2010 off to a snowy start

What’s happening with this weather? Is there no end to the cold and snow?

Lots more eating and drinking this year so far: Sig Other just keeps making lovely eats. Yesterday we celebrated Ne’er Day with scrumptious broccoli quiche served with creamy chicory, celery and peas mixed with Quorn fake bacon bits. These are a new discovery for me, although they aren’t too much like actual bacon, otherwise I’d be less likely to eat them. Also, Quorn has changed the recipe in some of their products to make them gluten free which is useful for the GF/veggie meals.

I’ve decided to avoid making resolutions this year. I never keep them and previously assumed that making life improving efforts like taking more exercise/reading less trashy science fiction/being more saintly in general –type resolutions were part of the routine surrounding New Year. But apparently, the practice of resolving to change at the beginning of a year dates back to Babylonian times. And no doubt the ancients were just as good at keeping them as most of us are.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/features/Talkin39-bout-a-resolution.5950474.jp

Seizing a gap in the freezing conditions when the sun even came out yesterday, seemed the best time to go for a walk in the gardens at Dunham Massey. The pic above is of the birch triangle in the middle of the winter garden created a couple of years ago in the grounds near the house.

Zillions of bulbs are due to emerge in the early spring, making this an attraction to revisit in a month or two.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/manchester/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8328000/8328348.stm

I finished my stay in the south with a meal in my favourite place in Manchester, the curry mile in Rusholme. Fingers crossed for a smooth return to Edinburgh normality soon.

Winterval Meanderings

Long time silent on this blog – not because I’ve nothing particular to say, but because there are too many subjects to rant about, I’m spoilt for choice. Therefore, indecision reigns and time marches on to year end.

I’ve also been busy going hither and thither seeing friends and being rather more social than earlier in the year. Trips included Sheffield, Nottingham and Bradford. Sadly, no photographs worth showing of snow except one I took on my iphone going over Snake Pass in Derbyshire last month. At the time, I assumed that this first flurry was an aberration and we’d have the normal cold wet winter. Nah - that was a harbinger of miserable weather to further depress this bah humbugger more than usual.

I feared the snow would prevent my seasonal stay in Cheshire, but I managed to get through to the motorway (M74, M6) and reach Sig Other’s on Xmas Eve.

Now on Hogmanay the temperature is once again falling, relying on the inadequate local public transport tonight is pointless, and I might as well drive. I don’t require drinking vast amounts of alcohol to bring in the New Year, so that should be fine. We have tickets for a ‘do’ locally and it will be interesting to see in the New Year in England for only the fourth time in my life. Nevertheless, I’ll probably miss the proper celebration going on in Edinburgh.

Last Winterval, Sig Other was in Edinburgh and I was responsible (mostly) for the food and cooking. This year it is his turn and I am luxuriating in his choice of dishes. We celebrated the Christians' festival with a largely vegan selection based around a delicious mushroom, chestnut and brandy terrine with red wine gravy and tons of veggies. Another highlight was his Caribbean rice and peas with fried plantain. I’d never eaten plantain before, but will want to again, it is so yummy. As I write, he is making veggie moussaka to keep us going until next year.

Taking it easy for a few days has given me time to reflect on a year that seems to have passed me by. Three major bouts of flu and assorted other health issues kept me from doing all I had planned to. I’m not alone in this experience, as many people have had similar repetitive viruses irrespective of age or previous health status. However, tomorrow, the calendar changes and new opportunities may turn up. Ever hopeful!

Highlights have been the unforgettable cruise into the Arctic back in March, and the weekend in Madrid in October.  Time spent with friends and family are always good and with determination, I hope to do more of this in 2010.

I’m almost stunned with surprise that the first decade of the twenty-first century is ending. That sorta snuck up on me. At times I suspect my consciousness got stuck in the 1970’s, so to leave behind the noughties and move into the teens (err, what are we to call the next decade?) is daunting. No amount of intoning “yer as auld as ye feel,” is convincing me that this headlong gallop towards the end date on my driving licence is controllable. Maybe I need just to go with it and accept whatever is in store for me next?

If anyone has the answer please let me know – but shouting 42 won’t cut it!

Happy New Year!

Squash recipes and wee meander

I’ve been playing in the kitchen with the lovely squashes and pumpkins available this season. Here are three recipes I thought turned out pretty well.

Butternut Squash Casserole
Few handfuls of kasha
Medium leek, sliced
One small or half a large butternut squash, cubed
Sliced green pepper

Glass red wine

Veg oil

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 tbsp tomato puree

Liquid veg stock

Seasonings

Toast the kasha, then set aside while you gently fry the butternut squash, leeks and green pepper. Add garlic if liked.

Slosh in red wine, liquid veg stock, paprika and tomato puree. Then add the toasted kasha and enough water to cover.

Cook either on the stovetop in a covered pan or transfer to a casserole dish and cook in a very moderate oven until the kasha swells and reaches the desired consistency – probably 45-60 minutes.

Stuffed Harlequin Squash
Harlequin squash are a handy two-portion size in a distinct colour combination of pale orangey/cream and green.

One harlequin squash
Small onion chopped
3 sliced sun dried tomatoes
Two handfuls chopped peanuts
Few oz Jarlsberg cheese, grated
Fine breadcrumbs
Parsley, finely chopped
Bouillon powder

Cut the squash in half and place cut side down on an oiled baking sheet and cook in a medium oven until soft enough to be scooped out.
Fry the onion and mix with the cooked squash, sun dried tomatoes, peanuts, bouillon powder and cheese. Pack the mix back into the squash shells and top with the breadcrumbs and parsley. Dot with butter and cook in the oven for 10 minutes or until heated through and the breadcrumbs are crisped.

Pumpkin Flan

Filling

One slice of pumpkin such as Ironbark pumpkin

One egg

Bouillon powder

Grated nutmeg

Flan base

Two handfuls of each of the following:

Pumpkin seeds

Sunflower seeds

Ground almonds

Melted butter to mix

Seasoning

Roast chunks of pumpkin in veg oil in the oven until very soft. Drain and puree thoroughly. When cool, mix with well beaten egg, nutmeg and bouillon powder.

Grind the seeds and add to the ground almonds. Mix into the melted butter and season. Press into individual flan bases and cook in the oven till firm.

Place the pumpkin mix in the flan bases and return to the oven to cook till set.

