Guest Spot: Henrietta. The chick that we hatched on our Aga by Janet Reading
Eight days ago on June 12, Janet Reading sent me an Email. Her broody hen had died on the nest. The eggs were cold. She moved them to the top of the Aga and wondered what the right incubation temperature for the eggs might be. I keep chickens but I am no expert. A friend of mine had hatched eggs on the top of the Aga so I knew that it could be done. I flew onto the internet and found this useful site. Emails raced back and forth. There was silence until June 16 when she wrote - “We’ve successfully hatched one of the chicks…....
read moreHow to cook cold smoked kippers
Following my post on Craster Kippers, I discovered from Dan at the River Farm Smokery that not all kippers are hot smoked. He had offered me some large olive cans for the kitchen garden so we popped into the shop buy some treats. There were packs of Scottish kippers – ingredients: herrings, salt and oak smoke. When I unwrapped them the next day their flesh was pinkish. We grill Craster kippers for eight minutes. I wasn’t sure how to cook these so I put them under a low grill 130c for 14 minutes (skin side down) and served them with...
read moreOld Roses: Rosa Complicata
Many years ago I worked in a London Day Centre for mentally ill adults. One day a pretty Maltese lady looked troubled. When I asked her what was wrong she replied, “I am feeling,” she jutted her chin as she searched for the right word, “. . complex.” Sometimes I too feel complex and Rosa Complicata is the perfect antidote. This is one of my favourite roses in the garden. I love the name and the simplicity of the flowers. It’s like a child with large clear eyes. One of my duties at the Day Centre was to organise...
read moreSunday lunch: Pot roast Poussin (gypsy style) recipe
“Danny, I’m really sorry but I’ve forgotten to take the pheasant out of the freezer.” It was eight in the morning and my mum was arriving for lunch in a few hours. Danny turned over. “Thank God for that. I much prefer the poussin version of the dish.” We snoozed until 9.47 and then D jumped into Jalopy and shot down to Newmarket. He arrived at the supermarket as the doors opened and was back at 10.10 with two plump poussin. My Mum is a foodie. At the eating rather than the cooking end of the spectrum. Her...
read moreUpdate on Farming Friends’ and Cottage Smallholder’s interblog guinea fowl breeding event
Mrs Boss is a bantam that is extremely prone to broodiness. She is also bottom of the pecking order, so her days are lonely. She spends her time running away from Carol, our Maran hen, or spending long sojourns in the anti broody coop. Both of which she hates. When Sara at Farming Friends offered to send some guinea fowl eggs for a broody Mrs Boss we jumped at the chance. This could be the break that Mrs Boss would enjoy. She would be allowed to be broody, and hopefully have some keets (guinea fowl chicks) to care for. If some keets do hatch...
read moreThe secret of the empty whisky bottles
Earlier this year, I spent a few weeks working for a charming couple in the next village. They live in a lovely house set in an acre of land. The garden teemed with wildlife. It was hard not to linger by the windows and watch the natural residents. I am lucky. Generally I work in houses with far more interesting clients than the wildlife beyond the windows. Each situation is packed with surprises, of the human kind rather than the behaviour of paint and fillers. On this particular job I would arrive for work and find an empty litre bottle of...
read moreBest recipes for leftovers: Simple pork, tomato and sweet pepper risotto
Gliding past the meat counter in the supermarket at the weekend, I noticed a happy man laughing as he tossed a bag of meat into his trolley. I don’t usually stop at the meat counter but the laughter indicated a great bargain. I hit the air brakes of my trolley and spied a half price rack of pork. I have never tasted this before. Smiling broadly I left the counter. Danny roasted the rack on Sunday and we ate half. Delicious, delicate tender meat. The chops on the rack look quite small but three chops are plenty for the two of us. The...
read moreTip top care for tomatoes
“You’ve spent hours on the Internet. What exactly are you looking for?” “I’m trying to decide what disease our tomatoes are suffering from. If I can identify it then we can treat it.” “Why? The great thing about our vegetables is that they are not treated with chemicals.” Having lost fifteen tomato plants to an unfathomable disease (blight?), I just wanted to find out what had gone wrong. I discovered that there were so many tomato plant ailments that my head whirled and I gave up in the end. I...
read moreBaked pork chops with summer vegetables and white wine recipe
“I’ve always been suspicious of those.” I was reaching for some Romano peppers. Curious, I glanced round. The lady beside me was smiling. No one ever talks to me in the supermarket, apart from the staff at the checkout. In an elongated split second I twigged that she was probably chatty, not mad. “Are they very hot?” She queried. “No, they have delicate flavour. Light years beyond the bell pepper.” We talked for a few minutes. Her daughter had flung a pork chop into the garden at seventeen and...
read moreCraster Kippers
It was years before I twigged that kippers are smoked herrings. I’ve never been keen on herrings but I’d attempt a cartwheel in return for a couple of kippers. It would have to be two kippers. When it comes to a kipper you just can’t share. We have Craster Kippers for breakfast on a Sunday. This is the most relaxed breakfast of the week. Comparing notes over the newspapers and savouring every gram of flesh from our kippers. The dogs enjoy the skins. Over the years we have tried many different kippers and consistently the...
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Recent Comments
{ I was thinking the same as Magic Cochin but then like you I don't have my phone attached by an umbilical cord wherever I go.... } – Wed 8 :47 pm
{ Good point but I don't tend to take it about with me everywhere 
} – Wed 7 :25 pm
{ Doesn't your mobile phone have an alarm setting? C x } – Wed 6 :32 pm
{ I would put it towards a bbq, it's just a shame you can't purchase some sunshine from b&q } – Wed 12 :04 am- { Hi Lesley The clucking means that she is brrody also plucking her own feathers is a sign too. } – Tue 11 :58 pm
- { Hi Lesley They have to stay in the broody coop 24/7. Could you put in a garden shed or garage? } – Tue 11 :57 pm
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