Ward Off the Winter Blues with St. John’s Wort

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Hedgerow

st johns wort

It is no wonder that so many of us suffer from the winter blues. As the cold weather sets in and the nights get darker, it is easy to feel a little depressed. But did you know that the changing of the seasons can actually give you depression?

It’s true…

We may all joke about getting the ‘winter blues’ but seasonal affective disorder is a real condition that affects thousands of people across the world.

From having difficulty waking up to overeating (particularly carbohydrates) to having no energy or concentration to withdrawing from your friends and family; this one simple weather change can trigger all these symptoms. Continue reading →

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How To Use All the Parts of a Chicken (or turkey!)

Posted on December 16, 2011 by Hedgerow
Christmas is an expensive time and year so if there are any ways to save a few extra pennies here and there I for one and going to follow them. We eat quite a lot of chicken in this house and it can get expensive when only using neatly packaged boneless chicken breasts from the supermarket. We now tend to mostly buy whole chickens to help cut back on our food costs. They cost more upfront than a few breasts but they sure do go a lot further. I don’t like to brag but I’ve become somewhat of an expert at making the most out of a chicken and can now proudly drag it out to a minimum of 3 meals. Intrigued? Here’s how you too can get frugal with a chicken or turkey.

Firstly I should say that you could in fact butcher the whole chicken yourself if you have a sharp knife and a vague idea of what you are doing. I however do not, so instead I just put the whole chicken in the oven and roast it in the normal way. The Hedgerow way is to rub butter, salt and pepper into the skin, insert some lemon quarters and roast for 20 minutes per pound and sometimes 20 minutes over a la Delia Smith. You can enjoy a delicious meal of roast chicken served with potatoes, vegetables and a splash or two of gravy. This is meal one with the chicken and it’s delicious.

Meal 2 involves the leftovers and you will surprised as to how much there actually are. I always attack the carcass as soon as dinner is over so that’s done and isn’t left waiting for me to get around to it. Just get stuck in with your hands removing all the little pieces that are left. I can usually fill a cereal bowl full of leftover meat even if it appears most of the chicken has been scarfed so it’s definitely worth doing. Cooked chicken freezes very well or it can be left covered in the fridge. The next day it can be used in a casserole, stir fry, quiche, sandwich, soup, baked potato or as topping for homemade pizza.

Finally you can turn your attention to the carcass itself. Because there is a bit of effort involved in being frugal with a chicken, I find that roasting it initially on a friday night is a good idea. Then I can remove the leftovers the same night and boil up the carcass on the saturday while I get on with other things around the house. So, what to do with the carcass? Simply place it into a pot with one or two chunks of vegetable. Celery, carrot and onion are the traditional ones to use so who am I to argue. Cover with cold water so everything is submerged and bring up to the boil. Once you have brought the pan to a fast boil, turn the heat down and simmer for a few hours. It will need at least four hours.

When it’s “done” you can remove the large lumps and yes finally throw them away. The rest should be strained through a sieve so you are left with a lump free stock. This can also be frozen for future use. It can be used in any recipe where you would normally throw in a stock cube. Soups, casseroles, curries…anything that needs a bit of flavoured water. You can even cook your vegetables in it to give them a bit of oomph.

Another way we are exploring reducing our food costs is by having a few meatless meals which is something you may be considering too. This will be a future post however. I hope everyone’s Christmas preparations are going well. We are mostly ready, just a few Christmas goodies to make nearer the time.

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Things to do in Winter

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Hedgerow
The days are short and cold and the nights are long and even colder. It’s easy to keep the family entertained in summer. There are day trips available, trips to the park, visiting the local pool….the ideas are non-stop. Winter is a little more difficult however. It’s easy for me to stay busy over winter even without my beloved garden to tend. During the cold months I simply turn my attention indoors and carry out all the little jobs that I’ve put off doing over summer. We have at least two broken light fittings that need changing and I’ve been meaning to give the upstairs hallway a new coat of paint for a while. There are one or two other jobs that I want to turn my attention to as well so for at least the next 5 weeks I’ll be busy as a bee during my spare time.

The kids on the other hand don’t want to change light fittings and they don’t like the idea of helping me hang the new curtains. Instead I’ve come up with some ideas that could keep them occupied over the next few weeks. If you too have bored, restless children at home then feel free to pinch these ideas for yourself.