The photographs are of lovely flowers I was sent – obviously ‘coz I am so deserving. But probably coz Sig Other is exhibiting his brains with some Belgians, Norwegians, assorted Celtic fringe representatives, Baltic teams and other English folks in Holland this weekend. Well done to his team which won top of his section of clever people who can recall the right facts at the right time, assisted by an ability to make links between disparate clues to get answers correct. So I get to be in Edinburgh and enjoy flowers rather than be a ‘QUAG(B)’ (quizzing wife and girlfriend (boyfriend)).

I Quagged in Tallinn one year which was fine as Tallinn is just the most glorious old city, and I got to be in a fun quiz team with Nicolas Parsons. Delightful old gentleman, but we failed in our aim (everyone in the team’s aim except NP) to come last, in spite of our disinclination to contradict a national treasure when he proposed incorrect answers.

I’ve just read that back, and can assure myself that it makes sense, at least to me.

And here’s a pic of Tallinn showing a view of the old city merging in the distance with the new.

Yummy weekend food

Continuing the sunny weekend theme from yesterday's post, this is a run through of the lovely food Sig Other and I have been scoffing.

Our 'Pemberley' picnic consisted of sandwiches filled with blue cheese, avocado and chopped walnuts, then chocolate cake, raspberry & cranberry smoothy, bananas and a walk round the gardens to digest it all.

All that National Trust culture made us hungry, and Sig Other went home and created the most delicious asparagus flan. He rolled out some gluten free frozen pastry (defrosted of course) that he'd found in Sainsburys and consulted Prue Leith's Cookery Bible to get the quantities for an egg, Emmental and double cream filling for the pastry case. This was excellent and much better than my attempts at more calorifically virtuous quiches made with Quark.

Today we went to the Unicorn, a wholefood shop in Chorlton, a very naice part of Greater Manchester and one which I now want to live in. Perhaps the nearest analogue for Edinburgh would be a bigger better Stockbridge. The major drawback would be the overwhelming numbers of 'Conservative Clubs'; so perhaps no real equivalent exists in Auld Reekie.

The Unicorn is a fantastic shop which sells reasonably priced organic produce with helpful info on cooking suggestions. This season they have a vast range of squashes and a comprehensive leaflet to take away with ideas. They also sell a terrific selection of flours, nuts, seeds, dried fruit and tons of other great stuff. As it is so reasonably priced I have no qualms about trying things I've never heard of and taking culinary 'risks' on the weird and wonderful.

The company has a worthy ethical approach to business, attempting where feasible to buy local and if not, then to source ethically, fairly traded products. Today, they had a wonderful trolley made out of metal and recycled concrete bags made by a women's co-operative in India. I've frequently thought about finding a trolley, but knowing that even voicing that desire to my daughter would result in howls of horror (will I ever grow beyond the 'embarrassing mother' stage?) However, this trolley might be ok as it avoids the bag-lady tartan of the usual commercial shopping trolleys.

Still sunny later this afternoon, so we had a BBQ. Mostly cooked shop bought mushroom burgers, but I got creative with little parcels of asparagus (in butter and lemon juice), fine green beans (in olive oil with fresh rosemary), and baby potatoes, all in foil and taking various lengths of time to cook, so that extended the BBQ fun.

Garden furniture and BBQ all tucked away now till next year as I expect that is the finale of summer in these parts.

Links
http://www.unicorn-grocery.co.uk/index.php

Can't find a pic of the concrete bag trolley, but this is a link to a similar product.
http://www.yourtomorrow.co.uk/product/12/allpurpose-cement-bag.php

Warming recipes for early autumn

Summer is not a time for cooking in my kitchen, other than super salads and easy quick cooking, so as the weather closes in and the skies darken I've taken to scrabbling around in the food cupboards in anticipation of autumn.

Two days ago, seized with enthusiasm I dug out the seed sprouting system I'd abandoned years ago when some some exotic seeds turned into a smelly disaster. I spent some time refreshing the whole thing with very dilute bleach and making sure that was all washed off, before soaking some mung beans for 45 minutes, giving them a thorough wash then sprinkling them on two trays of the BioSnacky sprouter. I've dutifully rinsed the trays three times a day and already they are sprouting vigorously in a shady corner of the kitchen. I have a sense of pride in my little growing sprouts which by Sunday I will be able to harvest. Providing I look after them ok the bean sprouts should keep in a plastic container in the fridge for up to a week. I can think of very few occupations which provide such instant gratification for so small an effort.

http://www.avogel.co.uk/shop/products/biosnacky/largegerminator.php

Moroccan stew

This is worth trying again and again. I love finding new flavours and experimenting with them - I love it even more when I make something really enjoyable, like this dish.

3 medium carrots chopped in various sizes

same amount of cooked small potatoes (left over from potato salad in this case)

3 patties of frozen spinach

2/3 tin of chickpeas

3 roughly chopped spring onions

clove of garlic

vegetable oil

stock cube/powder

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp cummin seeds

lots of black pepper

1/4 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp cayenne

one clove

Assemble the spices then saute the carrot for a few minutes in the oil before adding the spices to let them cook for a bit. Add the cooked potatoes and fry for another couple of minutes. Add the frozen spinach, garlic and spring onion. Finally add stock and a little water. Cook until the spinach is incorporated with the other veg, then add the chick peas. Leave to cook out until the sauce thickens but doesn't dry up. Allow to sit in the fridge overnight to let the flavours fully develop then heat through and serve with couscous.

Fennel loaf

2 sticks celery finely chopped

twice that amount of fennel chopped

1/4 large onion chopped

small crisp apple finely chopped

enough wholemeal breadcrumbs to bind loosely

large tbs linseeds soaked in a little water (as egg substitute and to bind the mix)

2 tbs pumpkin seeds ground up

stock/bouillon

grapeseed oil

2 oz aged Red Leicester cheese grated

two vine tomatoes sliced

Saute celery, fennel, apple and onion in the oil until soft. Remove from the heat and mix in the pumpkin seed, powdered bouillon or stock, linseeds and soaking water which should be slightly gelatinous. Add enough breadcrumbs to create a damp mixture and press into a small greased loaf tin. Cook in a moderate oven until it looks a little crisp on top the sprinkle over the grated cheese and place the sliced tomato on top. Put back in the oven for another five-ten minutes.

Green beans with lemon and tarragon polenta dumplings

200 grams green beans halved

2 large sticks celery julienned

1/4 onion chopped

2 tbs chopped tarragon

stock

juice of half a lemon

black pepper

olive oil

Saute the celery in the oil for five minutes, then add the onion and green beans. Cook for a little while before adding the stock and tarragon and lemon juice. Transfer to a casserole dish with lid and place in a moderate oven while you make the dumplings.

