5 foot 3

Belfast Telegraph's "Society" section new comedy hit of 2011

2011-04-09T09:17:00.003+01:00

I have not laughed so much is such a long time. http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/northern-ireland-nightlife-in-pictures-13906774.html?ino=1 This page is in the Belfast Telegraph Entertainment section and oh my word, it would not be more entertaining, In true Hicksville fashion, the "Tele" invites readers to send in the picture of their Big Nite Out, and indeed must send out their photographer to some of the Provinces big social events. I am sure the editors of the Belfast Telegraph are well aware of how hilarious the results are. The page features some of the beautiful people of NI out drinking. It seems that the obligatory shot is of 2 young (ish) girls so close to each other they seem like Siamese twins, joined at the head, or if it's a full length shot, wrapped around each other, joined at the hip. Or maybe everyone is jsut so drunk they need so hold each other up? The jury is out. Or, are we so insecure in NI and worried about our reputation that we feel we have to prove to the wider world that we are actually quite freindly, with these full body contact photos? "Look folks, come to Belfast! You don't need to worry about which bar to go into any more, because we're all so damn friendly!" What you do need to worry about though is having your head fused to that of a perma-taneed, heavily made-up, flat-ironed-blonde-haired, slightly podgy 25 yr old, who just should have kept those orthodontist appointments. Bitter, moi? So, the next time you are down in the dumps head to the Tele for some really upliftings photos. Though in fairness, they do look as though they're having fun, so, fair play (as they'd say in Belfast).

festival du livre culinaire

2011-03-06T22:13:00.009Z

I came across this poster yesterday in the Métro advertising the Festival du Livre Culinaire, which stopped me in my tracks. Well, it didn't actually, I went back through the turnstiles to look at it again, layer upon layer of cookbooks, food stuffs inbetween. Their atrocious website failed to give much in the way of information but I was able to glean that the county of honour was Italy, the theme was "Street Food" and the Produit de l'exposition was FROMAGE.

What was it De Gualle said about France and cheese...?

When we turned up at the exhibtion centre, it looked as though it might be a solo mission for me, as Pat looked wistfully out at the courtyard and his paperback (though the book was on the financial crisis, so I would have been loooking wistfully at a cyanide pill if that was my only reading option).

Anyhow. We wandered round

Italy's offerings which were slim pickings. I suspect the French included them only to advertise their culinary superiority. The only thing I tasted off their stall was a small slice of bread and some lard. Why I ate this is anyone's guess. Unable to say no to a free thing?

It appears that not one of France's 246 cheeses were on offer (or not that I could find) but instead we came across some guys with 5 huge wheels of swedish cheese. Those crafty Scandinavians get everywhere. Whilst at all the other stands there were people carefully paring off bits of this, slivers of that, and handing it over with a smile, Torsten and Georg laid an ice cream scoop on top of these cheese wheels and it was every man, women and billy bookcase for itself.

However, we did touch lucky when we happened to be walking past the Spanish wine tasting crew. Once a day they had their free wine tasting, which was really more like a game, and certainly designed to be a lot of fun. There were 6 bottles of red to taste at the beginning, and we had to note the 2 we liked the best. Then there were 3 wines in black glasses and we had to identify whether they were red or white. Next up was the Twins round - 2 out of 3 wines were the same, could we pick them (E = yes, P =no). Then, we had to pick the Malbec. We were both totally confident after getting a run down on the qualities of a malbec from the lady (violet colour and nose, light soft tannins, plum taste and medium body). Off the mark. We then returned to the first six wines we tasted to try and find the 2 we originally liked. It was superb craic, and would be a good fun way to do a wine tasting at home. We even won some things to put round the neck of the wine to stop it dripping on the table cover. These Spaniards know what they're doing.

Roses, singing and suchlike

2011-02-22T22:25:00.006Z

I have been enjoying going to the Scots Kirk in Paris. It has a homely and chaotic feel about it, and the itinerant congregation is definintely a bit different to your average CoS gathering. However, given that we are small in number, my high volume singing has been noted and now my chickens have come home to roost.

I have been asked to sing not one, but TWO solos on Sunday morning, on the theme of The Rose. Thus, I am chanelling Dame Joan Sutherland with the Irish song 'Tis the last rose of the summer, and then following that with a Bete Midler hit - The Rose. I was over at the kirk pracising tonight at 21h45. Only rock and roll bands start their practice at that time of night, and only then after a good few snakebites. I am in the wrong game.

I actually did a few recordings of myself with my guitar singing somthing when we were back home. Embarrasingly, I also recorded a few takes with me wearing my sunglassses. Frankly my guitar playing is duff and my pop song singing not a lot better ("Venus" I think was the hit I was hitting) and I need all the visual help I can get. My chords are not better with sunnies on.

Recording oneself is an interesting thing to do sometimes.

I heard a story at the weekend about someone I know very well. The first time he got drunk was when he was in his late teens and his parents were not in town, having accompanied his younger sister to Dublin for a ballet exam. Armed with a bottle of Martini, a piano, a tape recorder and some Brahms, the evening panned out something like this

- drink some Martini

- play and record a Brahms tune

-drink some more Martini

-play that Brhams tune again...and so on, with each subsequent rendition of Brahms, presumably getting a little bit worse.

How I would love to get my hands on that tape.

Before I start looking too closely, I think there are a few files of my own I need to delete- featuring me, my guitar, my mumsy M&S jumper and my sunnies.

Brussels Sprouts

2011-02-16T21:28:00.012Z

We've been seeing a bit more of Paris recently and even ventured out on the Thalys train to Brussels at the weekend!

