I was up this morning at stupid o'clock to run DH to the station. After that it was back to the moneypit (the reason for DH's early departure- an extra 1.5 hours on the train to the office) to await the electric man, who was going to do something with the electrics. Much as I wanted to go back to sleep, I couldn't, so I put on the radio and made pate.Ingredients175g unsalted butter, softened450g chicken liver2 shallots, finely chopped2 cloves … [Read more...]

I seem to be using this place as a store for my recipes.In need of something to do with the remainder of a Waitrose rotisserie chicken (I bloody hate serving leftover meat sliced with baked potatoes and salad), I threw this together last night in a smug-Nigella-fashion, from ingredients I keep in stock. Seriously- I could be her body double, except she looks voluptuous and I just look dumpy. And I don't have her money...Thai Green Bean … [Read more...]

I remember that my mother used to tell a story about one of my uncles, who had come to visit my newly married parents. She spent all day cooking something very 70's like Coq-au-Vin (not that there's anything wrong with that, you understand) only to have my uncle ask for brown sauce. Before he had even tasted her offering. I had a similar experience with DH. shortly after moving in with him, I discovered he ate pretty much everything except … [Read more...]

All summer I have been buying as many soft fruits I can, and eating them at every opportunity. I enjoy strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and the like so much more than the dull orange that you get in winter. Plus they are seasonal, locally sourced and therefore much better on the old carbon footprint. A lunch with the rentals a few weeks ago reminded me that I had yet to make a Summer Pudding this year. So I bought all the … [Read more...]

Can I just say that my mother-in-law has changed my life? They were down a couple of weeks ago and, being parents, didn't come empty-handed. I love presents (who doesn't) and got even more excited when she handed me a Lakeland bag. I love Lakeland. So I was a happy bunny before I even tried out the exciting gift, which turned out to be a Mango splitter. On it's own, it does look a little scary, and rather large. But you know what a nightmare … [Read more...]

I was at Lady W's again on Thursday, so she could go kiteboarding/househunting. The great news is that the Jigsaw Fiend is really making eye contact and smiling and, more importantly, has cracked the potty training. He is an absolute joy to be around. Whilst he was being tutored and Smiley Crawler was taking a brief (a very precise 45 minutes- he doesn't like to miss anything!) nap, I took the opportunity to use up some of the gluten-free flour … [Read more...]

I bought a green exercise book when I was 19 in which I used to write recipes that I had tried, using other people's cook books because I couldn't afford my own. If they were good enough, they went in the book, and thus I built a great collection of recipes that really worked. For reasons I have been unable to fathom the book, and thus my most treasured recipes, has gone AWOL. I am quite desperate to find it again and am now having to conjure … [Read more...]