Polenta lemon dumplings

2 tbs veg suet

2 tbs polenta

2 tbs SR flour

1 tbs chopped tarragon

grated zest of half a lemon

Mix together and add enough water to form a soft consistency then form into 4 or 5 dumplings and carefully place on top of the green beans. Cover and return to the oven for 20 -30 minutes depending on how long it takes the dumplings to cook in your oven.

Greengage flan

Sweet short crust pastry with one oz flour substituted with ground almonds, baked blind in a flan tin.
punnet of ripe greengages halved and stoned
caster sugar
creme fraiche
vanilla extract
2 beaten eggs

Place the halved greengages on the pastry and cover with the rest of the ingredients mixed. Cook in a very moderate oven until the filling is set. This will keep in the fridge for a few days.

Visualising summer

Can I have my money back? This is not the summer I ordered online last month. No, what you’ve sent is wet, thundery and miserable. I want the blazing hot sunshine I was promised by that there weatherman. And by all the foolish optimists who spent the whole of May telling each other that the summer would be long and hot.

I suppose I’ll have to make do with a virtual summer. One that happens in my mind, or in memory.

To start this off here is a pic of a BBQ, the one and only so far this year that Sig Other and I have managed to create. We are a bit out of practice, so some things got closer to the charcoal than planned!

I adore veggie BBQ food. I used to like non-veggie, but that was a quarter century ago or more. I got hooked on BBQ food when, as a teenager I went to Canada for a stay. There, on the spacious balcony of a distant cousin’s penthouse flat on Yonge St in Toronto, we BBQ’d every night. This was BBQ at its most civilised.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonge_Street

It continued during my stay in some other distant cousin’s cabin on Lake Kashagawigamog. There are no pics of this lake as the interwebby thingy is not a suitable place to display my first and last attempt at fishing. It was a traumatic event, sitting in a small boat in the middle of the night in the middle of the lake being eaten by insects and dangling live bait off a line into the water. Most hideously, I can never forget being accidentally slapped in the face by a wriggling dying frog with which one clumsy fishing companion had baited his hook. Fortunately, I managed not to catch anything, so never faced cooking and eating something I’d killed myself –shudder!

Eventually I had to come home, leaving behind sun and BBQs but I soon invested in a small BBQ for Dad’s next birthday, so I could convert the family to this way of eating. They were happy to be converted, but we never managed the level of civilisation of my first BBQs. And rarely has the weather managed to stay hot enough to provide optimum BBQ conditions either.

I became rather adept at creating homemade dead-burgers, but have never managed to find a way of making a veggie meat-substitute burger. Until recently!

TVP burger

Soak TVP (textured vegetable protein) in water for ten minutes until it is swollen but not at all runny.
Prepare breadcrumbs (I used gluten free wholemeal bread, as it is so much lighter than ordinary)
A small amount of tahini
Very finely chop spring onion
Very finely chop a little fresh herbs of your choice
Beaten egg
Seasoning

Mix all together adding whatever extra is needed to make the mix fairly sticky and shape into very small patties. Large sized ones will crumble too easily.

These are still too delicate to grill straight onto the BBQ, so use a vegetable basket or fish griller or some other tool to contain the burgers and so that they can be turned over easily.

The easiest way to cook veggie BBQ is to skewer a selection of veggies on bamboo skewers and baste with BBQ sauce. My favourite vegetables are aubergine, which is great, sliced lengthways and brushed with marinade, as is courgette.

Halloumi cheese is substantial enough to withstand the BBQ treatment as long as you avoid the low fat one, which is too watery, so shrinks to nothing.

But actually, the very best thing about BBQs is the social aspect. It is great to share food outdoors and to take ages over cooking, chatting and enjoying a small bottle or two of Peroni, and leaving the clearing up till some other time.

April Recipes

It’s ages since I last blogged any recipes! That’s not because I’ve given up eating or cooking, but just that I’ve not made anything worth talking about. But the last wee while, I’ve rediscovered my interest in baking, so here is a brief update on what I’ve been up to in the kitchen.

Figgy Flan
Most of a packet of dried ready to eat figs
Double slosh of Madeira wine
Two oranges
Two large spoonfuls runny honey
Half a cinnamon stick

Chop the figs into odd size pieces; peel the oranges then whizz in a whizzy machine till slushy. Put all into a pan to heat until it all goes very sticky and the little seeds come out of the figs. Add this filling to a whole-wheat sweet flan case that has been baked blind and cook for a little time in a moderate oven. Feed to appreciative guests.

Banana Raisin Buns
I only had one banana deteriorating in a lonely fruit bowl*, which was not enough to make proper banana bread, so I made a small amount of mix with mashed banana, vanilla extract, egg, whole-wheat flour and lots of raisins, brown sugar and milk to mix . This went into six bun tins in a moderate oven for about 15 minutes.

* For clarity: the banana was lonely not the fruit bowl.

Coffee Walnut Buns
I used this rather good Canadian whole-wheat flour as in the previous two recipes for these buns. I used four times the amount of instant coffee any other recipe indicated so that I could actually taste the coffee flavour and plenty of chopped walnuts. The rest is a fairly standard mix. After baking and cooling these, I slathered them in butter cream icing made with maple syrup.

Sweet potato spinach casserole
This is a footery dish but worth it.
Mashed sweet potato and ordinary potato in a ratio of 2:1. Stir in plain yoghurt and a generous quantity of crumbled up feta cheese. Season.
Wilt a whole packet of baby spinach in good olive oil, add a few fresh chopped tomatoes and season with lots of paprika and veg stock.
Place the potato mixture over the spinach and bake until golden and a little crispy topping forms on the potato.

Lentils and Grains
Most cuisines have their local version of legumes and grains and in the effort to have a balanced veggie diet I keep experimenting with these types of ingredients. Luckily, my daughter loves this sort of food and happily scoffs the end results. Below are two versions I’ve made recently.

Caribbean influence rice and peas
Take roughly equal amounts of black eyes peas and long grain white rice. Cook both separately then combine with very finely chopped fresh chilli or a good pinch of chilli flakes, coconut milk and lots of fresh chopped tomatoes and coriander. Season with S&P and veg bouillon powder. Cook all together for a short time, then sprinkle finely chopped spring onion on top to serve. Can be eaten hot or cold, but I think hot was better for this dish.

Version 2: Lentils and Bulgur Wheat
This time I boiled up yellow split peas and some bulgur wheat. I combined these when cold with heaps of flat leafed parsley and celery leaves and a handful of sunflower seeds. I added lemon juice and my best olive oil and left this for several hours to let the flavours meld together. It probably could have been heated through to make a warm salad, but I enjoyed it cold.

