Cough

I've got a horrible cough, a sore throat, and a headache. 

I've done two Covid tests, 24 hours apart (last night before bed, and the night before), and both came back negative. 

I don't have a particularly high temperature (36.9) , although that's always open to interpretation as my "normal" is lower than the 38 degrees regarded as standard.

This morning, I couldn't taste my coffee, although I could taste the thyme in the Broncho Stop cough medicine.  I can also taste the BronchoStop  pastilles.  My sense of smell seems OK. 

 I'll do another Covid test before bed tonight.  I'm tempted to do one now,   but I guess allowing 24 hours between tests is better.

Yesterday evening, while waiting for the Covid test to do its thing,  I decided to prep the shower for cleaning.  I felt like crap, but I had an unstoppable compulsion to do it.

I dissolved a dishwasher capsule in a few cm of water in the bath,  took the shower seat apart (yuck!) and put it in the bath.  I removed thoe hose from the shower, and put that in.    It started to work straightaway.

I got out a spray bottle of mould killer, and put it by the shower door.  This was to remind me to do it in the morning, before I had my shower.

It was a rough night.  I was still awake at 1.30, but I didn't hear the radio go off so I was asleep by 2am.  I woke up a number of times with a raspy throat and coughing.

This morning,  I felt worse than yesterday.  I think part of the reason I started last night was to make sure I had to finish the job this morning.  So,   I sprayed like Cillit Bang Black Mould Remover like mad.  Everywhere was covered, whether I could see mould or not.

While it worked, I scrubbed the remaining gunk off the shower seat.  I scrubbed the hose, and then put it in a plastic tub with some descaler.    I rinsed everything that was in the bath, and  I cleaned the bath with the left over dishwasher-tabletified water. 

I got the steps into the shower, so I could use cloths to clean the (fully tiled) shower.  I started with the ceiling, and worked down the walls, and then did the floor.   It was quicker than I expected, and better than scrubbing with a brush (DH has asked me to stop using a brush, because I'm not doing the grout any good). 

As I was going back and forth in and out of the shower, I noticed that I'd obviously traipsed some of the mould killer on to the bath mat. The dark blue mat had some big yellow foot prints.  I put it straight on to wash.

The shower is now very clean, very unmouldy, and very descaled. The bath is shining from hosting the dishwasher tablet.    I have a mountain of cloths that require washing.

I refixed the bath seat,  put some of the bottles back in, threw other stuff away.  And then I had a hot shower, which was lovely.

The bath mat,  only 3 months old,  is ruined.   I really liked it.  I've ordered a replacement,  and will keep the ruined one for next time I do bleachy jobs.  

 

Crowdfarming

Before Christmas, I decided to try buying a box of clementines via CrowdFarming. i'd looked at it a while ago and had decided to give it a go, but I then forgot about it.  This meant I'd left it quite late (even though it was plenty of time before Christmas), so I had a limited number of suppliers to choose from.

Nevertheless, I decided to buy a big box of them, and delivery was planned for around 21st December. 

I wondered if they would smell as I remembered the clementines from my childhood smelling.  Would I notice the difference, having them picked and packed and sent rather than buying them from an ultra chilled warehouse.  Would they keep better?

A little way before Christmas, I had an apologetic email to say there was a slight delay, and my delivery would now be 25th December.   There wouldn't be a delivery on Christmas day, obviously, and probably not on the 26th either.  So, I added a small box of clementines to my shopping delivery.

Of course the Clementines turned up before Christmas, but after the editing time on my shopping delivery. The box was large, and there were many kilos in there, as they allow some extra in case of spoilage en route.

The packaging box was fab. 

I gave a kilo of the direct-from-grower fruits to my brother.  I found a recipe for easy candied peel, and I fully intended to shave the peel from the ones I was eating.  I failed, miserably.

This morning, I decided I'd make some Clementine Curd in my Instant Pot.    I used my lemon fluicer to juice the clementines, and it was so easy!   I think my mexican elbows have been made redundant.

