Autumn

Slow cooker curried apple chutney (naturally gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan)

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Jar_of_homemade_slow_cooker_curried_apple_chutney
Sweet and spicy homemade chutney. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. I hope you are keeping well and enjoying the colours of Autumn. It’s remained quite dry here in central Scotland and the trees are looking very colourful around and about. Everywhere I look, it really has been a bumper year fruit especially plums and apples in my garden. The old apple tree produced yet another bountiful crop of some 70kg! Now that the harvest is in, it’s enjoying a well earned rest I’m sure.

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A tree full of apples. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Harvest gathered, this year’s bumper crop of cooking apples. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

We did a lot of the apples away this year as there were far too many to cook up or freeze down. But I still have a box full to work through and one of the first things to make was some apple chutney. I made this batch in the slow cooker. It’s very easy to make and tastes delicious. One slight difference to this slow cooker recipe is that it uses less vinegar and sugar than traditional recipe so the chutney does need to be stored in the fridge.

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Curried apple chutney ingredients. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Makes: approx. 1.2kg

Ingredients

  • 300g prepared red or white onions, chopped
  • 15g peeled root ginger, grated
  • 10g peeled garlic, grated
  • 750g prepared cooking apples, chopped
  • 125ml cider or white wine vinegar
  • 1tbsp medium curry powder
  • 100g sultanas
  • 200g Demerara sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt

1. Put the onion, ginger, garlic and apples in the slow cooker. Pour over the vinegar, mix well, cover with the lid and cook on High for 4 hours.

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Apple chutney preparation. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

2. Stir in the remaining ingredients, cover and cook for 30 minutes longer to dissolve the sugar. After this time, remove the lid and if the mixture looks watery, leave the chutney to cook without the lid on for up to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until thick and jam-like.

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The 4 stages of slow cooker chutney. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

3. Leave to cool completely then pack into clean jars, seal tightly and store in the fridge for up to 3 months. It’s ready to eat immediately and doesn’t need to mature. Great news for the impatient preserve-makers amongst us 🙂

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A spoonful of homemade chutney. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

This chutney makes a great alternative to mango chutney with and Indian meal as well as a delicious finishing touch to a sandwich.

That’s me for another month. Enjoy the rest of the season and I’ll see you again next month when winter will be upon us. Until then, take care and thanks for stopping by.

Slow cooker tomato sauce (naturally gluten-free; dairy-free; vegan)

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Slow-cooker_tomato_sauce
Easy to make, slow cooker tomato sauce. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. It’s that time of year when there is so much produce ready at the same time. My fridge is groaning with vegetables and fruit, and I really need to get down to some serious recipe/meal planning and freezing.

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Tomato glut. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

When life gets in the way and time is tight, I am thankful for the slow cooker. This marvellous gadget gets on with the cooking while I do something else. I used to always make batches of tomato sauce on the stove top – here’s a previous recipe post for this method Home-grown tomatoes – recipe for fresh tomato sauce, a salsa, plus other serving suggestions (gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan) but this year I popped everything in the slow cooker and let the pot do the cooking.

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4 saucy steps. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

For a simple tomato sauce, put 1.5kg washed and chopped fresh tomatoes in the slow cooker with 2 peeled and sliced medium carrots. Add a peeled and chopped large onion and 4 peeled and halved garlic cloves. I seasoned the mix with 2 teaspoons celery salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and 4 teaspoons caster sugar. Add a couple of bay leaves and drizzle over 3 tablespoons olive oil. Mix well, cover with the lid and switch to the High setting. Leave to cook for 4 to 5 hours, until completely soft.

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Blitz and freeze. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Discard the bay leaves and blitz with a hand blender then leave to cool before packing into freezer containers. This quantity will make around 1.75kg sauce. It will keep in the fridge for about 5 days, and in the freezer for 6 months or so.

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Reduced and thickened slow cooker tomato sauce. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

The sauce is quite thin which is fine for some recipes but if you want it thicker, transfer a few ladles of sauce to a deep frying pan, drizzle with a little olive oil, bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is thickened to you liking.

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Using homemade tomato sauce. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Thinner sauce is perfect for soups and risotto stocks, whilst thicker sauce clings better to pasta shapes or can be used as a spread for tarts and pizza bases.

