Even with a drop in temperature and the evenings drawing darker by the day, I'm eager to welcome all that winter has to offer. I'm never too dismayed when brisk, winter chills replace our milder autumnal climate. With a colder spell upon us the opportunity to light up the stove arises, and evenings sitting cosily under a blanket on the sofa is suddenly within our reach. Along with the change of season comes the excuse to indulge in quintessential comfort foods. When we’re in search of warmth from the inside out, stews, soups and carbohydrate-laden dishes become top of our dinner menus again. For someone who gains great pleasure in devouring a bowl of dumpling topped stew or using a crust of toasted bread to savour that last morsel of soup from a bowl, this change of menu can't but make me happy. I also happen to live in a household where Halloween is much celebrated, so the plotting and planning for the scary season brings much delight. Of course I miss the late evening walks or gardening until late, but I do so appreciate the somewhat calmness that winter dictates, and as it arrives I embrace it with open arms.*

Hearty Tomato Tortellini Soup

A big pot of soup is one of the best ways to feed a family. To make it into a more substantial meal a few spuds or some pasta is a great way to bulk it up. Tomato soup is a real favourite in my house, and with the addition of some fresh tortellini, this easy to prepare soup is not only filling but also extremely flavoursome.

Ingredients

Serves 4

1tbsp olive oil

knob of butter

1 large onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, peeled & crushed

1 red pepper, finely diced

2 tins of tomatoes (400g each)

500mls vegetable stock

Sea salt & freshly ground pepper

1 tbsp sugar

1tbsp balsamic vinegar

Pinch of dried chilli

Handful of fresh basil, plus a few leaves for serving

250g tortellini

Method

1. In a medium sized saucepan add the olive oil and the knob of butter. Over a gentle heat sweat the onion, garlic and red pepper until the onions are soft but not coloured, which will take about 5 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes and the vegetable stock. Season with a little sea salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar. Add the balsamic vinegar and a pinch of dried chilli. Bring to the boil, and then turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Add the basil and using a hand blender or processor, purée until smooth. Place the soup back in the saucepan, add the tortellini and on a medium heat simmer for a further 8 minutes.
4. Pour the soup into serving bowls and garnish each one with a few small basil leaves. Serve with a few slices of garlic bread.

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Before popping up this blog post yesterday, I decided to take advantage of our glorious Autumnal weather, and head outdoors with the camera. A shot couldn't be got without the inclusion of a cat, a hen, a duck or an alpaca, so here are a few pics of our beautiful pets.

Millie has named most of our animals, and this little kitty goes by the elaborate, Oz-influenced, name of Pippy Dorothy. 

Always camera-ready, two of our beautiful alpacas, Goldstar and Caesar.

Delilah the duck. 

The ever inquisitive Caesar.

I also picked the last of our apples yesterday, which makes me feel like winter is certainly on the approach. 

*Excerpt from my column in the current issue of Easy Parenting.

At this time of the year, countrywide, the hedgerows are sparkling with free autumnal berries. Sloes, rosehips and elderberries are all making an appearance, but it’s the bountiful blackberry that takes centre stage for most foragers. This autumn there seems to be an abundance of berries free for the picking. Rich in antioxidants and packed with vitamin C, these luscious berries are best eaten straight from the bush. They do, nonetheless, make the juiciest of fillings for tarts, pies and crumbles. 

Some evenings there is neither the time nor the need for indulging in puddings, so on that particular evening, where a good bounty of blackberries have been retrieved, I take the opportunity to make my annual Blackberry Brandy. As sophisticated as it may sound it is incredibly easy to make. Freshly picked blackberries, sugar, brandy and ideally a kilner jar are all that is needed to create this deliciously fruity liqueur. However, you do need a little patience, as it will be a number of weeks before you get to sample a sip of this tipple. When made in mid-autumn, this blackberry brandy will be ready just in time to serve at a Christmas feast. It can be drank with just ice, included in a cocktail mixture {I would love some suggestions, on this one} or used as a rather impressive pudding ingredient. After straining the brandy an added bonus are the beautifully preserved blackberries, which are perfect to be used in a Christmas pudding mixture or simply served over pancakes with a dollop of yogurt, as a very grown up breakfast treat.

Blackberry Brandy

Ingredients

250g blackberries

125g caster sugar

400mls brandy

Method

1. Sterilise a medium sized kilner jar or a large, wide-necked jar.

2. Very carefully wash the blackberries, then dry them using a paper towel.

3.Place the blackberries in the jar and top with the sugar. Pour over most of the brandy. 

4. Close the lid and gently shake the jar, helping the sugar to dissolve and topping up with the brandy as it sinks into the berries.

