Deviation...and some pictures.

I did eat all the chicken livers last night as suspected, so ended up channelling Seren tonight with a fish finger sarnie.
And some pics of last weeks meals too...apologies if they are odd sizes as am posting from my phone - note to self, put decent camera on next years Christmas list rather than relying on convenient technology...

Menu Planning Monday.

Woo hoo, it's nearly December! After a manic few weeks we are ramping up to get even busier - the kid's diary for the next few week is chocca, we have loads of social events planned and the bank balance is rapidly dwindling! Oh well, it's only money and you can't take it with you...

Monday - chicken noodle soup (but have no stock in so this looks more like a stir-fry, with spring onions, mushrooms and chilli)

Tuesday - pasta amatriciana 

Wednesday & Thursday - The Husband is out so a yummy chicken liver salad for me, will try to make 1 packet last 2 days!
Friday - down the local with friends for an all-you-can-eat fish and chip supper, followed by wine back at their house (disastrous for the diet, but have pretty much given up for this year)

Saturday - at a 1920's fancy dress party for my friends 40th, suspect it will be lashings of fizz and a buffet

Sunday - roast chicken with truffle butter and all the trimmings

Am trying, like many others, to run the freezer down as mine isn't very big and I want to get the potatoes and earwigs (what, you mean you aren't a Reggie Perrin fan?) for Christmas Day par-cooked and frozen on aluminium trays to save on time and washing up. Some of the above menu is due to that, and next week will try to use multiple packets of pitta bread, some whiting fillets and a ton of cheap ice-cream...

I realise this isn't a fabulous menu as inspiration for other foodies out there, but we have been distracted by potentially major developments on the house front! After losing the house we desperately wanted a couple of weeks ago, we resigned ourselves to staying put. But in a quirky twist of fate, we got a decent offer on our house this week and relooked at what was available out there. The list was short - just the one potential, which was unfortunately also under offer. But it transpires that this house is owned by the lady who offered on ours, so we are going to see her property with a view to gazumping. Not a nice practice, but the simple fact is that unless we can buy hers, she ain't going to be able to buy ours. Will make for the smallest (and hopefully most secure) chain in history - will keep you posted!

Menu Planning Monday.

Ok, ok, have been totally pants again. Combination of lacking in inspiration on the food front, being manic at work and home, and sheer laziness. Back to it...

Monday - Stir-fried king prawns and veg in a sauce made from leftover stock, with rice

Tuesday - pork steaks and feta salad

Wednesday - sausages (pork and stilton, yum) with sweet potato wedges

Thursday - prawns with something for me and drunken kebab for him

Friday - got friends coming over for a very informal supper so thinking about chilli con carne

Saturday - probably takeaway as ferrying kids around to parties and won't be home til late

Sunday - roast as we'll be at my parents for lunch - think mum is planning on beef - double yum!

What does MrsM have planned this week?

Hoovering the fridge.

And a very nice lot of leftovers for me to chose from today! Man-pleasing chicken thighs (although didn't please the man in my house overly) with salad and the ubiquitous chilli flakes, rather pretty I think!

Menu Planning Monday.

Ey up chuck, hope you're all well!

This week's menu is as follows;

Monday; roast sausages and tomatoes on the vine with griddled polenta, the perfect meal to come home to after an evening of fireworks on the beach!

Tuesday; am jumping on the diet bandwagon and trying this 5:2 thing that people are talking about (500 calories a day for 2 days a week, then eat sensibly for the rest), so ham salad with no dressing for lunch and veggie soup for dinner, making curried parsnip this week

Wednesday; spiced coconut BNS with lime pickle and basmati rice

Thursday; another fast day so more salad leaves and soup

Friday; feta and spinach pie, made with ricotta and filo pastry

Saturday; we have friends coming for dinner and The Husband is making his famous pizza followed by sticky toffee pudding and ice-cream. There will be wine, fact.

Sunday; out for lunch with the family for my sisters birthday (I believe fish'n'chips is a strong possibility) so a snacky tea, beans on toast for the kids!

Pop over to Mrs M's to see what she and others have planned, and if anyone else is trying to shed a few lbs in order to squeeze into Christmas frocks!

Menu Planning Monday.

 

A short week this week;

Monday - crispy bacon, chicory and watercress salad with a creamy dressing

Tuesday - my turn to cook so something out of the freezer; either leftover of last week's beef and barley stew or mother-in-law's lasagne

Wednesday - prawn Pad Thai

Thursday - mustardy sausages in hot ciabatta

Friday we are off to stay with family, then taking the kids to London for a few days over half-term! We are all mega excited, the kids want to see Hamleys and the London Eye, we are more interested in taking them to Chinatown and Wagamama's! 

When we're back I promise myself to make more of an effort to actually write in my blog, rather than just talk about recipes. Still haven't done a catch-up of our summer holiday, am seriously slacking...

Now pop over to Mrs M's to see what's cooking there!

Menu Planning Monday.

Guten abend alles! Here is the plan from the kitchen this week...

Monday - bangers, sweet potato mash and roast chinese cabbage

Tuesday - fish in a dry masala marinade with tomato chutney

Wednesday - beef and barley stew

Thursday - the Husband is out *rollseyes* so prawns in a peri-peri sauce for me (although I do pinch some of his kebab when he rolls home!)

Friday - chilli con carne

Saturday - pork and leek burgers with something

Sunday - depends on whether mother-in-law comes to stay!

We were pretty good with the budget last week, went £15 over but that was fish'n'chips and ice-cream on the beach yesterday - we were watching beach motocross in the sun and couldn't be bothered to go home just for a sandwich!

Hop over to MrsM's to see what's happening there now!

Hoovering the Fridge.

Sticking to the budget well this week, managed to spend just 25p on tonight's dinner and then use what was left in the fridge! 3 eggs, half a packet of mange toute, handful of lettuce leaves, couple of chillies and a ball of mozzarella...tasty as you like!

