Malmsbury and Lacock in Wiltshire

Visiting Malmsbury and Lacock

Malmsbury has been on my list of places-I-must-visit for some time since, I passed through it a couple of years ago by accident when I missed my exit from the M4. It is a pity that it must wait until I have guests staying with me to make the promised trip. It is well worth the effort.

It is situated in the Cotwolds in the north of the county of Wiltshire. To find it, exit the M4 at Junction 17 and take the A429 for about 5 miles until you arrive in this very pretty town. I fear that to visit this delightful site, a car is essential.

The Market Cross

Parking is easy enough with 2 hours of parking costing not much, in the centre of the town beside the Tourist Information and the Athelstan Museum. The museum is actually quite interesting, free and not so large as to become tiresome so, do look in. We were warned by the very helpful and informative guide in the museum that although the parking is not expensive, they are very punctilious about your timing so, do make sure you are back to your car well before the time is up. However, it is a small town and, I guess, there is no reason why you can’t nip back to the car and buy another two hours of parking if you find somewhere very nice for lunch – and there are lots of inviting places to choose from. For disabled people, most places of interest are accessible.

Malmesbury is called The Queen of Hilltop Towns. It is almost completely surrounded by the River Avon [well, one of rivers in England called Avon – this one flows to the south coast, Dorset, I believe].

The first king of all of England, Athelstan, [grandson of Alfred the Great], 10^th Century – a bit before my time! – ruled from Malmsbury, as his capital. It is said that he has been buried 

somewhere in the grounds of the Abbey.

The wealth and development of the town was based on the wool industry, being in the Cotswolds, there was always an abundance of sheep and wool. Later a thriving industry in silk – fabric and garments was developed [presumably from imported silk] and lace making was particularly important. We were told that lace-making classes and practice are still taking place.

Ancient carvings around the church interior

The Apostles inside the South doorway

The abbey was founded in AD 675 though, was built in stone in 12^th Century. At one time it has a spire to rival that of Salisbury Cathedral. Much of the abbey has now disappeared although the beautiful church and gardens which are left are superb and unbelievably peaceful. It is still used as the parish church. I think, if it were my parish church, I might be persuaded to attend on a regular basis. For a tourist destination, it was not crammed with visitors. Perhaps the people of Malmsbury don’t want to be inundated with lots of visitors but, I can’t help feeling that a few more visitors would be beneficial to the businesses there.

A team of volunteers provided teas, coffees, cakes [a veritable feast for the eyes] and light lunches. We opted to eat in the church rather than in a restaurant in the town as all proceeds go towards supporting the church. Do be patient, the food was excellent, fresh and delicious but, it is important to remember that the people who provide the service are very charming volunteers.

We drove from Malmsbury to a small town [also in Wiltshire] which my daughter had insisted we should see. Never mind going to Bath, she said, you must visit, Lacock. Lacock, south of the M4 is just off the A350 – also exiting the M4 by junction 17. Pass Chippenham and head towards Melksham but, look out for signs for the village.

This ancient village is mostly owned by the National Trust. To visit the village is free although you do have to pay to park as, the main part of the village is restricted - parking only for the people who live there. [If you are a member of the National Trust, parking is free]

The village has been used as a set for many films and TV series set in the 18^th century and earlier. The large car park, slightly outside the village, was pretty full and there were tourists coaches in the park. If wheelchair bound, the journey from the car-park to the village was not too far although, toilets were very narrow. While toilets for disabled people may have been available, I didn’t see them.

Tithe Barn

This little town is totally enchanting. It dates from the 13^th century and is named in the Doomsday Book. It was given to the National Trust in 1944 which has ensured that the village and the environment are not marred by present day ‘visual debris’ like power lines, TV station dishes, road signs, etc. Unfortunately, for the photographer, the residents are [of course] allowed to park in front of their houses and it can be difficult to take good photographs with cars getting in the way – but I think I managed a few.

Do have a look at the Tithe Barn – open to the public, it allows a view of the construction of this interesting 14^th century public building, in excellent condition.

