Self-Sufficiency Update

So, I thought I'd give an update on the self-sufficiency project we have going on... I don't know about the rest of Europe, but we probably experienced the coldest and windiest spring in living memory in Sweden. We had to keep reminding ourselves of this, so that we didn't get discouraged by the slow progress in the vegetable patch. It is only when our fellow vegetable growers complained about losing two thirds of their squash plants in the cold that I could relax and think "it is not just me or the land that can't grow vegetables!"

Beautiful rainbow chard

Up until the middle of July, we had some lettuce, onion tops, chives and radishes from the vegetable patch. Nothing else was done yet, regardless of how many times a day I inspected progress.

Parsnips for a fermentation experiment

Everything has started ripening now and August seems to be our month! Carrots, parsnips, courgettes, potatoes, cabbages are all doing great and we are finally able to be self-sufficient for our vegetable needs. Hooray! We'll see how long we can go on.
Our hens have finally started laying eggs again after aaages. Two were looking after chicks and one was just broody. We are far from self-sufficient on eggs, but with with the addition of two hen-chicks hatched this year, we will be a little bit closer next year. For now, we will just enjoy their quirky company and thank them for the great fertiliser.

Finally! Keep the eggs coming!

Foraging has been really successful with blueberries coming out of our ears and Mamma Paulsson finding mushrooms in the woods. The lingonberry season is just starting and there are more mushrooms on their way. Exciting times ahead.

This was just the start of the blueberry frenzy

This is what I wrote in April: Self-Sufficiency in Kannesten.

Self-Sufficiency in Kannesten

Little T helping me sow a flower meadow to keep the bees happy

I quite often get the question about what I do now that we have moved to Kannesten. I gave up my accountancy job in London and now I am seemingly doing nothing. I am certainly not taking a long vacation; we are laying the groundwork for our self-sufficiency.

This is a long-term project, as we won't be self-sufficient for a long time to come. However, I do hope that we can become self-sufficient with some of our vegetables this year. We already support some of our egg consumption through our own hens and we have collected a shedload of wood, which at least will support our kitchen stove through next winter. Yesterday, we set up our first water butt and we are collecting chicken poop, so we are self-sufficient on water and feed for our vegetables. More food and energy supply will come over the next few years.

Cabbage growing in the stables

The list of vegetables that we are growing this year is long and we are using this growing season to figure out what works in our soil and weather. Beetroot, all kinds of cabbage, lettuce, cucumber, pumpkin, tomato, pepper and onion to name but a few. Needless to say, we have seedlings pretty much everywhere - we have even set up a room in the stables with lights to create the perfect growing conditions for the little ones.

Jerusalem artichokes will provide a hedge on the south border of our vegetable patch

Watch this space for updates on our self-sufficiency!

Viewings and Chow

While I've been happily immersing myself in functional movement in a gym, my parents have been slaving away at home, preparing to sell the house. Things suddenly got a bit hectic, now that we've found a fantastic place out in the sticks and now need to sell this house. It's been go, go, go for a few weeks now, whipping the house and garden into shape for photos and tomorrow's viewings.

It's good to be home though, eating food off proper plates and not from glass jars. Despite a rather full on cleaning day, we managed to eat pretty darn well. And tomorrow, while potential buyers are viewing the house, we'll be treating ourselves to brunch in a restaurant. :-)

Omelette with home cured bacon, lingonberries and salad. Fermented beetroot juice, don't ask...

Home pickled herring in paleo mayo, with salad and cold sweet potatoes.

Salmon fillets wrapped in smoked salmon, salad (we like kraut, yeah), paleo mayo sauce and some cold rice.

Keep your fingers crossed for us tomorrow!

Schon Gegessen - Today's Lesson in German

Although I wouldn't say that I'm very fluent in German anymore, there are a few terms that I still use on a regular basis. There are just some words that need to be in German, for example "schon gegessen" to describe food that looks like it's already been half digested, ie "already eaten".

This morning's breakfast certainly fit the bill. The PB posse was polite as usual, but agreed that we have seen better-looking food before. My sister kindly offered another translation of the term: "vom", ie vomit. Lovely.

Lump of something eggy, served with decidedly sloppy leftover kraut salad from last night

In my defence it has to be said that I had to wip up something real fast out of leftovers, plus the below for our trip:

A lot prettier, but who knows what it'll taste of...

But let's face it, food doesn't always turn out Michelin-worthy. It's just that those "vom" dishes tend to stay off the blogs. ;-)

Thrift (Or How I Gagged Over Rotten Goose Eggs)

One of the ultra aggressive geese laid a few too many eggs (like 20 extra...), so we got a whole bucket full of them to eat.

Mother goose got carried away

The only caveat was that they've been lying around for a while. This meant spending half an hour sorting the stinky ones from the fresh ones. More than once I felt the gag reflex kicking in, aargh, when yet another egg cracked to reveal ready-made scrambled egg. But I persevered and made it through the stinky mess to create pretty decent scrambled eggs with cheese and salad for the gang:

As thrifty as I'd like to be, I have to admit it'll be a while before I do this again. And someone else gets to empty the bucket of discarded egg shells on the manure heap, please. I'd like to take a looooong hot shower now. 