Menu Planning Monday.

Ola people!

Monday - Korean keema, with lettuce instead of rice (been too indulgent recently so have a few lbs to shift)

Tuesday - Chicken noodle soup

Wednesday - Ham, egg and sweet potato wedges

Thursday - on my lonesome for the evening so probably something quick with prawns or eggs; there are some mushrooms and ricotta cheese in the fridge so may recreate Saturday's dish

Friday - ditto yesterday, although have just added rocket and spring onions to this weeks shopping list to ring the changes

Saturday - Indian! Meeting friends and their kids at our local, armed with money-off vouchers and our own booze as they aren't licensed - makes for a cheaper evening!

Sunday - No idea.

We're trying a different way of grocery shopping budgeting at the moment, in the expectation that we'll be seriously skint if we buy this house. Trying to avoid the common pitfall of popping out for a pint of milk and coming home with twenty quid's worth of unnecessary items (several times a week!), so we are putting cash into a pot to cover everything - and when it's gone, it's gone. Didn't quite stick to it last week, always an excuse, but am sure we spent less than we would have done without the plan. 

Off you go to see what Mrs M has planned this week!  

Good weekend.

A pretty good weekend is just coming to an end. Nothing particularly spectacular, but a combination of family time + friends time = lovely!

Mr Moo had a friend over for a sleepover on Friday, and he's one of those kids who is an absolutle pleasure to be around. They entertained each other nicely, managed to let Little Legs play along with them without tears, and ate huge portions of toad-in-the-hole despite it turning out flat and under-cooked. They were quite excited as school had taken them to a book signing by Julia Donaldson that day, and what kid doesn't love meeting their literary hero! We indulged in some wine in the evening and let all the kids stay up late - and not a single complaint when they were eventually told to go to bed.

Saturday was a mix of grocery shopping, cooking, kid's party at softplay and a spot of shopping. Fish finger sarnies for lunch were just the job, and then knackered kids went to bed early while we had friends over for dinner. For once, we got every single dish perfect! The starter/nibbles were baked mushrooms stuffed with ricotta and chilli, beetroot and walnut humous, garlic bread, salami and olives; main was spaghetti carbonara made with Italian fennel and chilli sausages turned into meatballs, and dessert was Nigella's no-churn coffee ice-cream served with shop-bought madelaines - and you all must try the ice-cream, it's to die for!

Then today was a lazy mooching day, complete with a honey-roast ham for lunch, F1 and the X Factor on the tellybox, and normal stuff like kid's homework. It was a bonus to wake up this morning without a hangover, unlike most evenings when good friends come for dinner the night before! We've also spent some time this weekend sorting the house out as the estate agent is coming to take photos tomorrow - yikes, we're going on the market!

Oh, and the weather was nice enough to get the washing dried outside - this is October, isn't it meant to be raining? My chilli plants are having a late surge outside although this year's crop has been bitterly disappointing, so much so that I've had to buy some fresh ones. Oh well, getting both kids to voluntarily try them this summer made up for it!

Recipe time - Feijoada.

This is the national dish of Brasil, one that every household has their own recipe for. Some add bacon or chicken, others include various parts of a pig such as offal or hocks, and it can also be made as a vegetarian or side dish by totally leaving out the meat. It takes a long time to cook, so much so that many restaurants will only serve it one day a week so they can prepare it properly - kind of the equivalent of our Sunday roast! This is roughly how I do it, although it changes every time.

Soak some black beans in plenty of water overnight, then rinse and bring to the boil in fresh water. They need 10 minutes on a fast boil and then 50 minutes simmering.

Meanwhile brown some stewing steak (you should know by now that I don't specify amounts, just use as much as you would use in a casserole etc for the number of people you need to serve!) in oil or butter in a large oven and hob proof pan. Add a sliced onion, garlic to taste, couple of bay leaves, a few chopped tomatoes (tinned will do), fresh ground black pepper and the drained beans. Top up with enough stock to just cover the meat and chuck in a low-ish oven (a slow cooker would probably work as well, although I don't have one so can't confirm) for at least 3 hours.

Half way through add a Mattesons garlic sausage cut into chunks, but any spicy or highly flavoured raw or cooked sausage also works. Check the moisture levels and stir every hour or so. Season with salt at the end, and I add the inevitable chillies then too.

Traditionally this is served with rice, sauteed spinach or spring greens, fresh parsley, slices of orange and a manioc side dish called "farofa". Wash down with plenty of cold lager (Brahma is an excellent Brasilian one that you can get over here) and don't forget to make a double portion to freeze!

Menu Planning Monday.

Posting a bit early I know, but have got a manic day (and possibly week) ahead so playing catch-up before I get behind!

Monday; I'm out with 2 girlfriends so will be a steak and lots of wine no doubt. The Husband was going to have some filled pasta out of the freezer but his mum is coming to stay so he'll have to make the dish feed 2!

Tuesday; Feijoada, had this Saturday just gone and was proactive enough to make a double portion. Basically it's a beef, sausage and black bean stew, slow-cooked for about 5 hours, served with rice. It's the national dish of Brasil and one of those where every Brasilian household has it's own version. WIll blog the recipe later in the week - remind me please!

Wednesday; the eggs in purgatory that didn't get made last week.

Thursday; The Husband is out cycling with mates so he normally has several pints of beer and a kebab on the way home, and I'll no doubt have my usual prawn salad or stir-fry.

Friday; Mr Moo has a friend coming for a sleepover and has requested toad-in-the-hole with broccoli. To my shame I've never actually made this so hope it turns out OK!

Saturday; got friends round for dinner and haven't decided what to cook yet. Last time we went to theirs she cooked a stonking meal from Jamie's 30 minute meals so will avoid this cookbook. Ideas please?