In fact, the whole process was easy enough, although  I think I should have adjusted the sugar a bit.  I'd put in couple of tablespoons of lemon juice (as suggested in a different preserving book in a recipe for Orange Curd), so I left the sugar as the original lemon recipe said.   

It's OK, a bit sweet.   But it might calm down a bit when it as set and been in the fridge.

I'm thinking about making another batch, in the CookExpert this time, so I can compare.

I'm not sure I'll get beyond the thinking about stage.

I also spotted a recipe for Clementine and Quince Jelly, and i'm tempted to give that a go. But I'm not tempted to give it a go today. Maybe over the weekend.

There were two varieties in my box, and both were delicious. Neither of then really smelt how I remembered Clementines smelling.   I might get another box in January, when there is another variety ripening.

Goodbye to a Dear Friend

It's been a horrible week.

My DH's best friend died this morning, after a month in hospital.

A week ago, it wasn't looking good.  Less than a week ago, he was getting better. On Wednesday, it was decided they could do no more and he was put on palliative care.

We went to see him to say Goodbye on Wednesday night, before I travelled to see my Dad in hospital 200 miles away.

I got back very late last night,a couple of hours before he died. I'm glad I was home when DH got the phone call we had been expecting.

Expecting it doesn't make it any easier.

 

 

Farewell, Fleur

Fleur, my 8 and a half year old Cuckoo Marans, died during the night. 

I'm relieved. And I'm so very sad.   

She was a funny girl.  Very big, and not very bright. She laid dodgy dark brown eggs,  and was low in the pecking order, possibly at the bottom.

We bought her, along with Fay, as an 8 week old chick. She was never quite right, and I'm surprised she lived to the age she did.     It doesn't make it any easier.

She made me chuckle so much.   When our home hatched birds were learning to play Jumpy Uppy (where we got them to jump up on my arm), she just couldn't work it out.  She did, however, learn that if she jumped on the spot, we'd give her a treat.  

She hated to be picked up, partly because she was so heavy I think.  We respected that, and didn't try and force her to be petted.    She was happy to eat from the hands, and always knew her name.

She and her flock mate, Fay (a Fayoumi), weren't particularly close.  They stuck together at the beginning, because they were both newbies.  They didn't particularly spend time together as adults.   

However, during Fleurs last day in the garden, Fay went and stood with her for a very. very long time.   I don't  often see hens taking care of each other,  but this was really special.

I also saw that the others crowded round her, without jostling, and that surprised me.   They also all wanted to go in the same coop, something they have never done before. 

Nest in peace,  lovely girl

 

 

Killing time

I don't mind the cold weather, as long as I can have a the stove going.  I love the warmth it gives, both in terms of heat and in terms of the feeling.  I find it very soothing.

Usually I wait until about 4.30 in the afternoon to light it.  It's 10.30am now, and I think I might light it.

One of my older girls.  Fleur, is on her way out.  She slowed right down in the last week, and has been eating from my hands. I've been giving her extras.    She comes out of the coop, ambles round, sits with her friends and frenemies, but is not eating well and is quite light for her size.

Yesterday, I thought she was going to die during the day.  She sat quietly, she moved away from the flock under a shrub.   Fay, who we got at the same time from the same place, stood with her for over an hour.  That, in itself, was very unusual.

 

Later, Poppy went to see her, and gave her a sharp peck on the head.  I was very angry that Poppy should be so cruel. But, I think I misinterpreted it.   Fleur got up, and moved over to the others and sat in the middle of them all, including Poppy.  I think Poppy may have been encouraging her to join them.

They stayed together for the rest of the afternoon.

Later, I shut them in the run.  Just before bed, Fleur put herself in one of the covered dustbaths. The rest of the flock farted around, going to bed and getting up again.   I couldn't decide if Fleur had done this because she wanted to be alone, or because she couldn't face climbing the steps into a coop.   I carried her as gently as I could, and put her in the nestbox of  one of the coops, picking the one that she normally sleeps in and which had Fay and Poppy in already.  I watched on the camera as all the girls decided they wanted to be in that one coop (some of them coming out of the other one and going into it).

