Don't Delay, Pick Hips Today!!!

Deliciously tart and sweet. A syrup from Rose hips. I made some yesterday. This is the time of year when all those good-looking rose bushes reveal a bit of substance.....

The red, bulbous "haws" which replace deceased rose blossoms contain 20 times the vitamin C of oranges. Try eating twenty handfuls of orange vs. one of rose hip (or just drink some canned, I mean cartoned O.J.). But even if rose hips had half of the vitamin C of an orange, they would still make a more delicious syrup! People have been gathering and preparing rose hips for ages. Even during WWII (when produce was scarce) tons of haws were collected by civilians to keep Britain healthy.

Regardless of their historical merit, these firm, cherry-tomato-like seed packages are fun to harvest and even more so to transform (without cost) into a sumptuous goo for pancakes, waffles, icing, or any sugar-snack recipe. I was actually surprised at how yummy the syrup is. Most distinct.

If anyone would care to take advantage of the neighborhood haws while they are available (Sept-Oct), this is the recipe I used. It is from another site. I preferred it because it involved less work. 

Rose Hip Syrup

1. pick hips (at least a 1/2 cup)

2. trim ends

3. boil for 2o minutes with lid with around three times water as hip.

4. mash with potato masher about 5 min. before taking it off the heat.

5. Strain through a thick cloth. Catch juice. I used an old linen pillow case. Double a thinner fabric. The object is to remove the seeds and the fine, sharp hairs on them. This is an important step because the hairs are no good to ingest. I strained it once, no problem. 

6. Add sugar until taste is satisfactory. Usually around one equal part. I did 2/3's of that.

7. Keep in fridge.

8. I believe it lasts a week unless it is canned properly. Then it will last a year.

I used it in icing for cupcakes the other day. Delicious! Apparently, "cupcake" is an American word. The British call them "fairy cakes". So, I won't be making them any more.

Nicholai's beer is a great success. He even made labels for it. It is trademarked "Bobas' Bodacious Bergen Brew". A light beer. Good with a lime.

Everyday I read or search the web, stroll up the mountain to see flowers and grasses growing upside down or slugs riding mushrooms, and practice. 

Today I will be thinking up a subject to habitually touch on in the blog. Perhaps a feature per post on a certain tree, plant, or bird I come across that demands consideration. I would like to expand my knowledge of the local ecology. Hopefully, some of you are with me on this:-)

In any case, apologies for the slow pace of getting posts out there. A snail has escaped in our apartment. So I have been distracted.

Until the next, dwell well!