The Good Life - Looking back and planning ahead

A view across the frozen estuary at Malahide

The second ice age that arrived during December brought with it exceptionally low temperatures with -15.7 being recorded in Dublin and lower readings elsewhere. The arctic weather finally receded by the 28^th with the arrival of more seasonal temperatures. The cold spells generated the coldest December on record according to the weather summary and statistics held by Met Eireann. I spent many days during December monitoring the rainfall radar trying to anticipate when the snow showers would arrive and how long they would last. The verdict on 2010 given by Met Eireann was that the weather experienced was “colder, drier and sunnier than normal”.

Malahide estuary appears to have escaped the ravages of winter. While the estuary was frozen over the bird population has been feasting and foraging successfully on the vast mudflats and grassland between Donabate and Malahide. There is nothing more pleasant than looking and listening to a large flock of geese flying over head. The marsh grass and mud flats are full of large healthy birds, fat shell duck and mallard waddling cautiously on the mud, alongside plovers, godwits, oystercatchers, redshanks and my personal favourite; the shy and elegant, but clumsy curlew.

 The first day of digging at the allotment on a dark and cold 20th February

  

It has been a great year in our new allotment and looking back it is clear it could not have been achieved without hard persistent work for the initial months. However, in the last month the soil, which was buried under a foot of ice and snow for most of December, is somewhat sodden and mucky clumps stick to my shoes as we traced our way along the pathways that divide the raised beds. The heavy damp air carries the scent of compost and decaying brassicas. There is very little left that can be used. The once impenetrable earth can now be excavated to raid our reserves of artichokes. In the nursery beds the lettuce has succumbed to the freezing conditions but the resilient small leaves of the mache cloak the surface of the bed. We managed to gather a small plate of mache and these hardy leaves will continue to grow during January, and into February and March. The only other visible sign of life are the buds forming on the bare branches of the blackcurrant bushes.

Earth works and stone extraction under way on the 14th March

There was some evidence of a system of raised beds by the 11th April 

Harry spent the months of October and November digging the raised beds and preparing them for the year ahead by digging manure into those beds. This should form a good basis for the strong and healthy growth of our vegetables and plants in the coming months. Corinne retreated to France just after Christmas to see her family over the holiday season and a shopping list followed her by; seeds of different varieties of vegetables including beans, pumpkins (muscade de provence) and tomatoes including a specific instruction to obtain some of the tomato seed which her grandmother used. For the culinary year ahead I would like to experiment with different varieties of pumpkin chutney, and tomato and chilli jams. The varieties of some of the vegetables we have been planting in the last year do not make the grade for flavour and it is important to address this matter now.

Corinne and Harry working in the allotment on a very sunny 26th June

We enjoyed the long warm summer evenings with the air full of the scent of sweet pea

All at home in the garden of eden on the 8th August

Upon her return Corinne produced a small packet of crosnes. These look like insect larvae or bush tucker which Crocodile Dundee might have grilled with a few prawns by a lake somewhere in the outback. In fact they are Chinese artichokes and a member of the mint family. Artichokes and mint grow in a very similar fashion; once introduced into a plot they are difficult to remove and control. I think we shall plant them in large buckets and see how they grow, and enjoy the harvest sometime in October.

In the coming weeks we shall be focusing on the available crops already in the ground; forcing the rhubarb to get an early growth and picking the young tips of the nettles to make nettle beer. Along with harvesting the nettles we also intend to hit the hedgerows searching for rose hips and berries. Along with the blackberries we managed to find a few red currant bushes last year, which supplemented some of our annual red currant jam production. The blackberry harvest was excellent as well, with many large juicy berries to be collected. If that harvest is repeated in the year ahead we might attempt to make some syrup along with our normal production of the rich fruit jellies. In particular I would like to try to make a rose hip syrup; these require a little patience to gather and a seasonal inspirational team talk might be required to bring together a successful harvest. A team is generally required for safety reasons because the largest and brightest of these red gems normally overhang the deepest of ditches.

 Corinne with a large birch bolet on the 28th August

Unfortunately this year there were no bullace plums to flavour a gin or dot a cobbler with. The few we did collect were added to enrich a bramble jelly. In complete contrast last year was the amazing growth of mushrooms in the forests nearby where we live. Some days we were nearly walking on a forest floor thick with mushrooms. There was no real search involved. They were just everywhere, which meant we could be quite strict about our collection selecting only the best examples for the pot. There is always a balance in nature and no doubt this year will be no different. However, by putting in a little extra work in at the right time and carefully planning the allotment's progress from seed to table, we can hopefully yield a better and more sustained harvest throughout the year.

