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The December Issue of Home Farmer has arrived...
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Our new December issue of Home Farmer comes with hints of the forthcoming festive season, but doesn't try to bowl you over with chores - just heaps of fun! A well-known magazine once boasted '400 ways to make Christmas simple!' We are a little more reasonable than that! Our festivities include building a lovely gingerbread house and making a colourful rag wreath that will decorate any festive home a treat. As for cooking, we have lots of delicious cracker recipes, either made with cheese or intended for cheese for those lovely after dinner moments on the big day - and, of course, yet more cheeses, with both Camembert and Blue Lancashire cheeses in kitchen production this month. So crack on - there's still enough time to get your own ready for Christmas!
In addition we have our usual stalwarts: potting meat, cheeses and seafood as a means of preserving; building a Springwatch-style bird box with camera,; selecting seeds to plant for 2015; polytunnel first aid; pruning ornamentals; features on fudge and butter tablet, and much much more. I sometimes ask myself how we manage it in just 100 pages, but we seem to. See below for details of how to access all of these tips and ideas, and join the Home Farmer revolution for 2015 - the best New Year's resolution you could make! Or sign someone else up as a Christmas present that will last them a full twelve months; I'm sure they would be grateful.
IF YOU CAN'T CLICK ON THE LINKS, GO TO THE TOP OF THIS LETTER AND CLICK TO VIEW THE WEB VERSION.
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Britain Wins the Marmalashes...
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The Marmalashes is a competition started by Russell Luckock in 2010 after Australia lost The Ashes in the international cricket test matches between England and Australia. It is now an important international part of The World’s Original Marmalade Awards held each year in Cumbria, with twelve pots of marmalade sent over to the UK to compete against eleven pots from Britain (the extra Australian pot being sent just in case one is broken in transit!). They are then judged (fairly!) by a panel of both Australian and English judges. So far Australia has won three times, but it was with great excitement that this year England won for the very first time. As a consequence, awards organiser, Jane Hasell-McCosh, travelled 10,529 miles across the globe and was absolutely delighted to be presented with the Marmalashes at their traditional resting place – the Buninyong Court House − where they are always to be kept safely under lock and key, regardless of who might win. Jane said that it was wonderful to be in Australia and to finally see the Marmalashes, describing her father as a keen cricket player who would certainly have understood the importance of it all. Look out for your entry form for the 2015 awards in the January issue next month, and join together with like-minded preservers to celebrate marmalade in all its glory!
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Eeksie Peeksie Mug Competition...
Looking for an ideal gift for an avid tea drinker? Venetia from Eeksie Peeksie Ceramics in North East Scotland has donated a prize of four one-pint bone china mugs worth £35. To win, simply visit the Eeksie Peeksie website to find out four of her Christmas designs, then email the details to ruth@homefarmer. co.uk. Please include ‘MUG COMP’ as the subject, and remember to include your full name and address along with your answer. Emails must be received by Monday the 3rd of November. Winners will be informed in early December when the competition in the magazine ends. The answers can be found at www.eeksiepeeksieceramics.co.uk.
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Christmas Crackers...
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Here's a great cracker recipe from LizzieB, and just one from her article in this month's Home Farmer. As she says, by making your own crackers you don't end up with all the ones that no-one really wants that always serve to fill up the various selection boxes in the stores - you just get the ones you want to eat!
KIBBLE AND RYE ROUNDS
I was impressed to find a new flour mix on the shelves whilst walking around my local supermarket and wondered if it might be a great shortcut for making a nutty, seeded cracker, without having to buy all the separate ingredients. The crackers I made certainly beat the typical ready-made wholemeal seeded crackers that you can buy hands down, and they are certainly very economical to make.
INGREDIENTS
250g seed and grain wholemeal flour
120ml water
60ml sunflower oil
A pinch of salt
METHOD
1 Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2 Put the flour and salt into a large bowl and make a well in the middle, then slowly add the water and oil, stirring well to combine until a dough is formed.
3 Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 1–2 minutes until springy. Roll out the dough as thinly as possible (no thicker than 5mm) and cut into rounds – I used a 5cm diameter cutter, but you can make these any shape or size you wish.
4 Place the crackers onto a greased and lined baking tray and prick all over before placing in the oven. Cook for 10–12 minutes, then remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool down and crisp up.
LizzieB also suggests making these crackers by adding 1 teaspoon of freshly ground peppercorns and 1 teaspoon of dried chilli flakes to make what she calls her ‘spicy fire crackers’!
To see more great cracker recipes; a range of traditional potting recipes for beef, seafood, mushrooms and cheese; two great cheese making recipes; and plans for a gingerbread house, (not to mention all our great non-cooking features!), check out our latest issue of Home Farmer by clicking here.
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Congratulations to Gazegill Organic Farm...
Ian and Emma at Gazegill Organics, who we featured in the October issue of Home Farmer, were finalists at the British Farming Awards 2014, in the Diversification Innovator of the Year category. The farm was praised for its sales of raw and un-homogenised organic milk from the 60-strong Dairy Shorthorn herd, its direct and online sales of pork, lamb, beef, veal and mutton processed in the farm butchery, and the education facility and care farm, which takes in adults with learning difficulties on a day-visitor basis. These clients grow herbs and edible flowers which are offered for sale. The couple also have a phenomenal talent for communicating with the public on farming, hosting many free educational and school visits. As Ian and Emma put it: “Our farming ethos has always been to put in more than we take out.” Congratulations to all at Gazegill Organic Farm. To find out more about the farm click here.
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