*Spiced Lemon Pickles

Preserved lemons can be sliced, chopped or minced to be used in dishes. They are used alot in Moroccan dishes such as tagines and also go well with chicken, seafood, olives and rice.
YOU WILL NEED
9 large lemons
450g sugar
1/8 tsp salt
60 ml water
240 ml cider vinegar
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp whole allspice
1 small piece of fresh ginger (1 inch)
4 or 5 whole cloves
6 sterilised jars
METHOD
1.
Wash the lemons well then dry. Cut them into quarters crossways.
2.
Mix the sugar, salt, water and vinegar together in a saucepan. Tie the spices in muslin or a cheesecloth and add to the liquid mixture and boil for 5 minutes.
3.
Place the lemon quarters into the boiling syrup and boil once more for 1 minute. Discard the spice bag. Pack the lemons into the jars, then cover with the hot liquid and seal immediately.

* Make Your Own Vanilla Extract

Vanilla extract is really simple to make, the only thing is that you have to wait a few weeks before you can use it, but its really worth it money-wise compared to commercial extracts. There are only two ingredients, the vanilla and spirit alcohol. The traditional alcohol to use is vodka, but other spirits have their benefits. I use dark rum as I think it adds something to the flavour, but you could use brandy or whisky as well.

1) Cut open three vanilla pods length ways, and cut into halves or thirds so that they will be submerged by the liquid.
2) Cover with 240ml of your chosen alcohol in a sealable jar or bottle and replace the lid tightly.
3) Shake occasionally and leave for about two months before using. You can top up with alcohol every so often to prolong it, and it will keep for years.
Your home-made extract will be stronger than shop-bought ones, so use sparingly.
Click on the labels below to find recipes.

* Strawberries & ....

What to put with strawberries this .... ahem ..... summer?
Strawberries and cream go with sunshine, sun dresses, sun glasses, but considering that we have had so little of that word sun this year, I have been trying to think of some other great combinations.

With Elderflower Syrup
At Stirchley Community Market on Tuesday we served fresh strawberries picked from the garden with our homemade elderflower syrup poured over the top; they were a real hit and tasted delicious with a real flavour of summer. Much nicer than just plain sugar.

With Balsamic Vinegar
A friend first introduced me to this combination, at first I was a little sceptical, but was instantly converted. For every 200g of prepared straberries add 2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar, 1 1/2 tbsp sugar and a little black pepper to taste. I have also seen scones with strawberries and black pepper which I would like to try.

*Tuna Steaks with Sumac

I had never used sumac before. A customer asked me to get some, and as soon as I opened the bag, I knew that it was something that I wanted to try, it was so aromatic and sweet smelling. I browsed the web and found so many people highly rating it for it distinct fruity flavour, so I'm going to be trying lots of recipes myself, and here's the first I've tried, and it's a super easy one as well (which is even better).
YOU WILL NEED
2 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp sumac
4 pieces of 200g tuna steaks (7 oz)
Salt & pepper to taste
METHOD
1.
Combine the oil, garlic and sumac and coat the tuna, seasoning well.
2.
Oil a grill plate or chargrill pan (a frying pan will do if you don't have these), and heat it on a medium heat, adding the tuna when hot, and cooking for 5-6 minutes on each side (or till cooked as desired).
A great accmpaniment is saffron rice.

* Rice Pudding

Whenever I've forgotten to leave a note out for the milkman, and have too much milk, I'll make a rice pudding, milky hot chocolates, or occasionally a bread & butter pudding; all great ways to use up excess milk. When you buy a bag of pudding rice it comes with a simple recipe, which I often use, but this is an extra special rice pudding that my step-father showed me. If you don't have time to soak the raisins, you can just add them without the rum.