Scrapbooking
A good way of encouraging creativity in children is through scapbooking. As well as using snippets from magazines and newspapers they can use photos and even pictures and drawings they’ve done themselves. A scrapbook can be a fun and visual way of keeping a diary or it can be just a collection of random items that look nice to them.

Trace the Family Tree
I saw this idea on the internet last week and thought it was a rather lovely idea. It’s always nice for children to know about their family and so why not start them on a family tree project? By talking to grandparents and other members of the family they could begin to build up a picture of where they came from. They can also create their own family tree and fill in the blanks as they go.

Making Christmas Decorations
Christmas is around the corner and let’s face it, homemade decorations are much more precious than shop bought ones. From spraying pine cones in gold and silver to creating salt dough decorations, this is a great way to while away the hours. This will more than likely involve at least one adult however so make sure you’ve got time spare for this one too.

Monopoly
This game lasts for hours. If you haven’t got monopoly in the house or your kids have not come across it yet, winter is the time to introduce it. It is perfect for long, cold, wintry afternoons. The older kids can help the younger kids too leaving your time free to keep decorating or fixing the light fittings.

Prepare a winter picnic
If you suggest a picnic they might look at you like you’re mad. Personally however I love sitting under blankets with a fire going enjoying a warm snack. The kids could help prepare the food which could include soup, toasted sandwiches, warm homemade bread and biscuits still warm from the oven. Then all you need are warm clothes, blankets and ideally a place to light a fire. Choosing an afternoon or evening with no rain forecast is a good idea too. Alternatively you could use the fire to cook the food – sausages and marshmallows can be held in the flames to cook them.

There is a good selection of ideas here. I don’t know whether all of these ideas will go down well with my brood but at least I feel ready to tackle any “I’m bored” moments with a suggestion or two.

If anyone has any other ideas on keeping children entertained over winter I would love to hear them.

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Keeping Healthy this Winter

Posted on November 25, 2011 by Hedgerow

I am always eager to ensure the whole family stays as healthy as possible during the winter months. This can sometimes be an uphill battle particularly when it comes to encouraging exercise. I can understand why no one is in the mood to head on outside for a brisk walk but exercise is one of the most important ways to boost our immune systems and keep our whole body healthy during winter. Exercise also improves our mood and helps prevent bickering between the children in this house who tend to start when they have been cooped up inside for too long.

Here are the measures that I take to keep everyone in this house healthy and strong over winter.

Orange Juice and Porridge for Breakfast
I bulk buy oranges and satsumas which are in season during winter and squeeze them for juice every morning. I use an electric juicer for this as by hand it would take far too long. If you don’t like too many bits in your juice you can pass it through a sieve to remove them. I also make a pan of porridge every morning too using plenty of milk. Milk and other dairy products are also helpful when it comes to keeping healthy over winter.

Exercise
I’ve mentioned this briefly already but exercise really is the key to a strong immune system. My favourite type of exercise that the whole family can enjoy is a brisk walk around the local area. I sometimes make a list of items for the children to collect as we go offering a prize to the one who collects all the items first. Other good forms of exercise are ice skating, indoor swimming and of course tobogganing when it snows.

Out with Salads, in with Vegetables
Salads are fantastic in summer but do not meet our nutritional requirements in winter. Winter food should largely consist of stews, casseroles and soups. I always buy plenty of seasonable produce from the local farmers markets so that every meal has at least three portions of vegetables in it.

Earlier Nights
Winter is a good time to get more sleep. It is naturally a time when we want to sleep more anyway and we encourage this in our house by serving dinner a little earlier in the evenings. That way the evening routine and bedtime naturally occurs slightly earlier for everyone during the winter months.

Take Supplements
To provide the body with an additional boost, it can be a good idea to take supplements. There are special supplements available for children. Here is a brief guide to some of the most popular and common supplements taken over the winter period.
Vitamin C: Helps prevent colds and flu and keeps the immune system healthy.
Echinacea: Stops colds, flu and tonsillitis too. It can help fight infections by increasing the number of white blood cells in the body.
Zinc: Anti-viral and strengthens the immune system.
Garlic: Helps prevent colds during winter.

Although snuffles and runny noses can’t completely be prevented over winter, a good seasonal diet and plenty of exercise means that serious cold and flue symptoms can generally be kept at bay.

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2012 Catalogue Out on Dec 5th – Last Chance to Buy at 2011 Prices

Posted on November 25, 2011 by baldwins

The new Baldwin’s catalogue is being sent out on Monday 5th December. You can download a copy here but prices take effect from the 5th. This is therefore your last chance to buy at the current prices!

