Cider from 2010. Some being drunk - well we have to test it, don't we?
Showing posts with label wine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wine. Show all posts
Thursday, 10 November 2011
Preserving the harvest
Cider from 2010. Some being drunk - well we have to test it, don't we?
Saturday, 6 November 2010
Making Damson Vodka
Quite a few people have asked me how I made the Damson and the Blackcurrant flavoured Vodkas I gave away as Christmas gifts.
So I thought I would tell you
Take a clean jar, I used a Le Parfait jar, but any wide necked jar will do.
Put in washed, pricked fresh fruit and add spirit of choice. I have found Vodka or brandy to be good - it doesn't have to be an expensive brand.
If you don't want to have to prick the fruit, freeze the fruit whole, then put it in the jar and pour on the spirit. The liquid will rapidly cause the fruit to split.
Add sugar. It is better to add too little as you can always add more, if you want it sweeter when you taste test it!
Put the jar somewhere you can shake/upend until all the sugar has dissolved.
Put away in a cool, dark place.
Leave for up to a year...I have found if you leave it longer than that it might get a slightly musty taste.On the other hand it might become divine and utterly delish! So it is up to you to keep on tasting the jar occasionally!
Strain (I use one of those permanent coffer filters for this inside a funnel, all sterilised) into a suitable bottle ( I save the small wine bottles one can get (25 or 35 cl) is these are ideal to give as gifts as well!)
Label.
Drink!
Damsons in Vodka and sugar
After a day of shaking/soaking
So I thought I would tell you
Take a clean jar, I used a Le Parfait jar, but any wide necked jar will do.
Put in washed, pricked fresh fruit and add spirit of choice. I have found Vodka or brandy to be good - it doesn't have to be an expensive brand.
If you don't want to have to prick the fruit, freeze the fruit whole, then put it in the jar and pour on the spirit. The liquid will rapidly cause the fruit to split.
Add sugar. It is better to add too little as you can always add more, if you want it sweeter when you taste test it!
Put the jar somewhere you can shake/upend until all the sugar has dissolved.
Put away in a cool, dark place.
Leave for up to a year...I have found if you leave it longer than that it might get a slightly musty taste.On the other hand it might become divine and utterly delish! So it is up to you to keep on tasting the jar occasionally!
Strain (I use one of those permanent coffer filters for this inside a funnel, all sterilised) into a suitable bottle ( I save the small wine bottles one can get (25 or 35 cl) is these are ideal to give as gifts as well!)
Label.
Drink!
Damsons in Vodka and sugar
After a day of shaking/soaking
Monday, 21 September 2009
Sunday catch up
Well I thought a catch up post was in order, as I have been doing lots here but haven't posted much lately (apart from about the chickens )
I was up early again this morning (couldn't sleep due to brain whirr), so have done lots and feel very content BUT am now flagging ( as you do...)
I was woken by Treacle the beautiful Black Star
laying her very first egg!
So 2 of the POL pullets are now laying :) Ginger started a few days ago and is very vocal about it! Good job someone is laying as the "old girls" all seem to have gone off in a huff and decided to moult and/or just stop laying
It has been a beautiful day here today, I got 3 loads of washing out and dry before lunch! I have mowed all the grass and it is all piled up ready to go in the compost bins.
I have cleaned Fudge the Guinea pig's house, all 4 hen runs and houses as well, so Fudge, the hens and Ruby and the chicklets are all nice and clean and cosy :-)
All the throws and cushion covers from the sitting room are in the wash or have been given a good beating on the line to get the dust out, the kitchen, halls, sitting and dining rooms have been vacuumed and generally tidied up
20 wine bottles have been released free of labels and washed and upended to dry,
We need lots of clean bottles to reuse, as we have 72 bottles worth of wine on the go at the moment!
I refilled all the various washing up liquid and liquid soap dispensers, I buy Faith in Nature and Bio D in bulk bottles to save on packaging and resources and then reuse or recycle the big bottles when empty.