15th Century Inn

There are lots of interesting looking places to eat and drink, including a 15^th Century inn – still in use and interesting little craft shops supporting locally based craft work skills – pottery, woollen goods, silk painting, etc. The town was established and developed through the woollen industry.

At the top of the town is the Church of St Cyriac, established in the late 11^th Century. I found a very cute kitten just outside and opted to not visit another ancient building. My guests explored it but, were back within 5 minutes.

Lacock Abbey

Lacock Abbey – I have to admit that we decided to not spend the rather extravagant entrance fee for admission to the abbey although, I do believe it is worth a visit. By that time, we were all tired and looking forward to returning home, having a glass of wine or three, having dinner and relaxing. However, it was decided, by all members of my group, that it was an excellent day out and, I did manage to find and purchase a good present for my grandson’s first birthday ….. I hope!

Courgettes / zucchini - dealing with gluts of vegetables

I have just come back from a couple of days in London, visiting my daughters. I was only away for a couple of days but, already the crops are demanding that I harvest them.
Today, I have arrived home with a bag full of sweetcorn [more later], raspberries [not many but, enough to make some raspberry jam],  cooking apples [my precious Bramleys]. Last year I had very few because of the weather and the year before! [ my late harvest disappeared!] . That seems to be one of the hazards of growing on an allotment - though shameful!
I also have a large bag full of tomatoes - recipes to come!

It's amazing what a couple of days can do to a courgette crop - those fruits which were not quite ready to harvest before I went away are now almost marrow size.
This year, I have grown only yellow courgettes - two different varieties - Goldena from VegetableSeeds.com and Sunstripe F!. I prefer these courgettes as they are dryer and denser than the Zucchini types.
But, what can I do with the excess?

Using Gluts of Courgettes

Dish Ideas: -

Courgettes with Cheesy Topping – wash and dry the courgettes * trim the ends * slice the courgettes lengthways * give a light spray with olive oil and add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper * grill until the vegetable starts to soften * top with mature cheddar cheese and grill until the cheese topping starts to bubble and turn golden brown * serve with warm crusty bread.

Add to curry dishes – wash, dry and trim the courgettes * cut into 1 inch [2cm] lengths or chunks * add to curry dishes [ especially beef and lamb] for a light touch and added goodness.

Courgettes with Pasta – 

2 – 3 green or yellow courgettes – washed, trimmed and sliced

1 medium onion – peeled, halved and thinly sliced

1 – 2 green and/or red peppers – with tops and seeds removed – thinly sliced

50 gm [2 oz] black olives [with stones removed] can be sliced if preferred

4 good sized tomatoes – with skins removed and chopped

Good handful of fresh basil leaves – chopped

25gm [1 oz] approximately Parmesan cheese – grated

Sea salt and black pepper to season

1 Tblsp. good quality rape seed oil [or olive oil]

Method

·         Gently sweat the vegetables until they are cooked * add the seasoning, olives and the chopped basil.

250gm [8 oz] dried pasta OR 500gm [1 lb fresh pasta] – tagliatelle, spaghetti, fettucine, linguine, penne, conchiglioni – take you pick with what is available to you. Cook according to the instructions on the packet.

For the sauce

50gm [2oz] butter

50gm [2oz] plain flour

250ml [½ pt] milk

50gm [2 oz] mature cheddar cheese

Seasoning

·         Make a roux then add the milk gradually to create a white sauce. * Add the seasoning and the cheese and stir in until the cheese has melted.

Combine the ingredients:

·         Mix the cooked pasta with the prepared vegetables. * Add the sauce and mix in well * Sprinkle the parmesan cheese on top and grill lightly * Serve hot with crusty bread and a glass of good Italian white wine.

Pakoras

Although you can use a tempura batter, I do prefer the sublime spicy batter of Indian cooking – higher calorie perhaps but, so delicious.

