Broccoli head from Spain priced 20p in supermarket.

[Pat "5mph"]

I don't see why so much fuss.
It's free here on a daily basis.....
If you're prepared to pay 20p then good on ya

Fresh produce is free where you live?
The topic of this thread is 20p broccoli from Spain (and other veg too) in our local supermarkets.

 

[KnittyNorah]

I'll be willing to bet they didn't know that fruit actually grows on trees...

Apropos of this, after my A-levels I left school in the days when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I went to work for the summer season as a pony trekking instructor/leader at a well known children's activity centre in the Brecon Beacons. It is still going. It was a laugh!

It was mostly school parties visiting. The kids got a day of pony trekking, a day of hiking, a day of sailing, a day's coach trip to somewhere or other, half a day of rock-climbing/scrambling and half a day of something else - I think it might have been a visit to a farm. I really had nothing to do with the rest of what went on. I just got fifteen ponies ready every day but Saturday, and then looked after ten or twelve kids on them all part of a long string of about 50 - 60 with a leader and a back-marker. The rest of us just rode 'our' ponies up and down this long line, pushing kids who looked like they might be toppling off back on board more securely, rescuing any of those who did actually come off and making mental notes of which kids looked enthusiastic or more competent, as later in the day there would be the opportunity for some 'proper' riding. There were always a few who got upset/scared within the first mile or so, so we took it turns to escort that group back and return them to their resentful accompanying teachers ...

Anyway one day, my little group was from somewhere in the depths of Birmingham - nice kids. They were curious about everything, and asked many interesting (from their city-dwelling POV) questions.
One especially observant girl remarked to me, when we'd climbed out of the village and were riding along a pleasant track alongside the sheep-cropped turf of the hillside 'Miss, how does the man get the mower up here to cut the grass? It must be a right big job for him.' Bless!

 

[gbb]

In a similar vein KnittyNora, I used to work with old fella from the old East end. We came across a toad on the floor of our workshop. It was obviously just making its way across our very large site. He was stunned...
WTF is THAT !!!!
It's a toad Fred
He pondered it for a minute then said....
Do they bite ?

60 years old at the time, never saw a frog or toad. He said he never saw a cow till he was around 40.

 

[simongt]

Home made marmalade sets me back about 50p a jar,

Good for you. A I don't have the space or current resources, I buy all my jams, marmelades & pickles form a local animal charity. More expensive than the shops ( except maybe Waitrose - ! ), but for the quality & taste, worth every penny. And every one of those pennys goes to help the animals in their care.
Bought a jar of marmelade from Tesco whilst on holiday recently - and was reminded why I stick to the animal charity shops wares - !

 

[T4tomo]

Good for you. A I don't have the space or current resources, I buy all my jams, marmelades & pickles form a local animal charity. More expensive than the shops ( except maybe Waitrose - ! ), but for the quality & taste, worth every penny. And every one of those pennys goes to help the animals in their care.
Bought a jar of marmelade from Tesco whilst on holiday recently - and was reminded why I stick to the animal charity shops wares - !

please tell me the jams and pickles are made from fruit and veg, not the animals?

Homemade is best every time, and like you I'd gladly pay for someone else to do the homemaking bit.

 

[simongt]

please tell me the jams and pickles are made from fruit and veg, not the animals?

Oh yes. And the fun of this establishment is that one finds such delights as jumbly jam, banana chutney, Autumn chutney, St. Clement's marmelade; never quite sure what you'll come across - ! Things you definitely won't get in a supermarket.

 

[Reynard]

Well, most of my preserves - not just my marmalade - is made from either yellow sticker, special buy offers or foraged fruit. Well, mostly, as seville oranges are not easy to come by, never mind on yellow sticker... So it's equally pot luck as to what goes in it. I quite like that, as you never get bored.

Commercial preserves are just way too sweet - sugar is the cheap ingredient, and everything is being made to a price point. I once bought a jar of chutney in Lidl out of curiosity, and i just ended up binning it. It was so sweet to the point of being inedible. And it's bonkers how many preserves use corn starch as well as extra pectin to get them to set. If I'm making jam or jelly with low-pectin fruit I just lob in a few windfall apples. Although I'm lucky that I have a large bramley apple tree in the garden, and access to other free sources of apples.

Home made preserves in general use a lot less sugar than the commercial stuff, so you really get to taste the ingredients as opposed to just overwhelming sweetness.

The only preserve I *don't* make is lemon or orange curd. I love both, but just don't eat enough to make it worthwhile. And because of the butter and egg content, it's got a much shorter shelf life than jam, marmalade or chutney.

I should add (though I don't really like blowing my trumpet) that I'm a champion preserve maker. Have won chutney, jam, marmalade and pickle classes at local produce shows.

 

[KnittyNorah]

The only preserve I *don't* make is lemon or orange curd. I love both, but just don't eat enough to make it worthwhile. And because of the butter and egg content, it's got a much shorter shelf life than jam, marmalade or chutney.

I do still make citrus curds - one of the few preserves I still enjoy making - BUT I make it in small quantities in the microwave and I don't think I've had a failure yet. Even the very first batch I made - which wasn't perfect, there was a tiny bit of 'graininess' to it - was perfectly edible and far more delicious than the gummy stuff for sale in the shops.

 

[Poacher]

In a similar vein KnittyNora, I used to work with old fella from the old East end. We came across a toad on the floor of our workshop. It was obviously just making its way across our very large site. He was stunned...
WTF is THAT !!!!
It's a toad Fred
He pondered it for a minute then said....
Do they bite ?

