Merry Christmas

A very Merry Christmas! The year has flown by and here we are again in the festive season. It’s such a busy time but I hope it’s an enjoyable one for all my readers.

Amid the frantic preparations let’s take a moment to calm our nerves with a few moments in the garden.

Although the weather has not been kind at times a few rosebuds offered up a pretty display last week while snowdrops made their first appearance. This is not as surprising as it may seem. Roses are hardier than sometimes believed and some snowdrops do flower this early in the winter.

My Clematis cirrhosa is in full flower now. Draped elegantly over an arch it looks lovely from the window as I look out on the garden.

My oriental hellebores are budding but this particular one flowers from Autumn until Spring. It’s a beauty and its ivory white blossom lights up an otherwise drab border during these dull days.

Viburnum hillieri has bold scarlet berries next to the Garrya elliptica with its long graceful catkins.

The pond was looking interesting after a storm when Cotoneaster leaves had sprinkled on the surface. Tiny red droplets of colour mingled on top with the pesky duckweed.

I clipped greenery from around the garden to make a wreath. Bit easier this year because I bought a willow ring to insert the stems into. It may not look professional but I enjoy doing it and all the sprigs are from our garden. I used Holly, Euonymus, conifer leaves and Skimmia berries.

I also found pretty foliage for a vase with some Cotoneaster berries and Rudbeckia seedheads. I love this Christmas alternative to flowers. Bringing greenery into the house used to be considered a way of ensuring Spring would come again. I have no superstitions but I still find it a pleasing thing to do at Christmas.

With food in mind, I usually decorate some little cakes and make mince pies with my homemade mincemeat. Always appreciated by the family and guests. This year, for the cakes, I tried something I saw on a few little videos. A brilliant idea which looked so simple. Hmm! Not simple for me. The idea was to create a little wreath in icing on the top of the cake and add dots of red for berries. Looked so easy but didn’t work when I tried. Anyway the cakes look cheerful and taste just as good. At least it gave us something to giggle about!

For a few years I made a vegetarian flan on Christmas Day. It was really delicious and a pleasant change from all the meat we eat at this time of year. It contained ground cashew nuts, sprouts, leeks and carrots in a pastry case. I roasted potatoes and parsnips to go with it and cranberry sauce. It really is a satisfying and tasty meal. The recipe for it is in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook.

Now, because I have a long-term illness, I find it too much work and I can no longer make a traditional Christmas meal. So last year I cooked a one-pan version of a turkey dinner. It’s so much easier and still tastes delicious so I will do it again this Christmas day. I recommend it for anyone who struggles with a traditional Christmas dinner.

I cook a turkey breast the day before. Then on Christmas Day I make a little stock from chicken stock cubes and add potato chunks, sprouts and carrots. I allow them to cook for a few minutes then add pieces of the cooked turkey. When the vegetables are tender I stir in some dissolved cornflour to make gravy. Then it’s ready to serve with cranberry sauce. Much easier than the usual meal and hardly any washing up afterwards. All the Christmas flavours in one pan. Parsnips can be added or roasted as an accompaniment.

Homemade cranberry sauce is easy-peasy and so full of flavour. Just simmer the fruit until it softens, then stir in sugar to taste. A glistening ruby-coloured treat.

For a tasty dessert over Christmas, I toast pecan pieces and make a simple chocolate sauce to serve with vanilla icecream in a tall dish. Absolutely delicious, looks special yet so easy. For the chocolate sauce I carefully stir cocoa powder with a few drops of milk until a paste forms then add a little more milk. I microwave it for about thirty or forty seconds to heat it. It thickens a bit then I pour it warm over the vanilla icecream. A sprinkle of the toasted pecans makes a fabulous combination of flavours. A favourite with my family. Extra pecans are always asked for because they’re wonderful toasted.

If you try this, here are a couple of tips. To make the chocolate sauce it’s important to stir the cocoa and milk gently to begin with or the cocoa powder flies up and coats everything. So do this slowly then a bit more vigorously once the chocolate paste begins to form. For the pecan nuts, begin by breaking in small pieces into a baking tray. Heat the grill and toast for a couple of minutes. Then stir to turn them over and toast again. The nuts may look very dark but will be very good.

Whether you like to cook or not, I wish you the merriest of Christmases and I hope the New Year will bring everyone good health and happiness.

With you again in the New Year. Bye for now.

