Summer Fruits - 'Spot the Odd One Out'

This week we have cropped our first raspberries of the season - delicious with greek yoghurt or just by themselves. It is wonder we have any to crop as Luis can often be seen 'raiding the bushes' as he finishes work on the plot. It will be a good year for fruit bushes but not so good for apples - more of that another time.

The Gooseberry bushes are also bearing good amounts of fruit as are the red currents with black currents not doing so well. We think that the black current bushes need moving to a better location with higher quality compost - a move is planned for later in the year. This year we have also planted a couple of blueberry bushes and they too are fruiting well to say they are such young bushes. As in the UK, there is a pick your own farm not too far away that has raspberries and blueberries but we were disappointed with them when we last went there so having our own supplies will be great. I doubt we will have enough gooseberries to do a great deal with this year but hopefully we can grow them on enough to make one of my favourite pickles: Gooseberry and Mustard Seed Pickle - absolutely delicious.


A quick and easy 'trifle-type' dessert we often make during summer is: layers of home-made chocolate and orange cake, with layers of raspberries, Greek Yoghurt and a sprinkling of sunflower seeds. The layers are built up in a tall sundae glass and as a special treat we sometimes soak the first layer of cake with home-made blackberry brandy. Oh...and the 'Odd One Out'? The young walnuts at the beginning of the post. Technically a nut but green, young and ready to be pickled - summer fruit. This year we are going to reduce the spices a little when making the pickling vinegar as last years were just a little over-spiced.