Selfie With Fava Bean
Mama says HURRAH, time for planting, and of course she is just imagining the lovely tomato sauces and the fava beans with pecorino and the wonderful striped courgettes (zucchine-which, by the way, has an ‘e’, not an ‘i’ on the end) and maybe even a couple of squash flowers to stuff with mozzarella and an anchovy–num num.
This is mama’s spring garb because the sun is not our friend any longer, sad to say. It brings out all sorts of things that are the result of sunburns in her youth, whatever that is, and so she and papa have to cover up when they sun-worship. But oh, how she misses lying on the beach in full sun without a care in the world for future hassles! Mama says young people are more aware nowadays, but I wonder. Our beaches here are full of sun-bathers and a lot of them stay until they turn into lobsters. I don’t understand that one either, they look like normal anthros to me, just red. But then, I’ve never seen a lobster. Must be a reason, haha.
So the little tomatoes are pushing up
and the basil is started
and our sweet neighbour just gave these to mama and papa for lunch
brought up in a bucket with mama’s pulley, four eggs from yesterday…so THAT’S what those silly chickies were doing when they made all that racket!
And we now have a BIG lavender plant that grew from it’s mama, who died after a few years, and this one has a sister, too, at the other end of the fava beans.
Our pulley system…
And most important, or rather, sort of important, is the mentuccia, a very strong mint used in artichoke recipes and you know what a nut mama is over artichokes!
I mistook it for MY “mint”…read: NIP. But when mama asked, “Are you feeling anything yet, Loulou,” I had to say no. What did she mean anyway?
Now THIS, I feel.
Send me some seeds from the Mother Land!!! Tomatoes, basil, and Catnip!
You won’t believe this but I got all my seeds at BURPEE in YOUR (and my) land!!! They are having huge sales.
Be glad your mom doesn’t make you dress up like she does to go outside in the sunshine. That looks a bit warm.
Well, she has to cover up because of sun. And all her life she was out gardening in a bikini. Gone are the days….
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaw Mommy luvvin’s da bestest ain’t it LouLou?. Somehow we thought ya’ll lived in a house on da ground??? Call us confused now. MOL Oh well Enjoy those eggs, and have fun in your garden. Steer clear of dat lavender tho’ okay? big hugs
Luv ya’
Dezi and Raena
Oh, Dezi, kitties shouldn’t be near lavender???? Well, I have ignored it so far for several years so I guess my instincts are workin’. We DO live in a house on the ground and the garden is just outside.
Yep LouLou, da lavender oil which can be obtained by rubbin’ da plant or even inhalation, can cause liver and/kidney toxicity. Some Essential oils if diluted enough can be very useful in cats, but most, ‘specially pure can be deadly. Dat doesn’t mean your mommy should pull it all outta her garden. As you said, you purretty much steer clear of it. We kitties are purretty smart. big hugs
Luv ya’
Dezi and Raena
Yes, I don’t really like to sniff it so I just roll in the nip bed. No contest! I hope your mama is doing better.
Your season is way ahead of us, we won’t be planting until the end of May. Good idea to keep covered in the sun, I remember when I was a teen putting on baby oil and burning- so stupid.
Baby oil and IODINE. My mama’s mama TOLD her not to do that and here she is, mama, that is, with problems. Idiots, youths, and mama was one.
I am not familiar with fava beans (except that well-known quote by Hannibal Lecter), so I looked them up on Wikipedia – fascinating history. We have Lima beans, which a lot of people hate but I love because MY Mama raised them in her garden and we had them fresh with butter, salt & pepper.
The pictures of your garden are wonderful, and your pulley system is pretty neat too. Maybe your neighbor could train a chicken to nest right in that basket !
Sorry it was the wrong kind of mint, though your Mama (and my Mama too) would probably say there IS no “wrong” kind of mint !
Oh, thank you. Fava beans are called broad beans in the UK and fava in Italy and we ADORE lima beans and ate them the same way as you did. They make an incredible puree mixed with mashed potato, too. Limas with olive oil, lemon and garlic are great, too.