Table of contents for September 2022 in The Simple Things

THINGS TO NOTE AND NOTICE Nature project Blackberry gathering This is blackberries’ time to shine and with a few clever bits of preserving you’ll be able to enjoy them through the colder months, too. Jam is the time-honoured method and what’s not to like about a steamed-up kitchen and a pan on a rolling boil? It’s also hard to beat a crumble. But a quick online search will lead you to other delights for pantry and freezer such as curd, chutney, sorbet, brownies - they go well with dark chocolate - and soda bread. A few points on picking: collect during the cooler parts of the day, keep them in the shade and get them in the fridge asap. Don’t wash them until you’re ready to use or freeze them.…

One of the very few benefits of the past couple of difficult years is that many of us learned to slow down, enjoy what we have and make the most of where we live. The pandemic transformed our shopping, eating, exercise, work and play - and (perhaps unsurprisingly) not everything has returned to the way it was. As a result, many high streets have continued to struggle, while our neighbourhoods have often adapted and innovated. Thankfully, more of us are supporting local businesses, organisations and community groups who are doing their best to make their corner of the world a better place. So, while the aftermath still plays out, we’re launching the Neighbourhood Awards for the second year to celebrate the best and brightest ideas, initiatives and helpful projects that…

Among the multitude of things that the last few years have helped many of us to reassess is our often uncomfortable relationship with stuff. And as more and more of us have realised that there’s not enough room in our homes — or on our planet — for all the clothing, objects and appliances we used to love buying, we’ve embraced the concept of renting them instead. It’s something that we used to do when we moved into our first flat or needed a car when on holiday. Now we’re happily paying by the day to borrow other people’s clothes, handbags, campervans, coffee tables and — yes — even pizza ovens, both direct from businesses and through peer-to-peer platforms that work much like Airbnb for our possessions. “People are realising…

WELLBEING All people have secrets, but not all secrets are alike. The moment you intend to keep something hidden away from someone else is the moment that something becomes a secret. You might have to hide it in conversation tomorrow, next week, or never - plenty of secrets don’t require upkeep or lies to maintain. Even if you have discussed an experience with someone, if you intend to keep it from someone else, that means that it still counts as a secret. SECRETS AND LIES A survey of over 2,000 people revealed 38 most common secrets ranging from romantic desire or infidelity to financial issues and undisclosed habits. After sharing this list with more than 50,000 research participants worldwide, it was found that on average, people have had 21 of…

WHERE WE LIVE Born and raised in Newcastle, Nancy Straughan spent her twenties in London, but while pregnant with her first child, she felt the call to return home. “I loved the buzz of London, but when Simon and I started a family, I began to crave the landscape of my roots,” says Nancy, a freelance photographer and stylist. “I missed the open countryside, the coastlines and wanted to be closer to my mum, so we decided to move back to Newcastle.” With Nancy heavily pregnant, they left behind their jobs and London life and moved back up north, staying with Nancy’s mum while they looked for a home to rent. “We’d hoped to find somewhere quickly as it was quite a squash, and finally found our flat online five…

WISHLIST Bookshop browse Simon Garfield’s spry, insightful history of encyclopaedias and the “bountiful” information treasure-troved within their covers is fascinating. Hooked on old knowledge and “musty nostalgia,” Garfield tells the stories of the stalwart people who created and distributed these works. Marrying monumental achievement with maniacal ambition, they persuaded the best minds of the day to contribute entries, and helped shape our understanding of the world. Fully alert to the flaws and foibles of the contributors, faulty science and outmoded social attitudes, Garfield celebrates their achievement and long-lasting influence in this beguiling book. (Weidenfeld and Nicolson)…

Richard Mabey’s life-enhancing, engaging Food For Free is still the go-to book for foragers looking for a slice of social and natural history, alongside some deliciously eccentric recipes made from the “wildings” and windfalls discovered on the wayside. The updated edition celebrates inconvenience food and the joys of “bramble scrambling and mudlarking.” Mabey’s search for flavoured fruits, leaves, ferns and fungi leads him cross country, and he traces the history of free food from medieval rural economies to current ideas about foraged food, which focus on discovering intense flavours. (William Collins)…

