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Wild bounty

Wild bounty

Despite all the doom and gloom of Jackie’s last post, plenty of plants have in fact done very well this summer, many of them without any help from us. Our little plot of land doesn’t have a fence to keep the wild things at bay but we are completely surrounded by a wall of brambles. And, despite this summer’s heat we have had another bumper harvest of blackberries. It’s the one thing Jackie hasn’t made a preserve of but I love to make my favourite dessert – blackberry and apple crumble. We get the apples from our own tree but there are also loads of apple trees around here on the dog walk. So I managed to scrump many more, enough to make some cider. Last year it was pretty good so fingers crossed.

blackberries
blackberries

Despite the grape vines on the pergola not doing so well, there is an old vine growing over one of the walls. As opposed to the ones we planted which produce large grapes for eating, this one has produced loads of small grapes.

Most of the locals only grow two things, grape vines for wine and olive trees for olive oil. Their grapes are all small so I guess the one we have must be of the same variety and also good for wine, so I’m having a go. In essence wine making is extremely simple (certainly as practised by our nearest neighbour Luis). Just crush the grapes, filter out the gunk and just let it do it’s stuff. There is enough wild yeast on the surface of the grape to ferment the juice. You just need to keep the fruit flies out or you will end up with vinegar. As you might expect, some people take a bit more care than Luis and I am being guided by an excellent little book: “First steps in wine making” by C.J.J. Berry. The price on the back is 6 shillings but as they have been making wine for centuries, I’m sure not that much has changed since this little gem was published. If nothing else, it is an interesting read. As opposed to Jackie’s elderberry wine, which is ready now, after a year in the bottle, the grape wine should be ready in weeks. Again, fingers crossed.

grapes
legs
Probably the biggest surprise has been the peaches. We’ve got three peach trees on our land, all of which have just grown on their own and although peaches have always made a start they have never come to fruition, until now. There is quite a large tree next to the well and every day a load more fruit fall off it. I have to say that 99% of the peaches have worms inside, so it’s taking a bit of a chance to eat one straight away but it’s no problem to cut out the bad bits and be left with plenty of good flesh.

This time, I decided to get involved in the dark arts of chutney making and I’ve made three jars of peach and pepper chutney (with our own red peppers). Jackie couldn’t resist of course and has also made some chutney – peach and chilli (with our own chillis). We will find out in a few months who is the peach chutney king or queen. And there are still more peaches left, so as well as bottling a few, I’m making an experimental peach and blackberry crumble this afternoon and no doubt a few more will make their way into a peach cordial.

peaches
peaches

chutney
Fig trees grow wild round here and have had another good season. So far we’ve only had them fresh off the tree or in fig tarts. We’ve got loads of jams of various flavours already and I think Jackie is preserved out at the moment but we’ll have to see what else we can do with them.
figs
So never mind being busy with the veg patch, there is plenty of wild fruit to be collected as well. I cast an eye over the garden and note that next up, it’s the walnuts…

Booze

Booze

The hunting season has started again. From now until the end of February we are greeted in the morning with the sound of shots and the yelping of hysterical dogs, just Thursdays and Sundays mind. Betty doesn’t care what day of the week it is, she  frequently returns from the undergrowth panting and wide-eyed, her mouth blood-stained. She chased a young deer  yesterday. Apart from the wild boar traps (some of you will remember Betty’s awful experience) I am not bothered by the hunting. The very fact it exists proves that the woods and hills nearby home rabbits, deer, foxes, mongeese (mongooses?), deer and wild boar, and plenty of other things we haven’t seen. And the reason these animals exist is because their natural habitat remains: hedgerows, coppices, unfarmed meadows, deciduous and coniferous woodlands…

lane

What’s this to do with booze? Well, it’s the hedgerows for a start. Teeming with blackberries and sloes. Which means along with the damson vodka and cherry brandy we now have sloe gin to add to our winter noggins.

booze

We live in the land of wine so why I’m tempted to make our own is beyond me. The quince effort, some years ago now, wasn’t tooo bad. The elderflower last year was actually quite quaffable, except for the last bottle left to share with friends which had suffered from the heat of the barn.

elderberry_wine2But while it’s never as good as the bought stuff that’s only made from grapes,  there is something romantic about country wines. So this year it’s the turn of the elderberry, something I’ve always wanted to try. I just couldn’t resist those tempting black berries. We’ll let you know in a year or two!

