Fruity Harvest and Fruit Cake

September already. A mellow month full of fruity scents and a feeling of change in the air.

The aroma of apples is wonderful when they’re gathered in the shed. The perfume is heady as you open the door and the delicious smell fills your nose. I’ve already used windfalls in my apple and cinnamon squares and chutney, and I’ve stewed and frozen some for a rainy day. Now the rest of the crop are ready for harvesting. Some have been picked and others will be done soon.

The runner beans are still generously growing. I prefer to eat them very small while they’re tender but when they grow too big I cook the kidney beans from inside the pods. These are nutritious and flavourful. They lose their lovely pink colour in the pan but still make a tasty meal.

I have some new French beans coming along as well. I haven’t tried this variety before. Not sure what they will be like but the plants look healthy and the little pods are just beginning to poke out.

I was a bit slow to resow the “Little Gem” lettuces so there’s been a gap but I have a few small ones growing now. The same with radishes but they grow rapidly and I should be able to produce some more before the weather turns cold. I love “French Breakfast”. So sweet and tender! The spring onions have grown well and keep providing a juicy kick to a sandwich.

I have a few peas growing. The flowers are beginning to fade and leave behind their little pods. I had the seeds from the Heritage Seed Library at Garden Organic and I think they’re called “Witham”. Not a name I know but nothing ventured, nothing gained!

Carrots have been wonderful. They’re protected in the polytunnels from the devastating carrot fly. I sow every few weeks so the supply is ongoing. I never grow a big crop which needs to be harvested all at once. Small amounts sown every few weeks keep me supplied with enough vegetables for our needs and they’re always fresh. Parsnips will be ready soon but I leave them until it’s frosty. Apparently it improves their flavour although I’m not sure if that’s really true. I would need to compare.

Wild fruits grow here and there in the garden. They look very decorative although they’re essentially weeds. The wild strawberries are nice to eat but you need a lot to gain a helping of them so I leave them for the blackbirds and mice. Blackberries are a nuisance with their thorns and their spreading habit but I must admit they look lovely and they feed the creatures who live in the garden.

September flowers are singing out for attention with their bright colours.

Indoors I’ve not been as busy as usual. The cucumbers and courgettes haven’t produced enough to make a lot of pickles. I was also hoping to preserve some tomatoes but the crop hasn’t been substantial. Enough for plenty of good meals but not a surplus. By October I usually have a satisfying cupboard full of preserves but less of everything this year. That’s the way with a garden. Weather, pests and the gardener’s own efforts make it a chancy business. Great when it succeeds though.

I hadn’t made a fruit cake for a long time. My own recipe is a favourite with the family and I thought it was about time I got going. I always make two because it’s not worth putting the oven on for a single cake. They freeze well and it’s nice to have something tucked away.

A satisfying cake full of fruit and spices, it also makes a delicious pudding with custard or Greek yoghurt.

Fruit Cake (Makes two)

400g Dates
300g Raisins or Sultanas or a mixture of both
1 Orange
6 large Eggs
250g Muscovado Sugar
540g Self-raising Flour
60g Bran
300g Sunflower Oil
1 heaped teaspoon Cinnamon
1 heaped teaspoon ground Ginger
1 level teaspoon ground Cloves

Stone and chop the dates. Put into a heatproof jug with the raisins and/or sultanas. Pour boiling water about three quarters of the way up the fruit and leave to soak.
Scrub the orange and grate the peel. Add it to the fruit in the jug.
Heat the oven to 180C or 160C fan oven.
Beat the eggs and sugar together. 
Add other ingredients including the slightly cooled fruit and liquid.
Mix thoroughly and put into cake tins. (I use cake liners.)
Bake for 45 minutes.
Test centre with a skewer. If it's sticky put it back for a couple more minutes.
It will look very brown on top but that's alright.
Takes a while to cool on a wire rack.
Freeze one when they're completely cold.

This and other cake recipes, including my apple and cinnamon squares, are in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook. You can find it with this link,

https://geni.us/eANQu

I also have one-pan meals, vegetarian meals, cheese and chutney recipes and plenty of tips to make your cooking easy.

I might decide to write my blog fortnightly instead of every week. A week flies by and although I always have something to say I don’t want readers to grow tired. We all have busy lives. I have some very loyal readers who give me the most lovely compliments but my numbers have fallen considerably over the Summer. I will think about what to do. It’s a lovely hobby and I’ve loved doing it but perhaps it’s time to change my approach.

Bye for now. Enjoy the best of the weather and when it’s wet try my fruit cake recipe for a sweet treat.