BAKING AND PRESERVING

Today has been very busy and rather satisfying as I have spent most of it adding to the winter stores. I had intended to spend some time in the garden but the weather said nay so I cut my losses, picked six pounds of apples and a pound of elderberries in the pouring rain and put the straight in to the preserving pan, they will strain until tomorrow and they be made in to apple and elderberry jelly; lovely with pheasant, partridge or wood pigeon and a good glaze for roast pork. This morning I baked barley corn bread for a change, it is a beautiful rich colour and both the flavour and texture are exceptional. I could not resist having a slice with honey even though warm new bread gives me indigestion, live dangerously that's what I say. Then I spent an hour labeling the preserves I made earlier in the week.

As we did not have breakfast this morning I made an early lunch of antipasto, Stilton, freshly picked lettuce and the first of our cherry tomatoes, they are late in ripening this year but they are very sweet and juicy. The last two summers have not been good for tomatoes as the cold damp weather weakens the plants and tomato blight sets in, it is possible to prevent blight with chemical sprays but we grow organic crops and so that is not an option. Growing this way can mean smaller crops but what you do get tastes much better and at least you know what you are eating. After lunch I made four dozen cherry biscuits, we have had quite a few visitors this week and the cookie jar was almost empty.

For dinner tonight I made a chicken and bacon pie, I must confess that I used frozen puff pastry as time was running out.

CHICKEN AND BACON PIE
1 large onion
12 rashers of streaky bacon
1lb diced chicken breast or thigh
1 tablespoon of tomato puree
1 pint of cider
1 tablespoon of apple or redcurrant jelly
1 tablespoon of cornflour
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

Dice the onion and fry in the oil without browning and set aside. Roll each rasher of bacon cut into two and secure with cocktail sticks then fry in the onion pad until just brown the leave to cool slightly while you fry the chicken in the bacon juice until it is sealed, add the tomato puree and cook for two minutes then add the bacon and onion and mix together. Add the cider and apple jelly and bring to the boil the reduce the heat and simmer for ten minutes. Use the cornflour mixed with a little water to thicken the cider gravy then spoon the chicken and bacon into a pie dish with some of the gravy, cover with pastry, slash the top and glaze with beaten egg or milk if you prefer, cook for about twenty minutes at 200c. Serve with jacket potato and butter or boiled new potatoes and you choice of vegetable. Use some of the vegetable water to thin the gravy a little and serve hot with the pie. This recipe works very well with rabbit pheasant or wood pigeon.

Pa is still sorting out his desk and progress is slow but steady, soon we shall be able to see the desk top again and I hope it encourages him to write again as he did before his illness, he is very talented and one or two publishers very very complimentary about his work, unfortunately he was unable to continue writing. Short term memory loss is the very devil, it robs the sufferer of so much and they become almost a stranger to those who love them. In Pa's case we hope it is reversible, I thank the Gods it is not Alzheimers. We are all looking forward to next week as we have promised ourselves some fun after all the recent hard work, I am hoping we came get the Scalextric going or maybe fly my son's model helicopters, I do love boy's toys, even as a child I was never fond of dolls. I once traded a baby doll and pram with my brother in exchange for a gun belt with two holsters two silver six shooters and a sheriff's badge, my brothers pleasure in the doll caused my father some concern, he need not have worried my brother is a big tough lumber jack.......hang on a minute wasn't there a song about lumber jacks.........hum. Actually he is very good with children so the doll did him good after all.