Sure enough Helen rang. She was under several inches of snow. There was no way she could get the car up onto the lane, but the rest of us met up at the restaurant at 6ish.
It's the first time the Fox & I have been to the Honey Tree. It turned out very pleasant indeed. The food was different, even if the meal names were sometimes the same as at Ricky's. Here the style of cooking is that of Hong Kong rather than Canton. So the shredded fillet beef Fran had was soft & tender in a sauce, rather than crispy as you would get at Ricky's. On the whole I think I still prefer Ricky's but it did make a very pleasant alternative.
Conversation inevitably turned to the weather. The snows of 1947 were remembered. I gather then, in Morecambe, the snow was up to the garage roof according to Fran. I remembered my mother saying that she was in Wales then & the snow was up to the first floor windows. Clearly a bad year & before both of our time.
As usual there was much badinage & laughter, but I think we were all relieved to be finished at a fairly early hour. We left about 8ish. It's just as well. By 9pm huge flakes of snow were descending. Our road had remained white all day without this extra layer so we were glad to be safely tucked up inside in the warmth by then.
It seems to have been a milder night than of late with the result that some of the snow seems to have melted. It's certainly no worse than yesterday despite the night-time fall.
We were bemused yesterday to get a call from PD. He knew we weren't going to the Pub yesterday as we were going out for a meal in the evening. He just thought, with all the snow, the meal might have been cancelled & therefore we could take him to the Pub instead. It didn't seem to occur to him that Ricky's, where he thought we were going, was just a few minutes away from the Pub, accessible by busy main roads all the way, unlike the Pub which is up a steep hill on a minor road which is never cleared. If we couldn't get to the one we were hardly likely to get to the other. That's PD for you! We assured him we would try to get to him today, weather permitting.
Tuesday 30 November 2010
Monday 29 November 2010
A winter wonderworld
It's a winter wonderworld outside. It's rather like one of those glittery Christmas winter scenes on cards. The sun just causing the snow crystals to sparkle.
It began Friday night. Nothing much. Just enough to give a frozen white glaze on everything. In the cold sunshine it started to melt.
Saturday night brought more snow. Once more everything was covered with white. Still it remained just a thin veneer.
Last night was heavier. Even so I doubt there's even as much as an inch.
We've been lucky so far.
This morning has been grey skies, followed by a flurry of large snowflakes, followed by a spell of bright blue skies & sunshine. Even now we seem to be returning under a heavy grey cloud cover. I suspect more snow is on its way.
Today is our last-Monday-of-the-month meal. I'm half-expecting the phone to ring as people cry off. In particular I expect Helen, who lives in a rural area & has a steep drive to negotiate before she even gets onto the country lane, to call. It's not worth having an accident for the sake of a night out. We can meet up again some other time. We should be meeting up for our Christmas meal at the Pub before so long anyhow.
We've had to have a change of venue for today's meal. We had planned to go to Ricky's, the excellent Cantonese restaurant which is always a favourite amongst us. Unfortunately he's decided to close this Monday, so we're trying another Chinese restaurant. We're told it's very good though different in cooking style. Fortunately it is on the promenade in Morecambe & that's one road that gets high priority for snow clearance. Hopefully that means we will still manage to get there. If not, it will be something quick out of the freezer. We're still hoping though.
I'm also feeling a little anxious about family & friends. As you know, we have some friends on the other side of the Pennines & that area seems to have been hit harder than this. Having spoken recently to friends in Arnside I'm also reminded how very little snow seems to cause Arnside, accessed only by minor B-roads, to be cut off from civilization. Many a winter we ended up shopping for elderly neighbours who daredn't go out, to find shops low on supplies as food delivery vans had been unable to get through. The pub always became the central point of refuge at such times. Much of the family lives in & around Stoke, another spot that always seems to get more snow than here. Hope all is well with them all.
It began Friday night. Nothing much. Just enough to give a frozen white glaze on everything. In the cold sunshine it started to melt.
Saturday night brought more snow. Once more everything was covered with white. Still it remained just a thin veneer.
Last night was heavier. Even so I doubt there's even as much as an inch.
We've been lucky so far.
This morning has been grey skies, followed by a flurry of large snowflakes, followed by a spell of bright blue skies & sunshine. Even now we seem to be returning under a heavy grey cloud cover. I suspect more snow is on its way.
Today is our last-Monday-of-the-month meal. I'm half-expecting the phone to ring as people cry off. In particular I expect Helen, who lives in a rural area & has a steep drive to negotiate before she even gets onto the country lane, to call. It's not worth having an accident for the sake of a night out. We can meet up again some other time. We should be meeting up for our Christmas meal at the Pub before so long anyhow.
We've had to have a change of venue for today's meal. We had planned to go to Ricky's, the excellent Cantonese restaurant which is always a favourite amongst us. Unfortunately he's decided to close this Monday, so we're trying another Chinese restaurant. We're told it's very good though different in cooking style. Fortunately it is on the promenade in Morecambe & that's one road that gets high priority for snow clearance. Hopefully that means we will still manage to get there. If not, it will be something quick out of the freezer. We're still hoping though.
I'm also feeling a little anxious about family & friends. As you know, we have some friends on the other side of the Pennines & that area seems to have been hit harder than this. Having spoken recently to friends in Arnside I'm also reminded how very little snow seems to cause Arnside, accessed only by minor B-roads, to be cut off from civilization. Many a winter we ended up shopping for elderly neighbours who daredn't go out, to find shops low on supplies as food delivery vans had been unable to get through. The pub always became the central point of refuge at such times. Much of the family lives in & around Stoke, another spot that always seems to get more snow than here. Hope all is well with them all.
Friday 26 November 2010
A bit of integrity
The surveyor has just been from the bathroom specialists. I suddenly feel so much more knowledgeable about what I'm looking for & what to avoid. That's not to say we will necessarily go with this company. I am keen to see the designs he's drawing up. I remain absolutely convinced of the need for a wet room floor rather than a shower tray. After that there's a lot to discuss with the Fox.
Yesterday we got down to the Farmer's market. We asked whether the usual stall we get our meat from did poultry for Christmas. We were thinking of maybe trying a fresh goose. We're nearly out of goose fat for the roast potatoes. Admittedly we could just buy a jar of fat, but, as it's that time of year, we thought we might treat ourselves for once with an actual bird.
Unfortunately he didn't. Turkeys & chickens, yes. In previous years he has done geese but not this year. His usual supplier has ceased doing them himself. This supplier could get some for Mr Lamb, our man, but then there would be double the mark up on them which Mr Lamb feels is ridiculous, too much to charge his customers. On top of that he likes to pick the live birds he wants, so he can be confident of their quality. He couldn't do that if his source is getting them dead from another party. He was most apologetic. We assured him that we appreciated him for his integrity. We're now wondering whether we should try a fresh turkey instead. We've certainly ordered some belly pork for the December market.
Mentioning geese, I've just been round to the compost heap with my potato peelings. I suddenly heard a lot of honking. My eyes scanned the sky. Nothing, except dense cloud. I moved around so the sky was no longer so obscured by the trees. Sure enough, there were the Vs of geese. For once they were flying south, rather than the usual northwards they seem to go at this time of year. I wonder what that presages. Bad weather? Snow certainly seems to have hit much of this country, even though we've so far escaped it. We've just been freezing with temperatures of around -10C instead.
Yesterday we got down to the Farmer's market. We asked whether the usual stall we get our meat from did poultry for Christmas. We were thinking of maybe trying a fresh goose. We're nearly out of goose fat for the roast potatoes. Admittedly we could just buy a jar of fat, but, as it's that time of year, we thought we might treat ourselves for once with an actual bird.
