Sunshine in my shadows

Welcome to sunshine in my shadows. This blog is my space to share all the stuff that makes up my every day life. Family, friends, crafts, recipes, books and all the little things that add 'sunshine to my shadows'. We all have a sprinkling of sunshine and an equal sprinkling of shadows in our lives. Hopefully you will find more sunshine than shadows to read about here and on the days when shadows fall, know that the sunshine is peeking just around the corner!


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Friday, April 15, 2011

Nature's bounty.....

I've had a grand old time here this week pretending at least for a short while to be a real domestic goddess! Housekeeping and the like has never been one of my greatest strengths despite being a dedicated stay at home mum for years. I'm messy, disorganized and relaxed about housekeeping standards. (I do like to think I practice good basic hygiene however especially in regards to food handling)
Beginning with the apples I stewed on Tuesday I have been cooking up a storm to deal with the bounteous harvest from our fruit and vegetable gardens. First up was the job of stewing the rest of the bucket of apples left from Tuesday's efforts.


Don't they look oh so scrummy and kind of cute all packaged up in their little freezer proof tubs? The only way I can think they would look nicer is to be in beautiful preserving jars. A batch of fowlers vacola jars and a sterilising unit is something I'd like to look into buying at some time.

Next to get my attention was this MONSTER beetroot!


Yes it's a beetroot and it weighed about 4.5 kilos. It is a different variety to what we grew last year and is long and tubular in shape. (No it's not deformed) Most would be picked and eaten well before they reach this size but we just had so many beetroot this year that despite pickling two big batches we still have heaps left in the ground. We also did very well with our carrots this year although they have gone a little nuts and are turning into weird little things with lots of twisted, hairy and bent legs! It makes them a little difficult to peel and chop but their home grown sweetness is so worth the effort.


We planted three pumpkin vines this year and they have given us more pumpkin than we can possibly eat. Pumpkin soup was an obvious choice for using up at least some of our pumpkin although I am still searching for that 'best' pumpkin soup recipe.


I was busy having 'Cinderella' visions whilst admiring this beauty.





Look at that colour! Isn't it fabulous?







I blended the soup up this morning and now have a nice little stockpile in the freezer. I roasted some vegetables for last night's dinner and am still left with half a pumpkin. Pumpkin scones may be on the agenda this afternoon or tomorrow.
How is this for a fabulous soup pot btw? Some of you will be aware I only recently moved in with my partner of three years. The house was originally his parents and there are oodles of things here that belonged to them. I've yet to explore fully what vintage treasures might be waiting to be found but I know his mum had some wonderful old things in her kitchen. This soup pot is fantastic, it's Bessemer ware so I suspect from the 1980s era. It is HUGE and so heavy I can barely lift it empty! It is also a non stick pan and I can see it is going to be well used in the future!


Look at the size of that baby!
I had a full day in the kitchen yesterday and STILL have rhubarb and quinces to deal with. I don't think it will happen today but there is always tomorrow.
wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen

9 comments:

  1. Thats me too...."I'm messy, disorganized and relaxed about housekeeping standards."
    I love pumpkin soup made some last month and ate and ate and ate it.yummm

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  2. Housekeeping, hmmm waiting for the fairies always in my home. But it is a home and not just a "house" where people feel relaxed when they enter.
    Clean, yes, (mostly), always clean bathroom and essentials but dust is a constant friend.
    Lovely crop of fruits and vegies you have grown, enjoy them.

    That pot is a ripper, many a good meal will be cooked in that I am sure!

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  3. What a wonderful array of colurs - even the Bessamer pot matches the pumpkin etc. Wonderful - it is a lovely feeling when stashing the harvest away for the winter.

    Glad you are enjoying being a domestic Goddess.

    Love and hugs,
    Linda.

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  4. Crikey that beetroot is gigantic!! :-)

    I love your pot too!

    Jem xXx

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  5. I tried growing pumpkins , i love homemade pumkin, but my vines overtook our deck and back yard we needed a slasher to get to the clothes line so we pulled the vine out and it filled our trailer twice .....i am sorry we dont have more room for growing vegies what a wonderfull crop you have

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  6. Nelly glad somebody else is like that too...I was worried it might be just me LOL.

    Thanks Lynne I gave up on the housekeeping faeries long ago and am very friendly with 'dust' too! Probably when I die people will say OMIG she never dusted but I figure I'm not going to care LOL.

    Thanks Linda, I really am enjoying being domestic and have no excuses for not making all kinds of soup now I have such a wonderful pot to cook in!

    Thanks Jem the beetroot are almost enough to bring nightmares. We do eat a lot of it but this year seem to have lots left.

    Maureen yes I remember growing pumpkins one year and they ended up all over the roof of our shed. They really do go wild! They definately need space.

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  7. Hi Helen, I have just been reading through all f your posts and been having a wonderful time. Your children are gorgeous! And I love the new hair, is it still short now?? I agree it does make you look younger :) Bye for now, Tam x

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  8. Tam thanks so much for the lovely compliments! My hair is still short but I am considering growing the layers out as I don't cope with them very well. I am liable to change my mind again though LOL.

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  9. Helen you're unbelievable... in the best of ways, there's no pretence in the domestic goddess statement. My hat's off to ya!! Bron.

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