Here in our firmly unpretentious South Carolina fishing village, the locals believe natural beauty is best. Grand live oaks reach over roads made bumpy by their roots and the creek snakes by old docks and much-used boats. There’s money here, but it’s not shown off. That wouldn’t be cool. What is cool are the whelk shells villagers use to decorate their homes and gardens. Bleached by the sun, they line porch steps and flower beds. One woman crowns the pickets of her unpainted fence with them. When we moved here almost 10 years ago, I stared at those shells enviously. We didn’t have any. But as we learned village ways and waters, we found the island where tides deposit shells in riotous piles and took some. As time moved on…

Concorde The amicable concorde between a conference and a comice, as made in Kent in the late 1960s. Has the slender, tapered look of the aircraft, too. Williams Bon Chrétien A case of mistaken identi-tree for around 30 years in North America, before they twigged their ‘Bartlett’ was really Europe’s ‘Williams’. Conference Free biscuits are not the tastiest thing to come from a conference. No.1 at l885’s National British Pear Conference, now our no. 1 grown variety. Bosc The so-called ‘aristocrat of pears’, with good taste and refined russet looks. But its heritage is in dispute, being either from France or Belgium. Comice A French supermodel: with a beautifully proportioned bottom and delicate skin. Looks amazing for its age, too, dating to 1840s Angers. Black warden Go back with black,…

It’s summer and gardens are blooming. Many of the pretty plants we admire are purely decorative but - whisper it - some are edible, too. Re-imagine your garden’s flora and foliage as ingredients (with a sprinkle of folklore). These flowers and herbs earn their place in the flowerbed and on the kitchen table alike. Hello, petal NASTURTIUM A favourite of the Victorians, the flamboyant flowers of the nasturtium feature in works by Monet and Matisse. Nasturtiums are a flowering cabbage cousin from South America, first found in the 16th century. Its name, nasturtium, matches the botanical name for watercress, and is said to come from the Latin for ‘nose twist’ - refering to its peppery taste. Though still bringing colour to September, they’re seen as a sign of spring -…

APPLE AND CINNAMON POLENTA CAKE WITH MAPLE SYRUP SERVES 8-10 200g butter, softened 200g caster sugar 3 eggs 200g ground almonds 100g polenta 2 tbsp cornflour 1½ tsp baking powder 1 tsp ground cinnamon 200g cooking apples, peeled and cored 20g flaked almonds 100ml maple syrup 1 Heat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/ Gas 4. Meanwhile, grease and line a 23cm loose-bottomed or springform cake tin with baking paper. 2 In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. 3 Combine the ground almonds, polenta cornflour, baking powder and cinnamon in a separate bowl, and mix well. Lightly fold the dry mixture into the butter, sugar and egg mixture until just smooth. 4…

MY CITY *There’s no better way to get to the heart of a city than through the people who live there. Every month we ask someone, clearly in love with their city, to take us on a personal tour and tell us what makes it so special. You may feel inspired to visit one day, but for now just sit back, relax and enjoy some armchair travel. How long have you lived in the city? I came to Seoul in 2006. What brought you there and where are you from originally? After graduating from Ohio University, I was looking to travel and got an English teaching job in South Korea. I only planned to stay for a year, but expat life suited me and eventually I met my Korean husband…

NOSTALGIA This month marks 80 years since Five on a Treasure Island was published. Since then, a further 20 Famous Five books were written, making Enid Blyton’s books one of the most successful children’s series ever. Even today, it’s estimated that over two million Famous Five books are sold each year. For me, it’s 30 years since I was introduced to Julian, Dick, Anne, George and Timmy. Sometimes I used birthday money to buy shiny new copies from WH Smith, but more often, I’d build up my collection by trawling through boxes of old books at boot sales that I’d been dragged to by my parents. I’d spend evenings adventuring with the Five, reading by torchlight under the covers, long after I’d been told to go to sleep. Over the…