I got up this morning expecting to find a dead hen in the coop.   She wasn't dead.  She'd got up, and was sitting quietly in the run.   My heart was happy to see her, but it would have been better (for me) if she had gone.   Now I have to think about asking DH to despatch her, something I really don't want to have to do and something he definitely won't want to do.   

If she looked like she was in pain, I would, of course, despatch her immediately.  She doesn't look in pain, she just looks like she wants to slip off quietly.  I'd like to give her the dignity and peace of slipping off in her own time, with no additional stress.    I find this so difficult, I just want to do what's right for her.

In the meantime, I can't settle to do anything useful.

I might go and light the fire.

Forwards Backwards Sideways

I wanted to let off steam a bit, to offload about not being well.  

Sometimes, trying to focus on the forwards (and to accept the sideways and the backwards) is a challenge.

I wrote a load of stuff... 

...and then deleted it.

Lucky!

The missing puzzle piece was bugging me.  

It was an expensive jigsaw (currently £32 incl post), and I was cross with myself fo having lost a piece.    

I'd checked the table, which had piles of stuff on it because we are decluttering (still).  We checked under the table.  I even felt the bag of the Roomba station, to see if it was in there.   While I was down there,  I winced at the "dust bunnies" in the areas that Raymondo can't reach.  

Despite having a splitting headache,  I went and got the dustpan and cleaned them up. I did a thorough jub, underneath the table legs, underneath the kitchen trolley, all the nooks and crannies.  

And my diligence was rewarded - the missing piece!

I'm going to look at the puzzle for a couple of days before breaking it up

Attention all Shipping

I gave up on the cat puzzle.

I started my Shipping Forecast jigsaw, which I bought from the artist Jane Tomlinson a loooooong time ago.

It took me a couple of days to complete, and it is lovely.    I'm cross with myself than I have managed to lose a piece.  It may turn up, of course, but it's just as likely to be in the bowels of the Roomba base station.

It was a lovely puzzle to do. The pieces are interesting shapes, and are really good quality.  The colours are gorgeous

On and On

The (latest round of)  decluttering is ongoing.   We've sold quite a few things, given some away,  got a large pile of stuff to take to the charity shop, and binned stuff. We have passed on many, many boxes and packaging items. 

My dining room table is covered in stuff which is waiting for buyers. Under the stairs has boxes for the charity shop stacked up.    Many rooms are in a state of chaos,  and I am trying, I really am, to get things under control.

I've been very under the weather (tested negative for Covid), and it's taking me forever to do anything.  I've been taking tablets for a couple of weeks to suppress stomach acid. It's helped a bit with the pain, but not the other symptoms.   I was too ill to go out for dinner for my birthday. I managed to fo out for DHs birthday 3 weeks later, but couldn't eat much.  

  My back pain has been quite bad,  I'm sort of at the end of a flare up (which started at the end of September) and it just seems to be dragging on. At least its not awful all the time now, I get windows where it is mildly painful.   I really do appreciate that in the scheme of things, I'm lucky; sometimes it just gets me a bit down though. 

I always try and compare how I'm feeling with how I felt when some things were at their worst;   or what I can do that I haven't been able to do and that usually helps me feel a but better. 

I managed to make quite a lot of Quince stuff.  We had a bumper crop.   I made quite a bit of Quince Curd.  I should have peeled the quinces, as it's a bit gritty, but it tastes OK.   I used the Cream Soup programme on the CookExpert to cook the quinces,  and then made curd.

 I also made quince jelly, pressure cooking the quinces to get the juice.  Catherine Phipps (and her Pressure Cooking books) you are a star. You have saved me a lot of tone and energy 

 Then, I made another batch of Cream Soup with peeled quince,  and I froze it in ice cube trays.  This can go into other dishes.

Finally, i did another load of juicing by pressure cooking,  and froze the resulting juice.  I'll use it to make more quince jelly, when I've eaten the stuff already made. 

We've also had an amazing crop of Medlars.   They are bletting in the summerhouse, and I'll need to deal with them soon.  Probably more curd and more jelly,  I don't have the energy for anything interesting.

In other news, the Girls are doing well. 

