Cherries Galore!!! Recipes and what to make with them

In our new garden we have lots of fruit trees, We had no idea what they were...they all looked the same to me so its going to be an interesting summer of discovery!!! The trees are quite old and neglected and there isn't a lot that we can do at this time of year in terms of pruning so we have just been removing the ivy which has been making itself at home on most of the trees.

The first tree to produce has been this one...
This is Madonna. -  .as in 'Allo Allo...the fallen one with the big.........well you know that one..



anyway....it is producing the most amazing amount of sweet cherries which has prompted me to explore the various uses.

I have come up with the following which I feel will be the most useful

If you are going to have a lot of cherries it may be wise to invest in a "denoyeur"....a little machine that takes the stones out!!! They range in price...mine was only 5 euros....but its good to get one that collects the stones. Some people freeze the cherries with the stone in but I have heard that they can be poisonous and also its much easier for use afterwards if you take them out first!!

JUST FREEZE FOR LATER USE

Open freeze immediately after picking and de-stoning and box up in the freezer to use for puddings,crumbles.scones or for popping into drinks

CHERRY VINEGAR

Mash up two cupfuls of destoned cherries and cover in a bowl with 1 bottle of cheap balsamic vinegar.

Leave for about 10 days then strain and bottle up.

CHERRY VODKA

In a large kilner jar add 360g of cherries, 1 litre of cheap vodka (no need to use anything expensive as it would be a waste) 160g sugar. Shake well to beginning the dissolving process for the sugar.

It is a bit of a labour of love as you need to shake every day for the first couple of weeks and then now and again until it is ready. This will take about 3 months so if you are making it for Christmas presents it will be ready in good time.

CHERRY CHUTNEY

There always has to be a chutney recipe on my blog!!! This is great with cooked meats and cheeses especially if you want to add a little sweet touch.

Put all these ingredients together in one big cooking pot.

325g cherries

1 apple,peeled,cored and grated

70 ml cider vinegar

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

1 small chopped onion

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

100g sugar

Bring the ingredients to the boil then simmer on a medium heat for about 45 mins

Pour into warm sterilized jars and seal.

CHERRY DROP SCONES

This recipe is great if you have unexpected visitors...as we did today...

125g sr flour

2 teaspoons sugar

100 ml milk

handful of fresh chopped cherries

1 beaten egg

mix flour,sugar and cherries together then make a well in mixture to add the egg/milk mix

Just add a little at a time and stop before it gets too sticky. If you have added too much just put in a bit more flour to bind it together,

In a large frying pan add just enough oil so that the scones do not stick....if the heat is too high they will cook too quickly and burn...drop in a tablespoon full of mixture and.cook just enough to brown on each side. Fit in a many as you can in your pan and keep flipping the scones so they don't burn!

Serve while hot and if you are feeling a bit decadent....or more like if you have any in...you can add a blob of creme fraiche and a sprinkling of cinnamon.

JUST A LITTLE NOTE ON FRESHNESS.....CHERRIES NOT YOU!!!

You will lose 50% of the food value of cherries if they are left at room temperature for only 1 hour. If you put them straight in the fridge it would take a day to lose the same food value. Of course..like vegetables...it is best if you can freeze them straight away.

Another good solution I find is if you JUST EAT THEM STRAIGHT FROM THE TREE!!

YUM YUM....BONNE APPETITE





Planting in the mud!

Week 2 in our new home in the Charente is proving to be very busy and very interesting.
Not known to hang around when it comes to renovating the house we have been working like whirling dervishes!
All the living areas are plastered and painting has commenced. We have managed to purchase flooring for the bedroom, a shower cubicle, 2 toilets, and a sink. Also a chain saw, hedge trimmers,strimmer and a trailer! We have organised and ordered all new windows and doors.
Researched for the new kitchen,cooker , fridge and wood burner.
Our temporary kitchen has now moved into the kitchen.....which isn't temporary but the contents are...if that makes sense. The old living room door is coping very well as being the work top.....just hope it can stay the course!

