Mung Beans and Buckwheat groat soup with leek and salvia

we are waiting for the snow, it should come tomorrow.
we will see....
this morning it was so cold, pure, windy and loud :D


now and then the sun came out from behind heavy grey clouds.
our lake is so beautiful in this period of the year, so clean, so blue, so "ours".



today, with the wind rather hard and cold,  we were quite alone walking on the lake side.
I adore this place, couldn't live somewhere else I think.





yes, of course I miss south of Sweden where I was born, I miss the perfume of the sea, the mist, the fog,the brown and grey earth in the autumn,  the cold winter days, the neverending summer nights...
but, the Garda Lake is a very, very special place.






Mung Beans and Buckwheat groat soup with leek and salvia



sorry for the long name, I didn't know what to call it :DD
this recipe comes from a very dear friend of mine, Lorenza and from her blog
Galline 2nd life (chicken 2nd life)
a love her files on vegetables and herbs, I always find so useful and interesting information.
yesterday when I saw this recipe over by hers, I thought it was perfect for the MLLA!
and it is perfect for Sofi (daughter n°4) who is vegetarian, like Lisa who is hosting this month's MLLA

so here we go.




you need:

240gr of mung beans *
240gr of buckwheat groat
2 big leeks or 4 small
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 glass of white wine
2 l of water
fresh salvia leaves
salt
multicolored pepper
extravergin olive oil or other vegetable oil


put your mung beans in water over the night.

in a pressure cooker put some oil, one salvia leaf, the garlic and the leeks cut in fine, tiny slices
add the wine and let evaporate.



and the soaked mung beans and the buckwheat and toast lightly, mix all the time.

add the water some pepper grains and two-three salvia leaves,
close lid and when it is whistles, lower the heat and cook for 15min**

serve with olive oil, multicolored peppercorns and a salvia leaf

thank's for the recipe Lorenza, it is very very tasty!!



Brigidaa_te:
* Lorenza used lentils in her recipe, but I was without so I tried with mung beans! :D

** if you don't use the pressure cooker, you will need ca 25-30min.

I send this to Lisa from Lisa's kitchen

hosting MLLA  29

thank you for hosting Lisa.

here the host line up

turnip salad with herb dressing

I love turnips, possibly raw and as I actually don't know

the english names of these turnips

I made a photo and I hope you can help

me identify them :)

Turnip salad with herb dressing

you need:

Radicchio 

endive

apple

purple turnip

"celery turnip"

rettiche 

(that is the long white one)

salt

peper

for the dressing:

fresh herbs (parsley, mint, chives, fennel,

oregano, thyme for ex)

extra virgin olive oil

clean, peel, and slice the vegetables and the turnips

chop the herbs and put in a small jar

cover with oil and whisk to mix well

pour over your salad and serve immediately

if you like you can season with toasted

different seeds

I send this to Anh from Food Lover's Journey

who is hosting WHB this week

thank you Kalyn from Kalyn's Kitchen

for the WHB idea

and

 Haalo from Cook (almost) anything at least once

for giving me the chance to try doing

WHB in Italian

today it is First Advent, and we have a tradition 

preparing a Adventskranz, a Advent Wreath

this is a North European Tradition

and now days you can find also rectangular, square, candles on trays or on plates

beside the original round wreaths 

just let your fantasy free. :)

usually I do two, one is a bigger one on the top of our fireplace

and is as table decoration.

this year we celebrated 25 years of marriage, so

I made a Advents decoration

using used tins, I colored silver with small

shiny star glued here and there.

inside I filled with coarse salt and then

sprigs of Blue Spruce( Picea Pungens )

dark grey colored plastic pearls and 

silver candles.

the photo of the ready composition

must wait until tomorrow with day light

this I made for my dear Father-in law, Manfred

of course it is nothing like those he was

used to, made by the loving hands of Iris

but the thought somebody remembered, made him very happy

a everyday tablescape

well, this morning it was beautiful, 5° and no wind.




