Country Girl – Apples Shmapples!

Apples apples everywhere … every time I walk to the end of the garden I feel swamped. I have made pies, crumbles and spiced apple muffins for every occasion:

Mum: “would you like to come over for dinner?”
Me: “ooo, lovely. Don’t worry about pudding, I’ll make an apple pie!”

Friends: “We were thinking of popping over for a coffee today”
Me: “Great! I’ll bake a fresh batch of spiced apple muffins!”

Hubby: “what shall we have for dinner tonight?”
Me: “how about we do away with savoury altogether and have apple crumble with cream?”

However, not only are my entire family now bored with my limited menu plan, but I am also having a daily argument with my jeans over my ever-expanding waistline. But, I have rectified this little problem by recently purchasing a ‘jogging’ lead so that Milla and me can run in happy healthy unison. Yes, I plan to start running each morning in the fresh country air – although I anticipate it being in thermals due to the autumn freshness that has suddenly descended on our part of the world. Last weekend we were still sitting in the garden in t-shirts; albeit for just a couple of hours while the sun was at it’s strongest, but the last couple of mornings have called for me to dig out my winter coat … which of course is fitting snuggly now. Argh.

But, things are getting better. As the apples start to diminish, the sloe picking starts and other than going out in search of these lovely little berries, the next most important item on my ‘To Do’ list is – BUY GIN! Hoorah. Not for gin and tonics you understand – No, never! *Ahem* – but purely, and legitimately, in the name of Domestic Goddess ‘Moonshine’ duties. Yes, I’m going to start making my recession-busting Christmas presents and already have a nice haul of berries that I just have to sit ad prick laboriously before popping them in their bottles and watching them mature ready for a nice Christmas tipple. Ahhh, life in the country is good.

Alice Griffin is a writer who lives on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors, England. She has just finished writing her first book, Tales from a Travelling Mum, and now plans to ignore the computer for a while and start getting creative and crafty with Country-inspired Christmas present ideas. You can catch up with Alice’s day-to-day life on her personal blog ~ Fanciful Alice ~

Tags: christmas, country, life, presents, tmfc

Add a Comment

You need to be a member of twitter moms: the influential moms network to add comments!

Join this Ning Network

Comment by Alice Griffin on October 19, 2009 at 2:48am: Dorothea ... your comment made me smile. I have just moved house and I've already ordered my wild flower seeds to sprinkle around the garden to encourage wildlife. Oh, and I moved my vegetables from the old house and already have various cabbages, pak choi etc etc hidden amongst the borders!!!!! Although I'm waiting with baited breath to see if they take the move in their stride. Hopefully I'll be back on-line at the new house soon (currently camped out in the library) at which point I will be doing a post about the vegetable move ... lol. x

Comment by Dorothea Orme on October 14, 2009 at 6:24am: Aha!!! Good to know that there are others out in 'twittermomland' that share the same enthusiasm for such things. I am a great believer of using wild food and encourage my family to do the same. I too give a lot as gifts and it is so personalized and different from anything you can buy from the stores. I belong to an environmental group that encourages planting fruit and nut trees in urban/residential areas instead of ornamental trees and fruit and vegetables amongst flowerbeds and shrubs. I am also an keen Guerilla Gardener and can often be seen scattering wild flower seeds and planting herbs, etc in empty flower beds on streets and areas that are bare
untended. It all helps with encouraging bees and greening our environment. Keep up the good work!

Comment by Alice Griffin on October 14, 2009 at 1:30am: Hi Joe, this is the kind of thing I was thinking of: http://www.amazon.com/Gardman-Rainbow-Garden-R687-Greenhouse/dp/B000NCTGQE/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1255508746&sr=8-4 Just to start a few seeds etc. I think you can get them in various sizes etc. Let me know if you find any better options!

Dorothea, Wow - I salute you! Sounds like you have been so busy. I love free food - it always feels like such an achievement. Last year when we lived in Spain we made fig jam and bramble jam until it came out of our ears and gave it out to neighbours for gifts - it was lovely to feel that it hadn't cost us a bean, only in time. I also picked up a bag of damsons that someone had left outside their house and I'm hoping to make some gin with them, too. Here's to a merry Christmas and a merry summer! Thank you for stopping by.

Comment by Dorothea Orme on October 13, 2009 at 7:40am: I've just made several batches of Sloe Gin and an enormous batch of Crab Apple, Sloe, and Blackberry jam. I harvested them from country walks in the Devon and Cornish Countryside. What we call 'Food for Free'. I am making apple butter and apple sauce for Roast Pork from friends' apple harvests and have made my first batch of Damson Gin. It is going to be a very 'merry' Christmas and those long, cold summer drinks of Sloe Gin and Tonic and Damson Gin and Tonics will definately get me harvesting again for the following year. Great exercise and the children love to help pick the fruit and take part in the making of Jam, etc.

Comment by Joe Cheray on October 12, 2009 at 12:52pm: mmm interesting I will have to Google collapsible greenhouses and see what I can come up with thanks Alice

Comment by Alice Griffin on October 12, 2009 at 1:59am: Hey Tamara - thank you. It's nice to know you understand. I think the sloe gin will help to calm my nerves :-)

Joe ... I wish I could send some over to you! I am appled out ... ha ha. As for greenhouse - I have been reading up about seeds for next year and lots say 'start in the greenhouse ...' I think overall that if you live in a cold climate, having a little warmer space definitely helps. But I really am a beginner (any other true green fingers out there please leave a comment!!!). At the moment I don't have a greenhouse, but I have seen plastic versions that put up quick and collapse, so that might be something I'll consider.

Thank you for your comments, as always x

Comment by Joe Cheray on October 11, 2009 at 9:42pm: Hey do you think a greenhouse would be a good fit in a climate that is cool or cold like Kansas, I have thought about building a very small one in the back yard????

Comment by Joe Cheray on October 11, 2009 at 9:41pm: Ok you made me hungry after I read this I love apple deserts lol. Pie, cobbler, crisp, candied, they are all wonderful to eat.

Comment by Tamara Maellaro on October 10, 2009 at 7:37am: Congrats on getting the book to the editor. I know that is a great feeling. I also understand the bit of nerves that go along with that. Sit back and enjoy the fresh country air and that bottle of gin and berries. What a nice gift for friends and family.