Cooking for one (Mark Three)

Brambling

Evening all - another wet afternoon here, I wanted to garden this afternoon but it was far too wet.

My friend is home from hospital (I think she talked her way out and is now regretting it) she's home with no care package. I picked up some tablets from the vet for her cat and spent the morning sorting stuff for her and getting told off for not doing it right 🙄 I did setup her first online shop, she wanted Sainsbobs which due to her really slow internet connection was very painful 😣 and I had difficulty in trying to explain that she could spend £33 on groceries and £7 delivery or spend £40 and £1 delivery so it was worth finding something to spend the £7 on ie dishwasher tablets as either way it was going to cost the same.  I'm not sure if she would do it on her own, her neighbours are very good at getting her shopping

On the way home lunch time i popped into Lidl for milk, bananas, salad bits and a few other things which fell into my basket (I shouldn't shop hungry 🙄)  lunch was jacket potato with cheese and HM coleslaw.  Dinner was going to be pork in cider but I forgot to check the chops and they were still partially frozen in the fridge. I put together a asparagus, mushrooms, prawns and rice dish and stirred in some wild garlic pesto, it was delicious and I probably won't be able to repeat it, there are LOs.  

Farway

Brambling said:

Evening all - another wet afternoon here, I wanted to garden this afternoon but it was far too wet.

My friend is home from hospital (I think she talked her way out and is now regretting it) she's home with no care package. I picked up some tablets from the vet for her cat and spent the morning sorting stuff for her and getting told off for not doing it right 🙄 I did setup her first online shop, she wanted Sainsbobs which due to her really slow internet connection was very painful 😣 and I had difficulty in trying to explain that she could spend £33 on groceries and £7 delivery or spend £40 and £1 delivery so it was worth finding something to spend the £7 on ie dishwasher tablets as either way it was going to cost the same. 

Which is one reason I have umpteen loo rolls, beans & bleach

It was wet here as well yesterday, but had my salad as planned & enjoyed it, including the smoked mackerel which I'd not had for over a year, I'll add that to my "favourites" list I think

I also made smoked mackerel pate, having at last caught up with the "CFO Dish of the Month"

I used recipe, if you can call it that, off You Tube, which included horseradish. Maybe mackerel pate always should but I never did, however I shall in future, turned out excellent and will feature heavily today

One ciabatta in the Panny, should be ready for lunch of mackerel pate + bit of salad on the side, sort of fisherman's lunch?

Dinner, undecided, maybe another frozen pizza, or more pate?

caronc

Good morning everyone, 
I must remember to defrost my smoked mackerel this week, yes IMHO horseradish is essential Farway or in it's absence a few drops of tabasco. 
Back to winter here today and cold with it. Previously shed layers have been put back on!
I'm off out for dinner to a local pub this evening with my son, sister and nephew. My first proper "outing" in 6+ months and I'm looking forward to it. 
Yesterday's burgers worked well - not pretty to look at, messy to eat and far from healthy but blooming delicious. 

justkeepswimmimg

Hmm, MIA a bit, not entirely sure why...

Struggling with the never ending greyness a bit I’ll be honest. Everything just feels like hard work at the moment, nothing a bit of sunshine wouldn’t cure I’m sure.

Today’s excitement was spring cleaning my bedroom (4 empty shoe boxes removed from under the bed 😗) and sanding another door - just two left to wax now. Also had a swim, which also felt like hard work 😂

Lunch was scrambled eggs and mushrooms on a bagel, dinner was one of those preprepared mini gammon joints with a honey glaze - just fancied a change and couldn’t bear the thought of loads of leftovers from a regular gammon joint, at least it saved having to make gravy or a sauce. Made roast potatoes and roast carrots, served with steamed Savoy cabbage and sugar snap peas.

