Make do, Mend and Minimise in 2015

vhalla1478

Evening Everyone,

I just wanted to tell you the story about my gay friend's excursion to a very upmarket French restaurant in London. My friend can only eat mince or prawns otherwise he sticks to vegetables, cheese, eggs, etc (he was forcefed by his stepfather as a child). Anyway, he was treated to a meal at this restaurant by some very wealthy friends for his birthday. There was nothing that he liked or wanted on the menu, so in the end he requested an omelette. The price of this omelette -£90!

Viv xx

[Deleted User]

Wow I thought my eldest DDs omelette was dear at the Savoy in London. In 1979 we went to a Ladies night there, and the tickets were £25 each ( a fair amount 36 years ago) DD wanted to come, and as a treat I said OK.The main meal was duck with orange sauce and I knew she wouldn't be keen on it, and she was looking quite worried.So I said just tell the waiter your a veggie and ask for something else.
So she asked for omelette and fries. he duly appeared complete with the white gloves (they all wore them in those days )and with great politeness dished her meal up beautifully.I gave her the evil eye and whispered 'what ever you do don't ask for ketchup'
The young man who waited on her bent down and asked her very quietly in a soft geordie accent
'Want some tommy sauce pet ' Bless him he wasn't a great deal older than her.Dearest egg and chips she's ever eaten, but she was so proud to be all dressed up in her finery at her first grown ups 'do' and her Dad and I let her have the ladies present as well:):):)
Just off to bed as I have been watching the Alternative election programme and have TiVo'ed the rest as I have to be up to go to youngest DGS school in the morning as he is getting two awards,one for the most marks this term, and one for the person voted by his friends as their nicest fellow student.I'll be a very proud Granny in the morning.He is a very sunny natured little boy and gets on with everyone as he is always smiling, and making even the teachers laugh
Good Night God bless all here
JackieO xxx
P.S.Well done elona on today as it can't have been easy honey

cheerfulness4

A well cooked omelette is a beautiful thing in my opinion but £90!

DH just walked in as I settled down on here. Isn't that just typical.:) He'll be fetching me a coffee up in a minute and telling me about last nights adventures at work. The is never a dull moment at the home he works at.

Today I need to be working out where the gaps are in my veggie patch and flower garden. I know for a fact I have no beans sown yet and I love home grown ones.
No cougettes or butternut squash under way yet, either.

Instead of just sowing my usual things I'm trying to think what might making cooking a little more interesting. As the garden is weeny I do think that different herbs could well be the way to go.
i love the taste of Dill, to the point of saving the dill infused vinegar from gherkins to sprinkle on salad leaves.
I have parsley, rosemary, sage and thyme already and wild rocket is growing furiously. I have basil seeds I completely forgot to sow but know from experience that they will catch up fine.

Does anyone have experience of growing or using a different herb for me to try and say how they use it? I keep seeing recipes with tarragon but know nothing about that one.

I feel encouraged to up my game when it comes to producing summer meals after reading all of these wonderful recipes that have been posted.
I really fancy experimenting.
Although it would help if I could wean myself off reaching for the Juicy Orange Chicken recipe each time. That one really hit all the buttons for me, Viv, as its quick, easy, totally delish and perfect hot or cold. Even all the family love it. :eek:

Must do baking today. Finally getting to see my Grandkiddies tomorrow at our house, as opposed to fleeting 'taxi' access. I might not have had the trauma of a marriage breakup personally but its really tough too experiencing it as a parent watching from the sidelines. The ripples spread out so far and its heartbreaking.

I'm wondering where my coffees gone. :huh: Not like him not to fetch us drinks up. Don't say the unthinkable is going to have to happen and I might have to get up and mske my own!:rotfl:

janb5

Hi Cheerfulness- have you got chives as they are very easy to grow and perennial?

Your garden sounds a picture. I got some Solomons Knot on your recommendation.

vhalla1478

Morning,

I agree with Jan about chives; great chopped onto an omelette - I wonder how much extra that would add to the £90 price! So pleased the orange chicken is a hit in your household, Cheerfulness - I think it was off a recipe card from Sainsburys quite a long time ago. Herb Infused oils in pretty bottles make a really nice present for 'foodie' friends - have you seen how dear things like that are in delicatessens ? And we all know home made is best.

Viv xx

silvasava

Cheerful - Oregano is a good one, especially if you have a hot dry area. Its lovely in any tomato based dishes. I also grow flat leaved parsley (grows like a weed!!) for Mediterannean dishes. Good old mint in a tub is great too.

septemberblues

GreyQueen wrote: »

Have minimized some of my hair with my new thinning scissors, who knew how much fun home-hairdressing could be? Wash it in the bathroom, step out into the hall where there's a big mirror (car boot rubbish pile salvage, wooden frame refinished by moi) and happily clipped away. Quick vac over the tiled floor and bob's yer uncle.

Where did you get your scissors from and how much did they cost? I have my hair highlighted and cut, but need a cut quicker than having to get my hair highlighted again! Last time I had my hair cut without colour at the dirt cheap place in town it cost £12 and wasn't even a nice cut. I would love to give it a go

GreyQueen

They were from B00ts and cost £8.29. That's dirt cheap compared with pro thinners which seem to be £45-£75 from my research, but I didn't feel the limited use I'd be getting from them would justify the higher outlay. Haven't had them much more than a week, and have done one snipping session thus far, and was pleased.

I, too, decided to cut my own hair after having a very poor professional cut, something which looked like I'd done it in the dark, from a qualifiied hairdresser with 6 years' experience (I asked, because I was pretty shocked at how rubbish she was).

Have been home-haircutting since January. It's not perfect but I get a little better each time, no one has passed negative comments, I've had one or two compliments inc from a very blunt relative, and I shall continue.

misstara

I have had a busy morning giving the flat a really good clean. It's now looking lovely and have left strict instructions for OH not to make a mess when he gets home from work :rotfl: I've just got the ironing left to do now but will get it done at some point over the weekend.

I start work at 3 today so I suppose I should probably start thinking about having a shower, some lunch and getting organised. Hope everyone is having a good day.

cheerfulness4

I forgot about chives. I'm sure mum still has a big clump of them in her garden. I shall have to go visit again tomorrow on the pretext of letting them see the Greatgrandkiddies and surreptitiously conceal a trowel in my handbag.

My only experience of oregano is from the 70's when mum's idea of spaghetti bolognese was a tin of mince and onion with a squirt of tomato puree and a heaped dsp of dried oregano thrown in at the end. You could literally pick the herb from your teeth. I've never touched it since.
I am wondering if I should revisit it now as I may like the fresher alternative and enjoy it more if its not so overpowering.

We were given a gift of £10 by a grateful friend for running them round. Its always a little embarrassing but they told us to buy ourselves a treat but we've decided to use it on extras for our food budget.
So far we are trying out Aldi chipolatas and their low fat sausages that were recommended to me. We are also trying out their cheapest orange and apple juice. I'll report back more on that later.

I'm going to spend half an hour sorting my veg seeds now as we're onto my next phase of sowing. I must post my tomato pics later but photobucket is being a pain. DS has shown me a different way to get round the prob but its a pain.