We went to the bakers at the top of our street to pick up our pain au chocolat before going underground and heading the Belgian way. I love the bakers window. I am amazed that at 10am on a Saturday morning in February, all manner of buns, cakes, tarts, fruit pies are available. In Paris it is entirely acceptable to buy all your desserts from the bakers. If you are having people round for dinner, I imagine the guests would be slightly disappointed if you attempted to make it yourself, and having seen what is for offer in the Patisserie window I can undertand their bias. I have cooked practically nothing in the last 3.5 months. Never mind any fruit tarts!

SO, purpose of this post...we went to Brussels at the weekend!

Belgium is famous for a few things.

Hervé's adventures of Tintin being one of them, beer being the other. We briefly spotted Tintin and Snowy on the side of a building, but took it upon ourselves to find out a bit more about the beer of Belgium. Happily, you can get a Dégustation menu of beer! I particularly liked the cherry beer. Slightly sweet but not too like alcoholic cherry aid. Second from the left, I think!

We had a good wander around, and benefitted from catching up on lots of sleep in our lovely B&B. Run by a gay couple, when I asked for a map he told us that he only had the Gay Map of Brussels. I am still not too sure what the main sites in Brussels are, or indeed where they are, but I do know where to get a good sauna and some lubes.

Some of my favourite people in the world were in Brussels at the weekend...the Scouts. I have a very fond affection for the Scouts, I think because I enjoyed being a guide, read the guide handbook a lot and am overly influenced by the writings of Enid Blyton. I think there must have been some sort of rally - or jamboree, prompting the following pic! Incidentally, the crazy French pronounce scouts as "scoots", with a very tight oooo sound. Nut jobs.

Day 85 (or thereabouts)

2011-01-23T21:23:00.004Z

I have been remiss in my blogging over the last year. There has been so very much to write about, but yet, I have committed so little of it to paper (virtual or otherwise!). Anyhow, by now you know I am in Paris. Roughly day 85, or 12 weeks in. We are nearly a quarter of the way there, but I certainly haven't done a quarter of the things yet that I want to do!

We went out tonight to Al Taglio, a nice little pizza place in the 11th arronidissement. We had 3 slices of pizza each, individually cut and weighed and heated up. It was a nice, neighbourly kind of place, with quite a lot of coming and going of people coming in, buying their slices and heading out.

We set out to go to a bar in the 5th arr round the corner from our flat, and were in the early stages of a slight arguement / discussion about the best way to go home when we saw a bus go past that would serve our purposes very well. We started running for it in a halfhearted kind of way, thinking we would miss it, but then we gathered speed when we saw we might be in with a chance. P started hitting the side of the bus, but coming at the bus from the opposite direction was a small French dwarf. Well, he was about my height, but about twice as wide, who had managaed to flag the bus down as it was pulling off, and then in a beautiful act of chivarly, insidted we get on first. He may well have just been getting his breath back as his physiognomy was not that of an olympic athelete, but I like to think it was good old politesse.

I know, my avid readership, that I have abandoned you over the past few weeks. However, I can promise you a new and improved blog over the coming months. Honest. Hopefully, our new fancy pants camera will be arriving soon to replace the features-obliterator that we have been toting for the past 12 weeks. The pictures it has taken have been so crap it is not even funny. Paris is too beautiful a city for it to be documented over the next 9 months through photographs with either bleached out details or orange fuzz. Hopefully I can embellish future posts with a little glimpse of Paris- fewer words, more pics, that's the way ahead.

day -5

2010-10-24T22:52:00.002+01:00

So....P and I leave the country in 5 short days. Yikes.

I am finishing off my corrections tonight (MD tantalisingly nearing completion) and also packing up our possessions. P has sorted out all his clothes, I have done only a little of this. We also need to do things like go to Ikea and lie on mattresses to decide which one to buy from ikea.fr who actually will deliver a bed to central Paris.

You have to pay them, obviously.

I still wonder how one has a visitor to the appartement. ie, if someone were at the door for you, how would you know, because there is no door bell. This is relevant because if Pierre and Claude are at the front door with my 4'6" mattress, I would rather hope they would be able to get in.

I had a minor melt down last night and it was all brought on by Bruce Forsyth. I was watching Strictly, sitting on the sofa, all comfy and cosy and luxuriating in space around me, and it jsut hit me that in one week I would be in Paris, no BBC, no comfy sofa on which to luxuriate, no familiarity. I just had a slight wobble. I am back on track now though I think.

Carrot Cake

2010-05-29T16:35:00.003+01:00

Now, COME ON!!! Why is my phone not ringing off the hook with people begging me to spill the beans on this cake recipe?

Well, you know that I can't hold my water, so whenever I get downstairs and find the book, I'll let you know, all of you, my avid readership of no-one.

solvent induced spreadsheet filling

2010-05-29T14:49:00.003+01:00

Sounds a lot worse than it really is. P is painting our new wardrobes, and I am sitting on the bed surrounded by files with all my clamp data contained therein. It is very dull filling out the Excel spreadsheets, but y'know, it needs done. Not all this damn thesis writing is going to be high-level scientific wonderment. I supose quite a lot of it is going to be high-level crap. But even though the primer/undercoat (See! We're doing it properly!) is low odour, it is slightly dulling my higher faculties. I could open the window, but it's a bit cold out.

Digging In

2010-05-28T10:48:00.005+01:00

I am really chuffed with how things are looking in the garden. I suspect this may be a thesis-avoidance activity, but it is very relaxing to spend a bit of time outside and to check up on the plants. It absolutely chucked it down last night - hail and lashing rain. I ran outside to bring my salad leaves and violas to safety and moved the toms and lupids to a more sheltered spot. No extremes of damage noted this morning. After the rain I went and did a quick slug round. Vile job, but apparently the is a cross that all gardeners have to bear. Fair enough.