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Homemade Christmas

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Hedgerow

It is only mid November, but if you are planning on making this Christmas a homemade Christmas then now is the time to start preparing. We’ve made some preliminary plans so far and I’m pleased to say they involve the whole family.

Presents
It’s not possible to make homemade presents for everybody, but for a good deal of them we can. My wife has purchased a soap making kit and plans to create some lovely homemade soaps for various family members. Homemade food gifts are another idea we’ve had. These are a great idea for those members of the family you really struggle to buy for and because of the effort involved it really shows you care! We’re going to make uncooked chocolate cake, cut into squares and tie small pieces of ribbon around each square to make them look like presents. We’ll place them in a box on tissue paper and hey presto, a beautiful and delicious gift.

Anything can be made into a delicious food gift, the key is in the packaging. Use beautiful glass jars, tins or boxes and attach a homemade label. Anything can become a food gift when decorated this way – homemade jams, cakes, biscuits, even homemade mustard. You could also make flavoured olive oils, marinated olives or spice rubs for meat.

Wrapping Paper
Rather than buying expensive wrapping paper this year bought especially for the occasion, we’re going to use brown parcel paper tied up with string. This is cheap, recyclable and eliminates the need for selotape too. To decorate each present I’ll attach something lovely from the garden. Holly would be ideal but I worry about the sharp leaves! Perhaps I’ll use sprigs of mistletoe or other greenery from the garden.

Christmas Cards
I’ve never been a big fan of Christmas card sending. Sending people cards or receiving cards from those who you never speak to from one year to the next just doesn’t quite sit well with me. It also generates a huge amount of additional waste. This year we are going to make phone calls instead of sending cards. I think this is much more fun and more meaningful too.

House Decorations
The kids will be heavily involved with decorating the house. I thought we could make some salt dough decorations for the tree and maybe spray paint some pine cones, nuts and other Christmassy bits and bobs. We can collect items from the garden and local area to make a wreath for the door and a big centrepiece for the table too. I also want to try drying some orange slices to hang on the tree. Hopefully they’ll smell nice as well as look good.

So as you can see there is a lot to do but it should be good fun. This weekend I think we’ll make a start on the decorations for the house with the children. The soap making is already well underway I’m pleased to report, although so far nothing has been produced that we could give as a gift.

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Winter Comfort Food

Posted on November 11, 2011 by Hedgerow

I know I’ve mentioned it before but I really do enjoy the autumn and even the start of winter. Nothing beats those delicious autumnal smells and the colours of autumn are something special too. One of the reasons the whole family enjoys the colder months are because of all the yummy winter treats that we can now indulge in. Nothing beats a roasted chestnut, and wine has never tasted so good than when mulled. It’s a happy day in our house when the first satsuma / tangerine / clementine (if anyone knows the difference, please let me know) appears in the fruit bowl.

The garden at this time of year is abundant with brassicas of all shapes and sizes. We have winter cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli and kale all ready or nearly ready. I’m not too much of a cook truth be told but one thing I do like to make is a hearty winter stew with produce from the garden. I love to indulge this throughout autumn and winter much to my childrens’ displeasure, who like many people their age are not too keen on winter stews. Last weekend I made a chunky winter casserole using the vegetables we had available from the garden (carrots and cabbage) with leeks, swede and Aduki Beans. It was very, very good.

The beauty of this recipe is you can use whatever vegetables you like, any bean or pulse you like and any type of dried herbs or spices too. The formula is simple:

Fry onions and garlic until soft then add the vegetables that have been cubed neatly until they start to go brown.
Add your beans or pulses with any dried herbs or spices you want.
Add a tin of tomatoes or some tomato puree, perhaps even a slosh of cider too.
Use Swiss Vegetable Bouillon Vegetarian Green and hot water to make a stock and add to the pot so everything is just about submerged.
Cover the pot and cook in the oven on a low heat for around an hour.

Trust me when I say it’s just what’s needed on a cold winter’s day. I am also in charge of roasting chestnuts in our house. If you have never enjoyed a roasted chestnut before then you have been missing out! Ideally they should be cooked on an open fire as the song suggests but if no such one is available they can also be cooked in the oven. Either way they are delicious and healthy too. Here’s how it’s done:

Gather a large pile of chestnuts together and score an “x” into each one. Place them into an oven proof dish with the “x” facing up. Roast on high for around 20 to 30 minutes. The chestnuts will be cooked when the skins have burst open and the nut is a golden brown colour. Gently peel them when they have cooled a little and down the hatch they go! You can thank me later.