Unfortunately he didn't. Turkeys & chickens, yes. In previous years he has done geese but not this year. His usual supplier has ceased doing them himself. This supplier could get some for Mr Lamb, our man, but then there would be double the mark up on them which Mr Lamb feels is ridiculous, too much to charge his customers. On top of that he likes to pick the live birds he wants, so he can be confident of their quality. He couldn't do that if his source is getting them dead from another party. He was most apologetic. We assured him that we appreciated him for his integrity. We're now wondering whether we should try a fresh turkey instead. We've certainly ordered some belly pork for the December market.
Mentioning geese, I've just been round to the compost heap with my potato peelings. I suddenly heard a lot of honking. My eyes scanned the sky. Nothing, except dense cloud. I moved around so the sky was no longer so obscured by the trees. Sure enough, there were the Vs of geese. For once they were flying south, rather than the usual northwards they seem to go at this time of year. I wonder what that presages. Bad weather? Snow certainly seems to have hit much of this country, even though we've so far escaped it. We've just been freezing with temperatures of around -10C instead.
Thursday 25 November 2010
Wrong preconception
We actually got there! I'm not entirely sure how useful it was looking at the various shower units for disabled people, but at least it did clarify some ideas. We now know we definitely want a flat entrance into the shower. Even a small step, which may be negotiable now, is likely to cease to be so before long.
The one thing that really got to us was that the demonstrator was determined that we needed a shower with glass waist down, shower curtain above. This is in order to make it easier for someone else to be on the dry side of the glass to wash the person in the shower. Clearly, to her mind, anyone in a wheelchair needs such a person.
I cannot see any reason why my disability should necessitate such a person. I may increasingly need help to get in & out of the shower. But my disability only affects my knees. It's unlikely to spread to the rest of my body, so there is no reason why I shouldn't be able to reach around to wash myself. Therefore I do not see why we need these rather ugly, hospitally styled, shower doors. We would much prefer a normal shower unit, preferably glassed up to the ceiling, something elegant, stylish & modern that has a seat & grab rails in it. In other words something that is an asset to our property, a pleasure to use, & not a deterrent for future purchasers if we should ever want to sell up.
No decisions have been made. A rep is due to ring this morning to arrange a day to come to measure up & draw up a design to fit our room. We'll see what he comes up with.
Meanwhile I think I will contact the other two companies the Occupational Therapist recommended to see if they would come & draw up some designs so we have something to compare with, both from the point of view of design & price. I even noticed in the local free magazine that came yesterday a local firm advertising which specialises in bathrooms for disabled people so we may even visit them & their showroom.
The one thing that really got to us was that the demonstrator was determined that we needed a shower with glass waist down, shower curtain above. This is in order to make it easier for someone else to be on the dry side of the glass to wash the person in the shower. Clearly, to her mind, anyone in a wheelchair needs such a person.
I cannot see any reason why my disability should necessitate such a person. I may increasingly need help to get in & out of the shower. But my disability only affects my knees. It's unlikely to spread to the rest of my body, so there is no reason why I shouldn't be able to reach around to wash myself. Therefore I do not see why we need these rather ugly, hospitally styled, shower doors. We would much prefer a normal shower unit, preferably glassed up to the ceiling, something elegant, stylish & modern that has a seat & grab rails in it. In other words something that is an asset to our property, a pleasure to use, & not a deterrent for future purchasers if we should ever want to sell up.
No decisions have been made. A rep is due to ring this morning to arrange a day to come to measure up & draw up a design to fit our room. We'll see what he comes up with.
Meanwhile I think I will contact the other two companies the Occupational Therapist recommended to see if they would come & draw up some designs so we have something to compare with, both from the point of view of design & price. I even noticed in the local free magazine that came yesterday a local firm advertising which specialises in bathrooms for disabled people so we may even visit them & their showroom.
Wednesday 24 November 2010
Wigan, hopefully
It's another one of those beautiful mornings. The sky is bright blue, full of light, positively glowing with it. Everything around has a white haze over it. So it is that, as I look out at the front garden, I see the purple sage is almost the same colour as the silvery grey colour of the curry plant in front of it. The temperature, when I ventured out just after 8am, was -10C, definitely cold. As I made the tea for breakfast, I looked out of the kitchen window to be wowed by the sight of a couple of Vs of 50-100 geese. A definitely wintry morning.
It's a quiet morning too. If it stays dry, we're hoping to get off to Wigan this afternoon. Either way dinner is a quick stir fry, Thai green chicken curry, which the Fox will be making so there's nothing for me to prepare. If we do get off to look at bathrooms we'll probably eat out so the curry will be made tomorrow instead.
So I'm sitting here, trying to take it easy so I'll have the energy to cope with a day out. I will be glad to have a clearer idea of what we want & how much it will cost. There obviously will be loads of decisions to be made. When we went to the local showroom on Monday, we picked up a catalogue. There seems to be hundreds of choices from sinks, loos, taps, plug hole shapes, buttons or handles for flushing loos, shower head shapes, shower cubicle shapes...... Endless choices. And all to be made.
It's a quiet morning too. If it stays dry, we're hoping to get off to Wigan this afternoon. Either way dinner is a quick stir fry, Thai green chicken curry, which the Fox will be making so there's nothing for me to prepare. If we do get off to look at bathrooms we'll probably eat out so the curry will be made tomorrow instead.
So I'm sitting here, trying to take it easy so I'll have the energy to cope with a day out. I will be glad to have a clearer idea of what we want & how much it will cost. There obviously will be loads of decisions to be made. When we went to the local showroom on Monday, we picked up a catalogue. There seems to be hundreds of choices from sinks, loos, taps, plug hole shapes, buttons or handles for flushing loos, shower head shapes, shower cubicle shapes...... Endless choices. And all to be made.
Tuesday 23 November 2010
To Wigan?
Yesterday we decided to try going along to a local bathroom showroom. It was better than anywhere else we've looked, but, above all, it proved the need to go down to Wigan & the specialist disabled bathroom showroom. It's all very well looking at shower cubicles & trays but it's difficult to imagine how much space is needed for a seat for me to sit on, & grab rails so I can get back up again. So Wigan it is.
The Fox has still not got back to normal sleep pattern which is having a disruptive effect on our lives. It's difficult planning anything in such circumstances, let alone a trip down to Wigan. I'm beginning to think we should just book some accommodation there. Maybe a change of scenery would kill two things with one stone, help clarify our ideas for the new bathroom as well as get the Fox back to normal sleeping by having a couple of nights away from the usual stresses of home life.
Nothing's decided yet. I have to confess Wigan isn't my first choice of holiday destination & it is only an hour or so's drive from here. It should be easy enough to do it, there & back, in a day.
If I was seriously tempted by the idea of a few days away, the idea of a train trip to Edinburgh has more appeal. It's ages since we last went there. Long before the great fire that burnt down so much of the old central part of town, & before the building of the Scottish parliament building.
The Fox has still not got back to normal sleep pattern which is having a disruptive effect on our lives. It's difficult planning anything in such circumstances, let alone a trip down to Wigan. I'm beginning to think we should just book some accommodation there. Maybe a change of scenery would kill two things with one stone, help clarify our ideas for the new bathroom as well as get the Fox back to normal sleeping by having a couple of nights away from the usual stresses of home life.
Nothing's decided yet. I have to confess Wigan isn't my first choice of holiday destination & it is only an hour or so's drive from here. It should be easy enough to do it, there & back, in a day.
If I was seriously tempted by the idea of a few days away, the idea of a train trip to Edinburgh has more appeal. It's ages since we last went there. Long before the great fire that burnt down so much of the old central part of town, & before the building of the Scottish parliament building.
