Riverman under cliff: 2008-03-30

I think that my little garden hedgehog has woken up.

Yesterday I walked into my slough-sogged garden and the little scrap of tree bark that had sheltered him from the sleet and snow these many months had been tossed onto the damp dandelion patch. I suppose he got too hungry to wait for the BBC weatherman to officially announce the end of winter.

Taking my prickly friend's cue, my neighbours started demolishing the mossy frost-bitten fence fringing their lawn yesterday, and I swear there was a faint whir of a lawn mower in the air today. Soon patio furniture will be dusted out and washing lines spun out against the sky.

A garden comes to life round about this time in the year. She spends the winter huddled under thick and dreamy duvets, and one miraculous day, She gives a big shuddering yawn, stretches her branches, tosses off her blankets and opens her eyes... and after a little look around, she heaves to her feet and picks up a broom.

I think that I will do the same too! There is much to clean out over the last year. There's that crate of last year's wine-turning-to-vinegar under the kitchen sink and a ton of over-ripened-fruit-jam-jarred in the larder to clear away.

So come on Reader! We will start with the Jam, and maybe leave the wine for next week...

There's some pretty good stuff here in these jars... sweet, tart, tangy and wild. Quite a while and a couple of burnt fingers ago, I ladled multi-coloured-mini-orchards into these pots and now they are a sturdy little demonstration on well-preserved-perseverance (yeah, Corny I know... but I can't resist).

Here's a great recipe for home-made jam courtesy of the riverman~~~. It definitely goes a long-way to sweetening bitterly depressing winter-to-spring days. For those of you who don't know what the hell this recipe is about, please accept my apologies. The riverman~~~ sometimes writes in code just to infuriate you! For the code-breakers (i.e. namely the attendees of last week's welcome feast-fest for Tania at my place)... enjoy!

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Ingredients:

(1) Friends (as many as you can get together on a cold and miserable day) Preferably pick the ones that sprout in the wild and are consequentially more sturdily sincere. For a taste of the exotic obtain the ones that grow overseas in sunny tropical climes (they actually taste sweeter!). If you are into the "organic" thing, try to obtain the ones that grow near farmyards (Trish, you know what I mean!). For the best combination for this jam, get a mixture of local, exotic and organic varieties.
(2) Chicken Wings (the sort that only Sarah Lee can make. You know, the sort that you can't stop eating once you start... Yes, the dangerous sort!)
(3) Lurid Green Deck Chairs. (The "Luridder" the better!)
(4) 7 to 8 pots of Earl Grey Tea (Earl Grey, being the only type of tea in my cupboard other than Chamomile)
(5) 1 Bottle of Bubbly (simply for a taste of luxury or for those who can't do without alchoholic infusions)
(6) 2 boxes of Char Siew for taste (and a wave of home-sickness)
(7) 1 tray of Egg-Tarts from Soho bakery ( Try not to eat all of these yourself before you start cooking.)
(8) Kueh Lapis (Guest Starring from Begawan Solo, Singapore)
(9) Crispy Cremes (as a substitute for ssssh-shugggg-a-a-arrr!!)
(10) A cold and rainy March afternoon...

Equally important and vital ingredients:

(11) A mighty splash of Tania's Laughter
(12) A robust dash of Leslie's Pepper-Wit
(13) A blinding flash of Sarah's Culinary Genius
(14) A taste of Animal Husbandry from Trish
(15) A little bit of Japanese Art from Asako
(16) A sliver of Naughtiness from Ling and
(17) A wee bit of "Bob the Builder" from Daniel
(18) One hour's worth of "Shrek"
(19) One DVD player Remote Control
(20) One feature length Cheesy Movie (the cheesier the better, and preferably one involving falling-stars, witches who ride goat-drawn-chariots and Robert De-Niro in a pink-lace-dress).

Instructions:

Sprinkle Friends liberally over Lurid Green Deck Chairs in living room. Toss in Crispy Cremes and Chicken Wings intermittently while maintaining a constant stream of Earl Grey Tea.

Proffer Bubbly to Friends and proceed to drink most of it yourself. Sing Bob-the-Builder as Daniel attempts acrobatics over the Lurid Green Deck Chairs.

Stir in Char Siew and bring the whole mixture to stew over the latest gossip.

Distract John by offering him the DVD Player Remote-Control, and ensure that Daniel survives the evening by playing Shrek.

Slice and dice Trish's Animal Husbandry and mix with Leslie's Pepper Wit until combustible. Slowly add to the mixture until bubbles of Tania's Laughter surface. Then under Sarah's Culinary Genius, whisk in the Kueh Lapis followed quickly by the Egg Tarts. Allow entire mixture to simmer but not boil over.

Throw in Ling's Naughtiness to taste and finally garnish with Asako's Japanese Art on the side. Place mixture in front of the Cheesy Movie and allow jam to set.

Once cool, ladle into jam pots for another day, or if you can't wait - dig in!