PIXIE GREEN

In the ‘Fairy Teatime Tales’ stories, a lot of activity takes place at Pixie Green. Monsieur Taupe, a very distinguished mole who arrived from France via my Hollyhocks, was transported there by fairy dust and made it his home. Since then badly behaved spiders have been sent there along with a very bad mannered fairy land cockerel belonging to Fairy Hawthorn. Monsieur Taupe met his bride there and a beautiful Fairy Queen landed in the paddock one silvery pink morning, on the back of a unicorn.

Pixie Green is a real place. My brother and sister-in-law live there along with the hens and a cat named Nelson who helps to keep down the rabbit population. At the moment one of the broody hens is sitting on a clutch of eggs that are expected to hatch in about a week’s time. They are a mixed clutch of eggs, some are French Wheaton Maran and some are Araucana, the Chilean breed that lay lavender blue eggs (Monsieur Taupe’s favourite). Bee orchids grow in the paddock, where the hens run free, along with a selection of apple and pear trees.

My sister-in-law is a chef and my brother enjoys cooking on the barbeque. I am also a cook and we all get together whenever possible with our busy lives, to cook and share ideas about food. At the moment my nephew and his Japanese wife are staying at Pixie Green so we are really enjoying the cooking infusion with a Japanese influence. Black tea for smoking chicken and green tea cake are just a few of the recipes we have been enjoying of late.

One of the things we are lucky to have in abundance is hedgerow fare. We all take part in gathering sloes to make sloe jelly and elderflowers to make champagne and to dry for tisane. Hawthorn and apple jelly is a favourite of mine. Dried hawthorn berries also make a good tisane as do their very young green leaves when they first open.


Blackthorn and hawthorn are said to be fairy trees and must be treated with great respect. I always leave a little something for the fairies, as my grandmother taught me to do. A little grain is always well received, even if the pigeons usually find it first!

My sister-in-law makes cakes that are truly delicious and worth the risk of a few extra inches on the waist line. They are made with Pixie Green eggs and the best organic ingredients. I often ask her to make me something special when I am inviting friends to my Gloriette for tea. No wonder the fairies like to be invited!!

FAIRY TEATIME TALES is published by http://www.bookguild.co.uk/