Tartan and Ivy

Top of my list of things to do today was to make a wreath for the front door. 




I went into the garden first thing this morning and cut long lengths of ivy and lots of Pittosporum.  I left them outside to dry off a bit and for most of the bugs to drop off.

This afternoon I made this:




Sometimes I use a metal frame as my starting point, but this year I wanted something a bit bigger than the frame I already had. 

I wound the ivy in a rough circle and then wove in the little branches of Pittosporum.  My mum gave me the tartan ribbon many years ago and the red star was a little present from my sister, when she popped over to visit a couple of weeks ago.

 Hey presto, one Christmas wreath.
And lots of bugs and leaves on the kitchen table.

Pam

This is one of the last photographs that I have of Pam.  Sadly she died on Sunday 16th September.  She had been very, very poorly and although we tried so hard to save her nothing we did worked.
She spent her last days in our kitchen and knew that I would come down on the Monday morning and that she would be gone.


 

She was such a character: greedy, beautiful, inquisitive and bossy and we miss her very much.

Chicken Paella Thingy

So much for my promise to not leave it too long before posting! 
If I still have any readers left, then thank you for your patience.

To ease me back into blogging here is a quick, simple recipe which uses up left-over chicken and other bits and pieces that you may have lurking in the back of your fridge.

Left-over chicken - I use about 8oz for 4 people
Couple of rashers smoked bacon or handful of lardons
Chopped onion
Any or all of the following: mushrooms, peppers, sweetcorn & peas
Tin chopped tomatoes
Chicken stock
Basmati rice
Smoked paprika
Salt & pepper
Garlic
Dash of soy sauce

 

Start by frying the onion, garlic and bacon. 
Add the tomatoes, paprika (we use loads), soy sauce and seasoning.
Then add the chicken and rice.
Add enough stock to cook the rice - we measure our rice by the mug: two mugs of rice to four mugs of liquid is enough for the four of us.
Add the vegetables - straight away if you like them well cooked or just at the end if you prefer a little more al dente.

In the unlikely event of any being left, I have it cold for lunch the next day.

Delicious

 

AWOL

It's been two whole months since I last posted ..... my excuse is working too much, decorating and a mini-holiday.  All very respectable excuses.

This last term at school has been the busiest I have ever known.  We had a lot of extra things to organise and deal with - a tea party for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, the Olympic Torch Relay visiting our town, an Ofsted inspection, a locality schools Olympic week and all the usual summer term stuff - end of year assessments, reports and any number of other things that I can't remember now - it seems such a long time since we broke up.

I spent the first few days of the holidays decorating.  I peeled off a big piece of wallpaper as I knew then it would spur me on to finish.  And then off to Cornwall for a couple of days in the rain!

Lots of pictures and stories to tell, and I won't leave it too long before I post again!

Fruit Corner

So far this year, I have spent NO time at all on the little allotment I have in my mother's garden.  So during the one and only weekend in May that it wasn't raining, I popped over to visit my lovely mum.  The sun shone and we grabbed the opportunity to do a little gardening. 

We have decided to not bother with vegetables quite so much this year - we have never had any success with carrots, and although you can't go wrong with potatoes, they do take up an awful lot of room.  This year we will be growing courgettes, tomatoes and onions, with perhaps a few leeks thrown in.  And of course, beans. 

So this means we have a little spare space to devote to soft fruit. I had a Blueberry and a Blackcurrant bush languishing in pots in my garden.  Due to the chicken-vandals, there was no chance of them ever going into the flower bed - they would be stripped bare in no time.  They are now growing happily next to a couple of raspberry canes donated by a gardening friend.

Blackcurrant above and Blueberry below

 

Since I took this photo, the flowers have all turned into little blueberries, waiting for a bit of sun.  I'm very much looking forwards to eating them for breakfast, as long a s the birds don't get them first ....

Not Quite Dauphinoise Potatoes

Our family is split into two camps.  The potato lovers and the potato loathers. 

My husband and younger daughter LOVE them in all forms.  My older daughter falls in to the later category.  She really doesn't like them and won't eat them at all, except occasionally in crisp or chip form, or if she is at someone else's house and it would be too rude to leave them!  I sit somewhere between the two.

I can recommend this though.

Start by frying sliced onions with a teaspoon of sugar for about 15 - 20 minutes.

Whilst they are cooking, thinly slice potatoes (not new ones).  If you use a food processor and get them nice and thin there is no need to par-boil.  If not, par-boil for about 10 minutes and drain.

