TARRAGON & THYME

I have been in town for the best part of the day with mum  - I took her shopping. I think we will end up having to go again at some point but we did not do too badly and as usual I was Sherpa. I did buy some more Kilner jars and some new lids for jars. I was offered some black cherries quite cheaply yesterday by my Greengrocer and so have prepared some cherries in syrup which are a favourite here.  I was tempted to add some kirsch but I did not think OH would go a bundle on this and I think also I have more flexibility with them prepared this way and so I have played safe and just prepared them in syrup. I am hoping to make a Black Forest Gateau for the Christmas celebrations and as I have a small bottle of Kirsch in the cupboard I can always add a dash then and might also make a deconstructed Black Forest Trifle as per the programme with Paul Hollywood on the other day which seemed nice and easy.  I managed to get 5 pint jars and one small one so not too bad and ano...

Now what is she going on about!  My camera that I used for posting lots of photographs on this blog has been missing for about a year and a bit. I have hunted high and low for it and tonight whilst sorting out the dining room I was sorting one of the drawers in the dresser when I realised there was something wedged at the back. Gingerly pushing my hand into unknown territory I was very surprised and pleased to retrieve my camera.  Its an idiot proof one and is ideal for snapping away for the blog.  Now I need to find the battery charger as the battery has gone as flat as a pancake in the interim.  I hope I can get it working again.  OH did buy me a new one but I haven't quite got round to looking at the instruction book; I will do as it is a super proper camera that will be kept for best.  I had a feeling I would come across it one day although initially I thought I had lost it at work! Big sigh of relief.  All say ahh! Pattypan x

Well this week I have added: 2 packets Cadburys Fingers (£1 per pack) 2 Packets Cadburys Fabulous Fingers (£1 per pack) 2 jars of gherkins 2 jars Peppadew peppers (OH likes these) 1 bottle of rum (need this for the rum sauce to go with the Christmas Puddings and for the Masawati coffee to keep the chills at bay) 1 bottle of Hobgoblin    (for the home made mustard) 1 bottle of Speckled Hen (for the home made mustard) "Stocked up on" excuse the pun Oxos all three flavours and  a jar of marmite (OH demolished the last jar and the cupboard was bare when I came to make stew). And a 2kg bag of popcorn kernels for home made popcorn (you can always jazz it up with caramel and almonds I was also given a load of cooking apples so all sorts of things are being prepared with them including spiced apple jelly.  There are also more shallotts and pickling onions being prepared so many a day so we should be well stocked for a few months at least. The cu...

Come this time of year I am forever on the look out for the first cranberries as religiously every year I make Cranberry and Apple Jelly and I make a lot of it as we use it throughout the year.  This little gem is worth its place on the Pantry shelf as it can be used in sauces in sandwiches in gravy.  I popped the recipe up quite some time ago but here is the link http://tarragonnthyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/cranberries.html So in the next few days or so/weeks I will be on the lookout for the first cranberries in order that I can get stuck in and get a couple of batches made to last the year.   There is of course also the Cranberry Gin, Cranberry Cheese, Cranberry Membrillo and Cranberry Curd, Cranberry and Clementine Chutney and Cranberry and Cointreau Sauce for the Christmas Turkey to make as well. I am taking my mum shopping tomorrow in Spalding so I shall have a look out there as mum wants to stock up at the supermarket whilst we have the chauffeur...