GOOD THINGS TO EAT Carpaccio of tomatoes with tapenade Laying tomatoes out attractively on a plate is the kind of meditative kitchen task that is particularly enjoyable for a late summer lunch. Serves 4 FOR THE CARPACCIO: 1 small fennel bulb, trimmed and very thinly sliced or shaved 2 tbsp chardonnay or muscatel vinegar (or use white wine vinegar sweetened with a pinch of sugar) 800g tomatoes, mixed colours and sizes, very thinly sliced 4 tbsp olive oil 20g rocket, washed and dried FOR THE TAPENADE: 100g kalamata olives, pitted 1 thyme sprig, leaves picked 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 tbsp capers, rinsed and drained (or use pickled) 6 anchovy fillets 4 tbsp olive oil 1 Toss the fennel with a pinch of salt and the vinegar and put to…

TALIA CHAIN’S seven acres of fields on Sadeh Farm might not look too different to any other agricultural land to the untrained eye. But look closely and you’ll see this Kentish farm isn’t like those around it. Every seventh year no crops are sown or harvested. In an orchard on the land, fruit from trees three years old and younger is left to ripen and fall to the ground. A portion of all the harvested food is always given away. In fact, since 2018, it’s been run entirely along farming principles found in the Jewish Torah, and to date is the only Jewish farming community in continental Europe. After reading Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma in 2014, former fashion technologist Talia applied to intern at the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat…

HOME TOUR A land of tall pines, clapboard homes and the setting for many a Stephen King novel, Maine is home to residents ready to take on the elements, and their beautiful and eclectic homes are dotted throughout the land’s breathtaking natural vistas. Sitting in New England, nuzzled up to the Canadian border, Maine has a ‘drowned coast’ where the valleys have turned into bays and the mountains have created islands. Unsurprisingly, it’s well known for its maritime history and strong connection to the sea (lobsters, clams and oysters are plentiful on dinner tables). However, it’s the style of its homes that has won Maine the most fans. The last Shaker village in the world is here and that ethos of beauty in simplicity runs through all the houses, whether…

TRY IT OUT Dream weaving Abbie Miller makes the exact basket she’s always wanted I love storage, and I’m particularly partial to a woven basket. With three kids, they’re pretty handy for hiding toys, carrying laundry and holding the gazillion pairs of shoes that we seem to have acquired. So this one-day basketweaving course caught my eye. Run by Louise Brown, a professional basketmaker, and held in Farnham Pottery buildings in Surrey, the course was described as ‘suitable for absolute beginners’ - and I certainly fitted that bill. There were eight of us - some serial workshoppers, others treating themselves to a girls’ day out. Louise kicked off with an introduction and a simple demo on how to start your basket, her warm rapport filling us with confidence. We all…

THIS MONTH WE READ FUTURE TENSE BY TRACY DENNIS-TIWARY (PIATKUS) In a nutshell We’re getting it wrong with anxiety. Rather than seeing it as something to be fixed or eradicated, Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience Dr Dennis-Tiwary says we should be trying to cope with it. “Anxiety itself is not the problem; it’s the thoughts and behaviours we use to cope with it,” she claims, explaining how when we listen to what anxiety is trying to tell us rather than trying to hide from it, we can stop fearing it. What’s behind it? Anxiety disorders are the biggest mental health problem we face, affecting twice as many women as men. Dr Dennis-Tiwary cites alarming statistics such as the 31% of Americans who will experience an anxiety disorder in their lifetime…

“Motherland is a recipe book, but more than that, it is a history of the people, influences and ingredients that uniquely united to create the wonderful patchwork cuisine that is Jamaican food today,” says Melissa Thompson of her wonderful cookery book, which adds a twist to traditional recipes. There’s addictive Stamp and Go (saltfish fritters), Ginger Beer Prawns - delicately flavoured, the bubbles in the beer make the batter as light as air. You can also try Curry Goat, Festival - a sweet-and-sour fried dumpling - and Caramel Brownies, intense chocolate with a tamarind tang and a bay-leaf bouquet for a feast of flavours. (Bloomsbury)…

