Saturday

Yesterday we made fruit salad.

Well, I say 'we' but actually I had very little to do with it as it was SEN day - apart from planning it all and getting all the resources together, making the worksheets, etc.  Minor details!

The children had a wonderful time (many thanks to all the helpers) and at the end there were six containers with remains of each fruit.  We couldn't let the children have loads because tasting was in the  hour before lunch.  It was my fault that so much was prepared.  I'd bought (or otherwise acquired) the fruit but forgot to let C know how many portions of each were needed: the children had done a choosing page the day before and I had tallied the results so I did know.  They couldn't ask me because I was in a meeting, so they prepared all that I had provided.  Fair enough.

Well, I wasn't going to waste that, no way, so last night I piled it all into the maslin pan apart from the grapes - I ate those! - and simmered it away until it was soft, then pushed it through the mouli and added the sugar (about 70% of the weight of the fruit). .  I didn't know about pectin but I checked with my trusty 'Let's Preserve It' book and decided it would probably be OK but I had lemon juice just in case..

After dreaming about it all night (not terribly restful) I got up this morning and made the jam.  I did wonder at one point if I needed to add some lemon juice but the third testing showed it had reached setting point and now I have nine - yes, nine - pots of scrumptious and original jam to enjoy and share around!   A very frugal way to use up fruit that might otherwise have gone to waste.  I could have made smoothies but there's a limit to how many smoothies I could consume in one evening, I could have stewed it and frozen it, but I decided preserving it was the way to go.  It's well delicious so I will write up the recipe in Teacher's Recipes.  Do pop over there if you're interested!  I'm calling it fruit salad jam

Apart from that, I got loads and loads done yesterday.  All the paperwork for the two important meetings next Wednesday is done and dusted, individual and whole class planning is sorted so I can have a nice easy weekend with just resources to make which is a lot more fun.  The one meeting I did have was very helpful.  And after school I set to and put up three displays of work that has been hanging around for ages, just waiting for me to have the time.

Oh, and I ought to reassure my readers.  I didn't put the receipt for the fruit into the school office so it's all legitimate, above board and totally honest.  :-)