So, not too much scoffing going on these days, but this brings me up to date and records what was nice to eat so I can make it all again sometime.

Feeding the Tax Fairy

Self Assessment time and the crucial hitting of the end of January deadline. Not being a natural form-filler I enlist help with this chore and the deal is that I get as far as I can and the Tax Fairy oversees this in exchange for as many meals as it takes evenings to complete the tax return.


The menu:


Spicy lentil soup

yellow split peas
onion
carrot
celery
stock
heaps of fresh rosemary
some fresh sage
one teaspoonful of fennel seeds, cummin seeds, coriander seeds


Served with garlic croutons


Tempeh* stuffed peppers

red peppers
Tempeh steamed then sauteed with some chopped fresh vine tomatoes, veg stock and seasonings
Stuff the softened red peppers with the Tempeh mixture and cook till done


This was served with:

Paprika Broccoli

Cooked broccoli covered with smoked paprika sauce and onion


Sultana pancakes with plum compote

Pancakes made with 50:50 flour and buckwheat flour
sultanas soaked for some hours in concentrated apple juice
a little castor sugar
teaspoon veg oil
egg
milk


Make as normal pancakes (Scotch Drop Scones type)


Plum compote
chopped fresh plums
castor sugar, quantity depending on how sweet or tart the plums are
generous slosh rose wine


Cook till the liquid begins to thicken and the plums are very soft

Serve the pancakes layered with compote and drench in cream


Serve all the above with a good French Rose.

*What is tempeh?
"Tempeh is a fermented food made by the controlled fermentation of cooked soybeans with a Rhizopus mold (tempeh starter). The tempeh fermentation by the Rhizopus mold binds the soybeans into a compact white cake. Tempeh is now rapidly becoming more popular all over the world as people look for ways to increase their intake of soybeans and isoflavones. Tempeh has a firm texture and a nutty mushroom flavour."
http://www.tempeh.info/

Cooking and other stuff

Really, what I intended to post was an eloquently pointed exposition of the despicable partiality of funding for the London Olympics. Everyone is all too aware of the ghastly mistake that those egotistical politicians and over-hyped sportsmen made in the Olympic bid for England’s capital city, with the consequent and utterly predictable drain on finances for everywhere else. So, nothing new there, then, except to reiterate that these types need only snap their muscular little fingers and Westminster gives them any money they demand. Contrast this with the parsimonious response to funding a new Forth Bridge. However, since all fair-minded bloggers will already have taken note of this, I can go onto talk about the latest in weird recipes, and leave folks to read all about this injustice elsewhere.

I have had a bottle of Akvavit sitting waiting for someone to drink it for some time. I bought it in Tallinn a while back, having tried it many years ago on a visit to Aalborg (with which Edinburgh is twinned). No one has ventured to drink it, so it needed some whacky experimentation!

Akvavit Mushroom Pate
This has a mere 4 ingredients:
Mushrooms
Butter
Half an onion
Aquavit
Plus some seasoning

It sounds unlikely but this is terrific. I was going to share it, but selfishly ate it all myself on rice cakes which it complemented perfectly.

Seed scone with linseed, sunflower seed, sesame seed, smoked paprika and cheddar cheese
Continuing in my belief that seeds provide my vegetarianish needs for a variety of protein, I decided to add them to cheese scones:

Bread flour and rice flour to make it less heavy, in a proportion of 3:1 plain flour to rice flour
Beaten egg to add texture
Cheddar cheese, but next time I’d use a smoked cheese like Applewood Smoked
Marge
Sunflower, sesame, linseeds
Half tsp smoked paprika
Baking powder
Milk to mix to stiff dough

The basic cheese scone recipe I use is in an old ‘Farmhouse Kitchen’ recipe book which has some of the best and easiest recipes I can find. Farmhouse Kitchen was a cookery programme which was on years ago and presented by comfortably competent women who really knew their stuff about plain food. When looking for info on the show, I came across the book for sale on e-bay for 75p, which seems a real bargain!
http://www2.tv-ark.org.uk/itvyorkshire/programmes.html

Anyway, being me, I can’t just follow a recipe without deviating from it in some way which is maybe why I have never made straightforward cheese scones, but have to always add seeds or change the cheese or flavouring. This is a personality flaw I could not overcome enough to pursue a successful career in chemistry as raw chemical reagents are not as forgiving as raw food ingredients, it turns out.

Orange ginger loaf with mixed nuts
Oh heaven!

Plain flour
Butter
Equal amounts castor sugar and rich brown sugar
Grated rind and juice of one orange
Grated fresh ginger, not too, too much in case you overpower the orange
Baking powder
Two eggs and a little milk
Mixed chopped nuts

Cream butter and sugar, add beaten eggs and set about it till it is suitably fluffy
Add alternate flour and egg/milk mixture
Then add the orange juice, orange rind, nuts
Cook in a lowish oven for at least 45 minutes in a loaf tin

Pear Toffee and Akvavit
Oh dear I have a dentist’s appointment coming up and how do I disguise the effects of toffee on my fillings? But what else to do with some lonely pears sitting abandoned in the fruit bowl?

Lots of castor sugar
Some butter dotted on it
Several cloves
Slosh x 2 of Aquavit
Quartered pears

Into a hot oven till it looks like the toffee may not come out of the pan without a fight

Simple Carrot, Ginger and Miso Soup
As many carrots as you can face peeling and chopping
One and a half onions
Lots of fresh ginger finely chopped
More miso than you think you need
2 tsp ground coriander
Pepper (no salt as miso is already too salty)
Oil for softening the carrots and cooking the ground coriander

When everything is soft enough, whizz in some kind of blender to a fine puree.

Some of this cooking was helped by a rather nice, if young, Argentinean Sauvignon Blanc and Freddy (what the **** did he mean in Black Bottomed Girls??). Other dishes assisted by Phil Lynott who cannot be bettered in my opinion, to the extent that I could even be tempted to revive my embryonic guitar playing*, just to begin to hope to vaguely approach his style and energy.

http://roisindubh.info/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

*In actual fact, this amounted to a very few lessons which petered out when I discovered I’d have to cut my nails, so the guitar went the same way as the piano, but more quickly, as at least I persevered for a couple of years with that.

Mixed up Moussaka and other stuff

I've been concocting in the kitchen again and thought I'd record my successes.

