Autumn
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Blackberries
How many of us remember the autumn ritual of blackberry picking from the local hedgerows and taking them home in eager anticipation of the blackberry and apple pie or crumble (my personal favourite) that your mother would bake or of course the delicious ‘blackberry and apple’ jam that you had on your toast in the morning. Most children now probably only see them on sale in supermarkets, in their cultivated form but they can be picked as soon as they ripen from red to dark juicy berries, caution should be exercised on the location chosen and fruit should be thoroughly washed before use. As well as the traditional use of these delicious berries they can also be used in ice creams, fools and summer puddings. As for jam making, there are still a home based ‘cottage industry’ in Ceredigion producing truly delicious jams.
Parsnips
Parsnips are traditionally associated with Christmas dinner, however they are available from autumn, best after the first frosts, as the freezing of the root coverts some of the starch into sugar. They are an extremely versatile vegetable and can be cooked in a similar way to potatoes, roasted, boiled or mashed and can be used in a variety of ways from as an accompaniment to our Sunday roast to soups. As with all root vegetables they are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals and are readily available from your local ‘farm shop’ or ‘farmers market’.
Pheasant
There is now a renewed interest in this long established game bird as an alternative to the mass produced domestic poultry on offer. Once seen as the preserve of the better off, now they are bred for the table and available through local butchers for more of us to try the rich flavour of this lovely bird.
Fruit and Vegetables
Apples
Beetroot
Blackberries
Blackcurrants
Brussel Sprouts
Carrots
Damsons
Hazelnuts
Onions
Peppers
Pumpkin
Red Cabbage
Sweetcorn
Meat
Lamb
Fish
Sea Bass