Sunday; several paracetamol and a pint of milk for brekkie probably - and a roast for dinner if I can get my act together in time.

On a side note I can thoroughly recomend Tesco's jalapeno humous, had this for a snacky tea today on crackers, washed down with some Aldi white wine. Not counting our chickens yet but we hope to pursue things with the house we saw last week - and if we do will be seriously skint for about the next 10 years so are investigating cheaper ways to still enjoy our food and drink!

Now get thee over to Mrs M's to check out more meal plans!

The proof is in the eating!

Eventually the courgette and halloumi burgers were made - basically grated cooked courgette, red onion, cubed halloumi, an egg, breadcrumbs and seasoning, mix well and shape into patties. Leave in the fridge for an hour then fry (Frylight is fine) for about 5 mins either side.

First picture is tonight's green pork chilli; dry fry pork mince with shallots, green beans, green chillies, garlic, ginger, juice of a lime and any other green veg you have. Add a little stock and some nam pla (Thai fish sauce) a few minutes before its ready, and serve with rice and fresh coriander. I passed on the rice to keep calories/points down, and you really don't notice its missing.

So, the Husband did well this week, waddya reckon?

Menu Planning Monday.

Monday; courgette and halloumi burgers - yes, the same ones that have been on the plan for 3 weeks running but haven't been made yet. Only they have been made now and are waiting in the fridge to be cooked!

Tuesday; green pork chilli. That's not green pork, just lots of green things in it like French beans, mange tout and fresh coriander.

Wednesday; eggs in purgatory. A friend made these at the weekend and I had to google to find out what they are - the Husband is mortified as the dish originates from Naples which is close to where he was born, yet he's never heard of it!

Thursday; sausages and something. Morrisons have a new range of very tasty looking bangers, we'll have them with whatever's left in the fridge

Friday; kids are both at a party so we may pop to the nearby pub which does a mean crab sandwich.

Haven't planned the weekend yet as we may have friends visiting. Now pop over to Mrs M's place and see what she has planned!

I caved.

Not yet October, but I caved. The heating went on today. In all fairness I had about 3 loads of washing that my lovely mummy kindly did for me yesterday, and seeing as it's torrential thunderstorms out there (OK, I exaggerate a little bit) it couldn't go outside to dry so we needed some drying power, and fast - before the rest of the house goes down with a damp problem. That's my excuse for the heating going on, and I'm sticking to it.

On a similar note, today would have been the perfect day for an open fire. We had a yummy roast chicken as a late lunch (F1 not finishing til gone 3pm...) and then all snuggled up on the sofa with X Factor and Dancing on Ice on the gogglebox. Suppose I should confess now, after last week's house-related ramblings, that we've found what looks on paper to be the perfect place for us, think we can afford it, and I'll be calling an estate agent tomorrow to try to get ours on the market! Bit of a turn up for the books as we've put our life and soul into this house and intended to stay here forever, but we do feel we've outgrown it a bit. And this new house has an open fireplace in both the living and dining rooms...

Menu Planning Monday.

Hey folks, am back in the groove! Plans were up in the air a little this week as I was meant to go out tonight but am not now so chucked in an extra meal, then the Husband decided he'll go out instead so the plan has changed yet again. Oh well, will just lob things in the freezer!

Monday; was meant to be half-price steak at our local with a friend, but ended up being a burger with potato, carrot and beetroot cakes leftover from the weekend

Tuesday; smoky marinaded pork (a weird concoction of, amongst other things, coffee, honey, cocoa powder and garlic, will see what it tastes like) with a rocket salad

Wednesday; halloumi and courgette burgers

Thursday; suspect the Husband is out again so a prawn salad for me

Friday; kids are both at a sleepover so we're going out for an Indian!

Saturday; Harissa lamb with raita and flatbreads
Sunday; keeping free, hope for a roast of some sort.

I also plan to make (or persuade the Husband to make) large vats of salsa and Asian slaw for lunches at home - need to stop eating rubbish and shift a few holiday lbs!

Now pop over and see what Mrs M has planned for this week.

Decision time...

This week I decided that I hate my house. Despite living here for nearly 8 years and having spent all our life savings (and then a bit more...) on improving it and making it into the perfect family home, we've just had far too many problems with it recently for my liking and I want to move. Over the last year we've had the following;

broken fridge freezer resulting in 8 weeks without any chilling ability, in the run up to Christmas
rats, then mice, then rats again
2 fly infestations from the deceased rats
washing machine needed replacing
boiler needed replacing (that bill hurt, a lot)
penetrating damp in the entire side wall of the house, coming through into our bedroom
damp or soot coming through the chimney wall in my son's bedroom
attempted theft in the shed (the Husband was most upset about that, as he has three very nice bikes in there)
cracked plaster in the living room (plaster is only a few years old)
both loos are broken but one can't be repaired without taking down a wall

I'm sure there's more, and that list grew bigger this week with the 5 month old washing machine deciding to fuse all the sockets in the house. We got the leccy back, but have waited a week for Hotpoint to get their arse into gear and come out to look at it. They're coming tomorrow, and I just hope they cope with the fact that they'll need to take the sink off the wall to move it.

So, of course our thoughts turned to considering moving, to a new build. This is where the dilemma lies; we've been trying to reduce our mortgage over the last few years and don't really want to increase it now. On the other hand we are likely to inherit enough money to pay it off (and any extra that we want to take out) - but we clearly have no idea when that money will be coming our way, seeing as our parents are all alive and well.

We've had a look on t'web anyway, and these are the results at the moment;

This was my first possible, as it's a newbuild and in a great location near to the park, beach and school. Fabulous bedrooms, but where do you put a dining table, and where do the kids play when they have any friends around? Ruled this one out pretty quickly on that basis, even if it is affordable.

