Ah, late Summer – I love it. The Boys are back at school, the days are still long and warm and the bounty of the hedgerows is at its peak.

This week’s Sunday Sevens is more about the kitchen than the studio and, if you want to join in or find out more, visit Nat’s blog at Threads & Bobbins but, basically, it’s about showing seven photos of your week that may not be worth a full blog post in their own right. Oh, and it keeps you blogging when you’ve got nothing to say!

1. The first basket of elderberries picked – I had to be quick taking this photo before the hens came over to help themselves!

2. No.3 Son helping to strain the cooked elderberries ready to make jam. Wearing a white onesie is NOT the best choice.

3. An early morning photo showing the freshly made hay bales in the field which is usually the cue to take the pool down and pack it away for next year, except it was so hot yesterday that The Boys were swimming in it still!

4. We did, however, deconstruct the outdoor gazebo area. The dogs promptly curled up on the quilts that came in for washing.

5. The sloes from last year’s sloe gin were kept in the fridge (alcohol is a great preserver) and Mr H-L made Sloe Port from them using red wine and brandy.

6. I have this wonderful book which was a gift received soon after we started keeping hens. It has a brilliant recipe for hollandaise sauce which I use often.

7. My appetite whetted by Camilla’s photo, I made Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon and the aforementioned hollandaise sauce. Delicious!

8. Of course, I had to make some butter first…..!

9. Oops, this is photo number nine but I had to include it to show that I am still beavering away at Christmas presents – this is the fifth out of seven luxury scarves I am making.

The rest of the week will no doubt be spent preserving more hedgerow goodies whilst they’re there for the taking.

Is anybody else busy making jam/chutney/liqueurs with the September harvest?