The Cottage Smallholder

The Penultimate Paramour used to save the tree trunk from a head of broccoli to use in a stir fry. So did my mum. Perhaps it was a matter of too long in the wok but even chopped, the tree trunks were soft and watery with a flavour reminiscent of the compost heap. We made Read More »

In January I decided not to buy flowers for the house for a year. With a garden of a third of an acre, I should be able to find something to bung in a vase. However, I never give things up so this is a real struggle as I love flowers. I was helped this Read More »

This is our entry for Waiter There’s Something In My… Pie, hosted by Jeanne at Cooksister. These blog events are a good idea. They focus attention. This sort of event forces us to think of a new dish as all of the recipes on The Cottage Smallholder are original and straight from our kitchen, apart Read More »

If the weather is wet or you have a chicken roosting in the nesting box, it’s important to collect your eggs every morning and evening. The shells of eggs are porous and the eggs can become tainted very quickly. In wet weather, our hens get muddy no matter how much gravel I spread in the Read More »

We reward ourselves once in a while with a really good joint of beef. It does a Sunday lunch plus at least a couple of meals during the week. Beef is easy as long as you have the three elements spot on: the choice of joint, temperature and timing. With beef, I found this all Read More »

For years I used to be a bit sniffy about miniature bulbs until I was given some, maybe six years ago. They blossomed indoors on my kitchen windowsill. This was the start of a short affair. I planted them beside a treasured shrub near the back door and they multiplied. I noticed them very early Read More »

I found this book Discovering Country Winemaking by Daphne More on the church fete bookstall a couple of years ago. A snitch at 30p. It’s pocket size disguises it’s value. In fact, it was several months before I flopped beside the fire and gave it the attention that it deserves. Daphne More, a well known Read More »

When my Mother was a child she would spend the last day of the long summer holidays beside her garden gate. This was well out of sight of the adults in her house. She had a small suitcase beside her on the wall and a massive plan. When the gypsies drove by she would join Read More »

Even though I know that egg laying is unpredictable at this time of year, it’s always a bit disappointing when I lift the lid of the nesting box and there’s only one. An egg from Carol. She is firing on all cylinders now and producing one egg a day, the maximum that a domestic hen Read More »

I was resigned to the usual two-supermarket shop this weekend; Tesco and Waitrose. Doing both robs 30 minutes from my planned gardening spot. With one day off, I wanted to dig over the vegetable patch and plant our garlic and shallots. I visited Tesco first and was amazed to find everything that I needed. A Read More »