I have also managed to make: This time round no bought goodies just home made items  Strawberry fruit sauce Bottled Rocha Pears in syrup [7 jars] Started Marrons Glace 5 Litres (5 jars) Apple Puree Green Tomato Chutney 3 big jars and one standard Christmas Puddings x 2 Pickled Onions  Pecans in Honey Almonds in Honey Hazlenuts in Honey I think I also forgot to mention that I had made the Christmas Cake and a Dundee Cake which are "maturing" in the Pantry in the tins. So I am getting there very slowly still lots to do though.   And I have some ornaments for the tree I want to make too. Catch you soon. How many more sleeps before the big day? Pattypan x

As the song goes "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire".  When I was younger we did have them straight off the fire.  I always remember my first taste of chestnuts though was when I was about four when my Dad one Christmas whilst we were shopping took us to a chap in Peterborough (we used to come in from Uppingham every so often shopping) with a brazier and bought us a bag.  I had never tried them before then but was absolutely hooked and they have always featured just roasted in all our Christmas' down the line I even have a special Chestnut roasting pan.  But I have never turned them into anything else or made a preserve with them but it looks as though that is about to change. I found a recipe that I can do a bit at a time but it will fit in with my busy working schedule and the preparations in the run up to Christmas and it is for marrons glace and the recipe is as follows just in case you want to have a go and play yourselves.: Ingredients: 1 1b/500g ...

Its late for stripping the vines out but a little bit of bounty all the same courtesy of my mum who stripped out the vines in her greenhouse they were still producing fruit but the fruit was not ripening a sure sign that the plant for this year are spent. When I started writing this post the Green tomato chutney was simmering away and true to form I had not got all the exact ingredients but I had similar ones. This is how recipes are changed if it works I will do it again or follow the exact recipe another time. The recipe called for brown sugar and malt vinegar  and sultanas but I have used white sugar and white wine vinegar as replacements and golden sultanas.I have also slowly simmered the mixture not boiling it to death but letting it simmer gently more to retain the colour than anything else. It is a beautiful pale yellow (I did not want it to go darker and browner) fortunately it is still a pale yellow. Out of 1kg of tomatoes, 500g of apples, 500g of onions I have ende...

One of the problems people foresee if people make a lot of home made preserves is well how do I use it up.  I think in a lot of cases it is a case of trial and error and one of the things I have found is that the more I preserve the more ideas I come up with on how to use things up or the more recipes I come across.  I am lucky in that I have a lot of preserving books and I dip in and out of these quite a lot.  As mentioned in my earlier post I had half a jar of home made Seville Orange Marmalade  to use up and I have come across this recipe which should fit the script.  As it happens I also have some carrots to use up.  The recipe is from Mary Tregallas Notes from the Jam Cupboard a lovely little book with some very good recipes and ideas in.  This fits the brief just nicely: Ingredients: For the cake 6oz soft brown sugar 6oz margarine 3 eggs separated 2 1/2 oz ground almonds 4 tablespoons warmed marmalade 6oz self raising flour 6oz carrot...

Put simply I have been doing things with nuts. Slightly different from the planned list of earlier on but that's because I have never had a go at marrons glace before.  Bit more time consuming than I thought, its taken me ages to peel 1 kg of blinkin chestnuts.  They are now busy soaking in sugar syrup for the first day of a ten day procedure.   I started with the chestnuts for the marrons glace using a serrated knife to cut a cross in the point of each chestnut using a serrated knife going across the point one way and then the other (as per Pam Corbin on River Cottage) and then popping them in boiling water to release the skins ready for shelling - the messy part. I had to reboil the water a couple of times and dealt with the chestnuts on a one by one basis holding the hot nuts in a towel as I do not have asbestos fingers in order to peel them.  The fiddly part comes when the inner skin will not shift and I have ended up teasing the skin away with the point ...

I have added a few more goodies to the list and the store cupboard under the stairs is starting to fill out very nicely.  I am one of the lucky ones I realise that, but we never know what is going to happen on the morrow so it is better to be prepared wherever you can. Save what you can when you can  It may not be much but at least its something and the bits and bobs collected together will get used at Christmas but will also get used into the New Year as well. I have managed to add the following to the Christmas Hoard: A  tin of Roses A tin of Quality Street 2 boxes of Gruyere Sticks 2 Packets of Cheddars 2 Boxes Thorntons Chocolates 2 packets Chocolate Digestives  1 pkt of plum chocolates 1 pkt of cherry chocolates 2 bags crystallised Ginger   Every little helps Pattypan x

