Pontiac or Pontack Sauce

We Produce

IMAGENAMEHEREEach year, the Elder trees produce a rich harvest of Elderberries. I think that since we started scattering a handful into our recipe for Blackberry and Apple pie, usually eaten on ‘Nutcrack Night’ at the end of October, more friends seem to visit the HoBB for Hallowe’en.

One recipe, using Elder Berries, eluded me for ages despite setting up alerts, designing the jar label (above) and searching the internet. It was the recipe for ‘Pontiac or Pontack Sauce’. A sauce that improves, so I’ve read, if you mature it for 7 years.

Happily, I received the recipe in an email from Marlys Coffey and here it is. I hope you enjoy waiting the full seven years – I’m going to be tempted to sample it after six (days).

Recipe for Pontack or Pontiac Sauce
with my thanks to Marlys Coffey

(Makes 1 x 350ml bottle)

> 500g elderberries
> 500ml cider vinegar
> 200g shallots, sliced
> 6 cloves
> 4 allspice berries
> 1 blade of mace
> 1 tbsp black peppercorns
> 15g root ginger bruised

Place elderberries in dish with vinegar put in very low oven for 4-6 hrs or overnight. Remove strain through seive, crush berries to obtain max juice.

Put juice in a pan with sliced shallots, spices and ginger. Bring back to boil and cook for 20-25 mins until slightly reduced. Remove from heat and strain.

Return to pan and bring back to boil then boil for 5 mins. Pour into warm sterilised bottles and seal.

Sterilize in hot water bath

Store in a dark cupboard and enjoy.

Waves ~~~~~~~~~ <+))))))))>< ~~~ Grant

Posted by Grant.



(National) Centre for Alternative Technology

Journeys

(National) Centre for Alternative TechnologyWell, when I was digging out their water wheel shaft, days before the arrival of a new water wheel, it was the “National” C.A.T. so I have a ‘node/loop’ in my brain that needs by-passing to fix this CAT title!

I went up to CAT recently to find fibre glass moles and an aire of ‘theme park’ drifting in, but centrally, it is a few miles west of the HoBB and to this day, there’s nowhere like it. We were invited up to the ‘Earth Centre’ to do some ‘WoW Story Telling’ when it opened and whilst the whole place showed vast potential it failed to look attainable in the same CAT ‘backyard’ type of way.

I love CAT because it is so straight forward and touchable. There would have been one other place that I would love to have visited whilst it was still going, and that was the ‘New Alchemy Institute’ ( Look up Nancy Jack Todd; John Todd; Bill McLarney on a search and you will find more info.)

If you have not been to CAT yet, when you are over this way, remember to give yourself an extra day and go there. If you are touring around this area, don’t forget to see the architecture of Portmerion as well which is North West of the HoBB on the coast. Contact us if you want the local accomodation lists.

Also, I’ll post up something on how Portmerion has used perspective and colour. Portmerion is close and also well worth a visit when over in this area.

Alternative and ecologically friendly waves ~~~~~~~~~ <+))))))))>< ~~~ Grant

Posted by Grant.