Monday 22 November 2010
A good morning
It's been a good morning so far today. Maybe it's partially just because I managed a good night's sleep last night & so feel up to appreciating the day. The relief of no stomach or toe cramps is immense.
I was up before 8am. What a morning! The sky was a brilliant, luminous blue with hints of underlying yellows & pinks. This is what a winter's morning should be like, not the grey wet ones we've had so many of lately.
After my wash & scrub up, followed by my breakfast pile of pills washed down with a mug of tea, I set off on my main task of the day - preparing dinner. Today we're having homemade meatballs in goulash sauce with homemade fresh pasta.
I've not made fresh pasta for ages. It's just been impossible to buy the right grade of flour locally. But last week, we found Morrison's has started to stock it. We grabbed a bag & hastily replaced the packet of mass produced dried fettuccine on the shelf.
I love making my own pasta. I find the kneading relaxing, quite therapeutic. There's even a chance for a bit of a rest before moving on to the job of rolling & cutting the pasta into shape.I've no broom handles to hang the moist pasta on to dry so I use the towel rail in the bathroom. It quickly dries there when the heating is on, as it was earlier on this morning.
While it dried I got on with the meatballs. They are now sitting in a paprika-spiced tomato sauce ready for the oven to automatically go on this evening. It should be good.
I've even remembered to get some cheese out of the freezer to have afterwards. It should have plenty of time to thaw out & get to room temperature.
All that remains is to find a good bottle of red wine to wash it all down with.
I'm pleased by the way it has all gone. I feel I've achieved something & enjoyed myself in the process.
I was up before 8am. What a morning! The sky was a brilliant, luminous blue with hints of underlying yellows & pinks. This is what a winter's morning should be like, not the grey wet ones we've had so many of lately.
After my wash & scrub up, followed by my breakfast pile of pills washed down with a mug of tea, I set off on my main task of the day - preparing dinner. Today we're having homemade meatballs in goulash sauce with homemade fresh pasta.
I've not made fresh pasta for ages. It's just been impossible to buy the right grade of flour locally. But last week, we found Morrison's has started to stock it. We grabbed a bag & hastily replaced the packet of mass produced dried fettuccine on the shelf.
I love making my own pasta. I find the kneading relaxing, quite therapeutic. There's even a chance for a bit of a rest before moving on to the job of rolling & cutting the pasta into shape.I've no broom handles to hang the moist pasta on to dry so I use the towel rail in the bathroom. It quickly dries there when the heating is on, as it was earlier on this morning.
While it dried I got on with the meatballs. They are now sitting in a paprika-spiced tomato sauce ready for the oven to automatically go on this evening. It should be good.
I've even remembered to get some cheese out of the freezer to have afterwards. It should have plenty of time to thaw out & get to room temperature.
All that remains is to find a good bottle of red wine to wash it all down with.
I'm pleased by the way it has all gone. I feel I've achieved something & enjoyed myself in the process.
Sunday 21 November 2010
Explanations & dreams
Readers of the Fox's blog will already know we've been having a very tiring & disruptive time of late. My problems have not been helped by lack of sleep. I've been going through a patch of stomach pains and/or toe cramp that lasts from about 1-6am every night, not conducive to sleep at all. The doctor has finally agreed with me that it is probably a reaction to my medication & I'm now trying something different. Hopefully it will suit better. I have since managed one good night's sleep at least, though last night was once more a problem. He did give me some muscle relaxants to ease the problem if it should begin, which I tried last night. At least the pain only lasted an hour or so instead of the majority of the night. He reckons things should settle down with time & the change in medication. Either way I'm to go back in the New Year for a check-up.
Meanwhile we've had yet more bad news. A friend from the days we lived in Arnside (we moved here in 2000) we discovered is also suffering with cancer. Her outlook is more optimistic. It's been discovered in its early stages. She's currently getting chemotherapy. Unlike Jean, Ellie is reacting badly to the chemo, suffering a lot of nausea. They're starting a new treatment soon. She'll also be having radiotherapy as well as chemo. I do hope all goes well for her. She certainly sounds in good spirits & getting a lot of family support.
Apart from that we've been trying to sort out holidays. I'd really like to visit Brunei, land of my birth, but trying to find a operator to take us seems nigh impossible. We have found a cruise that stops there. It sounds a fascinating trip, starting at Hong Kong, visiting Japan, China, the Philippines, Borneo, Bali, Indonesia, before ending at Singapore. The only problem is that it is at the beginning of Feb 2011 & there's not really the time to organise jabs etc. We'd also like to know the results of the Fox's hospital trip about his continuing & worsening tinnitus, & to get my medication once more on n even keel. February is just too soon.
The company does another cruise in Feb 2012, the only problem with that one is that the itinerary doesn't appeal so much to us. It will be from Singapore to Brisbane. We don't particularly want to go to Australia again at the moment. If we were going to do that we would prefer to just go to Australia, see the Great Barrier reef perhaps. And this cruise means a lot of days just at sea, which we suspect we will find rather tedious.
So we're still no more decided on the holiday score. We'd certainly like to see the price for the new bathroom we're hoping to install next year, & see how all the government cuts are going to affect us, before we commit to such an expensive holiday. If benefits are hit badly we will not be going.
I hoping this coming week is going to be more settled. I could do with a quiet week. The only consolation is the return in working order of our radio. Doing without that, for me, has been harder than doing without a TV! A month is too long.
Meanwhile we've had yet more bad news. A friend from the days we lived in Arnside (we moved here in 2000) we discovered is also suffering with cancer. Her outlook is more optimistic. It's been discovered in its early stages. She's currently getting chemotherapy. Unlike Jean, Ellie is reacting badly to the chemo, suffering a lot of nausea. They're starting a new treatment soon. She'll also be having radiotherapy as well as chemo. I do hope all goes well for her. She certainly sounds in good spirits & getting a lot of family support.
Apart from that we've been trying to sort out holidays. I'd really like to visit Brunei, land of my birth, but trying to find a operator to take us seems nigh impossible. We have found a cruise that stops there. It sounds a fascinating trip, starting at Hong Kong, visiting Japan, China, the Philippines, Borneo, Bali, Indonesia, before ending at Singapore. The only problem is that it is at the beginning of Feb 2011 & there's not really the time to organise jabs etc. We'd also like to know the results of the Fox's hospital trip about his continuing & worsening tinnitus, & to get my medication once more on n even keel. February is just too soon.
The company does another cruise in Feb 2012, the only problem with that one is that the itinerary doesn't appeal so much to us. It will be from Singapore to Brisbane. We don't particularly want to go to Australia again at the moment. If we were going to do that we would prefer to just go to Australia, see the Great Barrier reef perhaps. And this cruise means a lot of days just at sea, which we suspect we will find rather tedious.
So we're still no more decided on the holiday score. We'd certainly like to see the price for the new bathroom we're hoping to install next year, & see how all the government cuts are going to affect us, before we commit to such an expensive holiday. If benefits are hit badly we will not be going.
I hoping this coming week is going to be more settled. I could do with a quiet week. The only consolation is the return in working order of our radio. Doing without that, for me, has been harder than doing without a TV! A month is too long.
Wednesday 17 November 2010
News
I found myself feeling rather put out listening to the radio news this morning as I tried to persuade myself to get up. Why you ask. The main item continued to be about the royal engagement. Now don't get me wrong, I am happy for the couple. Everybody deserves the happiness & support of a loving relationship. But that was yesterday's news. There was nothing new, no date fixed, no venue, nothing new. I was rather more concerned to hear more detail of the flooding in Cornwall which was mentioned in a small aside beforehand. This was news, something that had happened in between my going to bed & waking in the morning. Surely it should be in the nature of news that there should be something new to report.
