Com Post – How Green are we at Christmas – Invite to the #12DCP & Harlequin invaders

Been at home today - always a mistake; too much time for reflection as the pile of tissues mounts at my side. Bit of a personal challenge this one, self audit looking at how green we are in the lead up to Christmas, as I've asked myself the questions I will be avoiding the difficult ones.

Reduce
Miles	Bit of a mix	I cycle lots but with family all over the country car and train essential
Waste	Trying	Try to buy loose rather than pre-packed so only buy what need Do freeze and use leftovers
Fuel consumption	Trying very hard	Bought an Owl which has been interesting. However one of the towel rails is firmly back on as better than mouldy towels and using the tumble dryer [and I avoid ironing] Buy a green tariff and awaiting quote for solar water heating
Chemicals	Gone very eco	Tend to use ecover/simple/method and co-op 'eco' ranges. Also use borax, bicarb and non chlorine bleaches and washable dusters and cloths
Water	Butts	3 water butts on the go but still not enough
ReUse
Waste	Compost crazy	Shred receipts and use as chicken bedding Bokashi bin for non meat kitchen waste Homemade Wormery – which you can hear working! Wet and dry compost bins Council compost (takes ages to fill)
Cards	Christmas cards	Recycle into the next years cards see my SCD posts
Recycle
Waste	Council bins and village hall bins	Glass, paper, tins – sad that we have to drive to get rid of tetra packs

Clearly I should start with fabric hankies and a copper to boil them in after use!

OK it's not perfect; it is a fairly solid start though. To everyone on my Green & Gardens Twitter list you are invited to the #12DCP and of course anyone else who would like to join in – Twelve days of Christmas party, a virtual party, open to everyone. Call back during the 12 days for all sorts of nonsense. If you are coming, what 'green' thing will you bring? Also choose some music for the #12DCP playlist on Spotify – I will see if I can also blip the tracks for non-spotify users.

Spotify playlist for this post is on a different note. – Audit of harlequin ladybirds on a window frame – Thanks to @flashmaggie who made me aware of this in her post.

What to do with Green Plums?

There was the phone call; 'a branch of our plum tree has come down can you use green plums?' Then a bit of research on t'internet which led to some interesting sites covering India, Persia and Japan in their influences:

First and most amusing was http://www.ifood.tv/recipe/pickles_from_green_plums two recipes using green plums to make mango/lime chutney like pickles.

The first hot and sour the second sweet and sour. I have tried to interpret the recipes. I may have some problems; the hot and sour one keeps developing a surface mould. The sweet one; once the sugar was added, became very liquid and appears to be 'working', creating slight fizzing activity. I suspect both would have been enhanced by Indian sunshine rather than English humidity. I'll let you know if a) I am poisoned b) they explode c) I recommend repeating the process.


Second was http://persiankitchen.wordpress.com/2009/05/22/khoresht-gojeh-sabz-unripe-plums-stew/ - wow the result was SOUR. I can see how it might work,

certainly add sugar or honey but overall perhaps our English plums were just too unripe or bitter.





Third, http://www.deliciouscoma.com/archives/2009/05/diy_umeshu_plum_wine.html well; I'll have
to wait and see the liquid is currently off brown,

but clear and I did put in plenty of sugar, so give it a few more weeks and it might be worth a try.

Post script added 20th September 2009 - Just tasted the Umeshu and decanted it into a bottle.  It is now clear, the colour of weak tea and tastes fantastic!

Food Auctions– The country market

One of my indulgencies when I have time off is attending the local market at Campsea Ashe near Woodbridge, in Suffolk. When I first started attending this was a 'proper' auction market with cattle, pigs etc being brought in for sale. However, in recent years with the various diseases and changes in rules and regulations the majority of the livestock element has ceased. Now there is some dead stock (turkey, duck, chicken and gammon) a small amount of live poultry, some market stalls, a house clearance auction and my favourite the fruit and veg, sold by auction. Here a hardy tribe of Suffolk boys and gals, well above pensionable age auction items for a few pence to a few pounds.

There is witty banter, "who'll give me 80p for a bunch of carrots – an' they're good 'uns "

"Yuh goota be kidin Basil I ken get they in Tesco for 40p"

Of course we all know – a) you can't b) these were pulled out of someone's garden this morning or last night c) it's all in the thrill of the chase. The challenge is also in snatching the definitive bargain, so people will refuse to raise the bidding above 40p if they think five minutes later they can get something for 30p. There is also the art of being the 'under bidder'. This is the person

who helped raising the bids but stopped at the last minute. Where several lots of the same item are on sale and the winning bidder doesn't take them all, the under bidder gets the second option. As the bids are called, small amounts of cash move from hand to hand across the hall; bags of tomatoes and bunches of carrots, gladioli and marrows weave their way from one part of the old pig stalls to another. Not all the items come from local gardens, some are the 'run off' from market traders who had stock left on a Sunday and don't do a market on Monday so sack loads of over-ripe bananas can be had for a few pence too.

I made pints of tomato (40p a pound) sauce for the freezer, the carrots, cabbage, sweetcorn, cauliflower, were all used 'as is' during the week, the Sharron fruit (woppers 30p each) and avocadoes, kiwis were the basis for lunches and the peppers were turned into jars of roast pepper antipasti for sale, presents and home. The beetroot became part of a chocolate and beetroot cake.

Is it a bargain? - add in the travel, the cooking, the two or more hours out of your day…….. Of course it is; nothing in life is just about the money. I've been going here for over 20 years, some of the same faces are still there, buying and selling, ranting and bantering, I just wish I was free on a Monday more often.

Pea Gleaning

One of the joys of living in the country is the opportunity for ridiculous levels of frugality. One of my favourite activities is pea gleaning. Pea harvesting around here is done at industrial strength; visitors are surprised when at 3.00am the viners, lorries, drivers etc pitch up with their lights on and start trundling up and down the fields, because the moment is right. The peas are carted off to be processed all within minutes of picking.

So where does gleaning come in and is it worth it? Birdseye and others could argue that the peas they sell in the shops are at optimum condition and they are probably right; but the whole something for nothing, picking, shelling, blanching and freezing for yourself makes it worthwhile. After the pea team have left the field it is left looking brown and forlorn, with little sign of life. However, adjusting the eye to see the areas where peas might have been left untouched, it is possible to see tracks where plants have fallen into the grooves where tractors passed earlier in the season, or edges of the field where the harvesters can not quite reach. It is backbreaking and best done in the early morning or evening on hot days and certainly within 12 hours of the pea team leaving. The resultant haul was one large canvas bag full, four hours shelling resulted in about four and a half pounds of peas, which are now blanched and in the freezer. The pods went to the hens, they enjoy picking at them, nothing is wasted. Is it worth it; of course it is, all part of life, a bit of fun and a few cheap eats even if it is quite a lot of effort.