I tidied up generally, cleaned the small bathroom with an e cloth and hot soapy water, I cleaned various windows and mirrors with an e cloth and vinegar.
Compostman and I started loading up my car for me to go to the Household Recycling site....
Then we picked apples ...lots and lots of apples.....and pears....
This is what 50 lbs of apples looks like..and we have lots of these tubs filled up....
Compostman picked beans, and blanched and froze a load of courgettes while I picked the pears from the other pear tree (Conference)and I think I shall have to make pear leather with the remaining Beth pears as they are very ripe now.
I will be making chutney later on from the Victoria plums in the fridge, the Damsons are finished now on our tree so we are leaving what is left for the insects ( especially butterflies!) to ea. We have lots of wine on the go and lots in the freezer to make jam out of in a few weeks time.
I now have to think about making cider and juice from the apples.
One of the cats took exception to some mending left in a pile on the floor by my chair yesterday and wee'd all over it (and my knitting..grr) so I spent ages cleaning up the mess with the special spray from the vets ( which works!) and washing out wee from previously clean stuff yuck!
I had a lovely, if busy week here, one day last week my fellow Eco Club leader (who is a teacher at Compost girl's school) came round so we could sort out the Green Flag application for the School. We had a really productive session and got lots sorted and it makes me SO proud of the children to see what progress has been made over the last 4 years. I have also re started the Eco club I run at another school nearby, as well as "pitching" for some craft workshops during half term in October (happily I got the work, so am now making stuff for it and Compost girl is helping me!)
So a busy and productive day, and week, here at Compost Mansions!
I was up early again this morning (couldn't sleep due to brain whirr), so have done lots and feel very content BUT am now flagging ( as you do...)
I was woken by Treacle the beautiful Black Star
laying her very first egg!
So 2 of the POL pullets are now laying :) Ginger started a few days ago and is very vocal about it! Good job someone is laying as the "old girls" all seem to have gone off in a huff and decided to moult and/or just stop laying
It has been a beautiful day here today, I got 3 loads of washing out and dry before lunch! I have mowed all the grass and it is all piled up ready to go in the compost bins.
I have cleaned Fudge the Guinea pig's house, all 4 hen runs and houses as well, so Fudge, the hens and Ruby and the chicklets are all nice and clean and cosy :-)
All the throws and cushion covers from the sitting room are in the wash or have been given a good beating on the line to get the dust out, the kitchen, halls, sitting and dining rooms have been vacuumed and generally tidied up
20 wine bottles have been released free of labels and washed and upended to dry,
We need lots of clean bottles to reuse, as we have 72 bottles worth of wine on the go at the moment!
I refilled all the various washing up liquid and liquid soap dispensers, I buy Faith in Nature and Bio D in bulk bottles to save on packaging and resources and then reuse or recycle the big bottles when empty.
I tidied up generally, cleaned the small bathroom with an e cloth and hot soapy water, I cleaned various windows and mirrors with an e cloth and vinegar.
Compostman and I started loading up my car for me to go to the Household Recycling site....
Then we picked apples ...lots and lots of apples.....and pears....
This is what 50 lbs of apples looks like..and we have lots of these tubs filled up....
Compostman picked beans, and blanched and froze a load of courgettes while I picked the pears from the other pear tree (Conference)and I think I shall have to make pear leather with the remaining Beth pears as they are very ripe now.
I will be making chutney later on from the Victoria plums in the fridge, the Damsons are finished now on our tree so we are leaving what is left for the insects ( especially butterflies!) to ea. We have lots of wine on the go and lots in the freezer to make jam out of in a few weeks time.
I now have to think about making cider and juice from the apples.
One of the cats took exception to some mending left in a pile on the floor by my chair yesterday and wee'd all over it (and my knitting..grr) so I spent ages cleaning up the mess with the special spray from the vets ( which works!) and washing out wee from previously clean stuff yuck!