That’s all for this post. I hope you are enjoying some good weather and fine homegrown produce. Until next time, thanks for stopping by 🙂

Slow cooker spiced green tomato chutney (naturally gluten-free; dairy-free; vegan)

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Jars_of_slow_cooker_spiced_green_tomato_chutney
Last of the Autumn produce preserved. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello there. When I planned to make this chutney a couple of weeks ago, it was very much still Autumn. I picked off the last of the tomatoes and put the greenhouse to bed during a lovely sunny afternoon. I was going to call the chutney “End of Autumn”.

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Last of the greenhouse tomatoes, mid-November 2024. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

However, when I came to make the chutney last weekend, snow was falling very heavily and suddenly we were in winter. And so I thought “Change of Season” chutney would be more appropriate 🙂

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November snowy garden. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

I made the chutney in my slow cooker. It is ready to eat as soon as it cools and tastes delicious. I used up the last of this year’s apple harvest along with some black-skinned tomatoes that I had frozen down a few weeks ago. The spices I used give a mild curry flavour but you can change them if you prefer – cinnamon, cumin and coriander for a more earthy flavour would work well.

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Slow cooker chutney ingredients. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

If you haven’t made a preserve in your slow cooker before, the technique is slightly different in that you can’t boil the preserve down like you would in a saucepan on the stove. The chutney is also cooled before putting in jars, and as such needs to be kept in the fridge. It will however keep for a few weeks or can be frozen for longer term storage.

Makes: approx. 1kg

Ingredients

  • 400g green tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 medium onions, peeled and chopped (about 180g prepared weight)
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
  • 2 sticks celery, trimmed and chopped (about 110g prepared weight)
  • 2 large cooking apples, peeled and chopped (about 300g prepared weight)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 100ml cider vinegar
  • 75g sultanas or chopped dried apricots
  • 2tsp garam masala
  • 1tsp each nigella seeds, turmeric and salt
  • 150g demerara or light brown sugar (or you can use granulated white sugar)

1. Put all the vegetables in the slow cooker with the bay leaves and mix well. Pour over the vinegar, cover with the lid and cook on High for 4 hours.

2. Add the remaining ingredients, mix well, re-cover and cook for 30 minutes to dissolve the sugar.

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Slow cooking and seasoning chutney. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

3. Remove the lid, stir well and cook uncovered for a further 2 hours, stirring occasionally until reduced down and jam-like.

4. Switch off the cooker and leave the chutney to cool completely. Discard the bay leaves and spoon into clean jars. Seal, label and store in the fridge for up to 3 months. Once opened, use within a month. Alternatively, freeze the chutney in containers and defrost when required.

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Reducing the chutney down ready for storing. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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A sweet and spicy spoonful. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

That’s me for another month. I have one more post before Christmas, so until then take care and keep warm 🙂

Chocolate brownie candle cake (gluten-free; dairy-free; vegan)

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Chocolate_brownie_candle_cake_for_Halloween
Spooktacular cake. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

It’s almost the most spookiest time of the year, and to celebrate, I thought this recipe would make the perfect treat if you’re entertaining on 31st October. Layers of chocolate brownie mixture covered in marzipan, you could also serve it up as part of an edible table decoration for Christmas or New Year.

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The big chocolaty reveal. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

If you like the idea but time is short, you can use rounds of a readymade chocolate cake or chocolate Swiss roll. The brownie recipe alone is rich and delicious and makes a great bake by itself if you don’t want to make the candle. Time to bring on the cake recipe, I hope you like it 🙂

Serves: 8

Ingredients

  • 100g free-from dark or plain chocolate
  • 100g lightly salted plant butter
  • 7tsp ground flax seed
  • 125g caster sugar
  • 1tsp natural vanilla extract
  • 125g gluten-free plain flour blend
  • ¼tsp xanthan gum
  • 75g free-from chocolate frosting or apricot jam, softened
  • 200g natural marzipan
  • 50g free-from white chocolate
  • 1 x tea-light candle

1. Grease and line an 18cm straight sided square cake tin. Melt the plain chocolate and butter together over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Remove from the water and leave to cool for 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, mix the ground flax seed with 110ml cold water and leave to stand for a few minutes until thickened. Preheat the oven to 180°C, 160°C fan, gas mark 4.

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Preparing the ingredients for chocolate brownie. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

3. Stir the sugar and vanilla into the warm chocolate mixture, then mix in the flax “egg”. Add the flour and xanthan gum and mix well.

