a busy domestic blog of knitting, sewing and all kinds of needlecrafts, cooking my garden produce and preserving it

Saturday 31 August 2013

Weird jam time - again!

Is it a jam? Is it a marmalade? 
Whichever, there's a surplus of rhubarb so it's time for rhubarb, ginger and orange conserve.
3lb rhubarb
1 1/2 oz stem ginger
1/2 pint orange juice
3lb sugar.
I've managed yet again to not quite have the right ingredients so I've replaced orange peel with juice from a carton. Hopefully it will be ok.
It now sits till tomorrow, the sugar will turn to syrup and then it's all boiled up to set.
Simples.

Wednesday 28 August 2013

Finished skirt


Just to prove I have actually finished this skirt - here are the pics. The weather's been so warm and I don't have many short skirts so this has either been worn or in the wash for most of Summer.
One of the most useful things I've made.

Sunday 25 August 2013

Lunch from the lottie #11


 It's quite a while since I've posted anything under 'lunch from the lottie', mainly because I've been having to rely on shop-bought tomatoes or cucumbers or such.









Well this last couple of weeks has seen an end to that with lots of salads made wholly with homegrown produce and even one dinner (though I can't grow the rice yet)
What I have available in quantity at the moment is spinach, tomatoes, cucumber and cabbage.



Fortunately there's enough beetroot, mangetout peas, radishes and onions to add variety - there's even the very strange pickled turnips!















This curry was a variant on Leek and Cauliflower curry from Rose Elliott's New Complete Vegetarian. I had to alter it as I had no leeks! So it was made with cauliflower, potato, courgettes, apple and French beans - all home grown!





I'm hoping now we're well into the most productive time of year that there'll be more lunches from the lottie!



Sunday 18 August 2013

Eating/testing - pickled turnips

OK, so I thought this was a strange recipe when I found it but even so thought I'd try it out.



It looks very pretty as it's fist packed into jars but after a couple of weeks all of it turns a uniform pink.


Here it is on the left-hand side of my lunch plate.
The colour didn't worry me too much, afterall it comes from the beetroot slices.
What I wasn't prepared for was the taste - very salty and flavoured mainly of celery leaves! It's definitely an acquired taste and I'm not sure I'd make it again though it did use up those small turnips I'd have 
otherwise thrown away.
For now though, I intend chopping the pieces up on my plate and mixing in with blander vegetables.