I cleaned out the coops today:  the first time in 4 weeks I think, which is awful.    Most of the Girls have, more or less,  completed their moult - apart from Olga, the oldest of the 3 newbies. She's only just started,  and she's being picked on.   I took her out separately and gave her some scrambled egg the other day, and I'll try and do that again tomorrow.     

DH gave the Girls the vegetable beds as part of their free range area,   and they've loved it.  They've eaten everything, turned over the soil, and made a mess.

The new run is fab. We still haven't put the pole up,  we will get it done eventually.  Probably.

Nothing creative done, and it's going to be no cards for Christmas I think.

 

 

The High Life

We reviewed the contents of part of the loft yesterday.  The effort was exhausting.

It started because I had a mahoosive box which needed to go and live in the loft.  There was no sensible space available, so a couple of nights ago I popped up the ladder to see what could be done.

Yesterday, we removed (almost) everything from the very back of the loft, under the watertank.  We found some large boxes which we decided to get rid of;  a kitchen cabinet and some wire drawers for (dfferent sized) kitchen cabinets, which I've offered for free and have been claimed;  a cast iron griddle, which I've sold; the box for the bean to cup coffee maker, which we've brought downstairs so I can sell the machine;  many lovely bottles (including some fab heart shaped ones, which look like potion bottles,  which I'm trying to sell but will otherwise donate (or bin, I'm finding it all quite taxing); and a lovely stovetop espresso maker, which I'll be selling.

We also brought down the box for the CookExpert so I could  put my Magimix food proceesor parts in the it, and then heaved that back up there. 

We took the opportunity of clearing some shelving to move some other bits to that end of the loft. It's not easily accessible, so we wanted to just put away things that we won't regularly need. In this case it was spare floor tiles for the kitchen and bathroom floors.  I've just realised we don't need the bathroom ones at all, I should have brought them downstairs to sell them!  Never mind, next time maybe.

It was a lot of heaving and shunting and snapping at each other.

Downstairs looks lie a hoarders paradise at the moment.  I've got a pile of kitchen things to try and sell next time a particular FB group has a market day.  And I've got loads of empty boxes which I don't want to get rid of until after the market day (but I may have to)

I have to chuckle at the thought of this being an achievement.  

Not so long ago, I would have done half the oft in one go, on my own.  

Chaos

I'm taking a break from the self-created chaos of my kitchen.

Yesterday I made progress clearing the large table so that I could think about maybe sewing something. I need a clear space to get a clear head.

Then I went and collected the food processor.  Then I unpacked it and tried it out.  Then I started to excavate the cupboards to gather the bits for the previous food processor.  I found a couple of other items I decided I might as well try and sell.

Then I sidelined into listing some unrelated stuff for sale on Ebay;  and getting the file which contained the info on the steam room door out of storage, so I could contact the manufacturer;  then  I had a sack of corn and 2 sacks of sunflower seeds to deal with;  and now....  

 ...it's all got a bit out of hand.

I'm resorting to Just One Thing tactics to try and regain control.

Cup of tea. Biscuit. Then one step at a time. 

Never learn

I blame it on being unwell.

The other day I was thinking about my Magimix food processor,   which came with my CookExpert.   

I don't use it.

I decided I was going to gather up all the bits (the bowls, the blades,  the 3 cases of discs) and put it in the loft in the CookExpert box.  There was no point in it having cupboard space, as it was just too annoying to use. 

What's shocking is this is the third* Magimix food processor I've owned,  and I've ended up hating all of them  And that isn't even the "Never Learn" bit that he title refers to. 

*Years ago, when I was working and buying stuff on a whim was not a problem,  I had a Magimix 5200, and I bought a 4200XL instead.   It was a neater size, and had a better feed tbe.  It still had the stupid bowl design (3 bowls, where the middle bowl was useless, and using the small bowl meant that the big bowl had to be washed as well. It's shockingly poor design. ).

I got really fed up with it, sold it, and bought a Sage food processor.    My Sage food processor was a lovely example of a food processor, really well designed and thought out, and very sturdy.   

