Transition Worcester Apple Pressing

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This year’s programme of apple pressing events is now underway! Bring surplus apples or pears from your trees and get them pressed into juice with our Orchard Worker volunteers. Please bring your own clean bottles or containers. The events are also a good opportunity to find out about managing your trees for fruit and for wildlife.

All events run from approximately 11 am – 3pm. Here are the venues and dates:

October 201

Please note the event on Saturday 1st October has been canceled
Earth Festival @The Fold – Bransford: Sunday 2nd October
Cripplegate Park (near the Sons of Rest Building): Saturday 8th October
Lyppard Hub, Warndon: Saturday 15th October
The Commandery: Saturday 22th October
The Fold at Bransford: Sunday 23rd October
Ellenden Farm Shop, WR11 8LU: Tuesday 25th October
Evesham Country Park: Thursday 27th October
Pump House Environment Centre: Saturday 29nd October

November 2016
Countryside Centre: Saturday 12th November
Ellenden Farm Shop: Saturday 19th November

recipe: Steve’s vegetable curry

Published on by Steve DentLeave a comment

This is the first in an occasional series of recipes created by Steve Dent, aka the Circus Gardener, based on the lovely, fresh, local, organic produce we grow at the Old North Stables .

Steve produced this curry for our barbecue at the end of July and it went down very well.

Steve's vegetable curry


Steve’s vegetable curry (enough for 4 servings)

Ingredients

2 red chillies, roughly chopped (keep the seeds in)
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped,
5 cm piece ginger, finely chopped
2 tbsp groundnut or vegetable oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black mustard seeds
pinch asafoetida
1 onion, chopped
400 g can chopped tomatoes
500 g potatoes, scrubbed or peeled and cut into chunks
300 g courgette, sliced
100 g green beans, trimmed
1 carrot, sliced
400 g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
50 g frozen or fresh peas
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sea salt
250 ml water or vegetable stock
1 tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Method

1. Combine the chillies, ginger, garlic and sea salt into a thick paste using a pestle and mortar or an electric chopper.

2. Heat a heavy bottomed pan over a high heat and add the oil. When it is hot, add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds and stir. After 30 seconds they will start to pop. Now add the asafoetida, stir again and after a further 30 seconds add the onion. Continue to cook, stirring regularly until the onion is soft and translucent. Now add the potatoes, carrot, beans and courgette, the garlic, chilli, and ginger paste, the chopped tomatoes, the turmeric, ground coriander, ground cumin, salt and the water or stock. Stir to combine.

3. Bring the pan to a simmer and then reduce the heat so as to maintain it at a gentle simmer. Cook at this temperature for 20 minutes, or until the potato is tender, then stir in the peas, chickpeas and fresh coriander. Cook for a further 5 minutes. Serve with rice and/or Indian flatbread.

Potato bash 2016

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potato
Welcome to the Transition Worcester Potato Bash 2016.
This is your chance to take part in a fun potato growing competition, see just how many spuds you can grow for yourself, and you might even win one of two cash prizes!

PICK UP YOUR POTATO AT THE OLD NORTH STABLES OR THE LANDSDOWNE ALLOTMENT SHOP FOR JUST £1

The rules:

  • Entry is £1
  • £10 cash prize for the heaviest total yield from a single seed potato (supplied by Transition Worcester)
  • £5 cash prize for the heaviest single grown potato (seed potato supplied by Transition Worcester)

What should I do?

  1. Pay £1 to enter the competition.
  2. Pick your potato from the authorised Transition Worcester Potato Bash potato supplier
  3. Take your potato home and ‘chit’ it.
  4. When you want to, get a pot and compost, and plant your potato.
  5. Note that you MUST grow your potato plant in a pot or container (no bigger than 30 litres*) and not in the open ground. The growing medium you use is up to you.
  6. Look after your potato plant.
  7. Bring your potato plant, in its pot, to the Transition Worcester stall at the Worcester Flower Show, Gheluvelt Park on Sunday 14th August, by 1pm at the latest.

*As a guide: 30 Litres = 31cm x 31cm x 31cm (approx) or a cylinder 30cm diameter and 42cm depth.