I have to admit though that lurking in the pantry are two bottles of walnut liqueur, a kind of nocino. We had a try after a year and it was horrid. So I added some sugar, replaced the tops and shoved them back in the pantry. I’m convinced that, when we remember to try again and wipe off the cobwebs, it’ll be superb. Cheers!

Oh, by the way: the hedgerows are also home to Cheeky Charlie. Yes, still on the loose among the brambles and wild roses, popping in for food and water occasionally and then back to the shade. Don’t count your chickens, Charlie!

Making things

Making things

Unlike Richard I have been rather slack at updating the blog so this is a summary of what I’ve been busy doing since the new year apart from veg patch stuff (another post for that). Well, in short, I’ve been making things. January saw in the orange season and so marmalade was first up, and therefore orange marmalade cake, along with orange liqueur, orange and mascarpone tart and of course freshly squeezed juice.

Next came the lemons and limes. The oranges were from our own trees but the lemons were taken from others. We stopped at one house with an over laden tree and asked if we could have some. Two full buckets of lemons meant searching for ideas. There were the lemon equivalents of what I made with the oranges plus lemon curd, lemon cordial, and, best of all, lemon meringue pie. The curd was also used to make a Lancashire version of Bakewell tart. The few limes from our own tree were turned into lemon and lime marmalade. The remaining lemons were cut up into slices and put in the freezer.

I cut the willow down completely and sat in the sun (we had a very hot winter) making another basket, this time using olive branches and redwood cuttings too. It was a year since my last attempt and so it felt like starting over again. It looked quite colourful when finished but I still can’t get the shape I want. I had been meaning to have another go but the willow branches have now all dried brown and been thrown away.

While my sister was here we made some more soap. The first batch was made only with our olive oil which we felt was a little slimy, and didn’t lather. So this time we made some with coconut oil and that was brilliant, except perhaps a touch too soft. I’ve recently experimented with other oils and so far (it’s still drying) it seems much harder – fingers crossed for the perfect bar! I also used water coloured with beetroot, it was deep pink initially but this practically disappeared when mixed with the caustic soda. However, the bars do have a lovely orange tinge to them now.

It was three years since the asparagus was planted so great celebration in being able to have our first spears. As the crowns came from my father it seemed only right to give some to him but the hot weather meant the 4 weeks of eating them would be over before he visited. So I preserved a jar of them in olive oil and rosemary having grilled the spears. It worked very well, and since then the artichoke hearts have been preserved too.

But now the roads and riverbanks are lined with elders in full bloom which means one thing: making elderflower cordial. I love it so much I’ve made 7 bottles of it, and one has already gone. Wanting to make the most of this fragrant of flowers I’ve also decided to have another go making wine. The quince effort wasn’t bad for a first time go but it was too sweet so I’m hoping this time for a better result. And am determined to make elderberry wine too, watch this space.

The most exciting thing that I’ve been making though is ice-cream! Richard bought me an ice-cream maker and it’s been great fun making up recipes – not with our own produce yet but I’m sure I’ll be an expert once the raspberries, blackcurrants, plums etc are all out. I’ve made mango, strawberry and, best of all, banana ice-cream. The latest attempt was with the elderflower cordial, it was nice but the lemon juice was too overpowering so will change the ratio of that for the next batch.

Along with the baking it’s been a busy time in the kitchen then. But I haven’t been the only one making things. Richard has made the table and benches and his next big project will be to make a barbecue stand in the courtyard. But now he’s just made a cup of tea…

 

Harvest time

Harvest time

…OK a bit premature but over the last couple of weeks the veggies have sprung to life. We’ve been eating the strawberries for a while, the delicious raspberries have now come on stream and the cherries have already come and gone. Admittedly ours were rather small like last year. And of course just like last year, Luis, with a big smile on his face, came over with a huge punnet of plump ones for us. Back to our veg, the artichokes and purple sprouting broccoli have come and gone but now we’ve got potatoes, onions, garlic and various beans and peas. Oh, and those triffids from last year are back and already producing like no tomorrow – the courgettes. And that’s just the start. There are plenty of other veggies on their way as well. Jackie will follow with a full update soon.

plums

In addition to veggies, the tree fruits are coming through. The plums should be ready soon and although the main pear tree (and apple tree) may well disappoint (the aphids have been extremely busy this year), we found a rather sickly young pear tree at the end of the garden last year and after some careful nurturing looks like it will come good.

pear

I only hope our electrician returns and connects the electricity to the barn as our new chest freezer is ready and waiting for excess produce. Talking of the barn – that is finished (but still needs painting) as is the patio. And I must say the front of the house finally looks pretty good. However, unlike in the UK, we haven’t seen the builders for a while and I still owe them 1000 Euros!

