The OS Doorstep - a helpful and supportive thread in these tough times

ivyleaf

Aw kidcat, what a rotten time for you, sending you huge (((HUGS))). did you manage to find a cleaner in the end? I can't remember properly but seem to recall you were thinking of hiring someone for a couple of hours a week.

monnagran - I hope you managed to get some sleep and didn't have to spend all night composing and typing.

D & DD Good luck to your son!

Yes, isn't it cold and dreary today Mrs LW? It's been quite mild here recently so I'd decided that today I'd wash all my winter clothing and put it away until the autumn, but here I am back in jeans, jumper and thick socks! Still, it is still only April so i suppose I was expecting too much.

Sorry not to reply to everyone, it's beyond me!

I really hope the Bank Hol weekend will be dry as we're going to a craft show down in Kent on the Saturday - we go every year and take our DD1. She doesn't often get a chance to get into the country as doesn't have a car.

The craft show's gone a bit more upmarket these days, and this year there's apparently going to be a "cafe bar" where one can buy a glass of prosecco :eek: I think we'll make do with a cuppa from one of the catering vans

kidcat

Ivy Thank you. Yes I have a cleaner who blitzes downstairs for me on a Friday morning.
Wow prosecco at a craft fair is a new one by me. It's usually tea and coffee at our local fairs with rather nice cakes.

[Deleted User]

I've just undone the string on the wonderbag and the casserole is cooked to perfection and the casserole dish was still so hot I had to use oven gloves the lift it on to the cooling wrack, 10 minutes at the boil followed by 5 hours free retained heat cooking instead of a couple of hours in the oven has to be good yes? I tasted a little bit and it's really nice too. Got to be GOOD!!!

IVYLEAF I woke up so chilly last night that I had to get a blanket out and snuggle under that before I could get off to sleep again, silly weather and still it rains cats and dogs outside. The lurcha has refused to get up for afternoon walkies, he keeps looking out of the window and settling back down again in his chair, we'll wait for it to slow down before we try again, Lyn xxx.

savingqueen

That wonderbag sounds well wonderful! Maybe I should have got that instead of a slow cooker. Mmmmmm

I am pleased to report I had a mini lightbulb (energysaving of course) moment in counselling. I have made a couple of decisions since, fairly big ones at that. Will share later. Need to concentrate on cooking in a mo and not get sidelined.

Also stopped procrastinating (love that word) and booked DS9-to-be-10's party. Choosing a less well known/less glitzy venue has worked out at half the cost of the popular place, is more accessible for anyone without a car, less noisy/busy (important for my 2 and some others attending) and as its smaller we have the lasar thingy room to ourselves so a couple of adults can go in with our special needs/younger guests. They also offer a buffet choice as well as the usual chips and things meals which suits the birthday boy as he doesn't like chips and another child with eating issues. I am mightily pleased with myself. We don't do many organised parties as such so quite a big deal and DS9 is over the moon with his party.

hokey cokey... off to cook, everyone is hungry and I am feeling lazy so a simple spaggy bog will tick the boxes

sq

savingqueen

talking of cakes, one of our party invitee's mothers has just replied to my text and that has resulted in us arranging a very long overdue meetup. She suggested a cafe that does nice cakes... I confessed I had been there myself today (treat after counselling) and she replied so had she! Another cake sister hee hee

Mrs LW - what else goes in your sausage and bacon casserole please? I like the sound of it. Hope you enjoy/have enjoyed it.

Possession

Kidcat that sounds horrible, I hope DD comes to her senses a bit and DH stops work long enough to be some help.
Our fridge freezer is driving me crazy, there's something wrong and it's beeping like mad. We had a repairman out yesterday who suggested it was too full and we should defrost it (it's supposed to be self-defrosting), but I've managed to take some out and create a lot more space in there and the beeping hasn't stopped. So anyway meals here are going to be eaten out of the freezer for the considerable future.
Last day of the school hols and we got totally soaked taking the dogs for a walk. It's cold and wet and there are lots of (temporarily) flooded roads here. I've even turned the heating on and it's been off for a good 5 or 6 weeks. Brr.