When I later bought a Thermomix, I didn't really use the Sage very much.

Fast forward a few years,  and I decided to sell my Thermy and my Sage food processor, and buy a Magimix CookExpert.    I thought long and hard about this, as I remembered very well just how annoying the Magimix food processor was.    I couldn't justify having 2 food processors though so, if I wanted the CookExpert,  the Sage had to go.

I love the CookExpert, I don't regret buying it -[ but I hate the food processor.   It has sat, unused, in the cupboard pretty much since I bought it. I did try it, in the beginning, but it just got on my nerves.

Anyway.   While I was summoning the energy to go into the loft to get the box,   I ended up having a conversation about food processors.   And it made me reminisce about the Sage.   And I looked on Marketplace and found one in fab condition and at a good price.  

After a bit of a faff, where it looked like I wouldn't be able to get it,  I  bought it.

I justified it to myself on the basis that it would replace 2 other machines I have on my countertop at the moment,  and the rest of it could live in the cupboard in the space vacated by the Magimix.  

I collected it today, nrought it home, washed it, and had a go.

It is so much better than the Magimix.  It's fast, and easy to use, and does a great job.   I had a go at peeling potatoes, which was OK.  It would be great, I guess, if I was doing one of my mammoth mashed potato sessions.

I then tried  the dicing accessory, for the potatoes I'd just peeled - and that was really very good.  I can definitely see myself using that.

But it still generated a ridiculous amount of washing up.   I'm not sure it will replace both of the appliances on my worktop.  One possibly.    

 I'm not sure how much I'll use it, given the amount of washing up required.

I feel a bit sheepish.   On the plus side, at least I bought it preloved, so if I do decide to sell it, I won't lose too much.

 

 

Macbeth

Macbeth at the Globe was great!   The layout of the theatre really gave me an appreciation of what it would have been like in originally.  

The production was gender neutral, so Duncan was a woman,  and the 3 Witches were men.  It was modern dress, which was fine.

We were lucky with the weather.  Miss Teen was particularly lucky.  She'd ignored my reminder for her to wear layers and a coat,   insisting that she would be warm enough in a hoodie and leggings.     I felt an uncontrollable surge of annoyance when she said that.   I know she's a teenager, and I know she thinks she knows best.   

I'd also suggested she had a quick read of the synopsis of the play from the Revision Guide I'd bought her.  She said she knew the story so didn't need to refresh herself before we went.    She got lost early on in the performance. so found it all a bit tedious.

 She was cold on the way home, and it took quite a bit of self control for me to not point out that she should have brought a coat. 

 In the end, it was a complete waste of money from the point of view of helping her.  

Still,  I wouldn't have gone otherwise, and I'm glad I did.

Kevina the Teenager

Miss Teen is increasingly like Kevin the Teenager.  I gently tease her about it sometimes, to try and get her to realise just how horrible she is being, but she has a teenagers thick skin when it comes to self awareness.

She has been struggling with some of her subjects.  Her school is running mock-mocks this week and the week after next, and she has been studying hard, trying to catch up.   The feral time during COvid has really taken its toll,  and so many of the children don't know how to study, how to learn, how to revise.

One of the things she is struggling with is English Literature, and Macbeth.

As soon as we knew the Shakespeare option would be Macbeth, I got her the study aids to help her understand the play. .  I also bought a copy of the Judy Dench version on DVD, so she could watch it.  I remembered from my own school days, that school murders Shakespeare,;  I found watching the proper play really helpful, and I thought she might too.

She's not been interested in watching it at all.  No surprise, I guess.

She's started to panic a bit about her exam, so earlier in the week I had a look to see whether Macbeth was on stage anywhere.  I found it, and  nearly bought tickets, but I knew she'd just think of it as a punishment.

This morning, on the way to school, she was talking about exams, and how difficult EngLit is going to be.  I said watching the DVD might be a good idea, and she agreed (some of her friends had also said seeing the play might help).

So, on the strength of that, I booked tickets for her and I to go and see Macbeth next week, at the Globe.  The tickets cost quite a lot of money, even without train fare and lunch.

I told her about it after school today. 

She was completely underwhelmed, and thinks it's a punishment.

I'm so disappointed.  Of course I had suspected this would be her reaction,  but I guess part of me thought she'd be excited at the thought of seeing it for real, and for seeing it at the Globe. 

I was wrong.

I completely regretted the outlay. I could have had 4 sessions with my Chiro. What a waste of money!
 

I messaged my step daughter, (DSD) to see what play my granddaughter (DGD) is doing for her  GCSE.  I was thinking I could pass the tickets on to them.  I wouldn't get any money, but at least the tickets would get used (although I suspect my DGD might be equally as interested as Miss Teen). 

While i was waiting for  DSD to get back to me,  I told Miss Teenshe didn't need to go if she didn't want to, I could easily sell the tickets.    (I was thinking,  I could probably sell the tickets and get some of my money back - it's Half term next week, and there must be a lot of parents who would like to help their kids like this).

She said no, she would go.

But, honestly,  it makes me feel like she's doing me a favour. 

I know Teens behave like Teens, but it's still really annoying.

I know some of  my irritation  is because her attitude picks at the fragile scab over that incident with the chickens (it still bothers me!), so I'm typing here so I don't do or say something I'll regret.

I expect I'll get over it, lol. 

EDITED TO ADD:
I feel better having written it down.  It's not her fault really, it's not like she asked me to get her tickets.  The fact that she's not really interested (and doesnt seem appreciative of the effort)  is my problem  really (my expectations) not hers.

 

Another week

Another week - woosh!  And suddenly, it feels like post Autumn!

A phone call brought good news today.  

My NHS Physio appointment -  in which they will give me exercise instructions which, hopefully, will completely resolve  my two-and-a -quarter year backache -  was scheduled for some time in November.  I was in the depths of a bad episode when they called the other week, and I asked if I could go to a different area to get seen sooner.  There were no earlier appointments,  but the lady who phoned put me on the waiting list for a short notice cancellation.

Today, they rang to offer me an earlier appointment: tomorrow!

I am so very pleased, as today I couldn't do part of my Pilates class because my back has seized up so badly.  

In other news:
-  the 3rd of my 3 cat jigsaws arrived, was made, and has been framed. 
- I spotted a "Tank" 1000 piece  jigsaw for sale, and bought it for DH.  To my surprise, he's started doing it almost immediately
- Miss Teen is staying with us while her parents are away,  and she has her mock mocks this week. The exam week was unexpectedly changed, they wouldn't have deliberately arranged to be away at this time.  We're up to our ears in revision, past papers, flash cards, and tests. 

Two of the Girls have decided it's now time to start moulting. The cold weather is just starting, so they didn't time it well.   They've formed a reasonably happy flock, with 1 of the 3 Newbies (Olly, who was the one I managed to slightly hand tame) being well integrated now.  The other 2 Newbies are a little on the outside,  but they have company in their Cube at night. I'e noticed they are being chased off a little less at treat time, and it seems little worse than the day to day henpecking that goes on anyway.

Frittering

I sat down a few hours ago to wrote a blog post about how I'm frittering away time.   I realised how daft that was, so I made myself get up and do somethign necessary, like Domestics.    

I'm back now.

The meringues were amazing. I've never been a fan, always found the things chalky and sweet.  These ones, following Delia's recipe, were sweet, but were a little chewy and very addictive.    They apple curd worked superbly, to tone down the sweetness.

I'm having such a lot of trouble with my back.  I had a double "Chiro" appointment on Tuesday, and Tania did a whole load of things to try and help alleviate my symptoms.  . I felt better about an hour after my appointment, and I still feel better now than I did.  It's still really uncomfortable though.   My NHS physio consultation is at the beginning of November. I hope that helps resolve things properly (although I don't really believe it's the cause of my issues). 

Anyway, no point dwelling on the aches and pains here,  no one likes a Moaning Minnie.

so, in an attempt to ignore the discomfort,  I've done some more preparation for doing some Christmas Card embroidery.   I suspect I'm going to run out of time, I really need to get on and do some more.  I wish I could have the machine downstairs,  but it's not practical.  The cats would have a field day, and it's far too dusty down here.  