I had a lovely, if busy week here, one day last week my fellow Eco Club leader (who is a teacher at Compost girl's school) came round so we could sort out the Green Flag application for the School. We had a really productive session and got lots sorted and it makes me SO proud of the children to see what progress has been made over the last 4 years. I have also re started the Eco club I run at another school nearby, as well as "pitching" for some craft workshops during half term in October (happily I got the work, so am now making stuff for it and Compost girl is helping me!)
So a busy and productive day, and week, here at Compost Mansions!
Saturday, 22 August 2009
Harvest time!
It was so wet here for most of July and early August! I kept on looking out of the(very shaded by scaffold) windows and despairing at the non stop rain.
Compostgirl needed constant nursing during most of July, then I became not at all well, having caught her very nasty stomach bug (hmmm...thinks....wonder if the shading aspect of the scaffolding made my SAD kick in? That would have made the illness/CFS stuff even worse!)
Compostman was very busy with the roof and getting on with house repairs while we still had the scaffold up, so he couldn't do much in the way of harvesting produce, he had more than enough to do outside!
So things outside were left unpicked or it was too wet to do so. Which really worried me and upset me. After all just think of all that effort and time and money going to waste!
But then the rain stopped and the sun shone and I started to feel better...so the harvest has commenced!
Sunflowers and nasturtiums for decoration, lavender for healing and pot pourri, beetroot, turnips, the very last of the broad beans, potatoes, a huge marrow and some peas...
Tomatoes, courgettes, peppers, various basil's. The tomatoes were washed, sliced, put in the dehydrator and 14 hours later were in jars in a dark cupboard..... some courgettes have been blanched and frozen as well as some dehydrated.
The Rivers Early plums were very rapidly turned into jam and a lot of wine is on the go now....we tend to preserve the earlier plums and freeze the later Victorias for pies or eating as desserts.
This lot was one trip to the polytunnel!
it was dried or frozen by 12 hours later...
and the bench cleaned down and cleared for the next wave of fresh veg. This kitchen worktop is normally a homework table, a dumping ground and a general surface to put stuff on..but at this time of year it becomes "food processing central" and I am ruthless about keeping it clear and clean LOL.
The "Beth" pear tree has been amazingly prolific this year,
Compostman picking some of them...
We picked 70 Lbs and there were still pears left on the tree!
I have graded them, some are fully ripe and are in the 'fridge waiting to be eaten or preserved, some need ripening further and are in the blue stacking fruit trays. I am going to make lots of Pear chutney and some Pear wine and I have sliced and dried a lot of pears. We have also eaten a lot of them as they are juicy and delicious.
We have also lifted the Shallots, Onions and Garlic and despite the very wet weather in July it is a good harvest :-) so when they have dried off fully they can go into storage for use during the next 8 months.
Compostman has finished lifting the potatoes and despite the blight and the terrible weather we have a good crop (probably due to getting them in the ground early AND growing Early/Early Maincrop varieties to beat the blight!)
We have over 210 lb of spuds in store now which will see us through to early spring and a load more damaged ones to eat up over the next few weeks.
Onions, Shallots, Potatoes, preserved fruits, Tomatoes, Carrots and Leeks in the ground, Kale and Sprouts and Cabbage growing well, Courgettes and Pumpkins ongoing, Plums, Apples etc coming on....we have the makings of a good harvest to see us through the winter...
I do feel very tired after a hard week or so of work, but it is a "good" tired, the sort that you get when you KNOW you have done a good job of work.
I think we have nearly caught up, now.. ;-)
Thursday, 11 December 2008
Bottle Washer, thats me!
I have recently, finally, cleared away the huge load of empty rinsed wine and beer bottles which have been accumulating in the kitchen by the side of the sink! And what were they waiting for there, I hear you cry? Why had I not just put them straight into the recycling box?
Well they were waiting for me to have time to soak off the paper labels, wash them PROPERLY in hot soapy water, dry them and PUT THEM AWAY until I next need them for beer or wine or cider bottling.
So, I finally did! I washed up all the bottles, put them to drain, then on top of the Aga to dry, and I have a clear bench space again!
