A sloe weekend

How glorious have the sunrises been this week?

We’ve had a few freak weather days with glorious hot weather and I know I shouldn’t complain, but I just want the cool, autumnal weather and an excuse to put the fire on.

Its been a busy few weeks, so it’s nice to spend some time at home; we had an incredibly relaxed weekend that involved visiting the garden centre, cooking a roast and reading books (and Country Living, obvs) whilst the rain pours down.

Usually, if we have a roast I don’t cook it until later on in the day, as I love a Sunday brunch and am then stuffed for the next few hours. However, the Handsome One suggested we had Sunday ‘lunch’ with bloody Mary’s – I’m always up for some afternoon drinking so I was more than happy with this suggestion.

We had the classic roast of chicken, with the not so classic addition of yorkshire puddings; however, I think yorkies are welcome with any roast.

Using a free-range chicken makes so much difference; not only to your conscious but to the taste. I stuff my chicken with either a lemon / lime (stabbed a few times with a fork), garlic cloves and a handful of fresh herbs from the garden. Drizzle with olive oil and liberally season with salt & pepper, and pop in the oven. Also, don’t be afraid to let the bird rest – I leave mine for about an hour, tightly covered with tin foil and a tea towel. It’s still hot and the chicken is tender and juicy. Have a go!

After eating a rather scrummy Sunday lunch, drinking a couple of bloody Mary’s and opening the Barolo (read slightly pissed), I was ready for a walk and some fresh air. Bella, who was lying flat out on the sofa dribbling, was surprisingly excited when we picked up her lead!

We wrapped up and headed out over the field behind our house, stopping for a cuddle with the horses.

Having had a lengthy conversation on the walk discussing the difference between sloes and damsons, we were delighted when we came across a bush laden with sloes. I made the (catastrophic) mistake of only making elderberry jam rather than jam and gin, so I was adamant when we came across these sloes that we weren’t missing an opportunity!

A couple of months back we made rhubarb vodka and it was time to test it over the weekend – man alive, it was good. You could really taste the rhubarb and I got a lovely hint of the orange. I’m going to leave it for a couple more weeks and then decant it into bottles; hopefully we’ll be able to keep it until Christmas, but we’ll see!

We foraged just over a 1lb (half a kilo) of sloes, so I’m going to use a litre of gin and 8 oz (250g) of sugar.

It really couldn’t be easier to make. All you need to do is grab a couple of large clip-top jars, sterilise them (wash, put in the oven, set at 140C for 15 mins and let them cool), then add the sloes (giving them all a little prick with a fork or cocktail stick), sugar and gin. Give them a good shake and being the countdown.

I shake the jars everyday for about a week and then just when I remember, so that the sugar disperses. Even after a day you can see the magic happening…

Ideally, you should wait until next autumn before cracking this open, but it can be ready after three months and that’s exactly when I plan on trying it.

A x