I have just come in from the garden

[yoyo123]

my grandma used to make marrow rum, I think you put yeast and sugar in a hollowed out marrow and leave it, sounds a bit too potent even for me!!

[laretta]

Hi

As I am Italian I can suggest Marrow and onion pasta, really delicious.
Very thinly slice a large onion and a marrow and gently fry in a generous quater cup of olive oil. Add (dare I say it) salt to taste and gently cook until the marrow has almost melted away and completely soft. Then add to some boiled drained pasta (enough for four) and sprinkle liberally with parmesan to taste.

Same works with broccoli, but with garlic instead of onion - can add a bit of chilli to that one too.

[yoyo123]

Laretta , that sounds wonderful!!

[menagerie]

Yes it sounds gorgeous!

[doodles]

I've made all my extra tomatoes into sauce for the freezer for later in the year - quite like doing this as it means I use the slightly squidgy ones which nobody wants to eat, and the really tiny ones that are impossible to use in any other way.

Can't help you with marrow I'm afraid, can't stand the stuff.

We are completely overwhelmed with Bramley apples. Wish I could sell them at supermarket prices as I would make a fortune! I am freezing them like mad and the family have all received soggy apple cake (recipe from October 2010 Saturday Telegraph). Any other suggestions?

[Sally-Anne]

We had a glut of marrows one year - I think it was somewhere around 20 of them in the end. I read an article in a Sunday newspaper by a chap who had 56 marrows to deal with. He drove around at the dead of night and left his surplus marrows on people's doorsteps! I did consider following his example, but I was able to offload most of them on reluctant victims in the end.

Marrow and apple jam is nice, and it disposes of two problems in one go.

doodles, there is chap round our way who turns surplus apples into juice. He takes a cut of the end result to sell and you get the rest back as bottled apple juice. Even though our apples are also Bramleys it was surprisingly pleasant to drink.

[pheasantchick]

I'll have some Bramleys, please!

[starmum2000]

Yum - Italian marrow pasta sounds yummy, as does marrow & garlic soup.
Marrows are yummy, they should just grow in convenient slices instead of huge whoppers so you don't have to eat it all at once!!!
I recommend chutney for the glut of apples, but do find myself spending a fortune on vinegar & spices etc so as not to waste the fruit!

[XCRGSMUM]

Marrows, cut and left to harden in the sun, store really well and `though they are difficult to peel and cut in a few weeks time the flavour is worth the effort. We will be eating home grown marrow for a very long time this year I think the family will like that marrow pasta recipe. Thank you for that.

My spare tomatoes get turned into chutney or tomato and basil soup - fry mild onions and garlic, when soft add to skinned and peeled tomatoes, bring to simmer, season to taste, add fresh basil leaves and a little milk to get the right consistency, simmer till everything is soft, cool and liquidise. (You can also add in a little marrow if you want to use it up) Add double cream or cream fraiche and a little chopped basil to serve. I always intend to freeze some after liquidising to serve over christmas but everyone likes it so much it all gets eaten

I like to freeze cooked apples to use in crumbles through the winter but pears seem to be nicer bottled in syrup.

I`m currently struggling most with chestnuts, anyone have any easy method of peeling them?