Time to make Marmalade

Earlier this week we opened the last jar of marmalade from the batch we made at the beginning of  last year.  So it's time to make some more.....

 Seville Oranges - tick

Sugar - tick

empty jars - tick

OK we're ready to start chopping, shredding and boiling - I'll be back!

February Things and Seven Things

Last week was quite busy with various things. We both had hospital appointments one the day after the other, another family funeral and after all that we had cavity wall insulation installed. Then Paul spent a couple of days putting more insulation in the loft which was difficult to do as you can't stand up in our roof space so it entailed a lot of crawling about.

This week we seem to have had far more time and thank goodness, better weather. We have bought some Seville oranges so that we can make some more marmalade this year.

We also managed a muddy walk at Trentham in the woods. It was good to get out and about for a walk again after all the bad weather.

Now the Hyacinths are past their best the Cyclamen and Hellebore are in flower.

On Friday morning we walked from Ashbourne along the Tissington Trail as far as Thorpe and back.

We set out in cloudy, misty weather but as we walked the cloud lifted and the sun began to filter through.

For ages we were the only people walking on the trail. It felt as if we had the whole world to ourselves, it was so peaceful.

The empty path stretched out ahead of us. The birds were singing in the trees.

And the sheep were baa-ing in the fields.
We walked along in appreciative silence.

A February Task

We have the oranges. We have the sugar. We have plenty of empty jars. Guess what will be happening in our kitchen over the weekend.

Marmalade Cake

Recently I decided to make a marmalade cake. I liked the look of the recipe in Nigel Slater's Kitchen Diaries, and had been meaning to have a go at it for some time. As we had several jars of homemade marmalade, a new packet of golden caster sugar in the cupboard and a huge navel orange lurking in the fruit bowl I had no more excuses. It all went together very easily and cooked just the way the recipe said it would. He did say to pour the icing over the cake so that it ran in dribbles down the side; as you can see from the photos - that's what I did. It tasted wonderful, soft and moist with a tangy orange flavour, the icing really adding to both the texture and flavour just as he said it would. As you can see from the photo below - it only lasted a few days.

February is.....

Daffodils in jugs around the house and making marmalade with Seville oranges



Making something heart shaped for Valentine's Day.



Finally being able to get out into the garden and starting to clear the winter debris.



Seeing the first stirrings of this year's rhubarb.



and deciding which seeds to use for the coming season.



Of course this year things are different as the house is being sold and we don't know if we will be here for spring and summer. So the tidying of the garden is not just for us but for prospective viewers and hopefully (fingers crossed!) buyers who, if we plant the seeds will benefit from the produce.

The weather has been so wonderful this week with days of bright, clear sunshine and evenings of sumptuous red and pink skies. We've been able to have a few ventures into the garden to start clearing up ready for Spring. On Tuesday we drove over to Nottingham to visit friends which was very pleasant and this morning we walked around Trentham Lake and sat at the lakeside cafe with warm cups of coffee - my fingers were freezing as today is considerably colder than the last few- and chatted to a lovely gentleman and his family mainly about photography and the difference between film and digital cameras. I think we all decided that digital was easier and more adaptable but that there was nothing to beat the mood and clarity of black and white photos.

I've been meaning for a while to write a post about one of my hobbies which I've suddenly realised has been affected by my possession and use of a digital camera so much that it is something that I don't do anymore. I'll expand on this in my next post.

Making Marmalade

Last Friday we decided to make some marmalade. We'd bought 3lbs of Seville Oranges the day before from The Country Larder at Trentham Gardens. It took all morning as the peel had to be chopped really finely:-

Then it had to cook for two hours before adding the sugar and lemon juice:-

Then it was returned to the heat to reach a 'rolling' boil before we could test to see if the setting point had been reached. Then the jars and lids had to be sterilised before we could add the marmalade. The finished product looked so colourful:-

Paul designed and printed out the labels on the computer and these were added once the jars were cool. We kept a little tester dish in the fridge to try with toast the next morning - it was delicious.