So, here are a few pics of things in progress. For those of you who will be visiting Chez Nous over the summer months, hopefully you will be able to get your laughing gear around some of this produce...

This thing growing up the trellis is a cucumber. There are some embryonic miniscule cucumbers sitting at the bottom of the stalks, tiny little things. It is hard to imagine they'll grow full size, esp when the march of the evil slug continues; hence the scattering of crushed egg shells at the base of the plant. Didn't do much good, had to pick them off by hand then bury them with a large garden fork. Using it in a sort of whacking way.

Next up, strawberries "Marshmellow", which I bought as bare root plants last year. 2 of the plants have taken root against the house and P is slightly worried that we are going to become the first people ever whose house subsided on account of a strawberry.
So these are truely All My Own Work, as I planted the (free with a mag) tomato seeds myself and the (free with the BBC Dig In campaign) salad leaves seeds myself too. The tomatoes are bush plants rather then cordons, just in case one of my imaginary readers was going to leave a post suggesting that they look crap on account of being 6 inches tall. There are 7 stocky, sturdy little plants and I am pleased with them.Finally, some pretty flowers. These peonies were in the garden already, but I dont' recall them looking so good last year. Probably because Roddy had put a heap of scaffolding on top of them they didn't have the same opportunity to photsynthesise. There were peony roses in my bouquet and I thought they wer just lovely. These are a really deep red, and mine were a much softer pink, so I am going to get some pink peonies to grow seeing as they seem to like our soil.

I had better stop bragging about my horticultural genius and get back to writing my methods section. Next posting...it's the turn of the Courgette plants (never, ever thought I'd see the day when I was willingly cultivating the bane of my childhood plate) and the French Beans.

I'll scratch your back, if you'll scratch mine

2010-05-14T15:51:00.002+01:00

I am excited to see that nature actually works. I have put up a birdfeeder in the garden for the last couple of months. I tried different locations and am now happy with it hanging off a tree in the front garden. It has been greatly appreciated by some robins, a couple of woodpigeons and mostly a family of coal tits who ate their body weight x 6 in bird seed.

However, it is paying off as I saw one of the coal tits today, sitting in the large rose bush in the front garden easting aphids. I am really delighted! Given my previous bird-phobia I am pleased that I am now a lot more relaxed about inviting them into the garden. The RSPB bird-finder's good, BTW.

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdidentifier/

*secret...seriously considering getting some chickens post-France*

hello again

2010-04-29T12:58:00.003+01:00

Has it been that long?
Well yes, clearly it has.
What's happened? Well, not a whole pile really.
Spring has occured, though that didn't really have a lot to do with me. I am cracking on with the tedious task of writing my thesis and have googled on many occasions "how to keep motivated", "How to write a thesis" and my lastest anti-distraction technique, which I am very proud of...white noise.
http://simplynoise.com/
It's actually pretty useful, and there is brown and pink noise on the site too, if that's your thing.

I have also planted LOADS of seeds and they are growing which is very satisfying. I am hoping that I will be able to cultivate salads, tomatoes, cucumber, radish, potatoes, courgette, French beans, peppers (not confident about these, think I may not bother with them anymore. Probably not hot enough in NI for them), and maybe some carrots and beetroot. Strawberries and raspberries are already looking good.
I will keep you updated. Promise.
Bye for now.
x

Samson and Goliath

2010-01-26T20:07:00.002Z

The banking giant formerly known as Alliance and Leicester has decided to refund me the cripling bank fees I paid...to the tune of £425.

Cannot believe it.

I wish I were in Paris already?

2010-01-04T21:32:00.003Z

It has been a particularly cold day today in NI. I know it is cold all throughout the UK, but it is still pretty chilly here. I arrived at the train station, just in time to see me train pull off. By the time I waited 15 mins for the next train, and another 12 mins for good measure, just for the hell of it (thanks NIR) I was properly, properly cold. And late. I found myself muttering that it wouldn't be like this is Paris!

Well, it might or it might not. Obviously the Métro runs with increased frequency compared to the Holywood-City Hospital train. But then, NIR employees don't strike. So although I adorn this post with a nice picture of a French bakery window (Aix en Provence, 2006) I should remind myself that whilst life in Paris may be all super and croissant-scented, it may be just as crap as life in NI is sometimes too. Don't get me wrong, I'm still highly, highly excited about the prospect of living in Paris, just trying out a little bit of perspective.

Post-Christmas Laryngitis

2009-12-30T15:10:00.002Z

Well, y'see I'm not sure if it is laryngitis as such, but my word, my throat is sore. So sore in fact it is causing me to Not Say Anything. Or at least to greatly consider, and condense anything I may say. So, probably not a bad thing but 24+ hours in, the novelty of a hoarse voice has completely worn off.
My ill health has allowed me to spend the entire day in bed, which is a rare treat. I have enjoyed looking at the BBCs Ma France pages which are really pretty good (I esp like the vocab -petanque though don't know how useful if will prove whilst trying to arrange x-rays and the like) and I have also endulged in some knitting pattern envy, which seems slightly justified, since I am near to completing a knitted item! How rock 'n' roll am I?

Festive frolics

2009-12-08T22:21:00.002Z

I enjoyed Kirstie's Homemade Christmas rather too much, so I have made my own salt dough "Happy Christmas" to string along the mantlepeice.
Unfortunately, I burnt the H and Y and then remade them, but the bar in the H managed to explode slightly thus filling the kitchen with acrid salt-dough smoke...but still not managing to set off the smoke detector.
Odd that.
Did you know you can watch Olive the Other Reindeer on YouTube??! Bonus!

Monkey see, Monkey want

2009-11-13T15:34:00.002Z

Just to pre-empt the deluge of enquiries, here are a few things I would be delighted, properly delighted to recieve at birthday / Christmas time. Seriously, I am only doing this to make life easier, that's all!