Mixed up Moussaka

Cooked puy lentils with whatever seasoning you fancy
Aubergine – salted and sautéed
Sliced potatoes – parboiled
Sliced vine ripened tomatoes
Fake Greek yoghurt
Egg
Conservative amount of suitable cheese (not Parmesan)
Basil
Oil for sautéing

Cook the first three ingredients separately and layer everything in a large ovenproof dish. Beat egg and yoghurt together with some seasoning and the basil then top over everything finishing with the cheese. Bake until all layers are cooked.

I use yoghurt instead of béchamel sauce, mainly because I’ve never learned to cook that sauce but also because this is healthier.


Pear & Chocolate Flan

Rich short crust pastry with the addition of some chopped mixed nuts, rested in the fridge then baked blind.
Pears quartered, cooked a bit then remove four or five quarters to keep whole while the remainder are cooked further and pureed.
Dark brown sugar
Egg – separated, the white whipped
Cocoa powder
Ground Almonds
Melted butter

Mix the pureed pear, ground almond, cocoa powder and egg yolk, melted butter, then fold in the whipped egg white. Add to the baked pastry case, decorate with the reserved pears and cook in a moderate oven till the filling is set.


Strange sultana baked objects

Complete experiment this!

Pureed cooked butternut squash
SR flour
Golden syrup
Sultanas
Egg
Small amount of oil

Mix all and bake in muffin-type container in a moderate oven. I added so many sultanas that this had the density of plutonium, so one bun was adequate to see me through from afternoon tea to dinner.

I got hold of a mini food processor in the sales, so now have the means to puree everything in sight, should I so desire. This is a 700ml one, so it is adequate for the quantities of cooking I tend to do, as I found my previous food processors too large and gave them to better homes!

Porcini Madeira Soup

Soak dried porcini for 20-30 mins, drain, reserving liquid, but try straining it in case there is grit in the porcini.
Chop mushrooms into small pieces
Thinly sliced leek
Garlic
Half a carrot – minced
¾ stick celery – minced
Soup pasta
Madeira

Stir fry the ingredients before adding the reserved porcini stock, some more water and a not too generous glug of Madeira and seasoning (with extra stock if needed) as well as the little soup pasta. Then boil up till done. If I’d had it, I’d have used little noodles instead of the pasta shapes, or maybe even alphabetti spaghetti!


Chinese-y Mushy Peas

This might sound entirely unappetising, but in fact was as tasty a dish as I’ve ever made!

Soaked and boiled marrowfat peas
Green part of a leek
One stick of celery finely chopped
Small carrot finely chopped
Garlic
Pinch of chilli flakes
Couple of star anise
Pinch of Szechwan peppers
Sesame oil
Sesame seeds

Soften the leek, carrot and celery and garlic in the sesame oil, then add the spices. Stir and add in the cooked peas. Sprinkle half the sesame seeds in an ovenproof dish, put the mixture on top and cover with the remaining sesame seeds. Bake in the oven until the mixture is set.


Raspberry Jam Buns

This is slightly adapted from my Granny’s ancient cook book.*

6 oz SR flour
2 oz cooking marge
2 oz castor sugar
One egg
Small amount of milk
Adequate raspberry jam

Rub in marge to the flour, add sugar, beaten egg and milk together and mix to a stiffish dough. Roll portions of the dough into balls and make a hole in the top of each dough ball to put a generous teaspoon of jam into and cover it up. Bake in a moderate oven till golden brown.

I usually have baking sitting around for a few days before I get bored and freeze it or give it away, but these are so good I’ll have eaten them all in 24 hours.

*The Edinburgh Book of Plain Cookery Recipes
Edinburgh College of Domestic Science
This edition is from 1932.

The book advertises some of the courses the college ran:

A three year Diploma for Teachers of Needlework, Dressmaking, Millinery and Crafts.
Certificate Course in Laundry – one term
One year Institutional Management Course for Wardens, School Matrons, Housekeepers, Manageresses of Clubs, Hotels etc.
And much more.

I think I could probably do with a short course in laundry judging by what I do to some delicates I’ve owned but wrecked!

This is probably my favourite cook book as it is so straightforward and usually foolproof, despite recipes for Dressed Sheep’s Head, Brain Cakes and other (un)savoury items.

Recipe Reminders

This is for myself, so I don't forget what I did and then can recreate it at some future point.

I made this yesterday and it turned out really rather scrummy!

Gluten Free Chocolate Sponge
6oz Dove's Farm gluten free SR flour
2 oz cocoa powder (Fairtrade organic etc)
4 oz baking margerine (Stork)
2 medium eggs
2 oz brown sugar
5 tbs raspberry jam
enough milk to mix to soft dropping consistency

Sieve flour and cocoa together, then cream marg and sugar and beat eggs. Add one spoonful flour/cocoa and one spoonful eggs and beat together; repeat till all is incorporated. Then add milk and raspberry jam and mix till it is of the right consistency for cake. Divide between two sponge tins and bake in a moderate oven for 15-20 mins. Cool for ten mins before removing from the tins.

I think there is no one way to make a cake, so either experiment or stick with your favoured method, but use the above quantities, as gluten free baking is trickier than that using wheat flour.

Serendipitous chocolate goo
I'd planned to sandwich the cake together with buttercream icing, but found an almost empty packet of icing sugar in the cupboard. I had to get creative, as no shops are open on Ne'er Day to buy some more.

1/2 oz icing sugar
glug of date syrup
1/2 oz butter
as much broken up dark chocolate as you can be bothered to put in
Melt these ingredients and cool slightly before spreading on the sponge cake.

This nearly didn't reach the cake after I sampled it. It is fudgy and slightly sweet and just delectable.

Sig Other's Butternut Squash Bake
Layers of butternut squash and potato interspersed with creme freche and topped with Brazil nut crust. Bake for ages until soft and serve with braised celery. Very yummy!

Jerusalem Artichoke and Butterbean Soup
Scrub the JA's and slice
onion
carrot
vast amount of parsley
veg stock
veg oil
seasoning

Prepare veg and saute in veg oil before adding stock and cooking till the JA's are beginning to get soft, then add a tin of butterbeans and cook till done.

Haloumi Kebabs
Pretty simple - shove mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, onion, cubed Haloumi cheese onto skewers, coat with veg oil and huge amount of basil. If you are somewhere with a BBQ, then use that, otherwise into the oven for a wee while. I served this with rosemary roasted celeriac and chicory.

'Unusual Daal'

I finally got to the sales this afternoon. I managed to choose a new frying pan which is really all that I went for, but then I spotted a table. This fits in with my overall plan for decluttering and rearranging my living space. So this is the designated table that can live in the kitchen for everyday use and be taken into the sitting room and extended for special meals. This means that I can dispose of the small and infinitely annoying gate legged table in the sitting room thus freeing up more space in that room and a major declutter of the ornaments which adorn it.