You can use potatoes, courgettes, cauliflower florets, mushrooms, onions, carrots, mooli [white Asian radishes], etc

For the batter:-  100gm( 4oz) gram flour / besan flour

                           2 tsp ground cumin (jeera)

                           3 tsp ground coriander (dhania)

                           ½ tsp chilli powder

                           ½  tsp turmeric

                           ½  tsp salt

                           ¼  tsp baking soda( bicarbonate of soda)

                           Water to mix

                           Oil for frying

                          200ml water approx.

·         Mix the flour, salt, spices and baking soda in a bowl

Vegetables:     wash - potatoes – peel and cut into slices; courgettes – cut into slices and dry [press between absorbent paper or tea-towels], cauliflower – cut into smallish florets; mushrooms - cut in half; peel and cut into rings; carrots – peel and cut into batons or rings, mooli – wash and cut into rings.

·         Add the prepared vegetables and the water and mix until the vegetables are coated generously with the batter( ensuring there are no pockets of dry ingredients and that all parts of the vegetables are covered)

·         Add the coated vegetables to preheated oil in a deep-fat fryer or wok. If using a deep-fat fryer, don’t use the basket as the batter will attach to the wire.

·         Turn the pakoras over as necessary

·         Fry until the pakoras are evenly brown, then remove from the pan and drain.

Serve with a suitable dipping sauce. Chilli sauce is good.

Ratatouille – well, of course, there has to be a recipe for Ratatouille when talking about courgettes. I think probably the Zucchini [the green varieties in the UK] are more usual for this classical dish but try this recipe:

1 good sized aubergine – sliced and cut into short lengths

2 – 3 small to medium courgettes – washed, trimmed and sliced thinly

1 green and 1 red pepper – remove tops and seeds, then slice thinly

1 medium onion – peeled, halved and sliced thinly

3 – 4 cloves of garlic – peeled and crushed

4 – 6 good sized tomatoes – peeled and chopped

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Herbs – good sprig of lemon thyme-chopped, good sprig of French tarragon- chopped, good sprig of oregano [or marjoram], good handful of basil – chopped.

1 Tblsp good quality olive oil or good quality rapeseed oil

2 Tblsp wine vinegar

Method

·         In a large pan, sweat the onions and garlic.  * Add the aubergine, courgettes, peppers and tomatoes and cook gently to produce a soft vegetable dish * Add the seasoning, herbs and vinegar to taste.

Of course there are also Courgette Fritters, Courgette potato cakes [ I do love any dish with potatoes, let me know if you would like the recipe].

Today , I put my excess crop out on my garden wall with a notice saying - Please, Help Yourself. Within a few hours [especially around the time of coming home from work] They had all gone. 

I think I will set out my over- production on my garden wall in future. Now that is a sense of achievement!

potatoes, sweetcorn, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash and pumpkins - Autumn Harvests

Using Our Harvests

I think I have been muttering about it now for a week – at least! But, it struck me very forcefully this morning as I was leaving my allotment and took a last look around at my favourite place…. how very autumnal it has become and it is still only the middle of August. Is it my imagination that autumn is arriving earlier each year or, do I say this every year?

Already the leaves on some of the trees are turning yellow; my Jack Edwards and Borlotto Beans are already starting to dry on the vines and the leaves are beginning to yellow and fall; coriander seeds are ripening and drying quicker than I am picking them; some of my Brambly Apples [always a late crop] are ready to pick; squashes and pumpkins are ripening especially, my Turk’s Turbans.

I have grown winter squashes and pumpkins over several years and have shared my over-abundance of fruits with family and friends. Last year, I had some difficulty with ensuring I had enough plants, I ended up having far too many.  And, I have always found germination a bit tricky,

This year, I introduced a few new varieties and sowed a few of my own saved seeds. I now find I have about 14 different plants, many of which are Turk’s Turban. I haven’t grown these before nor, I think, have I eaten them. They are however, being particularly prolific and a few are almost ready to harvest. They are very pretty though a bit larger than the varieties I usually choose. It is recommended that we stop the plants when they have set and established 3 – 4 fruits. I haven’t done this and haven’t ever yet, I find, especially for my chosen small varieties that, the plants will happily grow 5 or 6 fruits - and support up to maturity.

