Fresh field beans - soft and salty

No, I haven´t got a heart attack in this summer heat. Although I have to admit, I have the feeling of having one almost every day for the last month or so. Nobody here in Estonia remembers having this kind of heat for so many days in a row. Even my husbands great grandmother, who is already 80. So no, this is not the reason of my long absense from here, the Berries and the Blue Sky. I can assure that the pause has been nothing else than culinary and if everything goes as expected, I will write you about it more soon.
This extreme summer that has speeded up the growth of every summer berry and vegetable is now so far that the big field beans are ready. And my favourite thing to do with them is really easy. All you need is some fresh beans, a lot of salt and some water. Oh, and do not forget a cold bere to enjoy the beautiful snack after it´s ready!
So, take a lot of beans, with the pods. Cover them with water and add a little bit more water. Add a lot of salt. And I really do mean A LOT. The water should be too salty. Boil until the beans inside the pods are almost ready. Then turn off the heat and let the beans stay inside the salted water for half an hour. And then you´re ready to have them, with some cold beer, on your terrace, after the heat has gone to sleep and the grasshoppers are singing!

Estonian milk soup with fresh veggies

I bet this soup brings back many childhood memories to all estonians. Both, good and bad. Some people, like me, just love it! Some people hate it as it was often served in school canteens during the Soviet times and was usually not made with the freshest ingrediences of the market. But this is a soup where the freshest of the fresh is a must. If all you got is frozen veggies of an unknown origin, then skip it. But when the little new potatoes, thin crunchy carrots and tiny green peas have just arrived, then I strongly recommend to cook this summer soup, that is really easy to make!

You need:

about 0,5 litres of water

6-7 little potatoes

100 gr fresh peas

4-5 little carrots (mine are beautifully dark red this year)

0,7 litres of milk

1 tbs butter

salt for seasoning

fresh dill to serve

Wash the vegetables. Cut the potatoes to quarters and carrots to about 1,5 cm pieces. Boil in salted water until cooked. Pour in milk and butter. Bring to boil. Serve with fresh dill.

Piima-köögiviljasupp

umbes 0,5 l vett

6-7 väikest värsket kartulit

100 gr herneid

4-5 pisikest porgandit

0,7 l piima

1 spl võid

soola maitsestamiseks

värsket tilli serveerimiseks

Puhasta köögivili ja lõika parajateks tükkideks. Keeda soolaga maitsestatud vees pehmeks. Lisa piim ja või. Aja keema, tõsta tulelt. Serveeri värske tilliga.