September, the beginning of the season of “mists and mellow fruitfulness”. A little change in the air, cooler nights and a bounty of good things to eat.
Some of the apples and pears have been gathered in. Some are high in the trees and will need a bit of effort to reach them. Plums are almost ready but need a while longer to plump up their sweet juiciness. A few have fallen but they’re not ready yet. Blackberries are glistening in a hedge and scarlet berries are everywhere.
Someone kindly asked for my apple and cinnamon squares recipe so I gave her some of our delicious windfall apples. Although they bruise when they fall they’re too good to waste. Lots of juicy flesh left once the bruising has been cut away. Sliced into salted water, they keep their colour until they’re added to the recipe. I’ve been gathering them up to make my cakes and next week I hope to do this year’s mincemeat.
Meanwhile, there’s much to do in the garden. Clearing up after the fence was installed, cutting back dead stems and watering thirsty plants, to name just a few. Some late flowers have appeared and others are flowering again. Here’s a selection.
The marigolds have been a cheerful sight all Summer and are full of seedheads. The seeds will drop and provide next year’s flowers. Always welcome in my garden.
The beautiful and delicate colchicums, known as “Autumn Crocus” are appearing beneath the trees and opposite the kitchen window. I love their fragility, but unfortunately, their slender stems do flop. I need to grow something for them to stand among so the stems are supported. Wonderful though.
I managed to capture them looking lovely in a shaft of evening sunlight.
Still lots of feathers about but they look so appealing that I’m forever snapping them with my camera.
The little green shield bug is still on the peas. Not sure what he’s doing there. I hope it’s nothing naughty.
I’ve had plenty of cucumbers so I pickled some more this week. It’s good to see the winter preserves stashed away for later. It’s very easy to do and it saves having to eat cucumbers every day while they’re fresh. I love pickles, so it’s a bonus for me.
I have some tiny “Toughball” onions and spring cabbages coming along in the greenhouse. When they’re big enough I shall plant them. The onions will go outside to grow slowly over winter and the cabbages in the polytunnel. Despite the name, the onions are sweet and tender. They cook to a transparent softness and have a lovely flavour. Spring cabbages can be grown outdoors but I find they’re earlier and nicer when they’re grown under cover. These have a ball head, not the loose leaf kind, so they’re delicious shredded raw or cooked in a steamer.
With so much going on I’ve been making the most of my one-pan meals. So simple after a busy day, nourishing and full of flavour. Recently I’ve been stirring in a spoonful of soured cream to the reduced stock at the end of the cooking. With rice, or potatoes, and vegs it makes a delicious sauce and yet it’s so easy to do. Creme fraiche is just as good.
Essential for my one-pan meals is a good stock cube. I use an organic vegetable one in a small amount of water as a savoury base in which to cook potatoes or rice with vegetables and fish. I use a chicken stock cube when I cook chicken or turkey.
The vegs partly steam so all the flavour goes into the stock and retains the vitamins. Frozen fish fillets cook on top of the vegetables. So simple and convenient.
Ideas for my one-pan meals are in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook. If you’d like them, you will find them by clicking this link:
Also contains lots of my recipes for cakes and other tasty treats.
If you try my recipes I would love to know how you go on. I’ve had some very positive feedback so far and it’s really heart-warming to know that others enjoy them.
To finish off this week, here’s a photo of a favourite little tile. I bought it from Jackfield Tile Museum in Shropshire. Sunflowers are always lovely and the glossy brightness of these is so cheerful.
With you again next week. I hope you’re enjoying treats and satisfying activities as the Summer comes to an end. Bye for now.
Living a contented creative life. 