4. Spoon into the prepared tin and bake for about 45 minutes until the top looks papery and shiny and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin before removing.

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Making and baking the brownie mix. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

5. Use an 8 to 8.5cm round cookie cutter to cut out 4 neat rounds from the brownie square. Use a small round cutter the same size as the tea-light candle holder (approx.3.5cm) and cut out the centre from one round. Keep the trimmings to make truffles or cake pops.

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Cutting brownie rounds. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

6. Spread a little frosting or jam on each round and stack them neatly on top of each other, putting the cut out round on top.

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Assembling the candle. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

7. Measure the height and circumference of the brownie stack. My cake was 9.5cm tall, and 27cm round the middle.

8. Knead the marzipan to make it more pliable, then roll out to a thickness of about 0.5cm and a little larger than the cake dimensions, then trim to the size of your cake. Gather up the marzipan trimmings, re-roll and cut out a ring of marzipan using the same cutters as before, to fit the top of the cake.

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Covering brownie with marzipan. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

9. Spread the outside of the cake with a little more frosting or jam, then lay the cake on the marzipan and roll it up so that it is completely covered. Stand the cake upright and smooth the ends together. Spread the top with remaining frosting or jam and place the marzipan ring on top. Pop the candle holder inside. If the marzipan is a bit uneven, gently roll the cake back and forth on the work top to smooth.

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Covering the brownie. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

10. Melt the white chocolate. Put the candle into the holder and carefully spoon warm chocolate round the top of the cake, letting it drip down the sides to resemble melting wax. Try and keep the edge of the candle holder free from chocolate so that you are able to remove it with ease when you want to slice the cake. Leave the cake in a cool place to set. To serve, put the cake on a heat resistant plate and light the candle.

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White chocolate candle wax. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Cosy candle cake light. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

When you are ready to cut the cake, extinguish the flame and carefully remove the candle holder, remembering that the candle wax will be very hot – I used a pair of tweezers to grip the candle holder for easy removal. Cut the cake in half and then into smaller portions.

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Brownie candle close-up. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

If you are celebrating this Hallowe’en, I hope you have a great time. I look forward to sharing some exciting news in my next post early in November. Until then, stay safe 😉

October’s fine harvest

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Scottish_garden_cooking_apple_harvest
Another bumper year from the old apple tree. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. Well, that’s just about everything edible in from the garden for another year. It was a fine bright day yesterday, perfect weather for apple and pear picking. What a bumper harvest this year: 35kg apples and 10kg pears – woo hoo!

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This year’s Concorde and Comice pear harvest. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

I’m glad to report on the back of last month’s post, there have been runner beans to enjoy at last. I picked off the last of them yesterday and took the plants down. As I type, the weather has become very stormy and I am pretty sure that the beans wouldn’t have survived a pounding from gale force winds.

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Runner beans at last! Images: Kathryn Hawkins

In the greenhouse, some plants are shutting down like the French beans, cucumber and tomatoes. There are a few tomatoes left on the vines to ripen, but I was pleased with this basket full. The baby sweetcorn I planted (almost too) late is also about ready to pick.

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Last of the runner beans. Image: Kathryn Hawkins
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The sweetcorn fairies are coming. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Looking forward to next spring, the potted mimosa plant is doing well in the greenhouse and has set lots of flower buds. Now all I need to do is keep it from the harm of a potentially very cold Scottish winter.

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A hint of spring. Mimosa flower buds. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Outside the garden is alive with beautiful colours of the Japanese maple and Autumn crocuses.

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Glorious Autumnal shades. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Sunny Autumn crocus. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

The deliciously scented pink rose is out flowering again. Such a heady aroma when you catch the scent in the air.

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In the pink in October. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

I’ll end my post with a nod to the next season. I’ve been working on Christmas projects for a few weeks already but in the garden the holly trees are bursting with berries this year. Some would say that this means we’re in for a cold winter, but I’d prefer to believe that it simply means that this year has given the trees just the right growing conditions to produce a huge amount of fruit. We’ll see…..fingers crossed I’m right.

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Bursting with berries. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

I’ll be back recipe posting in a few days, something suitably spooky for Hallowe’en. Until then, thanks for stopping by.

