Dad's garden one month on

Last week I shared pictures from dad's garden from a month ago and it was still full of colour. I was curious to see how much it had changed in a month, and how the dahlias, roses and fuchsias had fared. And the short answer is relatively well. The dahlias were still flowering but were in that faded beauty stage, which can be equally pretty.

The fuchsias were still going strong, although I suspect there won't be too many more of those bulbous buds opening, but I could be wrong.  It seems slightly strange to see them so late in the year, don't you think?

The roses had fared least well, and although there were many, many less flowers there were still a few buds, and some that won't make it.

In the greenhouse, the giant aloe veras still seem to be thriving and I'm sure, just like me, they were enjoying the warmth of the sun when it was out. The oxalis and the heucheras actually seemed to have deepened their colour.

But it goes to show that although there have been changes in a month, there hasn't been a dramatic change and there is still colour in dad's garden. And there was a new colour addition in the greenhouse too, these look to me to be begonias, I'm hesitating because it is November and they're flowering, so I could be wrong. Do you know?

Either way, I'm loving the colour against the terracotta pot.  

A feast at River Cottage

Today is the post lots of you have been waiting for, the food, or our feast at River Cottage, and it was pretty special. And true to form I didn't manage to photograph all of the food I tried because I was too busy thinking about eating it - no surprise there. But I did do way better than I normally do, as I knew you'd want to know.

But before the food there was a cookery demonstration from Andy on brining. It's the sort of thing you hear a lot of at this time of year as often recipes say to brine the turkey. Well it's something I've never done, and if I'm honest I probably won't ever do, but it is a way of making meat juicier. And it kind of makes sense. Meat loses liquid during cooking, so if it has more liquid to start with then it's going to be juicier after cooking.  The chicken we tried tasted good, but I think any chicken I ate at River Cottage HQ would taste good, or I'd expect it to anyway.

The thing that I am tempted to try at home is making my own bresaola. Yes, I know that's quite a leap isn't it? Not interested in brining turkey, but very interested in soaking a piece of red meat in red wine for a few days. Maybe it's because I can see the point of this and the bresaola is done after the soaking and drying, and maybe it's because I'm a lazy foodie. You know, happy to eat all the fancy food, but less happy to do all the fancy-ness at home and preferring simple, straightforward cookery. 

I've yet to hunt down the River Cottage bresaola recipe, but I'm sure it must be in *one* of the HFW cookbooks I have.  And I thoroughly enjoyed the brining demonstration, and of course tasting the results. Ahem, sorry for the lack of pictures, but look at how rustically pretty the dining table was set. 

So with the dining table set and once the hungry-for-more-good-food bloggers had worked out the table plan, the main event could start. Well when I say the main event, I mean the appetisers, and the one I remembered to photograph, which was crispy rabbit served on a puree of romanesco and utterly gorgeous. It's not the sort of thing I'd usually order, not that I'm squeamish about eating rabbit, but it's more MOH's natural choice and it's an unwritten rule to choose different dishes isn't it?

THE ONLY APPETISER THAT I MANAGED TO PHOTOGRAPH, PROBABLY BECAUSE IT WAS SERVED ON A PLATE

Then one of the young chefs from the cookery school appeared to introduce us to the menu, seriously that must have been a scary task, but he left us slightly redder faced than he'd arrived and with full knowledge of what the menu was, and where it was sourced from. And an invite into the kitchen, so not backward in coming forward off I went. Well, I mean, how often will I get to look around a kitchen while it's serving fifty covers. 

I was amused to see some very well used River Cottage cookbooks on the shelf. I have most of these and had my eye on Gill Meller's gather book, but rather than read it in the kitchen I made a mental note to check it out in the shop before I left.  And above the books were a large array of spices, and as you'd imagine in far larger quantities than a domestic kitchen.

WELL WHAT OTHER COOKBOOK WOULD YOU EXPECT TO FIND IN THE RIVER COTTAGE KITCHEN?

AND THAT'S DEFINITELY HOW YOU DO SPICES

It was good to see the team at work - and they were a team - just look at this production line, and as with any good team there was plenty of healthy banter. At this point I decided to let them get on with it and headed back to my seat as I was keen not to miss the starter of celeriac ravioli with wild mushrooms and leaves. 

CELERIAC RAVIOLI WITH WILD MUSHROOMS AND LEAVES

Again it was delicious, the celeriac in the ravioli was super smooth and the stand out of the dish. But again though it's not the usual starter I'd order, I tend to avoid pasta as a starter, so there's room for the courses to come and as for pasta filled with vegetables, well, that's often the reason I'd give it a wide berth. But no more, this was so delicious I'd be tempted to try more of this kind of food, but a warning to restaurants where I might be eating, you've a lot to live up to!

