Citrus is in!
I pulled up the blinds in the lounge this morning (yesterday really) and noticed how many oranges were now singing out to me to be picked. Excuse the photo, it is taken through the 90-year-old glass!
With 2 of our 3 kids and their partners coming for tea I needed to think of a way to put some of these beauties to use. From another angle, you can see how this tree is loaded with fruit. I’m really chuffed as the first season here we only had 2 oranges that were like golf balls and as dry as a ….. Lots of chicken poo and water later and this is now a really valuable asset. Need to work out a plan, as its root zone is right where we are planning to build a fence.
Orange Poppy Seed Cake and slow cooker roast lamb!
Dinner menu for the family was Slow cooker roast lamb, greek style roast potatoes served with carrots and broccoli freshly picked from the patch. I’d taken a leg of lamb I bought from ‘Wayne the great’ at Trafalgar Butcher Shop a couple of months ago out of the freezer to defrost, cut some slits and put garlic, rosemary into them and then rubbed some, chopped oregano and mint over it and poured some olive oil and white wine and lemon juice over, let it sit for about an hour turning a couple of times, then into the slow cooker.
Greek style roast potatoes are one of my favourite ways to serve spuds. Due to my limited kitchen, I peeled the spuds, cut them to required size and microwaved them for about 8 minutes, still a little firm in centre but a little soft on outside, shake to roughen them up. I made a coating of equal parts olive oil and lemon juice, chopped some oregano and put the potatoes on a tea towel to cool. These were going into an oven dish to bake about an hour before dinner was served.
Carrots quartered lengthwise and cooked with the lamb, broccoli cut into florets zapped with some peas then topped with chopped spring onion and a little melted butter and S&P. Didn’t get a shot of the finished dinner, but I served the lamb shredded off the bone, roasted spuds, carrots and broccoli and peas dressed with a reduction from the slow cooker juices. Yummy!
Dessert was an orange poppy-seed cake made with our oranges served with cream. I’d been saving this recipe for about 8 years. Not being big dessert or cake eaters (kids never got dessert or cakes) I wonder why I am now keen to bake. Maybe its getting older, or living in an old home that has brought this out.
Leaf mold time!
We keep resisting the big clean up of leaves until they have all fallen but it gets to the point where it is just too overwhelming and we need to attempt to regain a sense of control. I must admit having the plan this season to blow them all into one spot has proven to be a great time and energy saver. Notice the fence line where leaves go up to and see the next picture, gives some sense of the volume.
16 mower catcher full loads later, chopped, added to the bin in layers with lime, blood and bone and compost in between layers, watered and sit back now to wait for it to magically turn into beautiful leaf mold which can be spread where needed.
So many people comment on what a pain it must be dealing with these leaves, but I reckon if you love the trees you have to relish everything that comes with them. While we can manage them I intend to do so.
Around The Mulberry Tree 