Tuesday 16 November 2010
Oddities
There are times when I feel I'm getting food obsessed. I suppose it's partially because it is one of the few practical things I still achieve most days. Work, other household chores apart from the washing & ironing, have all been abandoned as too much these days. But food.... I continue with that, I suppose, because I enjoy it so much. It gives me so much satisfaction to put an interesting & exciting meal on the table, to be able to sit down & eat it with the Fox & friends, accompanied by a bottle of wine & good conversation.
So it is today I've just spent the morning preparing a square parcel of puff pastry - the last of this batch in the freezer - & filled it with a turkey curry mixture. It is all ready to be egg-washed & baked in the oven this evening. It's a recipe I'd forgotten I even had, it's so long ago since we last made it. It should be something different. We're having it with peas & saute potatoes.
Yesterday, while I sat waiting in the car as the Fox popped to the jewellers - my watch needed a new battery or so we thought - I was struck by an odd sight in a shop window nearby. It was a laundrette. They had hung a washing line across & scattered some very odd articles of clothing on it, mainly underwear. So there was a bra for a lady of large size, something like a 50D. Next to that was a pair of pants. The elastic had given up, but again the lady it was made for must have been 30 stone plus. Then came a very flimsy sheer thong, minuscule by comparison. There was a well-boned corset there too. As I say, a very odd selection of items to grace a window.
So it is today I've just spent the morning preparing a square parcel of puff pastry - the last of this batch in the freezer - & filled it with a turkey curry mixture. It is all ready to be egg-washed & baked in the oven this evening. It's a recipe I'd forgotten I even had, it's so long ago since we last made it. It should be something different. We're having it with peas & saute potatoes.
Yesterday, while I sat waiting in the car as the Fox popped to the jewellers - my watch needed a new battery or so we thought - I was struck by an odd sight in a shop window nearby. It was a laundrette. They had hung a washing line across & scattered some very odd articles of clothing on it, mainly underwear. So there was a bra for a lady of large size, something like a 50D. Next to that was a pair of pants. The elastic had given up, but again the lady it was made for must have been 30 stone plus. Then came a very flimsy sheer thong, minuscule by comparison. There was a well-boned corset there too. As I say, a very odd selection of items to grace a window.
Monday 15 November 2010
A quiet morning
It is with some relief I greet the bright sunshine of the day. It may be freezing but it is also stunningly beautiful. It does one's spirits good.
So far all I seem to have done is get a couple of loads of washing done & hung up in the laundry room to dry. I've put out a few scraps of chicken skin onto the bird table once more. The magpie seemed to enjoy his helping yesterday.
I've prepared dinner. That means I've rolled out the pastry & cut out the vol-au-vent shapes ready to go in the oven this evening.. I've scraped & parboiled the new potatoes to saute later. I've peeled the sprouts. I've just got the leftover chicken & half tin of condensed chicken soup out of the freezer to thaw. In case you hadn't guessed it's chicken vol-au-vents tonight.
I'm still going down the freezer. It's the puff pastry that is the most urgent to use up but the chicken is of similar vintage so I thought I'd combine the two.
Next time I get to the shops it will be a big shop day & we will once more return to pre-planned & budgeted meals. In the meanwhile it's quite fun to discover what oddments can be put together to use up. As you maybe realise by now, we're not great believers in binning the smallest scrap of edible food. There has to be something that can be done with it, even if it's only to feed our avian friends.
So far all I seem to have done is get a couple of loads of washing done & hung up in the laundry room to dry. I've put out a few scraps of chicken skin onto the bird table once more. The magpie seemed to enjoy his helping yesterday.
I've prepared dinner. That means I've rolled out the pastry & cut out the vol-au-vent shapes ready to go in the oven this evening.. I've scraped & parboiled the new potatoes to saute later. I've peeled the sprouts. I've just got the leftover chicken & half tin of condensed chicken soup out of the freezer to thaw. In case you hadn't guessed it's chicken vol-au-vents tonight.
I'm still going down the freezer. It's the puff pastry that is the most urgent to use up but the chicken is of similar vintage so I thought I'd combine the two.
Next time I get to the shops it will be a big shop day & we will once more return to pre-planned & budgeted meals. In the meanwhile it's quite fun to discover what oddments can be put together to use up. As you maybe realise by now, we're not great believers in binning the smallest scrap of edible food. There has to be something that can be done with it, even if it's only to feed our avian friends.
Saturday 13 November 2010
Getting back to normal
This morning I've been busy trying to locate people to invite them to the Pub Xmas meal. I keep getting engaged tones. Clearly everyone's busy.
This afternoon the Fox is thinking of having a go at window cleaning. The car was so filthy after the storm on Thursday evening, he'd had to wipe the worst off before we set off to the Pub yesterday. It was impossible to see out of the window otherwise. He's hoping to do a more thorough job today & maybe even do something about the house windows, which are also now filthy. It was quite strange going along the prom to the Pub yesterday & seeing piles of sand on the land side of the road. Presumably it had all been blown over in the 90mph+ winds.
It comes as quite a shock today to see bright blue skies & shrubbery standing almost still after a couple of days of such strong winds. I'm just relieved no damage seems to have been done. A little mortar has come off the roof but I don't think it's sufficient to cause any problems. We've been lucky. Many fences around have come down. Trees have lost branches.
At last blessed calm has returned. For a bit at least.
This afternoon the Fox is thinking of having a go at window cleaning. The car was so filthy after the storm on Thursday evening, he'd had to wipe the worst off before we set off to the Pub yesterday. It was impossible to see out of the window otherwise. He's hoping to do a more thorough job today & maybe even do something about the house windows, which are also now filthy. It was quite strange going along the prom to the Pub yesterday & seeing piles of sand on the land side of the road. Presumably it had all been blown over in the 90mph+ winds.
It comes as quite a shock today to see bright blue skies & shrubbery standing almost still after a couple of days of such strong winds. I'm just relieved no damage seems to have been done. A little mortar has come off the roof but I don't think it's sufficient to cause any problems. We've been lucky. Many fences around have come down. Trees have lost branches.
At last blessed calm has returned. For a bit at least.
Friday 12 November 2010
Change of plans
As we were expecting a long day of waiting for the heating engineer to come to sort out the central heating boiler, we hastily got today's chores done yesterday. Not that that involved much, just a quick trip to the butcher's to buy a chicken for Saturday's roast.
We were told the engineer would ring an hour before coming. So you can imagine our surprise when the doorbell rang, promptly after 8am. We were still in bed. We hastily got out of bed. The Fox put on his dressing gown while I tried to get dressed. Five minutes later, when I had progressed to cleaning my teeth, the man was leaving again, job done. The thermostat on the boiler was indeed set far too high & had been adjusted. Now we wait to see if the heating stays off during the night as it is supposed to.
So now I've got a free morning. I've just made some Durham cutlets, sort of triangular shaped rissoles, using up some up some left over roast beef. They're ready to fry up this evening.
Hopefully this afternoon we will get over to the Pub. We were hoping to get there today as Friday is the day most of our friends turn up. PD is itching for me (why is it always me?) to organise a Christmas dinner for us all at the Pub for December some time. If we're going to have one it's time we settled on a date & booked the table(s).
Meanwhile I've got some reading to do. Our financial adviser was round yesterday & left some reading matter. Decisions have to be made, the sooner the better. Though whether I will be able concentrate sufficiently with the sound of the banshees blowing around outside & howling down the chimney is a different question.
We were told the engineer would ring an hour before coming. So you can imagine our surprise when the doorbell rang, promptly after 8am. We were still in bed. We hastily got out of bed. The Fox put on his dressing gown while I tried to get dressed. Five minutes later, when I had progressed to cleaning my teeth, the man was leaving again, job done. The thermostat on the boiler was indeed set far too high & had been adjusted. Now we wait to see if the heating stays off during the night as it is supposed to.