A September garden tale

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Concorde_pear_tree_Scotland_September_2024
End of September and the pears are almost ready for harvest. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello there. It’s nearly the beginning of a new month, and Autumn will soon be in full swing. September has been a pretty dry month here in central Scotland, unlike other parts of the UK. So dry in fact that the water butt is almost empty which is almost unheard of at this time of year. But no doubt Mother Nature will make up for it next month and you’ll be reading about it in my next garden post!

The day and night temperatures have lowered as the month has gone on. A few days ago, it was gloriously sunny and warm, and the sunflowers and rose opened up in response.

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Sunshiny flowers. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

In the greenhouse, the Cobra French beans are still producing flowers and juicy green beans. Such a tasty treat.

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A very beany harvest. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

And so to my tale. I was late planting runner beans this year and ended up leaving them in the greenhouse in large pots for quite some time. In mid August, the beans were failing to pollinate behind glass, I carefully moved them outside. After a few days of warm sunshine, regular watering and some feed, the beans started to form and began to develop very quickly. So pleased was I, I had a whole post planned on how to successfully grown runner beans late into the season.

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Late starting runner beans. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Then, early one morning in the middle of this month………

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Deer oh deer! Images: Kathryn Hawkins

……this is what I woke up to! And here’s the culprit. Now a frequent visitor, he/she has also taken a liking to Salal berries (amongst many other plants!). I’m not too bothered about the berries as they are very hardy, but, the beans, I could have cried!

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Bean and berry eating Bambi. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Bambi-proof, fleeced beans. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

After some hasty fleece wrapping, a few days on, the beans seem to be thriving again. The foliage and beans further up the stems were undamaged, and this is how they look this weekend; I may get to taste homegrown runner beans after all this year 🙂

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Beans in recovery. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Another garden visitor who does no damage, is this delightful Robin who has started singing his heart out most days in the holly tree. Not the greatest of photos, but his song is an absolute delight to hear, and it is so loud!

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Singing his heart out. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

I’m ending my post this week with an image of a radiant September sunset I captured this week. No sooner had I taken this picture, than the colours faded and it became dark very quickly. It was a glorious sight for a few short minutes at the end of a busy day. Until next month, thanks for reading my post. Best wishes 🙂

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Scottish September sunset. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Making Victoria plum jam, and a recipe for almondy plum pudding (gluten-free; dairy-free; vegan)

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Homemade_Scottish_Victoria_plum_jam_September_2024
Just jammy. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. The sunshine here in central Scotland last weekend helped ripen off the Victoria plums on the small tree in the garden. And this year, I managed to get them picked before the wasps moved in:)

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This year’s Victoria plum harvest. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Not a bad haul, and there are still a few left on the tree for later in the month. I’ll admit that plums are not my favourite fruit but they do make a lovely jam, and are also delicious flavoured and baked with almonds. Hence, my two recipes this week.

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Simply plum jam. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

The jam recipe is very straightforward, just 2 ingredients, fruit and sugar. Victoria plums, if not too ripe, set well without needing to add lemon juice to the mix. If the plums are very ripe, then add 1tbsp juice per 500g fruit.

Makes: approx. 1.5kg

Ingredients

  • 1kg ripe Victoria plums
  • Approx. 850g granulated sugar

1. Wash the plums then cut them in half and prise out the stones. Put the stones to one side, and weigh the prepared fruit and make a note. You should use the same amount of sugar to fruit. If the plums are too firm to cut cleanly in half, you can cook them whole and then remove the stones once the fruit has softened – it is worth counting the whole plums before you cook them so that you know how many stones to fish for!

2. Put the stones on a piece of muslin. Gather up the sides and then bash with a rolling pin to crush the stones. Tie the muslin tightly to secure the crushed stones inside. You don’t have to do this, but I think the jam has better flavour and setting qualities if you add the stones.

3. Put the plums in a large saucepan. If they are ripe, you don’t need to add any water. If they are firm, add about 100ml. Heat until steaming, add the muslin bag, then cover with a lid and cook gently until very soft. If you’ve cooked whole plums, now is the time to do a little stone fishing.

4. Add the quantity of sugar to match the weight of the prepared fruit, and stir until dissolved, then raise the heat and boil rapidly until setting point is reached – around 104 to 105°C on a jam thermometer. Squeeze out the juices from muslin bag and discard, and stir the jam to distribute the fruit pieces before packing into clean jars and sealing whilst hot.