60 years old at the time, never saw a frog or toad. He said he never saw a cow till he was around 40.

But why do east-enders go on about "driving up the frog and toad"?

 

[Reynard]

But why do east-enders go on about "driving up the frog and toad"?

Well, I'm gonna climb the apples and pears in a minute...

 

[Reynard]

I do still make citrus curds - one of the few preserves I still enjoy making - BUT I make it in small quantities in the microwave and I don't think I've had a failure yet. Even the very first batch I made - which wasn't perfect, there was a tiny bit of 'graininess' to it - was perfectly edible and far more delicious than the gummy stuff for sale in the shops.

That's a new one on me... How'd you do it? Definitely be willing to give it a punt.

It's what I love about CC - every day is a school day.

 

[KnittyNorah]

That's a new one on me... How'd you do it? Definitely be willing to give it a punt.

It's what I love about CC - every day is a school day.

Usual recipe of your choice ie butter, sugar, whole egg and egg yolk, citrus juice and zest.

Bowl suitable for microwave use, wooden spoon, wire whisk or hand mixer and an accurate thermometer - digital for preference.

Put butter into bowl, place in microwave and give short blasts - 10 - 30 secs - stirring in between blasts, until it's just melted. Allow to cool for a few minutes so that it's not hot but merely warm, while still being melted. Add all the other ingredients and whisk well. I usually add them gradually, blending them smooth with the wooden spoon then whisking.
Microwave in short blasts, whisking well between blasts and measuring the temperature. I usually start with a couple of 30 sec blasts then cut the duration of each blast down, depending on the amount I'm making. The total time it takes will depend on your microwave and how much you are making, just be sure not to use too long a cooking interval - that is the way to get scrambled egg. Shorter is better, you will see the temperature creeping up when you measure it after each blast
Keep doing this until until the curd has thickened so it coats the back of the wooden spoon, and has reached a temperature of 185 F OR 85 C.
DO NOT overcook.

Pour into sterilised jars, cover, cool and store in the fridge. It will thicken and set up as it cools, in the same way that a custard does.

Points to note :
Use a much bigger bowl than you think you might need. Actually I use a large plastic jug. You don't want it more than about a quarter to a third full, and having a handle on it helps.
If you have a silicon whisk, that's the best one to use. Metal whisks can sometimes leave a slightly metallic tang in the finished curd.
DO NOT overcook or you will scramble the egg. The thing is basically an acidic custard.
You can strain the curd while pouring into the jars; this will remove any tiny bits of scrambled egg and also the zest (if you don't like it).
It will keep for about 2 weeks to a month in the fridge, unopened, or you can freeze it for about 6 months. Give it about an inch headroom in the container and defrost overnight in the fridge.
If the curd you make is a bit too runny, you can make the next one thicker by increasing the proportion of yolks to whole eggs.

Enjoy it!

 

[Reynard]

Usual recipe of your choice ie butter, sugar, whole egg and egg yolk, citrus juice and zest.

Bowl suitable for microwave use, wooden spoon, wire whisk or hand mixer and an accurate thermometer - digital for preference.

Put butter into bowl, place in microwave and give short blasts - 10 - 30 secs - stirring in between blasts, until it's just melted. Allow to cool for a few minutes so that it's not hot but merely warm, while still being melted. Add all the other ingredients and whisk well. I usually add them gradually, blending them smooth with the wooden spoon then whisking.
Microwave in short blasts, whisking well between blasts and measuring the temperature. I usually start with a couple of 30 sec blasts then cut the duration of each blast down, depending on the amount I'm making. The total time it takes will depend on your microwave and how much you are making, just be sure not to use too long a cooking interval - that is the way to get scrambled egg. Shorter is better, you will see the temperature creeping up when you measure it after each blast
Keep doing this until until the curd has thickened so it coats the back of the wooden spoon, and has reached a temperature of 185 F OR 85 C.
DO NOT overcook.

Pour into sterilised jars, cover, cool and store in the fridge. It will thicken and set up as it cools, in the same way that a custard does.

Points to note :
Use a much bigger bowl than you think you might need. Actually I use a large plastic jug. You don't want it more than about a quarter to a third full, and having a handle on it helps.
If you have a silicon whisk, that's the best one to use. Metal whisks can sometimes leave a slightly metallic tang in the finished curd.
DO NOT overcook or you will scramble the egg. The thing is basically an acidic custard.
You can strain the curd while pouring into the jars; this will remove any tiny bits of scrambled egg and also the zest (if you don't like it).
It will keep for about 2 weeks to a month in the fridge, unopened, or you can freeze it for about 6 months. Give it about an inch headroom in the container and defrost overnight in the fridge.
If the curd you make is a bit too runny, you can make the next one thicker by increasing the proportion of yolks to whole eggs.

Enjoy it!

Ta very much

Could use that method to make one jar at a time - to scratch the itch, like...

 

[KnittyNorah]

Ta very much

Could use that method to make one jar at a time - to scratch the itch, like...

That's exactly what I do. Make a few small-size jars or pots, put two of them in the freezer, one in the fridge and use the bowl scrapings up that same day or the next.

 

[KnittyNorah]

Ta very much

Could use that method to make one jar at a time - to scratch the itch, like...

BTW depending on the accuracy of your thermometer (worth testing in water at a rolling boil ...) and also on the amount of heat held by the bowl or jug or whatever you use, you might need to stop heating, or continue heating, for a half or one or two degrees more or less than the 85 degC quoted. No more, and keep a note of it so you will know where best to 'stop' next time.