 Roses thrown onto the the ice on Malahide estuary in late December

Harry Clarke - A quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore

 The Nativity with the adoration of the three Kings and the Shepherds, St Barrahane's Church, 1918

Throughout the year when friends have been visiting Dublin, I have become weary of showing them the popular and well advertised cultural highlights of Dublin, and a few pubs as well. You can easily weave your way through the centre of Dublin visiting Neary’s, Grogans, The Stags Head and Davy Byrnes, but touring around Dublin’s main attractions has recently been less of a thrill. The National Gallery has closed many of its rooms, and the queues for the Book of Kells are not desirable when rain clouds block the horizon.

 

Details from St Barranhane's St Luke 1924 (top), Martin of Tours 1921 (middle), and St Louis 1921 (bottom) 

On a recent trip to west Cork I happened upon an idyllic little church positioned on a hilltop at the end of the main street in Castletownsend. St Barrahane’s is not short of very fine stained glass windows and among them are four remarkable windows or lights designed and produced by Harry Clarke in 1919.

Harry Clarke was born in Dublin in 1889 and died in Switzerland of tuberculosis in 1931. In his short but highly productive life he quickly became renowned not only for his work in stained glass but his work in the graphic arts. Most notably tomes published by George Harrap & Sons employed Clarke's unique grasp of a stylish grotesque for illustrations and designs in their publications of works by writers such as Edgar Allen Poe [Tales of Mystery and Imagination], Hans Christian Anderson, and the creator of the fairytale, Charles Perrault. The illustrations in these books stand shoulder to shoulder with the works of the more celebrated illustrator and designer Aubrey Beardsley.

Harry Clarke has often been compared with Beardsley and I believe any such comparison is unfair. While Beardsley was chiefly a product of the Art Nouveau and aesthetic movement, Harry Clarke in contrast straddled a number of aesthetic worlds but principally drawing inspiration from other sources such as the arts and crafts movement in England, Art Deco, the Celtic revival tradition and associated mysticism at the time, and the many rich styles, trends and fashions associated with the belle époque and decorative arts from continental European Countries. In the midst of the rich decorative traditions of the early 19^th Century, Clarke was also clearly heavily influenced by the 1916 uprising, the unimaginable industrial slaughter of the First World War, and the unfortunate divisions of Irish nationalism brought about by the Irish Civil War.

Harry Clarke’s stained glass is uniquely intimate drawing the viewer into a medieval inspired magical world, where the beautiful and hideous, youthful and aged inhabit a deeply atmospheric world of richly patterned silks and armour. Many of his windows have wonderful delicate vignettes; subject matter and depictions that you would not easily associate with the religious fervour of the 1920s in Ireland. Invariably you are captured by their style and crackling confection of colour.

My interest aroused in Harry Clarke’s work, coupled with the unappealing queues and limited access to other Dublin highlights, I decided to commence one tour of Dublin at Bewley’s in Grafton Street. There are six secular, highly decorative lights in the bustling main room on the ground floor of Bewley’s coffee house, produced by Harry Clarke in 1927 and 1928. These elegant windows are principally inspired by the Art Deco movement, an apt choice for this decadent landmark building in Dublin’s principal shopping street, but often overlooked or taken for granted.

 

 Details from the windows in Bewleys, Grafton Street, Dublin installed 1928

Attempts are often made to set Harry Clarke into a lineage of stained glass craftsmen beginning with Louis Comfort Tiffany, but he should be more closely aligned to the work of Gruber and the Dau brothers in France. It is well documented that Clarke spent periods in London and Paris. In London he had an association with the Arts and crafts inspired stained glass studios of the Glass House in Fulham. While there he came into contact with Kevin Parsons, and Wilhelmina Geddes who would also work in Ireland with An Tur Gloine.