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Making plum jam. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Easy peasy jam pot covers. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

For a simple finishing touch, if you are thinking about gifting some of your jam, I often cut out rounds of paper napkin to cover the jar lids. Use a saucer or plate a few centimetres larger than the lid and draw round using a pencil. Secure the covers in place with a small rubber band and then tie with string or ribbon. Don’t forget the label.

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Plum pudding perfection. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

My second plummy recipe is also very easy to make. You’ll need 850g plums and a dish about 1.7l in capacity. The bake will serve about 6 people.

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Victoria plums, ripe and ready for pudding. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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How to make almond plum pudding. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

1. Wash and stone the plums as for jam, but discard the stones this time. Put two thirds of the prepared fruit in the dish and put to one side while you make the topping.

2. Mix 3tbsp ground flax seed with 135ml water and leave for a few minutes until thickened.

3. Whisk together 155g lightly salted, soft plant butter with 155g caster sugar, 155g ground almonds, 30g gluten-free plain flour and 1tsp almond extract until well blended and creamy. Stir in the flax egg and whisk to make a smooth cake batter.

4. Spoon over the plums in the dish and smooth the top. Push the remaining plums into the mixture on top and sprinkle with a few flaked almonds. Pop the dish on a baking tray and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C, 160°C fan, gas 4, for about 1hour 15 minutes until firm to the touch and golden. Best served hot with custard.

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Ready for custard. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

If you have any leftover jam, add a layer in the bottom of the dish for extra sweetness.

Until next time, enjoy the autumn colours and I’ll hope to see you again in a couple of weeks or so.

It’s beginning to feel a bit like Autumn….

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Scottish_garden_plum_and_pear_trees_ August_2024
A promising harvest awaits. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. It certainly feels like the season is beginning to change here in central Scotland. The daylight hours are shortening and there is a distinct nip in the early morning and late evening air.

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Ripening orchard fruit. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Really happy to see so much fruit on the pear, apple and plum trees this year. It must have been all the rain we have had. Not long to wait until the picking starts 🙂 I have already harvested a few potatoes, and a few greenhouse tomatoes and French beans. Such a treat, and there is plenty more to come.

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Garden and greenhouse treasures. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Around the garden, there are still some signs of Summer like the orange lupin flowering for the third time, and such a large bloom. Usually the second and third flowers are small, but this one is a real beauty.

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Late Summer flowering Crocosmia and a late blooming Lupin. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Lovely Lacecap Hydrangea. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

And the bees are still very busy, especially around the Echinops and Golden Rod.

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Busy bees in the sunshine. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

But you know the season is changing when the first Autumn crocus emerges in a darker corner of the garden, and the late flowering heathers are in full flower.

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Delicate lilac crocus blooms. Images: Kathryn Hawkins
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Scottish Autumn heathers. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

A few nights ago, as the daylight was fading, a new visitor came up the driveway and started tucking into the fallen sunflower seeds from the bird feeder. He/she stood on their hindlegs to reach a few seeds caught on the stone wall. You’ll see it is quite a chunky fellow, and is obviously finding enough food to keep its strength up:) The other image is of a magnificent Peacock butterfly absorbing the warmth from the sandstone wall outside my office the other day. What a beauty.

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Night and day time visitors. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

My final images this month are of the Rowan tree in the back garden which has been quite bereft of berries for several years. This year it is laden, and so much so that they are beginning to fall to the ground before the birds have started to eat them!

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Ripe Rowan berries. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

That’s me for another month. See you in September! Thanks and best wishes until then.

Aromatic and spiced, slow-cooker quince (naturally gluten-free; dairy-free; vegan)

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Gold_serving_bowl_of_freshly_cooked_slow-cooker_spiced_quince
Slow-cooker spiced quince. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello again. It’s officially the time of year when the slow-cooker is permanently on the work top in my kitchen. With daylight hours becoming fewer and the temperature getting lower and lower, in my mind, “comfort food” is an important aid to get me through the next few months.

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Golden quince. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

I’ve been saving these beautiful quince for a few weeks, making sure they are perfectly ripe for maximum flavour and aroma before I cook them. I chose a selection of my favourite aromatics to add to a sugar syrup: rose water, lemon, vanilla and cinnamon, all perfect companions for this fabulous autumn fruit.

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Fresh qunice and flavourings. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

This is a very straightforward recipe for the slow-cooker. Once the quince are prepared it’s just a case of making the syrup to pour over. When the cooking is done, I reduced the cooking juices down to make a more intensely flavoured syrup to pour back over the fruit. If you don’t have quince, try using slightly under-ripe pears instead.

