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While along the railway lines there are drifts of the wonderfully-named Rosebay Willowherb - you can see its tall purple spires in the image on the right above.  But seeing the Willowherb always makes me feel just a little sad as for me its appearance this month heralds the beginning of the end of summer.   

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It flowers from the base up to the top of the spire, taking around three weeks for the flowers to travel from the bottom right up to the tip. My mum used to say that when the final flowers at the tip of the Willowherb had bloomed and died, then summer was over.  Though this was in Warwickshire in the 1970's when summers were perhaps cooler and shorter than they are now, and hopefully we will have a few more weeks of warm sunny weather to enjoy. 

All this abundance is all very well, but I think that, in a fit of enthusiasm when every seed germinated, I may have planted far too many courgettes (zucchini).  Luckily the chickens are ready to help out, adoring plunging their beaks into the soft green skins, bringing out mouthfuls of juicy flesh and, as they delve deeper, delicious seeds to enjoy too.  But I don't want to give all my crop to Betty, Primrose and their friends, so I'm always on the lookout for recipe ideas...

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I shared one of my favourite quick and easy recipes (image above) for courgettes in the current (August) edition of the Bustle & Sew Magazine and thought newsletter readers might enjoy it too...

Courgette, Tarragon and Thyme Galette

Ingredients:

● 500g ready-made shortcrust pastry (or make your own of course) 

● 1 tbsp olive oil 

● 4 large red onions, sliced into 2mm thick rounds 

● 1tsp thyme leaves, plus extra for sprinkling 

● 10g tarragon leaves, roughly chopped 

● 3 medium courgettes, trimmed and sliced into 3mm thick rounds 

● 1 egg, beaten

Serves six

Method

To help minimise shrinkage chill the pastry in the fridge for about 30 minutes before using. 

● For the filling, heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat and cook the onions and thyme leaves for 20 minutes until the onions have softened and are translucent but not coloured. Season, remove from the heat and leave to cool. 

● Heat the oven to 200C. Roll the chilled pastry out on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle around 3mm thick. Transfer the pastry rectangle to a large baking tray, spoon the onion filling into the centre and spread it out evenly, leaving a 5cm border around the edges. Sprinkle over the tarragon, then arrange the courgette slices over the onions in overlapping rows. Season the courgettes and sprinkle with some extra thyme. 

● Fold the sides of the pastry over so they’re overlapping the edge of the filling, leaving the middle exposed. Gently press the pastry folds down at the corners to secure them, then brush the pastry with the beaten egg. 

● Bake for 40-50 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and the courgettes are soft and slightly golden. Leave to cool and firm up for a few minutes before serving

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One of my favourite projects from the current Bustle & Sew Magazine is the Pear Pin Cushion (image above) which combines printed fabric (using the freezer paper method) with some simple embroidery.  It bears the text:

"I had a little nut tree

Nothing would it bear,

But a silver nutmeg

And a golden pear"

I was wondering how much interest there might be if I offered this as a kit containing the printed fabric, floss and green linen for the leaf so all you'd need would be some stuffing and a twig to make the stalk.  I've created a little online poll and it would be great if you could let me know if you might (or indeed might not) be interested in this idea. Just CLICK HERE to vote yes or no.  You don't have to leave any details, your vote is completely anonymous.  And thank you in advance for your help.

Until next time, very best wishes from us all here at Bustle & Sew HQ,

Helen x

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The Wheel of the Year panel is in stock on Etsy  There is also a digital option if you're confident with drawing and dividing your own circle and transferring the motifs.the so many birds

Aflowers and other motifs I would have loved to have stitched but simply didn’t have space for!

Anyway, the Wheel of the Year panel is now back in stock on Etsy and delivery times have returned to normal after the Christmas holidays.  There’s also an option for a fully digital pattern if you’re confident drawing your own circles and transferring the motifs.) the edges of each panel as I always think finishing the edges to avoid fraying is one of the less exciting parts of beginning a new project.  The panels are printed on a nice quality pure cotton fabric that is a pleasure to work with.  I loved stitching my own wheel (you can see it in pride of place on my shelf in the first image), and really didn’t want to finish it.  I shall have to think of another project that takes us through the year in the same way – there are so many birds, flowers and other motifs I would have loved to have stitched but simply didn’t have space for!

Anyway, the Wheel of the Year panel is now back in stock on Etsy and delivery times have returned to normal after the Christmas holidays.  There’s also an option for a fully digital pattern if you’re confident drawing your own circles and transferring the motifs.