 Details from windows at St Joseph's Church Terenure; "The Annunciation" 1922 and "Coronation of the Virgin" 1923

While a number of the rooms in the Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery of Modern Art on Parnell Square are closed, as you approach the entrance to the gallery on the ground floor on the left hand side you can find the stunning windows depicting the life of Saint Agnes. These windows are quite small and the various scenes must be viewed close up to observe the detailed fairytale world and stories related by Clarke. The National Museum in Collins Barracks also houses the work of Harry Clarke; a light he designed and made as a student in 1912 depicting the Unhappy Judas Iscariot, and a small exquisite oval panel entitled the meeting produced in 1918. Both are different in style and execution; the former is a traditional ecclesiastical lancet window for a church, and the latter a secular panel designed and executed in a similar manner to many of his illustrations for George Harrap.  

Many of Clarke's designs for stgained glass windows are a departure from the Victorian traditional Christian world of shining idealised saints portrayed as crusading Christian knights. The 19^th century saints are replaced with the unexpected, organic, magical, and ghoulish world created by Clarke depicting ghouls and goblins bringing a sinister and mysterious tone to the work, not always easily reconciled with the religious fervour of 1920s Ireland.

 

Details form the windows of Sts Peter and Paul Church Balbriggan: "The Visitation" and the "Widow's Son" 1924.

Using the rail network travelling north of Dublin other stained glass windows by Harry Clarke can be found in Clontarf at the Scots Presbyterian Church, Donabate at St Patrick’s Church, Lusk at St Maculinds Church and Balbriggan at Sts Peter and Paul’s Church. Hidden away in Dublin’s outlying towns and villages are some of the most important works of the decorative arts from the 1920s. One can travel to Paris, Amsterdam, Vienna and Barcelona to view the popular, recognised and celebrated works that defined this decade however an equally impressive cadre of design and craftsmanship remains largely unrecognised and unapplauded in churches and institutions around Dublin and throughout Ireland.

Details from St Patrick's Church Donabate (top) 1926, and from St Maculind's Church Lusk (middle and bottom) 1924.

The Good Life - Pain D'Epices

After last weeks cooking adventure, I have decided to redress the balance and encourage a little entente cordiale. I suggested to Corinne that I would attempt to make pain d'epices for Christmas. Her mood, which resists some of my extra curricular cooking, immediately brightened. A broad smile filled her face and she described in simple detail her personal nibble of choice; a thin slice of pain d'epices, with a slice of butter, and another thin slice of pain d'epices on top. "A sandwich", I said, but in the knowledge that this was far from being a modest sandwich.  This combination may sound like an artery bursting experience, however this most luxurious of festive spice breads is as much part of the French Christmas tradition as the traditional fruit cake or Christmas pudding would be in Ireland, and England. It is often served as an aperitif or can be presented in delicately thin slices to accompany a specially prepared foie gras.

A large slab of pain d'epices among buches de noel and other festive treats from the ancient producer Mulot-Petitjean, Dijon

The recipes for pain d'epices are as varied as its origins. Some authors believe it to have originated with the Chinese, the Greeks, others mention the Romans, and nearly all refer to the Arab tradition, through whose lands many of the spices required were transported and traded. It is made in a variety of manners throughout France and northern Europe. Its basic spiced flavours permeate the speculoos biscuits produced in the low countries at this time of year, and in spiced and seasoned ginger breads produced in Germany and Alsace. Certain types of pain d'epices are associated with certain cities in France such as Reims and Dijon, where it has been produced for hundreds of years. In the city of Dijon there are a number of traditional shops selling large slabs of pain d'epices and other spiced cakes and confections such as nonnettes. The facade of Mulot - Petitjean in Dijon has remained the the same since 1842 and the decadent and richly decorated interior of the shop cannot have changed much either.

Mulot - Petitjean, Dijon

The first task we had was to identify the spices to use in our pain d'epices. This proved to be quite difficult because just about everything I have read provided a different list of spices with varying quantities. Most acknowledge, and include in varying amounts, the core spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger and ground clove. However, other recipes incorporated other spices which one would expect to find, and to taste, in pain d'epices. Eventually we settled on a recipe, which we found in a very interesting blog called Les Jardin de Pomone. The recipe is as follows: 15g ground cinnamon bark, 20g ground anise seed, 3g ground nutmeg, 5g ground coriander seed, 5g ground ginger, seeds from 5 cardamon pods ground, and 10 cloves ground. To this I also added a few twists of the pepper mill in acknowledgment of the Roman colonists in the vicinity of Dijon, and Burgundy.

