Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Out of season

The dramatic drop in temperature is sheer, utter bliss.

Muddled by the heat, these asparagus spears were the first vegetable I grabbed in the cool of the supermarket this morning.

Frankly, they sucked.

Still, the fabric’s quite nice, isn’t it?



12 comments:

Mari said...

Don't you hate when that happens?

Anonymous said...

Sorry they sucked! Drop in over here, and you'll see them just starting to come out in the supermarkets, slim and green. Oh, and you may appreciate that drop in temperature now, when it's a novel refreshment, but just wait five months or so. . . (oh, and that is lovely fabric, yes). ;)

Lisa Turner said...

Well, the asparagus may have sucked, but they look lovely in your photo :)

Simona Carini said...

It is. I am not happy when produce disappoints me.

winedeb said...

They look nice! Especially on that cloth! I was in shock when I went through the supermarket the other day and saw the price on the asparagus. It was half the price that it was last week at this time! I loaded up and it tastes pretty darn good! Not sure where it was "imported" from, but having been without it for awhile, had to have some! I know, I am weak!

Rosa said...

Nice fabric indeed! It's nice to be reminded sometimes of the logic of the seasons, even if it's the result of a mistake.

Anonymous said...

A momentary lapse in concentration meant I put asparagus in my trolley this week. Then on my second circuit of the veg aisle I noticed they were from Mexico. So I put them straight back.

It is disappointing when a much-loved vegetable turns out to be bland and tasteless.

Green beans are gorgeous at the moment though. And sooooo cheap. I've been buying them in hedonisitic-ly large handfuls.

Susan said...

Ah, the perpetual troubles of produce grown for transit rather than quality. I must say, though, that Florida's annual late-winter crop of strawberries (1500 miles away) are as superb as any you can pluck off plants here in June.

Lucy said...

Mari, I really do...

Ricki, that sounds like a very tempting suggestion. But you know what? Our winters are mild in comparison to yours and I for one, never tire of them!

Thanks Lisa. Up close they'd had better days...

Simona, I should have known better, but, well, I can only blame the outrageous heat.

Deb, I know exactly how you feel! There's something about asparagus, a certain kind of culinary pull. I adore it when it's plentiful (and cheap!).

Rosa, I coudn't have put it more succinctly myself!

Kathryn, I bought handfuls of beans yesterday at the market, huge handfuls of the stuff and some really pretty purple ones, too. Delicious, crisp and the same shape as asparagus (mostly...). Can't wait to get cooking with them! The logic of the seasons, as Rosa says, really does makes perfect sense.

Susan, those strawberries sound exquisite - grown in the warmth and sun-ripened. My asparagus had probably travelled as far as Mexico as had Kathryn's...now that's a long way to go.

Anonymous said...

Oh yes, temperatures of 30C rather than 40C were absolutely just heavenly! Now, it is upper 20's, and we even had a 3 second drizzle of rain today. I can't remember the last time I saw rain. As the weather moves ever onwards towards autumn, my brain reluctantly moves towards autumnal and winter veges.

Anonymous said...

Fabric's lovely. :)

Lucy said...

Vegeyum, it's hard to let go of summer's bounty. I keep thinking that I haven't used enough of the summer veg, but, inevitably, the winter root veggies and pumpkins are calling. Glad your weather has cooled...it was ridiculous, wasn't it?

Thanks parsnipsaplenty - it fell in just the right way.