// It looks like a Strawberry but tastes like a Raspberry - the Framberry//

I read about this one on the train today. They say it looks like a strawberry but it tastes like a raspberry. It’s called a framberry and it’s new on the catwalk. 

Leading plant retailer Crocus describes the framberry as a fast growing, hardy fruit that your taste buds ‘won’t believe’. 

But it turns out this hybrid strawb/raspberry combo already exists - in straspberries. Apparently straspberries have a longer history. The British Daily Mail (not my favorite source) claims the fruit  ”was “born” in South America in the 1900s but virtually disappeared for the last half century until some Dutch growers rediscovered it.” …

^ Straspberries look the same. 

Personally I think they both look delicious. The strasberry and framberry promise good things. 

You can grow berries yourself.  They are often among the easiest fruit for amateur gardeners.  Grab a packet of seeds online or at your local store and get growing!

// UNO cookbook - Vegan and Italian//

The UNO cookbook is elegant and sophisticated. It is art and chemistry. 

It may not surprise you to hear its writers are from Milan. It probably will surprise you to hear the recipes are vegan. 

The ingredients are simple, but the food is beautifully prepared, cooked and arranged on the plate. It’s about appreciating every bite, not mindless consumption. 

FIND THEIR RECIPES ON THEIR TUMBLR BLOG

Like Uno cookbook on facebook.

Other Vegan posts:

A Vegan’s Point of view

Vegan Cake channel on Youtube

Contact me at jessica@nektarinanonprofit.com

// DIY Christmas Decorations: Proof//

clearly spurred on by yesterday’s fruit post, I made a lot of DIY christmas deco today. Apparently dried limes are also excellent for hanging around your house. Who knew. 

Other Bits & Pieces:

Pinecones

Fabric Scraps

Clothes Pegs

Bamboo Cane

Holly Leaves

Bendy Metal Wire

Glitter & Glue

These decorations were shared with me by kind souls in Suffolk, UK who work for Kentwell Hall.

ONE: Orange and Lime Pinecones

A) Dry out your citrus fruit slices (see how here)

B) Superglue some bendy wire to the top of your pinecone

C) Pierce fruits through the wire

D) Bend wire to form a hook and secure contents with ribbon at the top

TWO: Clothes Peg Angel

A) Draw a face on the top of your peg with black pen

B) Single stitch some thread down the length of a piece of fabric to make a drawstring

C) Pull around the fabric around the neck of your peg like a cloak. Stitch together

D) Add a ribbon bow for wings

THREE: Mini Wreath

A) Weave some twigs / bamboo cane / wicker basket threads or whatever you can find to form a small wreath

B) Gold spray or glitter a baby pinecone. Superglue some metal wire on top and curl around your wreath to secure

C) Tie a piece of ribbon to hang

Contact me on jessica@nektarinanonprofit.com

// Fruit Christmas Decorations//

I tried to resist writing this post but it’s too ludicrously appealing. 

Dried fruits can be decorative. Maybe not Prunes. Orange slices on satin ribbon for sure. In comparison to plastic and glass, over produced and unfairly traded decorations, these are pretty earth friendly to make. Here’s how:

1) Buy some large oranges. Eat only locally grown produce for the rest of the day to compensate for guilty carbon emissions. Unless you live in a country capable of growing oranges this time of year… reflect on how unusual this is.

2) Slice your oranges into rounds with a sharp knife. 

3) Dry them out thoroughly. If you have time, hide them in a warm airing cupboard. If not, put them on a low heat in the oven for a few hours. Be careful not to burn them.

4) Sprinkling your orange slices with cinnamon before drying will scent them. However do not liberally coat your oranges or the spice will cook into the orange flesh and turn the whole thing brown (speaking from experience.) Hint: Ground cinnamon will fall right through an average sieve. Do not use this as a distributing instrument.

5) If you’re the type, cover them in a dab of glue and gold glitter for sparkle.

6) Carefully pierce each dried out slice and thread through some ribbon or string. You can attach them together with holly leaves and flower petals to make bunting. Or you can keep them as individual Christmas decorations for your tree. 

Warning: If using the oven, your house will be completely overwhelmed with the smell of baked oranges for several days.* This can be a bit much but then again, worse things have happened at sea. 

*possible exaggeration. 

Photo Source: DIY life

This method can also be applied to apple slices and presumably other fruits although I’m not exactly sure which. Experiment!

Contact me on jessica@nektarinanonprofit.com

// Fruit & Veg Art//

Just a bit of fruit & veg art for your Tuesday evening. 

Nothing serious, just some inspiration for the good stuff.

(Source: Peta)

(Source: Hunger Pains)

..

Somehow I ended up watching this at a friends house one teenage night years ago. I didn’t understand what was happening then and I certainly don’t understand now. But it exists.

contact me on jessica@nektarinanonprofit.com