Socks

A tallish cylindrical tin for keeping biscuits in eg Digestives

Wool, inc sock yarn, fabric, any kind of crafty stuff, haberdashery

Knitting needles (various sizes) - this is kind of a joke

A nice facial scrub

Some classic cook book, eg Art of French Cookery, or similar, or a modern one instead.

And that's about it.

I am also keen to acquire a wardrobe and more bedroom furniture in the ash/ pale oak colourway, but that's for another post.

BUT, importantly, family please give me a few clues. Pretty please. I have begun to cast on the fingerless gloves....

I am organised!

2009-11-12T14:16:00.006Z

I started my Christmas shopping today.

Only a few gifts have been purchased, and some festive food which I have secreted away, but I am still enjoying a cinnamon scented aura around me. I even changed the colours of my blog!

Therefore, this is a call to arms for my nearest and dearest and anyone who thinks I ought to buy them a present....

What would you like to recieve on 25th December 2009??

Answer me soon, or else you will be receiving hand made fingerless gloves.

Bad Day

2009-11-04T17:43:00.002Z

I have been suspended from University for non-payment of fees. How did this happen? I genuinely do not recall getting any communication from finance.
Due to suspension (see point 1) I can't register which is also a major PITA, and thus can't properly use the library etc etc.
Pharmacy "gave away" 500 placebo tablets from my study to someone else, totally screwing up my research (possibly).
Now I am public enemy No 1 with the pharmacy dept. oops.
I have had to make an appointment to get a fast-track passport, at a cost of £112. No wonder people are having Staycations. Leaving the country is too bloody expensive.
I have to drive 260 miles tomorrow.

Panna Whatta?

2009-10-25T22:52:00.002Z

I made panna cotta tonight and it was brilliant.
We had Scotch Broth for starters (1940's rationing, eat your heart out), then roast beef, roast pots, roast parsnips, green beans and gravy. Followed by panna cotta with poached plums.

I have never really eaten or cooked with plums before, but the more I try them, the more I like them.

I did actually make plum jam using plums off the plum tree in Gala. Not the eponymous Soor Plooms tree I should say, just the one in the low garden trained against the wall. I don't remember these as being terribly juicy flavourful specimens. I suspect the lack of cross pollenation, or some such hoticultural thing, might explain their tasteless demenour, but undetered, the young Emily, intreped preserver managed to pick enough plums off the grass and not be too scared by the bugs eating the fruit to make jam. It was universally dismissed by all and I recall it sat in the cupboard for quite some time. I didn't really like it either, truth be told.

Anyhow, I have got over myself and the plum jam fiasco and made this tonight;

250ml each of milk and double cream
1 vanilla pod, halved, seeds scraped out
1oz sugar
Put all of the above in a pan on the heat and bring to a simmer.
Meanwhile put 3 sheets of leaf gelatine in some water to soften. After your milk/cream has come to simmer point, take out the vanilla, drip-dry the gelatine briefly then add to the milk and allow it to melt in.
Pour the mixture in 4 ramekins, or pudding moulds. Put in fridge.

200ml water
100g sugar - a mix of mostly castor with some soft light brown for variety
cinnamon stick
knob of root ginger chopped up
Bring all this to the boil. Stone 6 plums, cutting each into 6. Lower them into the boiling syrup. Cook for a few mins, don't overdo it.
Lift the fruit out, boil up the syrup to reduce.

To serve, dip the pudding basins in hot water and run a knife round the edge to ease them out onto plates. Plums on the side with a little drizzle of gingery cinnamon syrup over the fruit.
Hooray for autmn. A pudding well worth enduring long nights for.

2009-10-24T15:37:00.002+01:00

It's officially autumn, and possibly nearly winter.

Here is a picture of Autmn In A Vase.

I suspect if you ate all the berries it would be Suicide In A Vase though.

2009-10-24T09:54:00.003+01:00

Hooray, hooray!!!! The clocks go back! One more hour in bed!!!

Lots of new digital clocks to reset, boo.

It is a windy, wet autumnal day here. Ideal for lighting the fire and watching Jean de Florette porbably followed immediately by Manon de Sources. I think some Provencal sun will be just the ticket. Also, if I sit in front of the TV there is every chance I might finish a knitted item today. More of that later.

I should be so lucky

2009-10-23T18:07:00.006+01:00

In an attempt to save money I have entered gazillions of competitions. Maybe enough to make me a Comper. Hmmm, geeky.

Unfortunately, no wins have come through yet, however, I remains ridiculously confident that I will win things. I think this may be a legacy of Grandma repeatedly telling me I was lucky.

Mum (off stage, yelled): "there's no such thing as luck!"

However, my confidence in my luckiness is unfailing, despite my entries not yet yielding anything.

It seems though that this is a good personality trait to display. "The Luck Factor" by Richard Wiseman describes how people who believe they are lucky tend to get on better, and people who class themselves as unlucky tend to have a hard time of it.

He writes about a newspaper experiment in which people are asked to flick through a paper to count how many photos there are. On page 2 there was a big heading "there are 46 photos in the paper". The people who classed themselves as lucky noticed this, the unlucky ones didn't. And the unlucky ones also missed a 2nd message telling them to say to the investigator they'd read the 2nd notice and they'd get £200.

Wiseman (talk about a prophetic name, eh?) thought that the folk who felt lucky were more relaxed and open and more likely to see these good, incidental, oportunities and that this approach to life meant they came across more random meetings with people that ended up having a positive influence on their lives.

Does meeting someone through an internet dating site, your subscription having been set up by your slightly inebriated older sister sound random? And look at the lady (pictured left) she was lucky enough to get a free golf ball in her packet of fags!

