell the roses, honeysuckle, and lilies. I feel I am becoming more and more of a flower collector. 

I like that we grow vegetables and fruits and have flowers in such a small space. It is a challenge to make space for all of the plants, we need to be creative. 

The hollihocks are doing so good, I brought the seeds from France, they come from my parents yard. 

The honeysuckle. ( See I am really in the city ) 

Lilies.

Some kale, we do eat a lot of it...

First beets are almost ready !

A potted tomato on top of the chicken coop.

Roses

And so much mint !

We dry some of the mint but this year I made some mint syrup !

Here is the recipe.

Mint Syrup Recipe 

- 4 big bowls of mint leaves washed 

- 4 cups of water

- 4 cups of sugar 

In a large bowl add the fresh mint leaves, add the boiling water over the leaves and cover for 24 hours.

Filter the liquid you obtained, add the sugar and cook in a large sauce pan for an hour. ( on high first then on low )

Let the syrup cool and store in a bottle.

Keep it in your fridge. 

Enjoy your syrup in a cocktail, or just with sparkling water ( or not ) and a lot of ice. 

It's very sweet so you really just need a little bit, it's fresh and delicious on a hot summer day! 

Summer Panzanella, a recipe

It's the best feeling to step outside, head straight to the garden, pick a few tomatoes and some basil tips, dig up a small red onion and start to work on a summer panzanella.

Panzanella--slightly adapted from Gourmet.com

Ingredients:
tomatoes-1.5 pounds, chopped into small pieces (I used a mix of Paul Robeson, Japanese Black Trifle, Orange Short Vine, and Orange Banana but you can use up cherry tomatoes or whatever you have that is ripe and ready.)
3/4 cup of chopped basil (I used Mrs. Burns Lemon Basil and Genovese)
1-2 garlic cloves ( I used this year's green garlic)
salt
pepper
day old bread (in this case, 3/4 of a loaf of golden flax bread)
fresh mozzarella (or feta)--optional
white balsamic vinegar (I like the Trader Joe's brand)
a good quality olive oil

For this panzanella, you'll want to use your favorite loaf of bread. It needs to be a day or two old to soak up the dressing so prepare in advance if you are planning to bake your own. I used 3/4 of a loaf of golden flax seed bread that I picked up at our local farmer's market. Chop the bread into cubes and place in a roasting pan. Drizzle with 2 TB of olive oil and add some freshly ground black pepper and sea salt. Stir and bake for 15 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

While your croutons are baking, chop your tomatoes into bite-sized pieces. Chop your fresh mozzarella into cubes. Chop your basil. Thinly slice a red onion. Set these aside.

To make the dressing, mince a garlic clove (or two) and add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to make a paste. A mortar and pestle works great here. Next, add 1/3 cup of olive oil and 3 TB of white balsamic vinegar. Whisk together.

When croutons are ready, toss them into the dressing and give them a stir. Add tomatoes, cheese, onion slices, and basil. Season to taste. For best flavor, let the flavors meld for 30 minutes or a little less if you're really hungry. :)

I wish I had a photograph of this beautiful summer salad in our handmade pottery bowl but I made it after nightfall and we ate most of it. Hope you understand.

Enjoy!