we do Nordic on Wednesday's when it doesn't rain, when it's to muddy outside the lesson is in the gym...without me.
me you will find in the pool next door :DD



but today, every body outside! the group has grown from 6 of us to 11!! that's good I'm pleased for Robi, our coach. he is really one of the best persons I have ever met. like him a lot.
(he is also my "boss", for the trekkings I do, and he leaves me both hands free to do what I like, prefer and think is right :D)



robi is the one in front

so, I thought why not make some photos of our usual tablesettings. I'm a candle lover, couldn't live without.
I can forget or not have time to pick something to use as decoration, but it is really rare finding the table without candles.
I think they make such atmosphere, even if your are alone.
we use textile napkins (always have, when the children where big enough to get rid of their bib's, around 18month, I took out the textile napkins)
we are 8 in the family and everybody has their own color.
erik is blue, niki is yellow, helena is green and sofi is pink.
me and my husband flowers or plants, manfred (father-in-law) is white and Giovanni (helena's boyfriend) is multicolor. :DD

today Sofi came back from school at 2.20pm so that gave me extra time to decorate the table with more than the usual candles.



today we where in 4, Niki,Helena, Sofi and me























the glasses, plates and candle holders are from IKEA
tablecloth and napkins I think from Erbisti (verona)

the decoration is made of
fruits of Hedera helix
leaves of Lippia Citrodora (lemon verbena)
Laurocerso
Impatiens (busy lizzy)

my Bussy lizzies are still in full bloom,



probably these are the last days, this evening we fell down to 0,5°
I adore this little flower, so little but yet so magnificent, it is still May it is flowering
continuously.

and this evening, the sunset was so beautiful it makes you so happy just being here to enjoy it.






this post is for dear Karin of styles sister and her Wednesday centerpiece

and lovely Susan from Between naps on the porch

Mostarda Veneta - WHB#260

the round up

this is so exciting!

the WHB is turning 5 years.

I'm a contributor now and then since a little more then 2 years.

my first post was

WHB# 151 Lemon confit with rosemary

my first time, like this week Haalo was hosting, 

and now 

 Haalo has agreed to expanding 

the Herbal Weekend Blogging,

so from WHB # 261 there will

be an Italian Version.

me on my italian blog 

Briggis recept och ideer

is the proud, excited and nervous

organisator!!

I wish to thank Kalyn for this more and more interesting idea

and Haalo for her love, care and availability

every week of herbal blogging.

my entry for this week is an old recipe from the Veneto region,

the Italian region

that is hosting me since almost 30years.

Mostarda Veneta

boild fruit in a spicy syrup.

you need:

250gr of peeled and cubed quince

250gr of peeled and cubed pears

250gr of peeled and cubed Golden Delicious apples

80gr of candid lemon and oranges peels

1 l of white wine dry

ca 250-300gr of sugar

drops of mustard essence

cook separately the fruit covered with wine.

the pears and the apples will take about 15min

the quince 30-35min (important to cut the quince

in small cubes, will cook quicker)

when the fruit is all mashed put together and let cook 

until the wine is evaporated.

add the candid fruit and the sugar.

the sugar is of personal taste, I don't

like very sweet jams so I don't put

much, try you way out, by tasting and adding.

at this point you can choose,

leave it as a different tasting jam 

(the wine gives it a warm touch)

or add some drops of mustard essence

and make a real Mostarda Veneta.

brigidaa_te:

there are two things a little difficult to find

the quince, a sort of old fashion apple

that once grow in every garden, and

no is so hard to find to buy.

I had to go all the way to Padua to buy my tree.

the other thing important for  this 

"mustard, is the essence of mustard seeds

it is an alcoholic distillation, it is very

dangerous. 

you have to use plastic gloves, adding the essence outside, turning your face

the other way.

the "smell" makes your eyes cry, burns you nose and 

the touch makes your hands burns for hours after.

it is extremely important to add the essence

when your jam is cold.

there is no problem to store after, the essence

will preserve your mustard for years after.

it is perfect with cheese or boiled meat

the first time it was mentioned (in Italy) was in 1397, when the Duke of Milan,

Gian Galeazzo Visconti asked for a mustard for his Christmas banquette.

it comes from the Latin "mustum ardens" and means "burning must"

the very very burning spicey flavour of the mostarda comes from an essence made of mustard seeds.

in Italy we use the

sinapsi alba

berhaps you will know the sinapsi nigra o sinapsi arvensis (charlock).

