big snow, 3 boars and a simple beetroot salad

I had a flu. Runny nose, sore throat, cough and fever.
So instead of throwing myself into the planned spring detox and sports  in the (supposed) sunshine I'm spending my days lazily on the sofa, recovering, drinking hot English tea and trying to motivate myself to breathe the snowy air outside my warm cocoon not only for shovelling snow.

Snowboots and ski pants on, camera hidden under the parka I bravely headed  into the forest.  At least it was not cold (-2°C only).

On my way back from the lakes, just when  in a sudden euphoria I considered buying a new pair of cross country skis as soon as possible, three enormous wild boars jogged by my side. I stopped walking, breathing, all terrified, trying to make myself invisible...  Approximately 20 meters in front of me they crossed my path and disappeared in the forest again. I was not cool enough to take a photo. I'm sorry.

The question is, would it have been dangerous if I was closer?  What would have happened if, for example, I went with an off-leash dog? Do boars find enough food after weeks of snow covered fields? Do they also run around when the sun is shining? I shall have to ask the Head of the game reserve...

I don't cook a lot these days: simple things, vegetables with oil and vinegar, pasta, fish and rice.

I just thought it would be nice to share my today's beetroot salad with you. Firstly because it really was delicious, secondly because all this snow series needed a hint of colour.

Beetroot salad with apple and laurel

3 beetroots
1 apple
2 leaves of laurel
olive oil,  vinegar, salt and pepper

Wash the beetroots, cover them with water and cook them about 20 minutes until soft. Peel and slice them. Peel and slice the apple and mix with the beetroot slices in a bowl. Dress with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Add the leaves of laurel. Let the salad rest at room temperature for at least one hour to allow the flavours to mingle.

Would  be nice to accompany a boar roast as well, wouldn' it?
But not for me, not now,  I definitely don't want to enrage the Big Boar Spirit....

close to midnight

Light: Tobias Grau, My Table

Tomorrow is St. Valentine!

another morning

weekend links

 I'm sure you'll like these seteditions.

On her blog foodiecrush Heidi shares 10 favourite lemon recipes + some irresistible Fettucine with lemon. They definitely needed a bookmark!

On  Eat this poem - a collection of recipes inspired by poetry- I found 10 amazing tips for blogging with soul.

The pictures posted by Windermere Lake House  make me travel in my dreams to beautiful Lake District.

long cooked, spicy vegetable broth with hijiki and red cabbage

When my body badly needs warmth and energy a proven remedy is to drink a cup of long cooked vegetable broth. I fill the steamer basket of my asparagus pot with all kind of vegetable I can find in my fridge, cover it with water and let it simmer. And simmer. And continue simmering for three hours on very low heat.
This is, admittedly, not the fastest way to beat the cold, but once prepared I store the broth in the fridge and use it for several days.


The ingredients:
2 leeks (only the green parts)
some pieces of celery
2 fresh tomatoes, quartered
1 sundried tomato
1 orange bell pepper, cut in pieces
a small piece of fresh ginger
a small piece of hot pepper
a quarter of a red cabbage
a few hijiki weeds
1 tbs instant vegetable broth
soy sauce to taste

Once cooked, discard the vegetable. All the precious energy has passed into the broth.
Serve the broth steaming hot and enjoy its amazing colour!

Pure Nektarine

Philippa's homemade nectarine jam is sublime.

I imagine what fun it would be to organize a jam-cooking workshop together with Philippa  learning all her tricks...    Maybe in summer? When the strawberries and the apricots are ripe?