Analogue Hedgerow

Field Notes

After my last miserable newsletter, you’ll be pleased to know I’m feeling much better this week! Thanks for all your lovely messages though, there were some real pearls of wisdom in the comments re: coping with the apocalypse, so I recommend reading them if you’re also feeling blurgh about the state of things.

This week I experienced something new and strange. I bought the book version of Oppenheimer on evil Amazon and qualified for free ‘same day’ delivery. Same day! I clicked in the morning and took delivery that night. I know it’s been around for ages but it’s the first time I’ve used it and it felt so weirdly futuristic. In fact I was kind of disappointed when it was delivered by the same old white van man rather than a digi-droid. I never know how I feel about these things. I swear I’m not a technophobe - it was very convenient to enjoy such speedy service from Jeff Bezos and his army of algorithms. But I’m just about to finish How to Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie (very good) and at one point someone gets fried to death in the sauna when their home smart system gets hacked. Does it sound neurotic to confess that I’m never getting an Alexa?

Needless to say, I was craving a bit of analogue time this week, so the kids, dogs and I went for a two hour walk yesterday morning in search of hedgerow berries. There’s nothing like the slow, steady focus of blackberry picking to bring you back to the present. By the end, we had collected a tub of blackberries, elderberries and even a few early sloes. Olive’s chops were stained purple and even Pablo helped himself to a few, straight from the bush. Once a street dog, always a street dog.

If you’re looking to brush up your foraging skills, I’ve written two books on the basics - Food You Can Forage and the Concise Foraging Guide. The former was the first book I ever wrote, and the latter is a more pocket-sized version, great for carrying around with you on trips out. You can see it below next to the illustration I painted for the front cover! Blackberries are, of course, one of the cover stars.

I’ve popped our micro-harvest of sloes in the freezer; when I have enough stored up I’ll make sloe gin for Christmas. But I’ve decided to make the blackberries and elderberries into jam this year! Our local flower show is taking place next week so I’m thinking of entering a pot into the ‘preserves’ category. Just call me Miss Marple. Speaking of whom, here is a little treat for you - my recipe for Dam Sloe Gin from my first book Food You Can Forage. It’s a twist on Miss Marple’s famous damson gin, made with a mixture of sloes and damsons because let’s face it, they taste pretty much the same once you plonk them in gin with a load of sugar.

Dam Sloe Gin

This simple recipe makes the perfect Christmas apéritif, so try to resist until the big day. I like it neat or jazzed up in a prosecco cocktail.

750g sloe berries
250g damsons
500g caster sugar
2 litres gin

Take a sterilised demijohn and pour in the gin and caster sugar, swirling together to dissolve the sugar. Next, rinse the sloes and damsons thoroughly under cold running water. Start by slitting one sloe berry with a sharp knife and popping it into the gin and sugar mixture, continuing until all the sloes have been added. Next, slice each damson in half and add these to the mixture; don’t worry about including the stones as they will all be sieved out before drinking. Once all the fruit has been added, swirl the whole mixture vigorously and seal the demijohn with a cork. Continue swirling once a week and it will be ready for sipping on Christmas day.

Something I Made: The Lunar Satsuma Organic Tote

A taste of the cosmos with a citrus twist, this design celebrates the phases of the moon through the medium of satsuma slices. One for the long, balmy summer nights, complete with fresh foliage and glittering stars. These tote bags are sustainably made of thick, high quality, organic cotton - perfect for groceries, books, snacks, paperwork or anything you need. Autumn designs are coming to Papaver soon!