charity shop finds..........................

While out on a quick shopping trip this morning I popped into a charity shop and found these pretty tea plates and this little tureen for only £1.  

The tureen has lost its lid somewhere along the way, but that didn't bother me as I'd already decided what to do with it.  These hyacinths were in a rather boring brown plastic pot, so I carefully transferred them into the bowl, bedding them in with some extra compost and I think they look much happier in their new home!

                                                

peaceful productivity......................................

Yesterday seemed pretty hectic, yet it was one of those days when you never really get an awful lot done.  We awoke to a snow clad landscape which came as a bit of a surprise as it hadn't looked or felt at all like snow the night before.  The puppy was booked into the vet for his first vaccination  at 9am and I rather suspect that the roads people were caught on the hop too as there had been no ploughs out and there was a lot of snow building up on the roads.  However, our trusty Subaru soldiered on and we reached the vet (10 miles away) in good time. 



the snow returns.................



This morning I decided to bake some bread and cakes for the freezer as we're down to our last loaf.  The dogs had been racing around the garden for ages and were ready for a sleep in front of the woodburning stove.  The big dogs were comfortably ensconced on the sofa.............   

..................................while the puppy has just discovered the comfort of the kitchen armchair!

There is something very peaceful about being in a warm room with sleeping dogs and some lovely music on Radio 3.  Ideal baking conditions! 

I made two lots of soda bread.  One batch included pumpkin seeds, linseed and sunflower seeds  while the other batch was made with a mixture of oatmeal and flour to which I also added some malt. I made two date and walnut loaves as I had dates that were almost out of date!  Then I made some fruit loaves which always  freeze very well.  These loaves are usually made with sultanas and mixed peel but I had some dried apricots which were also almost out of date so I chopped them up and added them to the mixture.  It's a very flexible recipe and sometimes I incorporate some chopped stem ginger or the grated rind of an orange or lemon.

When I was out with the dogs later in the afternoon I spotted these brave little snowdrops peeping out through the leaves under one of the trees in the garden.  Some bloggers in milder places are already posting photographs of spring flowers that we probably  wont see here for ages yet, especially if we get even more snow!

hello February - where did January go?

I can't believe it's so long since I last posted on this blog!  It's been a busy time and January seems to have flown past.  We have been involved in several Burns Suppers over the last few weeks which is always fun.  I usually do the reply to the Toast to the Lasses or, sometimes I address the haggis.  We also organise our own Burns Supper which is yet to come, so we haven't seen the last of the haggis yet!

I have also been making the 2011 supply of marmalade and it's lovely to have lots of jars stored away in the jam cupboard again.  When we ran out of marmalade last December, I made some Mamade marmalade which was good, but there's nothing quite like sharp, tangy, marmalade made from fresh, seasonal, Seville oranges.  The wonderful, orange aroma permeated the whole house for days  -  a real January smell!

I also mean to make some lime marmalade for special treats, and Katie (Vintage Squirrel) very kindly wrote out Diana Henry's recipe which she swears by.  

This is the time of year when I really appreciate having a deep freeze.  We grow a lot of soft fruit but when it's ready in the summer, I'm often too busy to make jams and jellies, but at this time of year when life is a bit quieter,  I usually get a chance to catch up with these jobs.  I will make a supply of redurrant jelly which is  one of the most useful jellies you can have.  We use it in all sorts of gravies and sauces and it's especially good with pheasant and partridge.  We also have a lot of frozen blackcurrants and I've just noticed that we're completely out of blackcurrant jam, so that's also on the list.  Then of course there are odd punnets of rasps, Worcester berries, gooseberries and brambles so I usually make a "mixed fruit" jam which is always fun as it's never the same twice and it's a great way of using up a variety of small quantities.  

We're still working  through our store of apples.  There are always a few which are starting to deteriorate but at this time of year the birds love them and the other day I strung some together and hung them from a tree and in no time at all the bullfinches and yellowhammers had found them and were  pecking away while clinging precariously  to the swinging garland!

When we had our little farm shop, we were always looking for new ways to use up fruit and veg that were getting a bit wrinkly or that just hadn't sold and that's when we bought a juicer.  It's a Magimix le duo and it's a truly wonderful machine.  Our favourite winter juice is carrot, apple and ginger which is unbelievably delicious.  The carrot and apple  can be a bit bland, but the addition of some root ginger totally transforms it into something very special.  Other combinations which have worked well are beetroot / apple / lemon,  apple / celery / cucumber and in the summer, all sorts of soft fruits with cucumber or celery.  The most unlikely sounding combinations often turn out to be the most delicious and it's easy to experiment with small quantities.  Some people are put off buying a juicer because they think it'll be a palaver to clean it, but I have to say that our model is easily cleaned provided you do it straight away while the components are still wet.  The rule in our house is that no juice may be drunk until the juicer parts are washed, dried and reassembled! 