here we can find the essence of mustard, which probably will be difficult to find abroad,

to make something similar by your one:
add 5gr of ground mustard seeds (yellow if possible, less strong) in 2dl of water, vhite wine or vinegar of white wine( they are placed in order of strenght, were the vinegar is the strongest)
add this to you marmelade and mix well.
here you can read more about italian mostarda

the wind is blowing this Sunday evening on the Garda Lake, it has been raining hard all day

my pots are full of water :D

autumn tea - 117th tablescape thursday

it is raining almost constantly since two weeks now,
 but now and then the sun comes back and you just have to leave everything and goooo :D
how can you stay at home with a lake like this?



it is actually calling you! :DD



lately I always bring my digital camera, you never know what you can find, something new that wasn't there the last time you walked by.
for example this...

this is an incredible, magnificent, beautiful Hydrangea Quercifolia,



I also have one in our garden, but mine is ridiculous compared to this one.
look at those colors, those leaves!



I wanted to bring all of the bush home with me, but I resisted! I just pluck two fallen leaves.



and when Sofi came back from her studies in the town library, I waited for her with some hot tea
and a nice tablescape. :)



brown linen tablecloth and yellow napkins from Erik's russian girlfriend
black square plates IKEA
leaf hydrangea quercifolia



center decoration:
branches of Forsizia x intermedia
black candle holders IKEA



tea/coffee spoons Lumezzane
little glass IKEA






terracotta teapot bought in Sweden years ago
square chinese tea holder inheritance from Aunt Tinti






Thank you Susan for hosting this lovely weekly event, Tablescape Thursday
please remember to drop by at my fellow tablescapers :)

Autumn candles - Centerpiece Wednesday

I've been back and forward of the hospital for a week, nothing serious but it is a little annoying
I'm suffering of Meniere's Disease.
this past week I've been given some stronger medicine then usual, because I had one of my attacks.
so, what do you when they put you on a drip taking hours?
you talk to your fellow patients, you read or study and you look out of the window dreaming of going treeking! :D

the view is very nice from the Hospital, just beneath is the river Adige . It comes down from behind Bolzano and goes all the way to the Adriatic Sea. it makes a very strange turn at Badia Polesine, it is not natural and there are some different theories about this strange turn. in the photo it is passing by the church of Pescantina



looking the other way, you can se the massive of Monte Baldo





for dear Karin of Styles Sisters, I thought it could be nice to post some candles I made for two dear friend of mine.
I was invited to dinner at Andrea's and I went to visit Alda in hospital.
so, what bring them? candles of course! :D

this round one was for Alda, the pumpkin coloured candle looked so good together with the redish leaves of the Ampelopsis triscuspidata - Boston Ivy
 and the yellow leaves of the wild grape
above the leaves , around the candle some plastic pearls in the same pumpkin colour
under a glass plate.
I fixed it all with some glue (hot glue)









the cylindric candle was for Andrea,
I used a glass plate as base and different coloured leaves of the
Cotinus coggygria - Smoke bush

around the candle, rose hips and berries from Sorbus Aria - Whitebeam





behind the candle you can se the different coloured leaves from the

Cotinus coggygria - Smoke bush

if you have the possibility plant it, it is so beautiful in every season.

this is how my gifts was presented, with brown paper and pumpkin coloured ribbon.



these decorations maintain for more then one week, if kept outside.
you leave them outside and bring them in when yopu want to light the candle.
if you keep them in room temperature (around 19-20°) they will maintain lesser, for 3-4 days. they are nice even with dried leaves.
remember never to leave lit candles alone.

choose a important plate for your decoration, so when the candle is burn down and the
leaves are to be thrown away, your friend will be left with a nice gift.
I love glass plates but they are rather difficult to arrange, the glue doesn't fix and the
leaves are slipping around all the time.
for beginners I suggest terracotta plates, the ones you use in the garden.
they are perfect, the glue is fixed and the small boarder helps you keeping the leaves
in place.
I did collect a lot of leaves, twigs and branches
so I decided to make a decoration for me too.
these candles are very cheap, only coloured on the outside, but I loved the brown colour
and I thought it could look so good together with the multicoloured leaves





I used a simply wood box (the one you buy fruit in)



the candles in the middle, and all leaves around them






all the rose hips and berries left, and the plastic pearls I didn't use for my friends.


a Big hug to Karin and Tiff.