Its a good way of reusing things, after all, why buy bottles and jars for preserving and brewing, if you can reuse some you already have? These bottles will go in a box and be stored somewhere, probably in the garage loft, until we need them again.
As it was freezing outside all day yesterday I had to dry the washing over the Aga. I like doing this as I feel a bit less guilt over burning all that oil in it, if it actually does many jobs, not just being a very expensive way of heating up the house and a cooker.
My trusty hoist up washing line is handy this time of year as well!.
If we didn't have the Aga lit (as we usually only use it in cold weather or during power cuts) then I STILL hang the washing up there, it just takes a bit longer to dry. It is surprising how quickly it DOES dry just from the general warmth of the room, even if the Aga is off.
No tumble drier here, so if it is wet I either don't wash the clothes that day, or dry them like this OR in the lean to on a line, but that's not so good though if it is freezing as the washing still goes solid.
But if all else fails I just don't wash outer clothes as much in the winter! I spot clean any dirty marks and make sure we wear old outer clothes for dirty jobs! We seem not to be smelly doing this ( well no one has complained, anyway........)
These are Jerusalem Artichokes (plus a couple of potatos)which Compostman dug up from one of the raised beds earlier on ( you might remember the 2 m plus tall plants above ground!), we like them mashed or as soup. We had some the other night and very yummy they were, too. They are very easy to grow as well, just pop them in the ground in spring, harvest in late autumn, they have very pretty foliage and it makes a good windbreak as well ( no comments about "wind" please!) . A very easy veg to grow for very little effort!
Well they were waiting for me to have time to soak off the paper labels, wash them PROPERLY in hot soapy water, dry them and PUT THEM AWAY until I next need them for beer or wine or cider bottling.
So, I finally did! I washed up all the bottles, put them to drain, then on top of the Aga to dry, and I have a clear bench space again! Its a good way of reusing things, after all, why buy bottles and jars for preserving and brewing, if you can reuse some you already have? These bottles will go in a box and be stored somewhere, probably in the garage loft, until we need them again.
As it was freezing outside all day yesterday I had to dry the washing over the Aga. I like doing this as I feel a bit less guilt over burning all that oil in it, if it actually does many jobs, not just being a very expensive way of heating up the house and a cooker.
My trusty hoist up washing line is handy this time of year as well!.
If we didn't have the Aga lit (as we usually only use it in cold weather or during power cuts) then I STILL hang the washing up there, it just takes a bit longer to dry. It is surprising how quickly it DOES dry just from the general warmth of the room, even if the Aga is off.
No tumble drier here, so if it is wet I either don't wash the clothes that day, or dry them like this OR in the lean to on a line, but that's not so good though if it is freezing as the washing still goes solid.
But if all else fails I just don't wash outer clothes as much in the winter! I spot clean any dirty marks and make sure we wear old outer clothes for dirty jobs! We seem not to be smelly doing this ( well no one has complained, anyway........)
These are Jerusalem Artichokes (plus a couple of potatos)which Compostman dug up from one of the raised beds earlier on ( you might remember the 2 m plus tall plants above ground!), we like them mashed or as soup. We had some the other night and very yummy they were, too. They are very easy to grow as well, just pop them in the ground in spring, harvest in late autumn, they have very pretty foliage and it makes a good windbreak as well ( no comments about "wind" please!) . A very easy veg to grow for very little effort!
Tuesday, 4 November 2008
Further musings on cider and chicken poo
Further to my last post and the various kind comments I received ( thank you kind blog friends.....)
I have a confession...we actually made twice the amount of cider shown in the last post.....and have already drunk the first 35 L since May....we actually got through it very quickly...and were a bit alarmed at how fast the levels dropped!
So we left off decanting this one in the vain hope that, IF it was in a 25 L container, ( out in the garage...) we would be less likely to start pouring a glass ( or several ) out from it. As it it bloomin heavy to lift and I don't actually think I could pour a glass out of it....
Or something. Well that was the reasoning. Maybe. Or was it just we didn't get around to it?
Can't really remember.........
