TARRAGON & THYME

I have always dabbled with preserves in one form or another making lots of different preserves primarily for Christmas but also for use throughout the year making chutneys, pickles, fridge preserves like pickled peppers and goats cheese in oil.  Every year I primarily cook up to and including Christmas lunch but then it is mainly cold cuts for a few days after and that's when the pickles and preserves really come into their own.    When I make preserves of any kind I often make a few extra jars of a particular preserve then give them as a pressie for a friend.   Surprisingly I  had never really thought about mustard, until I came across this article on the Jam Jar Shop website.  There have been other articles, but I have forgotten where they are or they have been removed from the web. Wholegrain Mustard With Beer – “How To Make” Recipe From The Jam Jar S – Jam Jar Shop And yet I always cook a gammon joint and give the joint a glaze,...

  Follow my blog with Bloglovin Are in the shops  -well they were in M & S earlier in the week.  I always look out for them early as in the run up to Christmas you do not always have the time to set too and make some preserves but for cranberries, and clementines I always make an exception.   I will purchase mine at the beginning of December.  I always make Cranberry and Apple Jelly (not just for Christmas but I make in bulk as we use this quite a lot throughout the year either with a hot meal or in sarnies with brie (lovely if in a baguette and popped into the microwave to melt the brie) and/or meat.v  I also look out in reductions on cranberries in between time as well.  If you haven't got time to use them then and now you can always freeze them. Please refer to earlier post for recipe:   http://tarragonnthyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/cranberries.html I also make a fresh Cranberry and Grand Marnier whole berry sauce for serving wi...

I have been mooching through some of my cookery books - liking the sound of some of the recipes and wanting to have a go, but not having quite the right ingredients. Every so often I tend to play a bit and put my own stamp on things; its just the way I am - I don't do it with everything, but I do tend to make use of what I have in the pantry. I quite like the sound of the roasted beetroot relish in the River Cottage Preserving book, but I haven't got any tomatoes or horseradish; I have plenty of beetroot and rather than just have ordinary pickled beetroot I thought I would roast the beetroot and then pickle it to see whether it improves the pickle or whether its one I will not do again in a hurry. Its all about experimenting a bit just doing things slightly differently for a change, and I thought that rather than just put in a plain malt vinegar that I might use a wine vinegar for a change. Not sure whether to use red or white wine vinegar at the moment. I am still mooching ove...

I first had a parsnip based chutney a few years ago on one of my forays on holiday down to Cornwall. We bought it from one of the Cider Farms and although disappointed with the cider we bought back we didn't open the chutney until Christmas. What a delight and revelation that chutney was, needless to say it was a mega jar and it got used up quickly. Under normal cicumstances I would have gone back and got some more but it has been sometime since we have been down to Cornwall and I have not therefore been able to restock. I tend to buy unusual preserve recipes when I find them and put them up for Christmas and if I like them I look out for recipes that are similar so that I can do my own home cured version. It helps sort out what we actually like as well. Sometimes the recipes sound good on paper but when made don't necessarily have quite the flavour you want. Recipes with root vegetables such as parsnip and swede tend to be rarer but I have located this one which I think w...

Here's a lovely recipe I have made before and I have it in mind to make a batch next weekend to give as part of my Christmas packages to friends together with pickled onions and other goodies. It is very rich and fruity very good with a home made Pork Pie or Christmas Feasting Pie, ideally its one of those recipes when the British Plums are in season, but I seem to have lost at least a month with the preparation of things I had on my list with having mum in hospital and then not having the computer for a while. But better late than never. Makes about 4 1/2 lb 450g/1lb plums stoned and pitted 450g/1lb pears peeled and cored 225g/8 oz cooking apples peeled and cored 225g/8 oz celery 450g/1lb onions sliced 450g/1 lb tomatoes skinned 115g/4 oz raisins 15g/ 1/2 oz/1 tablespoon grated fresh root ginger 30ml/2 tablespoon pickling spice 900ml/ 1 1/2 pints cider vinegar 450g/1lb granulated sugar Method Chop the plums,pears, apples celery and onions and cut the skinned tomatoes into quarte...