Next is the most sensible option. Even closer to school, decent garden and a drive and front garden which we don't have now. We could stretch to it, but in reality all it would provide is an extra bathroom for the Husband to clean. Oh, and a spare room for the MIL to stay in, though it would be shared with my office.

Now this one is rather quirky, gated private drive and a wonderful living space, but having driven round there it's all a bit cramped. The garden isn't great either.

Fabulous house, vineyard in the garden, amazing character - but needs serious cash spending on it and is very old, which is what we're trying to get away from here.

Lottery win needed for this one sadly, but would provide us with all the space we want plus more - and what an incredible kitchen/diner!

On reflection I think we'll stay here, and just leach more of our hard-earned cash into it. Oh well, a girl can dream:)

The real stuff.

After posting a rubbishy photo a few weeks ago of some cakes brought back from our cousin's cake shop in Italy, thought I'd taunt tempt you with some more pics - in situ this time!

These are the arogostini pictured before;



Just some of the counter in the main shop;




And the man himself;

Camp food!

Hey all, back into the land of the living - I think! The last couple of weeks have been manic and the proverbial is hitting the fan with house and electricals issues, to say nothing of work being crazy busy, so just a short post today. I haven't menu-planned for the week so am letting Mrs M down I'm afraid, but will be back with a vengeance next week...

Anyway, we just had a great weekend camping and wanted to share the evening meals that we had. Breakfast was a bacon sandwich on the first morning and a sausage sandwich on the second (washed down with large amounts of coffee) - nothing can beat that in the open air.

Noodles with chicken and red peppers for the kids - ours was pepped up with some jerk seasoning. Four empty plates afterwards;)

And this was corned beef hash with courgettes and home-grown chillis. Didn't go down quite so well with the kids who have requested it with tuna next time. But they still ate it all when liberally doused in ketchup!

Back soon with a write-up of our Greek trip which was just fabulous. Just wish the weather was better here so I can show off my tan!

Hoovering the fridge.

Which is something my mum used to do on a regular basis, then try to concoct something interesting from the contents - which inevitably ended up as stew. Nowt wrong with stew, but...

So, last night we had to finish up all the food from the fridge, before leaving on our holibobs today. Most impressed with the Husband's efforts, so presenting to you chilli and fresh lime juice prawns and mushrooms, served on salad but was almost like a Thai-style soup with the addition of creme fraiche. Bloody gorgeous!

Shame on me.

I haven't blogged for weeks it seems. Nor properly menu-planned. I'd like to say it's because I've been busy but laziness plays a major part - plus I keep forgetting!

So, what's been happening here recently? The Olympics of course. We had the honour of hosting the sailing and windsurfing events in our town, although didn't get to see much of them. It was a fun time though, watched as much as I could in the evenings and the kids spent a lot of time on the beach, trying different sports and hanging out with friends in front of a giant screen watching it. They pedestrianized part of town which made it better to get to the beach, and a lot more pleasant. Sadly very few people (aside from ticket holders) came here during the first week as they assumed it would be too busy, a lot of local businesses suffered and a fabulous looking festival shut down due to lack of visitors - the day we were planning to visit it of course. It was busier the second week though and the atmosphere on "Ben Ainslie Day" was electric.

The kids have had a ball this summer - stayed at grandparents for a few days and were thoroughly spoilt, then nonna (Italian grandma) came to stay and continued the spoiling. They spent a lot of time on the beach, the SeaLife Centre, the Tank Museum, having BBQs and sleepovers with friends, swimming, cycling, parks, cinema - the list is almost endless! The weather hasn't been half bad either. And they've been sleeping late most mornings which is fab for the Husband who got a lot of lie-ins:)

Work went on as normal for me, although I took the day off on my birthday and also for the local Carnival day which was great fun. We wangled a couple of meals out too, making the most of free babysitters; my diet has totally gone out of the window for a few weeks although I've managed to maintain my weight rather than gain.

So, we're off to Greece on Saturday which I CANNOT wait for. Just a few more days and we'll be laying on a golden beach, improving the kids water skills, chilling out in tavernas and enjoying the sun. Started the packing today, at least chucking some toys and bottles of suncream into a bag. I remembered that there is a Nandos very close to the airport so we'll treat ourselves to some chicken for lunch before we check-in, and then taking the kids on a plane for the first time that they can remember! Will be back with tales of lovely meals I expect.

Oh, and just to prove my dedication to chillis, I got me a new tattoo!

Breakfast.

Now, these don't look much but they are the most amazing hand-made cakes from Italy. They call them arogostini, and they were made by the Husband's cousin Alberto, then transported carefully back to England and lovingly filled with Nutella by my mother-in-law. And scoffed by me for breakfast this morning! I don't have a sweet tooth at all but make an exception for these beauties; makes for a huge weight gain each time we visit The Family over there as we get to pinch whatever we want from their shop!

Menu Planning Monday.

Fairly pathetic effort this week.

Monday; roasted aubergine and red onion with chicken strips (leftover from the chicken and bacon caesar salad that we were too drunk to eat at last weeks BBQ)

Tuesday; Greek salad with bacon (leftover from the other half of the above-mentioned dish plus the salad that didn't even make it out of the fridge that night)

Wednesday; kids are at grandparents for the night so we're hitting the high life - curry and beer for a tenner at our local pub

Thursday; kids still away so are planning a nicer night out, hopefully the tapas place in town

Friday; dunno yet

Weekend; we have a loose plan to go camping with friends but it's all down to the weather. There's also a chilli festival not too far away so the ideal would be to combine the two.

I'll leave you with a video of the chilli-eating competition that I will not be entering. No siree. Not in a million years, even if I'm dared to under the affluence of incohol...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHGRsmG18yw

How's MrsM's week been?

Menu Planning Monday.

