My Cherie Amour

Who doesn't like Cherries? Everyone in our family does and we have been champing at the bit, waiting for the moment when they ripen and are ready to pick because this signals the start of our Summer of fabulous, fresh, free fruit foraging in the city.

We walked back to our favourite local cherry tree this week. Last week the fruit still looked a bit red, but on this attempt, we marched over Cobden bridge and our timing was perfect. The tree was laden with fat, juicy, sweet, black cherries.

Some friends came along with us and I don’t know how much they gathered but it did not take us more than half an hour to fill our own containers with 5 Kgs of perfect fruit. We did pick more than that but consumed a fair bit en route.

We still had quite a lot left from last week, so the Head Chef pitted and boiled down a big load into compote. This turned out to be a perfect midsummer pudding with soft, smooth vanilla ice-cream. The remainder was frozen to use at a later date.

I also added quite a lot to a big jar of vodka and this now smells like a curiously tantalizing mix of Cherry and Almonds/Marzipan. I have a good feeling about the final result.  I also think that when we filter the fruit out – that too will be rather popular with the adults, over ice cream, naturally.

Looking at the trees, I think it will soon be a very good year for Cherry Plums too. Anyone for a Plum Picknik?

Sweet Chilli Jam

When we were in Devon for our summer holidays, we visited a Chilli Farm. It was a fascinating place and we decided to buy a little chilli plant ourselves, to bring home. The plant variety was called Little Gem, it looked lovely and was classed as a medium heat chilli.

We have made Sweet Chilli Jam before and find it a lovely spicy accompaniment to almost anything edible. So when enough of our hot little chillies were ripe, we harvested some to make our jam. Having tried a small nibble, I was a little concerned about the heat, but my fear proved unfounded and it was delicious.

Hubble Bubble!

Ingredients

•          10 Chillies, roughly chopped (include seeds)
•          Red Peppers, roughly chopped
•          Garlic 8 Cloves, peeled and chopped
•          Finger sized stick of fresh Ginger, roughly chopped
•          Cherry Tomatoes, 400g can
•          Red Wine Vinegar 250ml
•          Sugar 750g

Method

1. Tip the peppers, chillies, garlic and ginger into a food processor and whizz until finely chopped.
2.  Put into heavy bottomed pan with the tomatoes, sugar and vinegar, then bring everything to the boil.
3. Skim off any scum that rises to the surface, then turn heat down to simmer and cook for 50 mins, stirring occasionally.



Yum!

4. Once the jam is becoming sticky, continue to cook for a further 10-15 mins, stirring frequently to prevent sticking and burning. It should now look like bubbling lava.
5. Cool slightly and transfer to sterilised jars, then leave to cool completely.
6. Keeps for 3 months in a cool dark cupboard
7. Make some nice labels
8. Refrigerate once opened.
9. Makes lovely Xmas gifts (if you have any left).

Hazelnuts = Happiness

Hazelnuts are a very healthy food; they can be used in many ways and recipes are easy to find. We tend to eat them just on their own or mixed with Walnuts and raisins as a healthy snack. We made delicious Hazelnut Chocolate Spread one year, which proved very popular indeed with my daughter.

I heard a BBC R4 report recently, stating that Hazelnuts are in short supply this year because the harvest has failed... in Turkey... However, if you are in the UK August/September, these super-food nuts are ripening on a bush near you gratis and they look particularly abundant this year. 

The signs are easy to spot, if you know what you are looking for… The Squirrels will always come early to the table and the first signs will be nibbled green shells scattering the pavements.

You can pick and eat hazelnuts when they are still green, but we prefer to wait until they are brown and falling of their own accord.

Often there will be lots on the ground after a windy or rainy day but if they are wet, you will need to dry them out, if you do not plan to eat them straight away, otherwise they will go moldy.

Rustic Fruit Cage Contruction



Allotment Man - a (fairly) Distant Relative of the Neanderthal



I thought it would be a good idea to build a fruit cage to protect our (hopefully impending) bounty. Being a man with very little construction skills I thought it would be a good idea to create it in a rustic style; mainly because it would be more difficult to criticize the inevitable wonkiness. I also thought the natural look would be a more appealing design.

Hunter Gatherer

First though, we had to lay the weed suppressing membrane. Normally this should be done before planting the fruit canes and frames but being an incompetent buffoon I forgot this and had to fumble my way through the wrong way about. Eventually we managed to cut, wiggle and yank the sheet down over the plants; it was a process not dissimilar to, attempting to put on a pair of trousers, via your head.



Gratuitous Plum Blossom

I had obtained a some stout coppiced hazel sticks, with the ends cut to points. I hammered these in as uprights for the frame, then my good friend Andy, who it turns out is growing his own orchard on the IOW, kindly donated a bundle more hazel sticks that looked perfect to complete the construction.

The Plan Starts To Take Shape

With the help of my boy we lugged all the equipment down to the allotment and set about bashing the uprights into the soil forming an rough rectangle. Next I lashed the thinner sticks around the top and across the middle to tie it all together.



If You Build It, They Will Come

My description here does make it sound a lot simpler than it actually was to complete the framework, it was pretty hard work. In the end though, we thought it looked quite pleasing and were contented with our mornings labour. We still need to attach the netting and fitting hinges to a hazel door might be quite troublesome too.

Blackberry and Apple Crumble

This post needs very little description, so I'll keep it brief.

Just look at the picture and imagine the combination of textures, the smells, the hot steam rising.

This should be the first of many to come this year…

The apples came off the school tree and the blackberries from the waste ground opposite.

The First Blackberry & Apple Crumble Of The Year - Always a Treat

I always find the desire to eat Blackberry and Apple Crumble when it is still bubbling hot, almost irresistible; hence the dollop of crème-fresh.

It's just as nice cold though.