You can tell it's Autumn!

[maggie]

It's been a proper 'mast' year for fruit here, I'd already made loads of jam and pickles, but there's more to do, so I've spent the last week processing surplus stuff and I'm still nowhere near finished.

I've got chillis drying and frozen, stripped all of the remaining tomatoes and made reductions of both red and green. There are 15kg of green tomatoes, now reduced and frozen ready to make into chutney, and about the same of ripe ones that can be used for soups and sauces. I spent yesterday picking the rest of the apples and starting on rosehips and sloes, but it wasn't the best of weather to be doing it. I was getting wetter and wetter with the sudden, sharp showers, then managed to get my foot caught in a bramble and fell full length into long, wet grass, scattering a full bucket of tiny crab apples all over. By the time I got them all gathered up, I was soaked through, so gave up and came in. I've now got my third jelly bag straining the juice from the little crabs and the big apples all washed and dried ready to either store or cook and freeze.

The sun has come out, so it's time to do some more harvesting. .

[tinkerdorisalison]

You have been busy!

We have lots of apples which will probably end up being fed to the ponies again. We will get round to making Cider one year

[harveydales]

I was just thinking of cider too but our apples will probably all end up with the ponies. Same with the pears but made my first lot of damson gin tonight. Blackcurrent jelly next on the list.

[felix]

we have loads of fruit this year too so iv been making bullace jam, bullace gin and bullace vodka..still got about 4kg frozen in freezer as ran out of time

[Fi]

I'm off to see if I can find any sloes tomorrow. Here's hoping I can re-kindle my gin habit!

[valerie n scout]

Each time I went to work, I "harvested" the apples from the tree behind the office x ::

[dalesnfellfan]

We've had a bumper year for fruit too, I've made so much jam I've run out of cupboard space and jars, still got loads of raspberries in the freezer waiting for enough jars before making more jam and autumn raspberries still fruiting well. Blackberries have been really good this year, I do love blackberry and apple crumble, going to pick rosehips next don't do anything with them except give to ponies Spud loves them and stands with his head in the hedge for days eating them all from his field.

[maggie]

SO jealous, I wish I had raspberries!

One of the nicest drinks I've ever tasted was at Burghley this year - Raspberry Vodka.

[dalesnfellfan]

Now that's an idea, raspberry vodka sounds good perhaps I'll have a go at that instead of making yet more jam. definitely sounds more appealing

[SuzieP]

Blackberry vodka is gorgeous! I have a friend who makes it and once the fruit has done its job flavouring the vodka she drains it off, bottles the vodka and dips each blackberry in melted chocolate. Instant fruity alcoholic choccies which make a lovely Christmas gift (if they last long enough LOL)