Taking a walk on the Wild Side

This week we have had some glorious sunshine and it definitely is looking more like Spring with wildlife bursting forth from everywhere.

I did a couple of new walks with the dog’s and found a super place for a picnic on a hot day with its own plunge pool, although it’s a bit chilly at the moment.

I also did my first foraging and will definitely be doing more of this during the coming months. I was told where to find wild garlic and managed to find it and pick a good amount.

The first thing I made was wild garlic and cheese scones. I found the recipe here

http://www.lavenderandleeks.co.uk/wild-garlic-and-cheese-scones/

I have blitzed up the rest ready to make wild garlic ravioli this coming week, so check out the blog next week. It will be my first time in making pasta!

Crafting wise I ran the first North Tawton Crafty Butterflies night. We had a go at creating the sea glass jars and crocheted bunny. It was a really fun night and there of course was cake!

My daughter asked me to make a hamster taming pouch. Yes there is such a thing 🤣. Basically it’s a pocket which is warm and cozy to help them feel more comfortable being held.

I also started to crochet Mollie flowers which I am hoping to make enough of to create something, not sure what at moment as will depend on how many I make.

https://littlegreen.typepad.com/romansock/2009/04/mollie-flowers-the-tutorial.html

Following on from last week’s ‘D’ it should have been ‘E’ but the only thing I could find was Elder and it is not the right time to use any part of the elder. So we move onto ‘F’ and I chose –

Fenugreek a clover-like herb native to the Mediterranean region, southern Europe, and western Asia. Its seeds, which smell and taste like maple syrup, have been used in cooking and as medicine. Fenugreek is used as an ingredient in spice blends and a flavoring agent in foods, beverages, and tobacco. Fenugreek extracts are also used in soaps and cosmetics.

I created a blend of spices to cook the chicken in which whilst mild in heat had plenty of amazing flavours. I ground together

Seeds from 2 cardamon
Half tsp tumeric, ginger and fenugreek
Quarter tsp cumin, garam masala

First I sauteed onions and peas in butter. Then added the chicken, I use thighs as they have more flavour, along with the ground spices, 3 cloves of chopped garlic and salt and pepper. Cook until chicken has changed colour but not cooked through. Add half a tin of chopped tomatoes and half tin coconut milk and then put in casserole dish and leave for at least 4 hours to allow flavours to be absorbed. Cook in oven for 40 mins on 180 degrees. Serve with rice.

The weather is beginning to improve and therefore I hope to get out in the garden more, tidy up the beds, freshen the gravel areas I created last year and plant up some hanging baskets.

Until next time, keep finding new experiences and challenges.

Chris x

All about the C’s

I had a lovely visit with my daughter down in Plymouth last week, the sun shone and everyone and their dog was out enjoying the day. I took our two littlies Mouse and Adira and our house guest Sunny. They were all extremely well behaved and nice and tired by the end. We had lunch in a fab cafe called @rocketsandrascles where I had an amazing chicken, avocado and pesto toastie on sour dough bread. They are located by the marina in the barbican area. Well worth a visit.

This week was a crafting and cooking sort of week.

Easter is fast approaching and last year I made crocheted bunny bunting, one of which I actually sold! I found the pattern and refreshed my memory to make some more. The pattern for these can be found here

http://lovethebluebird.blogspot.com/2012/04/spring-bunny-tutorial.html?m=1

I also created a very cute egg cozy bonnet the pattern is on my crafting page here
https://www.facebook.com/542220883361347/posts/814134786169954/

My spices and herb feature has reached ‘C’ and this week I decided to use capers.

Capers are the immature, unripened, green flower buds of the caper bush (Capparis spinosa or Capparis inermis). The plant is cultivated in Italy, Morocco, and Spain, as well as Asia and Australia. It’s most often associated with Mediterranean cuisines, but enjoyed worldwide. Brined or dried, the caper is valued for the burst of flavor it gives to dishes. It adds texture and tanginess to a great variety of recipes, including fish dishes, pasta, stews, and sauces.

I decided to make salmon burgers with a remoulade sauce for a couple of friends who came to dinner. I actually remembered to take a picture! The sauce I adapted by adding some Cajun spices, just enough to give it a little kick. The burgers held together really well and would probably work quite well on the BBQ. You can find both recipes here
https://www.acouplecooks.com/remoulade-sauce/

My friends A and S asked me to add my recipe for the dessert which is a variation to a lemon cheesecake.

250g digestive or gingernut biscuits
100g butter
300 ml double cream
395 ml can condensed milk
3 lemons grated peel and juice

Crush the biscuits and melt the butter and mix together. Whip the cream until stiff and then add the condensed milk and mix. Finally add the grated peel and juice and mix together. You will notice the mixture thicken up.

I then divide the biscuit mixture into about 2 with a little saved for the top and then layer up in a dish and chill for a couple of hours.

I hope you are encouraged to do or make something a little different this week and until next time I’m leaving you with this piece I saw which sums up my feelings now I’m Sixty.

