More Books ... and No Excuses

I just couldn't resist  :-)

I only called into Asda for some bread and milk, and somehow found myself in the book aisle. 

They were soooooo cheap, and it is nearly Christmas, and I don't want any presents this year, and I could go on and on and give you a myriad of excuses and reasons, but there are none needed, I wanted these books and I bought them. 

Good reading for the Winters nights ahead.  

I'll add them to the new books I bought the other week and the copy of the first 'Eat Well for Less' book that Alan bought me when he bought himself two woodworking books last weekend ... which means our new book total for the house is -

578

My name is Sue I am a bookaholic .... and so is Alan  ;-)

Sue xx

The View From the Loo

I'm going to miss this ... 'the view from the loo'.

Using the toilet and having a bath in the bathroom over the last couple of weeks has been nice with some of our books to look at on the shelves, but now in the living room the carpet is laid and over the weekend it's been nice to get the room looking a lot more normal, if slightly fresher and with that 'new carpet smell'.

This morning it was time to empty these shelves and lose the 'view from the loo'.

The books once laid out on the floor in the same order they were to go back looked a lot more than they had on the shelves ...

... and the magazines stacked on the chair in the bathroom just didn't look like they fitted easily into the cupboard under the shelves.

But it all fitted back together nicely after the shelves were slid the five foot to the right from the bathroom to the living room.

It's nice getting things back where they belong.

Oh, and I might have bought two more books to add to my collection  ;-)

Sue xx

Books, Books, Books and More Books .....

Mission accomplished !! 

One completely empty bookcase ready to be moved out of the living room ready for it being redecorated, and the even better knowledge that there are no books to go back onto it once we have finished the room.

Seemingly back in February 2015 we had 619 books in our entire collection, as documented and pictured over three blog posts starting HERE.  If you want to read all three posts just click on 'Newer Post' at the bottom of each day.

After sorting through and tidying up each bookcase ...

... and each ledge ...

... and shelf downstairs, I worked my round the upstairs rooms.

Mostly fiction in the spare bedroom,

... an astonishing amount of books in my bedside cabinet.

Including one on top that I nearly forgot!!

Some more on Alan's side of the bed.

There were even a few lurking behind the computer screen.

And to the left of the desk in the office, another selection of Alan's books.

I drew a little plan so I could write the number of books on each shelf down in case I lost count, and as you can see in the end there was a grand total of 569.  So a lower number than two and a half years ago, but still a large number of books considering how many we have sold over the car boot season.  I guess there have been a few new ones in and lots of old ones out but luckily more out than in  :-)

So my plan over the Winter months is to hopefully read lots and jettison even more books ready for selling next year, and if possible whittle down the collection to a nice round 500 .... or even lower.

Hands up who else is a bookaholic  :-)

Sue xx

Jamie Oliver - 5 Ingredients

I'd been wondering whether or not to buy this book.

 I've been really enjoying the accompanying television series, but over the course of the Summer I've gradually sold off most of my Jamie Oliver book collection at the car boot sales we've been doing.  I had every that book he has ever written, the older Naked Chef ones were so dated and although good at the time we just don't eat that way these days.

It was quite amazing looking through all the books in the order that he had written them while I was sorting them out for selling, watching him age bit by bit and his family grow in both number and ages.  So when this one came out I was in two minds about getting it, and then Mum mentioned she had debated whether or not to buy it for herself as well.

The deciding factor was finding out I had £8.78 in Waterstones rewards available to use, and as the book was on sale there at half of it's cover price of £26, it would be a snip at just £4.22 for two of us to share ... and definitely too good a bargain to miss.

We have already got one firm favourite of a recipe from the series and the book ... Super Green Spaghetti, it's absolutely delicious and worth the cost of the book alone ... well the £4.22 cost of the book that is   ;-)

I've had a good look through the book and now I'm taking it to Mum's with me so she can have a turn. 