So now I've got a free morning. I've just made some Durham cutlets, sort of triangular shaped rissoles, using up some up some left over roast beef. They're ready to fry up this evening.
Hopefully this afternoon we will get over to the Pub. We were hoping to get there today as Friday is the day most of our friends turn up. PD is itching for me (why is it always me?) to organise a Christmas dinner for us all at the Pub for December some time. If we're going to have one it's time we settled on a date & booked the table(s).
Meanwhile I've got some reading to do. Our financial adviser was round yesterday & left some reading matter. Decisions have to be made, the sooner the better. Though whether I will be able concentrate sufficiently with the sound of the banshees blowing around outside & howling down the chimney is a different question.
Thursday 11 November 2010
Right measures for the problem?
I spoke, or rather wrote, too soon. The boiler keeps coming on. I complained once again. This time they're sending a man around. The current thinking seems to be that the anti-freezing setting on the boiler is set too high. The laundry room never got below 10C, not the 5C it should be at. Only an engineer can sort that out. So now I've got another day of waiting to look forward to tomorrow. They couldn't even tell me whether it would be morning or afternoon. Oh what a pleasure that will be!
While we were out yesterday I couldn't help noticing, & feeling a little annoyed about the number of roads having their permissible speeds reduced to 20mph.
I appreciate this seems to be happening in the essentially residential areas of town, though not always. What gets to me about this is that the only people who will slow down will be the conscientious careful drivers. I appreciate lower speeds do mean in the event of a car hitting a person injuries are likely to be less severe. However, the drivers that cause the accidents tend to be the tearaway speedsters who ignore the old 30mph signs. I can't see them being deterred by a reduction in speed limit.
It has to be admitted that modern cars tend not to be designed for such slow speeds. They tend to use more fuel & cause more pollution. Often the engines make more noise.
I can see careful drivers may well not venture into these areas unless they have to. But the council is leaving so few roads where you can go at 30mph that I suspect they are going to grind to a halt under the sheer level of traffic trying to use them to avoid the 20mph areas! And anyhow, even before the changes these careful drivers wouldn't attempt to go at 30mph if there were pedestrians & animals wandering all over the road so why bother changing the speeds?
I sometimes suspect the real reason why so many accidents occur involving children is just that the children are not taught any road sense. The number who seem to think they can just walk across the road without even stopping to look first is incredible & seem to be steadily increasing in number. What ever happened to the green cross code?
While we were out yesterday I couldn't help noticing, & feeling a little annoyed about the number of roads having their permissible speeds reduced to 20mph.
I appreciate this seems to be happening in the essentially residential areas of town, though not always. What gets to me about this is that the only people who will slow down will be the conscientious careful drivers. I appreciate lower speeds do mean in the event of a car hitting a person injuries are likely to be less severe. However, the drivers that cause the accidents tend to be the tearaway speedsters who ignore the old 30mph signs. I can't see them being deterred by a reduction in speed limit.
It has to be admitted that modern cars tend not to be designed for such slow speeds. They tend to use more fuel & cause more pollution. Often the engines make more noise.
I can see careful drivers may well not venture into these areas unless they have to. But the council is leaving so few roads where you can go at 30mph that I suspect they are going to grind to a halt under the sheer level of traffic trying to use them to avoid the 20mph areas! And anyhow, even before the changes these careful drivers wouldn't attempt to go at 30mph if there were pedestrians & animals wandering all over the road so why bother changing the speeds?
I sometimes suspect the real reason why so many accidents occur involving children is just that the children are not taught any road sense. The number who seem to think they can just walk across the road without even stopping to look first is incredible & seem to be steadily increasing in number. What ever happened to the green cross code?
Wednesday 10 November 2010
The mystery of the new boiler
We seemed to have finally sorted out the problem with the central heating. In October both the Fox & I wrote in our blogs about the difficulties we were having with our new boiler. We had a fiddle with the controls & it seemed to settle down. Then it started playing up again. Once more it started coming on when the timer said otherwise. What is more the light on the timer control panel didn't come on to indicate the boiler was working yet the radiators were red hot.
Yesterday we decided to get onto the experts. I rang Eaga who had installed it. They put me on to a technician. He gently questioned me, made me go through all the settings on the control panel. All was correct.
Then he asked where the boiler was sited. I duly said in the laundry room, attached to the house but accessed through a separate outside door.
"Ah. That will be it," he exclaimed as light dawned. "The boiler itself has its own thermostat. If the ambient temperature around it falls below 5C, it automatically switches itself on. It's to avoid the boiler freezing up."
So now we have a thermometer in the laundry room to check if the temperature is getting that low. We also closed the window in the hope of keeping the room warmer, then the house wouldn't have to be quite so sweltering.
It has to admitted we have been having some cold days, & nights especially, of late. I looked at the outside thermometer attached to the shed this morning just before I sat down to write this. Even then it had only just warmed up to -6C. It had been colder earlier on when I first got up.
Now we're keeping our fingers crossed that closing the window has been sufficient to stop the boiler from going on. Otherwise I can see this new boiler is going to be a darn sight more expensive to run than the old one, as it will be running 24 hours a day by the time we get fully into winter.
The man did suggest we had a few options if it did not. We could try boxing the boiler in. That should keep the ambient temperature higher. Alternatively we could have a radiator installed in the laundry room. There's the option of just paying for the extra gas, reassured that we will at least be warm. Finally there's the drastic option of moving the boiler inside, though where I'm not quite sure. It would have to go on an outside wall & most of our outside walls are broken up with interior walls, fitted cupboards, windows & door frames. And a boiler is not the most attractive thing to have in the midst lounge! We'll just have to see how it goes on.
Yesterday we decided to get onto the experts. I rang Eaga who had installed it. They put me on to a technician. He gently questioned me, made me go through all the settings on the control panel. All was correct.
Then he asked where the boiler was sited. I duly said in the laundry room, attached to the house but accessed through a separate outside door.
"Ah. That will be it," he exclaimed as light dawned. "The boiler itself has its own thermostat. If the ambient temperature around it falls below 5C, it automatically switches itself on. It's to avoid the boiler freezing up."
So now we have a thermometer in the laundry room to check if the temperature is getting that low. We also closed the window in the hope of keeping the room warmer, then the house wouldn't have to be quite so sweltering.
It has to admitted we have been having some cold days, & nights especially, of late. I looked at the outside thermometer attached to the shed this morning just before I sat down to write this. Even then it had only just warmed up to -6C. It had been colder earlier on when I first got up.
Now we're keeping our fingers crossed that closing the window has been sufficient to stop the boiler from going on. Otherwise I can see this new boiler is going to be a darn sight more expensive to run than the old one, as it will be running 24 hours a day by the time we get fully into winter.
The man did suggest we had a few options if it did not. We could try boxing the boiler in. That should keep the ambient temperature higher. Alternatively we could have a radiator installed in the laundry room. There's the option of just paying for the extra gas, reassured that we will at least be warm. Finally there's the drastic option of moving the boiler inside, though where I'm not quite sure. It would have to go on an outside wall & most of our outside walls are broken up with interior walls, fitted cupboards, windows & door frames. And a boiler is not the most attractive thing to have in the midst lounge! We'll just have to see how it goes on.
Tuesday 9 November 2010
Traumatised
"I heard a ruckus outside. I looked out into the garden. There was an enormous bird sitting on top of one of my hens," said a still traumatised Cheryl. She keeps hens. She'd just recently bought a pair or rare birds, a hen & her mate, for breeding purposes. It was on this hen the bird was sitting.