Fading Beauty and Christmas Preparations

Almost Christmas and much to do. While the garden is sleeping I have time to prepare for the festive season. In between activities I wander around the damp garden for a breath of fresh air and to seek out glimpses of end of year beauty.

Although the flowers have faded there are lovely leaves, moss and seedheads to please my eye. Euonymus “Blondie” is always glowing no matter what the weather. It sprawls across the paving and shines out on the dullest day.

Cotoneaster leaves and berries are scarlet beauties and even the gooseberry leaves have lovely tints. Other leaves still look fresh and verdant.

Then there is moss, lichen on tree branches, seedheads and ivy along with evergreens to put on a show when all else lies dormant.

Dried corkscrew tendrils on my Clematis montana “Freda” are interesting too.

The leafbin has been piled high. The wind, rain, frost and snow will break down the leaves into useful leafmould. I will use this to make potting and seed compost.

We have a lovely Chinese pot with a bonsai conifer in it. It’s a lovely feature of the garden.

With Christmas in mind, I love to make much of the food myself. I’m afraid I used to over bake my mince pies. It was a family joke because the pastry was hard! But I’ve finally worked it out. I enjoy making my own mincemeat, which I only need to do every couple of years because it keeps and matures so well. You can’t beat a warm mince pie, dusted with icing sugar and a glass of sherry. A winter treat. I make as many mince pies as I can and freeze them so we can continue to eat them after Christmas.

Another favourite of mine is a roulade. It looks special as a dessert but it’s just a simple Swiss roll filled with whipped cream and something extra added. I make it and freeze it for Boxing Day or New Year. I open freeze it on a baking tray with some greaseproof paper under it, then once it’s solid I wrap it and replace it in the freezer. I unwrap while still frozen as soon as I need it and place it on a serving plate to thaw. That way the cream isn’t disturbed when I pick it up.

Two of my recipes for this are in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook, with full instructions. If you have it already you’ll find them in my Puddings section. If not you’ll find it with this link:

https://geni.us/eANQu

I thought it was time to start using my stored squashes. I grew “Uchiki Kuri” this year, a new one for me, so I didn’t know if it would be tasty. I hadn’t tried squash soup before so I made some to see if it would be flavourful. I used a small onion, a stick of celery, two vegetable stock cubes and the flesh from my squash. Blended it when it was cooked. Absolutely delicious!

Before Christmas I like to make something festive. Just simple crafts, I can’t do anything too sophisticated. This year I made some felt holly leaves and berries to place on the napkins at the table. They look nice against the white of the fabric and can be lifted off again when I wash the napkins.

I made a paper template for the shape and cut out six. Then I cut felt berries and glued them on with a dab of Copydex. Very simple to do and I think they will look nice. The colours aren’t bright on my photo but they’re actually a lovely holly-green and scarlet.

I hope Christmas is a creative time for you too and not too stressful. It’s such a busy few weeks but I feel it’s a distraction from the winter gloom and gives me a focus until snowdrops start appearing in the garden.

With you again as Christmas approaches. Meanwhile, stay warm and happy. Bye for now.

Seasonal Pursuits

November is rushing by and thoughts of Christmas are uppermost. The weather has changed to seasonal cold with frosty mornings. Although this has finished off some of the plants there are highlights here and there.

The winter Jasmine is flowering with its cheerful little blossoms. It’s a vigorous plant and needs cutting back every couple of years but it’s such a welcome sight when the rest of the garden can look dreary.

On blue-sky days the berries glisten and their scarlet beauty pops against the azure backdrop.

Clematis cirrhosa has begun to flower. I thought it had given up last year but it’s now full of buds again and will soon be lovely. I have “Freckles” with pink splashes inside the bell flowers and “Wisley Cream”. “Freckles” always seems dominant.

Now the garden is mostly dormant I search for beauty here and there. A few lovely glimpses caught my eye.

The runner beans had their fling and it was time to save seed. I let some pods dry on the plants, then removed the beans. These are now stored in a little brown envelope and will grow next year’s crop. I haven’t bought runner bean seeds for many years. It’s so easy to do this and very satisfying. The seeds need to be fully dry and stored in a dark, cool place until next Spring. These are an old variety called “Scarlet Emperor” and they’re very reliable.

The parsnips have been very good in chicken soup. Only one or two remain in the polytunnel now as I didn’t have a good germination rate this year. Parsnips can be a bit temperamental at the seed-sowing stage but once they germinate they can grow to a big size and are a valued winter vegetable.

