Painting 300

Pam with medlars 300

Garlic plait 300

Crowd pic 300

There was a great turn-out for the annual competition and barbecue. One of the highlights of the day is always the opportunity to sample dishes created by our members from produce grown on their plots.

Clare’s pumpkin pie and Pam’s pickled courgettes were two of the dishes of the day and both have been kind enough to share the recipes with everyone.

Pumpkin cake, recipe from Lazeros Maltezos, made by Clare O’Hagan

Base
400g plain flour
Teaspoon of baking powder
Few drops vanilla essence
200g melted butter
3 eggs (2 yolks and one whole)
Sugar, between 180 to 200 grams depends if you want less or more sweet

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.
The mixture will be quite oily.
Film mixture down by hand in a deep sided pie dish
Prick with a fork and bake blind for 5 minutes in a preheated oven at 160 to 180 degrees

Filling
400g grated pumpkin flesh
250g ricotta cheese
150g sugar and 3 eggs (whisk together sugar and eggs very well )
40g of flour and a pinch of cinnamon.

Mix the lot together and spoon onto the pie base
Cook in oven for about 25 minutes

Courgette Pickle

Ingredients: 1 kilo courgettes; 2 medium onions; quarter cup salt; 2 and quarter cups white wine vinegar; 1 cup sugar; 2 tspns mustard seeds; 1 tspn turmeric; half tsp dried mustard pdr.

Method: Slice courgettes and quarter onions (separating layers).  Put in large bowl, add salt and cover with water.  Leave one hour (or longer).  Drain and rinse.

Combine all other ingredients and boil.  Pour this hot mixture over courgette mixture.  Leave one hour and bottle.  Leave to mature for a couple of weeks.

Photos above by Clare O’Hagan.

Don’t forget that it is the annual members’ produce competition and get-together this Saturday, September 20th. It’s been a great growing season and here’s your chance to show off your produce in our friendly and informal competition. Bring your fruit and veg along on the day from 2pm to be entered into the contest. The categories are as follows:

• Heaviest Pumpkin
• Heaviest Onion
• Heaviest Tomato
• Heaviest Potato
• Longest Runner Bean
• Longest Carrot
• Longest Parsnip
• Heaviest Beetroot
• Heaviest Courgette/Marrow
• Best 5 Apples
• Best 5 Potatoes
• Most Unusual Fruit or Vegetable
• Best Basket of Produce- bring along a selection of at least 5 items of allotment grown fruit, vegetables or flowers in a container of your choice, prize given to the most attractive.

Also at Saturday’s social:

• Bonfire
• Barbecue
• Back by popular demand! Kevin from the Tool Sharpening Company will be coming to sharpen and repair all your old blades

Do bring along a dish such as a salad or sweet dish, made using produce from your plot, to accompany the barbecue.

Last but not least – There is a prize for the person who can bring the most half/one litre bottles for the Trading Hut!

It’s time to order in overwintering vegetables such as onions, shallots, garlic and also broad beans and peas for sale at the Trading Hut. We’ll also be placing our seed potato order for next year in the next few weeks as well.

It would be very helpful if anyone interested in onion, shallots and garlic sets could let us know which they are interested in and if you have any preferred variety which we can order in for you. This year, for example, we can order Elephant Garlic (see photo) in addition to the usual varieties.

For potatoes, it seems a bit early to be asking for a commitment to buy, but, again, if you have a favourite variety, do let us know. We should be able to order for you at a discount so that you can buy your tubers/sets/bulbs from the Trading Hut at the lowest possible price.

We have a number of allotment events coming up in the next couple of months – add the following dates to your diary to ensure that you don’t miss out.

Saturday 20^th September, 3.00pm: Autumn barbecue and produce competition. This is our annual get-together and informal produce competition, along with a barbecue and bonfire. We’re hoping that Kevin the bladesman will be back with his mobile tool-sharpening van to sharpen any worn-out tools you may have. Keep an eye on the noticeboards for more details on the day and do come along – it’s always a good family afternoon out and a great way to get to know your fellow plotholders.

Friday 26^th September, 10.00am: Working party. The first of our autumn working parties and an opportunity for anyone who has not yet attended two working parties this year to start making up for lost time.

Friday 26^th to Sunday 28^th September: Plot inspection. This will be the major plot inspection for 2014 in advance of the AGM and the start of the new rental year in November. Please ensure that your plots are cleared of rubbish, not overgrown with weeds and with neatly trimmed paths – full details of the inspection criteria are on the noticeboards on-site.

Friday 26^th to Sunday 28^th September: Tree inspection. We have a number of trees, mainly in communal areas, on the site which are in need of professional attention. Some need to have major branches taken out, a few need to be removed altogether. We will be surveying all allotment trees and marking those which need work. If you have a tree on or near your plot which you think requires attention, please let me or anyone else on the committee know. Do note, though, that this inspection is for MAJOR work – plotholders are still expected to prune and maintain their own fruit and nut trees as a matter of course.

Saturday 25^th October, 2.00pm: Working party.

Saturday 15^th November, 3.00pm: Woodhouse Allotments AGM. The AGM is your opportunity to have your say in how the allotment is run for the next 12 months. The full agenda will be going up on the noticeboards nearer the time, but will include several proposals for action and improvements which we need to put to the membership. Please come along to the AGM if you can.

This will also be when your annual rent is due to be paid – we will be taking rent payments from 1.30pm on November 15^th in advance of the AGM itself.

Sunday 30^th November, 2.00pm: Working party. The last working party of the year.