;-)
And I really must thank you all for your good wishes, I feel marginally better than earlier in the week but am still very weak and feeble. I have cancelled taking my class for their Forest School session on Thursday AND have said I am not going to do Eco Club after school. Which is a big disappointment for me as I enjoy it so much BUT ....I really don't feel capable at the moment.
I was a bit puzzled at the comment from Thursday about how industrious the kitchen is...then I looked again with someone elses eyes ( well, mine are not much use at the moment!)
at the photo and realised that, with the big container of the old 2007 cider, the new cider bubbling away, the apples and pumpkins, the dehydrator, the jars of chutney etc...it DID look like we have been busy!
Actually, with the chutneys, its just I am too lazy to put the jars away and then have to get them out of the Chutney and Jam store ( yes we DO have such a thing....) to label them and I haven't labelled them yet and am leaving it there in the hope I will remember to get around to making some labels before it gets to be 2009.......
I DID manage to clean out all the chickens runs yesterday, they were all in a bit of a state and I shovelled an AMAZING pile of composted down chicken poo and bark chippings from the runs....it was WONDERFUL stuff and I can't wait to get using it next year! So all the hens now have clean houses and freshly clean runs full of nice composted wood chips from our wood.
BUT I think it was a bit too much for me, as after an hour of doing that I came over a bit wobbly and had to go and lie down for 3 hours and sleep......................
I like the symmetry of cutting down our trees for wood, chipping the twiggy bits and storing them to use as mulches or in the hen runs and then returning them to my compost bins ( with added Factor P for POO) to turn into lovely compost, to use to grow my veg, to eat.....
The Wheel of Life...I feel a "Lion King " moment coming on.....
( sorry....but I AM ill, remember....so am excused normality for a few more days...)
I also have been most amused by the antics of all the hens, they are very funny!
THIS is one of the chicks! She is the no 1 pullet and is VERY brave.....
SO...I am slowly improving ( although am tired , very easily, and have been falling asleep at all odd hours of the day...if I sit down I nod off.)...and life continues on....
I have a confession...we actually made twice the amount of cider shown in the last post.....and have already drunk the first 35 L since May....we actually got through it very quickly...and were a bit alarmed at how fast the levels dropped!
So we left off decanting this one in the vain hope that, IF it was in a 25 L container, ( out in the garage...) we would be less likely to start pouring a glass ( or several ) out from it. As it it bloomin heavy to lift and I don't actually think I could pour a glass out of it....
Or something. Well that was the reasoning. Maybe. Or was it just we didn't get around to it?
Can't really remember.........
;-)
And I really must thank you all for your good wishes, I feel marginally better than earlier in the week but am still very weak and feeble. I have cancelled taking my class for their Forest School session on Thursday AND have said I am not going to do Eco Club after school. Which is a big disappointment for me as I enjoy it so much BUT ....I really don't feel capable at the moment.
I was a bit puzzled at the comment from Thursday about how industrious the kitchen is...then I looked again with someone elses eyes ( well, mine are not much use at the moment!)
at the photo and realised that, with the big container of the old 2007 cider, the new cider bubbling away, the apples and pumpkins, the dehydrator, the jars of chutney etc...it DID look like we have been busy!
Actually, with the chutneys, its just I am too lazy to put the jars away and then have to get them out of the Chutney and Jam store ( yes we DO have such a thing....) to label them and I haven't labelled them yet and am leaving it there in the hope I will remember to get around to making some labels before it gets to be 2009.......
I DID manage to clean out all the chickens runs yesterday, they were all in a bit of a state and I shovelled an AMAZING pile of composted down chicken poo and bark chippings from the runs....it was WONDERFUL stuff and I can't wait to get using it next year! So all the hens now have clean houses and freshly clean runs full of nice composted wood chips from our wood.
BUT I think it was a bit too much for me, as after an hour of doing that I came over a bit wobbly and had to go and lie down for 3 hours and sleep......................
I like the symmetry of cutting down our trees for wood, chipping the twiggy bits and storing them to use as mulches or in the hen runs and then returning them to my compost bins ( with added Factor P for POO) to turn into lovely compost, to use to grow my veg, to eat.....