See you later Mum  :-)

Sue xx

Compost Heap Jelly

 

I made a double recipe batch of Compost Heap Jelly following Pam Corbin's recipe the other day.   I mentioned it in an earlier post.  When it came round to labelling I didn't label it as such because actually the ingredients were never destined for the compost heap this time, they were just good windfalls and a bag of frozen lemon slices that I unearthed from the bottom of the freezer.   I had no idea how old they were but they were starting to dry out and needing using up.

 



 

This is a common sight in the kitchen at the moment, jam pan and sugar both warming on top of the Aga ready for jam or jelly making later on in the day.

 

Here's the recipe if you want to have a go, it literally can be made with all the trimmings, peelings, cores and fruity bits that are usually destined for the compost bin after a jam, marmalade or jelly making session ... and it tastes delicious :-)

 

.

Another regular sight in the kitchen ... we have  something dripping through the jelly bags most nights, sometimes it is for jellies and sometimes for Lovely Hubby's wine making obsession.

 

It's all a good way to preserve the goodness of all our fruits for use over Winter ... although I must say it's not fair that we have to wait so long to sample the wines and cider  ;-)

 

Sue xx

 





Preserving the Crops

This time of year when I'm busy bottling, jamming, freezing and preserving all our crops in all the various ways we use tends to bring lots of questions on the blog.  Unfortunately, it's obviously also the time of the year that I am at my busiest trying to keep up with the gluts of fruits and veggies and make the best use of them that I can .... so sometimes I feel guilty that I can't get round to answering.

The photo above is this mornings Plum and Apple Jelly cooling on the rack with the labels ready written for when the jars are cold enough to stick them on.

It makes for a glorious coloured jelly.

I was asked the other day how I learnt to do all that I do and it's been mostly from books, and also the selection of Dvds that we have.   We have most of the River Cottage books, usually picked up when we've been there and signed by the authors when we met them, and also the Jamie at Home book that I have, and his accompanying Dvd's are brilliant for what to do with your harvests as they come pouring in all at once.

Every year the books come back out and a quick revision by watching 'Pam the Jam' preserve all her fruits makes for a relaxing and inspiring couple of hours.

I found a couple of brand new boxes of jam jars in the understairs cupboard yesterday, so some of them were quickly pressed into action for this mornings cook up.

The other half were sterilised alongside the ones I used and then lidded and popped back into the box, ready for the next session, when they will obviously be sterilised again as you need the jars hot to pour the hot jam into.

So I'm sorry if I miss the occasional question, but my advice would be to submerge yourself in books, watch programmes and YouTube videos to see techniques in action and well, just enjoy preserving this lovely food that is around now.  Whether you grow it yourself, forage in the countryside or get the fantastic bargains that are to be had at Farmers Markets, shops or supermarkets, this is the time of year of plenty and it's great to make the most of it .... well until you collapse on the sofa absolutely exhausted ... which is exactly what I do most nights these days  :-)

Sue xx 

Guess What I'm Reading ......

Well this is the only clue you'll need!!

And the book I'm currently reading .....

..... is

Through the Kitchen Window by Susan Hill.  Now do you get the clue?

I've had this for years, it's a sweet little book with brilliant illustrations.

I sit poring over them for far too long.

AND ... it has recipes, well I mean what more could you want from a book  :-)

I got it down off the shelf last night when I wanted something easy for a quick bedtime read, it was nice to go back to a book I have read over and over again, some books are like old friends, not that I sit my friends on the shelf .... well not often  ;-)

Sue xx

Thank You .... and Books

Firstly, thank you so much for all the birthday wishes yesterday.  

I had a lovely day, lunch out with my Mum and brother in Bents Garden Centre in Manchester, where I nearly broke my spending ban but then my lovely brother stepped in and paid for the fluted quiche baking tin and bottle opener that I was about to pay for, and said it was my birthday present off him ... aren't little brothers good  :-)

I got home to phone calls off my sons, messages from friends and family on Facebook and a lovely and even bigger row of cards on the mantelpiece.

Today it would have been back to normal with a bang, but the sun is out and everything seems fresh and gorgeous.  I have courgettes calling out to me in the polytunnel that need potting on, as they are quickly outgrowing their little toilet roll inner starter pots, so after this post I will be heading off to the warmth of the tunnel before the afternoon heat makes it too unbearable to work in.