"It was a Harris hawk," she continued. "It belonged to a man who was hunting for rabbits with it in a field just across the way. It must of mistaken the hen for a rabbit. It just sat there, waiting for its owner to retrieve it. We tried to get it move off by poking it with a broom handle but it wouldn't go. When the owner came over, he nonchalantly said not to worry. He was insured so he would be able to pay for the injured hen."
This did nothing for Cheryl. Her birds are her pets. She loves them dearly & she'd had this one long enough to have named it & learnt its character.
All this happened on Sunday. Needless to say Cheryl instantly got on to the vet to see if the bird could be saved. But no, the injuries were too extensive. Her hen had one broken wing, one broken leg & the hawk's talons had penetrated into the hen's neck, damaging her nervous system. It had to be humanely killed. Needless to say the vet charged a lot as it was out of hours.
"The worst of it is I will have to find a new home for the cock as he won't be happy partnerless. So that's going to cost me yet more. Then I've got to locate another pair which isn't going to be easy when they are such a rare breed."
Cheryl didn't blame the hawk. It was a beautiful bird, only doing what came naturally & what it had been trained to do. It was the owner she was annoyed with.
"To keep the foxes away I have a Jack Russell terrier who lives in the garden. Even if the dog had seen the bird, he would probably have been hurt or taken too. And just imagine if the hawk had gone next door. My neighbour is a childminder. She often lets the young crawlers & toddlers play on the grass with the pet rabbit. The children could have been attacked, certainly hurt. At the very least they may have been traumatised by watching the rabbit being torn apart by the hawk in front of them. It's not even a British bird! And this man seemed to think it didn't matter!"
Maybe the situation was all the worse because Cheryl is a vegetarian on principle. She'll eat the eggs, but the hens are always allowed to live out their old age, long after they are past laying eggs on an economic basis. She doesn't believe in causing pain to any creature, although she does accept nature can be cruel. This had all been too much for her.
"It was a Harris hawk," she continued. "It belonged to a man who was hunting for rabbits with it in a field just across the way. It must of mistaken the hen for a rabbit. It just sat there, waiting for its owner to retrieve it. We tried to get it move off by poking it with a broom handle but it wouldn't go. When the owner came over, he nonchalantly said not to worry. He was insured so he would be able to pay for the injured hen."
This did nothing for Cheryl. Her birds are her pets. She loves them dearly & she'd had this one long enough to have named it & learnt its character.
All this happened on Sunday. Needless to say Cheryl instantly got on to the vet to see if the bird could be saved. But no, the injuries were too extensive. Her hen had one broken wing, one broken leg & the hawk's talons had penetrated into the hen's neck, damaging her nervous system. It had to be humanely killed. Needless to say the vet charged a lot as it was out of hours.
"The worst of it is I will have to find a new home for the cock as he won't be happy partnerless. So that's going to cost me yet more. Then I've got to locate another pair which isn't going to be easy when they are such a rare breed."
Cheryl didn't blame the hawk. It was a beautiful bird, only doing what came naturally & what it had been trained to do. It was the owner she was annoyed with.
"To keep the foxes away I have a Jack Russell terrier who lives in the garden. Even if the dog had seen the bird, he would probably have been hurt or taken too. And just imagine if the hawk had gone next door. My neighbour is a childminder. She often lets the young crawlers & toddlers play on the grass with the pet rabbit. The children could have been attacked, certainly hurt. At the very least they may have been traumatised by watching the rabbit being torn apart by the hawk in front of them. It's not even a British bird! And this man seemed to think it didn't matter!"
Maybe the situation was all the worse because Cheryl is a vegetarian on principle. She'll eat the eggs, but the hens are always allowed to live out their old age, long after they are past laying eggs on an economic basis. She doesn't believe in causing pain to any creature, although she does accept nature can be cruel. This had all been too much for her.
Monday 8 November 2010
The challenge ahead
The sun didn't last long. Yet again I woke up, opened my eyes, thought it was so dark it had to be the middle of the night to realise it was already 8.15am & time to be up. These southerners who say don't bother to change the clocks in spring & autumn clearly don't know how dark a winter morning can be in the north. Heaven knows what it must be like in the north of Scotland!
I told myself to get up. I have a challenge ahead of me for today. What is that challenge I hear you ask. Somehow a meal for two has to be made with one chicken thigh. The Fox's reaction was to go to the butcher & buy some more. But, to my mind, the whole point of using up the things in the freezer is not to go buying yet more.
So, what have I decided to make? Chicken vol-au-vents. I'm proposing to cut the thigh into fairly small pieces, fry them, add some flour & milk to make a white sauce which I will flavour with a bit of curry powder French style. All of this mix will then go into some vol-au-vent cases & be served with chips & peas. Should be good & satisfying.
PS Hasn't it been a quiet bonfire night? Around here we've had very few. A sign of the recession really hitting home & people's pockets?
I told myself to get up. I have a challenge ahead of me for today. What is that challenge I hear you ask. Somehow a meal for two has to be made with one chicken thigh. The Fox's reaction was to go to the butcher & buy some more. But, to my mind, the whole point of using up the things in the freezer is not to go buying yet more.
So, what have I decided to make? Chicken vol-au-vents. I'm proposing to cut the thigh into fairly small pieces, fry them, add some flour & milk to make a white sauce which I will flavour with a bit of curry powder French style. All of this mix will then go into some vol-au-vent cases & be served with chips & peas. Should be good & satisfying.
PS Hasn't it been a quiet bonfire night? Around here we've had very few. A sign of the recession really hitting home & people's pockets?
Saturday 6 November 2010
Looking sunnier
It's come as quite a shock today to get up to a gloriously blue sky. Sunshine for once. The cars down the street sparkled in their frosty coatings. The itch to go out is upon me, though I half suspect by the time we're ready to do so the sun will have disappeared. It has to be admitted the clouds are already beginning to collect. Still, at least, my morale has had a boost.
I even managed to stop to have a good look at the sunflower at the back door. It looks pretty blackened & dried out now. The Fox suggested I uprooted & binned it but I thought no. I'm glad I didn't now. The sunflower seeds in the bird feeders don't seem to have been going down much lately. I had put it down to the rain & that persistent cat. The birds don't seem to have been around as much of late. Now I know the real reason. The birds have obviously discovered this sunflower & all its seeds. I presume they must be at the peak of ripeness & tastiness. Seed casings are scattered all around. Definitely someone has been busy feeding.
I gave Jean, our friend with cancer, another ring today. She's found the chemotherapy not as bad as she feared. So far. She has had some reaction which she is assured is a sign that it is having some effect. This has given her some hope that things may improve. It certainly makes the prospects of continuing the course not so daunting. She's also arranged to have an aromatherapy massage at the local CancerCare place. Let's hope it continues to go well. It's time something got better for her & her husband.
Meanwhile we're looking forward to roast leg of salt marsh lamb for dinner tonight. It's a while since we had roast lamb. It should be a bit of a treat.
I even managed to stop to have a good look at the sunflower at the back door. It looks pretty blackened & dried out now. The Fox suggested I uprooted & binned it but I thought no. I'm glad I didn't now. The sunflower seeds in the bird feeders don't seem to have been going down much lately. I had put it down to the rain & that persistent cat. The birds don't seem to have been around as much of late. Now I know the real reason. The birds have obviously discovered this sunflower & all its seeds. I presume they must be at the peak of ripeness & tastiness. Seed casings are scattered all around. Definitely someone has been busy feeding.
I gave Jean, our friend with cancer, another ring today. She's found the chemotherapy not as bad as she feared. So far. She has had some reaction which she is assured is a sign that it is having some effect. This has given her some hope that things may improve. It certainly makes the prospects of continuing the course not so daunting. She's also arranged to have an aromatherapy massage at the local CancerCare place. Let's hope it continues to go well. It's time something got better for her & her husband.
