New Potatoes with Pancetta and Quail Eggs

Growing your own food is like printing your own money.

I refuse to be part of this manufactured reality that was manufactured for me by some other people. So I’m now manufacturing my own reality.

We have started attending a farm school. Because we do want to change things. Because we want our children to understand how important food is for our body and our soul.

You can’t imagine how amazing soil is. How a humble tomato plant can have a positive impact in people. How the most miserable day can be changed by a growing cauliflower. How your heart can heal just by connecting ourselves with the earth.

We are the soil of our society. And if we want to grow, we need to change the composition of the soil. Gardening makes people stand together, work together, laugh together. 

Since last year we’ve been receiving vegetable boxes at home from our local farm Shillingford Organics. A couple of months ago we attended an open farm day and we absolutely fell in love with what we discovered: something that should be taught at school, but remains hidden by this society we live in. We loved it so much we are now attending a farm school weekly. By far, the best day of the week.

We, as parents, have the greatest responsibility to pass on wonderful knowledge about the unlimited generosity of our fertile land to our children. 

If children grow kale, they eat kale. If they grow tomatoes, they eat tomatoes. But when none of this is presented to them, or they are not shown how food affects the mind and the body, they blindly eat whatever you put in front of them. 

I can really see in my children the joy, the pride and the honour in growing their own food. 

Visit your local farm. Share an allotment. Grow peas in your back garden. Have a parsley plant in your kitchen. But please, please, please. Join as in this food revolution. 

This week’s recipe was prepared using baby new potatoes we harvested ourselves. With our hands. Whilst our body was getting warm under the summery sun. They were not just potatoes. They were our potatoes. And they were absolutely amazing.

Some of these amazingly inspiring phrase were said by Ron Finley in one of the best TED talks I’ve ever seen. You can watch it here.

WHAT YOU NEED

A Handful of Baby New Potatoes

9 Quail Eggs

1 Lemon Peel and Juice

150gr Diced Smoked Pancetta

A Large Knob of Butter

2tbsp Chopped Parsley 

Salt and Pepper to taste

WHAT YOU DO

Put water on a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add potatoes and cook for around 10 mins or until tender. Drain and set aside.

Melt the butter in heavy large pan over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, lemon peel and juice,pancetta, salt, and pepper. Cook until potatoes are heated through and beginning to brown, tossing often, about 5 minutes. 

Finally, gently crack each quail egg using the edge of a knife. Drop the eggs carefully on top of the potatoes and cook until they firm up. Be careful as they cook in a very short time.

Transfer to serving plate. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.