Wow, how time flies. I've been busy doing who knows what, but the garden has kept me in focus and helped me adjust to the change in season. Summer was a wonderful season for fruit at my place with abundance shared and preserved. Fruit leather has to be the number one favourite for preservation in my home at present, the kids can't get enough of it. I finished baking my last leather just last week, a quince and apple leather. The fruit was cooked until soft, pureed, sweetened as required with honey and spread thinly onto baking paper lined trays. It was then set in the oven at 60c until it was no longer sticky. This took anywhere from 8-14 hours. I store the fruit leather in a sealed container wrapped and rolled in clean baking paper and the children just cut a strip off whenever they want it.
The quinces this year have been superb and our family has discovered a love for quince paste.
It has been taken on picnics and there is plenty sat in the fridge waiting to be shared with friends and family. Quinces are magical things. The aroma they fill the house with, the colour they become after hours of cooking and the fragrant taste is divine. In fact, I am lucky to have discovered my quince tree as for 10 years I have believed it to be a guava tree and I have admired it, but not taken much notice of the fruit. It was my very smart niece that alerted me to the fact that I indeed had a quince tree not a guava. So I have been watching the tree more carefully. Watching and waiting and researching when to harvest the quinces, then what to do with them.
Again cooked quinces in a light syrup with natural yoghurt are perfect for breakfast or an easy dessert.
It has been a bountiful season. The beetroot has been sweet,
the zucchinis barbecued to perfection and life has passed by over the summer in a haze of long evenings and new food adventures. As Autumn arrived I embraced the change of season enjoying the rain and freshness that has brought with it. The fire has been lit and adds a cosy feel to our home each evening and we devoured our first casserole of the season at the weekend, with dumplings! The garden has been planted out with some of my autumn seeds and seedlings including broccoli, parsnips, carrots, cauliflower, cabbage, swede, rainbow chard and more beetroot. The sprouts were delayed and are growing in the mini greenhouse. I'm never sure what will grow despite my efforts so it will be interesting what I manage to harvest. Sometimes I'm lucky and sometimes I'm not.
My new crop of garlic has also been planted
and the green leaves are already standing tall in the veggie garden. I think that garlic is one of the best things to grow, its easy and looks beautiful braided and hanging in the kitchen.
Perhaps that's where I've been, busy gardening and cooking!
And also, if you were interested to know, I did manage to harvest just a few ears of corn
and it gave me great pleasure to eat them, although next summer I may try a new variety.
Hope you are able to embrace the new season wherever you are.
love
Emma
x
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