WEEKEND PROJECT PRESSED SEAWEED PRINTS It’s not just flowers that can be pressed, search the shore to find different types of seaweed to create simple, but beautiful artworks. You will need: Seaweed 2 tubs, trays, or baking dishes (one large enough for your paper) Watercolor or other thick paper Cardboard Boards Paintbrush Weed barrier landscape fabric Stones, bricks, books, or other items to serve as weights 1 Collect an array of feathery seaweeds from the beach*. Give them a thorough rinse in a tub of fresh cold water. 2 Fill a separate tub or tray with at least 4cm of fresh water and submerge a piece of watercolor paper. Arrange a piece of seaweed on top of the paper. 3 Tilting the paper so that the water runs off it,…

Peri peri chicken burger Bring a flavour of Portugal to a late summer barbecue with this nicely spicy burger. Peri peri chicken burger Serves 4 90ml rapeseed oil 1 red onion, roughly chopped 1 large red pepper, chopped 8 garlic cloves, roughly chopped 4 red bird’s eye chillies, chopped 2 tbsp paprika 1 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder 1 tsp ground black pepper 1 tbsp dried red chilli flakes 3 tbsp lime juice 70ml white wine vinegar 4 large skinless chicken breasts TO SERVE: 2 tbsp butter 4 burger buns 125ml mayonnaise 8 slices of burger cheese 1 Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat. When hot, add the chopped onion and red pepper and fry for about 5 mins. 2 Add the garlic and chillies and…

Twelve-year-old Lucas couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. ‘I don’t understand, Sir. You want me to put the pigeon back where I found it?’ ‘That’s what I said,’ replied Mr Enfield wearily, as he stood in the staff room doorway clutching a steaming cup of coffee. ‘But Sir,’ pleaded Lucas. ‘Didn’t you hear me when I said that I think its wing is broken? It’s scared.’ Just then the bird, which was in a large Walkers’ crisp box in Lucas’s hands, flapped its good wing and cooed. Mr Enfield looked pointedly at the box for several moments before returning his attention to Lucas. ‘I understand you want to help this pigeon, I really do, and it’s a good thing to want to help animals. But to be honest there’s…

Morning! Tell us a bit about where you’re waking up. Our house is in one of the oldest parts of a small market town in North Dorset. How early do you start on the cuppas? I go downstairs at about 6.30 / 7.00am and let our border terrier Rosie into the garden. Then, it’s a cup of Assam while I catch up on overnight emails and orders and do 15 minutes of yoga. What do you do for a living? I sell art books, specialising in 20th-century art and design. I did an art history degree before working in auctioneers and for art dealers but after my daughter Was born I wanted a more flexible job. As well as selling online and at bookfairs, I have a bookshop at my…

Anna’s lessons for life Do one thing, and do it well It’s easy to start thinking that I should be opening a restaurant, hosting a podcast, launching a magazine, and doing amazing collaborations. The more experience I have, the more I realise that I just want to do one or two things really, really well. I love writing my books, I don’t need those other layers. Don’t be afraid to ask I’ve always been brave about asking people whose work I like and respect if I can help, or be part of what they are doing in any way. It’s a sort of ‘if you don’t ask, you don’t get’ attitude, and it has served me well. Roll with the punches John and I both try to take things with…

Out of the sunset’s red Into the blushing sea, The winds of day drop dead And dreams come home to me.- The sea is still, - and apart Is a stillness in my heart. The night comes up the beach, The dark steals over all, Though silence has no speech I hear the sea-dreams call To my heart; - and in reply It answers with a sigh. It was Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats that convinced African-American author, critic and anthologist William Stanley Braithwaite to try his hand at poetry. Educated at home, he was forced to go to work aged 12 when his beloved father died and the family was left destitute. Braithwaite discovered the lyrical work of the Romantics in his job as an apprentice…

