Blackberrys

They are every where at the moment so go pick them before the black birds eat them all.
we have been using them in ice cream or with our oxtail stew recipe but today I have a nice jelly recipe for you ....

Blackberry Jelly

400g blackberry

50-150g caster sugar you can also use veggie gel 

4 gelatine leaves

Put the blackberrys in a pan with a good splash of water and bring to a simmer. You don't want to actually cook them, just heat them enough to release their juices. Press down with the back of a spoon to help them burst and extract all the juice.

Sieve the juice into a jug and pour it back into the pan, heat gently and add the sugar in 50g amounts until the juice is sweet enough. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for five minutes then lift them out and stir them into the warm juice. 

set in any pots or moulds you have ...

Whats coming next...

We are coming to the end of summer, Think I might have missed it or dorset is still waiting, hoping for some good whether. We now move on and get some new food to play with, birds are flying in to the pan and my veg beds are waiting for some more plants to be planted. so here are a few things to look out on our menus this coming month...

carrots  chillies  cucumber  courgettes  aubergine  sweetcorn  watercress  grouse

hare  blackberries  blueberries  damsons  figs  plums  brill  cockles  dab's

POP UP

pop-up update 

Today me and Katy got up at 6:30 am to go foraging for sea veg we got sea kale, sea beet, stone crop and samphire  then worked all day but on my brake drove to some where to pick wood sorrel

Then Monkton wild court to pick up some Fivepenny farm cheese yummy creamy and mild is what they had today so thats what I am using on friday any way... BED...

pop up challenge

So its been along time but im back on my blog and to get you all in to it I invite people to come eat at my pop ups heres the menus its £25 ahead dont miss out book with me now dominicbrown49@hotmail.com or check out festivalofculture.com 

Dom’s Pop Up at the Red Brick 17th of August

Starter

Foraged mushrooms & wood sorrel on toast

Bridport smoked haddock rarebit

Frampton’s ham hock summer salad

Main

(Served with a side of sea greens)

Dorset butternut squash, roast carrots,

crispy courgette & cheddar crust

Fillet of Lyme Bay lemon sole

pan-fried with a creamy tarragon sauce,

stone crop & crushed potatoes

Dorset pork chorizo pudding

with a garlic & spring onion mash

Pudding

Spiced dark chocolate mousse

Allington Hill apple juice jelly,

blackcurrant compote & elderflower ice cream

Fivepenny Farm cheddar with

crackers & chutney

Dom’s Pop-Up at The Avenue 26th of August

judged by Russell Brown from Sienna

Starter

Foraged mushrooms & wood sorrel on toast

Bridport smoked haddock rarebit & soft-boiled quails egg

Main

(Served with a side of sea greens)

Roast butternut squash, pickled carrot,

beetroot puree & sweetcorn caviar

Dorset pork & chorizo pudding

with a garlic & spring onion mash

Dessert

Spiced dark chocolate mousse

Allington Hill apple juice jelly,

blackcurrant compote & elderflower ice cream

Fivepenny Farm cheddar with

crackers & chutney

ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL

 

 

 

 

Prep time: 20 min, plus overnight infusing

Cook time: 5 min

Serves: Makes 1.5 litres

 

Ingredients

• 20 heads of elderflower (remove the flowers with a folk)
• 1.8 kg granulated sugar, or caster sugar
• 1.2 litres water
• 2 unwaxed lemons zest and juice
• 50g citric acid from fruits of the earth

Method

1. Shake the elderflowers to expel any lingering insects, and then place in a large bowl.
 
2. Put the sugar into a pan with the water and bring up to the boil, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved.

3. While the sugar syrup is heating, cut the zest of the lemons off in wide strips and toss into the bowl with the elderflowers. Slice the lemons, discard the ends, and add the slices to the bowl. Pour over the boiling syrup, and then stir in the citric acid. Cover with a cloth and then leave at room temperature for 24 hours.
4. Next day, strain the cordial through a sieve lined with muslin, and pour into thoroughly cleaned glass or plastic bottles. Screw on the lids and pop into the cupboard ready to use.

I like to mix mine with sparkling water, lots of ice and a few mint leafs, But you can mix with water or if your feeling dead posh put a splash of cordial in your champagne.

 

MUSHROOMS OF THE DAY

Fairy Ring Champignon


Alot of mushrooms have to be cooked this is one of them

Alot of mushrooms have to be cooked this is one of them
Cap: 2–5cm. Convex then flat with a central boss when mature,
wavy margin. Tawny to ochre, paler when dry.
Stem: 4–7cm by 0.3–0.5cm. White to cream, tough and fibrous.
Gills: Distinctly beige, broad and spaced widely.
Flesh: Very thin, cream.
Spores: White.
Habitat: Short grass, lawns, parks, pasture. Often in rings.
Frequency: Very common.
Season: Spring to autumn.
Warning: Must be cooked!

Field `Mushroom

Cap: 6-10cm. white and silky,fibrous, often with browner fibres in the centre, rounded then flat, cap skin overhanging.
Stem: 5-8cm by 1-2.5cm. spindle- shaped and not bulbous at the base.
Ring: Simple and fragile
Gills: Pink from very young, then brown as the spores mature
Flesh: Turns slightly pink when damaged
Spores: Dark brown.
Habitat: Grassland, usually in rings.
Frequency: Common
season: Summer to autumn

PIMMS O CLOCK

With weather like this it must be time to sit down in the garden and have a drink!

Ingredients

50ml of pimms 
one glass of mint ice cubes
British strawberry's
Lemon & Lime
Borage flowers
Elder flowers
Elderflower cordial 10ml (I will post recipe for this very soon)
Lemonade


The only hard bit about this is having one glass!

Ice cubes

• Chop some mint and put in the ice tray with water and freeze

Pimms

• Mix the elder flowers and a few mint leafs, 10ml of elderflower cordial and mix
• Make layers of strwberry's, lemons, lime and ice
• Top up with lemonade and a few Borage flowers stir and drink!

Enjoy!