The other day I was going through another of my cookbooks, and as you can see from this top view of the book I hadn't found many recipes that I really needed and I was mentally already adding it to the pile waiting to be sold at the car boot sale .... but then I hit the final chapter ..... lots of Scottish recipes, as I guess I would have expected earlier in a book written by Scotswoman Aggie MacKenzie

The little 'Post it' labels were coming out thick and fast then and I even fancy making this alternative scone recipe .....

.... this will get bigger if you click on it.

I've never heard of melting butter and syrup together to start off a scone recipe, but as I have a whole tin of syrup in the cupboard I may just give it a go.

When I got to the end of the book I neatened up the little 'stickies' so that all the yellow ones were together and all the green ones were at the back .... gosh I'm getting so OCD .....

.... I think somebody else thinks so too!!

Sue xx

Sorting Through Cook Books

 

We were all set to go out this morning and finally weed the messy front flower beds, but the rain had other ideas!! 

 

So we started indoor jobs instead.  I stayed in the kitchen after breakfast, first I moved things from fridge to freezer, a sweet and sour dish of Lovely Hubbys and a curry of mine, both leftovers from the other nights tea but not really wanted to eat again this weekend.  I prepped todays lunch and mixed up the Mediterranean veggies for tonight's tea so that, as my hero Nigel would say, 'the flavours can get to know each other'. 

 

While I was doing this and LH was busy upstairs on the computer doing businessy financial things the sun came out again so I rushed through what I was doing ready to venture out to the great outdoors, then no sooner had I cleared the decks ready to go out then it clouded over again and great fat drops of rain fell onto the kitchen skylight above my head.

 

Foiled again!!

 

So instead I am browsing through some of the cookbooks that I guess I always knew at the back of my mind I didn't really need.  The odds and sods picked up at charity shops and car boot sales, that I was tempted to buy due to silly low prices but that never really were my style at all ... and some of them so full of meat dishes that my first instinct is to snap  the covers shut like I used to as a child when I came across pictures of spiders in books and comics.

 

Any recipes, or even just good ideas that I come across I am simply photographing and I will leave them loaded on the computer for reading again or printing out at a later date.

 

 

There are some  interesting things to read ...

 

... and a few things that I might make ....

 

... but not enough to make me keep the physical book on the shelves any longer.

 

Car Boot sale season is almost upon us and it will be nice to once again make some more space in the house and pocket some extra cash while we do so.

 

Sue xx

The Whole30

I'm currently reading this book.

 I've had it on the kitchen shelf for a while but decided to save reading it until after our usual, although slighter than previous years, Christmas excess and my wander back into eating foods I should know by now are not good for me.  I have noticed that once you fall back into old eating habits it is a hard slippery climb back to get yourself eating properly and healthily again, and of course we have had to eat up all the bad things that were lurking in the cupboards ... haven't we!!  ;-)

I was just wondering if anyone out there has read this book and done the 30 day programme and if it worked for them?  

I am thinking of doing it myself as a kick start to getting me back to good habits, healthier eating, and even more importantly to me feeling good.  It seems very Harcombe like and that suits me.   So I have put a big ring around the 1st March on the calendar as it seemed a really good time to start.  The first of March is on a Tuesday so the Monday would be my day zero, a chance to menu plan, examine all the foods we have in store that would be suitable, and thank goodness, there is a lot in the freezer and cupboards that will be, but possibly more importantly this week I am going to see what we have in that might tempt me back to the 'dark side'  ... I don't think there's too much.  We don't buy processed junk foods, sugary drinks or cakes, but I do know there are a few things that I like that are really classed as processed food so it would make sense to add them to this weeks menu plan and thereby remove them from temptation for the coming month.

I have just printed out and gone through the pescetarian/vegetarian/vegan shopping list and there is such an abundance of food that I can eat and that we do already have in store that it should be no problem to do this even with our current 'Year of Without'.  The things I have crossed out with my marker pen were just things that I don't like or can't eat due to allergies.

If you would like more information on The Whole30 click HERE.  I haven't read much of this yet but it looks interesting.

Sue xx