Meanwhile we're looking forward to roast leg of salt marsh lamb for dinner tonight. It's a while since we had roast lamb. It should be a bit of a treat.
Friday 5 November 2010
Lamb curry
It is amazing how evocative food can be. Today my mind is off to La Rochelle in France once more.
First I'll tell you the meal that's plopping away at the moment is a Bhoona Gosht, a lamb curry. The last time I remember cooking this recipe was in France when we were staying with our French friends. Their son had been to stay with us a year or so before. While he was here we took him along to our local Indian restaurant & he discovered curries, a new experience for him. So when we visited them next in France, he was keen for us to make a proper curry. He hadn't been able to find anything like it in France. So I agreed to do this lamb curry.
While the son located some spices, Marie, his mother, our friend, took me along to the butcher.It was just a small suburban establishment on the outskirts of La Rochelle. There we utterly bemused the butcher. Not only was I very definitely English, a rarity in those parts, but I was clearly a friend of a Frenchwoman - the French seem to regard this as an impossible concept. He was even more amazed when he realised that I, the Englishwoman (& therefore obviously a hopeless cook as no English person knows how to cook), was going to cook for Marie (a professional chef, which he knew) & her family &, what was more, I was cooking an Indian curry!!! This was internationalism gone mad for him. Still we managed to get the meat.
So back we went & set about making the curry. Marie watched eagerly, always keen to learn new culinary techniques. She was impressed by the Fox's knife skills as he diced up the onions. She was quite content as we sweated off the onions & garlic, but then came the spices. As I was cooking for 6 people in went 9 teaspoons of curry powder plus a teaspoon of chilli powder to give it a bit of extra oomph. Marie's eyes grew bigger & bigger, her mouth dropped further & further open, as I counted out the spoonfuls of spice. In France we discovered their idea of a curry for four people involves a quarter of a teaspoon of curry powder at most.She wasn't much reassured when she saw no liquid going in the pot except a tablespoon of vinegar & one of tomato puree. Nonetheless she let us get on with it & prayed the meal at the end would be edible.
After it had all plopped along we sat down for the meal. By then plenty of juices had come out of the meat to give a rich sauce. Nervously Marie took her first mouthful, expecting her mouth to burst into flames. She was somewhat surprised to discover it was really rather good. Her husband is a lot more conservative in his likes. He tried it, said it was good, but clearly found it overwhelming. The son & his girlfriend loved it.
So here we are again, once more with a bhoona gosht. And our memories return once more to that day in France & our friends - good times
First I'll tell you the meal that's plopping away at the moment is a Bhoona Gosht, a lamb curry. The last time I remember cooking this recipe was in France when we were staying with our French friends. Their son had been to stay with us a year or so before. While he was here we took him along to our local Indian restaurant & he discovered curries, a new experience for him. So when we visited them next in France, he was keen for us to make a proper curry. He hadn't been able to find anything like it in France. So I agreed to do this lamb curry.
While the son located some spices, Marie, his mother, our friend, took me along to the butcher.It was just a small suburban establishment on the outskirts of La Rochelle. There we utterly bemused the butcher. Not only was I very definitely English, a rarity in those parts, but I was clearly a friend of a Frenchwoman - the French seem to regard this as an impossible concept. He was even more amazed when he realised that I, the Englishwoman (& therefore obviously a hopeless cook as no English person knows how to cook), was going to cook for Marie (a professional chef, which he knew) & her family &, what was more, I was cooking an Indian curry!!! This was internationalism gone mad for him. Still we managed to get the meat.
So back we went & set about making the curry. Marie watched eagerly, always keen to learn new culinary techniques. She was impressed by the Fox's knife skills as he diced up the onions. She was quite content as we sweated off the onions & garlic, but then came the spices. As I was cooking for 6 people in went 9 teaspoons of curry powder plus a teaspoon of chilli powder to give it a bit of extra oomph. Marie's eyes grew bigger & bigger, her mouth dropped further & further open, as I counted out the spoonfuls of spice. In France we discovered their idea of a curry for four people involves a quarter of a teaspoon of curry powder at most.She wasn't much reassured when she saw no liquid going in the pot except a tablespoon of vinegar & one of tomato puree. Nonetheless she let us get on with it & prayed the meal at the end would be edible.
After it had all plopped along we sat down for the meal. By then plenty of juices had come out of the meat to give a rich sauce. Nervously Marie took her first mouthful, expecting her mouth to burst into flames. She was somewhat surprised to discover it was really rather good. Her husband is a lot more conservative in his likes. He tried it, said it was good, but clearly found it overwhelming. The son & his girlfriend loved it.
So here we are again, once more with a bhoona gosht. And our memories return once more to that day in France & our friends - good times
Thursday 4 November 2010
Fish again
It's fish again. Only today it's going to be salmon, crusted with couscous & baked in the oven. I've just coated the fillets with the couscous already to just go in the oven this evening.
Couscous I find a strange item. We first encountered it in France when were staying with friends just outside La Rochelle. We were left feeling dubious. I suppose it's no more bland than plain boiled rice or pasta, even than boiled potatoes. It's the sauce that lifts these staples. I think what really gets to me is the texture - so granular.
Then one year we tried a Moroccan restaurant in Le Mans on our homeward journey from a holiday in the Pays d'Oc. Yes, plenty of flavourings were added to the couscous & yet we still didn't like it.
Since then I've had a go at cooking(?) it myself. I've come to the conclusion it can work reasonably well as the basis of a stuffing, for chicken for example. A small portion can be an interesting addition to a salad. But I still wouldn't have it in place of our usual staples of pasta, rice or potatoes. Spelt I would consider, couscous no. I just can't get away from the texture. So our tagines continue to be served with rice or potato, much to our preference.
This is the first time I've tried using couscous as a coating. I'm hoping it's going to give an interesting crispness to the fish whilst still protecting the flesh from the fierceness of the heat. We'll find out this evening.
Couscous I find a strange item. We first encountered it in France when were staying with friends just outside La Rochelle. We were left feeling dubious. I suppose it's no more bland than plain boiled rice or pasta, even than boiled potatoes. It's the sauce that lifts these staples. I think what really gets to me is the texture - so granular.
Then one year we tried a Moroccan restaurant in Le Mans on our homeward journey from a holiday in the Pays d'Oc. Yes, plenty of flavourings were added to the couscous & yet we still didn't like it.
Since then I've had a go at cooking(?) it myself. I've come to the conclusion it can work reasonably well as the basis of a stuffing, for chicken for example. A small portion can be an interesting addition to a salad. But I still wouldn't have it in place of our usual staples of pasta, rice or potatoes. Spelt I would consider, couscous no. I just can't get away from the texture. So our tagines continue to be served with rice or potato, much to our preference.
This is the first time I've tried using couscous as a coating. I'm hoping it's going to give an interesting crispness to the fish whilst still protecting the flesh from the fierceness of the heat. We'll find out this evening.
Wednesday 3 November 2010
Excitement & colour
We didn't get over to Carnforth. The rain just kept coming down. So, today, we're not off to Wigan. Instead we will have to do some food shopping. Boring but essential. So far, today has just been showery, a bit of an improvement.
I'm digging out some fish for dinner, sea bream, from the freezer. It will make a change. I'm thinking of just dusting it in flour & simply frying it, meuniere style.
Meanwhile the rain & gloom is beginning to get to us. We find our minds turning to warmer climes & once more contemplating a holiday. I am seriously beginning to think two holidays a year are becoming essential - one to relax & one to get us through the winter cold, wet & dark. The winter already seems long to me & we're still in November!
