The Simple Bare Necessities feat. Gratitude & Recipes

Good Morning :hello:


Am I allowed to admit that it's gotten marginally, ever-so-slightly, just a tadge, too blessed hot for me?


I don't do well in el scorchio sunshine I do like the sunshine - I like spring and autumn sunny days - lovely and uplifting without getting burn to a crisp in a nano-second. But I'm flagging at the mo


I have a wonderful opportunity to hook up with a loverly chumski today, and I'm so looking forward to it - we've not seen each other for an age. But we're meeting in the middle of the day, and I'm starting to panic about getting too hot. Hopefully if I take sensible precautions, it will be good enough.


We had meditteranean pasta for tea. Pasta has been a big feature of meals lately. But naturally, the weather has pushed fresh food prices through the roof. I've no-one to blame but myself, but it is hard to know how to walk distances in scorchio sunshine - which I would have to do to access the cheaper supermarkets. And DH is wonderful and does his best - he really does - but he still hasn't gained an 'instinct for shopping' - to know what's a good price, what's going to make 403 meals, what's complimentary to what we have in house. A shopping list has to become 'war&peace'-esque in what to look for/selection criteria/available funding......... :rotfl: And I'm soooo easy to live with....... :rotfl::p [and am sending self up if not clear...... ]



Hence, I have no idea what is for tea tonight. I've not even thought about a picnic lunch yet...... oh lawks.


Tomorrow, I shall be sat in the house all day with the blinds drawn. Poor BG - I hope I can entertain them in the stigian gloom.......


I wish I could post a more up-beat report - it is summer after all.



Right. I best go and get my thinking cap on NOW. Otherwise I will be full of big smiles but empty snap boxes later in the day!


Ta for popping by. Appreciated.


Greying X

Good Evening :hello:


Went the day well?


Turned out spiffing for us :D:D


Well, thank goodness my 'home economics' (:rotfl:) brain took over and I quickly developed a plan to construct 'summat' fer lunch. It took all morning But it meant we had; individual patatas bravas frittatas; lemony grilled courgette, red pepper and black olive pasta. a 'red fruit' salad and a chocolate cherry bun to eat up On a picnic blankie, under a tree :D:D


I followed Jack's recipe for patatas bravas - the only thing I did was to pat dry my tinned tatties before putting them in hot oil - to avoid spittage. But you'll note from the recipe, Jack puts the tatties in cold oil, so...... maybe no spitty??? Also, I started off in a conventional saucepan - I reverted to a non-stick frying pan in the end. The tatties weren't crisping, and the bottom of the saucepan was looking increasingly irredeemable.......... Anyhoo, the frittatas - which included a smidgen of feta, alongside eggs, yoghurt, herbs and seasoning, were, actually, really quite tasty :j


One of the good things about 'being of aged years.......' is not that you can become an old cumudgeon, batting dissenters, contrarians or heretics wif a waggling cane. It is that you can be truthful without fear of 'loss'. You can be truthful and say that the heat is too much, and that you are scared of getting burnt to a crisp because of your complexion and that you have no desire to keel over with heat-exhaustion...... And your chum says, 'yeh, I have those worries too'. And so you enjoy your social meeting, in the shade, away from the fierce sun, and you choose routes that are shady and allow you to progress from A to B without getting burnt, grouchy or a combination of A+B.... :rotfl::cool: Hurrah for being of advanced years..... :T


Tea was a dollop of all that was left, with the inclusion (for me) of brown rice, as i couldn't face pasta again, and some wild rocket that DH picked up - and he AVOIDED the manky looking stuff and went looking for better :j Whoo-hoo!!!! I also ran a ribbon of harissa paste through some pizza topping to make a zingy tommy sauce, which matched the frittatas well



Lunch was all from 'stores' whether that was 'fresh', dried, tinned or frozen and we had more than enough to sustain us, as my chum bought provisions too


Tea was leftovers + the wild rocket, so reasonably frugal


DH bought groceries, so not a nsd, but definitely a lsd for the 'bang for buckness' that we achieved


Today I am grateful for;

hook-ups with chums


old-fashioned picnics - we had cutlery and 'crockery' too! :rotfl:


the weather playing ball and giving a bit of leeway for us milk-bottle types...........


Ta for popping by.


Greying X