Its days are numbered ...

DawnW

Grrr my battery died, then when I sorted that, rebooted etc, the forum decided I needed to log in AGAIN, and I always forget my password :mad: Still, 5th time lucky!

Nice today here, despite the dire weather predictions. Not hot, but sunny and pleasant. Went for a walk along the canal with the dog, and popped in to the indoor car boot sale (the outdoor ones are all cancelled due to waterlogged fields) and bought coriander and dill plants and some rhubarb from someone's garden

Been in the garden ever since, currently stopped for lunch. I have freed the spring cabbages from their protective bird netting, which they had grown too big for, done some weeding and staked the peas. Also planted some living salad I bought at the supermarket yesterday (far cheaper than lettuce plants, and grows on nicely if you put it in a bigger container), and the dill and coriander plants. I still need to sow French bean and cucumber seeds, and stake the sweet peas, so will get back out there in a minute and make the most of the sunshine.

Soup to make later - as we had a roast yesterday, we are going to have ham and vegetable soup today with some nice warm bread (part baked baguette from Aldi). Very frugal! Pear and plum cobbler left over from yesterday for pud though

Another day off tomorrow - bliss

shala_moo

DawnW wrote: »

Also planted some living salad I bought at the supermarket yesterday (far cheaper than lettuce plants, and grows on nicely if you put it in a bigger container), and the dill and coriander plants. I still need to sow French bean and cucumber seeds, and stake the sweet peas, so will get back out there in a minute and make the most of the sunshine.

Thanks for this tip.. i've always looked at the living salad plants in the supermarkets but never bought one.. might try them next time, although the rate OH goes through salad i'll probably have to have a windowsill full!

DawnW

I got the garden all sorted yesterday, which is just as well as it is raining today!

Housework today :eek: Not nearly so much fun. Certainly needs doing though. Sitting room might need to wait as we still have the next door neighbour's huge box resplendent in the middle of it :eek: No excuse not to tackle the other rooms though! To be honest I did make a start yesterday evening when clearing up after OH's carpentry work in the hall.

OH is fixing the shelves in the new larder I have ordered some fablon (does anyone remember that?) in lovely retro patterns from ebay to cover them. I can't wait to see what all my jars of preserves look like in there!

There is still the outside to paint, beading to fix round the perforated metal stuff OH has used for ventilation above the door, etc, but it is nearly done :j

I am making a sausage, lentil and mushroom casserole from Nigel Slater's '30 minute cookbook' later. I have made it several times before, and like most of his recipes, it always goes down well. I must do this, as noticed that one of the remaining packs in OH's French sausage mountain is nearing its use by date :rotfl:

I also have HM French bread pizzas (had a bit of French stick left yesterday and it had gone stale) and some soup left though, so I will probably use these up today and have the sausage and lentil thing tomorrow after work.

MatyMoo

* creeps out of lurking*

to say please may I have that sausage & lentil recipe, I have those 3 ingredients in stock and have been wondering what to make.

Do you serve it on its own or with veggies or anything?

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

Hi Dawn, let's hope the neighbours return today and drop round to pick up their box, with a lovely thank you gift in hand

Isn't it great when the gardens are all up to date with chores - I get real pleasure from looking at the veg growing

Tilly x

ammonite

Is fablon like sticky backed plastic? My Nan and Grandad had a larder with a shelf covered in sticky backed plastic (perhaps it was fablon!) in a 60's patterned blue flower/tartan combo. Even just three years ago when Grandad died he still had that shelf. I took a photo of it before the whole house was re-decorated as it held so many memories! Must have been there a good 50 years!

I bet your jams and preserves will look lovely in there Dawn!

DawnW

ammonite wrote: »

Is fablon like sticky backed plastic? My Nan and Grandad had a larder with a shelf covered in sticky backed plastic (perhaps it was fablon!) in a 60's patterned blue flower/tartan combo. Even just three years ago when Grandad died he still had that shelf. I took a photo of it before the whole house was re-decorated as it held so many memories! Must have been there a good 50 years!

I bet your jams and preserves will look lovely in there Dawn!

Yes - it is sticky back plastic! If you were skint like me back in the 70s, a piece of plywood covered in this was your worktop - none of your granite or solid oak :rotfl:

DawnW

MatyMoo wrote: »

* creeps out of lurking*

to say please may I have that sausage & lentil recipe, I have those 3 ingredients in stock and have been wondering what to make.

Do you serve it on its own or with veggies or anything?

Ooh sorry, hope it isn't too late - I will post it tonight! Got to get backside in gear ready for work now :eek:

DawnW

DawnW wrote: »

Ooh sorry, hope it isn't too late - I will post it tonight! Got to get backside in gear ready for work now :eek:

Right, Nigel Slater's sausage with lentils (with a few changes from me - sorry Nigel )

for 2-3 people:

100g lentils (Nigel says the posh green ones from France, but I use whatever I have in, they all work).
75g bacon, pancetta, ham, whatever you have along those lines (you guessed it, Nige suggests pancetta...)
I small onion, chopped
100g muushrooms, chopped roughly
I large clove of garlic, crushed, chopped or sliced as you prefer, or even some of that lazy stuff from a jar
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (you can leave this out, but as I have it in the garden most of the time, it usually stays in)
4 -6 pork sausages - any kind, but posher ones probably best. However, even tinned frankfurthers count!

Rinse the lentils. Chop up the bacon or ham and fry in a deep pan till the fat runs - if you need to, add a tablespoon of oil. Add the onion, frying gently in the fat till it starts to soften, then add mushrooms and garlic. Stir, put lid on the pan, and cook for about 5 minutes. Watch if your pan is not a heavy one!

Add lentils, and enough water or stock to cover by an inch or som (about 600ml) Cook until the lentils are tender, watching that they don't boil dry. Season with salt and black pepper, stir in the parsley.

Meanwhile, cook the sausages till done to your liking, either in another pan, or under the grill.

When the sausages are done, turn up the heat under the lentil mixture to evaporate most but not all of the liquid (if necessary), slice the sausages, serve them on hot plates over a bed of lentils.

You only need nice bread with this - the veg are already in it!

Adapted from Nigel Slater's 'The 30 Minute Cook' which I would thoroughly recommend for people like me that rush in late from work and have to dream up a meal in a hurry! I love all his books though - Kitchen Diaries is my favourite!

DawnW

Right, quick update:

Neighbour's son appeared yesterday afternoon, so we no longer have their huge parcel :T

Nigel S's lentil and sausage recipe above for Maty

My larder is done all except for the fun bits of decorating the shelves and deciding what to put where :j I was very impressed with OH - he chose the colour to paint the door *all by himself* and has chosen a lovely soft grey from a heritage range, that tones in well with the other colours in the house :T All the other doors in the house are reclaimed stripped pine, and although these are pine as well, it is new wood, and they do not look vaguely alike. I was particularly impressed as this is the man who once painted a spare bedroom in the same lurid pink colour as those pictures you see (or at least I have seen them, in a previous line of work) of the insides of people's intestines :eek::eek:

Back to work, and assorted nightmares. I have a disciplinary issue to deal with, and narrowly avoided, I hope, a 'situation' with an external agency (can't go into detail, but no, I don't work for M15). Meanwhile, ex boss wants me to go round with my begging bowl to potential collaborators to try to raise £0.5m :eek:

No wonder I long for my vegetable patch, chickens and larder :rotfl: