I have been enjoying the small changes that autumn brings. The darker mornings have meant I have seen some wondrous sunrises and the start of the leaves going all their various hues of yellow. Earlier in the week I took myself off for a walk on the South Downs and it was one of those splendid autumn early mornings where the air is cool, the blueness in the sky makes it seem bigger and the sunlight is at its low angles. My mission was to collect conkers from the horse chestn

I spoke in a previous blog (Blackberry Time) about my endeavour to stay ‘seasonally present’ and not canter ahead into autumn. I held fast and the beach BBQ last week was the perfect end to a wonderful summer season; and so we pass into autumn. I decided to venture into unknown territories this week and I baked some blondies. Blondies are by no means a new phenomenon and have been popular in recipe books and online for years – but they are new to me. For those not intimatel

So next week we officially said goodbye to summer and hello to autumn, as the autumn equinox begins on Thursday. This will mean that on this day the hours of light and the hours of dark are pretty much equal. What better way to mark the end of the season than with a beach BBQ? I think one of the joys of living on this island, is that we are never too far from the coast. You get to see some of the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets and I love the thought that when you sit

I love butter and I love it even more now that I have made it myself. Aside from the fact that it makes everything taste better, butter makes the flakiest croissants, the shortest of shortbreads and the best golden gleam on a crumpet. Anyone can make butter and you don’t have to use any fancy machines to make it. Just one ingredient, double cream. The process is so simple, just beat the double cream until the fat (butter) separates from the buttermilk. This can be done usi

I don’t know if anyone else feels they do this too, but I have a habit of flitting from missing what has gone to getting excited about what is to come, which means I can miss out on the ‘right now’. I am trying to stay observant of the present, this blog and engaging in the activities I share is helping me to do that. A meaningful marker in my year is when the blackberries appear on bramble bushes. This to me is a sign that the summer season is fading and the autumn season