The Wheel of Life...I feel a "Lion King " moment coming on.....
( sorry....but I AM ill, remember....so am excused normality for a few more days...)
I also have been most amused by the antics of all the hens, they are very funny!
THIS is one of the chicks! She is the no 1 pullet and is VERY brave.....
SO...I am slowly improving ( although am tired , very easily, and have been falling asleep at all odd hours of the day...if I sit down I nod off.)...and life continues on....
Sunday, 12 October 2008
Cider and Wine
We were busy today! We finally got around to bottling the second demijohn of 2007 Damson wine. If you remember we bottled the first one in July, and I confidently predicted we would do the other one in the next few days...HA HA ...that will teach me! I got round to clearing the workbenches near the sink enough for me to actually clean out the bottles needed for the wine.
Compostman sterilised the clean bottles,
Compostman sterilised the clean bottles, whilst I lifted the wine and cider demijohn from their " resting" place under the kitchen bench. They had got a bit of cat fluffy on the outside, but apart from that were fine! I wiped down the outside with a clean cloth and then wiped the necks with a cloth soaked in sterilising fluid just in case of any drips......
We filled 7 bottles of Damson wine...and a half bottle which I expect we can force ourselves to use up somehow.... ;-)Then we did the same with the 5 L of cider. It has continued to "work" and is drier than the last lot we bottled, and subsequently is a bit stronger! 6.2 % abv....yum THAT will kill any pain in my poor old bad back!
I took a photo of the kitchen through the demijohn of cider, it gives a strange filter effect ! ( a bit like after drinking it!)
After all that it was tidy up time. I had 4 other demi johhs to clean up as well so did a marathon hot soapy wash at the sink.
We have another 25 l of cider awaiting racking off in the next week, as we need the container and its sister to make more cider in a weeks time!
Ah season of mists and mellow fruitfulness......I LOVE this time of year!
We filled 7 bottles of Damson wine...and a half bottle which I expect we can force ourselves to use up somehow.... ;-)Then we did the same with the 5 L of cider. It has continued to "work" and is drier than the last lot we bottled, and subsequently is a bit stronger! 6.2 % abv....yum THAT will kill any pain in my poor old bad back! I took a photo of the kitchen through the demijohn of cider, it gives a strange filter effect ! ( a bit like after drinking it!) After all that it was tidy up time. I had 4 other demi johhs to clean up as well so did a marathon hot soapy wash at the sink.We have another 25 l of cider awaiting racking off in the next week, as we need the container and its sister to make more cider in a weeks time!
Ah season of mists and mellow fruitfulness......I LOVE this time of year!
Tuesday, 12 August 2008
Tuesday update!
Today I have dried LOTS of tomatos, herbs and courgettes in my lovely new dehydrator....Cost 30 pence in electricity and made the same as (to buy) £8 worth of organic sun dried toms, £9 of organic herbs, unknown cost of dried courgettes....It took a very long time to dry the half cherry tomatos, the slices were much quicker but they all tasted DELICIOUS!
I can see this piece of kit paying for itself VERY soon!!
Also bottled 5 L of Damson 2007 wine (hic) and for the eagle eyes amonst you , the labels were printed off on 31 July but we have only just got round to doing the job! ( Its like that here at Compost Mansions quite often!)
Monday, 11 August 2008
Further Monday business, 5 things and produce
Also bottled some Damson wine today. Had to taste it of course! Powerful stuff! and very nice!
We both had a glass and watched part 2 of Back to the Future this evening with Compostgirl
Drier still doing its stuff turning cherry toms into sun dried ones!
5 good things
1 Dehydrator arrived!
2 Its really good!
3 Compostgirl and I had a fun 2 hours prepping stuff to go in it!
4 Watched a film as a family
5 had a good night's sleep last night
Produce
4 eggs ( Henny, Ginger, Attila, Cathy thank you)
Herbs to dry
Lots of tomatoes ( weights tomorrow!)
ditto courgettes!