YOU WILL NEED for 3-4 people
75g raisins
grated rind of 1 lemon (optional)
2 tbsp dark rum
48g pudding rice
475ml milk
20g butter
25g sugar
freshly grated nutmeg
METHOD
1.
Put the raisins and lemon rind in a bowl with the rum, and soak for as long as you can, preferably overnight.
2.
Grease an ovenproof dish and place all the ingredients apart from the nutmeg inside and mix together. Sprinkle the nutmeg over the top.
3.
Cover and place in a preheated oven on gas 2/300F/150C for 2 hours (if you don't cover, you'll get a better top skin which some people (including myself) like).

Basic Shortcrust Pastry

INGREDIENTS
225g/8oz plain flour
150g/5oz chilled unsalted butter, chopped
1 egg, beaten (add an extra yolk for extra flavour)
METHOD
Sift the flour into a bowl. Using your hands, rub in the butter whilst lifting the mixture above the bowl to introduce air, until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. — Add the beaten egg and mix into the pastry crumbs with a round bladed knife until they start to bind together. Then, lightly gather the mixture together to form a soft, but not sticky, ball of dough. — Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes before rolling out on a cool surface.
(For a flan pre-bake the pastry on gas 7/220 C/425 F for 15-20 minutes, lining the top with grease proof paper and baking beans)

*Elderflower Cordial

~The elderflower cordial infusing.~

Elderflower cordial is so easy to make and tastes amazing. Me and Nial made this from elderflowers that we picked locally, and there are loads of them in the area. We got about two litres out of this recipe, and you can freeze it in smaller batches to preserve over the year.




YOU WILL NEED
20 elderflower heads, with minimal stalks
1 lemon, sliced
2 tsp citric acid
1.5 kg sugar
1.2 ltr boiling water
METHOD
Place all the ingredients except the boiling water into a large bowl (we used a large pan).
Pour the boiling water over the ingredients and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Remove any scum from the surface of the water.
Cover the container with a cloth and leave for five days stirring twice every day.
Strain through muslin and decant liquid into steralised bottles.
Keep refrigerated and best used within two weeks, freeze if necessary.

Elderflower growing wild.
Please use a professional book to identify elderflower, I suggest Food for Free, which you can find at Amazon.

A Lovely Bit of British Plaice

I bought some plaice from the fishmongers and decided to cook it with one of my new spice blends; the tropical spice goes really well with fish. I served it with garlic and herb potatoes, some garden picked salad and minted mayonaise.

For the potatoes
Cover the potatoes in a light coating of oil. --- Mix jACKrABBIT garlic and herb potato spice with equal amounts of dried breadcrumbs, then coat the potatoes with the mixture till covered. --- Roast the potatoes for about 45 minutes (depending on size) till cooked.
For the fish
Sprinkle the tropical rub onto a plate and lay the fish over it till you get an even coating. --- Grill for about 10-15 minutes (sprinkle lemon juice over whilst cooking) till the fish is nearly cooked through, then turn to cook the underside. 
For the minted mayonaise
Chop about 8 fresh mint leaves, and bruise slightly to release the flavour. --- In a small bowl mix mint with about 4 tablespoons of mayonaise and 2 capful's of cider vinegar.
--- Serve the dish with the minted mayonaise on the side and some salad. ---

I served it all with a refreshing glass of Urban Harvest apple juice.

'King Creole' BBQ Rub

YOU WILL NEED
2 tbsp mustard powder
1/2 minced onion
1 clove minced garlic
up to 1/2 tbsp hot pepper sauce
1 tbsp cajun seasoning
METHOD
Blend all the ingredients together and rub into meat, you can then grill, fry or cook on the BBQ.

*Moroccan BBQ Rub

YOU WILL NEED
1/2  small onion, finely diced
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
generous handful of fresh coriander, chopped
generous handful of fresh parsley, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp Moroccan spice

METHOD
Blend all the ingredients together in a large bowl.
Rub the blend into the meat of your choice, then leave for 30-45 minutes.
Grill on the BBQ till the meat is cooked through.

Sweet Spice Blends

Pudding spice, or mixed spice as it can be known, is a great spice for any sweet dish; use in cakes, biscuits, tea-breads, crumbles, fruit dishes and lots more.