I see, or rather hear, some people are trying to bring some excitement to life with bangs & shooting stars as fireworks are set off prematurely. Often in the middle of the night, around midnight.
But my excitement & colour is still being provided by the lilies. Now five have opened. On the petals of the older ones a slight dusting of paprika has appeared - a little spot of falling pollen I suspect. The delicacy of the colour is a joy to behold.
Many moons ago I was a bridesmaid for my Cousin Pat. Our dresses were just such a colour. Come the time of our wedding the only bought flowers in my bouquet were some roses of similar colour. The rest of the flowers were provided by my mother from our garden. My bridesmaid, a trainee horticulturalist, made up the bouquets.This shade of apricot remains a delight for me, only enhanced by such happy associations.
I'm digging out some fish for dinner, sea bream, from the freezer. It will make a change. I'm thinking of just dusting it in flour & simply frying it, meuniere style.
Meanwhile the rain & gloom is beginning to get to us. We find our minds turning to warmer climes & once more contemplating a holiday. I am seriously beginning to think two holidays a year are becoming essential - one to relax & one to get us through the winter cold, wet & dark. The winter already seems long to me & we're still in November!
I see, or rather hear, some people are trying to bring some excitement to life with bangs & shooting stars as fireworks are set off prematurely. Often in the middle of the night, around midnight.
But my excitement & colour is still being provided by the lilies. Now five have opened. On the petals of the older ones a slight dusting of paprika has appeared - a little spot of falling pollen I suspect. The delicacy of the colour is a joy to behold.
Many moons ago I was a bridesmaid for my Cousin Pat. Our dresses were just such a colour. Come the time of our wedding the only bought flowers in my bouquet were some roses of similar colour. The rest of the flowers were provided by my mother from our garden. My bridesmaid, a trainee horticulturalist, made up the bouquets.This shade of apricot remains a delight for me, only enhanced by such happy associations.
Tuesday 2 November 2010
Plans
We're intending to go over to Carnforth this afternoon. Or, at least, that was the intention. I'm beginning to question the wisdom of this idea. Rain is slashing down. Winds are bowing over the trees.
The purpose of the trip was primarily to go to Booths supermarket & top up on our freezer meals & cheeses - the former are expensive but infinitely superior to the average & useful to have in when you couldn't be bothered to cook, the latter for the sheer range & variety. However, there is nothing apart from some bread that is essential for today's dinner. I've just made some carrot & coriander soup, which we thought we'd follow with the last of the Booths' ready meals that we have in stock, a chicken Alexander.
To not go would spoil our plans for tomorrow. Then, we're hoping for a trip down to Wigan. Why Wigan you might ask? It's not the highest place on the tourist map. We're going to look at bathrooms. We've decided the time has come to turn our attention to the next home improvement project, a new bathroom. I spoke to the Occupational Therapist a little while ago. She suggested three companies which specialist in bathrooms designed for disabled people, one of whom has a showroom in Wigan. So we're off to get some ideas.
It is getting increasingly difficult to use our present bathroom. The Fox is finding standing in the bath to use the overhead shower increasingly dangerous with no grab handle to hold, a slippery base when wet, as well as slightly curved surfaces as the base becomes the verticals of the bath. As for me, I can cope with the bath board, but I'm having increasing difficulty getting up from my seat when I have a wash at the sink. The space between the sink & the toilet is too small to put a seat with arms, or even to really get purchase on a grab rail, to help me get up. We'd like to re-arrange the lot, getting rid of the bath (which we've never used) & making it into a shower room. That way there should be more space to move the sink & possibly toilet. We're half contemplating a wet room. The extra space would also mean that, if I became a full time wheelchair user, as has been suggested, there would be room enough to manoeuvre the wheelchair. As I say we need to have a look at what's on offer. Looking at brochures is just not enough.
So, at the moment, I'm hoping the storm will have blown itself out by this afternoon, & the rain dried out so we can get Carnforth done today & have tomorrow free for Wigan.
The purpose of the trip was primarily to go to Booths supermarket & top up on our freezer meals & cheeses - the former are expensive but infinitely superior to the average & useful to have in when you couldn't be bothered to cook, the latter for the sheer range & variety. However, there is nothing apart from some bread that is essential for today's dinner. I've just made some carrot & coriander soup, which we thought we'd follow with the last of the Booths' ready meals that we have in stock, a chicken Alexander.
To not go would spoil our plans for tomorrow. Then, we're hoping for a trip down to Wigan. Why Wigan you might ask? It's not the highest place on the tourist map. We're going to look at bathrooms. We've decided the time has come to turn our attention to the next home improvement project, a new bathroom. I spoke to the Occupational Therapist a little while ago. She suggested three companies which specialist in bathrooms designed for disabled people, one of whom has a showroom in Wigan. So we're off to get some ideas.
It is getting increasingly difficult to use our present bathroom. The Fox is finding standing in the bath to use the overhead shower increasingly dangerous with no grab handle to hold, a slippery base when wet, as well as slightly curved surfaces as the base becomes the verticals of the bath. As for me, I can cope with the bath board, but I'm having increasing difficulty getting up from my seat when I have a wash at the sink. The space between the sink & the toilet is too small to put a seat with arms, or even to really get purchase on a grab rail, to help me get up. We'd like to re-arrange the lot, getting rid of the bath (which we've never used) & making it into a shower room. That way there should be more space to move the sink & possibly toilet. We're half contemplating a wet room. The extra space would also mean that, if I became a full time wheelchair user, as has been suggested, there would be room enough to manoeuvre the wheelchair. As I say we need to have a look at what's on offer. Looking at brochures is just not enough.
So, at the moment, I'm hoping the storm will have blown itself out by this afternoon, & the rain dried out so we can get Carnforth done today & have tomorrow free for Wigan.
Monday 1 November 2010
Worth the wait
When we went shopping on Wednesday, the Fox decided to buy me some flowers, some lilies. All the bunch was closed. Since then we've watched eagerly, & increasingly anxiously, for some sign of them opening up. Nothing. The water remained crystal clear. Some of buds gained a translucent orangeness, only really noticeable as the back light streamed through the bud. We were beginning to think they would never open up.
Then, on Saturday night, the first four flowers came into full bloom. Suddenly there were these majestic apricot coloured blooms. Magnificent. Throughout yesterday, we stopped to wonder & gaze on their glory.
I noticed things I hadn't observed before. I never realised before the petals of the flower were arranged as two three-petalled rings. Nor that the pale red dots on the petals are in fact slightly raised, hairy, almost barbed. This morning I became aware of a tear drop of something on the stigmas. They glisten in the bright morning light of today.
The colour of the pollen on the anthers is a rich paprika red, a glorious contrast with the paler yellowy orange of the petals.
All in all it's been a worthwhile wait. Now I eagerly look forward to the other buds opening up. I hope the open flowers last long. Each day it's wonderful to see the changes & rejoice in them.
Then, on Saturday night, the first four flowers came into full bloom. Suddenly there were these majestic apricot coloured blooms. Magnificent. Throughout yesterday, we stopped to wonder & gaze on their glory.
I noticed things I hadn't observed before. I never realised before the petals of the flower were arranged as two three-petalled rings. Nor that the pale red dots on the petals are in fact slightly raised, hairy, almost barbed. This morning I became aware of a tear drop of something on the stigmas. They glisten in the bright morning light of today.
The colour of the pollen on the anthers is a rich paprika red, a glorious contrast with the paler yellowy orange of the petals.
All in all it's been a worthwhile wait. Now I eagerly look forward to the other buds opening up. I hope the open flowers last long. Each day it's wonderful to see the changes & rejoice in them.
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