Yesterday was very windy, and some emergency plant support measures became necessary. Luckily there was only one casualty, a courgette plant that got decapitated when the stake it was tied to blew over. Peas and potatoes and sunflowers got battered about a bit, but they'll survive.
Today the new little purple-podded pea and pole bean plants got planted out, in containers because there's literally no room in the raised beds. One of the containers is an old plastic storage box with holes in the bottom. (Gotta love recycling!)
After deciding that liqueur making sounded fun, I raided the 'net for recipes and started off 4 different liqueurs - lemon, lavender, kiwi and lemon cream. Some more will happen as soon as I buy more vodka. It really is easy, just soak fruit in vodka for however long, add sugar syrup and strain and bottle and keep for a while, then drink. The lemon cream is very quick - it's in the freezer right now and it's really good - I found the recipe here.
Next step is to start making wine again too. I've started off some ginger beer. No, it's really not all Famous Five, this is serious stuff at about 5% alcohol (10% proof). If Julian, Dick (snigger), George, Anne and Timmy had been on this ginger beer I think the books might have been a little different... something like Five go to Al-Anon or Five wait for 7 hours in A&E after some drunken snooping goes horrible wrong. Or something.
Here's what I've harvested from the garden so far...
* Salad leaves
* Mangetout peas (just a handful today)
* Carrots (finger sized baby ones, because they needed thinning, plus baby carrots = so good)
* Oriental veg mix (eaten in a stir fry today)
* Spinach/leaf beet/chard
Potatoes and dwarf beans are in flower, and tiny courgettes, pumpkins, cucumbers and French beans are appearing. Also the tomatoes have buds.
I'm tired and need to sleep.
The humble Mallard
1 day ago
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Laughing so hard I choked on a glass of water about "Five wait for 7 hours in A&E after some drunken snooping goes horrible wrong".
ReplyDeleteWe have amassed vodka as my family, still, after multiple tellings off, believe Ed loves it. I'll probably give the booze recipes a go this weekend and use some (maybe 5%) of it up!
Are you up for some over the summer casual singing if we can get it going?
x
Yeah, definitely! I miss singing, and I'm really not motivated enough to do any on my own. Last year I really noticed I hadn't sung for ages when we started again in October.
ReplyDeleteSome good alcohol recipes here and here, if you want them. You can make schnapps into a sweeter liqueur by adding, well, sugar syrup, if you want to. Easy and tasty.