It has been a while since I have made a chutney from my surplus crops. This has been due to the fact that the past two years have really not been that productive. This year has been very different indeed. Although some fruit and veg have still not produced as well as in previous seasons, I have had a bumper crop of tomatoes; so it’s time for Christmas chutney making.

I’ve grown a number of different tomato varieties this year. As per previous chutney’s that I have made, I am including a bowl of dates, raisins, two cayenne chillies for a little bit of after-heat taste, two bell peppers, muscovado sugar, fresh rosemary, two small tea spoons of mustard, red and white onions, and a bottle of malt vinegar. This is all cooked down for three hours and carefully deposited into oven-hot glass jars. The sharp vinegar taste will disappear completely after these have matured for a couple of Months, and will be grand on the table at Christmas. I will as ever, keep aside a jar for the final day of the course fishing season on the 14th March 2020. I can’t wait to try it now with a slab of cheese, or even better a good quality pork pie, but one must wait.