Jane's Delicious Garden Blog

My berries are doing so well – we made a “Berry Alley” out of gum poles and wire and have been persuading the raspberries, blackberries and tayberries to stay inside this caged off area.

It’s been working really well. Instead of rampant growth all over the garden and out of hand brambles, here they are, neatly contained and fruiting abundantly – and they are easy to pick.

The last of the potato harvest:

You would never find one like this in the supermarket!!!!

And the last of the tomatoes . . .

Here are some pics of the ongoing pool conversion process:

Making the supports for the plants:

The steps have become a holding area for plants.

Pots being drilled and waiting to be filled . . .

And it is already looking beautiful – I loooove the reflections. And if you look into the water it is clear all the way to the bottom, but because the sides and bottom are black, it reflects.

And out of the garden into the kitchen – I did a dem at Angela Day which was fun

And gave a workshop at The GardenShop in Pretoria . . .

And so we go into autumn. Potatoes are harvested, walnuts are shelled and brassicas are going into the beds. But – I am still harvesting tomatoes, egggplants, squash, beans and more. Hopefully for another month or so too. I love the in between seasons, the sun has lost its bite and change is in the air.

Here are a few pics from the garden in the last few weeks.

This is an Italian heirloom marrow – I have harvested about ten to twelve a week for months now. I think I could write a book on 101 ways to cook a marrow!

My jungle . . .

. . . which the bees love . . .

. . . and the ladybirds.

You will never see potatoes these shapes in the supermarket.

Looks like an Easter egg hunt . . .

Still plenty of eggplants growing bigger.

And yellow gems.

Last of the tomatoes which will ripen in the next few days

Beans and tomatoes twining together.

Beautiful sage.

I have been sorting photographs and realised I missed out on adding quite a few events. There was such a swirl of activity towards the end of the year. So here are some pics from them all:

On the way to Pietermaritzburg . . .

Pietermaritzburg launch of Jane’s Delicious Kitchen

Signing . . .

Young readers – I will be posting pics of their vegetable garden story soon.

With Cheryl from Pmb Exclusives

And family . . .

Back to Jo’burg for the launch there a few days later . . .

Great turnout!

Speech!

And a week later in Cape Town, being interviewed by Michelle Matthews at Kalk Bay Books for the Cape Town launch.

La Cucina in Hout Bay prepared about 20 dishes from the book. It was quite a surreal experience!

And I gave a talk about the food . . .

Time out from all the speeches and events – to stroll through Elgin’s exquisite gardens.

And of course I had to pick some slips to bring home . .

Back to Cape Town to Jenny Morris’ fabulous Giggling Gourmet Kitchen where I gave a cooking class.

Ingredients for herbal salt:

No wonder I didn’t have any time to blog!!!

The pathways in my veg garden are overflowing with squash plants and nasturtiums.
My tomato tower is flourishing.

Gems, beans and cherry toms are winding sky high. I love this time of year! I also love the promise of a New Year – it is always a seductive time, full of plans and ideas with months stretching out ahead. Especially with the long days and balmy evenings.

My plans include building a chicken tractor and turning our swimming pool into a pond. The chicken tractor is an idea I read about years ago. It is simply a portable chicken run which is regularly moved around the beds of the veg garden or lawn. The chickens scratch out weeds, fertilise the ground and eat the goggos. I have cleared a section of garden in between my compost and elderflower tree and the A-frame run will go there, in between moving around the garden. Yesterday we hauled out piles of logs and planks that had built up behind the shed and sorted them into different lengths. It looks like I won’t have to buy anything to make the run as I will use all these old recycled fence planks. I already have a large roll of chicken wire – all I will need to buy is two chickens!

Our pool has been covered up for about 3 or 4 years. We had a problem with leaking pipes and as it was the end of summer we just covered it up. Since then we haven’t got around to uncovering it and fixing the pipes. Summer seemed to flash by each year and we were too busy travelling or doing other things to mission with digging up the paving . . . until Tosca arrived.

She spotted the puddle in the middle of the trampoline-like covering on about day four. It then took her about two seconds to bite her way through the top netting cover to get to it. And the games were on. She would romp from one side to the other, through the puddle, splashing and biting the water.
And it wasn’t good enough to have one entry point. She had soon chewed three or four holes so she could hop in and out wherever she chose. This was all fine while she was a pup – but 30kgs of fully grown shepherd starting wearing the edges of the trampoline away. We had visions of the edges tearing and our Tosca Noonoo floundering and drowning. And immediately we uncovered the pool.

The thought of digging up the pipes and an aversion to chlorine led to the natural pond idea. I have seen natural swimming pools, where one side has plants and the other has clear water that is filtered through the plants. But the quotes I received for doing those seemed rather excessive. I don’t mind swimming in a dam with a murky bottom so I decided to turn the whole thing into a “dam,” with fish, frogs bullrushes et al.