Ginger-bread spice has been used in baking for, well, a long time. Ginger-breads were usually tea-breads, and then the gingerbread biscuits evolved from these. It can be used in all kinds of sweet dishes and gives a subtle gingery flavour.

*Jack's Apple and Blackberry Crumble

Jack is my 13 year old son, he learnt this recipe at school, but makes it all the time at home, and it always turns out very tasty (apart from when he forgot to put the sugar in), so it is a good recipe for both adults and children to try. It's great in the autumn when we go out picking fresh blackberries, and our neighbour gives us cooking apples from their tree.

YOU WILL NEED
For the stew; 4 large cooking apples - 50g sugar - 1 tbsp water - blackberries to taste - 1 tsp jACKrABBIT pudding spice.
For the crumble topping; 150g flour (sieved) - 100g sugar - 50g butter - 50g oats.
METHOD
Pre-set the oven to gas 4, 180C, 350F - Place all the stew ingredients into a large saucepan and heat rapidly - Stir continuously with a wooden spoon until the apple goes soft - Place the stew in an oven dish - Place the flour and butter in a mixing bowl and rub together till crumbly - Add the sugar and oats and repeat - Place in the oven for 15 minutes - Serve with custard or ice cream.

*The Great British BBQ

~Cardboard BBQ made by my son Nial and myself. He made a dish for everyone; the carnivor, pescitarian and vegetarian. For instructions to make the BBQ please visit Nial's Patch.~

Okay, perhaps, especially considering the weather at the moment, this is an optimistic post, but I'm sure we'll get some sun this year!! and being a glass-half-full kinda girl I have to believe that we will. The British BBQ isn't always great, with its slimy chicken oozing pink juices, leathery steaks and burgers so blackened you're not sure where the burnt bits end and the middle begins. But they can be truly great too. The British BBQ Society was started in 2008 to help turn things around and build up a new enthusiasm for BBQ cooking, and the Best of British BBQ has been going since 2005 to promote Britain as great BBQers. There has been a revival of British food over the last few years and the BBQ is very much part of that, and as well as that, very much part of the British summer.

For a great BBQ prepare everything in advance. Marinading is often the staple of the BBQ, but it often does not bring out the flavours and dry rubs can offer an excellent taste extravagansa. Lots of interesting side dishes are essential, as there are not many people who just like a plate of meat (or vegetarian alternatives). You can also buy smoking chips (I know that Wilkinson sells them) in a number of varieties such as apple smoke or oak smoke to add another layer of flavour. Don't forget fish, well cooked BBQ'd fish offers another texture and a delicious flavour to the mix. And then there's the pudding!! After being on a beach aged 16 and then served up BBQ'd bananas with melted chocolate inside, all wrapped in tin foil, nothing incredibly difficult, I've never done a BBQ without a sweet dish at the end again.

jACKrABBIT is in the process of creating a new range of different BBQ spices for all kinds of meat and will be adding recipes as well, including some sweet ones. There will also be some recipes for using your home grown produce on the BBQ, which is one of the best ways to cook it. You can find a good list of recipes at the Best of British BBQ website too.

*Hand Knitted Finger Puppets

Juicy Jess
Snails may be a bit of an annoyance to gardener's, but they fascinate alot of children. They slide along the ground on what is one muscular foot and leave a trail to follow. Jess comes with a snail racing game.
£2.90 each.

Nectar Norma
Bees are so important in pollinating all the flowering plants and helping us to grow our fruit and vegetables. Most bees in this country are solitary bees, and Norma comes with information for building a bee habitat. £2.90 each.

Scarlet Charlotte 
The ladybird finger puppet comes with information for building a ladybird sanctuary in your garden, which gives ladybirds somewhere to hibernate over the winter. You can also find lots more activities here. £2.90 each.

Flirty Gerty
We will be adding lots of information about how to attract different kinds of butterflies to your garden, and what to plant for the caterpillars to eat. Until then you can flap around in the garden with gerty. £2.90 each.

