High Spring

Monday

I think late April/ early May should be called High Spring - where there are the occasional days of sunshine with heat, along with the bright tulips, the blustery blossom and the ever possible bite of frost or at least a strong gale. We’ve had all these things and loved it, including a gorgeous set of triplet lambs. Turns out the tup (ram) didn’t have much else left in him.

Tuesday

The sauna has been moved to its High Spring lookout and we had our first communal sauna users with this reaction “The view was great and nice to feel you are in the middle of nowhere”.

Wednesday

Cooking has taken centre stage again this month. Things are scaling up with an event for 60 and another for 70! (Crumbs I must remember to invoice). My style of cooking/ feeding is to be as inclusive as possible- mainly so that I can eat I.e. not serve sandwiches. What I hadn’t realised it how exclusive sandwiches are to others like diabetics, vegans and vegetarians. More often than not all those breads things have cheese or ham strewn through them. Don’t get me wrong - I love a decent ham and tomato sandwich or cheese and jam on toast but when you are feeding a crowd, sandwiches are often the worst option and the cheaper the ingredients the worse that options becomes even to those with no dietary requirements. I loved the feedback from people with all sorts of needs about how refreshing it was to be able to eat something at a work event. My aim is for those eating to feel nourished and cared for, thanked for their time and awake enough to concentrate for the afternoon. I couldn’t have done it without my awesome team - Korean, Kirsty, Lindsey, Kat and Olly thanks for your magic

Thursday

Olly is off to a butchery course today - ever increasing ‘our’ knowledge about our livestock. I don’t think we will ever to the butchering - it’s a highly skilled and regulated job but it’s always handy to kind of know what you are talking about when discussing the fate of your meat. We still have lots of joints and pieces of our gorgeous lamb in the freezer for sale!

Friday

Our drawing retreat with Dylan Gibson was a huge success. The weather was sublime, the attendants lovely and Dylan is such a respectful teacher. We will be doing another one so let us know if you are interested. Two of the attendees bought our wool at the wool producers showcase and brought with them a beautiful woven place mat with different strands of wool from different farms around Scotland. It was such a special gift and a reminder I need to get back to my loom!

Our next course is making your own cordage/string/rope with Eilidh Weir, a multidisciplinary artist. I dried a load of daffs last year and they will be one of the myriad of fibres we use to make cord and then make it into something. As always there will be food and beds available if you would like to make a weekend of it. Book on our website www.burmieston.co.uk and PLEASE SHARE.

What i’ve been cooking - a lot! But a recipe that I was particularly surprised by is beetroot and rhubarb soup. The combination is quite divine. Thanks to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

I also made a radish and dandelion flower pickle with dandelion infused white wine vinegar. So lovely! If your dandelion’s haven’t gone over yet I really recommend you pick some and make either or both.

What I’ve been listening to - an alternate name to High Spring could be Cuckoo time. Those few weeks after it arrives and until you stop noticing its call. the cuckoo. It is one of the birds in the ‘sequel’ to the Lost Words called Birds of Britain. I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy.

What I’ve been watching - I’m finally into the Bear. The timing is interesting considering the ramp up in my cooking! Everything has their season(ing) 😂. Another excellent watch is La legge di Lidi Poët or the Law of Lidia Poët, with subtitles obvs. It’s based on a real story and with an excellent cast, storyline and fabulous outfits, I urge you to have a watch (Netflix).

PS. The heat wave only got to us today (Monday). I think it’s about 20 degrees C. Beautiful.

PPS. How is it that the internet controls we put on everyone’s gadgets currently only apply to mine?