Autumn in the English Countryside | From the Market to a Cosy Breakfast

Hello friends, and a warm welcome to our home in England. In this silent autumn vlog, we visit the Bishop’s Waltham brocante, explore the Hampshire countryside with Alma and stop at Mi Bello Lugar, a family-run cider farm with Spanish tapas.

There’s a stroll through the peaceful village of Meonstoke, a few finds to bring home and some comforting seasonal cooking. For dinner, I’m making a butternut squash, chestnut and leek tart. The following morning, I’ll hang my new watercolour and try apple tansy, a traditional English dish, served with pecans, plain yoghurt and Earl Grey tea.

Candles, fresh flowers and time around the table make these autumn days feel a little more special. I hope you’ll find a little comfort in spending this time with us.

Please turn on subtitles to follow the story and recipes.

Have you ever tried apple tansy? I’d love to hear from you.

Thank you for keeping us company. 🤍

BUTTERNUT SQUASH, CHESTNUT & LEEK TART

For the pastry:

280g plain flour
140g cold butter
5–7 tablespoons iced water, added gradually as needed

For the filling and topping:

2 large leeks, cut into fairly thick slices
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
About 90g cooked, peeled chestnuts
2 large eggs
250ml cream
90–100g grated Cheddar
A little freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and black pepper
Peeled butternut squash, thinly sliced, enough to cover the filling
A little butter or oil for sautéing the leeks

Gruyère or crumbled Stilton would also work well in place of Cheddar.

I served the tart with kale sautéed with garlic, and made garlic mushrooms for José.

APPLE TANSY

4 apples, peeled, cored and sliced
15g butter
20g sugar, or the equivalent amount of your preferred sweetener
4 eggs, separated
3 tablespoons cream, plain yoghurt or sour cream
A pinch of ground cinnamon
A pinch of ground cloves
About 10g muscovado sugar, for the topping

To serve:

Plain yoghurt
Pecans

#SlowLiving #EnglishCountryside #CookingFromScratch #AutumnBaking #SilentVlog