It is already rather “natural” from being covered up for so long. There is algae on the sides but the water is clear. The plan is to create different levels of raised “ledges” using recycled water drums. The planting baskets will go on these ledges. I have already raided a friend’s pond and have bullrushes, reeds, lilies etc standing by in large buckets. A simple water feature will keep the water aerated for the fish and we’ll add a wooden deck and bridge across the pool, so the fish can hide and we can dangle our legs in the water. And maybe fish from!
Here is the first step:

This recipe was originally in Jane’s Delicious Kitchen but had to be left out due to space limitations – but so many people have asked me for it, so here it is.

I grew up eating fresh-from-the-oven crusty home-baked bread every day. I remember the smell of the yeast and helping Mom knead the dough until it magically turned from a sticky mass into a springy and elastic ball.

I also remember that the dough was temperamental and being careful not to bump the hot tray because the bread was rising. So I was somewhat sceptical when I read about a method of making yeast bread that involved no kneading, no mollycoddling and claimed to only take 5 minutes a day to prepare. I ordered the book and set about making my first loaf.

It was the best bread I have ever made. And the greatest part? I could make enough dough for at least 4 loaves and leave it in the fridge to use during the week.

So no more kneading, fussing over and punching dough around – here is the quickest and easiest bread recipe ever. My recipe is adapted from the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François Thomas (Dunne Books, 2007).

Ingredients

3 cups lukewarm water
1½ tablespoons yeast
1½ tablespoons salt
6½ cups cake flour*, plus more for dusting the dough
fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
cornflour
1 cup hot water for the oven

*This is not a mistake – even though this is a bread recipe, cake flour is used because the dough is very wet and bread flour would have too high a gluten content.

Pour the water into a 5 litre food grade plastic container (I use an ice cream container). Add the yeast and salt and mix it together.

Add the flour and mix it in using a wooden spoon and stir quickly until there are no dry patches. The dough should be quite wet and conform to the shape of the container.

If necessary add a little more water. Place the lid on top but don’t seal it.

Leave it to rise until it reaches the top of the container. (The time will vary; when I make this in Johannesburg, it takes a couple of hours but down at the coast it takes longer.)

Once it has risen, you can either bake a loaf immediately or cover it loosely and put it in the fridge to use later. The dough will keep for about a week.

Using a baking stone really helps the bread to develop a crisp crust. If you don’t have one, use a flat baking sheet. When ready to bake, sprinkle some corn flour on a thin wooden chopping board (or if you happen to have a pizza peel – use that) and set it aside.
Using a flour shaker, sprinkle a little cake flour over the surface of the dough. This will prevent it sticking to your hand.

Sink your hand into the dough and grab a big handful – about the size of a grapefruit. Pull this out and cut off the trailing dough with a serrated knife.

Keeping the floured surface in the palm of your hand, turn the dough 3 to 4 times and with each turn, pull and stretch the floured dough up around the sticky dough.




Once you have reached where you started, turn it over and give it a final stretch and shaping. The top should be smooth and the bottom a little lumpy.

Place the lumpy side onto the floured wooden board and leave it to rest for 40 minutes. Cover the rest of the dough loosely and put it back in the fridge.

Depending on the size of your pizza stone, you can bake three or four loaves at the same time. Repeat the process above for each one.

About 20 minutes before baking, place a small roasting pan deep enough to hold a cup of water, on the bottom shelf of the oven. Place a baking stone (or a flat baking tray) on the middle rack. Heat the oven to 240° C. (Yes – it really does need to be that hot.) When the oven is ready, pour one cup of hot water into the roasting pan on the bottom shelf. (This adds steam to the oven, creating a crispy crust.)

Sprinkle the shaped loaf with cake flour and use a serrated knife to make criss-cross slashes in the top.

Sprinkle rosemary into the slashes.

Very quickly open the oven and, using a spatula to help lift it, slide the dough onto the stone.

Bake the loaf until well browned, about 30 to 45 minutes. If you want an especially crusty loaf, use a spritzer bottle to spray water onto the top and sides of the oven a couple of times during the final 5 to 7 minutes of baking.

Remove from the oven and turn onto a rack to cool. Resist cutting it before it is completely cool, as this will just squash the bread.

After all this activity we needed some R & R. I hadn’t planned anything – other than wanting to go up the West Coast as I had never been there. Keith has but it was a while ago and he hadn’t really explored the area near Langebaan.

My Garden Angels must have been listening to my West Coast intention because they quickly organised things for me. I had brought some seeds down for Kevin French, who had emailed me a while back about battling to find amaranth. He attended the workshop and afterwards he happened to overhear me talking about going up to Church Haven. I had never heard of this place up the West Coast – until recently when a friend mentioned it as well worth visiting. Kevin then asked where we were staying in Church Haven and I replied I hadn’t had a chance to even go online and look but I was planning to. Well of course he just happened to have a house there which was available. What I didn’t realise until later, is that Church Haven only has very few houses – and even fewer available to non residents. My Garden Angels had been busy.

A few days later we were in one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited.

Situated in a national park, just south of Langebaan, this tiny fishing village overlooks the lagoon, with its ever changing tidal patterns, flamingoes and other birds.


The water is warm enough for swimming and wonderfully calm.

Yet just a short hop over a spit of land is the the ferocious and freezing Atlantic.

