This is for Janie from Hedgecombers - probably too late for her glut of bananas but may be useful for next time! I like Janie ended up with rather a lot of bananas one weekend when I had got a good deal at the market and my parents brought more when they came to stay. There is only so much banana loaf , banana and custard you can eat ! It doesn't help when one o he members of he family doesn't like them so isn't ale to help with the glut.
I resorted to the Internet and my jam making frenzy was taking control and I found this recipe( I think it came from an Autralian blogger called Mat) , I'm afraid it is in cups so many apologies:
1/4 cup lime juice or 1 medium lime ( I have used lemon juice same amount)
3 1/2 cups diced very ripe bananas
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Chop the banana and mix withe the lime juice. Add the sugar to the water in a saucepan and stir until dissolved and then bring the syrup to the boil. Add the banana and lame mixture to the syrup and heat over a low heat on a smoker . Add the cinnamon and cook for about 30 mins until it becomes thick. Then spoon into sterilised jars.

This is lovely on buttered toast or even as a filling for a cake. It is almost caramel like - sort of banoffee like . Yummy!

...when Christian is trying to crochet!

Evening all!

Just a quick update on life at Bramble Cottage.

Milo is doing well and I have had a few visitors this week.  He is interested at first, but soon wanders off when people ignore him.  Training is working slowly!  No growling or nipping in weeks!!

I have the window man coming on Friday, he has been warned!  I need a new bedroom window and don't want to put UPVC in the house.  Wooden double glazed windows cost the earth, but that is what I would like.  Will get the bedroom one done first as the curtains moving with the wind is freaking me out now!  2 needed in the kitchen and finally the spare room one day.

Cannot believe it is the 16th of May and I have the fire lit.  It's my Birthday in 3 days and it is always nice and sunny.  The cold weather has tempted me to relight Stanley the Rayburn, but I don't have loads of oil left and wanted to save a bit as it is supposed to be summer!  Will need to order more soon, as the price has dropped a bit.

I have now sold 8 boxes of eggs from the front door!  Business is booming! When the weather is better I might even put a few jars of jam outside.  You never know?

Elsbeth and Agnes are laying well, Pru a couple of times a week and Cornelia is clamped to the nest.  Still.  5 weeks that hen has been grumpy and fluffed up, with little concern for her house mates, as she barges them out of the way to get to dried mealworms and mixed corn.  She is in for a shock when she stops being broody.  I think the others are tolerating her mood swings as she is hormonal.  God help her when she snaps out of it!

Just back from a quick stroll round the field with Milo.  I have to say, when it is sunnyish and not raining, the eye candy and their dogs go walking!  A couple of very suitable attractions were out this evening!

Had another mini crochet lesson today, thanks to Jen at Beaker Button at the Weyhill Fairground.  I'm still incompetent when it comes to squares, can't seem to figure out what a corner is.  Slightly concerned by my lack of ability, but it'll all fall into place. Unfortunately, a new fabric shop has opened next door, so I can fuel my addiction within 45 seconds of the front door.  They even stock Moda fabrics, so if you don't see me for a while, I'll be hiding amongst bolts of fabric at The Fairground...........

Time to switch off the laptop and do some reading.  Am totally into the Game of Thrones series of books and cannot seem to find enough time to sit and read.  I no longer have Sky tv, so can't watch the latest series on the box.  Will have to wait for the dvds.

Night night everyone.

C x x

If you're wondering what I've been up to lately hop on over to Dashing Divas for my review of Cybher 2012.

Some people are just born clever and handy.  These are the people who don’t fear the sound of power tools or those long, scary aisles of bits and pieces in the hardware store. They have DIY in their DNA. Others of us need a little hand-holding, a kindly pep talk and a wee bit of a [...]

Things at home have become quite disorganised and this has spread into my blogging. I have been thinking about this  and as far as blogging goes I will try each week to give a top tip on Tuesdays. The tip can be on anything , so I will have to search far and wide for them!

My younger daughter has turned vegetarian and hope to share some of my recipes that we are trying with you on a Friday and this will be called Foody friday- I will of course be sharing non- vegetarian recipes with you too !

  So to my first Top Tip - I have Fiona from the Cottage Smallholder to thanks for this one. In one of her blogs she mentioned how difficult it is to remove glue from some jam jars. In my experience it always seems to be the jars that are most ideal for the job or are the prettiest ones!  

In the past I had developed a system that involved lots of hot water, lots of washing up liquid, an old fashioned metal pad and a humungous amount of effort . This did improve things somewhat but wasn't entirely satisfactory. And then Fiona put up her post!!!!!!!  and all it involves is that magical WD40!

I had a play yesterday as I had the perfect jar- it had contained thai curry paste. It was ideal as I  managed to remove most of the label  in hot water but the glue remained attached and very tacky.  This is the jar after the label was removed but still tacky:

This is the photo after I had used some WD40 on an area:



and  dadaaaa- this is the final result- a clean glass with out too much rubbing. 



As I was working I kept thinking that it wasn't working and  then very quickly the results became apparent. Thank goodness for WD40 and Fiona from the Cottage Smallholder !!

I must start with an a apology, I haven’t blogged as much the last few weeks, I am in the process of moving jobs, to a much larger kitchen within the same company and this is putting a big demand on me at present so my allotment time has been short and sweet.
But that said all its done is rain, rain, rain and when we did get a spell of good weather like over the weekend just gone I was working!! Typical.
I have so many tender plants sitting in the green house and cold frames waiting to go in up the allotment but the temperatures haven’t been warm enough to risk planning them out, I don’t want to lose any of my plants they are all looking really healthy and strong.
Today is my only chance I think I will get to get down the allotment but as I type it’s starting to spit with rain outside and the forecast for later is rain so I may not get the chance anyway.
It’s been a very frustrating year so far for the allotment march promised so much but all downhill from there. I have never know a May as cold as what we are having at present, nothing wants to grow most plants seem “frozen in time” ready to burst into life at the first sign of sun.  so lets all hope that it shows its face sometime soon!