Anyway, in the current financial climate you can bet your bottom dollar I'd have spotted the 2nd newspaper notice. I look forward to reporting my "comp" wins soon...!

'allo, 'allo, zee sees night 'awk!

2009-10-23T17:38:00.006+01:00

Ok.

So I wrote a letter back to the French dude, but was a bit worried about it not reaching (on account of the postal strike. Grrrr!) so realised I would need to bring me and him (or me and him, or probably he and I? Mum?) into internet commnication territory. No biggie really, but his email wasn't on his letter, it wasn't on-line, it wasn't written in the stars (or if it was, I missed it).

So, I called his secretary.

ON THE TELEPHONE.

You have no idea (1) how stressed I was about this beforehand and (2) how elated I was afterwards when it went well.

I was, rightly I think, concerned that I would come over poorly on the telephone. Perhaps the French equivalent of the policeman from Allo Allo, or indeed any of the characters. It is interesting to think that there will be a way of speaking French which is as funny to the French as their version of English.

So the conversation went really well and his secretary gave me his email address, I sent off my letter encouarging him to offer me a years post, full of exciting, education experiences, unique to Paris, to convice the folks here to hand over some dough to let me go. Exciting times, non??

Oui from Paris

2009-10-20T20:54:00.004+01:00

The French man I wrote to in Paris to ask if I could come and work in his unit got back to me. Very exciting indeed!!!

It was something of a long shot to write to him in the first place, but he replied and said he could see no obstacle (sp?) to welcoming me to their unit.

Hooray!

So I have written back and asked him to explain what it is I will be doing in their unit so that I can impress the funding people here and try and wangle some euro out of them to let me hot foot it across la manche.

So I was speaking to my hallowed supervisor today who questions how likely it is I will have finished my research by next August, which is when I want to go away, and wondered how likely it was that I would have my thesis written.

Well, it's probably not super-likely, but here is a photo of me signing the marriage schedule, and let's face it, a while ago it wasn't super-likely that I would be doing that bit of writing either.
(how weird does my left eye look?)

I remain hopeful and have resigned myself to the fact that I will need to do some thesis writing every day in life for the next 10 months.

There we go.

I've said it, it's in virtual print, so I'll just need to do it.

Word count updates to follow. :)

Don't duck the question!

2009-10-16T18:23:00.004+01:00

I cooked duck for the first time last night.
I will definitely cook it again, it was absolutely lovely. I saw Nigel Slater's Simple Suppers from Oct 7th on the iPlayer (of which I am a big fan [Nigel Slater and the iPlayer, I should say]).
So, here's how it went.

2 duck legs (currently half price in sainsburys)
seasoned with plently salt and pepper, with a good rub of Chinese 5 spice powder.
2 bay leaves (I forgot) are tucked in beside them and then roasted uncovered for about an hour.

Make a salad by segmenting a grapefruit and an orange. Add to this some watercress. I used spinach and added a good grind of pepper as a watercress substitute.

Pile the salad onto the plates.
Remove duck from the oven and the meat will pretty easily fall off the bone. Chop up the meat a bit, divide between the plates. There will be some citrus juice in the bottom of the bowl in which you mixed up the salad. Pour the fat off the roasting pan, then pour in the citrus juice and disolve the pan stickings. Pour this over the duck.

DELICIOUS.

I should have taken a photo of this, because it looked very close to Nigel's version on the telly.
I'd give it 5*, I await your comments after you try it too.

raising the Isobar

2009-10-06T12:19:00.006+01:00

John Kettley was a weatherman and so is Michael Fish (see above).

I did not reaslise this, but in autumn one expects the isobars to narrow on the meterological reports which is suggestive of bad weather, storms, high winds and the like.

People are often rude about the weather forecasters - Mr Fish got a very hard time for reassuring all that there would not be a hurricane in 1987.

On that occasion, as we know, he was not right.

However, full credit must go to the meteorologists of the weekend Oct 3rd. They said there would be high winds. There were high winds. They suggested that there might be gusts of up to 70mph, there were gusts.

I know this because I witnessed the glory of the weather whilst climbing Goatfell, the large hill on the Isle of Arran. My chum and I got approx 2/3 of the way up, and then as we were crouching down to prevent getting blown over we decided we should go for the descent. It would be hard to explain to mountain rescue that our preparation for the ascent included 4 peices of fruit, a bottle of water and that our map was the Rough Guide to the West of Scotland.

It was a good climb though, my calves are still aching. My chum had completed a half-marathon in Donegal, the first 5 miles of which was up a hill, so I shouldn't have expected a leisurely stroll. It blew the cobwebs away though, and that's no bad thing.

Passport? I nearly passed out!

2009-10-05T22:53:00.006+01:00

I have itchy feet. I shouldn't have, I should feel well rested from my weekend away in Paris. I should be glad to be back using pounds sterling and to be no longer peering at coins to figure out their denomination. I should've been speaking French all weekend and reached new highs of fluency (or perhaps just hit new lows of embarrassment).

HOWEVER, none of this happened because I didn't get to go to Paris.

All because of a pesky passport.

I had a sneaking suspicious that I wasn't entirely sure where it was, and the night before started to root around for it. After 2 hours of picking things up, going through all the bookshelves, the drawers in the filing cabinets, under the sofa, the bed, behind furniture, through all the kitchen drawers. I exhausted all possible locations and myself in nearly equal measure.

The French Consulate in Edinburgh were very nice to me when I phoned to ask if they would let me in their country bearing a copy of my marriage cert, a passport from 1999 and the photographic counterpart from my driving licence. Despite all my "I love speaking French" nonsense that I frequently roll out, after a cheery "Bonjour" from Edinbourg, I managed a reasonably confident "Bonjour" in response before anouncing -"I am a UK citizen!!". Everything they say about the Brits and their language skills was confirmed in that very moment.

