Book 97: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

Highly hyped books always worry me slightly, because I sometimes really disagree with the hype (cases in point: Gone Girl, My Sister's Keeper, Catcher in the Rye, others). And when I read the first chapter or two of this, I wasn't really sure - it didn't grab me straight away. However, by the time I got a few more chapters in, it was a different story. I think it's really hard to write a novel with a main character who is not immediately sympathetic, but this one is done very well, and you are quickly really involved in Eleanor's life and rooting for her to find happiness, rather than simply being "fine". Highly recommended.

Dinner, 22/12/19: Creamy Butternut Linguine; Cavolo Nero with Butterbeans

The butternut linguine was a nice idea - using roast butternut to make a sauce for the pasta - but it lacks bite - needs something more to zing it up.  The cavolo nero, slow cooked with some onions and garlic and then a bit of sour cream added and a tin of butter beans was excellent, though.

Book 96: The Secret Commonwealth, Philip Pullman

It's been a very Philip Pullman kind of week, between the finale of the (extremely good) adaptation of His Dark Materials on telly and reading the latest installment of the second trilogy set in the same world(s).  This was great, as I expected, though it's ended on quite a cliff hanger. Just wish I didn't have to wait so long for the concluding installment.

Year Long Declutter, week 51 (722 items total)

Another cull of earrings and necklaces. I have a lot of necklaces I don't wear much anymore (this is because for the past few years, we have had to wear lanyards with badges at school, which is fine, but it's weird to wear a necklace and a lanyard) but I still like a lot of them. These are ones which, for whatever reason, I wouldn't wear anyway. And the earrings are either novelty studs, which I never wear and some smaller dangly earrings, which again, just not be any more.

Dinner, 21/12/19: Chunky Broccoli and Potato Soup

We spent the day making cookies, etc for Christmas, so dinner needed to be something not too challenging. Olivia whipped up this soup from some leftover broccoli bits from the freezer, pureed in some stock, then chunks of potato, more fresh broccoli and some kale added in near the end. Very tasty!

Annual Christmas Baking Fest...

Mostly these are regulars or semi-regulars, though there are a few newbies - a soft ginger and orange cookie, which I think shall rapidly become a regular and a "double peanut cookie", which is nowhere near as nice as my regular peanut butter cookies, so won't make an appearance again. I added some wintery spices to my vegan GF flapjacks this year, and they are extra yummy, so I'll be doing that again for Christmas.

Dinner, 18/12/19: Filled Pasta Bake

Always devoured in our house in a matter of minutes...

Dinner, 17/12/19: Roasted Squash, Asian Coleslaw

One of the girls made up some Asian style coleslaw from a Hugh Fearnley Wittingstall recipe (we had a white cabbage which needed using) and I roasted a large pumpkin style squash with some herbs de provence.  There was bread as well. 

Year Long Declutter, week 50 (708 items total)

Here are a few things from the bookcase which we don't need, and a couple of cookbooks/magazines which I never use any more. Also, a couple of paper coasters picked up somewhere, two pots which are going back to Lush and a watch which needs a new battery, but which I find too big now (the face), so I've never replaced the batter - sending it to a charity shop.

Dinner, 14/12/19: Spaghetti Bolognese

I had to pop down to Brighton to pick up Sarah for Christmas today, so Geoff cooked something which we could eat, or not, when we got back, depending on what time we got home and how late we'd eaten lunch. And there are leftovers for the freezer as well, which is nice.

Book 95: Becoming, Michelle Obama

Been thinking about reading this for a while, and borrowed it from a friend recently. Guilt about not keeping it too long inspired me to give it a go - wasn't quite what I expected (in a good way) - much less political than I feared it might be (i.e. about politics), which was good. Nicely written, very readable. And I'm not a person who usually goes for biography or memoirs.

Dinner, 11/12/19: Mushroom Omelette, Potatoes

...or at least, it started as an omelette, but after sticking to the pan a lot, it was more of scrambled eggs. But it was still nice.

Dinner, 10/9/19: Creamy Sausage and Rocket Linguine

Book 94: The House with a Clock in its Walls, John Bellairs

A children's book which I had around the house - I read it as a bit of relief from the last book, and enjoyed it, though it's not among my very favourite of its type.

Dinner, 8/12/19: Roast Rack of Lamb, Brussels Sprout Tops, Potatoes & Sweet Potatoes

Lamb from the famers' market and brussels tops & potatoes from the veggie box. And we ate at lunchtime, as Alex had a concert in the evening... Crazy!

Book 93: Days without End, Sebastian Barry

I'd read The Secret Chord by the same author quite some time ago and enjoyed it. My sister-in-law read this with her book group and was talking about it, so I decided to give it a go.  To be honest, I had mixed feelings. There were some things I liked, but I found it hard to read (not difficult in an academic sense) and found myself sighing when I picked it up, rather than looking forward to it. 

Year Long Declutter, week 49 (694 items total)

A really exciting selection this week, clearing out the free bookmarks, etc that we seem to accumulate like there's no tomorrow.  The actual bookmarks will go to my classroom at school for the kids to use, and the things that are just ticket stubs from less interesting shows and films can go in the recycling.  And there's a broken sheep magnet that I decided to discard rather than repair.

Dinner, 7/12/19: Tamarind Chickpeas and Beans with Couscous

This is a recipe from John Whaite's book Perfect Plates in Five Ingredients (the couscous is my addition), though I used two types of green beans, because that's what I had which needed using.  The  actual recipe uses fish sauce, but it's easy enough to sub out for a vegan one if you need to, and it would still taste amazing, so I'm tagging it vegan.

Dinner, 6/12/19: Korean Style Prawn and Spring Onion Pancake

This is one that Geoff, Alex & I love. As neither of the girls would eat it (Liv is vegetarian, and Sarah doesn't like prawns), it's a perfect fit when there are just the three of us - obviously happens a lot more now that the girls are at uni!

Dinner, 4/12/19: Chesnut Mushroom, Fennel & Bacon Fusili

This was a nice combination. It toned the fennel down (I like fennel myself, but it's a strong flavour), while still retaining the basic flavour.