Savour the Season: Fresh Recipes for Garden Day Celebrations

Garden Day is a cherished annual celebration in South Africa, honouring our gardens and green spaces. It’s a day to acknowledge our hard work and the joy that gardens bring to our lives and communities through a fun garden party!

We invite all plant enthusiasts to don their flower crowns and host a Garden Day gathering in their gardens or green spaces this Sunday, October 20th. Whether you’re planning a lavish lunch on the lawn, platters on the patio with your pot plants, or tea for two under your favourite tree, the possibilities are endless! So, draw up your guest list, invite your besties, and unleash your inner hostess for a delightful celebration in the garden! 🌼🌿✨

 Food for the body (and soul)

 Harvesting your own produce is both rewarding and healthy! Homegrown fruits and vegetables are not only fresher and more nutrient-rich, but they also bring an added joy to every meal. The satisfaction of nurturing your garden and enjoying the fruits of your labour elevates your cooking experience, making every bite even more special! 🌱🍅🥕

 No one knows this better than our green-fingered, Friend of Garden Day, avid gardener and plantsman, Pietman Diener.  ‘On Garden Day we will eat from the garden!’ he says. After a bumper quince crop, that includes syrupy homemade preserves as well as homegrown, fresh garden salad, asparagus, beans… and flowers. ‘Flowers from the garden are very important in our house – and to share with our family and friends,’ he says.

Friends of Garden Day 2024: From l-r  Codi Marais (upliftment agent, urban farmer and founder of Groa (Grow a Garden) andCorli Leonard, aka Veldmeisie,  Pietman Diener (head gardener at Rustenberg Wine Estate)  and Dr Anesu Mbizvo IMAGE: Adel Ferreira

To make your Garden Day celebration truly memorable, we’ve curated a selection of recipes featuring homegrown ingredients. Delight your guests with a delicious cake perfect for a picnic, refresh them with a revitalizing drink ideal for a garden sundowner, or whip up a vibrant salad bursting with the fresh flavors of your garden. Let’s celebrate the bounty of our green spaces! 🌸🍰🥗🍹

 Garden Day spritz (recipe by SA food blogger Ilse van der Merwe, also known as The Food Fox)

Garden Day Spritz

Ingredients:

Pomegranate seeds, passion fruit pulp or freshly cut fruit of your choice

Ice cubes

Flavoured soda or tonic of your choice

Soda water

Rose geranium or mint leaves

 Method:

Add some pomegranate seeds to your glass, along with the ice cubes. Fill the glass half full with soda/tonic, then top up with soda water. Garnish with rose geranium or mint leaves.

Tip: For the flavoured soda, try bitter orange or sparkling grapefruit soda. 

Rainbow pepper and couscous salad (recipe by third generation farmer Mosa Seshoene, also known as the Farminist)

Garden Day Rainbow pepper and couscous salad (recipe by third generation farmer Mosa Seshoene, also known as the Farminist)

Ingredients

1 cup couscous

1 cup chopped red pepper

1 cup chopped yellow pepper

1 cup chopped green pepper

1 cup chopped red onion

1 cup of herbs, we suggest parsley & thyme

For the salad dressing: 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ cup lemon juice

Directions

1. Pour the couscous into a bowl and pour hot water over, ensuring all the couscous is covered.
2. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and allow to sit for about 10 minutes.
3. Finely chop the herbs.
4. Once the couscous is light and fluffy, add the peppers, onions and herbs.
5. Mix all the ingredients together and then add the dressing.

Poppy seed cake with beetroot icing (recipe by local chef Mynhardt Joubert, from Mynhardt Cathedral Cellar Kitchen in Paarl in the Cape Winelands)

Poppyseed cake with beetroot icing IMAGE: Adel Ferreira

Preparation time: 20 minutes Baking time: 30 – 40 minutes Oven temperature: 180 °C

Ingredients:

Cake

6 extra large eggs

630 g castor sugar

250 ml canola oil

500 g double cream plain yoghurt

150 g poppy seeds

160 g desiccated coconut

350 g self-raising flour

 Icing:

100 g butter, softened

400 g crème fraîche

130 g icing sugar

10 ml vanilla paste or extract

15 ml beetroot powder or 5 ml pink food colouring 

400 g good-quality white chocolate, melted

 Method:

Cake

Cream the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the oil and yoghurt and mix through.

Add the poppy seeds, coconut and flour and mix thoroughly. 

Divide the batter into two 28 cm loose-bottom cake pans.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Spread the icing between each layer and stack the cakes spreading the last frosting on top.

Garnish with fresh figs, pomegranate seeds and flowers. 

 Icing 

Cream the butter and crème fraiche together with an electric beater.

Add the icing sugar, vanilla, beetroot powder (or food colouring) and mix through. 

While whisking, pour in the melted chocolate and whip until thickened. 

Keep at room temperature when you are not using the icing right away. 

Top tip: Make sure to line your cake tins with well-greased baking paper as the high sugar content can make the cake stick to the sides of the pan.

For more recipe ideas and guidelines on how to make your own flower crown visit www.gardenday.co.za

Share your garden party pics with @GardenDaySA #GardenDaySA or send via WhatsApp to 0742881487.