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Cannellini Bean and Carrot Soup

Cannellini Bean and Carrot Soup

It suddenly occurred to me that I hadn't made a soup from the Pulses and Nuts section of The Soup Book for a while, not since March in fact. The recipe is by Livia Firth, wife of the actor Colin (Pride and Prejudice - great series!), who uses leeks as the base of her soups because they are sweeter than onions. The ingredients are leeks, olive oil, butter, canned cannellini beans, carrots and curry powder (optional; I used garam masala). It took me over two hours to prepare, what with slicing, chopping, simmering and whizzing in the blender, rather than the hour and ten minutes stated in the book. The final soup is tasty but bordering on bland. A reasonable warmer-upper on a cold winter's day rather than a meal for a mild summer's day.

Where the Bee Sucks

While I was away, the oregano and/or marjoram in my back garden flowered and I have noticed bees buzzing around. Meanwhile in the front garden the lavender is also a-buzz with bees, causing the spouse to claim he can hardly get up the path to the front door.

Juno (the ma-in-law) sent me an article entitled The Beekeeper from the National Trust Magazine. It's by Emma Hill, the head gardener at Hare Hill, and is an account of her interest in beekeeping and bee society. Thanks, Juno!

The spouse, who has now started his own blog about eating for €5 or less, sent me the following links:
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