English shelling peas are coming on in the garden. I made a fresh pea soup on Sunday for dinner.
I simmered the pea pods to create a broth, and then cooked the peas before pureeing them.
I served the pea soup with crushed mint, a dab of sour cream and a pea blossom.
The soup was followed by a salad of Chiogga beets, which are also abundant in the garden.
The two little pigs are growing up. Born the first week of April, the two-month old piglets are busily running around. Our dogs like to bark at them and rush the gate, but the piglets are non-plussed. They are curious.
A rainy day is unusual in the middle of May. This large rainbow appeared to rise from Barnett Valley, which I see looking southwest from my home.
On Sunday, just before dusk, a good-sized gopher snake was stretched out on Pillow Road for warmth. We were headed out for a walk and came across him. I came back and got my camera to take a photo, which was helpful in identifying the snake. When we returned home from our walk, just as the sun was setting, the gopher snake had gone off. I wish the snake good luck in gopher hunting.
The Gopher Snake
California Herps provides good information about the Pacific Gopher Snake, Pituophis catenifer catenifer.
It’s all green. The greenhouse and the spring garden are doing well. I’m reminded of the Tom Waits’ song – “All the World is Green.”
Today, we had a large gathering for Easter and the kids wanted to see the piglets. I was busy cooking dinner but at the end of the day, I checked them out for myself and took some pictures of them in the barn today. They are about three weeks old. They have grown very fast.
Two Piglets
In a pile of dirt recently, I found this rather large earthworm, a proud citizen of the soil.
I made this dish last night, a stir-fry with new broccoli, served with tender stems and leaves. I made a sauce with Tamarind paste and added mango to the chicken and mushrooms. Both in terms of taste and sight, broccoli was the standout.
Here are the week-old piglets:
It is unusual for a sow to have only two in a litter. Sara was worried for this first-time mother. But she seems to be doing fine. The advantage for the piglets is that they have an all-you-can-eat buffet with no competition. They should grow fast.
These radishes were grown in the greenhouse in a box that had maybe four inches of soil. Most of the radish developed above ground. I this variety, which is long with almost as much white as red. I haven’t tried them for breakfast but I have heard they are good cooked.
