Tybalt King of Cats - RIP

Today would have been our one year anniversary of owning our Bengal/BSH cross cat Tybalt. He was 1 year and 8 weeks old. In fact we were already planning a small party for him and the kitten next door, when he was hit and killed by a car on Thursday.

It doesn't seem possible that the world is still turning.

So here is a small memorial for my beautiful boy, who's adventurous spirit was too big for his body.

Rhubarb, Rhubarb, Rhubarb

Well I made the rhubarb schnapps using Nigella Lawson's recipe:

Nigella Lawson's Rhubarb Schnapps

approx 2 lbs rhubarb (1 1/4 lbs trimmed)
1  1/2 cups sugar
1 liter vodka

Trim and chop rhubarb and divide between 2  1-liter jars. Add 3/4 cups sugar to each. Mix or shake. Cover with vodka.
Close jars.
Keep in cool and dark place for at least 6 weeks. Shake up about once a day or so.
Strain.

I just have to wait about 6 weeks for the results...

For my rhubarb and ginger jam and used this recipe from the rather fabulous Allotment Lady and funnily enough had to make pretty much the same substitutions with the preserved ginger.

Mine didn't turn out quite as well as hers, and in fact I forgot about it and left it to boil a little too long, but what I ended up with was rhubarb and ginger marmalade and it's pretty yummy, if a little sticky!

Get Orf My Laand

Less than a week after emailing to request a place on the waiting for an allotment, Norwich City Council have written to me and offered me one less than a mile from the house - hurrah!

I am so excited, especially as there are apparently people in Norwich who have been waiting 6 years! It seems we don't live in a fashionable area of the city tee hee.

Here is our new kingdom of self-sufficiency - there is some work to do!

PYO

Headed out with a few friends today to a Pick Your Own to get raspberries to make jam for the wedding.
There was a slight hitch to the plan when it turned out that there weren't any raspberries, but I did get a big haul of blackberries, rhubarb and ripe bananas.

and we found the world's largest swing seat too:

so plan B is rhubarb and ginger jam and apple and bramble jelly, with rhubarb schnapps if I have any left over and banana bread with the bananas.