I have quite a bit of cooking to do today on the preserving front.  On Saturday my mum had stripped her tomato vines out and there were quite a few green tomatoes left over so I have them to make some green tomato chutney with. However these are the things I have to do today: Make the stew for tea Make a Treacle Pudding to be served with custard Make some soup with the stock from the ham  - possibly French Onion Make a Marmalade and carrott cake (I found a recipe to use the Seville Orange Marmalade up in) Make some more Chunky  Apple Sauce Make some Apple Pop Make some Ginger Beer Apple Chutney Green Tomato Chutney Pecan and Honey sauce Almond and Honey sauce Butterscotch Sauce Chocolate Sauce Marrons Glace Chestnut Jam I am out this evening so some of it may be taken over to the next day, but I am getting up at normal time so as I can get as much as I can done and get a wriggle on.  There are other things to do like the washing...

Today I have been busy in the kitchen.  I have peeled a load of apples and made a chunky apple sauce which has been bottled and is about to be hot water bath processed to make sure that it keeps on the pantry shelf for a little while. I processed 2kg of Bramley apples and then added 8 small dessert apples (they form the chunks) as well as lemon juice, lemon zest and sugar and some water.  For my efforts I have 5 x 1 litre jars of apple which will come in useful for making apple pie, apple sauce cake, apple sauce for serving with roast pork, apple amber, apple puffs wherever you would use pureed apple.  I like rootling around in the kitchen, trying a bit of this and that together sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't and those we just put down to experience.  You have to play with your ingredients to understand them all the better and for the best part I work with what I have to hand even when the pennies are scarce I usually somehow manage to rustle something ...

Further to the ingredients list posted here is the method on how to make the Christmas Pudding(s). Begin the day before you want to steam the Christmas Pudding. I use a very large mixing bowl and start by sifting in the flour, breadcrumbs, spices and sugar.  Thoroughly give these ingredients a good mixing with your hands then gradually add in all the dried fruits, mixed peel and nuts followed by the apple, carrot, grated orange and lemon zests.  (Best to tick off each ingredient saves you forgetting to add something in). Then in a second smaller basin measure out the rum, barley wine and stout (I have been known to use just rum and stout leaving out the barley wine but adding in the same quantity extra of stout) or mixing just with cider and rum.  Then add the eggs and beat these thoroughly together.  Next pour this smaller bowl into the larger bowl of dried ingredients and then begin to combine and mix thoroughly. At this point it is traditional to ...

The First day of Advent this year is Sunday 24 November 2013 this coming Sunday.  The day when the first Advent candle is traditionally lit, we are all familiar with the Advent Wreath with four candles in situ, but it is also the day when traditionally the housewife makes her Christmas puddings or in this modern age many people go and buy them. I grew up with my family making the puddings on Stir Up Sunday and also with the tradition of every family member having a stir (then making a wish) each taking their turn of stirring the pudding a ritual that happened every year.  There was also the silver threpenny bits.  At first my Nan used to pop them into the pudding and leave them in.  In later years however she used to slip a couple into the pudding before serving. and the recipient of the silver threpenny bit was said to have luck for the coming year.  Each year the threpenny bits were recycled.  One of the charming Christmas customs that has been practiced...

Last Friday I had the day off and having some stewing meat in the fridge that needed using I decided to make a stew.  Now me and stew did not have a happy relationship when I was a child and I hated it with a vengeance. In fact it is only in the past five years or so that I have started eating stew and appreciating it.   I hated swede and parsnip with a vengeance but most of all I hated kidney beans and mum would insist on putting them in stew.  I used to religiously sort out all the bits that I did not like and stack them on the side of the plate. There then commenced a battle of wills as my parents were equally adamant that I was going to eat everything up on my plate and I was not allowed down from the table until I had made an effort. (invariably they would get fed up and let me off). Needless to say for many years I did not eat stew.  Its funny how your tastes change when you are an adult things like stew, rhubarb gooseberries etc which were no no's as children...