Sorry I missed last week, combination of various members of the family being absent on certain days, losing my mojo temporarily, and sheer laziness. I ended up eating a lot of salad, the kids had a lot of sausages, and we all ate and drank far too much on Friday night at a friends BBQ - essentially meant to be an end-of-term party but which turned into a marathon eating and drinking session with loads of drunken ramblings and the kids being largely neglected. Oh well, they enjoyed the ultra-late night hanging out with their friends too!

This week is not dissimilar though, ooops! Today we had pork belly on the BBQ (accompanied by peppers stuffed with red onion, chilli and ginger), the Husband is out for the next 2 nights so I'll have prawns or eggs with salad, and Thursday is turkey steak  with butternut squash.

Friday is the big event for this week - my birthday! We are having some friends round for a BBQ and the weather is meant to be stonking. No doubt it will be the same as last Friday in that the kids will run riot and the adults will drink far too much and talk drunken bollox. We'll end the evening by watching the firework display on Weymouth beach for the opening ceremony of the Olympics. Just as well that we can see that from our garden, as the logistics of moving 10 adults and 12 kids a mile down the road in the state we're likely to be in by 10pm is daunting!

The plan as it stands is this;

Crisps/olives/twiglets/bread sticks - with various shop-bought dips

Lemon, herb and garlic marinaded pork steaks

Italian fennel and chilli sausages with lentils and salsa rossa

Chicken and bacon Caesar salad

All these to be served in soft pittas - saves on cutlery and therefore washing up

Pasta salad

Greek salad

Kids are having burgers, minted lamb kebabs and sausages, with rolls/baps and a huge bowl of carrot sticks, peppers and cucumber

Pudding is ice-cream with sprinkles, waffles and strawberry sauce for the kids, meringues with frozen berries for the adults, and a lemon meringue pie instead of a birthday cake (I don't like cake!). All washed down with gallons of wine, beer and limoncello.

And alka seltzer for brekkie no doubt;)

Let's see if Mrs M is planning such a feast...

Tune for today...

Schools out for summer!


Hurray, the summer holidays are here! Well, for the kids anyway as they get 6.5 weeks of lie-ins, no lessons and carefree days playing. The Husband will just work his minimum contracted hours for the duration, lucky git only has 9 hours a week to do. And the weather appears to be improving after about 3 months of solid rain. Happy days!

But little old me will still be at work as usual. Working from home has certain advantages but I suspect that listening to the kids playing in the garden while I'm stuck inside isn't one of them. Oh well, we're off to Greece for the last week of the holidays so daydreaming about the sun, beach and tavernas will keep me going until then.

What does everyone have planned for the next few weeks then? My 2 are going to be picnicing on the beach, going to the Sealife Centre, practicing riding their bikes, hanging out in the garden with friends and no doubt eating a lot of ice-cream. I'm tasking the Husband with having them out of the house as much as possible otherwise I know they'll just whinge to watch the gogglebox or play on the computer, so this week they are including a train ride to Dorchester where there is an awesome playground/waterpark. Grandmothers are doing their bit too by having them for a week each, and there are always indoor options like the Tank Museum and home-cinema (cheap and easy - shut the curtains and make some popcorn!) for rainy days. Happy holidays folks!

The Olympics.

Wow, for once living in the back of beyond has paid off! Not only did we get the Olympic Flame passing about a mile away from our house today, but we also get to host one of the few events taking place outside London, the sailing!

Today was Friday 13th, surely an ominous day for some but we had a ball this morning. After several days of literally torrential rain, the clouds decided to be much lighter today and it was dry as we walked down towards the beach. Met up with various friends and neighbours along the way which was nice, and the kids crazily waved their flags and bopped away to the music coming from the sponsor's lorries. The Husband was more interested in all the bikes (push and motor) that were in the procession, but even he (who is always very bah-humbug about these sorts of things) started getting excited. The Police outriders were high-fiving us as they passed and there was such a cheerful community atmosphere.

The main event was over pretty quickly though, two minutes of frantic waving and cheering and the old man with the torch was gone. It was a bit of an anti-climax really, but fantastic to see so many people out, supporting local volunteers and enjoying the moment. I don't think we'll ever see this again in our lifetime so it was important to go, especially for the kids.

Now we're on countdown for the sporting events, although it will mean a few weeks of road closures, mental traffic and a bombardment of visitors to our town. So long as the weather carries on being as miserable as it has been recently, we'll be hibernating indoors away from the activity anyway!

Recipe time!

The Husband made this tonight and it was lush so thought I'd share! Serves 2.

Make a marinade from extra virgin olive oil, juice of a fresh lemon, teaspoon of crushed fennel seeds, handful of chopped parsley leaves, crushed garlic, salt and pepper. Pour onto 2 pork shoulder steaks and leave for at least an hour - overnight if possible.

Cook the pork on a hot griddle pan for about 5 minutes each side, or til cooked. Meanwhile boil a couple of large handfuls of broad beans (frozen are great!) for a few minutes, and sprinkle over a plateful of rocket. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil and fresh lemon juice over it, then top with the cooked pork.

The original recipe also called for some shaved parmesan which would have worked well, only it's a waste of calories for a serial dieter like me! A very easy and quick meal, low in calories and carbs, and packed full of flavour. And pork steak is a cheap cut which always helps!

Menu Planning Monday.

Working from the September 2010 edition of the BBC Good Food magazine this week, got a stack of old mags passed to me by a non-foodie friend and have unearthed some fab recipes!

Sweet potato and chorizo hash with a fried egg on top

Jerk chicken - probably serve this with Asian slaw rather than rice and peas

Herby lemon pork chops with a rocket, broad bean and oregano salad

Chicken, chicory and watercress salad with crispy bacon and a yogurt, tarragon and mustard dressing  

The Husband is out one night so I'll probably have a prawn salad or omelette

Saturday is going to be Mexican, courtesy of Lidl - offers aren't in there til Thursday so will send the Husband out and see what he comes back with

Sunday we have friends (and kids) coming for lunch so will be BBQ if it's nice, or more than likely we'll end up with home-made pizza as it's bound to be raining. Again.