We knew we were in for a wonderful stay when the first thing we saw as we drove in was a karakul, hunting for dinner.

Thank you thank you Kevin and Linde for creating such a beautiful house which reflects its surroundings so perfectly.

Built using local materials and traditional techniques, West of The Moon has warm wooden floors and ceilings, contrasting the cool white walls.

It is furnished with an eclectic mix of antiques and fabrics

and scattered throughout are enamel jugs, plates and wash bowls.



Even the taps are antique.

Solar power, large fireplaces and an ancient gas cooker complete the picture. This is a house created with love. Click here for their Facebook page and to contact Kevin about renting this piece of heaven.

Here are a few pics from the surrounding area:
An isolated house on the top of a mammoth rock above the lagoon.


Soaking up the sun . . . spring in the Cape is cold!

Eggs on legs . . . !!

You know you are in a game reserve when . . .

We then trundled further up the coast to Paternoster. We stayed at a beach house belonging to a friend of Kevin’s (My Garden Angels busy connecting the dots again . . . ). Here is a link to this spot

This comfy spot is a blink away from the beach where the daily catch is hauled in.

Loved the “4 x 4″!


Delicious food and picaresque coastline.
Gorgeous flowers to photograph . . .

In amongst HUGE rocks

Keith’s mysterious lighthouse . . .

And then Keith caught the sun . . .

A couple of weeks later I was in the Winelands. Earlier this year I met Sandy Webster in Cape Town. She suggested that we do a workshop in the Winelands. When I teased her that the bar had been raised really high by the Grahamstown Garden Club and their spread, including incredible cupcakes, Sandy put her hands on her hips and said “Cupcakes! We’ll serve wine!” And so the Winelands Workshop was born.

The workshop, held at Rustenberg Wine Estate, was attended by 108 people! It was held in the chandelier room:

It was a magnificent day with exceptional catering done by Sunelle, who provided a sublime feast.
The following four pics were taken by Alison Nathanson from Ashoot Photography.

The table of food was soon flattened – learning about growing veg is obviously hungry work!

True to Sandy’s word, guests were treated to delicious wine from the Rustenberg Estate

and also had a chance afterwards to walk around the beautiful gardens.

If you are in the area do yourself a favour and go and visit them. I particularly enjoyed walking the labyrinth after doing the workshop as it was very calming.

Huge big thanks to Sandy Webster for an exceptionally well organised event.

Thanks also to Rozanne and Simon Barlow from Rustenberg for not only providing such a magnificent venue but also for the night we spent in this wonderful old house

- we were warned to expect ghosts, but did not see/hear any! Keith discovered these on the window though, which were apparently scratched on by new brides with their engagement rings . . .

Thanks also to Jane and Alan Otton, who provided such comfy accommodation at Celtic Manor in Gordon’s Bay. This was the view from our bedroom!

We have decided that this will be the first of more Wineland events . . .

Here are some pics of the garden over the last few weeks:
The wisteria arch entrance



Peas glorious Peas!

And a few weeks later – the wisteria now a green mass over the archway.


A full veg garden!

Potatoes, chives, horseradish and a lemon tree.

Blackberry canes in a cage

A rosy entrance . .

Pansies and sorrel.

Before I left for Turkey, I sowed loads of tomato, eggplant, basil, chilli etc seeds in seed trays and left detailed watering instuctions with trusty Hlonipani. However, one small detail I forgot to mention, was to turn the trays regularly. I arrived home to horizontal seedlings that had headed for the light!

My plan for the tomatoes was to use the large boxes I had scavenged from The Garden Shop. I saw these being tossed earlier this year and asked if I could have them. When Greg asked me what I was going to use them for I said I had no idea – but they were such great boxes they couldn’t simply be thrown away!

Faced with this huge amount of tomato seedlings, I hit on the idea of building a tomato tower. We piled them up on the paving next to the pool – where it holds the heat until well after dark, something tomatoes love. Jacklin Organic delivered a bakkie load of Ecopost (click here for more). We mixed it with topsoil and then built a support frame from bamboo which we cut from a friend’s rampant garden.

A simple drip irrigation went in and finally the tomato seedlings.

They are looking fantastic!



I have planted a wide range and these are the earliest tomatoes I have ever had in my garden. They must ripen now!!

It feels like I haven’t stopped since we arrived home from Turkey. First up was a talk at Multiflora, two days after arriving home.

Then a few days later a workshop for 80 people at The Garden Shop in Parktown North.

The following weekend was the Good Food & Wine Show. Now that was a blast!

I was hosting the Get Fresh Theatre where both local and international chefs would cook alongside 12 participants on stage.
Giorgio Locatelli, Eric Lanlard, Willie Harcourt Cooze, James Martin, Jenny Morris etc were all on stage having a ball cooking for a couple of hours.
Here are some pics:
Signing books alongside Eric Lanlard

More signing. . .

With Giorgio and Eric.

And with wild haired Willie!

And Giorgio’s soux chef – Ivan Icra Salicru – a Spaniard, cooking with an Italian in London!

The organisers and organised . . .