Alphonso’s Chicken Bonne Femme recipe – cooked in a Thermos
Well how did the cockerels taste? Massimo is in the freezer as I chose Alphonso to star in our first eat your own chickens post. I decided a slow cook method was probably best so I christened The Giant Thermos that I bought from the church fete this year. I also tried to use as many ingredients from our kitchen garden. We had fresh garlic – for the first time a decent sized bulb. Carrots – many strange and evocative shapes here as we don’t really have the perfect soil for them. Potatoes, just a tiny bit of slug/xxx damage – just...
read moreHarvesting bags
For years I’ve used carrier bags when out foraging. They are convenient and slip into a pocket – so if you unexpectedly come across some hedgerow treasure you have a bag for your bounty. However, it’s difficult to keep the neck of a plastic supermarket carrier bag open so picking has to be one handed. Earlier this year I treated myself to this smart harvesting bag. The long strap means that it can be worn across the body, leaving two hands for picking. The opening at the top is rigid and less fruit falls to the ground than when...
read moreR.I.P. Alfonso and Massimo. Could you eat your own chickens?
Since we got the letter from our neighbour we have been dithering about how to deal with our cockerels. As in all small communities, other neighbours have come forward to say that they liked the sound of the cockerels. We considered rehousing them but they would have to stay together as they were such close chums, looking out for each other and chatting in a cockerelish sort of way when they found something tasty to eat. No rehousing project coud promise this as most peoplewho welcome a cockerel just want the one stud. We tried, but nobody...
read moreBelly of Pork with Morello cherries recipe
Over the past few years I’ve bought a number of fruit bushes and trees from the budget supermarket Netto. This can be a bit of a hit and miss affair. The green gooseberry bush turned out to be a succulent red dessert variety and tiny hands clapped with glee. About three years ago I bought a couple of cherry trees – one Morello and one dessert cherry. The later has been grown in a frame in one of the fruit cages. Last year they fruited and we discovered that both specimens were Morello trees. After the initial disappointment – cherries...
read moreDead fish stink
The only time that I can remember that Danny was really angry with me in the past was when I left a large sack of sand and cement in his car. When he had to make an emergency stop there were disastrous consequences. As you know from tales about Jalopy I view vehicles as moving storage devices. Jalopy still holds the complete decorators kit from spare rollers, to plastic wood and window putty. If you have time and patience you will find everything that you need for hanging and trimming wallpaper and even those insulated mugs that will keep a...
read moreBiodynamic gardening update: July 2010
“It’s nearly the end of July. Surely there’s something we can eat from the garden?” Danny was exasperated – forgetting that we have already munched loads from the garden in the past few months. Spuds, orach (German Mountain spinach), calabrese, turnips, broad beans, raspberries, strawberries, tayberries, loganberries, peas, lettuces and salad leaves. But then I twigged that he’s desperate to start harvesting his favourite. Runner beans. They are a bit late this year but a careful examination of the beans revealed that they...
read moreA grand day out
“I wonder whether I’ll order crab or something else.” I secretly mused as we pottered along in Seraphina’s little black car. The plan was a leisurely drive to Butley’s Oysterage in Orford. A bit of a culinary blow out and then home. Incidentally, the odious Len has a holiday house in Orford. This adds a certain frissance to a trip to the village. But a visit to Butleys was not to be. We found that we were on the wrong road. “Where does it lead to?” I checked the map. “Hunstanton.” “Let’s go to Old Hunstanton. They are...
read moreOne Pot Pledge®
Have you heard of the One Pot Pledge®? This is a great campaign started by Garden Organic – the largest organic growing charity in the UK. The idea is to encourage 30,000 people who have not grown some of their own food before to make a pledge to grow something edible in a pot. This is a superb initiative as everyone has a place somewhere for a pot. Even if it’s on your desk at work. This campaign started much earlier this year but there are still lots of things that you can grow and enjoy. Salad leaves, peas or even nurture a tomato...
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