Sunday 20 May 2012

Sweet springtime...or summer...


Despite a warm start this week the sun seems to have given up today and I made the mistake of walking to the shop in flip flops. The other half was still clearing up from breakfast so I snuck into the bedroom and put winter socks and a hot water bottle on. It's like the season can't really make up its mind if it is spring or summer. One day we are eating lunch on the lawn in shorts and t-shirts planning boating trips the next lighting the wood burner desperately trying to warm the sitting room. Luckily the ingredients I can get on Bryher don't seem to mind the cold.



The vegetable stall up the road still has new potatoes the size of quail's eggs. Cooked with mint and dressed with butter they are a delicious meal in themselves. The eggs on Bryher are worth moving here alone. Poached eggs drop into sphere shapes as soon as they touch the simmering water they are so fresh. Leftovers are still a challenge. This week I had a glut of yogurt and made Simon Rimmer's marmalade and yogurt cake which was popular with our guests with a teaspoon of jam. 


The stall freezes it's glut vegetables including beautiful sunshine yellow corn on the cobs. I bought some this week for a breakfast special. It was as if they had come straight from the field....

Sweetcorn fritters.......(serves 4)

3 corn on the cobs with the corn removed. 
4oz/100g self raising flour 
1 egg
150ml milk 
pinch of chilli flakes
pinch of Cornish seasalt 
vegetable oil


Put the corn in a saucepan of boiling water for 2 minutes and drain. 

Sieve the flour into a bowl. Add the chilli and salt. In a separate bowl whisk the egg and milk. Add to the flour mix and sweetcorn and fold.

In a frying pan put a couple of tbsps of vegetable oil. When it is hot and a tbsp of fritter mix per fritter. (You may have to do this in batches.) When it starts to bubble on top carefully flip over and cook for another couple of minutes.


Serve with crispy bacon, rocket, sweet chilli sauce and creme fraiche. 


Thursday 10 May 2012

My breakfast: Homemade granola with peaches, sheep yoghurt and mint


A day on Samson...with pizza.

Yesterday we went to Samson. It's an uninhabited island just to the south of Bryher and is my favourite. On a hot day it's better than anywhere I have ever been abroad. 


We were the only ones there apart from the thousands of sea birds nesting there.


We motored over the Tresco, although we had to get out halfway and wade because the tide was so low.
We are in the process of building a woodfired pizza oven. The Ruin at Tresco is a brand new beach bar and has done the same thing so we wandered over there to check it out. The pizzas were crispy, smokey and delicious.