A clue:-
Now I know it might look like I have been murdering some-one - but the truth is that my hand is coverered in a combination of elderberry and blackberry juice. Yes, September is the month for picking hedgerow fruits.Today I also got some more sloes to add to those I found earlier in the week and I've seen some easy to pick haws and rose hips, although the latter are not yet ripe.
Now I must decide what to do with this bounty. Simply stewed, blackberries are wonderful on pancakes or eaten for breakfast with a dollop of yoghurt and Blackberry + Apple Crumble is a must. Hedgerow jelly sounds nice and this year I have enough elderberries for Pontack Sauce and maybe some Apple and Elderberry jelly. Years ago I made Elderberry Chutney which Mum insisted she liked but I felt she may just have been trying to be nice to me: I thought it was horrible. Perhaps it's time to give that one another go. Sloe Gin is a must too; I've never made it before having been put off after tasting a really sickly one made by a flat-mate. However I tried some-one else's recently and that was scrummy. The rose hips need to ripen a little before I can make Rose Hip Syrup but the blackberries are perfect - with so many to be had I may have to have a go at the Blackberry Liqueur Colour It Green is tempting me with. Oh and then there's Haw Sauce/Ketchup.
Oh - so many recipes. It's just as well it's a bountiful year so I do foresee a few more days of stained fingers as I forage for these wonderful free fruits.
I adore blackberries, especially in a crumble. Crumble just says 'Autumn' to me...scrummy! :) x
ReplyDeleteMy hands are still slightly stained from yesterdays pickings of the brambles. We already collected 2 pounds during the week and another 3 last night. It's addictive and calming, just a pity about all the scratches. Enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI collected our elderberries this week and made Pontack sauce ...... it was not nice! I'm not sure what I did wrong though!
ReplyDeleteSloe gin is gorgeous!I made slow gin and damson gin last year.
I'm about to bottle our redcurrant gin - which if it's as good as the redcurrant vodka, it'll be a cracker!
I need to go out looking for blackberries now :)
Your harvest sounds fabulous! What wonderful hedgerows you must have. Have you tried blackberry icecream? Basically, whipped cream and blackberry syrup mixed and frozen. I push most of the pulp through a sieve so the bitterness of skins balances the double cream and the icing sugar I use to sweeten it ... the kids love it.
ReplyDeleteLucy, Carrie - I think now September is over we are supposed to stop picking blackberies as the story goes the Devil will have spat on them. I'm not sure I can stop just yet - there are still so many lovely fruits to be had.
ReplyDeleteNutty Gnome - sorry to hear about your Pontack Sauce - all my elderberries are in the freezer at the moment so I'll have to let you know later how it turns out.
Eco-Lodges - yum, blackberry Ice cream - sounds good!