I still had a bowlful of sloes standing in the kitchen, and since there is only so much sloe gin you can make (or drink), have looked around for another recipe using the hard little fruits.
Pamela Michael's Edible Wild Plants & Herbs, is the ideal book for this sort of thing as it goes into great detail about the many uses of various wild plants.

I've been looking around for inspiration on how to label jars of jam and chutney and came across these lovely old polish jam labels.

Blackberry and apple jam is probably the favorite jam in this household, I'm in trouble if a batch doesn't get made every year. Not that it's a chore, as picking blackberries is a totally pleasurable way to pass the time, and making the glossy deep coloured jam one of the best things to do with the fruit.

The gooseberries in the garden came into season a few weeks ago, so in between showers of rain I dashed out and picked the biggest and best for making jam.

As reported in the Telegraph, and commented on by  Blagger, sales of jam making equipment have increased sharply this year.

Rhubarb was one of the first things we planted in our new vegetable garden when we moved in. I don't think I have ever bought rhubarb in the shops, and had therefore probably not cooked with it since leaving home. Now every year (apart, for some, in the breastfeeding ones) we can get very excited about the first new shoots and then the sudden abundance. It does very well in our clay soil, and the surplus is often given away in an attempt to limit the amount of crumble consumed (for weight reasons, as I can easily eat a bowl cold for breakfast).