Free bounty!

This afternoon I was out in the garden at the front of the house doing some weeding and I noticed that the blackberries on the other side of the fence alongside the footpath were ripe.

Now this path is used by dog walkers and during term time mothers taking their children to and from school but they obviously don't have the necessary tools and footwear to hand when they pass this bounty. I got my wellington boots and a rake and thus prepared was able to get close enough to pick a bowl full - not without getting scratched and stung of course but as my mother used to say "If a thing's worth having it's worth paying for"!!

Now within 5 minutes of picking I had some in the freezer - can't get much faster than that can you? And this bowl which we shall use later this afternoon. As I sat over a cup of tea in the garden I browsed through my book "Country Harvest" by Rosamund Richardson which I bought about 20 years ago as much for the photographs which are by Linda Burgess, and are as always absolutely beautiful, as for the recipes.

I could make some jam - the book has recipes for blackberry jelly, blackberry and apple jam, blackberry cheese, Damson and blackberry jam .......

Or maybe I'll try the blackberry and apple cake or the crumble....

Chocolate and blackberry brownies sound delicious too - what a pity I am finally succeeding in losing some weight and don't want to undo all the good I have so far achieved..... :-(

I also noticed that the nut tree is loaded with nuts - the squirrel has been busy all week - I hadn't realised that squirrels could chatter so much - I thought it was some kind of bird I could hear but no it was the squirrel getting agitated!

He'd better be quick as although badgers don't climb nut trees (they'd be far too heavy for the skinny branches) they do eat the ones that fall to the ground and these are on the bank in our driveway so we are in for a few weeks of badger crunching and snuffling at bed time I see!