Brambling

I hope you had a good meal out Caronc 

Farway I put horseradish in my smoke mackerel pate, I also add it to smoke mackerel salad

My sister and i managed to avoid the rain this morning and went for a walk around Leonardslee Gardens and had lunch there.  The rhododendrons and azaleas were beautiful and what they are known for as well as their wallabies     

JKS - you have reminded me I was going to cook one of those small gammon joints to day for the next few lunches, that will be a job for the morning.  Sorry you're feeling a little blah at the moment

Late afternoon I tried to add a couple of 'essential' items to my friends' shopping order without any success, when I try to log on from home it kept asking for a code saying it was sending to her mobile which it wasn't. I did go around before dinner to try and do it from her laptop but I'm not sure if it was their site or her broadband but it took a hour and in the end just as it was asking for a code from her bank texted to her it threw me out of the site.  I've no idea if the original order has remained I'm hoping it has or I'll be going to SM for her on Wednesday.  I would offer to go shopping for her but she is determine that if anyone shops for her it has to be in specific shops for specific items for example her bread in W8itrose, her potatoes and berries in M&S, household stuff either savers or wilkos  etc and I haven't got the time to do that, she's retired and before the fall went to town most days to get little bits in various shops.  

Lunch was a peri peri chicken flat bread, unfortunately my sister didn't realise they would add the 'devil' herb coriander and seeing she hates it as much as me we were both picking it off.  Dinner was finally pork chops with cider and mustard sauce, new potatoes and the last of last summers runner beans. 


and the bluebells 

Farway

Seems the CFO Collective mind is back in action, I defrosted a ham lump last night, half of an offer from W8rose, and it's now in the oven for today's meals, dinner anyway

Very dull out with rain due any time now I think

Brambling, I've been to Leanards Lee, it was a bit since and I think it's changed hands & had a tart up since then, there weren't any wallabies then.

What I do remember is the homeward journey and the sat nav taking us on a tour of every winding back road in Sussex before we could escape southwards towards Chichester and the tranquility of the A27 roundabouts

I may get my tomatoes into their final pots today if the rain keeps off long enough

Lunch, could be ham sarnie or LO mackerel pate, depends on my mood come noon

Dinner, has to be some of the ham, probably with boiled baby spuds, steamed broccoli & carrots

caronc

Good morning everyone, 
Lovely photos Brambling
No ham here except the cooked & sliced stuff , though I wish there was but after working our way through such a large gammon joint a few weeks ago it will probably be a wee while before I buy another.
Meal out last night was delicious, it's a pub grub/chips with everything type of place but what they do they do very well. I had very tender strips of rump steak with onions and mushrooms in a creamy peppercorn sauce with rather glorious "proper" chunky chips. Prices are very good too - 4 mains, a bottle of wine, a few beers and a couple of soft drinks came to £80 including a decent tip. 
It's just started raining again but the weather is supposed to improve or least dry up as the week goes on. While the back garden is out of action for the time being I really should be getting the front garden tidied up but struggling to find my mojo to get it done and certainly don't want to get soaked doing it!
I've dug out my old Ainsley Harriott's "Meals in minutes", a book I used a lot when the kids were at home but haven't looked at in years. This week's meal plan includes a couple of meals that used to be firm favourites. Tonight it's "Ginger chicken with coconut rice" - I hope it's a good as I remember!

3secondmemory

I completely forgot to eat on Saturday, had a weight watchers microwave meal and 2 Shredded wheat yesterday, and baked beans on toast with 2 slices of streaky bacon. 

I’ve just woken from a coma-style nap and, inbelievably, my stomach wants feeding AGAIN! 😂😂

Having looked at my cupboards, and my bank account I shall be using up a packet of uncle Benz savoury rice and some chicken thighs from the freezer 😃

caronc

I'm not surprised your tummy wants filling, mine needs regular topping up preferably three times a day!

3secondmemory

caronc said:

I'm not surprised your tummy wants filling, mine needs regular topping up preferably three times a day!

I have really bad eating habits including saving time by missing meals!