It is tempting though.

I've also got stuff out to defrost so I can bulk cook some chilli con carne, and some bolognese,  tomorrow.  It's so lovely having a selection of ready meals in the freezer. 

 

 

Stomach curdling

I had a long session with the Chiro today, and she really helped with the pain.

When I got home, I felt well enough to tackle some of the apples and eggs that we have piling up,  and I made some Apple Curd.

I wasn't sure what to expect.  I used the quantities and method from a Margeurite Patten recipe.  I made apple soup (using the Cream Soup programme on my CookExpert) to start with.  I measured out how much puree I had, and calculated home much butter and sugar and how many eggs to use.

I added the sugar, and then the butter bit by bit (I got that tip from the Cook Expert cook book).   When it was all absorbed,  I added the eggs a little at a time.    The recipe suggested 3 eggs or 6 yolks.  I ended up doing 4 yolks and 1 egg.   I let it simmer away for awhile, tested it with a wooden spoon, and then potted it up.

I decided to make meringues with the leftover egg whites.   I made enough for 8 meringues,  and I could only fit 6 in the air fryer.    I ate the remainder raw, which was surprisinly delicious with the home made apple curd.  I imagine my stomach will complain later,  it doesn't like sugar very much.

The meringues are sitting in the airfryer, switched off, to finish drying out.  They look very rough and ready, hopefully they will taste good.   Miss Teen and DH can have them with some of the apple curd for pudding tonight.  I'll have apple curd (maybe) and a bt of yoghurt.

The apple curd is really lovely, much better than I expected frankly.  It's not overly sweet (I used dual purpose apples from the garden), and it's going to be lovely with yoghurt.  It would probably be fab on waffles and pancakes,  but I don't think I could eat those (although I do like them).

Getting Jiggy

I've been having a lot of back trouble, and some heart stuff going on.   I thought I'd try some things which keep me away from my computer.

Someone posted a fab looking jigsaw in one of the FB groups I'm in.  I loved it, and as soon as she offered it for sale, I snapped it up. 

I also ordered the second one in the series, brand new.

I asked DH whether we should frame one or other of them, and he set about sourcing a frame the correct size for me.    We tried it on the first puzzle, and it looks lovely.

I made the second one last nigh, and that has got to be framed.  

I've also found the thrid and final one in the series, preloved,  so I've bought that too.

Here are the two I've done so far:

Apple-opleptic

Our middle tree, with the dual purpose apples, is ripe.

I had a go at making some Apple Soup, using the automatic Cream Soup function on my CookExpert (CE).

I'd seen a recipe on the French CE fb group, where the maker just put a load of cored but unpeeled apples in to the CE, ran the programme, and had a good result.

There are two soup settings on the CE. In English, they are Puree and Creamed.   I wasn't sure which one the User had, I knew the original word was "Veloute",  but I wasn't sure which of the two programmes that matched.

I looked online at the French CE website, and thought it might be Puree because that was in the same place in the menu.     However, something just didn't feel right, so I looked more carefully and saw that the little symbols were different. The French CE has the options in a different order to the British CE.

It worked quite well.  The pulpy result was very sharp, and I've got lots of jars in the fridge.

I then decided to try a second version, which peeled the apples and added sugar and a little water.    I thought it might come out like the Heinz baby apples that I loved as a kid.  My mum used to serve it as apple sauce with pork,  I'd just open a tin and eat it. 

They use a form of brown sugar, and I wasn't sure which one. I ended up using muscovado, mainly because that was the first one in the cupboard.   It turned the resulting mixture an unappetising dark brown, and it was a bit oversweet and caramelly.

Over the course of the next few days, I ate loads of it with Yoghurt.  A bit of each, which worked well.

I decided I'd try again (another time) with unpeeled apples and a smaller amount of sugar, and I'll use Golden Granulated next time.

I'll let you know how it turns out

****

Then the chillis were ripe.