Sig Other is willing to construct the flat pack table having heaved it into and out of the car and then into the hall where, I do so hope, he will get round to this vital task first thing tomorrow. Otherwise he may continue to imagine he is on holiday with only the King William College Quiz to occupy him – hah!

I bribed him with some unusual (his description) daal and korma.

Unusual daal

Moong daal
Monge tout
Fennel
Onion
Poblano chilli
Fresh coriander
Various spices e.g. coriander powder, clove, cardamom pods, amchoor, and probably lots more that I can’t recall.

Fry spices in groundnut oil, add veg, add daal then add water and cook till daal is done.

Mooli korma

Mooli
Coconut cream
Yoghurt
Ground almonds
Lime juice
Various spices (completely different from those in the ‘unusual daal’)

Fry Spices in groundnut oil, add mooli, add the remainder of the ingredients and some water and cook till the daal is ready.

All served with chopped coriander, tomato and brown rice.

Actually, this was all very tasty, especially the mooli korma which I will certainly attempt again.

At this rate, I’m getting through the umpteen different veggies in the fridge contributed by both myself and Sig Other, but not quite yet. We still have to do something with a butternut squash and some Jerusalem artichokes, as well as more celeriac and lots of herbs.

More festive food

Feeling enthused, I made buckwheat blueberry pancakes for brunch this morning. These are gluten free and somewhat wholesome as I only added three tsp castor sugar.

Buckwheat flour
Baking powder
Xanthan gum
Blueberries
Castor sugar
Glug of carnola oil
Egg
Milk to mix

I cooked these on the hob in my frying pan which needs replaced! I used spray oil to lubricate the pan. I keep finding more and more uses for this handy product!

I had intended to go to the sales today to get a new frying pan, but the flu still has a grip on me and the idea of going out into the frost defeated my spirits, but saved my credit card any more strain by avoiding them. Although, I’d hoped at some point to get to the Pier which has gone into administration to buy more serving dishes (not that I need them) and I’m more irked by that than the travesty of Woolies, as I’d intended to save up over the next year to treat myself to one of their dark wood bedroom furniture sets to replace the boring white IKEA stuff I’ve had for ages. Well, that is not to be!

Much more annoying is that I am missing drinks with K whose 40th is today. I am also becoming weary of being told to go to the doc. It’s flu, it’s a virus and there is not a lot the GP can do!

Sig Other is making asparagus risotto to tempt my appetite tonight. To go with this, I managed to rescue some marginal radicchio by marinating it in my best olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, chopped thyme and garlic before shoving in the oven to bake/roast for a while. I saved the remaining three persimmons I’d purchased for xmas dinner starter by sautéing in butter for a moment, sloshing in Havana Club rum and orange zest then baking in the oven before sprinkling toasted coconut on top.

http://www.havana-club.com/
Interesting site! Apparently the Yanks can't get this in their country as they are still in the huff with the Cubans. Eejits!

Food Update

The feasting began with the Xmas Eve meal I made for Sig Other coming to join me for several days over the festive period. I decided we needed to have something wholesome as we'd likely overeat for at least some of the time.

White Beetroot and Quinoa

Basically, just a veg stew, but thickened with quinoa which has lots of protein even though it is a type of grain.

white beetroot (scrub the skins and leave on)
carrot
celery
onion
tomatoes
quinoa
veg stock and lots of rosemary

Chop everything fairly big and cook quickly in the pressure cooker, so it is done in only a few minutes.

I'd planned asparagus omelet for xmas breakfast, but wasn't hungry, so that will keep for another time. We began making the xmas dinner in the afternoon and aimed to eat the starter and main before Dr Who. This went horribly adrift timewise, so we half watched Dr Who (which was rubbish this year anyway) and just enjoyed our food. We also enjoyed mucking about in the kitchen too.

Starter

Mouli and Persimmon salad with Kumquat marmalade

Kumquat marmalade

I made the kumquat marmalade last night so it would infuse overnight.
kumquats, chopped and deseeded
half as much fresh ginger as kumquats
white wine
honey
bay leaf x2
powdered lemon grass
1/3 of a cinammon stick

adjust all to your own taste - I made it quite tart, so if you like sweeter add sugar or more honey. Boil for ages till it is all soft enough.

Mouli and Persimmon salad

mouli julienned
cucumber likewise
persimmon fruit cubed
salad leaves (I included lambs lettuce and chicory)

Three continents dressing
1x rice wine vinegar
1x agave syrup
1x argan oil
teeny bit garlic
salt and pepper

This was a light and refreshing salad to start with.

To follow ....

Fennel and savoury frangipane individual tartlets

With gluten free plain flour and the addition of a tsp dill seed and 1 tsb chopped mixed nuts, make short crust pastry to line tartlet cases and bake blind.

Whip one egg white reasonably stiffly and combine with two tbs chestnut puree (unsweetened) and one large tsb ground almonds. Place in the bottom of the tartlet cases. Saute fennel with olive oil and add a little powdered bouillon. Place on top of the savoury frangipane.
Bake for a short time until frangipane is set and fennel is golden.

Celeriac, parsnip and sage bake

Boil and mash celeriac and parsnip. Combine with chopped sage and single cream. Top with Parmesan gratin mix and bake in the oven for a short time. Serve all with the usual xmas veg and red current jelly or cranberry sauce or some such thing that you like.

Slosh back sufficient quantities of Pouilly Fuisse and eventually eat pud with vanilla liqueur sauce (Sainsbury's) and Muscat.

Revive self with Turkish coffee and any liqueur you fancy.

Seedy Snacking

I'm writing the long list of provisions I will need for the forthcoming feast, and many that I just think I'll need. Of course, the shops are only closed for one day and really, it is not as though I am incapable of surviving until they open again by modifying whatever I'd planned to make. And if it is unplanned, then living on the edge recipe-wise is an interesting challenge.

I'm putting off the shopping until I can't put it off any longer. It is unedifying to see, often fairly elderly ladies grabbing the last brussles sprouts in some kind of frenzy. But I suppose I better do it soonish.

Storing all this will tax the dimensions of my rather compact fridge which is stuffed with nuts and seeds and dried fruit as well as bottles and jars of things that people keep telling me I could keep in a cupboard. But I think lots of things need to be in the fridge, especially when the central heating is on in case it all goes a bit off.

So, I thought I'd try to make some space by using up some of the nuts and seeds by making something to snack on.