Anyhow, to no avail. The French do not allow someone to enter their country bearing only their YHA membership card and a signed school photograph. And no, the damn thing never turned up and I had to call my chum and explain that Paris was fermé.

So.... we went to Arran instead.

Not quite the same, that's for sure but at least it was a holiday.

We rescheduled the flights and we are going to Paris in December- DV, passport agency allowing.

julie & julia

2009-09-27T17:49:00.005+01:00

P and I went to see Julie & Julia at the cinema the other day. It was a really lovely film, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, though it was slightly tainted by the fact that Julia Child didn't seem to approve of the girl's blog. In my hopeful self I just wished that J Child would think it all wonderful, and they would meet up and cook beurre blanc together washed down with a nice chablis.
I like to think that someone approves of my blog, enjoys it and washes it down with a nice chablis...

money money money

2009-09-21T18:21:00.004+01:00

P and I are planning on going to France, possibly for a year, possibly without the financial aid of the French or British NHS's. Yikes! I did some sums about how much dough would be required and it was beginning to look quite scary. Much though I maintain that "our love will keep us warm/fed/transported/legal" in reality, we need savings.

Therefore, I am trialing a 1940's style financial rationing.

I am keeping a tally of all that I am spending, and trying to see what's, strictly speaking, not necessary. It is a painful process to lay bare how one disposes of one's disposal income. We do spend a lot of food, so that's going to have to be pruned back a bit, the home renovations will need to take something of a backseat and locum work is inevitable.

HOWEVER...going to France- how cool is that!!! If I ever needed a carrot/stick combo to get me to save some money, this is the big one.

Keep your fingers crossed for some economising updates.

Here, there, mohair

2009-08-04T22:12:00.003+01:00

I bought a copy of In Style the other day. Slightly surpirsed that everything in it is now expensive. When I used to read that magazine, back in the day when I was slightly more in style than my current Boden-Mummsy-Only Clean Item Left- style, there were some high street buys. Not any more. So, apparently, the yarn du jour is mohair. The allure of the mohair sweater, etc etc.
I had a look in town on Saturday and did see quite a few knitted items, with long loopy stitches, batwings, dodgy textured panels...
So I have purchased some mohair wool at a knock-down price. Enough wool for a long-line cowl neck loopy knit jumper in 60% kid mohair, plus the pattern book for a mere 20stg.

Now I went for Rouge. Trashy or Classy?

Time has flown

2009-08-02T12:51:00.003+01:00

Greetings gentle reader.

Since I last added to the written detritus of the internet, quite a lot has happened.
1. moved house
2. had appendix removed
3. got married
4. been on honeymoon

Stories abound for all of the above, so I will make amends and document these occurrences in due course. In the meantime though, it transpires I was supposed to be doing night shift this weekend, which was news to me, so as some pre-work relaxation I am going to clean the house in the absence of a husband. Don't know where he is. Hmm. quite odd.

Charity begins at home

2009-05-26T21:11:00.002+01:00

As a follow on from my previous post, I asked Patrick to take the bags which were at the bottom of the stairs to the charity shop today.
I spoke to him on the phone later and since he was out and about at that point in time, checked whether he had taken the bags to the shop and not included the sleeping bag which was also beside the clothes bags.
No, he said, he had just taken the 2 black bags to Marie Curie at the top of the road.

I then quickly telephoned Marie Curie to apologise for my boyfirend handing in 2 large black bags of rubbish.

They were remarkably relaxed about this and had thankfully not started to open them up to see the contents. Jolene circa 1996 etc ....

Get a move on!

2009-05-20T23:05:00.003+01:00

You are all familiar with the scene.

I have been going through a cupboard tonight packing up its contents. A lot of the contents have been binned (Jolene creme bleach circa 1996 anyone?) and a fair few are in the charity shop pile.

However, when one comes across a fascinator, some blood-red lipstick and 2 Braw Lads rosettes in a matter of minutes, it is definitely time for a photo shoot.

Back to the packing tape for now though.

sofa so good

2009-05-18T14:05:00.003+01:00

Well, if you don't ask, you don't get!

I ordered a sofa from DFS a few weeks ago and at the time they told me it could be 12 weeks to deliver it. Which, under ordinary circs, would be ok, but at that point, the pending nuptials were 11 weeks away. I was becoming increasingly concerned that there would be no furniture in my livingroom when all my family were visiting. So, I wrote to DFS and said that I was getting married on the 27th June and needed somewhere for my in-laws to sit on the 26th and if they could find it in their hearts to help me with this, it would make a stressed-out bride a bit less frazzled. In other words, I laid it on thick.

Well...it worked. They got my letter today and phoned me to say that they will do their best to get the sofa to me in time, but if it looks as though it isn't going to be ready for delivery, they will arrange for some courtesy furniture to be delivered so there is seating for my family.

Isn't that just great?!! It was a particulary persuasive letter though, I have to say.

NB. do not spill red wine on the courtesy sofa.

Hell's Kitchen

2009-05-16T11:50:00.005+01:00

Here are some photos of the kitchen. In retrospect by looking at the before photo, does it seem as though we have spent months and ££ to recreate exactly what was there in the beginning?

So here we are at the early stages. The original kitchen to the left, and the works in progress following. The downstairs WC was removed, and the window removed,enlarged and centred. Story of any building works...I can the spade, the jacket but no fecking builder!!

However, it did come good in the end.

The units are an oak veneer, the counter top is just laminate, or some sort of melamine, but it looks pretty good. There are loads of cupboards and drawers, counter space and importantly, also a dishwasher!! Hooray!! And a functioning oven!! At last I will be able to stop my current climate control mechanism of just pressing the over door really hard to ensure the seal is complete.