Another reason for blog-neglect is the arrival of our new puppy.  He has been here for almost two weeks now and is settling in well.  He's a very endearing little chap and very entertaining although our other two dogs ( his father and his aunt! ) are still getting used to his exuberant antics.  They are both almost nine years old and probably a bit set in their ways so this bouncy little intruder  has rather disrupted their peaceful little world.  A friend in the village has his litter sister and the two puppies spent most of yesterday morning chasing each other around the garden in the snow  until they were completely exhausted. 

                                    

planning his next attack!

                           

asleep with his father



puddles and puppies............................

The flooding caused by the weekend's torrential rain is slowly draining away although we still have a lot of water lying on the fields and after last night's frost, a lot of it has frozen over!  However, the sun shone today and we had a lovely walk down through the fields and round the great ponds which will hopefully disappear before too long.

Back in October I mentioned that our working beardie collie had his girlfriend to stay while she was in season, and in early December she produced a litter of eight puppies who are now almost seven weeks old.  The plan was always for us to have a puppy from this litter and after several visits we have finally made our choice although we wont bring him home until next week.  There are three dogs in the litter and it was a difficult decision to make as they're all lovely puppies.  A friend in the village is taking one of the bitches and at the moment there are still two puppies available.   We have a few ideas about names, but we'll wait until he's here to decide what really suits him best.

   

mist and magazines......................

What gloomy, murky weather we're having!  A chilly, damp fog has descended and walking the dogs this afternoon was like wandering through a strange, quiet, bluey-grey world full of  blurred, ghostly shapes.   Another couple of inches of snow fell through the night but it's very soft and damp with the rise in temperature so at least walking is a bit easier. 

What better way to cheer up a gloomy afternoon than to escape into pile of lovely new magazines and that's just what I did!   Not that there weren't masses of other jobs to do, but  the lure of  the February issue of Country Living was too strong.  I've been reading Country Living since it first appeared in the mid 80's and I still have every issue.  They're stored in various boxes, bags and piles and some day I would like to file them in chronological order but  I can't see that happening anytime soon!  

I think the February CL is better than the last few issues.  I felt the magazine had been going through a rather stale phase but this is a very bright, interesting and inspiring issue.  The Emporium pages feature lots of interesting bits and pieces and there's also a very good piece on food fraud which is something we should all be aware of as it happens a lot more than we might think.  I'm particularly delighted to see that Diana Henry is to be their new, regular, food writer  as I love her books especially Crazy Water Pickled Lemons which is full of wonderful recipes.  There are also lovely crafts, marbled paper, fascinating interiors  and all the other usual features.

I started to buy Country Homes & Interiors regularly in late 2009 and I've been enjoying it ever since.  I particularly like the food writing and have discovered lots of lovely new recipes over the months.  The February issue features egg recipes including what sounds like a delicious goat's cheese and leek souffle.   There's an interesting article about glove makers in Somerset  and some clever ideas for making bird feed cones, bells, hearts and trays which look really pretty and would no doubt go down well with the birds!    There are also the usual  interiors features  and a lovely article about a collection of snowdrops in Kent. 

  

Persephone Books..................

I have just discovered The Persephone Catalogue, brought out by Persephone Books in London.  They specialise in reprints of novels, diaries, poetry and cookery books, mostly by women and mainly from the early to mid-twentieth century.   It just arrived in today's post and I haven't had time to study it carefully, but even after a quick flick through, I've spotted several titles which I'd like to read.  Throughout the catalogue there are photographs of beautiful vintage fabrics whose designs are reproduced in the endpapers of the books.  I will be placing an order very soon and for anyone else who's interested they can be found on  http://www.persephonebooks.co.uk/  The catalogue itself is a work of art and will probably be my bedtime reading for the next couple of nights! 

last minute sky...................

The temperature is dropping again!  Last night it fell to minus 12 and today has been bitterly cold.  It was a particularly dull, colourless day and when I took the dogs out this afternoon I almost didn't bother to take the camera with me.  Thankfully I did and was rewarded with this spectacular skyscape which just seemed to appear from nowhere!  We hadn't seen the sun all day but suddenly a warm glow built up in the south west and this lovely sky transformed the afternoon!

Meanwhile, to the east something similar was happening although less fiery.  It was like a reflection in blue and pink and was quite amazing!

First footing continues well into January around here and we tend to get all the routine jobs done by early afternoon so that we can set off and visit friends and neighbours to wish them a happy new year.   When first footing someone, you take something to eat, something to drink and something for the fire.  We set off with a basket of bottles, jars of chutney, fruit cake, shortbread and lumps of peat and quite often the fiddle and guitar  just in case there's the chance of a tune!   It's a lovely custom and we've had our share of first feet as well.  Long may it continue.



feasting sheep