Biggin' it up in E17 for Organiclea's Scrumping Project.

This year I wasn't able to go to the Apple Day celebrations at the Vestry House but, I was able to purchase a bottle of Organiclea's scrummpy apple juice from their Saturday stall in support of their truly inspirational Scrumping Project

A surprising number of gardens, in E17, have established fruit trees and many of these trees, for one reason or another, are neglected, the crop underutilised or left to rot on the trees. Organiclea offers a scrumping service whereby residents can register their fruit trees and for a part share of the crop an organised group of scrumpers will pick the fruit. This surplus fruit is distributed amongst community groups, at the local Apple Day Festival and is also pressed and bottled, the proceeds of which feed back into funding Organiclea's varied projects. Respek!

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    The Original Ministry Of Food

Rosehip syrup, another intrepid Food For Free inspired foray into seasonal sustenance. There is a Dog Rose growing just outside the kitchen door. Though I didn't have to go very far to pick a bowlful of rosehips this does count as foraging as I had to brave icy rain and malicious, vengeful thorns. (Perhaps now I can brave the nettles for that nettle soup?).

I followed the directions published by The Ministry of Food in 1943: Rosehip Syrup recipe

I crushed the rosehips with a pestle and morter and not a little bit of sweat and tears (having shed at least an armful of blood earlier picking the rosehips). Do not be tempted to resorting to using an electrical appliance! By saving effort here you are only going to have to spend even greater effort later digging holes to plant trees to offset the carbon emissions accrued.

Do take the time to strain the syrup several times each time using a fresh piece of butter muslin to get rid of all the tiny, sharp hairs.

Once you've bottled up the syrup, the only thing to do is to make yourself a stack of pancakes.

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   Sloe Gin

On the prompt of my copy of Richard Mabey's book Food For Free the Sloe Gin recipe offered the prospect of a walk.

In our underestimation of the seasonal thirst for Sloe Gin we thought the belt of blackthorns we alone had discovered was virginal. Not on your nelly! It is frequented, and its delights and fruits plundered, by all and sundry; an important observation we have subsequently added in addendum to our folio prunus f**king spinosa, and filed under ‘k’ for f**king know-it-alledgeable local (cue banjo 4-beat strum). And, it being late in the season, most of the bushes were stripped within arm’s reach! Tauntingly, above this level there remained a veritable bird’s banquet.

It had recently rained and a gloomy frost began to set in. As we looked up into the bushes and plucked the odd, overlooked berry we were drenched in an avalanche of icy precipitation which trickled down our necks, coursed the hollows of our backs and puddled in our butt cracks. Our fingers quickly numbed and in our fumbling attempts to reach the berries we scored our knuckles on the thorns. The expedition was fast turning into something like a Tess-of-the-D’urbervillian night-of-the-dead-and-dying-pheasants-in-the-hedgerow (bloody, though admittedly without the moribund fowls).

Then, set back off the path and overgrown by Hawthorn, we spotted a sloe-laden bush that had been passed over as it was not for easy picking. We just about filled a pudding basin before squelching a hasty retreat to the car, each clandestinely entertaining the thought of investing in a crook handled walking stick and flat cap. And, coming back again next year. And, beating the ravaging hordes to it!

A perfunctory web search will bring up a recipe for Sloe Gin. As they are all much of a muchness, I’ll save you the effort:
Recipe:

• 450g/1lb ripe sloes,(even better if they are slightly bletted after the first frost)
• 225g/8oz caster sugar
• 1 litre/1¾ pint gin

Prick the sloes and pour them into a clean screw top bottle. Pour in the sugar and then the gin. Agitate the bottle to mix the sugar with the gin. Agitate once a day for a week and once a week thereafter for a minimum of two months.

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   Bramble Jam

The best thing about going brambling early in the season is the fact that there is blossom and green, reddening and fully ripe, swollen black berries to be seen growing in juxtaposition – a scratch and sniff Adriaen Coorte still life. 4 Real.

The best thing about brambling is that you don't have to read the label to check whether they are airflown, or organic free range. And there is no packaging!

Here you have it, our bramble walk in Epping Forest preserved in a darling jar of jam to save for a wintry day. The rest of it went down nicely baked in an apple and bramble pie.

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