You doing anything nice this weekend Mrs M?

Will leave you with a snap of tonight's dinner - could have eaten about 3 times the amount, was seriously tasty!

Food m'lud...

Had the great pleasure of seeing a couple of professional cookery demos this weekend. Played about with photos a little too, and loved this shot of the heads of a Masterchef winner and a Michelin starred chef.

Menu Planning Monday.

It's gonna be a challenge this week! Have decided to defrost the fridge-freezer next weekend so have to empty it - the full story is for another blog post but we don't have a frost-free one any more so have to do some work to keep it nice! So, lots of mish-mash menus and crazy combos this week!

Tonight; Italian fennel and chilli sausages with braised peas and red onion

Tuesday; Lentil and spinach curry with rice

Wednesday; Fish with a pesto crust and courgettes (what fish we have will depend on what the Husband spots on special at the supermarket tomorrow!)

Thursday; Ham hock and cauliflower soup

Friday; French pastry nibbles and snails

Saturday; probably a takeaway

Sunday; Hoping for a trip to Ikea so will be meatballs and sauce!

And yes, you did see snails creep in there. We bought some for the kids to try and keep forgetting about them - will have to report back if they actually eat 'em!

As ever, do pop over and see what MrsM has planned too.

The boy done good...

Am so so proud of Mr Moo. He's always done well at certain things, from a very early age; communication is the main one and this has translated into being communicated to - i.e. reading. A couple of months before his 6th birthday he was tested and told he had a reading age of 10, and we are currently having problems finding books challenging enough for him technically but relevant enough for his mind to grasp! His teachers love him, he seems to be known by staff throughout the school who have never taught him and he always gets glowing reports. Wonder boy indeed!

We were especially proud of him last week, and he had a stonking day to remember. Not only was it his class assembly (I *might* have skived off work to attend) in which he played several parts, but he was also awarded a Governors certificate for achieving 20 merits, the only child in his class this year to do so. He was also class-leader that day, which meant that he got to bring Fluffy the class mascot home for the weekend. And just to top all this off nicely, it was also his birthday!

The day ended really well, with 2 grandparents coming down to take him out for tea - pizza of course! And then cake and staying up late, to say nothing of some fabulous presents. Shame his little sister couldn't behave half as well as him, but that's a whole other blogging topic - anyone heard of a 3 year old trying to sleep in a wardrobe???

Menu Planning Monday.

In a very definite order for a change;

Monday - out with a friend, half price steak night in our local pub

Tuesday - the skate with Asian slaw that we didn't eat last week 

Wednesday - prawn salad as the Husband is out

Thursday - beef rogan josh with mushrooms

Friday - pizza! It's Mr Moo's birthday so we're going out!

Saturday - takeaway and wine as will be recovering from his party

Sunday - pizza again! We have friends over for lunch so have to cater for kids and adults, a vegetarian, plus something that can be done for 2 sittings.

Now pop over to MrsM's place and give her some inspiration please!

Menu Planning Monday.

We booked a holiday last week, a week of total getting-away-from-it-all which is just what we need after what this year has thrown at us. But of course Mr Moo wants to know what they eat in Greece so out came a recipe book - and this week's menu is heavily based on that!

In no particular order;

Skate in a lime and coriander butter with Asian slaw

Moussaka, of course;)

Pork steaks with a Greek salad

Chicken kebabs with rice and salad

Friday night we're out at friends for dinner, which will be heavily alcohol-fuelled. Apparently I raised the bar in terms of dishing the same friends up a stonking Brasilian menu last time they came to us, and I already know there's a lemon tart planned for dessert, so think we're in for a treat!

Not sure about the rest of the weekend. Mother-in-law is staying so may end up being fish and chips for Saturday lunch (a great hangover cure too!) and I haven't done a roast for ages so that's on the cards for Sunday.

As ever, pop over to see what Mrs M has planned...

Nightrider!

It was a very strange sight, to say nothing of a bit dodgy. 1500 people, mainly clad in lycra, hanging around a deserted park in the middle of the night. But this was no ordinary night; no, this was Nightrider night! A 100km/63 mile ride around London to raise money for our own choice of charity – Camille’s Appeal for me of course.

It’s hard to know where to begin, so many sights and sounds and memories from that one night. We started from Crystal Palace at 11.30pm, cycling off into the darkness with our bells ringing and lights blazing. We passed through the mainly deserted residential areas of Lewisham and Greenwich, stopped for a photo by Tower Bridge, and then on to the City and Docklands. Very bizarre whizzing through manned security checkpoints at speed, with no-one daring to stop a zillion cyclists On A Mission! St Pauls Cathedral was beautifully lit up and after a brief stop for chocolate (yes, free chocolate every 20km!) we viewed Arsenal and set off on the long climb up to Alexandra Palace.

Boy, was that a steep hill! Some of us *might* have walked up part of it, but the stunning views across London from the top were worth it, just as the sun was starting to emerge. Of course what goes up must come down, and the thrill of a 30mph+ descent soon got the adrenalin going again! Through a murky Hampstead Heath and into the really fun bit – Camden High Street, Piccadilly Circus, Covent Garden – where we dodged drunken pedestrians, chased buses and zipped around taxis. Another great photo opportunity on Waterloo Bridge, with the Gherkin and Shard and a stunning sunrise over the Thames on one side, and Big Ben, the London Eye and early morning joggers on the other.

And finally, after yet more chocolate outside the Imperial War Museum, we were on the home stretch. The Royal Albert Hall loomed around one corner, and the streets started getting busier with people and traffic. Oh dear, another hill and another wee walk, but we triumphantly careered down the last incline and back into the cheering and clapping crowds at Crystal Palace. A cold beer and a bacon sarnie kept our spirits going as we desperately tried to stay awake long enough to stumble back to the van, to join up with the faster members of our team who'd been kipping for a couple of hours.

