Autumn harvest in Hovdala

Monday, October 28, 2013


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M. was here, for most of September. We traveled all over Scania, the southernmost province of Sweden, and took occasional outings a bit further to the north.

What we came to discover is that Sweden is an incredibly beautiful country. Most people will say that this is weather-dependent, i.e. everything is more beautiful in the sun. However, I beg to differ, not the least because the few times we were caught in the rain while exploring the nature reserves deep in the forest were some of the best: that's when we tasted the most delicious apples, sighted does, were invited for cookies and tea in a castle-turned-hotel, and had some of the deepest naps, soaking wet on the bus heading back home.

As part of our roaming of the countryside, some time in late September we visited Hovdala - the site of a 16th century castle, for an autumn fair where locals showcased and sold their organic produce. Autumn is such a great season, one where we get to reap the rewards of our hard labor. Pumpkins and gourds, mushrooms of all shapes, colors, and sizes, and local apples were on display. I was particularly impressed by the locally produced honey, courtesy of the Adopt a Bee initiative. They recognize that bees are the key for maintaining biodiversity, due to their important role in pollination, so they work to raise awareness of the role of bees, increase their numbers, and make possible for the larger community to take part and contribute. We bought a jar of their honey and it was gone in the blink of an eye (I blame G. - she loved it and ate it all).

It was a really great and eventful day (G. got to feed and pet the animals, watch tent pegging competition, learn about ancient Swedish handcrafted toys), and we learned plenty about how passionate locals work to preserve their local food and crafts. Porcini soup with homemade bread and a merengue, almond paste, caramel and cream Hovdala cake, really sweetened the day. It all made me miss my garden and got me dreaming about all the new and exciting produce we will grow next year.

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M. je vecinu septembra proveo ovdje sa mnom. Obisli smo citavu Skane regiju (jug Svedske), uz poneki izlet i nesto sjevernije.

Svedska je zaista lijepa, a nista to ne potvrdjuje vise od obilazaka manjih gradova i upoznavanja sa zivotom 'obicnih' ljudi. Neki kazu da je Svedska lijepa samo kad je lijepo vrijeme, ali, slucajno ili ne, neki od najljepsih nasih momenata desili su se dok smo kisnuli u sred prirodnog rezervata ili setajuci sumom. Tada smo probali najukusnije jabuke, posmatrali srne, bili pozvani na kafu i kolace u nekadasnji dvorac (sada hotel), i spavali snom djeteta, mokri i umorni u autobusu koji nas je vozio nazad kuci.

Pri jednom od takvih obilazaka posjetili smo i dvorac Hovdala - zdanje iz sesnaestog vijeka (tako dobro ocuvano i restaurirano da bi se postidio svaki nas historijski spomenik), u vrijeme odrzavanja jesenskog sajma domacih proizvoda. Jesen je divno godisnje doba u kojem napokon ubiremo plodove naseg napornog rada. Raznobojne tikve, gljive svih oblika, boja i velicina, i domace jabuke ukrasavale su brojne standove. Posebno me dojmila Adopt a Bee inicijativa koja ukljucuje lokalnu zajednicu u borbu za zastitu pcela, nudi domaci med i podize svijest o bitnosti pcela za ocuvanje biodiverziteta. Kupili smo teglu njihovog meda koji je bio odlican, i kojeg je G. pojela u tren oka.

Dan je bio zaista divan, sa mnogo raznolikog sadrzaja (G. je hranila domace zivotinje, gledala takmicenje sa konjima, ucila o starim, svedskim rezbarenim igrackama). Posvjedocili smo trudu i nastojanjima domacih proizvodjaca da ocuvaju svoje lokalne proizvode i zanate. Uzivala sam i u corbi od vrganja sa domacim hljebom i Hovdala torti od meringue kora, badema, karamele i kreme. U svemu tome meni je nedostajala nasa basta i radovala sam se svemu sto cemo saditi iduceg proljeca. Jos samo da M. pristane da izgradimo jednu staklenu kucicu (kao na slici).

Hovdala blog2 Hovdala blog3 21 Hovdala3 Hovdala2

2 comments:

  1. Kako je sve divno! Mene tako privlači Skandinavija. Baš želim da odem o obiđem ta mala mesta, ta o kojima ti pišeš.
    Mnogo volim pečurke i uopšte ne znam zbog čega kod nas gaje samo šampinjone i bukovače. Da čovek umre od dosade:)
    Fotke su magične!

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    1. Svakako dodji u posjetu ako budes u prilici. Veoma 'drugacije' podrucje, ogromno prostranstvo i specificna i interesantna kuhinja.

      Kod nas sigurno ima i vrganja i lisicarki. Potrazi ;)

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