Jam

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!

_______________________________

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!

Take it from me Reader...

It's totally Yummm!!!

And for the wonderful people who made last weekend such a mad and crazy affair! Thank You!

~~~

That crazy spring BBQ...

It's a Given and Gotta-Have! As obligatory as oranges in Chinese New Year and as compulsory as carols around a Christmas tree.

Spring is the sound of lawnmowers and laughter; the smell of freshly cut grass and the taste of charcoal. Spring is Pimms and baskets of strawberries. Spring is a kite on a string... a dog straining against his leash. Spring is the strum of guitar and the dance of flowers.

Spring is a garden Barbecue... with all the boisterous fun that comes with it!

The sunshine is sufficient reason to go Ga-Ga with the grill, but when you have a friend running his first marathon on the day; a hankering to house-warm your new bachelor pad and a 35th birthday slapping you in the face... pray tell me, what more of an occasion do you need to go positively wild!?

So what happens when you put together a mowed lawn; lots of fresh air; three disposable barbecue trays and a confusion of chow-n-scads-of-swig? Here Reader, is the happy result:

How to throw a slam-bang-BBQ
(in 5 easy steps)

STEP 1: send out the invitations...

People...

I have decided that in honour of 3 special events (in no particular order)...

I will mow the overgrown grass on my lawn this Saturday and open my doors for a spring barbecue this Sunday!
Weather permitting, we will spend most of the day outdoors in the garden, and eat up a small supermarket's worth of steak, fish, prawns, squid, chicken wings and sausages and corn on the cob. For those more inclined to a liquid diet, the menu will consist of Pimms, wine of every colour from every continent and whatever poison you wish to supply... (And oh yes, I will supply coke and water for religious fanatics and spoil-sports!)....

STEP 2: get the groundwork done...

STEP 3: command people to bring everything you need... i.e "Thou shalt bring..."

The things I need are:
(a) Food Food Food! - fish, fowl or "foul", crustacean etc! Bring some - bring all!
(b) plastic plates, cups, cutlery - because nobody wants to wash up after having fun!
(c) Ice - a bag or two from the Tesco just down the street.
(d) Beer - for the "men" who refuse to hold those sissy wine glasses! ...

STEP 4: send out the address and directions...

... no matter how rudimentary..

STEP 5: Sit back and let it all happen...

... and then let it continue all the way into the night...

... to a lullaby of jazz and folk...

...until nobody can keep their eyes open...

... and everyone can't wait to crawl into bed...

...and dream of the next Barbecue... just around the corner...

And before the riverman~~~ signs off this week:

Here's to good friends and old memories! Thank you Steffie for coming a-calling this week in London! Too bad you missed the before-mentioned event, but the year is still young... and let's really get that September trip to France planned and settled! Take care of you and safe trip home.

And as for a certain "Doctor" who can't seem to leave a comment on this blog because of a "dodgy Chinese website" that I can't for the life of me locate... I can only say:

"Why like that ah?! Try one more time...and if you still don't get through, I will bring you a bottle of your choice as compensation when I get back in June!"


Ta ta!

~~~