The garlic is growing well. I scattered comfrey pellets around them to add nutrition. They’re breaking down now and I need to carefully work them into the soil.

Parsley grows abundantly in the polytunnels despite being in very dry poor soil. It’s lovely to have fresh green sprigs to add to soup. It freezes well too but I enjoy fetching some fresh leaves from the garden.

I’ve planted some winter onion sets. These are a variety called “Snowball”. The name speaks for itself as the onion skins are white. I’ve never grown these so I hope they’ll come through the winter and grow away when light and temperatures increase again.

In the greenhouse I have winter lettuce; a variety called “Arctic King”. These provide some welcome fresh green leaves to add interest and nutrition to a sandwich, when foods can become a bit stodgy.

I brought my peppers into the kitchen and put them on the windowsill. They haven’t done very well because I didn’t look after them this year but I have one ripening nicely and almost ready to use.

I made my Christmas cake with the much-needed help of my lovely daughter Sam. We really enjoy doing this together each year and we usually do it on my birthday. This year was no exception. This is an old photo of us but the same happens each time.

The cake always looks a bit lumpy because I line the baking tin with greaseproof paper which makes creases round the sides. It doesn’t spoil it. It’s still delicious when it’s ready at Christmas. When it’s cold I wrap it in fresh greaseproof paper and store it in a tin. Twice before Christmas I prick the top and spoon sherry over it. Smells amazing and tastes fabulous.

I confess I forgot to include my Christmas cake recipe in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook but I put it on my blog last November. If you’d care to try it, scroll back to find the recipe and detailed instructions. Let me know if that’s a problem.

While the weather was wet, cold and miserable I contented myself with some knitting. Here’s “Purrcy”. He was a soothing project during a stressful week. I’m so pleased with him. He’s the cutest cuddly toy I’ve made.

I hope your Christmas plans are going well. It’s only stressful if you leave it till the last minute. The run-up to Christmas can be such a pleasure. It helps to dispel the dread of winter. At least, it does for me.

Bye for now. With you again in a couple of weeks.

Garden Treasures and Green Tomato Chutney

November is an intriguing month. The beauty of Autumn all around us but the hint of Winter about to arrive at any time. So far, here in my part of the UK, it’s been very mild and damp.

It’s been very much like Spring with the temperatures, light levels and absence of frost. The result is that some plants are still producing flowers and others are flowering again. Only odd ones, here and there around the garden, but full of life and loveliness. Here are some which caught my eye.

The leaves have been a joy to see as they change to glowing golds, oranges and reds.

As they fall they carpet the ground. The damp earthy scent of Autumn is such a pleasure.

I have enjoyed a few very late semi-ripe strawberries as they’ve continued to fruit. Most are being eaten by snails but I found a few nice ones which were delicious.

Some lovely berries are lighting up the garden and there are new catkins on the Garrya.

In Spring I planted an annual called Sanvitalia in a narrow border. These are amazing little yellow daisies which flower from May until the frost begins. They never need deadheading and always have masses of lovely flowers. Such a good plant!

The apples have been abundant this year. I sliced and froze some but we had a problem with the freezer so I made Apple and Ginger Jam. Absolutely delicious and easy to make. Not my own recipe this time. This is in Beryl Wood’s book, “Let’s Preserve It”. A book well worth having if, like me, you enjoy preserving fruit and vegetables.

There are plenty of apples stored in the shed to use over Winter. I hope the mice don’t find them!

A few at the top of the tree are hard to reach but when they fall they feed the birds and other creatures.

It was time to remove the tomato plants and a lot of green tomatoes. For the first time I made Green Tomato Chutney. I adapted a Beryl Wood recipe to suit myself and it turned out well. It’s quite sweet but tasty and with a little bit of chilli heat. Here’s my version:

Green Tomato Chutney
Makes four or five jars.

1kg green Tomatoes
230g Onion
1 red Chilli
230g Cooking Apples (prepped weight)
225g Sugar
285ml Malt Vinegar
half a teaspoon Salt
1 rounded teaspoon Ground Ginger
1 rounded teaspoon Mustard Powder