I am really surprised at some of the extras that have been included in our house......in particular the monitor at the door which registers every time you go out gardening. This amazing monitor takes about 10 minutes to note  you have started gardening and then triggers a huge downpour of rain.
We are trying really hard to get the potager going....it's already late for a lot of the veg.....but the weather isn't on our side.  However we now have the next set of potatoes in, the courgettes, cucumbers, peppers and carrots. We are waiting for the ground to dry out....so that we can plant the beetroot and lettuce.
I am not expecting wonders from this years crop!..We have been assured that this rain is unusual.....I hope so!!


The cherry tree is laden with fruit and a lot are ready for picking. It's a little bit of a competition as to who will get to  the ripe fruit first....this morning the two red squirrels beat us to it.

I was very excited to discover a hazelnut tree in the garden.......well not quite discover as its so large you can't miss it.....what I mean is in my ignorance I mistook it for some wild tree that would need cutting down! Thank goodness I visited the garden of a friend  ( who was very kindly giving away lots of plants) and noticed a similar tree. Hazelnuts.....whoopee....however I expect that will be competition number 2 with Monsieur et Madame red squirrel.

All work and no play........you know the saying.....so check out this website...

www.underthelimetree.com

This is where we where we went this week for a body and soul pampering day. Even better is that it is right on our doorstep!!
Our host Nikki was a very inspiring person and we came away not only relaxed and pampered but full of new ideas for our own place.

And so.....back to the grind!!!!!

New adventures in the Charente

We have the start of a new adventure here in Verteuil sur Charente in France.

Having lived in a rustic wine growing village for almost 5 years we felt the time was right to seek new pastures.

Within 6 months our beautiful home was sold and we landed in what I would call  "Suburban" living.

We purchased a house......well.....walls and roof . The inside left a lot to be desired.......what some may call a blank canvas.

The garden and situation of said house is.........location location location!

Beautiful historic village, large enough garden to accommodate all veg growing and chickens ,mature fruit trees, quiet, river views, walking distance to local boulangerie and boucherie, good cycling roads that don't involve gasping  for breath hills and near enough to towns to buy items for the renovation on the "blank canvas"

I have to say it was hubby who chose the house....I took a bit of convincing. I still had the dream of living out in the sticks and being lost  in your hectare of land whilst living in the beautifully renovated Longere. Back in the land of the real world Hubby did inform me that I was no longer young or fit enough to take on such a mammoth task . As usual he was right and so the compromise was made.

After leaving our old renovated house in near perfect condition with wine and glasses on table  for the new owner, we arrived to our rubble strewn new home.
The builder, who was kindly fitting us in, was still plastering the walls in the lounge ........feeling very tired from all the preparations, packing and emotional parting I felt entitled to a little breakdown!
After a little weep, glass of wine and then a good nights sleep ( at least we had a bed) I was up for the new challenge.

Now....one week on....we have almost got all the electrics completed. Our open plan toilet now has a room of its own. The French plumber Vincent, who is like a whirling dervish, has almost completed the plumbing work so said open plan toilet can be replaced with one that doesn't need filled by hand and doesn't need lid lifted off to pull up the flush inside. New windows and doors are ordered.
We are camping in the lounge.....our kitchen is laid out on a trestle made with the door we took off  to join it to the kitchen. The kitchen is .....well....just a room with a sink in it...and still has all the builders materials lying around ...so is ..to be continued.....

As for the garden......that is the where the work needs to be. As we can't afford a rotovator ..even to hire one is 50 euros a day....it's digging the old fashioned way!  Years of weeds and roots are finding it hard to relinquish their comfy home....so it's slow hard work.
However if we want to carry on with our attempt at  self sufficient cheap living we must get the veg planted as soon as possible...especially as we are already late,
So....rather than digging it all ...we are digging and planting bit by bit. We brought some raspberry canes and strawberry plants from our old house and they have already settled in well. The blueberry and black currant bushes are in and one set of potatoes.
I think we have to accept that this year may not reap the crops we have had in the past but at least we will have something.
The garden being a little bit wild is at least giving us lots of dandelion leaves for salads.
Here's to what week two will bring.