I had my Mother’s Day breakfast outside this morning in the potager. My gardening companion was one of my Papillon babies, Sophie. The company was charming and the view was beautiful. Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there.   Click on photos to embiggen.  

The winner of my giveaway lavender bag is ..........


Drawn by my son and the name is......



Janie from Hedgecombers- so well done Janie- I will need an address!

Thank goodness the rain has stopped for a little while at least. Fred our cat was on our back doorstep this morning, sunning himself on the door mat. Typically he moved as soon as I headed for the camera but here's a photo of him in a less sunny place.




 Th epatio is north facing and has got so slippery over the past week. It will do it good to have the sun on it for a while. I think today will be spent in the garden. What are you going to do today?

Welcome back to Hen Corner! What a week!  We’re excited about hatching new chicks, we’re worried about our bees and we’re expecting another schools visit but let’s begin with another film in our series ‘Ten Top Tips for Keeping Chicks’: By subscribing (box right) you’ll never miss a thing! Cluck, cluck, oops… Probably a bit [...]

Condensation in run(I initially started this post back in December 2011, but realized I had not finished it.)  The weather turned colder on Friday night and Saturday last.  However, I've been checking and you wouldn't think it, but the light bulb in the clay pot is putting out enough heat to keep it from freezing inside.  The entire outfit is staying warmer as is evidenced by the condensation inside of the plastic of the run.
Sand box for dust bathing
We needed to give the hens a means to be able to dust bathe, since we filled the run with wood shavings.  So, we took a plastic bin, cut it down, and filled it with sand.  They took to it very well.  However, it quickly became full of wood shavings and chicken droppings.  This setup worked very well - even when the temperatures fell below zero (Fahrenheit).  The last picture shows the run with the straw bales surrounding it.

omlet: We've gone a 'brit' mad with our product selection recently! http://t.co/K2YObLk9

omlet: Setting up the stand at @LondonPetShow today, ready to show off our products, including the brand new @hungrybin ... better get a wriggle on

omlet: RT @HenCorner: #HatchingLive Great idea! Check out our latest vlogs for @HenCorner at http://t.co/Nck1DhjX @Digitizemenow @alex_heare @ ...

At this time of year it is hard to find some fresh crops to eat - April and early May are not called Hungry Gap months for nothing! Leeks, Parsnips, Potatoes, Cabbages and some other brassicas etc are coming to the end of their life, stored veg begins to sprout/soften/go off and sometimes it is nice to have something fresh and green, rather than root or stored veg.

I grow some Kales and Purple Sprouting Broccoli, some outside and a also few plants inside the polytunnel for when the weather is really foul and I can't face harvesting from the outside veg patch.

All of these can be sown now, to harvest either soon ish or in the winter months.

Stuff I grow which I am still harvesting

Asparagus Kale, from the Heritage Seed Library (HSL) . Soft buttery flavoured leaves which I like to nibble on, raw, straight from the plant. Wonderful picked and cooked immediately.



Nero de Toscana Kale - ditto slightly stronger flavour and an interesting , crinkled texture.



Purple Sprouting Broccoli - I have 8 outside plants, started harvesting the shoots in Feb and have finally just finished picking the last crop of shoots!



The hens get the tough leaves, still attached to the stems, to nibble on - finally they are allowed to eat it!

 

 

Broccoli Raab, I am growing 40, 60 and 90- day varieties from MoreVeg seeds and the 40 day variety is ready in the polytunnel now - I have sown more as we are eating the first lot I sowed in March. Another plant I eat raw when in the polytunnel. A spicy version of Purple Sprouting Broccoli I think, but not as strong flavoured as Mustard Greens - something else I grow as a salad leaf.



I still have a thriving patch of Perpetual Spinach which I planted seed for last April, the plants are still going strong and giving me lots of tasty leaves.

We are also now eating Rocket, Mizuma, Mustard greens and Asparagus Lettuce (seeds from HSL)   Again an early planting in the polytunnel but you could grow them on a windowsill inside and get good, early crops.

Something I am very pleased about this year is my sucess at growing Watercress "Aqua" - never tried this before as I thought it needed clean flowing water ( like the watercress beds in Hertfordshire near where I grew up as a child) but no! you CAN grow it in a pot! and it is lovely!



Some of these can be grown on a windowsill or in a conservatory, even if you do not have a greenhouse or polytunnel - so why not try something new this year?

omlet: We have had our first customer photo of the @hungrybin in use. See - worms make everyone happy! http://t.co/5L9ih93n

omlet: RT @WChickCoop: @omlet spread the word about our #chickensinthecommunity project. Chickens for nursing homes and schools

Here are a couple of videos of Titch the rescue hen helping me out in the polytunnel.

omlet: @RickyChickens What eggstraordinary girls you are! The Omlet Fairy would love to deliver you some Mealworms. Email stephanie@omlet.co.uk !

omlet: @Daisybumble You're welcome Bluebell and Florence. And might we say how fine you're looking today!

omlet: RT @hungrybin: @hello_im_megan I'm so sorry I didn't hear your tweets, In the UK visiting @omlet, surrounded by thousands of twittering ...