I discovered a few years ago, an excellent small pumpkin – Baby Bear. Since then I have struggled to find the same variety again [it seems the main seed houses introduce new ‘improved’ varieties each year – ‘Jack be Little’ and ‘Hooligan’ are other examples but, for me, neither has been so good]. I did find the seeds again and saved some seeds from my own plants but, as the plants are very promiscuous you really don’t know what you are likely to get from saved seeds, especially when you are growing many varieties or are on an allotment where your neighbours are growing different varieties. An allotment friend suggested that, from the saved seed we might well get plants which are most suited to our ground and conditions. I will see in a few weeks how my crops turn out.

I have now started to harvest my first Sweet-corn – ‘Lark’ planted outdoors from a sowing in my propagator in early March. They are bearing amazingly large and ‘full’ cobs though each plant is giving one or, at most, two cobs. I hope my later sowing of Tasty Gold F1 will give as good or a better crop.

Some of my tomatoes this year have been disappointing. Stupidly, I bought a packet of ‘Mixed Heritage’ varieties but, they were not individually named. Germination was good but as I chose to plant the strongest plants in my poly-tunnel, I find I have an over abundance of yellow/orange tomatoes and beefsteak varieties – not my favourites. Fortunately I had saved the seeds of a couple of my favourites. Sultana, an oval shaped salad tomato is now providing me with a daily harvest of very tasty little tomatoes – I will definitely grow them again. Broad Ripple Yellow Currant – a heritage variety was given to be by a neighbour and bears small, salad type yellow tomatoes that are sooo sweet. I have enthused about this tomato before – it will grow indoors or outside [indoors it will take over!]. Although it can be affected by blight like all other varieties, it seems to shake it off and continue growing and producing. This year, I have given lots of the plants away to neighbours [the germination rate was amazing] and I planted a couple of these bush tomatoes outdoors. Already they are covered in trusses of the littler fruits and I watch daily for them to ripen.

Well, I must use my beefsteak and orange tomatoes for something which will be enjoyed, especially as they are promising to produce a heavy crop. My family loves my Homemade Tomato Chutney. Try this:

Home made Tomato Ketchup

2Kg ripe tomatoes ( 4½ lbs)                            2 – 3 fresh bay leaves - crushed

568ml white vinegar( 1 pt)                              piece of cinnamon bark

190g white granulated sugar ( 6oz)                2 – 3 cloves garlic - crushed

1 Tblsp. salt                                                     2 – 3 red chillies ( dried or fresh)

¼ - ½ tsp ground allspice                                ¼ - ½ tsp ground cloves

Large pinch coarsely ground black pepper                                                                

Method

1.      Wash and roughly cut the tomatoes and put in a preserving pan or large saucepan with the salt, bay leaves, cinnamon bark, crushed garlic cloves and vinegar (be fairly sparing with the salt at this stage – add more in the final stages as necessary).

2.      Add the chopped chillies. Take care with these, especially if the ketchup is for children ( I have used dried  Joe’s Long, grown indoors - which are medium heat)

3.      Bring to the boil then simmer gently until the tomatoes are thoroughly softened.

4.      In the meantime, sterilise the bottles or jars – keep hot in low oven.

5.      Remove the cinnamon bark and bay leaves then, sieve the tomato mixture through a coarse sieve – preferable nylon. Return the juice and pulp to a clean saucepan.

6.      Add sugar then ground allspice, ground cloves and black pepper gradually, tasting frequently to ensure the flavour is not too strong. Remember, when the ketchup is cold, the flavour will be somewhat milder. You may also want to add more salt if needed.

7.      Simmer the mixture until it starts to thicken. Don’t make it too thick at this stage as it thickens as it cools.

8.      Put the heated sterilised bottles/jars on a wooden surface and fill them with the ketchup while it is still very hot. Seal the jars immediately. This ketchup should keep safely for several months.

