Tastes so good it must be wrong...

nom nom nom

take that you blackguards!

Here at Rumpty D. we are in the midst of a sinful blackberry glut. All the tell-tale signs are there - pink stained fingers, scratches & tears in all the right places. While we were somewhat horrified to find that parts of the creek bed are home to thickets of Rubus Fruticosis (in part conjured by bad Wwoofing memories that include the plant in question and a goat) we have decided to stay positive and focus on the fact that blackberries are delicious. And in a way, what plant rewards you for so little work with so much yumminess? While it would be unpleasant if R. Fruticosis spread much further than the bounds of their current stronghold, would it be so bad if we spent a day each summer grubbing out the new shoots and taking our fill of berries, thought we? It seems blackberries hold a special dark cavern in the depths of every committed organic gardener's heart. They are the one plant it seems people are willing to do the S word for - that is - spray. The CSIRO's information page on blackberry makes for grim reading too - the plant infests approximately 8.8 million hectares of temperate Australia - an area larger than Tasmania. So it was with heavy hearts that we set to work with our grubbers today, taking a good chunk out of the blackberries, and a large hunk of berry goodness back in our bellies (and buckets). It will take us many years of vigilant grubbing (and perhaps even a goat or two) before we'll see the back of the blackberry, but the spoils in berry terms should at least make it worth it!

Summer time ... and fermenting is easy!

finally fermented fizz!

Our kitchen has been a veritable hot-bed of bubbling fermentation bliss the last few weeks. And that's because summer is the perfect time to start growing some serious bacteria! The weather, humidity and glut of public holidays are all very conducive to making ferments, so if you've never tried your hand at preserving food with the power of bacteria, there is no better time.
We've had milk kefir, water kefir, sourdough and (my favourite) rhubarb fizz on the go... and I have to admit I absolutely adore coming home to a warm house full of the heady scents of yeasty fermentation!
Rhubarb fizz has been particularly popular due to the warmer days - a not-too-sweet soda pop with a musky rhubarb flavour - and who could go past the fact that it turns out prettiest pink? We've been making it is small batches because it ferments quickly and if you leave it too long it will keep right on fermenting to the point where it has been known to explode!

fizz, ready to ferment!

Rhubarb Fizz

You will need...

2 fat stalks rhubarb
1 cup raw sugar
2.25 litres water
1 lemon
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
5 grolsch bottles

Method...

Chop rhubarb and lemon (peel and all!) into rough chunks. Place in a large, sterilised liddable pot or basin with all other ingredients. Stir a few times, cover with lid and leave to soak for 48 hours. Strain the mixture using a sieve, and fill sterilised bottles, leaving a 4cm gap at the top of each bottle.
Store bottles at room temperature for 4 days. Its now ready to drink - but don't wait too long to polish your batch off because this stuff gets fizzier daily and bottles have been known to explode.