Sidney Spider
Spiders spin beautiful webs which they use to catch their food. There are not insects but are arachnids which is why they have eight legs, not six like all insects. Sidney comes with his own spelling game. £2.90 each.








Buy two puppets for £5, please state your two chosen puppets as you order.

Buy all five minibeast puppets for £11.50, your puppets will come with two information sheets.

Our hand knitted finger puppets are supplied by Little Fingy who give to Cancer Research UK and environmental improvement schemes in the Britain. The puppets are knitted in Peru, and Little Fingy support the communities that produce them.

*Ladybirds

Hand Knitted Ladybird Finger Puppet
We have a selection of hand knitted minibeast finger puppets which encourage children to enjoy the garden and get outdoors. This post contains lots of information about ladybirds, and the puppet comes with details for building a ladybird sanctuary in the garden. Puppets cost £2.90 each, £5 for 2 and £11.50 for all 5; to order and to find out more please click here.


Across the whole planet there are many different kinds of ladybirds, about 5,000 different kinds in fact. They come in all sorts of colours, sizes and also vary in the number of spots they have. Their favourite food are little green aphids which often eat and damage the plants and flowers in the garden, so ladybirds are really useful!
QUESTION. About how many green aphids can a ladybird eat in their lifetime?
a) 500
b) 5,000
c) 50,000
Go to the bottom of the post to find out.  

Most of you will have seen ladybirds and know what they look like, but they don't start out looking like that. They don't look like the ladybird here either, a little girl has dressed up as a ladybird. You could try dressing up as a ladybird too. Ask a grown-up for some red fabric or an old piece of red clothing and they can help you paint some black dots on it. You could also cut out a large piece of card and paint it in the design you want, then push holes into it and use string to tie it to your back. Don't forget, you can try other coloured ladybirds; how about yellow with black spots or black with red spots?


Ladybird Life Cycle


In spring an adult ladybird will lay its tiny yellow eggs in a safe place, like underneath a leaf. 

It only takes a week for the eggs to hatch, and out comes the ladybird larvae. They are very hungry and like to eat green aphids as well.

The larva will attach itself to a leaf and make a pupa around itself to protect it while it turns into a....

LADYBIRD!!

It takes about a month for the ladybird to go through the life cycle from egg to adult. When the winter comes the fully grown ladybird will hibernate till the next year.







ANSWER: b) 5,000

* Pickling with Vinegar

Alot of pickled foods use vinegar as the main preserving ingredient. There are a number of vinegars that can be used, malt vinegar is most common, but cider vinegar and red and white wine vinegars can also be used. These latter vinegars are usually more expensive, and their flavour is often more subtle and can be lost with the process of pickling.

MAKING SPICED VINEGAR
You can either buy a ready made pickling spice which will contain a selection of different spices, or you can buy individual spices to make your own pickling blend. Depending on the spices used you will need between 1 teaspoon and 1 tablespoon of spices for every 600 ml of vinegar. To make the spiced vinegar, it should be boiled with the spices for 5 to 15 minutes (from 5 minutes for a milder flavour or use with pickling fruits, 15 minutes for a stronger flavour). The intensity of the flavour is down to personal preference, so you can taste the vinegar at 5 minute intervals until the correct flavour is achieved. The spices themselves can either be wrapped in muslin or used loose and removed later. If you wish to add spices to the jar to make it look attractive, use only a very small amount of the spices used for boiling, as the flavours will keep infusing into the pickles as they are stored. NOTE: Don't use zinc, copper, iron or brass pans with vinegar; stainless steel, aluminium and good quality enamel pans are good.

MAKING PICKLES
Spiced vinegar can be used for pickling most kinds of vegetables and fruit. You need to sterilise (boiling is good) the jars that you will be using, and avoid using metal lids as they can rust. You can get round this by putting a layer of clean cling film inside the lid.