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

  • 750g ripe quince
  • 1 unwaxed lemon
  • 1 cinnamon stick, split
  • 1 vanilla pod, split
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 2tbsp carob or maple syrup
  • Rosewater to taste
  • Pistachios and pomegranate seeds to sprinkle

1.Using a vegetable peeler, carefully peel away the outer lemon zest without taking too much white pith. Set aside. Cut the lemon in half and extract the juice. Place in a large bowl along with the squeezed out lemon shells. Top up with cold water.

2.Peel the quince thinly. Cut into quarters and slice out the core. As soon as you prepare each quarter, push it down into the lemony water to help prevent discolouration.

3.When all the fruit is prepared, drain well, discard the lemon shells and place the quince in the slow-cooker dish. Add the reserved lemon zest, cinnamon and vanilla.

4.Put the sugar in a saucepan with 400ml water. Heat gently to dissolve, then bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes. Pour over the fruit, place the lid on top and cook on High for 2 hours, turning the fruit halfway through, until tender.

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Slow-cooker spiced quince preparation. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

5. Turn off the power and leave to cool for 2 hours before draining the fruit and straining the cooking liquid into a saucepan. Put the fruit in a heat proof dish and cover with foil.

6. Add the maple or carob syrup to the cooking juices, bring to the boil and simmer for 7-8 minutes until syrupy. Cool for 10 minutes. Add a few drops of rosewater to taste then pour over the fruit and leave to cool completely.

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Making the syrup. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

7. Cover and chill until ready to eat. Serve at room temperature for maximum flavour. Sprinkle with pistachios and pomegranate seeds for crunch. The quince freezes well in the syrup for later enjoyment.

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Sweet, spiced deliciousness. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

I hope you enjoy the recipe and I look forward to welcoming you back to my next post in a couple of weeks time. Thanks for stopping by 🙂

October: fruit, frosts and lots of rain

~ My virtually free-from kitchen ~ 2 Comments
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This year’s cooking apple harvest. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

Hello there. It’s been a very varied weather picture here in central Scotland this October. It was mild and kind at the beginning of the month, which presented perfect conditions for bringing in this year’s harvest of apples and pears. Compared to last year, the yield from the old apple tree and 2 small pear trees was small, but there was still enough to enjoy, and now the trees are having a well earned rest.

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Homegrown pears. Image: Kathryn Hawkins
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After the harvest. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

The morning following the fruit picking, the first frost of the season fell, and a few days later, there was another one. A subtle reminder that winter is not too far away.

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First October frost. Image: Kathryn Hawkins
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Frosted Autumn plants. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Having had a late spell of very warm weather last month, the trees held on to their leaves longer than usual. The Autumn colours have been really showing in all their glory since the middle of the month. The Japanese maple in the back garden looks as spectacular as ever this year.

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Fiery leaves. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

The second half of the month has seen strong winds, a named storm (Babet) and heavy rain hitting this part of the country. Little damage here thank goodness, but lots of flooding around the area. The rain has washed plenty of leaves to the ground, and there are piles to be swept up all over the garden.

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Autumn on a grey, wet day. Image: Kathryn Hawkins
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Just leaves. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

There aren’t so many flowers in the garden at the moment. But these Bidens, usually a summer annual here in Scotland, seeded themselves and only started flowering last month. The Autumn crocus suffered in the frost and then the heavy rain, and the poor pink rhododendron is very confused by the weather. It produced a solitary flower last week which sadly didn’t last more than a couple of days.

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Bidens, Autumn crocus and solitary rhododendron flower. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

I put the greenhouse to bed this weekend. The tomato plants had just about finished and the last of the aubergines (egg plant) were ready for picking. All that remains are some late season potatoes. I’m not sure how well they are doing but I guess that I will find out in another month or so when I dig them up.

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End of season in the greenhouse. Images: Kathryn Hawkins

There was a new visitor in the garden this week. A little hedgehog made its way to the apple tree. I think he/she was in search of dropped bird seed from the feeder above. The prickly visitor rolled into a ball as soon as it heard us approaching. There are plenty of leaves around in the garden so hopefully this little fellow will make a comfy bed in one of the hedges for the coming winter.

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Garden hedgehog. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

That’s all for this week. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy the changing season. Until my next post, take care and my best wishes to you 🙂