Keeper of the Kitchen

Nettle and Lemon Cake

Luschka — Mon, 12 May 2025 21:16:57 +0000

We couldn’t have a fire at our recent Men with Kids Bushcraft session due to the dry spell we’re having, but I wanted to still make a nettle something for one of our kids who loves anything nettle. I decided to make a cake – not ground breaking in foraging circles – but so many people …

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Magnolia Flower Jam / Magnolia Flower Jelly

Luschka — Fri, 04 Apr 2025 12:28:06 +0000

We aren’t huge bread eaters in our family, which is a shame since I love making jam. I was looking at some leftover magnolia flowers and wondered whether you could use them the same way as roses to make a jam, and the answer is yes! You can make a beautiful magnolia flower jam from …

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10 Foraged Alternatives to Imported Herbs and Spices

Luschka — Wed, 26 Mar 2025 00:15:52 +0000

For centuries, Britain has relied on imported spices and fruits to enhance flavours, but many native plants offer similar aromas and tastes and are easily found foraged alternatives! Tantalised and seduced by the colours of fruit and vegetables we don’t grow here naturally, our ancestors brought cloves and cardamom from Southeast Asia and India in …

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Crystallised Magnolia Flowers (Keto and Regular)

Luschka — Sat, 22 Mar 2025 18:32:39 +0000

Magonolia flowers are firm favourites in our house and when my daughter turns up with pockets full of magnolia flowers, I know spring has truly sprung. We use them for magnolia pickles, magnolia cakes and to dip in chocolate. The trees we have access to all have a distinct ginger-flavour, and sometimes we’ll find the …

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Gorse Shortbread

Luschka — Tue, 18 Mar 2025 15:00:25 +0000

“Only kiss when Gorse is in flower!” Fortunately for lovers everywhere, there are twenty species of gorse out there, so there’s always one in flower! They are sort-of sweet (unless you pick them along the coast) and sort of coconutty or pineapple-ish. The flavour you get from them depends a lot on your taste buds. …

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(Scots) Pine Needle Soda

Luschka — Sat, 15 Mar 2025 12:37:14 +0000

Pine tea is a great addition to your seasonal hot drinks, but when the weather begins to change, a refreshing glass of Scots pine needles soda goes down a treat as a cooling, immune-enriching tipple. Whenever anyone tastes it for the first time, their eyes widen in surprise. The quality of the honey you choose …

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Candied Alexander Stems

Luschka — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 12:01:30 +0000

I love Alexanders – smyrnium olusatrum. They are one of my favourite spring foragables. Driving around the countryside here on the Isle of Wight they suddenly pop up, lining the streets of parts of the Island from early March. We use the thin stems for a sautéed snack or side, the thicker stems for candying, …

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Magnolia Flower Drizzle

Luschka — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 16:26:33 +0000

Magnolia flowers…. we’ve been eating a lot of them lately, between Magnolia Flower Pickle and Chocolate Dipped Magnolia Flowers and this amazing Magnolia Flower Drizzle. We’re two weeks into official spring and we’ve already finished off two of these beauties! So what does Magnolia Flower Drizzle taste like? Basically…. magnolias and if you know anything about magnolia …

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Magnolia Flower Pickle

Luschka — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 10:26:18 +0000

I’m on a bit of a Magnolia Flower binge at the moment – it’s understandable, they’re only buds for a short time and our weather is so changeable right now, you’ve got to ‘gather your rosebuds magnolias while you may’! Today’s foodie choice is magnolia flower pickle, which means we can enjoy them well into …

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Chocolate-Dipped Magnolia Flowers

Luschka — Fri, 10 Mar 2023 17:55:32 +0000

In our part of the world, Magnolia flowers are among the first signs of spring. Tightly wrapped in their ‘blankets’ – the sepal – they’re just waiting for the warmer weather to open up and show their cheery faces to the sun. There are many different types of magnolia trees, and while all magnolias are …

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