Tag Archives: edible flowers

63.5 miles so far

Kingston, DorsetOn Sunday, Little Miss M and I added 2.7 miles to our target of 500 miles.

The weather has been relentlessly wet and windy since I returned from Egypt on the 5th March, so it was a relief that the sun was shining at last. But still so windy!

We parked near Kingston and walked through the woods towards the seaKingston, Dorset

Little Miss M often likes to run ahead, and found a hill that she and her siblings wanted to roll down – but it was a bit steep for that! So on we wentDorset coast

pushing on against the wind

to be rewarded with gorgeous views towards the Isle of PortlandThe English Channel from the Purbecks

and a brief stop to taste some gorse flowers, in the summer they taste like coconut – not much taste on this cold and windy March day

eating gorse flowers

but the colour! That yellow just glows in the sunshine.

All the colours looked crisp and clear after the weeks of rain we have had.

Click on any photo to see it full screen.

towards Houns Tout

We were battered by the wind, but did our best to stop and breathe in the colours and the elements and the sheer joy of being in such a beautiful place.

We did not go right to the end, there have been a few scary cliff falls along the coast recently especially further west at West Bay, when this happened on 15 March.

Looking East over the dry stone walls, one could catch the sound of larks singing – extraordinary delicate silver tinkling amidst the bluster of the wind.

dry stone walls

Larks say “Summer is a-coming” to me like no other bird does and remind me of hot sunny days lying on Dorset hill tops looking up into the sky trying to see their little bodies on the wing, dark against a clear blue sky.

coastal views No lying on hilltops on Sunday though – we turned back

and this time noticed Encombe House in the valley, much of it is hidden by the trees, but can you see the pavilion looking out onto the lake with a little white boat on it?

in the valley below

If you would like to know more about the history of Encombe House, click on this link.

walkWe headed for the pub and a hot chocolate

wild garlic gathering

but not before gathering some wild garlic so that my daughter could try a new Salsa Verde recipe.

wild garlic

In the woods Little Miss M also wanted to gather some moss and ivy and as many different leaves as she could find to take to school.moss

My son ( the running one) had told me about a new App that records walks and runs – so I tried it out for the first time – I haven’t quite mastered adding the photos properly, but it is a fun free App called Relive – here is our walk:

https://www.relive.cc/view/rt10004021559

The App seemed to run my battery down very quickly so I had to turn it off before we made it to the pub. My son recorded his 46 mile run around Bristol – (yes! that is not a typo – 46 miles!!!!) a couple of weekends ago, so there must be something wrong with my phone.

We went to the Scott Arms where you can sit in the garden as gaze across at Corfe Castle – what a view!

Do click on this picture and see it bigger – we could see for miles.

Corfe Castle from Kingston

Little Miss M was thrilled that she could look through the telescope and ran to tell me that she could see a person in a red jacket walking around at Corfe Castle

telescope

There is a footpath, part of the Hardy Way, that goes from Kingston to Corfe Castle and we all decided we would like to walk it on a warm summer’s day.

Silly Seaweedy Saturday

DSC_0499

This little chap was made by my son-in-law.

I have recently returned for a week’s holiday in Solva, with my daughter A, M and their 3 children.

Wales is always wet and windy, but we did have a glorious time with masses of sunshine, days on the beach building sand dragons and rock-pooling, wild walks, meeting up with family and friends, and relaxing in the evenings with a glass of wine – and seaweed.DSC_0512 (1)

A Wild Food Foraging walk with Julia of Wild About Pembrokeshire, gave us the information that all seaweed in the UK is edible, so long as it is still growing on the rocks. So I gathered some, washed it and marinated it in SoySauce, piri piri, black pepper and lime juice, garnished with edible honeysuckle florets.

The seaweed was crunchy and delicious to nibble with a glass of Pinot Grigio or a tasty Malbec. Go on try some!

 

On a Cake on Monday

Cake10

Happy Birthday to You 

Happy Birthday to You

Happy Birthday Miss E -eeeeeee

Happy Birthday to You

~

Yes, I have now been a Granny for 10 years! What an amazingly wonderful 10 years it has been, watching this magical being grow and blossom. The cake was made by her Mum, my daughter, who is a fabulous cook – it was DEEEEEEEEEeeeeeee – lish.

I was asked for some edible flowers so I cut them the night before in case of rain overnight, and plonked them in a vaseDSC_0001

Next morning I cut off the heads of roses, marigolds, lavender and marjoram to take to the cakeedible flowers

So strawberries and cream with fresh rose petals, edible glitter, silver and gold candles, and a garland of lavender to celebrate a a feisty, sporty, sparky, creative and all round delightful 10 year old. I’m so happy to be part of her life and look forward to what happens next!paint

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Pop across to Cathy’s to see what real gardeners are putting in their Vases this Monday. A celebration of the camaraderie of gardeners, this week. It is strangely thrilling to see flowers from some seeds I sent to Cathy in her Vase today – the friendly, supportive connections that are built through blogging are so full of joyful surprises. Thank you Cathy for your brilliant meme and bringing us together each week. ❤