Day What Must It Be?

This is me, crawling back.  I am very very sorry.  Work suddenly exploded with busy-ness, and I was so tired at the end of the day that blogging just felt like more work.  Then, once things calmed down, I was embarrassed by the gap.  But I think I just have to leap back in, and hope for forgiveness.  As a peace offering, I have posted below a very wonderful recipe for Lemon Drizzle Cake.  :)

What to report in the meantime?  I shall gloss over some of the Downs, and concentrate instead on the major Up that was a very successful foraging expedition.  I put out a little call on facebook for anyone who knew of a bramble patch near to Edinburgh, and Friend Sharon from East Lothian replied that there were a whole lot down her way.  So one sunny Saturday afternoon in September, Friend Claire and I got the First Bus out to the highways and byways around Haddington.  Sure enough, the hedgerows were laden.

We spent a very happy couple of hours filling our tubs with brambles, and with some rosehips as well.  These are all currently in my freezer. Scottish brambles are not the lovely big juicy blackberries of the south of England, and the harvest is a little gritty and prickly, which makes them difficult to sort out and use fresh.  Rather, our intention is to make bramble jelly.  Friend Claire is sourcing some free apples from a neighbour's tree, and we plan having a jam-making day sometime soon.  We also need to track down a jelly bag, ideally, though some muslin could also do the job.  I have been on the phone to Mother, and she will keep us right.

It wasn't exactly a frugal day - the bus alone cost over £6 each - but in terms of getting out of the city to some glorious countryside, and time spent with a good friend, it beat a trip to the cinema.  The hedgerow harvest was almost a bonus, and the severely scratched hands but a badge of our righteousness.