Chop the washed tomatoes. 
Peel and chop the onions into small pieces.
Chop the chilli finely. Wash hands carefully afterwards to prevent irritation.
Put all ingredients into a large, heavy-bottomed pan.
Stir to mix and bring to the boil.
Turn down the heat and simmer for about half an hour until vegetables are tender.
Meanwhile, wash and rinse well five jars with sound lids. Don't wipe the rinsed jars. 
Put the jars into a cold oven and turn the heat to low. 
Wipe the lids with kitchen paper and place somewhere warm but not in the oven.
Place a large wooden chopping board (if you have one) on the worktop next to the stove. Cover with kitchen paper or a folded teatowel. This will prevent the hot jars from touching a cold surface and cracking. Or just use a few layers of newspaper.
Have a ladle and a funnel ready.
Increase heat under the pan and boil rapidly  until thickened. This will take about another half an hour. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. ( A long handled wooden spoon is best as the boiling chutney spits).
When it has thickened sufficiently, remove jars from the oven one at a time and place the funnel in the neck. Ladle the hot chutney into the hot jars and leave a small gap at the top. 
Using a cloth to protect from the heat, screw the lid on tightly.
As the jars cool they will seal if this procedure is followed. You will hear a popping sound as the lid seals.


It’s been a busy couple of weeks because I also made my Christmas puddings. I love these and they’re so much easier than using the traditional method. Unfortunately, my detailed instructions are too long to include here but they are in my cookbook if you have it and would like to have a go.

Instead of steaming up the kitchen, these steam under foil in the oven. The kitchen stays dry and you don’t need to worry about it once it’s in the oven. I make them as individual puddings and freeze them. Each pudding only takes a minute in the microwave to thaw straight from the freezer. I serve them with Rum Sauce. My recipe for this is also in my cookbook which I produced at the request of my readers.

Here is the link if you’re interested in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook. Let me know if you don’t want to buy it but you’d like the pudding recipe. I’ll see if I can help.

https://geni.us/eANQu

So much more to tell you but I will save it for next time. I hope you’re enjoying the run up to Christmas as much as I do. With you again in a couple of weeks. Bye for now.

Seasonal Pleasures, Cakes and Soup

October ending; November beginning. Autumn truly underway. Leaves are falling like coloured rain and swirling around in the chilly wind. Drifted piles lie in scented heaps where hedgehogs sleep and insects hide away until Spring warms the earth again.

In the garden I’m finding changes day by day. Leaves of such beauty are either clinging on or fluttering on the ground. Here is a selection I caught with my camera.

The late roses and a few lovely flowers are defying the chill wind and making the most of the fading sun.

Bright berries and the buff colours of seedheads are pleasing too. The Euonymus europaea has vibrant pink pods with orange seeds. The seedheads of Liatris stand tall and stiff in the border.

The trees and shrubs are changing every day and give a mellow tint to the garden. The Acers are not yet in full glory but their transition is beautiful. Hawthorn leaves shine out in golden yellow.

The vegetable garden supplies food all year in the polytunnels. Parsley grows abundantly under cover and doesn’t suffer from mud splash as it would out in the rain. I’ve given away some because I’ve already frozen portions and it will go to seed if it’s not picked. Lovely to have some fresh in the winter though if I want a sprig or two so I want to keep it growing.

It’s a little late for tomatoes. The greenhouse plants have been removed and any remaining tomatoes brought in. I gave away a basketful of green ones but I still have more to keep and hopefully ripen. There are two plants still in the tunnel which I’m hoping will be ok for a few more days.

Apples have been so generous this year and some at the top of the big tree are still clinging on. A long pole with a basket at the top to capture them helped to rescue a few. I don’t know the names of our varieties but they make the most delicious stewed apple or a pie. Sometimes I make my Apple and Cinnamon Squares instead. My recipe for these is in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook which can be found with this link.

https://geni.us/eANQu

I made two banana and cranberry loaves to freeze for later and orange and banana squares to use up some ripe fruit. My recipe for the loaves is in my cookbook. They’re very satisfying served in buttered slices. All my cake recipes freeze well.

I will be making my Christmas puddings this week. More about those next time but if you have my cookbook the recipe is included with full instructions. It’s a good recipe if you don’t like a steamy kitchen. These are steamed under foil in the oven in individual pudding bowls. Not difficult to make but too detailed to be explained on my blog unfortunately.

Soups are wonderful in the winter or just for a warming and satisfying meal. I tried a little experiment. I wanted to include some protein but hadn’t any suitable meat so I tried using white fish. It might sound unappealing but it was really good and we thoroughly enjoyed it. I made a basic soup with onion, potato, carrots, parsnips and good vegetable stock cubes, then I added frozen peas and a fillet of frozen white fish. I added the whole intact fillet to the hot liquid because I knew it would flake as it cooked. When the soup was ready I blended it. It tasted basically like pea soup but with fish added. It was surprisingly good and easy to do. I think this is probably what a fish “chowder” is. I will certainly make it again.