Ingredients:
(handful of everything unless otherwise specified)

pumpkin seeds

sunflower seeds

chopped mixed nuts

linseeds (soaked in boiling water for 15 mins then drained)

sesame seeds

3 tsp pomegranate seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbs dark tahini

1 dessertspoon tamari

1 oz melted butter

Method
Mix tamari, tahini and butter then mix in all the rest. Put into a baking tray and into a low oven for 10-15 minutes till it smells roasted and allow to cool before trying to divide into little squares.
Next time, I'll try other flavours like tamarind paste and probably increase the butter content to make it firmer and also spread it out more thinly to make it crisper.

Foodly discussions

Being veggie is a challenge at this time of year. This is about creating a feast that has to make do without the centrepiece of a large cremated bird. Starting from an attitude of deficit is not helpful so I prefer to turn this around and look at the positives of creating something (probably) no one else is eating.

For many years, I liked the sheer unplannedness of buying whatever took my fancy and getting into the kitchen early in the morning and while then Sig Other wrestled big bird to the ground and spread salmonella far and wide, I’d assemble bits and pieces around me and see what happened. I realise that this is too haphazard for most people, but it worked for me.

These days I’m still adjusting to the fact that current Sig Other wants more than a say in what we eat festively. Being a complete foodie whose interest in cooking began at university, he can teach me a fair amount, but I’m not used to sharing my spontaneous ‘see what happens’ technique with a forward planner.

Here’s what happens: At some point in December one or the other of us will make mention of xmas dinner. We’ll independently have a look online for inspiration. I’ll come up with a list of what we don’t want and make suggestions of what I do think we should have. Sig Other will shudder delicately at some of my ideas, I’ll passionately defend them and then give in.

I’ll do the shopping then he will spend most of the day in the kitchen creating something fabulous while I get relegated to the starter. Pudding is always traditional and we never manage to eat it till next day as we are too stuffed.

I do have some rules for xmas dinner that I have maintained throughout my veggie life:
No pasta
No mushrooms
No tomato sauce
No rice
No cheese
No pastry
No curry/Italian/Chinese/other usual stuff I eat

The reasons for the above are that those foods are the staples of a veggie diet, especially when eating out, so there is no way we’re having them at xmas. The odd occasion I’ve broken my rules is when I’ve been staying with people or on holiday when it is just too difficult to insist on them, and sometimes, I’ve been provided with an M&S concoction that has been adequate.

This year, I’ve got thoughts of celeriac mash and sherry gravy. Discussions about what to go with this have stalled. I normally don’t want pastry, but I bought some little tart tins from Habitat and haven’t yet used them, so I’m considering what to make in them. I began exploring the idea of savoury frangipane as a base on which to lay a vegetable such as fennel. Now, frangipane is almonds and sugar which is in gooey sweet confections, but I think it can be made savoury possibly with chestnut puree. Sig Other has taken agin my idea, and is adamant that this will not go with sherry gravy. Ok, I tend to agree on that point, but I’m sure my idea has possibilities and he’s not made an alternative suggestion yet.

I’m completely stumped for ideas for the starter as soup is too filling and I’ve done everything I can think of with chicory in previous years.

The Vegetarian Society has a useful website with xmas food ideas.

http://www.vegsoc.org/cordonvert/recipes/christmas.html

I avoid American vegan/veggie sites as they all seem to have unhealthy connections to Peta, the woman-hating extremists. These are the people who seem to think that exploiting women is ethical as long as it gets the message over about saving animals – wrong!

Nice Shiny New Road

I drove down the M74/M6 on Friday, possibly not long after some worthy had declared the new stretch of motorway open that finally joins the M74 /M6 to Carlisle.
http://news.careerstructure.com/article/view/north-west/18914345/m6-extension-opens-between-carlisle-and-guards-mill/

I’ve been slowly, slowly negotiating the roadwork’s there for several years as the new bridge was built and the road widened. I know lots of people believe more roads encourage more cars, and that’s probably true, but as a motorist I think safety is crucial and there is no doubt that the old road was not safe. To say nothing of a ridiculous anomaly between major cities.
http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/projects/5069.aspx

What I noticed, was that the roadside has been planted with squillions of trees/bushes and that generally, it all looks neat, tidy and new. There are also some signs from the contractor proudly boasting that one million hours were worked safely. I imagine that is something to boast about, especially as these people are working in all weathers and with muckle big machines – so well done them.

Unfortunately, on the return journey, my car was not distracted by the speed and efficiency of this new stretch and still drove itself into the Gretna shopping outlet where its owner had lunch in between spending money. And just to prove that although I am utterly Bah Humbug! I completed part one of the compulsory pressie fest seeking. Now I just have to remember who I bought what for in the heap of bags cluttering up my hallway.

At least there is an absolute treat in store this evening at the book group pot-luck xmas dinner. I’ve prepared bean + nut roast with tomato + red onion roasted in balsamic vinegar and olive oil with rosemary (picked fresh from Sig Other's garden first thing this morning), with roast pumpkin.

Yes, it is all a bit ‘roasty’ but it means I can carry it ‘artfully’ arranged in one dish to go into the oven and (hopefully) this won’t spill out over the car in transit. The treat, is of course, that everyone makes far too much food, especially puddings and we all get to try different things. I usually find it rather intimidating as everyone else is such great cooks.

Fake food and fatuous reminiscences

Recently I heard about vegan black pudding. In a trivial bout of synchronicity, I found it in a farm shop in Lancaster some days later and promptly bought it. It is called V-Pud and contains beetroot and herbs as well as other meat substitutes.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/first-vegetarian-black-pudding-has-lancashire-meat-lovers-spluttering-424652.html
The article is brief, but the comments are worth scanning as clearly, this has divided views in the vegan/veggie world because it is made by the producers of meat products. Some people have expressed opinions that to buy this is to prop up the animal slaughterers while others are simply glad to have an alternative to a food they liked before becoming veggie. I can see both sides of this argument and have felt that before in regard to McSween’s veggie haggis. In that particular case I don’t have to act on any philosophical beliefs as although I quite like the product, it really doesn’t like me. In fact I prefer Hall’s veggie haggis as it does respect my digestive system, but Hall’s also make vast quantities of food out of dead animals.

There is also the illogical argument from some carnivores who fail to think through why some veggies would want acceptable substitutes for common foods. In our culinary tradition, it is just easier to cook sausage shaped stuff and to continue with some form of non-meat and two veg.

