Far Lands

Snow came at the weekend and meant that I escaped from the to-do list. Most of the last couple of weeks I have spent digging out the compost heaps, weeding and then mulching. It will probably take me until the New Year. But the snow meant we were forced to go for a walk! However, Sarah still managed to prune the blackcurrants (fruit grows on the young wood so best to remove mainly old wood; about a third of the bush is usually recommended). That left me to clean out the birds, taking time out, of course, to explain to the new ones (two of the chickens and the five turkeys) what snow was and where it came from. My O level geography seemed a long time ago. That's because, I suppose, it was a long time ago.

It's that time of year for jamming and pickling. We have made various jams (they are blackberries in the pan) recently, and yesterday I did mincemeat. But with the oven on for 3 hours I wondered what else I could put in. Mincemeat needs a low heat, 120C.  I decided to try apple rings, and with one of the most fantastic inventions of mankind (an all in one corer, peeler and slicer - red thing in photo - about a tenner on Amazon, they make superb Xmas presents) I sliced up a few large Bramleys. And into the oven they went. I checked the rings after 2 hours, and I thought they needed a bit longer. 3 hours though, as you can see, was perhaps a little too long. Ideally, I think the heat should be lower. Delicious, I think. But the results have also passed the all-important other-half test. In addition, they were ready to be stored (in a paper bag) straight away. You may be keen to know the answer to last week's teaser? I will leave you with a photo answer. (I missed...

Just back from a week in Majorca. Was it 1) fruity research? We were staying in an orange grove with about 40 trees. Not just oranges, but also apples, lemons, clementines, pomegranate, a sharon fruit and a strawberry tree (L photo). Apart from the apples, they were all ripe and delicious. Or 2) a week's walking? Warm weather, cold swimming and al fresco dining. You decide. Either way, three days of wind and rain since we returned have made it seem even better. I will leave you with this photo which I took on one of our mountain days (they have 1000m+ mountains). Can you explain?