ch-ch-ch-chilli

Sudden onset of winteriness. The bright note in the garden? Profusion of ripening chillis. Bless the beloved who picked them for me before they could deteriorate. Here's his harvest, and below are things we did to preserve them ...

kim chi convert

Prompted by an excess of cabbages, and following Claudia's great example, have been exploring homemade kim chi. Now onto my second batch, with the first batch pictured here. Googling has thrown up lots of recipes, suggestions, and tips, and the confidence to mix and match ingredients, which apparently is 'traditional'. Also threw up a scientific article declaring kim chi one of the world's five healthiest foods.

bean-anza!

Broad beans - the gift that keeps giving! After a good crop last year, saved seed was used to start a new crop. Both a veg bed crop and some planted experimentally beside one of the orchard trees flourished, after a nervous wait for germination.

drying pumpkin seeds

Successfully dried and lightly toasted pumpkin seeds following the method discovered a couple of months ago. So simple, I'm kicking myself for only discovering this now. A great way to make use of something usually discarded, a free version of something I usually buy, tastier - if I say so myself! 

pumpkin seeds - what not to do ...

Read somewhere about all the things we unnecessarily throw out, like pumpkin seeds cleaned from pumpkins. Good point!

preserving our olives

Have finally picked this season's small harvest of olives, all from the tree near the causeway, and by now very ripe, some even starting to shrivel. And they've been in a bucket for a couple of days now and are looking a bit sorry and bruised.