I am so looking forward to getting moved in here and to creating a few nice meals in this room.

papertastic

2009-05-11T15:36:00.003+01:00

In a bid to add that all-important personal touch to my nuptial preparations I spent yesterday creating name place cards for the reception. I had been working overnight so the therapeutic folding and cutting and gluing was about all I was fit for, however I have created a very nice array of place cards I think.

Also the invitations arrived and they look magic. They were moderately priced, so I thought that a Blue Peter approach to the rest of the wedding stationery was appropriate. Pat said I shouldn't make them too good so that folk knew I'd done it myself. I think he underestminates our guests to detect DIY!

Time management

2009-05-05T11:13:00.003+01:00

How embarrassing.

As part of my research methods course I had signed up to a Time Managment session.

As I left the house my encouraging beau shouted "don't be late!" ha ha ha. Indeed, I was keen not to be late and had perhaps left slightly less time that would have been wise to walk to the relevant building. However, I got there red faced. Asked the chap at the desk where the room was and he pointed to the huge sign on the wall indictating the directuoin of Conference Room 1.

Which was empty.

I faffed around for a bit, looking n the room in case my fellow classmates were hiding and after I concurred that they weren't went and asked the chap at the front desk where this class was. HE checked the room allocation register.

"Time Management?" he enquired. I nodded, then explained I had check on-line the night before to make sure I got the room right. "Tomorrow. 9.30am to 12.30."

I thanked him for his help, acknowledged that I did in fact need to go on the course (which was patently obvious anyway) and said I would see him in the morning.

Oh, I love being me.

with love from you to me

2008-11-27T12:15:00.000Z

Birthday and Christmas requests/ suggestions

I would be delighted to receive

Slippers (shoe size 4-4.5)
PJs – prob size 12, depends how baggy they look- maybe size 10
Dressing gown
Teasmade – seriously. Would be too embarrassed to put it on a wedding list though
Hot water bottle
Nigella Lawson Christmas cookbook
Fancy liquid soap
Socks
Size 6 ½ gloves to match purple coat – so black probably
Writing paper or notelets
Earrings
Scented candles- or non-scented ones too!
A nice woollen jumper – again size 10 if it looks baggy, 12 if a neater fit; any autumnal / berry shade would be great, though probably not teal (have big cardi) or purple (trying to knit own cardi). Ideally something decent and moderately classy, though ultimately something warm.

I already have/don’t need/no thank you
Clothes from Mackays – don’t think their stuff fits me too well
Any house related / cooking / bed-linen items – I plan on putting them on our wedding list

The Ugly Sister's Slipper

2008-11-22T16:10:00.002Z

I was looking on the Draper of Glastonbury website, a company selling footwear, particularly of the sheepskin variety when I noticed this particularly jazzy shoe. A "colourful quartered design" nonetheless. And guess what DoG have named this slipper? Yes, the design is "Emily".

Why are there no cool things called Emily (other than my good self of course)?

kitchen questions

2008-11-22T15:55:00.003Z

What do you all (ha - Both!!) think of kitchens from Ikea?

I was looking round the place today, and there are some nice designs.
I do think that a key thing would be to have someone fit it who knows what they are doing, and who has fitted ikea kitchens before.

You see, the kitchen is massive, and it will be highly costly to kit out with cupboards and work surface. To my mind, I thought we should put an adequate kitchen in at the moment, one that will last us a few years, but not our absolutely best ever, wowee kitchen, because we can't afford it. Does that seem sensible enough?

The nexus range is quite nice. Wood veneer cupboards- totally plain. No dust trapping ledges. There are 2 colourways that are options; Patrick likes the more orangey mid-brown oak veneer, I like the darker brown stain. Patrick's option does slightly remind me of the kitchen in Hazelbank, but I shouldn't hold on to that image particularly, as a newly fitted, sleek lined kitchen would be a far cry from what we had in Gala.

Anyhow, your thoughts would be appreciated. There are a lot of decisions to be made regarding the house, and some of it is quite daunting. It will be totally magic when it's done though.

PS - we have gone with your idea, Ali of knocking down the outside shunky. Just need to figure out whether we should move the window on the back wall of the kitchen to enlarge and centralise it, or else it will be tucked in one corner and we will be unable to run cupboards into there. Think I may just have answered my own question, but it involves some propping up of the back of the house to prevent it collapsing when the window is temporarily removed. Yikes!!!

This old house

2008-11-22T15:48:00.003Z

Well, great news on the home front. Nigel, the viewer who was here the other day has arranged a second viewing!!! I am delighted. His house is under a compulsory purchase order so the council can do something with the land it is on, so he has to buy. Also, you get pretty good money in a sale like that.

He and a pal are coming round on Tuesday to have a second look. I am trying not to be too optimistic, because obviously, as soon as he puts his hand to the side of the fireplace he'll feel the damp and may just run out the door. However Patrick thinks Nigel is gay and so maybe he is just coming back round to see old Pat. Frankly, whatever it takes. I need this house sold!

Incidentally, when I had the builder round the other day he was talking about essential work to do in a house, and mentioned DPC!! I was amazed, I didn't know that the crockery of the deceased was as popular here as it undoubtedly is en Ecosse.

Turns out he was talking about a damp proof course.

Boom Boom!!!

2008-11-09T00:50:00.001Z

Q. Why do builders have clear plastic lunch boxes?

A. So they can tell whether they are going to work or on their way home.

Time for a Tacky Covers reunion?

2008-11-08T16:41:00.003Z

check these dudes out!!!!

http://www.strictlynoballroom.co.uk/Listen.html

I fancy getting a covers band, who will do some classic rock and not take themselves too seriously. See their cover of "You're the one that I want" as an example. They are playing tonight in Belfast and so I think I'll see if I can persuade Sharon to go and see them...

and also the lead singer is the infection control nurse in the Ulster Hospital, so it is funny to think of red epaulets by day, rocking (or should that be rockin'?) by night.

