Four groups visited the farm and dairy in November: from the Artxanda

Catering College on the 6^th,

several families from Bilbao and Hendaye on the 10^th, and on the 13^th and 20^th a Basque

speaking group and a Castillian speaking group respectively from the Teaching Training

College in Deusto.

This is another example of farm biodiversity found in the

farm allotments. Broccoli is an edible plant from the cabbage

family whose whole flowering head and stalk is eaten as a

vegetable. The word “broccoli” comes from the Italian plural

of broccolo which means “the flowering crest of a cabbage”.

The first photo shows the flowering head when blooming, the

second photo is the stage before in which the flowering head

is eaten.

Broccoli resulted from the breeding of cultivated Brassica

crops in the northern Mediterranean, starting in about the

sixth century BC. Broccoli is a rich source of vitamins C and K.

November has been a very rainy month and we collected over 400 litres

in our rain gauge, 442 to be exact. In other words, we collected over a third

of our usual yearly rainfall in just one month. The temperature fluctuated

considerably, with highs of over 20ºC usually coinciding with southerly winds,

whilst minimum temperatures dropped to below 2ºC one night. Although were

more usually around 8-10ºC. One damp morning we saw this double rainbow.

The cows ate alfalfa, silage, hay and a little feedstuff.

The rainy weather meant the cows couldn’t graze

despite there being abundant grass in the fields. The

dry cows and heifers did graze for a few days at the

start of the month before the ground became too soggy.

Two cows calved giving us bull calves... again!

Recipe of the month: Moussaka.

There are many different moussaka recipes and we have chosen one from

a 1980s Greek recipe book from Athens. The quantities used in this recipe

book make large portions!!

500g aubergine

500g potatoes

1kg marrow

1kg minced meat

1 cup olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoons butter

1 clove of garlic, finely chopped

3 medium sized tomatoes, peeled and chopped

2 teaspoons salt

Dash ground pepper

2 heaped tablespoons toast crumbs

3 eggs

Parsley

350g grated cheese

Bechamel sauce:

4 tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

Dash nutmeg (optional)

2 cups of milk (or more if necessary depending on preferred thickness of béchamel)

Cut the potatoes, marrows and aubergines into slices, and fry slices a few at a time

in olive oil until slightly browned.

Sauté the minced meat, onion and garlic in the butter. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Cover and cook over a low heat for thirty minutes. Remove from heat and add toast

crumbs, 1 beaten egg and chopped parsley.

Butter a 35 x 24 x 6cm baking dish and introduce layers of vegetables and minced meat.

Prepare béchamel sauce:

Melt butter over a low heat; add flour, salt and pepper and nutmeg, stirring until well

blended. Remove from heat. Gradually stir in milk and return to heat. Cook, stirring

constantly until thick and smooth. Carefully add two beaten eggs, stirring constantly

to avoid the eggs congealing. Then stir in 250g finely grated cheese until melted.

Pour béchamel over the top of the meat and vegetable layers and sprinkle remaining

cheese on top.

Bake in a moderate oven for about 45 minutes or until golden brown on top.

We started clearing away dead vegetation such as

old tomato plants in the allotment, ready to sow peas

for example, in December, weather permitting. A robin

(Erithacus rubecula) happily pecked the ground in

search of worms and other morsels at less than two

meters from where we were working.

The vegetables still available at this time of year in the

allotment include spinach, broccoli, brussel spouts, leeks,

carrots and one or two tired peppers. We have already

planted cabbages and will soon also think about sowing

broad beans.

On the 19th we were invited to explain the innovations we have introduced on the

farm and in the dairy in a one day Seminar on Innovation in the Dairy Sector.

Another farmer from Karrantza, a small off farm dairy from Balmaseda and another

organic farmer with a small dairy also presented the innovations underway in their

We started a research Project this month with the aim of identifying all

the uses of plastic in the dairy and on the farm, to then identify and

source possible alternative materials and establish a calendar for minimizing

use of plastics on the Vista Alegre farm. The Farm Agronomist Irantzu Duro

Mota and the Chemical Engineer Jone Pérez Lanoa will be doing the basic

research.