Motivation.......

............ is making someone happy.

My daughter's really enjoy my loganberry jam so as I had frozen my crop this year and still had some in the freezer from last year I decided that if I thawed them I would have to get myself in jam making mode!

When I combined all the fruit it actually wasn't that much 4lbs 6oz but I knew this would make a few jars. One of the reasons they like this jam is because I do not use the recommended amount of sugar (always put less-guess work) so the jam is slightly tart. I don't know about you but I really do not like the overly-sweet shop bought jam.

mashing the loganberries

One thing I don't like is the messy hob where the boiling jam splatters!

End result

Well it only made seven pots but I'm sure that will make my girls happy!!!

Five a Day!!!!!

As I was preparing myself this naughty little snack at lunchtime; I wondered if I could justify it by counting  the fruit bread and Beccy's delicious raspberry jam as one of my five a day...LOL... what do you think!!!!!!

Very Long Time Away--Garden Produce

I keep starting post and then I get distracted!!!

In fact this one was started several weeks ago (originally saved on July 19th) after I was inspired by the amount of produce we are managing to get from the various planters we are using in our non-existent garden.
Our back garden really is a yard as some of you may remember from those long ago Fun Monday posts when we put our homes and gardens on show.

We had another good crop of Loganberries from just one vine and I made around fifteen pots of jam. Now this might not seem like many to most of you; but much as I love it I don't want to eat too much jam, so Beccy took a few pots back to Dublin and I am saving some for Sam when I visit San Francisco in October.

All the potatoes are grown in a bag or plastic pots and if you haven't tasted new potatoes freshly dug and cooked then topped with a little butter and parsley you have missed a treat!

We have been eating runner and french beans for the last couple of weeks it's wonderful to have such fresh veg.

After a poor start (due to weather) we had a good crop of rhubarb and one of the things I used it for was Rhubarb Crumble Muffins. I found the recipe in one of the Sunday Mags and although I say it myself they were delicious.

After last year's disaster we used a plastic frame to cover the tomatoes and Embee created a watering system which seems to have worked perfectly. The first ones we picked were eaten by my grandson.

Below I am picking them quicker than we can eat them!

This is the first year we have grown beet; only one row but I have already given quite a few away ad Embee likes them hot as well with salads. I've still got to cook and bottle some for the winter.

Last year we produced enough onions to use throughout the winter. This year I asked for some red ones as well as white and they are currently drying out-well I have used a couple already!

The first carrots we picked were very poor standard they had been eaten by carrot fly (or some bug-you can tell I'm no gardener). However these later ones are a good size and no sign of being eaten. I love raw carrots.

Cabbage is another veg we are trying this year and I'm using one of these for dinner this evening. I can hear both my girls groaning they do not like beans,beets or cabbage. If they get to read this I'm sure there will be comments about boiled cabbage!

Not sure why but I didn't take any pictures of my Blueberry bushes (I have 4) and they also produced a good crop- have been having some on my muesli every morning for breakfast for past couple of months. They are coming to an end so must make the most of the ones currently ripening.

Hope you enjoyed this little trip around veggie plots.

Jam Disaster!!

Having bought just over three pounds of cranberries for just over £1.00 I thought I was going to make some Cranberry Jam. I found a recipe on the internet but sadly for me it didn't work well and the jam wouldn't set properly.

Embee very kindly went off to the supermarket to get me some liquid pectin. I ended up using the whole bottle and it still, in my opinion, remained too runny. I decided to bottle it and let it cool and see what it's like tomorrow.

After advice from friends on FB I might even try boiling it up again tomorrow. The stupid thing is that if my memory was better I could have used a very good recipe from Barbara and I would have ended up with good jam instead of the goo in the jars above.

Anyone fancy some tasty cranberry sauce! I think it would go very well with vanilla icecream, I might even try this tomorrow!!

Archives:
2009: Fun Monday-99 2nd Anniversary
2008: Crouching Spider Sculpture
2007: Pink Saucepans

Loganberry Jam

Today I picked a couple of pounds of loganberries (from our garden) and on the spur of the moment decided to make some jam. Where does one go to get a recipe...why google of course and I was spoiled for choice. They were all very similar so I opted for one that came from 'Old Australian Food Recipes' mainly because it was so simple.

Loganberry Jam:

Ingredients:
1 1b. loganberries,
1 1b. sugar (I used a few ounces less sugar as I didn't want it too sweet)

Method:
Pick berries over, removing any stalks, weigh, then wash very gently, place in preserving pan, crushing a few to draw sufficient juice before cooking, bring slowly to boil and cook 10 to 15 minutes, add sugar, boil rapidly till a little will set when tested on a saucer, pour into hot jars and seal.

I did actually over cook it because I was chatting to my daughter on the phone but it still tasted just fine to me.

Archives:
2008: Postcard from the Algarve
2007: I'm off on holiday today + Witty Wednesday-11

Fun Monday # 69 I own up to making it !!!

Karisma is our host this week and as she says here are....

"Da Rules.....

Well there are not any really! But you know, we all know that you made your kids so lets NOT choose them this time. (After all you did not make them with your hands or feet did you?)

And for those of you who are freaking out because you make "everything" with your hands, how about you just choose a few of your favourites!)

Those of you who are freaking out because "You never make things with your hands". Get off your lazy butt and make something! You have four days.....now get to it! (You could always bake a cake!) The possibilities are endless!"

Possibilities might be endless for those with nimble hands or feet, so I entered not having a clue what I was going to show you.... but wait a minute didn't we do something like this before..... Fun Monday # 19 was about craft and I showed you a few dance costumes and things I have kept over the years. So if you weren't a devotee of FM back then the link will show you a few things I made in the past and have kept.

I thought I had better add something new....so...the only thing I've made recently (actually on Friday) is some Rhubarb and Strawberry Jam and it was a bit of a disaster because I don't think it set as well as it should have done.
The rhubarb came from our garden and the Strawberries were bought at a local market and came from Cheddar.
It was also rather sweet for me but my mother tried it and she said it was delicious, so I guess it won't be wasted!
I'm not posting the recipe as I wouldn't want to pass on something that I'm not too happy about!

I know this is not what Karisma had in mind, but she did say the possibilities were endless....

so I also MADE A COCK-UP of the printer programme on the computer. We have two computers sharing the same printer. On Friday for some reason the printer wasn't working from my computer. So the jobs were stacking up and I thought I was cancelling them but this action didn't seem to work, instead it stopped the printer. Next I tried re-setting it, however I couldn't work out how to do this properly and somehow I completely knocked out the printer on both machines. I feel very frustrated that I cannot sort it out myself. I am going to have to get someone who knows about Macs to help me out~I bet a call out fee will be costly and I can't wait until my son-in-law visits in August. So at the moment there's no light at the end of my tunnel.....
That's me done folks, sorry it's not a very inspiring post but that means you can quickly skip past me to the real talent, I'm on my way see you soon!

Archives:
2007: Is advertising sexist + Altered Images