I usually do a swap for chestnuts with my neighbours who have a large tree. I provide them with one or two vegetable boxes and in return I am allowed to raid their chestnut tree a few times during the season. You can also buy them however from farmer’s markets and supermarkets at this time of year.

Hope you all have a great week and get time to try out a tasty winter stew! Let me know how you get on!

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Home Organisation

Posted on November 3, 2011 by Hedgerow

As you may remember we had a big clear out and autumn clean just recently in our home. Not only did this throw up a list of small DIY jobs for me to tackle over the winter, it also alerted me to the fact that we have quite a lot of “stuff”. What do you do with an item that works perfectly and you may well need in the future, but haven’t needed so far? Many would say give it away or sell it, but I just don’t always buy into that. There is nothing more frustrating than needing something you no longer own and having to go out and acquire another. I think organisation is the key. If you can keep your “stuff” neatly stored so it it not bothering anyone then you can keep as much as you want! Right?

My solution in the garage was a very simple one – stacking storage containers.

stacking storage containers

These are sturdy, waterproof and stack neatly together one on top of the other. The garage now has one corner dedicated to storage containers. I even labelled the boxes so I can see at a glance what is contained within each one. The house is a trickier matter however. While I like things that are practical but my wife likes things that are beautiful so any storage idea we come up with for the house has to be a combination of these two factors. Makes it harder but I love a challenge. The bathroom was one area in disarray.

Multiple girls in the home equates to a large number of bathroom products. We were overflowing with bath products, makeup and hair dryers apparently (why a household needs more than one hair dryer is beyond me.) So anyway, I came up with a novel idea that I saw on Pinterest – large baskets hung from the wall. All I needed to make this happen was a selection of wicker baskets, some rails and a few hooks. Twenty minutes with my electric drill and suddenly the bathroom is tidy and ordered. Each member of the family has their own basket so nothing gets mixed up – order is restored. We also invested in a few jars so that things like cotton wool, ear buds and hair clips could all be stored neatly in the baskets.

The absolute piece de resistance however of this whole experience has got to be our new bookcase / storage unit. bookcase / storage unitIt is fantastically rustic, cost absolutely nothing and looks beautiful. One of the things we had lying around in the garage was a number of wooden crates. I can’t recall where they came from but I think it was to do with fruit picking. Anyway, I gathered them up and positioned them on top of each other with the bottoms against the wall. I secured in place with screws. Practical and beautiful. We’ve put it in the family room and it now used to store remote controls, magazines, books, ornaments and general clutter that never seems to have a home. Here’s a photo taken from Pinterest of something similar, although ours is a bit more rough and ready due to the age of the crates.

I love coming up with novel storage solutions. Do any of you have any ideas for practical yet beautiful storage solutions?

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Hedgerow Homemade Cleaning Products

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Hedgerow

I mentioned last week that we’d be tackling the cleaning part of the Hedgerow Autumn Clean at the weekend. We managed to get most of it done I’m pleased to say. I also took delivery of a load of wood which is now neatly piled up against the side of the house and in the garden shed too. We gave the house a thorough cleaning using, where possible, our homemade cleaning products. If you are looking for ways to save the pennies and reduce your impact on the environment, making your own cleaning products is a great idea.

To make your own cleaning products you will need the simplest of ingredients:

Water (of course!)

White Vinegar
Mildly acidic, white vinegar gets rid of dirt, soap scum and even water deposits on taps / around sinks. It deodorizes as well as cleans by absorbing (as opposed to masking) unpleasant smells. If you are worried that the whole house will smell like vinegar, don’t be because when it dries it becomes odourless. It can be used on tiled surfaces, wooden floors and even as a fabric conditioner.

Bicarbonate of Soda
This is a must for the cleaning cupboard because of its abrasive qualities. It also deodorizes by absorbing smells rather than covering them up. In fact you can use bicarb as a deodorant on your skin. It won’t stop you sweating, but will stop the sweat from smelling.

Lemon Juice
The acidity in lemons make simple lemon juice a great cleaning product because it too cuts through dirt and grease. The other great thing about lemon juice is that it smells nice!

Olive Oil
A truly versatile item, olive oil is essential for polishing and protecting wood. Just like the rest of these items, it is completely natural and cannot harm anyone if consumed. The same cannot be said for chemical cleaning products.