It may be a little late for this now, but in retrospect it may not be and it can always be used for the forthcoming year. If you have some apples starting to get a little bruised or have a load of crab apples left over from a foray into the countryside one way of using them up is to make your own pectin stock for use either later in the year or during the course of next. Some fruit's don't have much pectin such as cherries figs grapes marrows pears pineapple rhubarb and strawberries which are classified as low pectin fruits; and occasionally possibly Apricots blackberries greengages loganberries and raspberries Medium pectin fruits will need a bit of a boost to help make any jams or jellies set properly. High pectin fruits are citrus fruits (oranges lemons grapefruits etc) cooking apples, crab apples, cranberries, damsons, gooseberries plums and quinces. Take your basic fruit, this may be Apple (any kind) redcurrant, gooseberry and damsons may all be used to produce pectin stoc...

Whilst I have been out of circulation I have been playing quite a bit in the kitchen. I have always had a problem with peaches skinning them successfully, it has always terrified me, because sometimes the skins come off and sometimes they don't. Last weekend I skinned about 40 peaches and made two very large jars of whole peaches in spiced vinegars; both flavourings slightly different and the sauce at least with both of them is extremely scrummy. Skinning Peaches Now back to the skinning. I have found the most successful way for me is to have a pan of boiling water on the stove and dunking each peach individually in the bubbling hot water ( I seem to have a thing about hubble bubbling at the moment! I then immediatly plunge the hot peach into a big bowl of cold iced water and start straight away with removing the skin. If it does not budge bung it back into the hot water again and repeat process. Sometimes I have to assist with a small sharp knife, but this isn't very often. ...

Especially for Anne of Silversewer Redcurrant Jelly 2kg/4lbs redcurrants Sugar - see below All redcurrants or a mixture of white and redcurrants may be used. Rinse then well in a colander but don't bother to remove any stalks. There is no need. Place them in a preserving pan and heat gently for about half an hour until pulpy softly crushing the fruit occasionally (a potato masher is good for this). Pour into a jelly bag and leave to drip overnight into a bowl. Measure the juice and allow 500g/ 1 1/4 lb sugar to 500ml/1 pint as redcurrants are rich in pectin and acid and will take more sugar. Warm the sugar in a bowl in the oven then stir it into the reheated juice, dissolve the sugar then boil fast (recipe says for one minute but in my experience it is invariably longer than this it varies) skim and then pour into hot clean dry jars. Setting will occur rapidly and speed is essential. Cover and seal in the usual way. The yield from this jelly is small but it has a wonderful ...

Dried Vegetables Chillies - I dry my own and they are the finishing touch to my home made pickled onions. To dry them I use a bodkin and string and thread them all on then leave up on the dresser to dry. I tend to do them as a garland or mini string done as a garland I can drape them over the dressers to add a touch more interest yet being practical as they are in the throes of drying. Dried Chilli ground down to a powder and then mixed with pepper and cloves is a very tangy seasoning for adding to pumpkin and/or squash. Dried Mushrooms I string mushrooms - you can do this with any edible variety of your choice - at time of preparation I keep to one particular variety to string - I mix them up in jars later on. I string them the same way as I do chillis only this time round I use a bodkin and string but I put a big not in between each mushroom and a little space. I then hang them out of the way to dry. Once dry I pull from the string and place in glass preserving jars. I then use...

I have been browsing through my old handwritten recipe book and have come across a recipe I used to make a lot of at one time. I can't remember where it comes from but needless to say I have had it for quite a few years as I have lived in my current home for 20 years. Its very good on chicken, or wherever you would normally use five spice and this home made version of the five spice really smells lovely and is very pungent and aromatic. I usually make a batch up and then keep it in a small jar in my cupboard. Ingredients: 1 tablespoon of black peppercorns 1 tablespoon of star anise 2 cinnamon sticks 1 tablespoon of whole cloves 1 tablespoon of fennel seeds Method Grind individual spiuces separately in a coffee grinder or if you want to be more traditional a pestle and mortar. Once ground to your satisfaction combine all the spices together and store in small jars or pots. You won't regret making this and a little goes a long way.