Found some rusty tins where I wasn't storing them well. It has only happened very recently, anyone know if we can still eat the contents?

[Deleted User]

Hi SQ the casserole is a great success, the wonderbag is a very useful gadget, home made and cost me not a penny as I had all the bits already just had some help from DD1 to make it as it's fiddly getting the polystyrene beads into the compartments on your own.

Sausage and Bacon Casserole

6 meaty sausages
1 pack of bacon lardons (£1 from Iceland)
1 onion )
1 carrot ) all peeled and either cubed for oven cooking or
1 stick of celery ) sliced thin for slow cooking
1 large potato )
1/2 a small tin of sweetcorn (He Who Knows had the other half for fishing)
1 tin of beans (any kind - I used black beans)
1 carton of passata
1 ham stock cube
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon herbs de provence
a glug of apple juice concentrate
a glug of tomato ketchup
a glug of cooking red wine
celery salt
salt and black pepper
a little bit of oil

put the oil in a heavy casserole and brown the sausages. Remove them to a plate and add the bacon to the pan and seal it. Add the onion, carrot,celery,potato and sweat with the lid on for 10 minutes over a low flame. Add everything else to the casserole and put the sausages back in, bring to the boil and pop into a moderate oven for about 1 - 1 and a half hours.

If you're using a wonderbag boil the casserole for 10 minutes then put it into the wonderbag, seal it up tight and leave it for 5 hours.

You could pop it all into a slow cooker, make sure you cut the veg really thin to make sure it cooks through and cook it on high for 5 - 7 hours.

We had it for supper tonight on half each of a very large jacket potato and it was very nice. Hope you enjoy it if you decide to try it, Lyn xxx.

If you are cooking this in a slow cooker you might like to check it once in a while for liquid levels as the passata is quite thick and you might need to add in a little boiling water if it gets dry on the bottom.

wondercollie

That casserole sounds lovely. We don't get bacon lardons here. Bacon is always streaky (more fat than bacon if the truth be told). I use it more for flavour than as a meat.


Mr. Collie is recovering well from his tick. He'll be on antibiotics for another three weeks!. Poor love thinks he's getting the best treats. I wrap his pill in some liverwurst and he sits and watches the process and the eats it up. Doctor says he can go to the groomers after next week. His dogtor has a soft spot for Collies. Turns out his wife won't let him have a dog! She's a cat woman.


My youngest surprized us all and signed up for a college course. He starts Monday! It's got an apprenticeship period attached and he is pretty much guaranteed a job at the end. There are only a total of five students in his class and the local health authority has 26 vacancies for his trade. So he's a happy bunny. Anything will be better than having him do snow removal again next winter! I worried so much when he'd be gone for 14 hours in the cold and dark.


I had whatever was going around. Fatigue, shivers, runny nose. Slept nearly all last weekend!


I hope your weather is as good as ours. Dry and some sun. it's supposed to be in the 20s next week!

[Deleted User]

WONDERCOLLIE 200g of streaky bacon chopped up will be exactly the same as 200g lardons which really are only thick streaky bacon ready cut into strips!!!

Docky sez heys veri hapi vat ver koley goggie izza betta buoy nowe anniz gettin ver yummy treatziz fer ver pilly fings frum ver vetty persun!!! Hiz Mumi duz vat tew anniz givin pillziz inna liva patty wen hey hazta taksiz vem!!!

nuttyp

Good morning, well its grey and damp here!!! Been MIA yesterday, full 14 hours and by the end of the day I really felt it. Not in until 11 am today and then I am finishing early to go to a 21st party. Not exactly my idea of fun, but I am going as its OH family. My girls are going with me too, so us 3 sit together on our own and OH drifts off to chat.
Someone came to see me yesterday at work to discuss my possible promotion, have another vote I am capable so I will definatley be going for it. I am scared, but I know deep down I will do my best and that's all any of us can do.
Woke up and OH has tidyed all the kitchen and lounge before he had gone to work, all I have to do is the bathroom and bedroom. I am lucky as he starts work at 5am everyday. Bless him.
Right going for a shower and it will be time to get ready for work again, will have a lovely catch up tomorrow. Take care everyone x