ONCE THE PICKLES ARE USED...USE THE VINEGAR
The vinegar left over once the pickles have been used can be added in salad dressings and in other forms of cooking. 'Waste Not Want Not' as my nan used to say!

*Recipe for Lavender Scones

YOU WILL NEED
160 ml milk
1 tbsp lavender flowers
310g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
110g butter
100gm sugar
METHOD
Heat the milk and lavender together in a pan to a near boil, then allow to steep long enough to cool. -- Strain and make up the milk back to 160ml. -- Sift the flour, add the baking powder and salt, then mix in the butter till well blended. -- Add the sugar and milk, and form a soft dough. -- Knead about a dozen times on a lightly floured board. -- Shape individual scones, and place in a preheated oven at 220 C/425 F/gas 7 for about 12 minutes till lightly browned. -- Serve with cream and blackberry jam.

Lavender for Baking

Lavender flowers have been used in baking and cooking for centuries, but fell out of use in recent years, though it is gaining more popularity in baking and confectionary again, which is great, as lavender offers a distinct aromatic, floral flavour, but add sparingly as the strong flavour can cause bitterness with over-use.
Only one type of lavender can be used in baking, lavendula angustifolia, if you are not sure whether your lavender has edible flowers you can buy seeds from us for this type (see below). Lavender is a traditional ingredient of herbs de Provence, though it is removed from most commercial blends; though jACKrABBIT supplies the traditional blend.

Lavender Basics
Lavender Honey: Use 4 parts honey to 1 part lavender flowers. Bring the mixture to the boil, then remove from the heat. Allow to steep for 30 minutes, strain, then use in cooking, tea, toast, or drizzle over fruit.
Lavender Cream: Use 1 tbsp lavender flowers to 400ml cream. Crush the lavander, and infuse in the cream for 3 hours. Strain before using in tea, baking or with fruit.

Lavender Flowers for Baking, refill, 15g. £1.20.

Lavender Seeds for Growing Lavendula Angustifolia
Pack contains app. 85 seeds. £1.50.

TO GROW FROM SEED: Lavender takes quite a while to germinate (30-90 days), and germination can be irregular. For flowers in the first year sow indoors from March to May on a sunny window ledge, propagator or greenhouse. Alternatively, sow outdoors in prepared seed beds from April to June, 3mm deep. Transplant to final position in autumn 40 cm apart for flowering the following year. For indoor sowings, harden off when risk of frosts has passed and plant in final position, also 40 cm apart. Pick flowers for cooking before they open.

We make an excellent Herbs de Provence blend with the finest ingredients and use the traditional lavender flowers.

Luxury Herbs de Provence, refill, 15g. 95p.

Recipe for Easy English Mustard

I use mustard so infrequently that I found myself buying a jar, using a quarter of it, and then once the six months 'use within' date was up having to throw the rest away. This way is alot less wasteful, both in terms of packaging and product. I haven't included quantites so that you can make the mustard in batches to your needs.
YOU WILL NEED
Mustard powder
Boiled water (cooled to room temp)
Salt to taste
METHOD
1) Place the mustard powder and the salt in a bowl.
2) Add the water bit by bit, mixing as you go, to make a smooth (non-lumpy) paste (the paste should drop from a spoon but not be watery).

* Recipe for Wholegrain Mustard

Mustard jars always seem to have more mustard in them than I ever use! I began making my own mustard because I really wanted to try and stop as much wastage from my kitchen as possible. This recipe makes quite a small amount of mustard, but if you make more it will store in the fridge for 1-2 months (if all equipment is clean).
YOU WILL NEED
2 tablespoons mustard seeds
20g mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoons vinegar (cider, white wine or sherry)
40 ml white wine or water (boiled and cooled)
METHOD
1) Pound the mustard seeds lightly in a grinder or mortar & pestle, till they crack a little.
2) Place them in a bowl with the mustard powder and salt.
3) Add the vinegar first, a bit at a time, stirring, and then the wine (or water), again strirring to make a smooth paste.
Click on the label below to find other mustard recipes.