I’m about to paint another picture but I have only done the drawing so far. Meanwhile, as it’s time for winter pansies here’s one I did some time ago. Drawn, as usual, from my own photograph, drawn, then painted with gouache.

I hope you’re enjoying the glorious Autumn colours in the countryside and in your gardens. With you again in a couple of weeks. Bye for now.

Mellow Colours, Bright Berries and Teapots.

October is a time of gently pleasant decay. Leaves are turning to mellow golds or burning oranges while berries blaze with glowing colours. The garden is winding down yet full of sights and scents to please me.

The marigolds have curled seeds which promise more beauty next summer and the Rudbeckias have almost black cones with bronze drooping petals as they slowly fade.

Wildlife is making the most of the seeds and berries. Little frogs are hopping about and the birds have been busy.

The strawberry plants have produced a late crop but most will not ripen before the frosts begin. I did find one lovely big red one. It had been nibbled but I washed, trimmed and ate it. It was so delicious it made my day.

The Asters are glorious at the moment. I just love their daisy flowers and so do the bees and butterflies.

A few late roses are blooming, the fuchsias are at their best and a few other pretty flowers are putting on a show.

In the vegetable garden, the leeks aren’t growing well. The soil in that part of the tunnel is poor and dry. I will have to perk them up with some comfrey pellets or liquid seaweed. Tomatoes are still ripening but I had to remove one plant because I needed the space. I gave away a basket of green tomatoes because I couldn’t use them and didn’t want them wasted.

We’re enjoying the carrots and kale. I had some leftover cooked kale. I try to use up leftovers in imaginative ways because “scratch meals” often turn out to be a tasty treat. So, I put the kale in the food processor, added a bit of onion, crumbled Cheshire cheese, a crust of bread and an egg with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. I whizzed them together then put the mixture into individual-sized aluminium pudding bowls and cooked in the airfryer. They were delicious.

I really value my food processor. It makes so many interesting combinations. I use up cooked meat or salmon by mashing them with other ingredients in the processor and make little flat cakes. Browned in a little heated oil in the frying pan and served with vegetables and chutney they make a very satisfying meal.

Like most people I enjoy a good cup of tea. For years I used teabags but they didn’t break down in the compost heap and I discovered that many were made of plastic. So I began to use loose tea. It makes a lovely brew and the tealeaves decay in the compost bin.

I also love teapots and have a few. Our everyday one is a dribbler without its lid but it makes just enough tea for the two of us. For guests I have a bone china one with gilt edging. We had a fad at one time for Lapsang souchong tea which has a satisfying smokey woody flavour and for that I used my little Chinese teapot with a dragon design. But I have two teapots purely because I love the look of them. One has a lovely chintzy flower pattern and is in the bedroom just to look pretty and the other is an Art Deco one which stands in the kitchen. I also have an ornate Indian one (which needs a good polish!) and another Art Deco green one. Last, but not least, I have a metal one with a nice round belly.

Soon be time to think about Christmas baking. I think I have enough homemade mincemeat leftover from last year. It will have matured well with the brandy I put into it and will be even more delicious. Homemade mince pies are such a treat. We eat them for weeks from the beginning of December.

But, let’s enjoy the subtle changes of Autumn in our gardens and countryside before we snuggle down for the Winter. With you again in a couple of weeks. Bye for now.

Autumn Tints, Jam and a Painting

Late September. A bit of a nip in the air and a slight scent of Autumn. The fruit trees have yielded their delicious treasure and are now preparing to rest. The garden is winding down and so am I.

Not everything goes to plan when you’re a gardener. In August I always sow my Spring cabbage seeds in the greenhouse, then I plant them a little later in the polytunnel. Never been a problem before but this year butterflies have entered the greenhouse and laid eggs on the tiny leaves. Caterpillars developed and despite my best efforts they have almost destroyed the little plants. I’ve sown a few more seeds directly into the tunnel bed in the hope that they might grow. Fingers crossed.

The squashes looked about ready and temperatures were falling so they’ve been harvested and tucked away for Winter eating. A bit of stem left on and curing the skins in a warm spot before putting away helps them to store well.

I haven’t grown these varieties before so I hope they will taste good. My usual “Buttercup” failed to germinate but I will try them again next year because they have a wonderful flavour.