I am no longer waiting for a special occasion; I burn the best candles on ordinary days.
I am no longer waiting for the house to be clean; I fill it with people who understand that even dust is Sacred.
I am no longer waiting for everyone to understand me; It’s just not their task
I am no longer waiting for the perfect children; my children have their own names that burn as brightly as any star.
I am no longer waiting for the other shoe to drop; It already did, and I survived.
I am no longer waiting for the time to be right; the time is always now.
I am no longer waiting for the mate who will complete me; I am grateful to be so warmly, tenderly held.
I am no longer waiting for a quiet moment; my heart can be stilled whenever it is called.
I am no longer waiting for the world to be at peace; I unclench my grasp and breathe peace in and out.
I am no longer waiting to do something great; being awake to carry my grain of sand is enough.
I am no longer waiting to be recognized; I know that I dance in a holy circle.
I am no longer waiting for Forgiveness.
I believe, I Believe.
-Mary Anne Perrone

Chris x

Thereby Hings a Tale

Well I suppose the big thing that happened this week is what everyone was talking about – Eunice “a female given name: from a Greek word meaning “good victory”. Well if your view point is devastation is victory, then for some places in the UK she did her job.

For myself she was more of an inconvenience. I did not get to take the dog’s out for a walk and my garden will need a little tidying up of general debris, but on the whole we survived. It did mean I got to do a bit of cooking.

A new little feature for this blog and out of my comfort zone is cooking using ingredients I have never used or in some cases never even tasted.

Taking a leaf or in this case a rhizome out of http://carolcooks2.com I have decided to try finding out about and using new spices or herbs that I have either not encountered or used before. My first is

Asafoetida also known as Hing which is the dried gum from the rhizome of the species Ferula assa-foetida, a perennial herb from the arid regions of Afghanistan, Iran, and India.

When cooked, apparently its flavor is suggestive of garlic, leeks and onions. I personally found the smell when cooking to be like this but not so much the flavour once cooked. Although it definitely had a distinct flavor which was a slightly bitter taste but not bad.

Facts:

1. Improve digestion: Hing removes all the toxins from the body and cures any issues related to indigestion. It helps in regulating the digestion process

2. Helps in weight loss: Drinking hing water increases metabolism and keeps the bad cholesterol at bay with which we feel active and hence helps in weight loss.

3. Reduces blood sugar levels: Consuming hing regularly can relax your blood vessels. Hing helps in secreting more insulin and thus decreases blood sugar levels.

4. Relieves from menstrual pain: Hing acts as a blood thinner and helps. It helps in the smooth flow of blood in the body and hence relieves from any menstrual cramps.

5. Reduces headache: Hing has some anti-inflammation properties which help in reducing headache. Drinking hing water as mentioned above can work.

You can get it in major supermarkets.

I decided to make a recipe I found on www.saltandtamarind.com/hing-chicken-chicken-cooked-in-asafoetida-sauce/

I also adapted a side dish of http://www.saltandtamarind.com/namkeen-chawal-vegtable-pulao-recipe/

I not add the potato but did add a half tsp of asafoetida

I also have been doing more of my macrame wall hanging for my lounge. After numerous un-picks I have finished the shell pattern. I now need to make a flower for the center.

With work (I run my own dog training school), this week I added an extra class to my sessions. I now do Smart Skills, a step up from Beginner Skills. You never know how a new thing will work but I have to say within days of launching this I was fully booked and had a waiting list. The first session yesterday was great fun. I have in the past tried various things only for them to have very little interest but I don’t give up and either try in a different way to incorporate it into my sessions or look for new things to try. As you have probably gathered I like finding and trying new things in my life 🤣

I’m off to find a herb or spice beginning with ‘B’, there are many but I want one that I have not used or not thought about using in a particular way. Any ideas gratefully received.

Until next time step big, step small but take that step forward as life doesn’t go backwards!

Chris x

Four C’s this week

Last Sunday I ventured to Plymouth to visit my youngest daughter at University. We have not seen each other in over a month, which is a long time for us. I took her bike and a number of things we could not fit in the car when she went back to Uni at the beginning of January. One of the things was a slow cooker that she got for Christmas. It will be interesting to see what type of things she will make as she is a Pescatarian and I am use to using mine for meat dishes. Although this week I did make rice pudding in mine as had rather a lot of milk.

On Tuesday my daughter messaged me to say she had a positive test for Covid. So had to cancel all plans for that day and do a test for the next few days and luckily for me all negative and no symptoms and back to normal life, she on the other hand is still stuck in her Uni studio accommodation as still testing positive.

On the crafting front I have started a macrame wall hanging for my lounge. It will be the most complicated pattern I have done so far and have had to unpick a number of times already, mainly due to tension, either doing too loosely or too tight!

I did my first seed swap event yesterday, which is such a great idea. I don’t have a large garden but do like to grow some vegetables but often there are so many seeds that I never use them all and end up throwing them away as they get too old.

I made up envelopes of smaller amounts of the seeds I was not going to be able to use before their expiry date. I managed to pick up some flower seeds which I will plant up nearer the end of the month. I have planted my plum tomatoes – Roma, which are now in my conservatory hopefully working hard beneath the soil. I planted these last year and they were brilliant until they got tomato blight. Fingers crossed for a good crop this year.

I made baked chocolate oats for breakfast yesterday morning from a recipe I saw on @callascleaneats I did not add choc chips but did add a dollop of Greek yogurt and I cooked in the microwave for 3 mins rather than in the over. I have to say it was rather nice and not that sweet, which is good for me as not keen on sweet things for breakfast. I’m going to try adapting this recipe for different flavours, maybe apple and cinnamon, yum!

So after this week of covid, crafting, crops and cooking, I hope you have had a lovely week and please let me know if you got up to anything new!