How to Get Through The Tough Times The Old Style Way.

gillst_2

Chocclares chinese chicken is absolutely delicious. Made extra to have cold tomorrow, but we loved it so much we ate it all tonight! Will definitely be doing it again, and again and again.....
First day off work on compressed hours went really well, although I am absolutely exhaused - loads of housework done. Lovely having the time to cook - as well as the chicken managed to get a rice pudding and a loaf of bread done.

lora

Another delicious BS recipe. 3tbsp olive oil and 50g butter. Add 2 chopped onions-fry for 10 mins. Stir in 2tsps chopped thyme and rosemary and 2 chopped cloves of garlic, 1 cubed BS and 1 chopped sweet potato. Season very well and cook for 15 mins-stirring often. Stir in 150ml white wine and turn heat up for a couple of minutes-wine will reduce by half. Reduce heat-add 4 chopped tomatoes ( from one of your stash GQ ) and 150ml vegetable stock. Stir and boil gently for 10 mins. Heat grill. Stir thru 100ml double cream and sliced 200g of goat's cheese or mozza or whatever you have-- Under grill until cheese has melted and started to brown. Can be served with couscous and crunchy salad. I find it very filling on its own.

Kittikins

Lora - Thank you for the recipe, it sounds delicious, I'm going to have to go and get myself a butternut squash today, although it will be a 'shame' to open a bottle of wine just for dinner

GreyQueen

Wow, are there some excellent cooks on this thread or what?! I'm seriously going to up my game with all this to choose from. I cooked the CCCC again last night and it came out wonderfully and I'll have it cold tonight. ChocClare, does it freeze OK? (who am I kidding, that I can ever bear to put it away for the future...;))

I've decided that I shall feed my friends a vegetarian chili on Sunday but I may well cook it on Saturday. Some discreet research has revealed that the peeps are fine with soya mince or tofu but not OK with a branded product beginning with Q. I shall be heading up to the health food shop in pursuit of mince later today but I could use some pointers, if people have experience of using it? My usual chili is mainly kidney beans anyway but I guess the beef mince is giving it some of the flavour? Should I add seasoning/ spices over and above the pkt chili mix I normally use as I'm guessing soya mince would be nourishing but pretty flavourless?

Btw, does anyone have an idea of a low calorie dessert which would be compatible with a spicy main? One of my guests doesn't do dairy and another is on a very serious GP-organised diet and I wouldn't want to disrupt her weight loss as she's doing so well but it doesn't seem right to have nothing for pudding, IYKWIM. I'm sort of stuck with a fresh fruit platter......sorry for beind such an uninspired meal planner but I'm so poorly with 9.5 months of acute sleep dep that I'm turning into a complete airhead....:(

freda sorry to hear you have gallstones, people say that they're excruciating...hope you get a surgery soon.

redlady fingers crossed for your mortgage re-valuation, hope you hear good news today and aren't left on tenterhooks all weekend.

ceridwen I am pleased to report that there are only 72 cans of tomatoes under the bed (and 5 in the food cupboard) and I will restock the cupboard from under the bed. And then.....there will be room for some more under there......:) (cackles maniacally).

gailey The Idiot Boy didn't come in at all last night...great news!

Well, today will be a jolly jape at the office as the housing program was taken down at close of business yesterday for it's 3 day annual uprating. For my team it will mean that just about anything a customer will want to know will be answered with; "I'm sorry, please call back on Monday." Guess who will get their ears chewed off by the public......loathe this time of the financial year but I have Monday as flex and will be planting spuds, weather permitting. Roll on the weekend when this particular allotment nerd can follow her natural instincts.

Anyone else planted their tatties yet?

((Hugs to all)) GQ x

scotsaver

GreyQueen - I've not planted my Potatoes yet, I usually do it around Easter time but I've noticed on other Threads that some people have already put their's in. No-one on our Allotment has put their's in and we are just outside London.

charlies-aunt wrote: »

. . . . . anyone else switched their heating off yet?

Ours has been off and on this week as we had a couple of Frosts again at the start of the week. We had our Bills in just over a week ago and we had used slightly less Electricity than the equivalent Quarter last year and just about the same amount of Gas so we must be doing something right.;)

lora wrote: »

Another delicious BS recipe. 3tbsp olive oil and 50g butter. Add 2 chopped onions-fry for 10 mins. Stir in 2tsps chopped thyme and rosemary and 2 chopped cloves of garlic, 1 cubed BS and 1 chopped sweet potato. Season very well and cook for 15 mins-stirring often. Stir in 150ml white wine and turn heat up for a couple of minutes-wine will reduce by half. Reduce heat-add 4 chopped tomatoes ( from one of your stash GQ ) and 150ml vegetable stock. Stir and boil gently for 10 mins. Heat grill. Stir thru 100ml double cream and sliced 200g of goat's cheese or mozza or whatever you have-- Under grill until cheese has melted and started to brown. Can be served with couscous and crunchy salad. I find it very filling on its own.

lora - thanks for this Recipe, I'm going to be growing BNS for the first time on the Allotment this Year so shall add this to my list of Recipes to try. We're also trying to cut down on the amount of Meat we eat so need some tasty veg recipes.:)

Hoping to get some more Seeds sown today and also got the Oven to clean.:eek:

Have a good day everyone.:D

Hardup_Hester

We planted our spuds last weekend GQ that's the Royal 'we' by the way, I knitted & watched from the sideline & applauded enthusiastically.
Hester

ceridwen

GreyQueen

Perhaps some sort of water ice - freeze up nice fruit juice and "mush it up" as a sort of granita maybe? Maybe dotted with a bit of suitable fresh fruit and with a bit of lite fromage frais to pour over it if required?

Red_Doe

Thanks to two, rare, nice warm and sunny days, I sowed some seeds and put some brassica seedlings out in the garden using cut down lemonade bottles as mini cloches. And what happened? Yup. It snowed. And is now frosty. Groan. Does anyone know if the seeds will make it? Is it too late to run out there and put some fleece down over them (as I should`ve done in the first place) *blush*

Bigsister

Grey Queen.
What about a sorbet, that would be nice and fresh after a spicy meal and I don't think there are too many fats and calories nor dairy in it and you can get ready made store own brands or maybe individual pots, just serve up beforehand and hide the pots!

I feel for you, we have only had 2 nights of disturbed sleep since a young family with a child that doesn't seem to sleep but scream every 1.5 hours moved in next door, its so hard to come into work on 1-2 hrs sleep that was patchy at best.

I am going to look out for ear plugs tonight!

JenniO

In the last month, I think we've only had our heating on 4 times and that was only from 7 to 11 A.M. :eek: We're right blinking hard here in the North East, aren't we Kezlou?

But my good news is we've finally saved up the money and we're getting a cast iron fireplace put in our bedroom in 2 weeks. Yep, just when we won't need it but hey, the thought of never being cold again in my bedroom makes me really happy! And, ooh, love the smell of wood burning and the crackle sound!

There used to be one in the room anyway, apparently. It's funny how I seem to be turning my house back to truly OS with a larder put back in, the fireplace going in and do I dare mention we're now saving up for a wood burning stove for the summer!!! Bliss....:D