30 September 2014

Dinner, 30/9/14: Stir Fry Veg with Noodles, and Dumplings


Veggie stir-fry with noodles


plus dumplings


equals yum.

28 September 2014

Dinner, 28/9/14: Pot Roast


This smelled lovely in the slow-cooker all day, but was a little boring to eat. Nothing awful, just not as nice as some pot roasts, or indeed, stew.  I have plans for the leftover meat, though, which will hopefully be a bit more exciting.

27 September 2014

Birthday evening


There was cake. But before that, there was pizza...


...and many extra teenage girls (ok, only 4 extra)...




Happy 17th Birthday to my Gorgeous Sarah...


26 September 2014

Dinner, 26/9/14: Squash and Cauliflower Curry


This was nice, except there was way too much butternut squash (even for those of us who really like it) and not nearly enough cauliflower. I'll make it again, as I really liked the curry sauce, which was a Thai style one with coconut milk, etc, but we'll only use part of a squash, and a larger cauli, or two small ones. Might also see if I can find some tiny green Thai aubergines to go in as well.  The veg is roasted and the sauce made separately, so the texture of the cauli is great...

24 September 2014

Dinner, 24/9/14: Mushroom Tart; Courgette Tart


My go-to easy tart with puff pastry, pesto, mozzarella and sliced mushrooms or courgettes (sometimes both). Dead simple and very tasty.


21 September 2014

Dinner, 21/9/14: Spinach Risotto


I make risotto a lot, but this spinach one was a new recipe - fantastic. Loved it. Definitely will be having that again.

Mixed Berry Sorbet


Some mushy strawberries, a couple of handfuls of blueberries and half a bag of frozen berries later...

17 September 2014

Dinner, 17/9/14: Marsala Chicken with pasta and courgettes


This was a Nigel Slater recipe (the chicken) - and was tasty and quick. Not one for the dieters, though, as it involved not only the eponymous Marsala, but also butter and cream. Alphabet pasta just for laughs...

16 September 2014

Dinner, 16/9/14: Ham and Runner Bean Broth


...Using the leftover ham from Sunday, and the cooking liquid as well. 

15 September 2014

Dinner, 15/9/14: Pasta Bake with Pine Nuts


A standby  - one of two dishes I regularly make using filled pasta, with sauce, cheese, etc.  Quick, easy and very tasty...

14 September 2014

Dinner, 14/9/14: Slow-cooked ham, carrots and celery with potatoes


That chill in the air can only mean one thing...casserole and slowcooker season!

10 September 2014

07 September 2014

Dinner, 7/9/14: Lamb and Bean Hotpot; Corn on the Cob


Haven't managed to get down to the Pick Your Own to get corn really fresh, but it's not bad in the supermarket at the moment. A nice accompaniment to this easy lamb steak hotpot, which is essentially just some lamb steaks cooked over a few tins of bins, a tin of tomatoes, an onion and some spices...  Plus, there are beans left for lunch tomorrow. Yum.


06 September 2014

Blackberry and Strawberry Ice Cream


Some strawberries in the fridge going squidgy and some blackberries from today's shopping (all my local blackberrying places seem to be vanishing, sigh)...and yum!

Dinner, 6/9/14: Lemon Sole, new potatoes, tenderstem broccoli


03 September 2014

Dinner, 3/9/14: Chicken with tomato and rosemary, mash, green beans


Geoff thought this was a bit like Puttanesca sauce, but with chicken - there were no olives in it, or chilis, but definitely similar, as the sauce had tomatoes, achovies and capers in it...

Olivia's room


Finally, the last piece of furniture (the bed) has arrived for Olivia's room, which was the last in the redecoration saga earlier this summer. So I guess it's about time to show some photos.  Very hard to take photos of a room which show the whole thing...  Here's the wall across from the door - the chimney breast has a feature wallpaper, but the rest of the walls are simply off-white.


She has a new dressing table and chair to suit the more grown-up, vintage style to the room


and a very simple wardrobe to replace the yucky built in cupboard, which was flush with the chimney breast, and thus not deep enough to actually hang a proper, adult size, clothes hanger in. You can also see the new floor (same as in the rest of the house), which is a big improvement on the carpet. The only rooms now without this type of flooring are the kitchen (vinyl), hallway & steps (carpet, but nice carpet chosen by us, not left by previous owners) and the loft bedroom/Sarah's room, which still has the rather granny carpet left by the previous owners. But it's in good shape still, so it's staying at least for the time being.


Here's the view towards the window, showing her new bed - we kept the existing curtains as they were actually quite new and in good shape, and even though the colours aren't quite perfect (they have blue in them) they are nice...


This is the new bed - a white metal day bed, in a vintage style, which looks very sweet. 


And of course some storage space - a set of shelves and a bookcase. She's very happy with it, not surprisingly. And it's so spacious, compared to what it was like when the girls were sharing it.

02 September 2014

Dinner 2/9/14: Jacket Potatoes with Toppings & Bacon


First day back to work for me, plus I wanted to go to the gym after work, so a meal which could mostly cook itself before I got home - along with some of the excellent bacon we bought in Yorkshire to bring home... Yum.

01 September 2014

Dinner, 1/9/14: Aloo Gobi (Cauliflower with potatoes)


A new one for us, from Madhur Jaffrey's Curry Nation. I confess, I didn't follow the recipe precisely, as we don't deep fry in our house. I steamed the cauliflower florets in the microwave and boiled the potatoes, then fried them lightly in a frying pan before adding them right at the end.  I really liked the fact that this used the other bits of the cauliflower - not sure I've ever done anything with them before, but it works really well in this and also, not so wasteful!


August Roundup

WHAT WAS FOR DINNER, AUGUST 2014

  • 31st: Roast Pork, roast potatoes, cabbage
  • 30th: Find your own
  • 29th: Chicken & Salad
  • 28th: Leftovers
  • 27th: Lasagne, Salad, Fruit & Custard Pies
  • 26th: Cottage Pie, Sweetcorn, Beans (KA cooking)
  • 25th: Out to lunch at Bistro Saigon, sausges & roast potatoes for dinner!
  • 24th: Out to lunch with John & Angela
  • 23rd: Chili con Carne with rice (from freezer)
  • 22nd: Veggie Stir Fry with Dumplings
  • 21st: Pasta all' Arrabiata
  • 20th: day out
  • 19th: Chinese Style Noodle Soup
  • 18th: Jambalaya
  • 17th: German Sausages, Salads
  • 16th: Ham and Cheese Quiche, Oven Potatoes
  • 15th: Pretzel Chicken with new potatoes and green beans
  • 14th: Mince masala with courgettes
  • 13th: Teriyaki Salmon, new potatoes, roast beetroot
  • 12th: Out with friends
  • 11th: Sausage, Vegetable and Bean Casserole
  • 10th: Leek Fritters, Sweet Potato Wedges, Corn Muffins
  • 9th: Vegetable Curry
  • 8th:leftovers
  • 7th: Salad of Shredded Chicken, Green Beans and Barley
  • 6th: Tricolour Taglietelle
  • 5th: Sausages, New Potatoes, Beetroot Tops
  • 4th: Spanakopita
  • 3rd: Lamb Cutlets, Roast Beetroot, New Potatoes, Salad
  • 2nd: Lunch out at Wisley
  • 1st: Prawn Curry