5. Place the jar in a cool, dark place and take it out daily, for the first 2 weeks, to give it a little shake. After this, just give it a shake once a week for 6 weeks. The blackberry brandy can then be left at the back of a dark press for another few weeks.

6. When ready to use, strain the brandy, using a muslin-lined sieve, into another sterilised bottle or jar and reserve the berries, which can be used as part of a dessert or popped into a glass as a tasty addition to a blackberry based cocktail. The strained blackberry brandy can be kept in a cool, dark place for at least a year.

The month of September has slipped away without me barely noticing. I'm a lover of lists and each evening I jot down the intended work, be it columns or photographs, for the next day. The pleasure that comes from ticking off completed jobs seems to never lack satisfaction; please tell me that you are all like this, or is it a case that I need to get out more?  However, for the past few weeks I've been unable to happily tick all the boxes each evening, as I have been unbelievably busy. Columns, recipes, photographs, radio interviews and cookery demos have proved September to be my busiest month since the release of the book. Naturally for someone like myself, who relies on freelance work, this most certainly is a good thing. 

I try to have the bulk of my day's work completed once the children arrive in from school, apart from an odd photo or email. With each new school year it appears that the homework has doubled, so most evening's are consumed with grammar, maths, spellings and the odd disagreement or two. I was never much of a homework-fan and as the years have passed this hasn't changed. Over the past few weeks, on any evenings which were dry, as soon as homework was complete,the children and I would each grab a basket and take to the fields to forage for berries, nuts and anything pretty we could get our hands on. It turns out that that evening walk really clears the head and works wonders as a stress buster for all of us.

Blackberry & Apple Cobbler 

I love foraging for autumn treasures. From what we've already collected we've been making jam and pies aplenty, but I'm also filling my freezer with small batches of berries for the making of autumn pies right through the winter. Blackberry season is almost coming to an end, so take the opportunity, this weekend, to enjoy a country walk and hopefully you'll pick enough berries, and maybe a few apples, to make this rather tasty cobbler.

Ingredients

1 large cooking apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

200g blackberries

75g caster sugar

Cake Batter

110g butter

110g caster sugar

175g self-raising flour

1 egg

2 tbsp milk

1 teasp vanilla extract

1tbsp oats

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/Gas 6. Grease a medium sized casserole dish, with a little butter.

2. Line the bottom of the casserole dish with the apple slices and blackberries. Sprinkle over the 75g of sugar.

4. In a food processor or mixer add all of the batter ingredients, apart from the oats, and mix for a few minutes, until well combined.

5. Spoon the cake batter evenly over the apple and blackberries. Smooth over with a knife and sprinkle over the oats.

6. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 35-40 minutes, until the pudding has risen, is golden in colour and cooked through. Serve hot or cold with custard, cream or vanilla ice-cream.

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In Other News

I'm absolutely delighted to announce that Nessa's Family Kitchen has made it into the final of The Irish Blog Awards. I'd like to whole-heartily thank those who voted for my blog. The other blogs in my category are ones which I read and respect, so to be included in such a line-up is an honour.

Autumn most certainly has made its presence known, as there is a little bite in the air and the evenings are drawing darker. I love this time of year, as once the rain is at bay, there are endless opportunities to forage in our surrounding hedgerows. I'm not sure if I have ever collected more blackberries than I did in the past fortnight, but my freezer is now well packed for winter crumbles, pies and jams. It has also been a wonderful year for apples. Upon collecting a few baskets full of juicy apples I declared that I was going to try my hand at cider-making. As my brother-in-law, John, has made some wine in the past he has agreed to help with this process. So with any luck I will be featuring recipes with lovely home-made cider in the near future.

Last week we welcomed a new member into our 'backyard family'. A beautiful little chick, whom we've yet to name. Even as a day old chick he was mimicking his mother's actions. Isn't nature just incredible?

It seems like since the children have returned to school I've been trying to catch up on my writing and photography work, but I will post a new recipe here very soon. It will most probably feature either blackberries or apples.

In Other News

The lovely Rosanne Hewitt - Cromwell, otherwise known as Like Mam Used To Bake, is launching her beautiful new book...'Like Mam Used To Bake' next Tuesday in Dubray Books on Grafton St. I'm truly honoured that Rosanne has asked me to say a few words on the evening. I can't wait to have a read of the book and I'm really looking forward to celebrating this special evening with Rosanne and her family and friends. 

Blog Give-Away Winner.

Thank you to all who entered my latest give-away. All names were popped in the hat and the winner is ..

 myfoododyssey.com said...

Hey Nessa. Sounds delish! I'm signed up to your blog and I'm sure I've gotten emails before, but I didn't get one for this post. Not sure if there's a ghost in the machine somewhere! June.

September 12, 2013 at 8:52 PM

June, could you please drop me an email with your postal address.Thank you!