When life gives you lemons

As the old adage goes ... Well, you know.

Actually I had a lot of citrus left over from Christmas. I had planned to use them in drinks but I think I had a few too many - citrus fruits, not drinks (I had a few too many drinks too). One started to go mouldy and I hate seeing good food go to waste to I decided to make lemon squash (not with the mouldy one - I composted that).

Once again I am using a recipe from the River Cottage Preserves Book - Pam Corbin is a genius - I hate to bang on about it but it is an exceptional book. Here is an online recipe - it isn't the same but it looks pretty good too.

Some friends got us this lovely wooden juicer, along with some lemons and bucks fizz to treat our Christmas day hangover (Christmas Eve is usually a big one).

They didn't know, but I had asked for an old fashioned glass juicer on my Christmas wish list - I'm so glad I got this instead - it's much less fiddly. I whizzed through 6 lemons and 4 oranges in no time at all and I got so much juice out of the fruit! I just tipped the whole lot through a sieve at the very end of the process to catch the pips.

The yield was pretty good - maybe 1.5 litres?

The taste... THE TASTE. FRESH, SWEET AND CAPITAL-INDUCING-LY YUMMY. 

Happy New Year!

2013! Big sky and fresh air. Mmm... Good start.

Preserves - Chestnut Jam

Something to use up those post-Christmas chestnuts being sold very cheap at the supermarkets at the moment.

I had never ever heard of Chestnut Jam before buying the River Cottage Preserves Handbook earlier this year. It is the recipe from this book that I will be using - however if you want to have a go too I have found the same recipe (word for word) published on The Telegraph website.

I have read on a few other blogs that while chestnut jam is highly prized and highly delicious, making it is pretty tedious. Anyone who knows me knows I don't mind the occasional period of tedium; it gives me time to listen to a good audio book. I have been listening to Duma Key by Stephen King  recently. I am a bit of a pansy so I can only listen to it while my partner is at home because it is quite creepy... He is in today so it is creepy chestnut jam a-go-go.

... 3 hours later ... It takes FOREVER to peel chestnuts. I'm not sure how long exactly but I think it has been about 2 and a half hours. Duma Key is nearly done. I am writing this quick update whiles the chestnuts boil and my jars are in to sterilise.

Quick aside - sterilising was what put me off preserving for aaaggeeeesss... If this puts you off too I want you to know, it is no where near as scary as it sounds. I had visions of exploding glass and mouldy food from un-sealed jars but none of these things have happened ... yet ... I use the oven method (see step 4, though I just put them right way up on a baking sheet) for the jars, and boil the lids in a saucepan for 10 minutes.

... Some time and some burnt fingers later... I have finally completed my mission. I believe it may have taken somewhere in the region of 4-5 hours in total.

So for the taste test (a piece of bread scraped around the saucepan after I have jarred the contents):- It is somewhere between Ferrero Roche, Nutella and halva, except the sweetness is offset by the brandy, so it isn't so sickly. Honestly, I think it is the best tasting preserve I have made so far and I think the cooled consistency may be akin to a thick caramel. Joy!

Will I be making this again? Yes I will. Okay it was labour intensive and I have damaged my thumbnails from all the peeling - but let's face it, I have a memory of a goldfish and will be ready to rock by the next time they are in season - winter 2013.

** Update ** The 'jam' has now cooled. I think I shall be renaming it 'sauce'. It could do with being a bit thicker. I thought this while I was at the 'cook gently for 5-10 minutes until well thickened' stage but the accountant in me loves precision timing. I should have gone with my gut and left it a bit longer. Oh well. I had it on toast for breakfast this morning and it stayed put. Maybe this batch is not one for the shows but it is going to be a fine ice cream topper! 

View from the Tor, 27 Dec

It may have crossed my mind before, that climbing the same hill over and over again might be a bit samey - I usually think things like this (along with regretting not doing any exercise for months) at the bottom of the Tor, pre-assent. 

My mind always changes when I reach the top. The view has been different each time I have visited it. Yesterday you could see the floods around Godney, under a moody sky. 

The wind was so strong that peoples hats were blowing off; on the dissent my friend found a very fetching red one. Lucky devil.

2013 … a year for agricultural shows

Competitive crafting … right up my street!

Here are some schedules from 2012:

• Frome Cheese Show - (14th September 2013)
• Mid Somerset Show - (18th August 2013)
• Taunton Flower Show - (2nd and 3rd August 2013)

(Taunton Flower Show 2011, source http://flic.kr/p/bA79Tk)

Classes of interest …

• Jar of Marmalade – any variety
• Jar of Chutney – any variety
• 6 decorated cupcakes
• A Decorated coffee cake (to judge on appearance and taste, maximum size 25cm diameter
• Winter Woollies – A homemade item to keep you warm
• New article from old – the exhibitor must list the materials used
• Article in Patchwork or Quilting
• Cushion in any medium
• Hand knitted hair accessories or brooch
• Handmade Tea Cosy in any media
• A Scarf
• A Decorated Pin Cushion

There are no guarantees that these will be the classes next year but they seem to be fairly standard. So… what to make first?

Hannah Höch

Hannah Höch - Dadaist, Feminist, Crafter, Photomontager.

1889 - 1978

“Many of her pieces sardonically critique the mass culture beauty industry, at the time gaining significant momentum in mass media through the rise of fashion and advertising photography. Her works from 1926 to 1935 often depicted same sex couples, and women were once again a central theme in her work from 1963 to 1973. Höch also made strong statements on racial discrimination.”
Source: Wikipedia