WOYWW

 Happy What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday, well I have a cheeky day off today so my desk is somewhat different, this morning it is the kitchen.  We are just on the start of the new preserving season (I have already made a large batch of Wild Garlic salt and a jar of dried Wild Garlic powder in the past few days so the new preserving year is well under way!) and this is going to be Dandelion Honey!  It's dandelions flowers, water, lemon and sugar, that's it.  I love the taste of it and last year I did NOT make enough so this year I am hoping to make a few more jars!

The allotment site has loads of dandelions and as its fenced there are very few dogs or people so less chance of them being polluted.  Its nice an easy to make and I use it instead of agave which is my usual "go to" liquid sweetner but this is a LOT cheaper (hence I need to make a lot more this year as I ran out by the Autumn last year!!)

Forgot to bring my Man Bites Dog cards down, sorry will try to remember next week, I will also try to do another post as I have been doing some more sketches recently, yesterday I sketched on the allotment and we have another Bristol Urban sketchers virtual event at the weekend so I will try and post my sketches.

So, are you sharing your desk (or workspace) with us? All the details are the the lovely Julia's Queen of desks blog here

kyla

I got myself in a right jam

So, I tend to flit between crafts and since it is foraging season I have been making items ready for my Christmas gift hampers.

I have already started some Elderberry Brandy (it should be ready in about a month) but below is my first (and only as it takes a long time to make) batch of Blackberry jam.

It doesn't look much but it always catches me off guard as to how long it takes to make this!

  From picking bags of blackberries, de-labelling the jars and sterilising through to making the jam-it takes an entire afternoon for 6 jars!  To make sure there was enough pectin in the jam I added some foraged apples, cooking them down to a pulp with the blackberries.

All cooled and ready to add to the hampers come Christmas time!

Kyla

Foraging for harvest chutney

 So after filling both my freezer and belly with foraged plums and blackberries last week I thought I had had enough (I mean HOW many plums can one woman eat.....about 4lb is the answer!!!).  But no, the weather forecast of rain and heavy winds meant I was concerned the foraging bounty may get damaged so off I went on a few more walks and topped up the blackberries in the freezer and SO many more plums.

I decided to make some chutney.  I have foraged plums and apples and added a pear from our veg box and some rhubarb from the garden and made the rest of the recipe up.

 I have been making jams, cordials and chutneys since I was a child so I was confident the flavours would go well.

What I wasn't prepared for was how little it made!!! One large jar and one small.

A bit of a disappointment as I tend to use large jars for us and smaller jars ready for Christmas presents, but with such a small amount there won't be enough to gift (or have I just found another excuse to go for another walk this week for more supplies-though the plums at Kyla level are thinning so I may have to walk with a ladder!!).

 

WOYWW

Time to 'fess up.  This is not my desk and the photo was taken a couple of days ago.  Work is crazy so I had to schedule this.

I recently came back from holiday to find a lovely card and ATC from fellow WOYWWer Scrapbook Lynne, all the way from Canada.  How lovely is this?  The ATC is in my ATC holder and the card is on display in my craft room. Thanks Lynne they are lovely.

Crafting this time of year usually involves lots of foraging so my desk during August and September is often my kitchen!

My walk this week came back with Sloes (a little early but I left it too late last year and the birds stripped them all) which will be put in the freezer for my sloe gin later in the year.  I have frozen half the blackberries for later in the year and the other half have been made into a diet friendly 'jam' (cooked down and sugar free jelly crystals added, testing the setting point as usual-needs to be kept in the fridge and only last about 4 weeks but sugar free!!).

The plums are being eating as sweets and also taken into work to feed the team!!!

So there you are, my temporary desk (sorry no Man Bites Dog cards this week I forgot!!).

Happy WOYWW

Kyla