urban foraging

the bluestone cobbled lanes in my suburb were built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for the night men who emptied the closet toilets..despite their less than salubrious history the lanes hold a fascination for me and when i go walking down one i'm taken to another world..

out the front, on the main streets, houses and gardens on their best behaviour

less self conscious when viewed from the lanes

back fences ramshackle and discordant

creepers and trees run riot

hear the sounds of the night man's cart

the clip clop of the horses hooves

and the wheels on the cobbled bluestone

in the eerie early morning dark 

see the vapour steaming horse nares

smell the sweaty hot horse smell

and (ignore) the stench of human excrement

tough, dark and serious

don't mess with me

volcano spewed aphanite
hewn by human hand
and hauled from the west of melbourne

i never see anyone else when i go walking down any of the lanes and that i like..it's a way of getting away without getting away..and an added bonus are the fig festooned branches that drape themselves seductively across my path..each autumn i am able to pick figs to my heart's content..and this year has been no exception..usually i just eat them fresh but this year i decided to have another go at making fig jam..yep..i've made fig jam many times before but even when i've added lemon peel and juice to counteract the sweetness i've still found fig jam sickly sweet..

not too sweet vinegar fig jam

tea with hazel

makes 1 medium jar*

ingredients

450 gms slightly under ripe figs, stems and blemishes removed, and cut to preferred size (i cut mine small)

325 gms sugar

100 mls filtered water

40 mls red wine vinegar

2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

method

~ place sugar, water and red wine vinegar in a saucepan, heat slowly, stirring, until sugar has melted, then bring to the boil

~ add the figs and boil until setting point has been reached (i used a potato masher to break up persistent pieces of fig)

~  remove from the heat and stir in balsamic vinegar to taste

~ pour into sterilised jar and seal

note:

* the recipe may be doubled but any further increase in quantity tends to effect the cooking and setting times which can have a deleterious effect on the taste, colour and consistency of the jam


are you an urban forager? if so, what do you find in your area?

this post submitted to punk domestics