I am starting to use up what is in the freezer in readiness for putting in new supplies as the new seasons goodies fall upon us. I have just put a couple of batches of forced rhubarb into the freezer so I think I am going to be well set up for crumbles etc for the forthcoming months. I still have quite a bit from last year to use so in an effort to use some of this up and free up a little bit more space for the new goodies in the freezer I am going to make some Rhubarb and Ginger jam. This quantity makes about 3lb 1.1kg (2 1/2lb) trimmed rhubarb (frozen or fresh) 1.1lg (2 1/2lb)sugar juice of 2 lemons 25g/1 oz fresh root ginger 100g/4 oz preserved or crystallised ginger, chopped 1. Put the Rhubarb into a large bowl, alternating in layers with the sugar and the lemon juice. Cover and leave overnight. 2. Next day bruise the root ginger slightly with a rolling pin and tie it in a piece of muslin. Put the Rhubarb mixture into a preserving pan with the muslin bag; bring it ...

Here is a list of those items thatI already keep and intend tokeep in my pantry which more often or not are actually used in The Still Room area of the house but some of the items are used in both The Kitchen and The Still Room. Nuts Beeswax - chat up your local beekeeper and make use of beeswax for making your own polishes and also for using as a thickener in home made ointments. Honey - can be used as a sweetner in home made teas, and cooking and baking; as an antibiotic in its own right to help fight infections both colds and cuts and wounds. Dried nasturtiums Dried Rose Petals for teas and for decorating cakes, pot pourri and home made perfumes. Dried Violets for decorating iced cakes and for incorporating within ice cream, pot pourris. Dried Linden Leaves for use in tea Dried Pot Marigold leaves - poor mans saffron, broth posies,used in rice; a conserve can be made with fresh petals. Marigold is extremely soothing and can be used in home made salves and creams to help inflamed s...

Every year without fail I make things like Jam's pickles, chutneys, wines etc and it is always referred to affectionately as "The Putdown". Why because I have put it down for the winter months, primarily Christmas when not as much varied ingredients are available to us. I utilise pickling, jam making, jelly making, wine making, beer making, ginger beer,freezing, drying and bottling methods to achieve this as well as other methods not listed and I try and make best use of what is available and whatever comes my way. I hope that what little I do will inspire you to have a go at something yourself and if you ever want any help just yell; I am still learning too but if I can help I will. This is primarily for pantry stock and doesn't include anything have prepared for the freezer for general use. Not having many pennies has put a slight restriction on things but hasn't stopped me completely. So far this year I have prepared the following: Seville Orange Marmalade...

I think I have been very lucky during my life-time so far in that I grew up in a family that has always loved its food and has always done something along the line to add to or to produce their own food. The philosophy being that the better your food was the better it was for you after all it is the engine's fuel. My grandparents lived in a cottage/bungalow which originally had 6 acres of land. Pop my granddad sold 4 acres or so off at £30 a plot when I was just a babe in arms. What was left was mostly down to apple orchards, to the back of the house was a large garden lawn surrounded by a copper beech hedge, espaliered apples and pears down the side. Then to the side of that was the plum and pear orchards then down the bottom there was a big chicken coup with outside run and apple trees in and then two big vegetable gardens one of which was left fallow every year. Oh and then there were the pig stys as they kept their own pigs as well and had Geese in the orchards throughout the y...

HOME MADE VANILLA ESSENCE INGREDIENTS * 1 x 750ml bottle vodka * 2 vanilla beans DIRECTIONS 1. Submerge vanilla beans in vodka and store in a cool, dark place for several weeks, shaking occasionally.

Flavoured Sugars Cinnamon Sugar 1lb caster sugar 4 cinnamon sticks Put the sugar into a preserving jar and push in the sticks of cinnamon into the jar, seal tightly. Leave for about a month then check for strength. For concentrated flavour mix caster sugar and cinnamon allowing one teaspoon of the ground spice to 2 ozs of sugar. Stir together evenly then store in a screw topped jar. Use the sugar wherein you would use dried fruit and gingerbreads and to make that autumn warmer cinnamon toast (just a sprinkling) onto hot buttered toast. Lemon/Orange/Lime Sugar Yes you can do it with lavender flowers as well and rosemary and lemon and orange rinds - however with lemon I put granulated or caster sugar on baking parchment on a swiss roll tray and sprinkle the sugar out all over the parchment. I then get a couple of lemons/limes/oranges and drizzle the juice all over the sugar and then put in a low oven to dry out gently making sure it doesn't go brown - would perhaps be easier to do th...