Ho hum here we go again we all going to starve due to the tomato peppers and cucumber shortage , really , i cant think of a less seasonal fruit or veg for February . Even had the food pantry sending an email apology for their lack of fruit and veg . Once again the press is creating artificial images of huge shortages . I even managed to get hoards of hatred for posting on a forum that all you need is a bottle of £1 multivitamins if youre that deprived of vitamins , apparently i have an evil Tory mentality ? I noticed today the panic buying of veg in general has started before payday weekend , so their will be yet more pictures of empty supermarkets, but this will allow them to hide a huge price hike not that the farmers will see it . I should think supermarket profits will be interesting this year . Out of curiosity how many are buying lots of salad at this time of year ? Is it just vegans getting a sweat on ? Or are most of us still creating soup and casseroles from seasonal veg ?
Heron had plenty of fruit and veg this morning admittedly no tomatoes cucumbers or peppers but i came away with my usual strange haul of frozen stuff , couple of big bags of bread crumbed white fish broken fillets a whole £1,50 a tray , most of the Excel range has gone up but what hasnt, theres still odd gems to be had and they will keep us going for weeks . Nearly bought a big bag of Calamari in error i thought they were battered onion rings...lol instead i got a bag of ready cooked sausages , saves having to brown them for sausage casserole, due to electric prices i mostly use the microwave or slow cooker these days . Its weeks like this when i realise what a privilidge it is to have fruit and veg in the garden . Still got a load of leeks that i will pop in the freezer before they go to seed though something ate the last of the celery ? bit baffling never had that happen before . tons of stuff in the freezer . I even managed to find some lemons for his pancakes yesterday
Here in northern Canada it is -20C with alot of snow and a wicked north wind. Not want to go outside if possible, I have done a pantry and freezer inventory. I have lots of fruit and veg in the freezer and quite a bit of meat. I discovered some hidden gems, such as extra jars of canned tomatoes (from the garden) and a huge amount of homemade jam. Now to do a clean out the fridge soup for dinner. I am very jealous of your ability to grow leeks. They are 3 for $6.00 Cdn here, which is far too expensive for me. I love to have them in soup or stews, but they have been off the menu since they didn't even go down in price during the summer. I usually chop and freeze them when the price is right. I usually try to keep the food budget low in the winter, so have stocked up when I could and grow what I can. The gas and electric bill is always higher during the winter, so compensate where I can. I enjoy your blog and hope your computer hangs in there as long as possible.
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ideal leek growing weather though you have a short growing season , they happily grow in a bucket in a porch they look terrible in snow and ice but they perk up really quickly and there are some really tough varieties
DeleteMaybe my problem is I have been putting them in the greenhouse with the tomato plants...too hot perhaps. I grow lots of garlic and it sleeps all winter long then pops up like daffodils in the spring. Thanks for the tip. Barb
DeleteI buy alternatives if what I used get is too expensive for me or they haven't got it - Yesterday I noticed an elderly man in Iceland had put at least 4 packs of fresh tomatoes on top of his canvas shopping trolley lid - I don't usually buy them this time a year x
ReplyDeleteive just used the last of my summer tomatoes, they finally turned red as the nights draw out a bit , i stuck them in the kitchen window when they were green and hard in November
DeleteI preserved some of my glut of cherry tomatoes in brine last year. Still got plenty to chuck into our salads. My lettuce is growing great too. Why the heck are we buying lettuce from abroad when it grows perfectly well in this country. Totally agree on the seasonal veg. It's warming stuff we should be eating.
ReplyDeleteWe are both vegan and eat seasonally it would never occur to me to eat salad in winter if it means it has travelled farther than I ever have.
ReplyDeleteKate - With apologies for commenting off-topic, would you please inform Vix that some virus has infected the Vintage Vixen blogspot. Thanks!
ReplyDeletejust had a look and its fine from this end????
DeleteThanks for checking. Norton Security is waving red flags, so I'll investigate further.
DeleteYou have a very popular and useful blog. Thanks for your work :)
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