January can be an OK month, with galette parties and AGMs for various societies and the hangover of Christmas bits to get through, but February, while shorter, seems to be more depressing. Often overcast, often cold, often moist or even dank, there are a few signs of spring but most mean you end up worrying about frosts killing off blossom and new shoots.
To lighten the mood, we tend to buy 100 grammes of black truffle and spend up to 10 days with a meal a day generously sprinkled with black gold. The date varies - normally depending on the spot price and what John's suppliers are up to. This year Truffle Arrival Day was the 1st February, and the 105g we received are very aromatic!
Obviously the first day we have the classic scrambled eggs with truffle, this year supported by local whole grain multi-seed bread that is delivered to our door every Wednesday. Other meals have included poached salmon on linguini with truffle, emmental omelette with truffle and truffled mash. Photographing food is challenging, not least when steaming slightly, so most of those meals don't have a good photo, but the scrambled eggs do and you will have to imagine the rest!
The signs of spring are there - we just hope there isn't a harsh and prolonged cold spell again. The catkins are elongating on the hazel stands, puffing clouds of noxious yellow/green pollen if you brush against them - my sinuses are twitching already! The less cultivated plum trees have very "pregnant" looking buds, so I fear that we might see blossom in the next couple of weeks - o so pretty, but o so vulnerable.
As well as being Truffle Day, the 1st February was also pompom removal day for our little kitten. When I say little, he now weighs in at 4 kilos, while being whippet thin, so I think he is going to be a big boy in time. As well as the main objective of the operation, the vets also sorted out an umbilical hernia he had. It wasn't giving him any trouble and in relative terms was smaller than when we got him, but it seemed worth sorting now, rather than when it caused a problem down the line. So our little boy has been wearing the Cone of Shame - and perhaps because he is a boy, he has submitted to it, and lies around looking mournful, or bashes around looking like a grey Darth Vader and trying to cause the same amount of chaos. Just another week of this to go!
I walked back from an appointment in town and took a footpath that leads past a garden I used to mow - the one with the lake. I wanted to have a good look at what had been done before the screening trees and scrub get their summer coats. It was sad to see that several trees had gone, and I would never have permitted the scale of mud on the grass walk around the lake, but it is their house now and nothing to do with me. I also stopped at the stone bridge over the river and looked along to the village. The river is quite full at the moment, and with the light in the right direction, I could see meanders and riffles in the current that should slow the flow and make the river more appealing to aquatic life. I was delighted to see that.
We have a relatively quiet week ahead of us, apart from a post-Comice party, so hope to get more winter gardening done. Today I planted the last of the garlic I overbought, and have also set to chit half of the monster packet of seed potatoes I bought in a fit of enthusiasm. That means that we will need to prepare a bed for 54 seed potatoes, for planting on Good Friday or so - a task that should keep us off the streets a bit!
Have a good week!
Comments