The honey, spice and sugar mixture being combined with the wholegrain flour and the parfait jar of ground spices

Having read a few recipes, we could not decide which one would be the best to use. Once again the measures and ingredients varied greatly, allowing us to fall back into a state of confusion having only just solved the secret of the spices. We finally resorted to phoning Patricia, our principal contact for all things culinary in France. She provided us with a list of the following ingredients for a 1 pound loaf tin; 200g good honey (preferably a mountain honey or one from a single source), 100g soft light brown sugar, 100g milk, 1.5 teaspoons of the spices, zest from half a lemon and zest from half an orange chopped finely, a pinch of salt, 1 egg, 250g flour (most recipes suggest a rye flour but I am using a stone ground wholegrain flour), 1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder. In somewhat of an interesting departure form the norm, Patricia added a teaspoon of pastis to her recipe, however I allowed myself my own variation, or elaboration, and decided to add a teaspoon of fleur d'oranger. The ingredients are somewhat surprising when you first cast your eye over then, but once put into operation the recipe comes together quickly and very easily.

 The loaves of pain d'epices cooling in their baking tins

Into a heavy based steel saucepan pour the honey, sugar, milk, zest, spices, salt and fleur d'oranger. Dissolve all these ingredients together over a low flame stirring from time to time. Once dissolved and well combined, remove from the heat and allow to cool. Whisk the egg and combine well with the cooled honey, sugar and spice mixture. In another bowl combine the flour, bicarbonate soda and baking powder. Gradually stir the flour into the honey, sugar, spice and egg mixture. Once well combined, spoon the mixture into a buttered  and floured loaf tin. This can then be placed into a preheated oven at 160 Celsius for one hour. The pain d'epices is cooked if a skewer drawn from the loaf is clean. Once cooled the pain d'epices should be stored for a few weeks wrapped in plastic. This aromatic bread softens as it matures, and the flavours develop with time becoming the perfect accompaniment to a festive foie gras with a sweet wine, or simply eaten with butter.

The Good Life - Christmas Pudding - Se lancait un défi!

 A hard end to November

The Winter weather has arrived in earnest this weekend, and in the allotment the early November muddy tracks that separated the raised beds were neatly filled with crisp snow this morning. Is there anything left in the beds to eat? Yes there is. The prolific giant woody stalks of the Jerusalem artichokes have finally wilted and their great crop lies perfectly preserved in the undisturbed soil. The spinach has also survived, and to our surprise so has the late crop of lettuce. The most prominent survivors in the allotment are the leeks, Brussels sprouts, and kale, which although battered by recent winds appear to be in reasonably healthy condition.

After only fifteen minutes my hands became bitterly cold and sore. Having quickly got back on the road, I recommenced my search for the final outstanding ingredients to use in my apple and dried fruit Christmas pudding. The shredded vegetarian suet was ultimately purchased in the last of four searches of nearby supermarkets. One would have thought this product would be a well stocked item at this time of year, but sadly the homemade traditional Christmas pudding may be a thing of the past!

My recipe is a little different. It was published in Sainsburys Magazine in November 2004 and it immediately caught my attention because of the rich variety of ingredients. In a similar manner to the first time I embarked on making this recipe, I have been examining my dry stores over the last few days and established a list of the  purchases required. My ceramic pudding bowls remain unbroken and unchiped, but there was no dried apple or shredded suet to be found in the cupboards. I also noticed my ground mixed spice had disappeared! I link some of these observations to Corinne of course, who recently informed me she had cleaned the cupboards, and in doing so questioned  the need for certain items (without querying me). Having recently converted her to chutney, I have decided it is time for another challenge: Christmas pudding. After a brief description of the ingredients there was some hope at hand, but this halted following my description of suet. The initial reaction brought a quizzical look, which quickly turned to one of horror, and incredulity, peppered with French resistance; a look which I am growing accustomed to. Se lancait un défi!

The chopped dried fruit

Amidst the overnight snowfall, it has been a good seasonal adventure gathering together all the ingredients in preparation for this pudding of puddings. The next decision centers around the question of the number to be made, and how much mixture should I make? Ultimately, I decided to add to the recipe and increase the quantities, in order to make a few mini puddings. My first attempt at cooking this pudding involved a different adventure which will not be repeated. I decided to cook them all over the course of a single night as I was working for most of the day. My alarm clock was set every two hours through the night, so that the pots could be refilled with water to the required level, because of the serious risk of the water evaporating entirely and the pot burning. Adopting my experience in offshore racing, and curious ability to deal with sleep deprivation, I struggled through the night with successive steamings of the puddings, finally going to work with the usual, and expected, side effects of unpredictability, crankiness and lack of concentration coming to the fore.