Portable Paleo Food

I have learned the hard way that suitable food is hard to come by when travelling. On a recent train journey, I had to resort to buying an egg mayonnaise sandwich and a pre-packaged, then microwaved burger. These finds were then raided for their content and the bread disposed of. Less than ideal, especially since I foolishly read about the meat content in the burger patty (less than 50%), but at least it meant that I survived all the way home.

Ahead of my flight to Sweden tomorrow, I have made some portable paleo friendly fare: bacon wrapped mini omelettes with leek and courgette.

Here's what I used for six:
4 eggs
2tbs creamed coconut (previously mixed with hot water to form a paste)
1/2 courgette, finely chopped
4 cm leek, finely chopped
7 pieces of streaky bacon
Salt and pepper
Ghee to grease the tin

Whisk eggs with creamed coconut, then mix in the leek and courgette. Add salt and pepper to taste. Grease the muffin tin and line with bacon. I used six pieces around the edges and cut up the seventh to go into the bottoms. Pour in the egg batter and bake in the oven for c. 20 minutes at 175 degrees.

This recipe can be varied endlessly, depending on what you have in the fridge. Sundried tomatoes and capers add extra flavour, fried mushrooms, onion and garlic is great too.

My Menu on an Average Thursday

Just because I haven't done it since the Whole 30, I thought I'd share what I've eaten today. It's possibly not the most inspired menu, but it was tasty and quite varied.

Breakfast
Banana omelette, bacon and spinach

Home cured bacon is the best, but not the prettiest

Lunch
Leftover soup: roast chicken thighs, carrots and beetroot in homemade stock and creamed coconut

There's no better way to use up leftovers than in a soup

Dinner
Wild venison and beef mince fried with some carrots, creamed coconut and spices
Purple sprouting broccoli and leek in ghee and coconut oil with lemon zest, lemon juice and ginger

I have waited so long for purple sprouting broccoli in my veg box - it did not disappoint!

Stew for Breakfast

In preparation for the Whole 30, starting in two days (gulp), I have been trying some new breakfasts. This is the one from this morning. Left over beef stew, heavy on the chilli, with eggs and avocado. Filling and yummy.

Post Christmas Party

Let's keep lunch simple when your brain is about as fried as what's cracked in the pan.

All packed up and ready to go to work. Admit it, you're seething with jealousy! Ehem.

Eggs From Posh Birds, Yes Please!

When I spotted these duck eggs in my local store, I couldn't possibly resist trying them! I followed the instructions on the box and made soft boiled eggs... What's the difference between duck eggs and chicken eggs? Duck eggs are a bit bigger, have shells that are a bit like ping pong balls (quite sturdy), the yolk was appealingly bright yellow like that from a chicken and the egg white was much firmer despite the soft boiled yolk. All in all, a good egg. Would I buy again? Probably not, as they come at a premium, but it was fun to try something new.

Quick Lunch/ Musings on Chicken Feed (As You Do...)

Working from home is quiet and a bit boring, but being able to make lunches like this makes up for it. Quick and so lovely!

The eggs are from Sheepdrove Organic Farm and are always positively luscious (I get them from their butcher in Maida Vale). There must be something in the worms they eat, because the shells are pretty damn hard to crack at times. The colour of the yolk speaks for itself.

The difference to conventional organic eggs becomes especially apparent when I occasionally have to "slum it" with Tesco or Waitrose organic eggs. Whatever organic feed they are using to feed them, it certainly doesn't seem to be optimal, as the shells are much more brittle, the yolks less firm and with weaker colour, the egg whites runny. Goes to show that just because it says organic on the tin, doesn't mean that you're getting your money's worth despite the premium. And that's not even going into the actual animal welfare issue that you think you've got covered when you buy organic. Trying to figure out whether the chickens can actually venture outside by reading on the packet is nigh impossible because of all the fluffy marketing lingo.

Eggs Galore

The highlight of my mornings used to be home baked bread and a frothy latte. Perhaps a serving of Special K and muesli with milk.... Mmmm, those were the days! Sorry, got distracted. 

Anyway, to wean myself off my morning sugar kicks, I started eating eggs. Boiled eggs, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, poached eggs. And this little number below. 

I call it - *drumroll* - the banana scramble. Sounds bland, looks gross, tastes divine. Here it goes:

Fry bacon, set aside.
Fry some spices in the bacon fat/ some extra ghee/ butter/ coconut oil in pan on low heat (I use cardamom, cinnamon, ginger)
Add 1/2 a banana in slices - fry until mushy
Whisk together 3 eggs and stir into bananas until it all "gels"

Serve with the bacon and some berries if you want to dress it up a bit.

Easy Portable Breakfast or Lunch

This is an easy portable breakfast or lunch which can be done the night before. Take a few gluten-free sausages, squeeze them from their skins into ramekins (or muffin tins if you prefer) and line the bottom and sides with sausage meat. Then crack an egg into each ramekin, add salt, pepper and possibly some herbs. Pop in the oven at 175 degrees for c 25 minutes, until the eggs are cooked the way you like them. Ready to eat straight away or store in the fridge until the next morning. By the way, the sausage and eggs easily come out of the ramekins, so you don't have to take your crockery with you if you are having lunch on the go.

A pack of six sausages at 400g will make six sausage and egg creations.