Don’t forget to check our Events Diary for more information on events in all our villages and surrounding area.

EAGA Gospel Choir at All Saints Church

A big THANK YOU to everyone who came and supported the Gospel Choir night in October.

Such a joyous and uplifting evening of music, dancing and laughter. The Choir treated us to an extraordinary selection of hymns and songs and had the whole church on their feet. Especially after a beautiful collaboration with the talented Carolynne Willey who joined the choir to sing Amazing Grace.

The evening raised just under £400 which will be used towards maintenance costs for the Church and the village hall.

Sloes - A Bumper Crop

This year has been a “mast year” meaning that we’ve had a bumper crop of fruits and nuts. Mast years typically happen every three to five years, the last being in 2020. A mast year typically occurs as a reaction to environmental triggers such as the weather. It means that certain trees overproduce in the hope that there will be an overwhelming number of fruit/nuts, enough to sustain wildlife and to also ensure that enough seeds survive to grow into trees.

Whether it’s meant more crumbles, jams, preserves or a cheeky sloe gin tipple there has been plenty of fruit to be harvested or foraged to make the most of the season’s offerings. Why not try our simple Sloe Gin recipe.

Ingredients:

500g Sloe berries

250g Caster sugar

1 Litre of Gin

Method:

• Wash your berries and check for any bugs
• Split the sloe berry skins, this can be done by pricking with a skewer, soaking in water, or freezing overnight and allowing to defrost
• Combine all of your ingredients together in a 2 litre jar or two smaller ones
• Give everything a good mix up and then shake daily for 7 days and store in a cool dark place for 2-3 months
• Line a sieve with a muslin square and set over a bowl and strain the gin through it
• Decant into clean dry bottles and then seal and label. It can be enjoyed right away but will mature and taste even better the following year

Cottesbrooke Past

& Present!