Orange and lemon zest

To make two 1.2 litre puddings you shall require the following: sultanas 250g; raisins 250g; roughly chopped dates 200g; roughly chopped dried figs 200g; roughly chopped dried apricots 150g; roughly chopped dried apple 150g; warmed brandy 200ml; mixture of almonds and hazelnuts 200g; zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon; breadcrumbs 200g; plain flour 75g; ground mixed spice 1 teaspoon; shredded suet 200g; light soft brown sugar 225g; treacle 95g; and 4 lightly beaten large eggs.

Warm the brandy and pour it over the sultanas, raisins, dates, figs, apricots and apple, leaving the ingredients to soak for about a day. Having an inbuilt mechanism for changing a plan at the last minute, I also added about 150g of irresistible prunneaux d'Agen into my mixture of dried fruit. Turning the different fruit over in the bowl a sweet scent begins to emerge from the bowl, but once the warmed brandy is poured over the fruit the room quickly fills with a rich sweet aroma. French brandy might be a little expensive for this recipe, however a Spanish brandy, aged in oak sherry casks, compliments the diverse complexity of flavours in the dried fruit.

 Light brown soft sugar, eggs and treacle

Toast the almonds and hazelnuts in an oven for about 6 minutes, and after allowing them to cool before chopping. Combine them with the orange and lemon zest, breadcrumbs, flour and mixed spice, and the dreaded shredded suet. In another bowl beat together the eggs, treacle and light brown soft sugar. Spoon the egg and sugar mixture into the brandy soaked dried fruit and mix well. Then add the breadcrumb, suet and nuts etc. and gently stir combining all the ingredients well. At this point I introduced Corinne to a mysterious Irish tradition whereby everybody who stirs the pudding mixture is allowed to make one secret wish. During the Celtic tiger era this tradition may have been artificially augmented and exaggerated by greedy individuals who made many wishes, and obviously the wish does not extend to the unrealistic and fantastic, such as ridiculous desires in relation to the Irish Banks, EU and IMF bail outs. She did not grasp the concept immediately. However after a little thought she began to stir, and gave the wooden spoon a decent work out for several minutes.

 
The dreaded shredded suet

I normally let the mixture stand for a while before spooning it into the pudding bowls. When filling the pudding bowls press down firmly before covering with baking parchment, or greaseproof paper. As the pudding expands while cooking it is advisable toput a 2 or 3 centimeter pleat across the center of the sheet and repeat the process with a sheet of aluminium foil. These two covers must be secured well with string around the rim. This is not as easy as it sounds, however it ensures the boiling or simmering water will not get into the pudding bowl.

toasted almonds and hazelnuts

The bowls must be placed in a pot of boiling water reaching two thirds the way up their sides. The steaming pot should be covered well and puddings left to cook for five or six hours. It is important to remember to check the water levels occasionally, and top up with boiling water when necessary, to prevent the pot burning due to evaporation. Once removed from the water allow the puddings to cool, and thereafter check whether or not they are sufficiently cooked. To test, you can insert a skewer into a pudding and if it is cooked the skewer should come out clean.

 The Mason ceramic pudding bowls covered and tied

Before storing the puddings secure a fresh piece of baking parchment and aluminium foil on top of each bowl. When you wish to serve the pudding, it should be steamed for at least two hours. Thereafter it can be turned out and served with whatever sauce, cream, butter or custard takes your fancy. Obviously the common ingredient to all of these embellishments is brandy, and I would also recommend flaming the pudding with warmed brandy. Of course, by the time you have tasted your apple and dried fruit Christmas pudding your secret wish should have come true!

 Six hours later

Fantastic Pumpkins from Le parc de la Tete D'Or, Lyon

The Good Life - Jack Frost has arrived

 Donabate beach on Sunday afternoon

From Wednesday we have had a number of hard ground frosts coating the raised beds until the sun has reached a sufficient height in the sky to bring about a thaw. The largely clear skies are perfect for a significant drop in temperatures overnight but equally provide stunning bright sunshine during the day. The advent of the colder harsh conditions spell the end for the gentle lola rosa and gem lettuce. On Sunday morning it was possible to see the tops of these lettuce plants wilting as a result of the hard bite of these first  frosts. In contrast the hardier winter leaves such as mustard and mache should survive the chill.