So now I’ve taken you through the basic ingredients it is time to show you how to put these natural cleaning products to use.

Floor Cleaner
In our house we have a mixture of vinyl floors, tiled floors and wooden floors and you would be forgiven for thinking that you’d need a different cleaner for each, but in fact you don’t. The same mixture of vinegar and water can be used just at different dilutions. For vinyl and tile floors I mix 1 cup of white vinegar with 1 gallon of water. For wooden floors you should just use half the amount of white vinegar with the same amount of water. Mop the floors in the usual way.

All Purpose Cleaner
White vinegar and water can also be added a spray bottle and used as an all purpose cleaner. We always have a batch of this made up and kept under the kitchen sink. It should be made slightly stronger than the floor cleaner – 1 part vinegar, 1 part water. We use this to wipe kitchen surfaces with on a regular basis.

Bathroom Cleaner
We use bicarb to clean the sink, bath, shower and toilet in the bathrooms. Bicarb is perfect for scrubbing the bath and basin with because the abrasive action cleans them so well. For tougher cleaning (such as the toilet) it can be mixed with water to form a paste. Apply the paste to the area you want to clean and leave for 20 minutes before scrubbing off. We had a slow running drain recently so I poured some bicarb down with a dribble of hot water. We then left it alone all night before flushing it out with more hot water the next day. Although the drain is not perfect now, it is definitely a lot better than it was. I think I will need to finish off this treatment with a specialist drain cleaner.

Furniture Polish
Mix together 1 part lemon juice to 2 parts olive oil in a spray bottle. Shake the bottle well. Spray the solution onto your furniture and use a dry flannel, duster or piece of old towel to polish thoroughly. Your wood will shine, be protected and smell nice too.

Window Cleaner
The final cleaning product we make on a regular basis is a window cleaner that can also be used on mirrors. The recipe is 2 cups of water, 1/4 cup of white vinegar and one teaspoon of liquid detergent. Place the ingredients into a spray bottle and shake. Spray onto glass and rub with newspaper to stop it streaking.

Trigger Sprays
You may find it handy to store your homemade cleaning products in a handy plastic bottle with a neat trigger spray for simple, clean use.

I find that no amount of bicarb or elbow grease will remove lime scale from our shower head so for this we use a commercial product. Washing up liquid is also not homemade in this house. Although we can’t make everything, it’s great to switch to homemade products for the majority of our cleaning chores.

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Autumn Clean

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Hedgerow

I’m well aware that spring is the traditional time to have a big house clean, but personally I like to have a mini-clean and clear out in the autumn too. Winter is fast approaching and as the temperature drops outside, more time is spent inside so it needs to be an enjoyable and relaxing place. Calling it an “autumn clean” isn’t quite the right term however, it’s more of a “house preparation for winter.”

The first part of the operation is to have a clear out. That means the garage, cupboards and drawers that can no longer be closed due to a mysterious mass of accumulated junk and if possible…..the children’s bedrooms. Trying to get them to part with anything is always a trial but if there was no regular intervention they’d soon lose sight of their beds let alone be able to get into them. Bribing the children with a fun day out usually works- we’re not proud of this but it works.

I usually tackle the garage / attic space while my wife hits the kitchen and living rooms. Any item we don’t need or use that has life left in it gets donated. Any real junk gets thrown (recycled wherever possible) and loose bits of paper get filed if they need keeping or recycled if not. I must admit that I really enjoy the process of de-cluttering. It’s incredibly therapeutic and satisfying. We tackled this challenge last weekend and now I find myself going into the garage just to admire my handiwork. The task threw up a whole list of small jobs that need doing. These are ideal for tackling over winter when there is little to do in the garden. This winter we have got some plans for easy home improvements too so it should be a fun and busy time.

I also ordered a huge delivery of wood that we are going to need for our woodburners. Over winter we try and rely as little on possible on central heating and use our two woodburners as much as possible. Having a roaring fire going all day is so much nicer too and one of the few things that is actually enjoyable about the winter months.

The next task on the Hedgerow autumn clean is the actual cleaning. This will be tackled next weekend by my wife and I. A few years ago we stopped buying chemical cleaning products instead relying on home made versions or Ecover for more specialist cleaning. I will let you in on some of our natural cleaning secrets next week but bicarb, vinegar and lemon juice feature heavily.

I will let you know how we get on, have a great week everyone!

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