I grew celery this year instead of celeriac but I think I will return to celeriac next time. The celery has a great flavour but it’s very stringy and tough. I think it may have needed a richer soil and copious amounts of water. Smells and tastes so good though.

The vegetables are still supplying most of our needs. I have carrots but I made the classic mistake on one bed of sowing the seed too thickly. Much too crowded and jostling for space. Some are only pencil thickness by the time I’ve prepared them for cooking. Should know better by now!

The beans are coming to an end so I’m mostly cooking the seed beans from inside the pods. Still very enjoyable. I’ll allow some pods to swell and dry so I can save the seed for next year’s crop. I haven’t needed to buy runner bean seeds for many years. They’re one of the easiest crops to save seed from.

Leaves are changing colour in the most pleasing way. The Euonymus, known as spindle tree, has delightful shades of pink and orange and the seed pods are fascinating.

I have only one potted dahlia but it has been very generous with its flowers. White with a blush of lavender at the tips of the petals, it’s a lovely sight.

Cyclamen don’t spread in our dry sandy soil but I have a few under the fruit trees which are very welcome. The fuchsias have put on a show since the weather cooled and are looking very pretty. My favourite Asters are beginning to flower. I love the shades of purple.

This is a very natural garden with Ivy and Hawthorn which may be a nuisance at times but are lovely to look at and good for the wildlife. Ivy flowers attract bees and the berries are eaten by birds. The haws are dropping and littering the paving but they’re always lovely to see.

Colchicums are delightful autumn flowers. They come up separately from the leaves and they have very fragile stems which cause them to topple over. The colour is wonderful and even lying on the ground they’re lovely to look at.

Indoors. I’ve been making the most of the plums and apples. The raw plums are sweet and delicious once they’re ripe. When they’re cooked they have a sharp acidity even with a lot of sugar but they do make delicious jam, especially when apples are added. I made seven jars.

Apples are rich in pectin which makes jam set so I often add them to other fruit. I use roughly equal quantities of fruit and granulated sugar. Tips for jam making are in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook. Here’s my link

https://geni.us/eANQu

Jam isn’t a nutritious food but it’s such a treat on hot buttered toast or in a cake. I ladle it while it’s hot into heated jars and screw on the lids immediately. That way it seals the jar and it will keep for years. Not that I need to. Too delicious to leave lingering in a cupboard.

You might remember that I was working on a painting. Inspired by the harvest this year I painted a picture of some apples on the tree. I’ve finished it and I’m reasonably pleased with the outcome after a doubtful start. Painted from my photograph onto a canvas board with acrylic paints.

I hope you’re enjoying the sights and scents of early Autumn. With you again in a couple of weeks. Bye for now.

Fruitfulness, Bric-a-Brac and a Painting in Progress

We’ve had some very wet days since my last post but our garden needed it. Sunny spells have relieved the grey skies in between showers.

The early Autumn flowers are a delight. Rudbeckias glow even on the dullest day with their golden petals and near black cones. I brought in a few to fill a lovely jug. I added a few orange Pelargoniums and stems of scarlet berried Cotoneaster.

The Asters will soon follow. One is already in flower but the main show has yet to develop. One of my favourites. I love daisy flowers of any kind but the soft mauves of Asters are particularly pleasing. Fuchsias seem to be responding well to cooler, damp conditions. Mine are in pots and looking very pretty right now.

It’s been a wonderful year for fruit. Bumper crops of apples and pears have kept my husband, Allan, busy reaching up into our enormous trees to harvest them. Good ones have been stored away in the shed for later use. I’ve given several bags of them away and I’ve frozen sliced cooking apples for stewing later.

I’ve mentioned this before but I always find someone who doesn’t know. Salted water is far more effective, cheaper and convenient than using lemon juice to prepare apples. It prevents them from browning before cooking. I put a couple of tablespoons of salt into a bowl of water and slice the peeled and cored apples in to it. It’s best to swish them around with each addition so the salt covers the surfaces. I simply drain them when they’re all prepared and cook or freeze them straight away. The apples don’t taste salty and when I thaw them they don’t brown.

Plums are ready now too so they’ll be stashed in the freezer to make plum and apple jam in Winter.

I’ve never seen our Hawthorn berries so fat and bright. They hang like scarlet jewels on the trees. Such a wonderful sight right now but can be a bit of a nuisance later when they drop. Cotoneaster berries are abundant too. Pretty and tiny on the prostrate branches.