Its been very busy here so far this week.  I was given about 20 lb red grapes from someones local vines and so I started a couple of gallons of grape wine last night. I have never made grape wine before so it is a bit of a learning process. Tonight I have processsed 5 standard size Kilner jars of Rocha pears and 2 double sized jars in sugar syrup.  A very useful addition to the pantry shelf .  They are the little tiny child sized pears and they were on offer at £1 per bag so I purloined four bags.  Hopefully I shall be able to get some more later in the week. Equally they will be nice served simply on their own or in a tart or tarts or in home made gateau style cake. Tomorrow evening I will be starting the Clementine and then the Lime Curd. I also have Pink Grapefruit Curd, Orange Curd and Ginger Curd to make which  will all make a delightful filling for a large tart or individual tarts or as a delicious filling for a Roulade or a Victoria Sponge make it...

  A few weeks ago I mentioned that there was a new programme scheduled for our TV this Autumn, the Tudor Monastery Farm.  It Starts this week on Wednesday at 9 pm  see the link here  http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01k3bl2 Unfortunately I will not be in so will have to watch on Catchup. Pattypan x

I went to mum's yesterday to do the weekly sort out and get the house all nicely spick and span.  Fortunately her home is very easy to keep clean and I can soon whizz through getting everything as it should be.  Me going to my mum's and doing this is not just a one way situation.  It benefits us both in so many ways; It is a win win situation.   I get to spend precious valuable one to one time with my mum; find out about family members: if I need advice I discuss things with her but she always leaves us to make our own decisions.  Mum equally gets all the jobs that she finds difficult to do like the cleaning, lifting and bending.   (My brother also pops in during the week to ensure that she is okay.  If she wants any jobs doing he also assists) and between us we are doing our best to support her and give her the love and attention which she deserves whilst still remaining in her own home.  Through her recent s...

Well its true you either love it or hate it.  I fall into the love it camp.  I use Marmite and the vegetable version on a regular basis  and I love twiglets.  OH bought some Marmite cheeses the other day and I was non too convinced but I have been pleasantly surprised they are delicious.  I think they will be making a regular appearance in my pantry fridge for the foreseeable future. Go on pick some up you may be pleasantly surprised just like me.  It will be now be a case of who nabs them first. Catch up soon. Pattypan x

As many of you know I like to make things from scratch rather than buying them pre-bought and in order to do this sometimes you have to purchase useful equipment, moulds, cake tins etc to enable you to do this.  However I am a tad tight and I do not believe in paying through the nose for things.  One of the ways I do this is that I check out the pound shops on the off chance that they may actually have something useful and today I struck lucky.  I popped into two pound shops today. In the first one I spent precisely £10. I came away with: Two Silicone Christmas Tree mould for chocolate, ice cubes or cookie mix. The mould can be used in the fridge/freezer or in the cooker. £2. Two Packs of Silicone moulds one a snowman the other a christmas tree one in each pack and by buying two packs I have two of each.  Again can be used in the fridge/freezer or the oven £2. Two Packs of metal cookie cutters one pack consisting of 5 cutters including an Angel, star. b...

Well come any  kind of celebration out come the cookie cutters - especially for Christmas.   I have quite a collection amassed over the years and there is always room for one or two more.  I had bought one snow flake cookie cutter at the beginning of September for the collection.   I was up town this morning minding my own business not looking to buy anything in particular when I espied a star cookie cutter that I quite liked the look of and at first I could not locate it.  Well the one I spotted was on the top shelf over the cooking pans and I eventually found where they were after a bit of rooting about; and then I spotted a reindeer and then an angel and guess what they all jumped into my basket!  All found in Marks and Spencers.  The largest of the three is the star and that was priced at £5 and the reindeer and the angel were £2.50 each.  They also had a large bauble cutter but that was not really to my taste.  So not too bad on ...