It was a night I will never ever forget. From the camaraderie of our team and fellow cyclists, to the smells of curry and fried chicken from the East End; the burning of my leg muscles as I powered up hills, to the sheer exhilaration of speed and confidence as we tackled London’s traffic; the high-fives and cheers from passing revellers, to the giggling at yet another row of SPD-clad cyclists toppling over like dominoes at traffic lights. And of course the knowledge that we were in fact doing something that would really make a difference kept us going through the small hours. Thank you Team Camille’s Appeal, for the support and company and laughs – I think we’ll be back next year!

I did it!

Sorry folks, forgot to update here as it's been a mega-busy week, but I did the Nightrider - 100km of road cycling, some very hard hills that even had proper roadies stumped - and had a ball and barely broke a sweat! OK, that might have been because it was pretty nippy especially cycling away from Alexandra Palace at 4am down a very steep hill at about 30mph, but nonetheless it was a relatively easy ride for me. Proper blog post to follow, but I'll leave you with a pic...

Menu Planning Monday.

OK, let's get this show back on the road folks! After some serious carbo-loading over the last week (purely for fitness reasons which I will blog about later in the week) we are now back on the diet-wagon...

In no particular order;

Escalope Holstein (pork in a crust with a fried egg) and salad

Steak with roasted butternut squash salad

Egg fried rice with peas and prawns

Salmon with an olive sauce, broccoli and new potatoes

Halloumi with roasted veg and puy lentils

Haven't got as far as the weekend yet, not holding out hope for BBQ's, honest...

Is Mrs M planning on BBQing too?

Tune for Today.

I'm so excited! 

Less than a week to go til I'm cycling 100km at night in aid of Camille's Appeal - and I can honestly say that I haven't been this excited about anything for months, if not years! It will be hard going, painful and a real endurance test, to say nothing of forgoing sleep and wine for a night, but it's all in a very worthy cause.

I got to know Camille' mum Hayley about five years ago, and was devastated when Camille was diagnosed with an apparently inoperable brain tumour aged just 2 years old. Since then she has undergone 15 months of chemo, 3 major brain resection ops, lots more procedures to drain her head and 3 months of daily radiotherapy involving a general anaesthetic each time. To say nothing of relapses, septic shock and many many dangerous infections - and the sheer hell that her parents have endured constantly in that time is unthinkable. But Camille has taken it all in her stride, supported by her amazingly strong parents and family, and she has now been cancer-free for 15 months. It isn't an easy path from now on though, she still faces many physical challenges as a result of her treatment, but her future is looking bright at last.

This family's experience is that our NHS system is fantastic for treatment; Camille has not lacked for anything and they have even supported (and paid for) her parents' choice of radiotherapy treatment in the US as it was more appropriate to her needs and prognosis. But once these children are "cured" of their cancer, the assistance stops there. No physiotherapy, no speech therapy, no help in school or at home - and many of them have life-long disabilities as result of the intensive and debilitating treatment. The NHS system is so underfunded and badly managed that niceties like these are sadly bottom of the list. So this is what Camille's Appeal hopes to achieve; the establishment of a rehabilitation centre at Addenbrooks Hospital to help children like Camille to develop their potential, rather than just survive.

So, this is why I and 8 others will be pedalling our way this Saturday night from Crystal Palace to...oh, Crystal Palace! It's a circular route and I'll be taking photos and uploading to Facebook whenever I can. Actually, there will be around 3000 people taking part altogether, including Ortis Deley, Princess Eugenie and the very lovely Ben Fogle. For every niggle or tired muscle or yawn that I experience, the thought of what Camille has endured will be on my mind and will spur us on. Come back next week to see how long it takes me - my current guess is 7.5 hours including break stops - bets are on folks!

Camille after her first major resection op;




And more recently, starting school;

Menu Planning Monday.

Oh dear, whilst a slightly better effort than the last couple of weeks, this entry is not a qualified success! Seems I might have been distracted by purchasing methods of maggot removal rather than concentrating on my family's food, so I just bunged a heap of stuff in the trolley (plus have leftovers from a cold lunch that my mum brought over today) and will play it by ear each day...

Fridge contents =

Meatballs
Pork steaks
Chicken thighs and drumsticks
Cold ham
Cooked chicken drumsticks

Aubergines
Red onions
Lettuce
Peppers
New potatoes
Coleslaw
Cucumber
Mushrooms

Half a tub of single cream
Big wedge of brie
Halloumi
Sausage rolls
Yoghurt
Salad and mint sauce from tonight's takeaway
Single shot of vodka

So, it's a pot-luck week folks! We had an Indian takeaway tonight, and are staying with mother-in-law on Friday night - she has spaghetti and meatballs planned. Will turn many of the above ingredients into sarnies and picnics for half-term, and suspect half the meat will end up in the freezer. Oh dear, that actually only leaves 3 meals to cook - I may have overcatered as per.

The only certainty this week is that I will eating far too much! I have my big Nightrider event coming up on Saturday and feel the need to fuel up for it - what an excuse to overeat! Not sure of our food plans for that evening, but will take some bananas and mini pork pies with me to eat en-route. And the Husband has been tasked with finding me an ice-cold beer to down at approximately 7am when I get to the finish line...

As ever, pop over to see if MrsM has done any better than me this week!

Jubilee time!

So, what are we all up to folks? We didn't have any plans at all, so kicked off the weekend with some friends and their kids round for a BBQ after school on Friday, then a girls night out for me which surprisingly didn't get too messy. Did share lots of chilled white wine and some good girly gossip though.