I read that it’s a good idea to put out an overripe banana for butterflies. I can honestly say that this works. The butterflies have been queuing up to sip from them. We’ve had seven or more Red Admirals vying for a place on the bird table. It was difficult to photograph them. If I approached them they would scatter so I had to zoom through the window. I think you’ll see how popular the bananas are.

Runner beans are such generous plants. I only grow up to ten plants because the beans seem to appear overnight and it’s difficult to keep up. As I said last time, if the beans grow too big with swollen pods I remove the pink beans and cook those instead. I do try to pick beans while they’re small and tender though and I prepare them for freezing. I open freeze them on a baking tray before scooping them into a container. That way they don’t stick together and I can shake out as many or as few as I need when I want to cook some. Carrots have been good as well. Strongly flavoured homegrown ones fresh from the polytunnel are such a treat. They have an intense flavour which you simply can’t buy. Not easy to grow but well worth the effort.

A few Primulas are producing flowers. Gardeners are often surprised to see them at this time of year as they’re regarded as a Spring flower but if you think about it the conditions are similar in Autumn. Light levels are lower, it’s cooler and damper so the flowers pop up here and there. I have some vibrant orangey-red ones.

A few pretty things which caught my eye.

I’m working on a painting. I was a bit impatient to begin with. I thought it wouldn’t take long and I was a bit slapdash at first. Slightly disillusioned because it didn’t seem to be going well I decided that perhaps I should have chosen another subject. Soon realised however that if I settled down and put some effort in I might come up with something reasonable. Using acrylic paints, I’m finding there’s a lot of detail with light and shade which is quite challenging. I will persevere. Here’s how it looks to date. Quite a bit more to do yet.

More of that when it’s finished. Where it will go is always a problem as our home is stuffed with my paintings.

As Winter approaches home becomes more appreciated than ever as we find comfort in our familiar things. I especially love my pottery which I’ve collected for many years from charity shops, antique fairs and from craftspeople in person.

This beautiful bowl with the cut out sections was made by my husband. It lives in the garden and is a weathered treasure. So is this large pot which we found years ago at a garden centre.

A few other bits which please me every time I look at them.

I hope your own treasures bring you as much pleasure.

Enjoy the damp fragrance of the season. With you again in two weeks time. Bye for now.

Beans, Butterflies and Poetry

The beginning of September! The end of Summer and a new season ahead of us with its own pleasures.

“Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness” as the poet so rightly said. Our trees are dipping with the weight of delicious fruit. Such a good year for apples, pears and plums in my garden. Some are ready for harvest, others need a little longer. I had a bucket of windfall cooking apples so I made my Apple and Cinnamon Squares.

A couple of years ago I had one of those accidents which turn out to be a bonus in disguise. I was making my squares and I forgot to sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon on the apples before I spread the cake mixture on top. I popped it in the oven and immediately realised what I’d done! I removed it right away but wondered what I could do. So I mixed the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkled it all over the top of the cake mixture.

I thought it would be a disaster! In fact, it turned out to be a delicious improvement to my recipe. The crisp topping is a tasty contrast to the apples below. Now, I always make them like this.

The original recipe is still good and if you have my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook you will find it in there along with other easy cakes. The book can be found with this link if you’d like to take a look. https://geni.us/eANQu

Runner beans grow at an alarming pace and huge ones are not nice to eat. If they are too big and stringy, remember you can remove the beans from the swollen pods and cook those instead.

Although they lose their lovely colour when cooked they’re very tasty and nutritious. They need at least ten minutes cooking but keep their shape and add texture to a meal. I add them to my one-pan meals but they can be boiled separately.

The courgettes have been wonderfully generous. I made two more of my Courgette and Ginger Cakes. So good sliced with a spread of butter. Always best to make two and they freeze well. My recipe is on a previous, recent post called Summer Pleasures and Cake. Easy to find by scrolling back.

The squashes are coming along perfectly. So pleased with the way they’ve grown. Just beautiful to look at and so satisfying.

Butterflies love over-ripe fruit so I leave a few fallen pears on the ground and crush them slightly to expose the juicy flesh. I also put a black-skinned banana on the bird table and the Red Admirals have been sipping at it.

Lovely to see how wildlife share our garden with us and hopefully thrive on the food and shelter it provides.

Still enjoying a few flowers although a feeling of winding down is going on. Leaves are changing colour and dropping from the fruit trees. Seedheads are looking lovely on the clematis.