I had no inspiration for a recipe with the V Pud, so cooked a full vegan breakfast for my daughter and self. This consisted of hash browns, baked beans, V Pud and fake bacon. It was fine and my daughter who has never eaten non-veggie black pudding enjoyed it, although she said it was a little bit minty tasting. Her other comment was that she'd prefer to have a veggie version of Lorne sausage. I never liked that, so had never thought of it. I can't see this happening as Lorne sausage is probably only eaten locally hereabouts so there wouldn't be much of a market for a meat free version.

On the whole, the V Pud was ok, but unless I was doing brekky for a vegan I probably won’t buy it again for some time.

Daughter graciously pretended to listen to my reminiscences about black pudding while eating. I recalled buying black pudding suppers from the local chippy as a teenager on the way home from the youth centre disco’s in the 70’s. These were ideal snacks as they were halved puddings deep fried in batter and cost 10p.

10p was half of my pocket money in those days, the other half being spent on entry fee to the youth club disco. My friend E was given 50p for her allowance. I’m not sure if that underlay some of the adolescent conflicts that frequently arose between us, but it did not help!

E and I were either “awfy, awfy close” or “awfy, awfy in the huff” throughout the mid 70’s. In time we drifted apart, aided by her marriage to an Eastern European missionary and their eventual settlement in Scandinavia. Is it cynical of me to comment, that if you fancy being a missionary, selling your god in Scandinavia is more comfortable than some other places? But wherever she and her family are, I wish her well.

Food before I forget

Before I forget what interesting, and usually tasty things I’ve made recently I am writing them down. This is partly why I created this blog as I seldom remember what I cook or bake and then can't repeat the good things. Although I get very bored eating the same food too often, but there are times when it is easier just to repeat rather than invent. And there are times when beans on toast is easiest of all.

Lemon curd pudding
Ginger bread I’d baked a few days ago was getting stale. I sliced it thinly, spread it with lemon curd and steeped it in egg custard mixture before baking in a low oven. It made a lot more than I anticipated, so I’ll be eating it for a while, as I don’t think it could be frozen.

Corn bread
Mix ratio of 1:4, SR flour and quick cook polenta with a small handful of finely chopped sun dried tomatoes. Then whisk one egg with some milk and a Tbs ground nut oil. Combine all before baking in a moderate oven in a liberally greased pie dish.

I made it drier than I’d have liked, but the good thing was that it lasted ok in the fridge for a couple of days. I ate it hot with yellow courgette ribbons sauted in olive oil with roasted pine nuts, fresh herb pesto and Grand Padano shavings.

The fresh herb pesto was easily made from flat leaf parsley, mint and coriander, with a clove of garlic, and seasoning, moistened with olive oil. I used my mezullina to chop it all, which can be a bit of a faff, but at other times is a productive use of aggression.

Adzuki beans
One of my favourite pulses is adzuki beans. They are apparently very yang (or do I mean yin?), which makes them very good for you. I boiled them up till softish and added black cardamom pods (2 or 3), one kaffir lime leaf and cooked till done. Then I added veg stock and coriander seeds. I topped this vague approximation of a shepherdess pie with parsnip and carrot mash seasoned with fenugreek seeds.

The most surprising aspect of this culinary adventure, was Sig Other’s reaction; it seems this was one of the best things I’ve ever cooked him. I considered it merely passed muster.

Choco tofu pud
Being easily seduced by any brown powder designated cocoa, I much preferred this inspired experiment to the above: silken tofu (bought in error), rather more date syrup than calorifically wise, two vastly overfilled tablespoons Freetrade, organic and otherwise saintly cocoa powder, oh, and a little butter for sheen. Melt date syrup, cocoa powder and butter and whizz together with silken tofu. Top with chopped nuts – hazel nut for preference. Cool in the fridge until your willpower gives up. The good thing about this is that it doesn’t last; therefore it is wasteful not to eat it all within two/three days, thereby absolving you from all calorific sinfulness.

Baked Samosas
Sublime! I used a pastry made from 50:50 plain flour and gram flour with a teaspoon of turmeric. Cut into rounds, and fill with potato, red onion, fresh coriander, mint and ginger with spices such as mustard seed, amchur, garam massalla and anything else you fancy. Seal the edges of the samosas and bake in a medium oven for not very long.

I had intended these to be my contribution to a visit to my mother and daughter, but I ate one to test as soon as they came out of the oven, and sort of kept going. However, as my daughter called to inform me she’d made an After Eight cheesecake no one is going to notice a shortfall in the samosas.

Screechin’ n’ cookin’, an’ screechin’ wheels

This is what happens when there is an extra hour on a Sunday!

I’m daft enough at times to even try to fool myself about cause and effect. So when my eyes were watering while I was gently and so slowly heating mint, lime and red onion chutney I blamed the fumes of onion, chilli, lime and cider vinegar for my streaming eyes and sore throat.

It couldn’t have been the strain of singing ‘Angie’ along with Mick, but an octave higher, could it? I’ve never been a soprano, and now, with only sporadic singing attempts and 15 years after smoking for fifteen years, there is no way I’m going to hit these notes without tears.

Anyway, the reason for the so very slow cooking was to give the hemp oil protection from over heating so that the precious omegas of assorted numerals would be safe from destruction at higher temps. And the chutney is because of the success of my kiwi, mint and lime marmalade in a recent recipe experiment and another surfeit of mint and limes. Sensible souls would have plumped for the alternative use for limes and mint and made cocktails.

While all this was going on I was also making chocolate sponge pudding with free trade organic cocoa powder and raspberry jam through it. Absolutely scrumlicious. There was more of it than expected, so I’ll freeze it and keep it until I buy really good vanilla ice cream to go with it.

Further screechin’ (of gears) occurred as I went to forage for a new car. I took some little green coloured kind of car plus its intrepid salesperson for a spin round the Edinburgh by-pass while trying it out. Said salesperson was calm about my driving and entirely respectful of me and my requirements for a new car.

This was in stark contrast to the not-all-that-bothered salesperson I saw last week or the completely smarmy and patronising one of the week before. Guess which one got my business?

Upshot is I am, or will be when they get it delivered for me, the possessor of a new car. I am still waiting for the excitement to kick in, but as I find car buying one of the worst tasks in life, I am relieved just to have made a decision.

My existing vehicle is the bane of my life as I cannot drive it to my satisfaction because the seat is too low for me to see well enough to reverse. It also has me screechin’ and shrieking at it regularly as it never seems to work for long without expensive car-doctoring, which just gets me down. I want a mechanical object to work to the specifications it describes in the owners manual. I have to think optimistic thoughts that this latest vehicle will serve me long and faithfully.