Jackie has also been busy making Elderflower champagne. Despite exploding bottles – glass and even plastic (see below) we have salvaged a fair amount and I must say it’s pretty good. Next up the quince wine.

explosive device

Apologies for no posts over the last two weeks but we’ve had Jackie’s parents staying and we’ve been quite busy. So has Jackie’s dad. He very kindly brought over a new henhouse for our proposed table birds (chickens for eating) and he also made a run for them while he was here.

New chicken run

Having them over has also meant me and Jackie (and the hairy one) managed to get away for a few days for some camping while they looked after the hens. As this blog is focussed on casa Azul, I won’t go into details but we had a great time and below are some photos.

campsite near Marvao
in the Rio Zezere

 

And to wrap up this blog entry – garden wildlife. It looks like the black redstarts won’t be making a nest in the postbox this year but we do have a couple of collared doves in the garden. I presume the nest must be here somewhere but we haven’t found it yet. Watch this space!

collared dove
Quince wine

Quince wine

Some of you may remember that back in October I started making my very first wine from the wonderful quince harvest. Since then it’s been racked a few times and now at last, over 6 months later, it’s been siphoned into bottles. As predicted the wine is a beautiful rose colour, not as clear as it should be but that’s fine by me. Six bottles have been filled and we tasted what was left over – not too bad, really! It actually tastes like wine! A touch sweet but I reckon it’s the perfect partner for rhubarb crumble… (and how nice to have a morning tipple of homemade wine on one’s birthday).

“Boa é a vida, mas melhor é o vinho”

“Boa é a vida, mas melhor é o vinho”

It seems appropriate that the autumn colours come mainly from the vines; the fields around us are alight with their gold, orange and scarlet.

In fact this week wine has been very much on our minds for two reasons. The first is that I have started to make some wine for the very first time. My dad had this very old book on wine making, there’s no date but as the price is both in shillings and new pence I’m guessing it’s 1971. He gave it to us when he came recently and it’s full of the most wonderful recipes for country wines, and my eyes fell on quince wine for October – perfect. It’s certainly been a steep learning curve, and with lots of different stages at different temperatures it reminded me of being back in the darkroom.

First up was the making the yeast starter, and here I used the grapes growing in the garden. That went well and soon started bubbling nicely.

Grating 20 quinces (and how big is a quince?) was a bit of a chore…

The next steps had a few hurdles. I did remember to convert gallons into litres but forgot that the bottles I would be using instead of British demi-johns were bigger. I didn’t stir the mulch enough so after the first fermentation in the bucket there was a thick layer of sugary goo at the bottom. And straining the mulch into the glass bottle took ages, in fact it completely stopped when there was less than a third done. Ho hum. Anyone who has made quince jelly will know what a lovely pink colour quince makes once boiled and I was cheered up by the thought of making a beautiful blush wine!

Anyway, hurdles overcome, the wine is now sitting in the living room and gurgling away happily. I had thought it may be ready for Christmas – ha! It’s going to take months and months apparently so it’s a glass of rosé in the spring methinks.

So the other reason that wine is on our minds this week (more than usual) is that we went on a wine tasting course with Portugal friends. 10.30 on Wednesday morning found us at Quinta do Cavalinho where the owner, Paula Costa, showed us around her vineyards and factory and of course encouraged us to have a few slurps. So from a 5 litre bottle to vats of 50,000 litres it’s on a much bigger scale, but it’s still a small family run company.

There are 30 hectares of grapes growing of which 80% are for making red wine. The area until recently was called Ribetejo but the marketing forces that be decided that, in order to compete against big brother Alentejo, the area should now just be called Tejo.

The factory itself has taken advantage of the fact that Tomar, 3 kms away, was the home of the first Knights Templar (and a visit to Tomar castle is a must). Their wine is called Herdade de Templários and features the famous Templar cross. We bought 6 bottles of their branco reserva and then headed off for a boozy lunch with everyone at Calça Perra. Richard slept all the way home…