Beneath the Acer the Colchicum are flowering. I think they’re a bit early. Although they flop their delicate pale mauve flowers look beautiful in the dappled light.

Here’s a poem I wrote a couple of years ago, inspired by the end of Summer as the days shorten and Autumn approaches.

Changing Seasons

The fragrance of the damp earth
Mingles with each fallen leaf
And lavender wafts its sweet scent
Now Summer's days are brief.

The wasps are feasting on the fruit
Which drops upon the ground
And butterflies with their dainty tongues
Sip without a sound.

Toadstools, mushrooms, instantly appear
Spontaneously in the night,
Their ever fascinating forms
A strange but pleasing sight.

Blackberries glisten in the hedge.
Despite their ripping thorns
They're gathered eagerly and eaten
As early Autumn dawns.

Each season has its pleasures
And Summer's soon will end
But another one will take its place
and our melancholy mend.

With you again in a couple of weeks. I hope you have a bumper harvest in your garden and enjoy all that the season has to offer. Bye for now.

Summer Treasures and Tomato Chutney

Although Summer is still in full swing there are signs that the garden is winding down. Leaves are falling from the fruit trees and pears and apples are giving up their treasure. Blackberries shine out where the brambles have sneaked in here and there.

Glowing autumn colours lighten up the garden now. Rudbeckias are favourites in my garden with their glorious yellow petals and nearly black centres. They shine out on even the dullest day.

My “Scarborough Fair” rose is flowering well. A bit prickly but with a lovely scent, it does well in a large pot. It’s good for insects too with its open blossom.

Under the fruit trees a few white cyclamen brighten the shadowy ground among the falling apples. Although they don’t spread in our dry soil the few who succeed are very welcome.

Lots of wildlife about this month. We saw a large dragonfly whizzing about. Didn’t manage to snap a photo but here are some other things which visit or live in the garden.

The last photo is of a large Elephant Hawkmoth caterpillar burrowing into the soil to begin its metamorphosis into an adult moth. Fascinating. I haven’t seen the moths in the garden but often wondered if they were about. Now I know!

The squashes are coming on well. I love to see them growing and their colours developing. These are new to me this year. I normally grow a delicious one called “Buttercup” but the seeds failed. I am trying “Uchiki kuri” and “Turk’s Turban”. I hope they’ll be as tasty.

The courgettes have been generous. Such a productive vegetable and has so many uses. Last time I included on my blog my recipe for delicious Courgette and Ginger Cake. This week I pickled some. Just cut into chunks and with the addition of sliced onions I preserved them in spiced malt vinegar. They will soften and be very tasty with winter meals.

My tomatoes have been very slow but my neighbour very kindly gave me two baskets of plum tomatoes. I decided to try some tomato chutney. Wasn’t very keen on any recipes I found so I made my own. I just made two and a half jars because it was an experiment but it turned out really well. Sweet but very tasty.

Here’s my recipe .

Red Tomato Chutney
1kg Plum Tomatoes
300g Onions
250g Sugar
2 heaped teaspoons Mustard Powder
1 heaped teaspoon Ground Ginger
2 teaspoons Salt
grind of Pepper
250mls Malt Vinegar
Put the tomatoes in a heat proof bowl or pan and cover with boiling water from the kettle. Leave for a couple of minutes, then drain and cool slightly. 
Remove the tomato skins and discard.
Peel and chop the onions finely.
Put the tomatoes and onions in a large pan and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
Wash and thoroughly rinse three jars, preferably with plastic lids. Put the jars into a cold oven and turn the heat to low. Dry the lids and put aside but not in the oven.
Add all the other ingredients.
Boil rapidly until thickened, stirring occasionally and turning down the heat towards the end. Takes about half an hour.
Cover the worktop by the stove with a folded teatowel or newspaper. I use a large wooden chopping board covered with kitchen paper. Hot jars on a cold surface would cause thermal shock and crack the jars, so this prevents that happening.
Have a funnel and ladle ready. 
Using a cloth, remove a jar at a time from the oven and ladle the chutney into the jars while still hot. Almost fill but leave a couple of centimetres free at the top.  Screw the lid on tightly straight away. This usually ensures the jars seal as a vacuum is created.
Label and store in a cool dark place. 
I haven't tested this for long term storage but it should keep.

After working in the kitchen it’s nice to stroll around the garden and relax.

I have started painting at last! Not finished yet, so more of that next time. Meanwhile I hope you’re enjoying all that late Summer has to offer. With you again in a couple of weeks. Bye for now.