Mix the potatoes in creme fraiche.  I used half tub of sour cream and chive dip - worked a treat. 



Layer a third of the potatoes in an oven-proof dish, spread over half the onions, repeat with another layer of potatoes, the rest of the onions and then finally the remainder of the potatoes.

 

Carefully pour in half a pint of light stock and sprinkle cheese on the top.

 

Bake for about an hour and quarter, or until the potatoes are cooked through.  Let it cool for a bit before serving.

A lot less fattening than dauphinoise.

West Dean: part III

The greenhouses at West Dean are splendid. 

 Just look at this latch - it's a little piece of art in it's own right. 

Every detail is delightful:

 

from the roof

 

to the floor. 

I think there were about ten greenhouses - most of which had already been fully restored and several of them planted with well established fruit trees.

Each had it's own little name tag on display.

There were rows and rows of strawberry plants

You could imagine the greenhouses running at full production, keeping the big house well supplied with delicious fresh fruit and vegetables.

 

Look - a perfect lettuce!

One of many.

It makes me smile to think of years of footsteps wearing down this step as industrious gardeners go about their business,

 

while a sneaky visitor laps up the sun. 

Fed Up x 2

1.  Why is it raining again?

2. Have you ever got home on a Sunday afternoon, looking forward to a nice roast chicken dinner, only to discover when you unwrap the bloody thing, that it has gone off? This is despite it being frozen 'on day of purchase' and still within date. A conversation with Sainsburys is next on my list.

Rhubarb Heaven

As it is rhubarb season, I need to think of some more ways to keep up with my bountiful rhubarb plant.  Sadly, we don't yet have long, barmy evenings in which to drink rhubarb cordial.  If I make a rhubarb cake, I will eat it ALL and this is not a good idea, as the recipe I have says its makes 18 portions .... 

My flavour of the moment is preserved ginger and what goes better with rhubarb?!

10 oz chopped rhubarb

2 oz sugar

splash orange juice

2 pieces of preserved ginger (blitzed)

Stew until the rhubarb is pulpy and cooked through.

When cool, serve with homemade natural yoghurt.

Blue

It has stopped raining.  My life!  Was I sick of the rain.  As a keen gardener, I kept telling myself that it was 'good for the garden' and that 'we really need it to rain' but actually all those grey skies were making me sad.  :(

At last the rain clouds have disappeared and to prove it, here is a blue sky.  The sort of sky one would expect to see in May.

 

The garden is in a sorry state.  The pots are drowned and the grass is water logged.

There is good news though.  I am fond of Periwinkles but with the chicken-vandals, I have not had any success.  But look what I found:

And this little native viola has self-seeded too. 

The grapevine has sprung into life.

 

 Grape recipes gratefully received.
I do hope it stays dry for a while.

Teriyaki Salmon

If I had my way, fish would appear on the weekly menu a lot more.  But (why is there is always a but?) my lot don't like fish.  I'm trying aversion therapy - by sneaking in the odd fish-based meal now and again.

Here is my version of Teriyaki Salmon:




Make a marinade using about 4 tablespoons of soy sauce, the rind and juice of a lime, as much garlic as you like, as much ginger as you like and a good dollop of Chilli Relish or honey.

 

Pop the salmon fillets into the marinade and leave for at least half an hour, but longer if you have the time.

It is so easy to over cook salmon, so I err on the side of caution and only fry the salmon steaks for a few minutes on either side. 



 I served the salmon with noodles and cucumber.  The left over marinade was warmed through for those who wanted to pour it over their noodles.

Overall, the reaction was good.

I think the marinade would be equally good for chicken or pork too.


NB - you will note the garlic puree - I am a lazy/busy person, so this is perfect for me. 

Anniversaries

Today, eleven years ago, we got married.   It was a quiet wedding, with just our immediate family and our two closest friends were our witnesses.  Our elder daughter was three and our younger daughter was just six months old. 

We got married on our 10 year anniversary of being together. 

 

So really we are celebrating 21 years of coupledom.

 

My lovely husband gave me these.

I have also realised that my blog has recently reached it's first anniversary.  One whole year of blogging on the 2nd May.

x Happy Anniversary x

Ouch!

Brace yourselves:

 

Vital statistics: length 9 cm

weight 6 oz.

 

Yes - it was a double-yolker!

Pam has made a full recovery, although it did take a few days for her to get over the traumatic experience.  A round of applause for Pam please.