While it’s likely we’ll recognise the wooden fitted kitchen or high-back ‘ladder’ chairs as ‘Shaker style’, today we’re perhaps less familiar with the ideas that inspired them. The Shakers were a religious sect, first established near Albany, New York state, in the late 18th century, but which spread across the USA’s Eastern States. Founded by Ann Lee, a working-class woman from Manchester, their ideas were radical for the time - including pacifism, celibacy and equality of women. Their name (though officially United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing) derived from ‘shaking quakers’ - the ecstatic shaking that was part of their worship. And how does that relate to kitchens and chairs? Well, each Shaker community lived, worked and worshiped together. They made and used furniture in a way tied…

Hydrangeas Loved by gardeners for their late summer colours, hydrangeas come in a variety of shades from popping pinks to rusty reds, but if you’re after blue ones you’ll need acidic soil. These hardy plants are also easy to preserve for some colour in the colder months. Allow them to dry on the plant before picking, then strip the leaves and place in a vase with a small amount of water. It evaporates as they dry (you can also add glycerin to make the plant more supple), leaving you with preserved flowers that last at least a year.…

Beautiful & Useful Craft Fair Located north of Brighton, this fair’s stalls are set in Sussex Prairies’ award-winning gardens. Makers will be selling handmade ceramics, textiles, basketry, jewellery and more, and you’ll also be able to buy food and plants while you’re there. Taking place on 17-18 September, tickets cost £10 per person. beautiful-useful.co.uk Nourish Festival Foodies will love this festival in Bovey Tracey in Devon: it brings together food, music and craft for a weekend of events across the town on 10 September. nourishfestival.org Petersham Nurseries One of the fanciest garden centres you’re likely to visit is Petersham Nurseries near Richmond. If you’re looking to broaden your horticultural horizons, it’s running two workshops (starting at £75) on 19 and 27 September respectively Celebration of Dahlias and Autumn Planters. petershamnurseries.com…

“This space makes me very happy. I’m a big believer in joyful aesthetics, and our surroundings have a huge effect on our mood and wellbeing. This Romanian rug is a recent purchase. We’d promised ourselves a new one after our beloved cat, Ron, died (he was 19 years old, so he had a pretty good innings!) - as he had trashed our previous rug. I’ve always been a fan of folk art and this rug brings me that, I love its traditional style, but its slightly heightened colours. When we first laid it, I had neon orange painted toenails and they looked so good with it! I know some people would find our maximalist approach a bit dizzying, but I find it warming. I feel completely enveloped in fond memories.”…

THE FINE PRINT Designed by typography lover Phil Christer, say hi to this stylish print - just 15 available in each size. Various colourway options are likely to make you go “ooo” too. £38 from whatphilsees.co.uk MATCHBOXES PUZZLE Using one circle and one square each time, put the letters together to form seven six-letter words. The letters in each shape are in the right order, and either the square or circle can come first. When you have finished finding the words, there will be one set of letters left over. This will be the mystery keyword. © Lovatts Puzzles (answers on page 124) “Wine is the divine juice of September” Voltaire WHAT TO DO WITH A … PAPERCLIP PRACTICAL: Works in situations where you just need a bit of wire:…

You will need: Collected seeds (smaller seeds, such as poppy or nigella are best) Unwanted paper Large bowl Blender Muslin Fine mesh screen or sieve Cooling rack Waxed paper Biscuit cutters (optional) Food colouring (optional) 1 Tear up the paper as small as you can. Soak it in water for around 20 mins or more. 2 Transfer water and paper to a blender and pulse to a pulp. Pop in a few drops of food colouring, if you want. 3 Squeeze the pulp through the muslin to lose any excess moisture. 4 Carefully combine with your seeds - by hand or with a spoon - you want them to remain intact. 5 Spread a thin layer over your screen (the thinner, the better) and gently press down to get rid…