Yesterday was one of those dismal days that can occasionally take hold, when I just feel vaguely depressed and can't put my heart into anything. I had been away participating in a training course on a topic that had been absorbing and stimulating - as had been the company and the conversation. When I came home my head didn't come with me, so in desperation I took a walk outside to take stock of things in the garden. There were weeds everywhere, and fallen dead branches and rampant growth overdue for pruning! Apart from that, everything was dry and so watering became the first priority. Even though there were storm clouds gathering, we know well enough now that they can never be trusted, and so we drip-irrigate or hand-water anyway. Just on dusk I picked the last of the rosellas to make some cordial and gathered the calamondins and cumquats that were beginning to drop. Cumquat marmalade on toast is my absolute favourite for breakfast, and with a few from each of three trees there were just enough to make a batch.
So my evening last night watching the royal wedding was not entirely wasted; during the commercial breaks I slotted in the tedious task of de-seeding and finely slicing the fruit. This was then soaked overnight and the boiling took place today. The marmalade was a nice tart one and I can heartily recommend the recipe I always use - one I picked up from Don Burke's website some years ago. Cutting up the fruit is the hardest part, but is worth doing properly I tried a short-cut method once, where you boil up the whole fruit until soft and then slice it, but that was quite a messy process and the end result was not as good. So if you have a couple of cups of cumquats (the soft, oval Nagami variety are the best) or some of the bigger juicy calamondins or some chinottos, give Don's Cumquat Marmalade a try.
As it turned out, it did rain overnight and this morning I was up early to boil the marmalade and make a pot of lentil and herb soup. Wanting some background information on the New Guinea beans (cucurbita species) we found at yesterday's local farmers' market , I began browsing through what is for me the definitive herbal reference book, Isabell Shipard's How Can I Use Herbs In My Daily Life? Before long my mood had lifted and my mind was on potting and planting and more recipes to try. Isabell's book is like that - her knowledge is amazing and her fascination with herbs is infectious.
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