I made my first batch yesterday.

I am not a big fan of cucumbers but my family and I do love all sorts of pickles and chutneys and even cucumbers make a tasty relish or chutney. We enjoy them enough for me to continue to grow this plant. This year, I have grown a small cucumber variety – Green Fingers and for interest in something different – Crystal Apple – a small round yellow variety. I have grown them in a corner of my poly-tunnel but, although I’m getting a harvest, the plants have been attacked by red-spider mite. I am spraying every few days with water, Py solution [organic] and SB plant Invigorator [organic plant food which seems to help the plants to fight off insect attacks. Interestingly, I set up a cane structure to support the plants and put a plastic bottle on top of each cane [to avoid poking myself in the eye with the end of a cane – and I have done this, very dangerous!], I have found that the red spider mites have established huge ‘cities’ inside the up-turned plastic bottles – amazing! I now remember to spray thoroughly inside each bottle when I am treating the plants.

Do try this recipe, a favourite of my family:

Hot Sweet Cucumber Relish

Like so many other vegetables in late summer, we wonder what to do with the glut. It doesn’t take too many cucumber plants to have too many cucumbers. Try this recipe as a way of using and preserving them.

Ingredients

1 kg cucumbers ( 2 lb) – don’t let them get too big or they will be full of seeds

1 kg onions ( 2 lb)

1 cooking apple

600ml white vinegar (1 pint)

3–4 red chillies(I have used Joe’s Long, use a medium hot chilli, but take care if for children)

500gm sugar ( 1 lb) – I used white sugar, but soft brown sugar will ‘warm’ the colour of the relish

2 tsp salt                                                          1 tsp allspice

½ tsp ground cloves                                        1 tsp turmeric

¼ tsp mustard powder                                                ¼ tsp ground mixed peppers( black, green, red)

Method

1.      Top and tail the cucumbers and remove the skin – cut into small cubes - ¼ cm- ish. If necessary, remove the seeds – if the seeds are still soft, you can leave them in.

2.      Peel the onions and chop finely – similar size to the cucumber.

3.      Peel and core the cooking apple and cut into fine slices.

4.      Cut the red chillies into small pieces – if you don’t want the relish to be too hot, leave the seeds out, or leave some of the seeds out. For a hotter relish add more chillies.

5.      Put the chopped cucumbers, onions, apples and chillies into a large pan or preserving pan with the vinegar and gently simmer until all the vegetables are cooked through – approx. 30 mins.

6.      Prepare the jars/ bottles – wash well and sterilise – put in a warm oven - 100ºC for 15mins.

7.      Add the sugar and stir until dissolved.

8.      Add the spices and salt to taste, add more salt if necessary.

9.      Simmer gently until the relish thickens – remember, when cool it will be thicker. Stir occasionally.

10.  Pour into the hot sterilised jars and seal immediately. Label.

This year, potatoes have been so much better, especially my Mayan Gold which I just love. In my efforts to encourage a similar love for them in my neighbours, I have given away far too many and I now find that my crop has finished. Last year - cold and wet - was a disaster for many varieties of potato but, particularly Mayan Gold and my crop was non-existent. This year they have been excellent. They are an early maincrop and can’t be boiled [they will fall apart] but, they are amazing steamed, as mash [from steamed potatoes], as chips, and as roast potatoes. The only downside is that they don’t keep.

I am always trying out new varieties of vegetables and fruit. Not all of them are successful but, I was most interested to try Purple Majesty potatoes – purple all the way through and will stay purple as boiled potatoes, mash, roast or chips. I first tried these from the supermarket and was not impressed. However, my home-grown ones have been delicious. They are very dark when dug and it can be difficult to spot them when digging up [no doubt, resulting in many being left behind when harvesting]. I have offered these to neighbours who have not been enthralled with the results – perhaps because of the colour!

That colour indicates that they are a healthy vegetable, high in anti oxidants. I do recommend them, find them very tasty and will continue to grow them. I think it would be a severe loss if they were withdrawn as a seed potato.