 The sorrel patch (not very exciting really)

Sunday morning was quite cold and for the first time this year I began to lose a little dexterity in my hands as a result. A warm and comforting fish pie was on the menu for the evening meal and I arrived at the allotment to harvest some sorrel to accompnay the pie. The dew from the previous evening had frozen where it had gatghered and collected on the back of some of the sorrel leaves and the crisp stems broke easily as I collected the rich green leaves. This spinach like leaf can be cooked in a similar manner to spinach but must only be cooked until just wilted, because it is easily overcooked. In a similar manner to spinach, cream can be added to the wilted leaves and warmed through prior to serving. Sorrel can have a very tangy and lively flavour and the cream can moderate this for those that just cannot cope.

There is an old wives tale that says you should not harvest the kale prior to the first frost.We have a number of plants therefore that have just come into the frame to add to our weekly harvest; both the purple and green kale plants are strong and healthy at this time of year.

The kale patch

Another evening trip to the hidden orchard across sodden wet fields and deep ditches, has provided us with a fresh supply of apples to be used in our green tomato and apple chutney. The tomatoes that are still green at this stage are unlikely to ripen so it is time to use them or lose them. For this chutney you will need a large preserving pan preferably stainless steel and about 10 or 12 sterilised jam jars. The ingredients are as follows: 1 kilo of green tomatoes washed and chopped; 1 kilo of chopped or grated cooking apples; 450g of chopped onion; one or two cloves of garlic crushed and chopped; 350g of demerara sugar and 350g of white sugar; 450g sultanas; 900ml of vinegar (I use cider vinegar but you can use white wine vinegar if you wish); three teaspoons of pickling spice made up with a mixture of cloves, mace, coriander seed, yellow mustard seed and few dried chillies.

This monster mix of chutney does reduce in volume as it cooks so the contents of the preserving pan should reduce as time goes on allowing for the additional ingredients. To start the process put the pickling spices into a muslin sack or stocking and heat the vinegar gently before adding the chopped onions. Cook the onions for  about 10 minutes before adding the chopped green tomatoes and apple. Keep on cooking over a moderate heat until the apple and tomato have softened. This could take about 40 minutes (or more) and the chutney should be stirred occasionally to prevent the ingredients from sticking. Once the apple and tomato has softened you can add the sultanas and stir them in followed by the sugar. Reduce the heat until the sugar has dissolved and then raise the temperature or heat over a high flame until the chutney has attained the consistency of a thick jam. Add a little salt and freshly ground pepper to season. The chutney can then be spooned into the sterilised jars and sealed down, labeled and placed in a cool dry spot for two months or more.

The recent good supply of apples has resulted in numerous giant apple crumbles and apple tarts spiced alternately with cinnamon and clove being constructed over the last two weeks. For one dish I managed to get 16 decently sized apples into a deep crumble. I know I am due to make a Dorset apple pie and  Eve's pudding before long, but in the meantime apple juice in the mornings has been balanced with apple sauce in the evenings; Corinne likes black pudding with apple sauce. In the last few days while reading papers and magazines my eye has been drawn towards any old recipe or article with apples in an attempt to use them. Last night Corinne suddenly produced a bag of fresh walnuts she brought back from Franche Comté; therefore an apple and walnut salad appears to be a reasonable prospect to accompany this evening's meal. If that was not enough, I am being fed slices of peeled apple as I type, but despite this largescale consumption of apples we will eventually have to preserve some of the remaining apples, and may be required to add to our considerable stores of chutney by embarking on a production of apple chutney in the next week or two.

The Good Life - Harvest on the 9th October

Pumpkin, patisson, leeks, scallions, onions and carrots together with parsley, rosemary, lola rosa and gem lettuce and some bolets from the forest

Many of the beds have now been cleared and weeded. Harry is slaving away during the week acquiring manure and preparing the beds for next year's season. In other areas he has dug, composted and raked to perfection the new beds where onions have been sewn.

This year's crop is coming to its natural end. The cabbages, Brussels sprouts, Jerusalem artichokes and leeks are hardy enough to survive into the winter. However, as the night time temperatures drop this week to within two or three degrees of freezing point, guaranteeing a ground frost, our lettuce may not survive too much longer. Of the remaining salad leaves planted we are hopeful the mustard, rocket and mache will continue to make a contribution to our salad bowl.