I had a go with the Ball Jam and Jelly Maker I bought some years ago (immediately after regretting selling my rarely used Tefal Jam maker).   It was the first time I had used the jam maker.   The jam isn't long lasting, it has to be kept in a fridge (or it has to be waterbath preserved),  but its easy to do.

I used their recipe for a Chilli Jam, . It had red peppers in it, which I can't eat,  so I substituted apples.

The result was OK actually.  It didn't set, my fault I think,   but it was like a sweet chilli sauce.

I joined the Ball Jam and Jelly Maker FB group.   Searching for recipes, I found a lady from the UK was asking about a recipe for Chilli Jam that had come with her Aldi version.  She'd lost her recipe book, and really wanted it as she had tried many recipes and that one was the best.   I commented on the post to see if she had ever got the recipe.  She  confirmed she had, and very kindly sent me the recipe. 

So,. I had a go at that last night.  I really should have cut down the quantities, but I didn't.   Again, I substituted peeled and cored apples for the red pepper,  and I reduced the amount of apple I put in (because the 1.6kg of peppers had to be deseeded).   This recipe also called for a tin of cherry tomatoes,  and that really appealed to me.

It used a lot of chillis,  and it included the seeds.  The chillis, garlic and ginger, and the apples all had to be blitzed before adding to the cooker.    It made my eyes water a little, and I might wear my onion goggles (if I can find them) before trying again.  

The finished results looked like vomit, because the apple pieces were still too big.    I dug out the hand blender, and blended it, and it improved thngs no end.  I put quite a lot into jars, and then I sloshed the rest into a big bowl.   I had lots of it with sausages for dinner, and it was really quite pleasant.  This one set properly.

Chilli  Apple and Cherry Tomato Jam

Sweet Chilli and Apple Sauce

I loved the fact that I had two completely different products.  

I'd be happy to make both of them again, but I'd reduce the quantities significantly.  I only need a couple of jars.

The Jam maker is still sitting on the worktop.  I ordered a recipe book from Amazon, which is aimed at these types of auto jam makers.    It gets good reviews, but it wasn't possible to "look inside".   

Maybe it will inspire me to make some more. 

Batch

For the past few months, DH and I have been (re)watching Deep Space Nine, right from the beginning.    

I've seen a number of episodes over the years, but we hadn't watched it properly.    It was very enjoyable watching all of it, in a relatively short space of time.    I really became invested in the characters and their development,  and I wish we'd watched it when it aired originally. 

7 seasons, 26 (ish) episodes per season.  

We haven't been bingewatching,  we normally watch 1 episode a night. 2 if its a cliffhanger. Occasionally we missed a night.    We had a problem when our Sky box crashed and we had to get a new one,  all our recordings were lost,  and the later series were no longer free.    

It was being broadcast again,  but it was well behind where we were and it would be months before the TV caught up with where we'd got to.    I looked at buying the DVDs,  but in the end it was cheaper to subscribe to a service for a few months, so that's what we did.

Yesterday we wtached Season 7, episode 24.   We have only the final pair of episodes left to watch. 

I thought were going to watch them tonight.    I started a load of batch cooking (thank you to Mrs Balbir Singh spices) so we'd have an array of Indian dishes to enjoy while watching.   

DH had made other plans!

I guess it'll be Friday now.   I've potted up some of everything into the little Le Creuset individual casseroles I bought pre-loved,  which are fab for reheating things in the airfryer.  I would never have bought these new,  but they are really great.  They are a neat size  -   I can put a few in the airfryer at once,  they are lidded (which my lovely Falcon enamel bowls aren't)  so it's a really efficient way of heating up a selection of items.    

  I digress.

I batch cooked, so I've also portioned up a load of stuff in the "ready meals" drawer in the freezer:  4 pairs of Beef Rogan Josh (I didn't have any mutton left);  5 (sides for 2 people) of  Keema Masala; 5  (sides for 2 people)  of Chana Massala.   I hadn't got as far as prepping the Lamb Sheekh kebabs (cocktail meatball style), so that's something. 

 It feels like a bit of an achievement.  

I had pasta salad, with yesterday's leftover pasta, instead.