Saturday was decent weather-wise and the kids had a party to go to at lunchtime, so we sneaked off for a crab sarnie and a beer in the nearby pub. Then a mosey down to the local folk festival with plenty of bands and Morris dancers to keep the kidlings entertained for a while. It did reinforce why we always think of Morris dancers as crusty old codgers - an unfortunate stereotype that was borne out in force yesterday!

Today we wandered round the harbour and watched a boat procession with the mayor, cadet bands and about a million grockles (that's what holiday makers are known as round these parts), and then had a pub lunch. Been a mixed afternoon though as we discovered the location of one of the recently deceased rats - unfortunately under the floor boards in our bedroom, although the maggots are dropping down from the light fitting in the kitchen ceiling rather than coming up into our room. Yuk.

It did occur to me though that many of us are seeing this as just a much-needed long weekend. Very nice for the queen and all that, and I suppose the bunting looks pretty, but that's it really. The kids are having a ball though!

I'll leave you with a photo of our pub lunch yesterday - nice to be able to eat in peace, sat outside and watching the world go by!

Menu Planning Mond...ooops!

Big fat fail on menu planning today, but am delighted to announce that (if you include cooking on a camp stove) that we have lit a grand total of 10 BBQs over the last 8 days!!! So much so that Mr Moo is claiming that he's "BBQ'ed out" and please can he have some pasta or fish. Until I informed him that we could put fish on the outdoor grill; he's still running for the hills....

We have a long term plan to build a wood-fired pizza oven in our garden; there are lots of options to buy one but they are at least a couple of grand a pop. I've found several websites which give you instructions about how to make your own, so watch this space folks, could add a whole new dimension to our outdoor eating habits!

Camping - failure or success?

Well, I finally dragged them all out camping this weekend! The weather was just gorgeous so we took off to Durdle Door on Saturday morning. Let's see what happened;

Failures;
Went to the beach but forgot to take towels, swim cossies etc. And Little Legs decided she needed a wee right in the middle of a beach with absolutely nowhere to hide behind.
Discovered our "new" tent was in fact second-hand, with half the tent pegs bent, the groundsheet full of grass and one of the hooks that holds up the inner room being broken. Me and the Husband had to sleep in the living area.
Our pitch was underneath a row of trees with large numbers of extremely loud birds nesting in them - discovered that ravens start screeching at each other at approximately 4am, non-stop til breakfast time.
The Husband, who was in charge of buying alcoholic supplies, bought me medium-sweet wine to drink. Clearly a disaster.
Mr Moo wasn't feeling on top form; wasn't much fun getting some calpol into him at 2am as he was moaning in his sleep so loudly that I couldn't sleep. Funnily enough the Husband slept through all of that.

Successes;
The kids were coaxed into a very long walk down to a stunning beach; spent a couple of hours paddling in the sea and covering each other with pebbles, then introduced them to Slush Puppies on the walk back, which went down a treat.
Worked out that actually we would have preferred a different tent layout so will get our money back and buy something that is more useful.
The kids generally behaved themselves, only chatted for an hour after being sent to bed, and didn't wake up at silly o'clock.
Discovered after a few glasses of real wine that medium-sweet stuff is *almost* drinkable. Well, it got drunk anyway.
Campsite was great; very quiet with spotless facilities, an excellent playground, and the most amazing location in the Dorset countryside. Oh, and a bar;)

We had a fabulous time, hanging out in the sun, playing cards, flying on the zip-wire (big enough for adults too!), lazing in the sun, eating bacon sarnies and sausage sarnies and copious amounts of ice-cream, chatting without the distractions of phones and laptops, and generally having a great family time! Just gotta wait for another weekend of good weather and we'll be back!

BBQ count...

5 this week so far, with another one this evening. If making bacon sarnies on a camping stove counts, then the tally should be 7 by Sunday morning. And should the weather hold, maybe, just maybe, we'll squeeze another one in before the end of the weekend...

Update on the *squirrel*

Turns out it's not a squirrel after all, but is a rat. Or may be many rats, no way to tell. The ratman came and smelt it before he found the nest, droppings, staining etc. We now have copious amounts of poison in the rafters, spread amongst rice and pasta - has to be both varieties as apparently some rats are fussy about what carbs they eat *rollseyes*.

The only way to tell if it works is if we stop hearing it/them. It could take a while as it may be several days before the poison takes effect, if indeed it's eaten. So far, so bad. The bugger has actually been more active than usual. Call me wicked, but I just hope it's because it has a tummy ache and is on it's way out...

Just as it should look...

BBQ, nicely blackened.

Menu Planning Monday.

It's an easy one this week - after torrential rain and miserable weekends for what seems like months, the sun appeared today and Accuweather tells me it's here to stay for a few days! So, given that I totally forgot to menu plan til about 10 minutes before the Husband wanted a shopping list today, this week looks a little like this;

Monday; BBQ

Tuesday; BBQ

Wednesday; BBQ

Thursday; BBQ

Friday; BBQ

Saturday; BBQ

Sunday; BBQ

He came back with a selection of sausages, pork belly, fish and chicken pieces, along with veg like aubergines (yay for offers in Lidl still!), corn-on-the-cob, peppers and mushrooms. Will just have to top up with some baby new potatoes and finger rolls later in the week, and no doubt a gallon of chilled white wine to see us through...

Tonight we kicked off with whiting, aubergines and mushrooms on the barbie, with some chilli oil and lots of salt and pepper. I just love weeks like this, much healthier too!

As ever, pop over to see what Mrs M has planned!

Coast to Coast.

He did the ride folks! 54 miles throughout Somerset and Dorset's hills, managed a time of 4 hours and 10 minutes riding, top speed of 38 mph. Awesome effort! He started in a group of 5, 2 of them relative youngsters - who surprisingly came in an hour behind the "oldies"! They raised a bob or two for the Somerset and Dorset Air Ambulance too. Well done guys, am very proud of you all, despite Richard attempting to trash my bike and Andy riding in the world's loudest shorts...