So onto our main. Cider brined ham, carrot puree and fried savoy cabbage. Sounds simple doesn't it. I didn't expect it to look quite this elegant when it arrived in front of me.

RIVER COTTAGE CIDER BRINED HAM, CARROT PUREE, FRIED SAVOY CABBAGE

I was all for tucking in, as for me mains are all about the meat. But I quickly spotted the other food bloggers around me snapping away and I remembered you'd want to know, so I joined in, for a couple of photos at least. The meat was good, soft, sweet, sticky, unctuous, delicious and more filling than it looked. There was a side of braised beans, which were tasty but not so photogenic. For me the cabbage looked pretty, but I was less keen on the charred flavour, although I understand it brought texture to the plate.

As ever when I saw the menu my first thoughts were pudding. I spied creme brulee on the menu, approved and then went back to read the menu in the right order - I don't think I'm the only one that does that, am I?  The creme brulee was honeycomb and the accompaniments had an apple theme, not surprising really given that this is prime time for our home grown apples.  And doesn't it look great? 

HONEYCOMB CREME BRULEE WITH APPLE PUREE AND APPLE CRISPS

And take a closer look, can you smell its sweetness yet? 

A CLOSER LOOK AT THAT PUDDING, IT REALLY WAS AS DELICIOUS AS IT LOOKS

It really was as delicious as it looks. And aren't you proud of me for taking two photos of dessert? I'm proud of myself!

River Cottage run a wide range of cookery courses and I'm sure you'll find one suitable whether you're an amateur cook, food enthusiast or a full-blown smallholder. If you want to learn more about and have hands-on experience of brining meat then the meat curing and smoking course could be the one for you.

* This is a collaborative post, but all views and opinions are my own. 

Christmas gifts that aren't just for Christmas

I expect you're being bombarded with ideas for Christmas gifts right now, and if you're anything like me then you've probably still have more Christmas gifts to buy. I've made a start, but a slow one. I have crossed a couple of gifts off the list and more importantly have bought some marzipan and mint matchmakers, my Christmas essentials.

I've bought some mince pies too, but there's very little chance of those lasting if I'm honest. I have been thinking about gifts, and well, that's a start isn't it... As well as thinking of what I can buy family, I've been thinking about the types of gift that appeal more generally to me. More and more that's a gift that brings enjoyment throughout the year and despite my slide down The Orbit I'm not exactly a thrill-seeking kinda gal, so those kind of experience days aren't for me.

But membership, now that's a different matter

I'm already a member of the National Trust and it's a great way to see houses and gardens in all parts of the country in a cost effective way. They do a gift membership and say it's the membership "that opens doors (and gates too)" and I think it's a great gift to give. You'll know by the number of National Trust properties we visit, that we get good value for money from ours.

But if it's the buildings that are the attraction then perhaps a RIBA Friends of Architecture membership might work? As well as access to a programme of events which give the opportunity to learn something completely new and get out and about with RIBA's expert guides, there's also discounts at the RIBA shop and in the cafe and more.

ERIC DE MARÉ OF 'SKYSCRAPER' FISHERMEN'S SHEDS IN HASTINGS
Picture Credit: RIBA

Or if it's the gardens that appeal most, then maybe a gift membership to the RHS could be the thing to inspire someone's love of gardening. I hadn't realised until I looked into it for this post, as well as the four RHS gardens, of which I've visited two - Wisley and Hyde Hall, there are also many partner gardens that the member also receives free entry to. 

Now that's given you something to think about hasn't it?  

But do you know what, after all that exploring, there's often only one thing for it. And that's a cup of tea.

And tea with a difference makes the list too

These little, but great, boxes of tea from T2 Tea sum up what a Christmas gift should be for me. That's something you're familiar with, but is just that little bit special than our everyday brew and because it's a little bit special it's the thing you keep meaning to buy for yourself but often don't. Well at least not the first time anyway. 

The gift boxes group together similar flavours of tea, so there's a Breakfast Club box and a London Calling box, plus many more. 

And cake, you'll need cake

Yes, when I said there's only one thing on my mind after exploring, I was wrong. Because along with my cup of tea I'd happily have some cake. And you can have a selection box of Christmas Cupcakes delivered too - oh the wonders of the internet, and with thanks to Hummingbird Bakery.

What would you add to my list?

* This is a collaborative post, but all views and opinions are my own