Although the raspberries and loganberries can be just weighed and emptied straight into a freezing tray (saving enough for few days’ addition to my breakfasts), it took a little time to pick over the blackcurrants that were harvested yesterday, removing the stalks and the unripe berries that had been nestling up to the ripe ones before they could be spread out in the trays ready for freezing. I therefore found myself making blackcurrant ice cream rather later in the evening than I had anticipated, but hey! Definitely worth the small effort and the downside of being late to bed for the tongue tangly taste today! Not only is the taste divine, but the colour is so beautiful, the very epitome of summer bounty. Watch out for the recipe under the In the Kitchen tab.
Anyone rambling to the bottom of the garden and entering the greenhouse would be forgiven for thinking I have a passion for tomatoes – well, I do particularly like a firm tomato with an intense flavour and I am very partial to my homemade tomato chutney, but admittedly the greenhouse is rather fuller of tomatoes than it has ever been. I had started with just my usual ‘Gardeners’ Delight’ and a few ‘Black Russian’ that I am trialling for Gardening Which?, but having received my ‘allocation’ of different little plug plants from a friend I decided to make sure I did it properly this year and pot things on into decent sized pots. Yesterday The Golfer and I played around with wires and canes and the greenhouse now looks very organised (and full of tomatoes!). It’s not exclusively tomatoes though, as there are 6 pepper plants on the staging on the left, just out of picture. Through the back vents you may just make out some extraordinarily healthy courgette plants that have been doing everything healthy courgette plants should be doing – now why couldn’t they do that last year? Or the year before?
Having half a carton of cream left and expecting a visitor today, I put them together with another picking of raspberries and got a raspberry and cream filled Victoria sandwich instead of what would otherwise have been a jam filled one – Goody Goody Yum Yum!
Rambling in the Garden 
Good grief that cake looks good! I’m growing black russian for the first time this year too. Excited to see how it gets on!
The cake was very yummy! The Black Russian has interesting flowers, doesn’t it?
Oh Cathy, pity you’re so far away…otherwise cheeky me would have invited herself as both ice cream and cake look absolutely delicious! My greenhouse and garden are also full of tomatoes, all different varieties…which often even don’t make it to the kitchen ;), I love to eat them warm and ripe straight from the bush, pure bliss!
Ha ha – you would of course be very welcome. There is something about the smell of tomatoes in the greenhouse that just sums up abundance, isn’t there? also the smell of blackcurrants on a warm day… mmm