We both had a glass and watched part 2 of Back to the Future this evening with Compostgirl
Drier still doing its stuff turning cherry toms into sun dried ones!
5 good things
1 Dehydrator arrived!
2 Its really good!
3 Compostgirl and I had a fun 2 hours prepping stuff to go in it!
4 Watched a film as a family
5 had a good night's sleep last night
Produce
4 eggs ( Henny, Ginger, Attila, Cathy thank you)
Herbs to dry
Lots of tomatoes ( weights tomorrow!)
ditto courgettes!
Wednesday, 6 August 2008
Tuesday twitterings and 5 good things
Produce today
Eggs 6 ( and ANOTHER whopper from Genghis Hen!)
Lots of stuff nearly ready again but will leave it till tomorrow I think! As I have too much to deal with today!
Today has been a VERY busy one, I have cleared out the lower kitchen so I can actually SEE the worktops. I have made a LOAD of Ratatouille, both in lumpy form and in a more liquidised version as soup and pasta sauce.
I have lovely friend and her lovely children coming round for the day tomorrow and it was her birthday on Sunday ( I think a significant one!) so in addition to a bought present we hope she likes, I have bottled her a little home made something from Compost Mansions...
Today has passed in a whirl of picking, chopping and cooking as well as tidying up the house, and paying bills and doing LOTS of paperwork.
I have also cracked on with more of my Forest School portfolio....discussing how children learn...
and my 5 good things?
1 6 eggs again !
2 My rose petals have dried beautifully and smell divine in the study
3 My new drier/airer is being put up as I type!
4 The Kittens continue to delight us all
5 Best friend and her 2 children are coming round tomorrow!
Eggs 6 ( and ANOTHER whopper from Genghis Hen!)
Lots of stuff nearly ready again but will leave it till tomorrow I think! As I have too much to deal with today!
Today has been a VERY busy one, I have cleared out the lower kitchen so I can actually SEE the worktops. I have made a LOAD of Ratatouille, both in lumpy form and in a more liquidised version as soup and pasta sauce.
I have lovely friend and her lovely children coming round for the day tomorrow and it was her birthday on Sunday ( I think a significant one!) so in addition to a bought present we hope she likes, I have bottled her a little home made something from Compost Mansions...
Today has passed in a whirl of picking, chopping and cooking as well as tidying up the house, and paying bills and doing LOTS of paperwork.
I have also cracked on with more of my Forest School portfolio....discussing how children learn...
and my 5 good things?
1 6 eggs again !
2 My rose petals have dried beautifully and smell divine in the study
3 My new drier/airer is being put up as I type!
4 The Kittens continue to delight us all
5 Best friend and her 2 children are coming round tomorrow!
Monday, 4 August 2008
Monday musings and produce
6 EGGS TODAY!!!! Genghis Hen laid a 100g, solid shelled Whopper of an egg and the other 5 lovely girls also obliged! 
Compostman lifted 30 Kg of onions yesterday and I spent a considerable amount of time spreading them out in the PT to dry..and another 35 ish kg of Red Onions to come today.. The ones which we don't think will store have come in to be used up straight away, probably in pasta sauce or soup or chuteney I suspect!Am now rapidly running out of shelf/fridge/coolroom space and NEED to get on with freezing/chutneying/drying stuff and MUST pickle some shallots today.........and make more room in the freezers so I can freeze some more of the produce.....hmm think Damson wine will be a good idea plus some Damson Jam!
But before I can do ANY of that first I have to tidy and clean the brewroom ( lower bit of the Kitchen...)
Its a busy time of year! plus there is the 6 Kg tomatos from the PT yesterday AND the 40 Kg of spuds so far lifted :-o and I haven't picked today yet...and there WILL be more courgettes to pick, plus more herbs and aubergines and tomatoes....
Arrrrrrrggggggggghhhh! ;-)
Today added another 2 cucumbers, 1.5 Kg Courgettes , 2 Kg Tomatoes and 300g ( and that is a LOT!) of Basil....
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