The Good Life - The Gathering

 

Detail of fall gold raspberries, autumn bliss and wild strawberries

Autumn is in full flight. Our raspberry canes are laden with large ripe berries; the stems bend a little too easily under their weight in the cool wind. Elsewhere the fiery red rose hips shine like rubies, all but a few just out of reach suspended above a deep wet ditch. The hedgerows have not produced too many damsons or wild plums this year in comparison to last year and some trees have nearly no fruit. The fragile ripe elderberries have all but disappeared, driven from their web like stems by the wind in the last few days. Among the briers near the allotment the blackberries have plumped up and are bursting with flavour. In the last week we have been coming home with fingers heavily stained from the blackberry and raspberry collection, and have been picking thorns from our hands and clothing for the next few days; occupational hazards of sorts!

Jam and jelly making has almost become a daily routine. We have made blackberry jelly, hedgerow jelly and raspberry jam in recent days. The blackberry jelly is very easy to make and I believe it is far superior to blackberry jam. For every 500grams of fruit in a preserving pan I add about 150mils of water (give or take), and cook the berries until much of the juice is released. To complete the process the berries are pressed with the invaluable assistance of a potato masher. The juice and pulp should then be strained through a jelly bag or fine nylon sieve overnight. 

The next day weigh the juice and measure out an equal weight of sugar. Bring the juice to a simmer and add the sugar. Continue to stir until the sugar is dissolved and then boil rapidly until setting point is reached, then spoon into sterile jars and seal down. Some recipes recommend the use of a pound of sugar to a pint of juice, however I believe the set produced using an equal weight of juice to sugar produces a softer set. It is important to note that you should not start making a jelly with less than a kilo of fruit. The average yield of jelly from a ripe fruit or blackberry is just a little less than three 450gram jars.

In the last days of September, and early October, we have been out exploring the birch forests searching for mushrooms which have arrived following the passing of the full moon. In past years we had to examine the forest floor quite carefully and search through the undergrowth and briers to find the bolets. Last year there was a very disappointing mushroom season, but this year we have been practically falling over them. This abundance of mushrooms has changed our collection habits, and we now leave more mature examples which we would have picked in the past concentrating on picking the younger and firmer specimens. These young mushrooms are very good when added to risottos and omelets. They can also be fried in butter, salt and pepper, and frozen in portions for future use to avoid the obvious health dangers associated with gorging on wild mushroom risotto on a daily basis.

A large brown birch bolet in its natural surroundings with my No.10 opinel for scale

Corinne's bolet collection

Our biggest pumpkin matured earlier than expected sprouting legs and left the allotment of his own free will last week. We wish him well on his journey and hope he makes it through the Halloween period without coming to harm. Obviously we have increase security and issued instructions to the other inmates informing them that there is no little or no prospects for them in the current economic environment outside the allotment.

One of our other pumpkins was employed in an experiment/recipe which turned out quite well, and may be improved with further continual experimentation, tasting and testing. I decided to make a batch of creme caramels with pumpkin. The bases of 8 ramekin dishes were coated with a caramel made with 200 grams of sugar and 8 tablespoons of water. The caramel takes a little time to make and then cool in the dishes. At the same time you start the caramel steam about half a kilo of pumpkin, (skinned chopped and deseeded), for about 20 minutes. Leave the chunks of cooked pumpkin to cool for a few minutes and thereafter puree them in a food processor. The puree can then be blended with the custard mixture which is composed with 850mls of milk, 8 eggs, 4 tablespoons of sugar and two teaspoons of vanilla extract. Ladle the custard mixture into the caramel coated dishes and place them into a bain marie before cooking for about 50 minutes in the middle of an oven at 160F. The resulting flavour colour and texture of the caramels are quite surprising and very pleasant. Admittedly the flavour is quite subtle and future batches may have a little more pumpkin puree added to obtain a strong flavour and richer orange colour.

As the air temperatures drop the tomatoes have stopped their ripening process yielding a few kilos of green tomatoes. This is a glut with a Celtic tiger dimension for us because we are compelled to live within our Irish shoe box for a little while longer. The tomatoes may ripen indoors in time, but to avoid any waste a nearby unused orchard has been plundered for apples to be used in the production of a green tomato chutney. The kitchen area and dining table are quite cluttered at the moment, which calls upon my, ever decreasing, powers of diplomacy. Negotiations are proving difficult and lengthy at the minute because the French have no traditional use or desire for chutney. Quel dommage!

Nature's organic geometry - our fennel has gone to seed!