This weekend, hubby and I finally found time to go fruit picking together. The plan was to pick fruit and make jam with it that would serve as Christmas presents. Unfortunately, my jam making skills just seem to decline from year to year, and we have 7 jars of blackcurrant jelly (as hubby named it) and 6 jars of strawberry sauce! Thankfully you can’t tell what a disaster they were from the pictures! We may have to re-think our christmas gifts this year!
I’ve had a busy afternoon – sewing two sheets together to make a new duvet cover, and then making 36 fairy cakes for a team day tomorrow. I don’t have a photo of the duvet cover as it’s rather just a boring purple rectangle of material, and well the fairy cakes I’m not proud of, so I didn’t take a photo of them either. I’ve tried making these fairy cakes before, and the recipe says to level them by cutting any mounds off before icing which I do. I then attempt to ice them, and instead of looking pretty they look bodged and rather ugly! I really should learn not to top them with glace icing, they look a lot better topped with a buttercream icing.
So tomorrow I have the team day for camp, and then I’m leading the kids group at church on sunday. I’m bound to need a nap by sunday afternoon to prepare me for another busy week of work.
Monday – passionfruit cheesecake (no picture I’m afraid) and meringues
Thursday – chocolate chip cookies (a different recipe to last time, still no wow factor)
Friday – we made candles! Using leftover bits of wax and the rather wonky candles that melted in the sun. A fun bit of recycling. AND then I made bagels! Hubby loves them and I reckon the stock in the freezer will be gone in under a week.
Saturday – white chocolate tart with cherries (cherries added later) for my dad’s birthday. Only have a picture of it ready to go to my parents for the finishing touches and then eating of course!
I’m loving all this time in the kitchen! I probably need to spend more time on my bike and less cooking, but hey!
Having finished my study, I’m making at least one new recipe a week! This week, two recipes from Sainsbury Magazine June 2009. A butterscotch trifle with bananas for my hubby which I made one evening. I hate bananas, so I haven’t tasted it, but he’s enjoying it.
The picture doesn’t show much, but it’s basically some trifle sponges cut up, pieces of banana all drenched in butterscotch sauce. Then the usual toppings of custard and then cream.
Today I made ‘a really good macaroni cheese’ by Nigel Slater (also from sainsburys mag). This has been declared a favourite both in my house and my mum’s this week! I’ve already written out the recipe for my favourites box!
I’ve got three different desserts planned for next week!
I had a fabulous friday yesterday, weeding the garden, picking the first of our lettuce, cooking (lots), cycling to Bromley and back, and some study which was slightly less fabulous but necessary.
These cookies are chocolate chip cookies, not exceptional, but nice enough. I took the recipe from Sainsburys Magazine.
This chicken with sweetcorn mash dish was what we had for lunch. It was another magazine clipping. I’d had it for ages and am now working through the pile, trying out all these new recipes.
I enjoyed cooking this one, though it isn’t going into my box of ‘must do again’. I was pleased with the way I cooked the chicken – I didn’t overcook it for once!
Another magazine clipping, this lime ice cream was light but needed some fruit to go with it. The recipe suggested kiwi, but we’re not big fans. I’m going to buy some raspberries to go with what’s left.
It looks like whipped cream because it is! Whipped double cream, zest and juice of 6 limes and some icing sugar. Simple.
Now you know why I had to get on my bike in the afternoon to burn off all those calories!
These are yummy. I’ve made them before, but there was marzipan in the cupboard to use up and hubby has a friend coming over tomorrow. Result – apricot danish pastries.
A fresh attempt at blogging and hopefully a new focus – my weekends!
Now my study is nearly finished (10 days and counting) my weekends will be a lot free-er for me to enjoy myself. I’ve a pile of recipes I want to try and cook for people, a vegetable patch that needs attention, a house that is longing to be filled with homemade articles and I’m sure I’ll find numerous books to read. Then there’s piano practise, will I ever play a piece often enough to master it?
This weekend, after completing my last assignment, I spent 30 minutes weeding and thinning out the carrots. Not very exciting so far. But being a bank holiday weekend, tomorrow and monday will hopefully bring something more interesting!
We moved – new house is great
I went to new wine – a muddy and wet week of camping, but some great teaching and great moments with God.
I got bored in the office – no youthwork, so not a lot to do. Picking up again now.
We went to Greenbelt – sunny weekend of camping, great time with hubby.
Now we’re back online, and life is settling into a routine. I’m still catching up with blogs, but for now I must go and bake for the family party tomorrow.
I am loving my new job, and am getting used to the changes it has brought – mainly the hours I work. I still have to figure out when and what to eat when I’m working a long day and evening! Four egg mayo sandwiches in one day was a bit much!
Today we were supposed to exchange contracts on our new house. It hasn’t happened but we hope it will tomorrow. Then we’re into packing mode! We move at the end of a really busy week for me work wise and a day before hubby goes of for 10 days of work and two days before I go on holiday! Our life for the next month will be out of boxes! And I’ve also got an assignment to improve before sending it off just three days before we move!
This afternoon I started to read the long list of blogs I regularly read. It took me far too long, so I’ve cut the list drastically. I’ll eventually get into a routine of when I read blogs, check emails and even write on this one! I also have a hope of starting a food blog, but that will have to wait a while. Most plans are on hold now until the end of August – by which time I hope to be settled in a new home as well as a new job!