DIY dunce

2008-11-08T16:25:00.004Z

Remember I was so happy and pleased with myself when I mended the drawer in the kitchen?
Well.
The top drawer, housing the cutlery is knackered.
I suspect partly through over vigourous drawer closing, and partly because the unit itself is wider than the drawer and so the runners weren't that secure. The problem is I can't pull the drawer right out to mend the hinge on the frame, so the thing is banjaxed.
Any suggestions? Glue? Brute force? Shout at any viewer (Ha! That's the real joke!) who tries to open the drawer to check out the "quality" of the kitchen? Prayer?

Ask and thou shalt receive

2008-11-07T21:32:00.005Z

So, I am sure we all agree that it is preferable to receive something nice at Christmas time, to open up a present and be pleased with its contents. I truly desire to achieve this with you all, chere famille.

To aid me in this please SEND ME YOUR CHRISTMAS LISTS.

I know already who has been naughty and nice, but I don't have a list to check twice yet, so please help me out. I feel that my Christmas gifts in recent times have missed the mark with a few of you and I want to improve. I want there to be happy faces all round at Christmas 08. On a practical note, I may come home on Boxing day rather than pre-Christmas, so I am actually talking about happy faces on 26/12 rather than on the festive day itself. I hope none of you think that is a bad idea. Nothing finalised yet, just thinking through the practicalities.

And speaking of practicalities... apparently John Lewis get up to 12 complaints a day (during busy Christmas times) from customers about the lack of availability of the Teasmade. Apparently they are going to produce a new version. I would love a teasmade, I really would. I haven't quite figured out the milk issue - though in NI it would be cold enough for it to just sit out on the windowsill over night. I would be far too embarrassed to put a teasmade on a wedding list but would love to own one. I have spoken at length with Pat about it, so maybe best to communicate, lest I get enough Teasmade for one in every bedroom on the new house. Least you'd get a cup of tea in the morning when you come and visit!

Starter for 10

2008-11-07T21:23:00.004Z

Wedding Menu Suggestions arrived today from the Yellow Door. Here are the starters they have offered...

Hot Smoked Irish Salmon with Horseradish Potato Bread, Pea Shoots and Lemon Aioli

Gravadlax of Irish Salmon With Horseradish Pannacotta, Baby Salad Leaves, Citrus Oil and Vine Tomato Concasse

Roast Irish Seafood on Warm Potato Salad With Kilkeel Lobster Veloute

Queen Scallop Nicoise with Fried Chorizo, Lemongrass and Coriander Dressing

Parmesan Crusted Baked Irish Cod With Grilled Asparagus, Baby Basil and Lemon Aioli

Pan Fried Proper Smoked Haddock Brandade Cakes With Garden Pea Puree, Pea Shoots

Don't they all just sound fantastic?! I am particularly keen on the first one I have to say. Although I think the scallop would be nice, I don't think it would be appropriate for the whole gang and the gravadlax doesn't totally rock my world.

Thoughts people?
ONLY HELPFUL THOUGHTS PLEASE...!

Did I mention that I was engaged?

2008-11-07T21:02:00.002Z

It has been so nice to have seen you all after our recent engagement. I am still very much enjoying wearing my engagement ring, and should you wish to see it again - here is a nice pic I took of it stuffed into a houseplant.

the last days of my 20s

2008-11-07T20:47:00.002Z

Well, we are well and truly into November now.
I have been lighting the coal fire downstairs (my emphysema is coming along nicely, thank you) and generally planning how to celebrate / commiserate on my turning 30. I think I may have a small house party, with some suitably good natured friends, sparkling wine (Sainsbury's have 25% off at the moment) and some canape type stuff.
If any of you fancy joining in the fun, then rock on over to NI on 29th Nov.
Alternatively, feel free to send large cash gift.

Back on track

2008-08-31T10:38:00.002+01:00

After getting in to a bit of a sticky wicket resulting in much embarrassment, I have decided that my future does indeed lie in blog-writing, though perhaps of the more careful variety.

I am hosting an afternoon tea this afternoon (hey, couldn't have guessed the time of day...). It is to raise funds for Marie Curie. What started as a few pals coming round for a cup of tea and a biscuit has now escalated into approx 20 people, plus some small children landing round here for sandwiches, cakes, traybake, scones with cream and jam and other niceties. I am slightly worried about the chair situation. There are really only seats for about 8 people, so musical chairs will be the order of the day.

I will return with pics of cakes to show you in due course. Potentially also a pic of Pat wearing only trousers and a bow tie which he feels is the most appropriate outer wear for a gent on such an oestrogen heavy occasion...

Driving Miss Daisy

2008-07-31T13:27:00.003+01:00

So, Patrick was in The Cut- men only, grrrr, hairdressers the other day when he saw an advert in the Belfast Telegraph, quite possibly the poorest written paper in the UK.

"Elderly couple seeking competent driver

for weekend shopping trips and lunch.

Must have own car or be able to drive an automatic."

Patrick phoned them up and played every one of his toff cards, casually mentioning that he was a solicitor, that he had return to do some further studies and the accent was as cut-glass as I have ever heard it. The old guys were less then excited about clambouring into the back of a Mini so Patrick duly told them that he could drive an automatic and that he had found it to be "fine". Of course he hasn't been anywhere near the driving seat of such a car in all his days.

The interview last night seemed to go well and he has ended up in a fairly flexible situation where these guys are going to give him a call when they fancy an outing. The husband has some sort of dementia possibly, so I am sure it will all be great craic, and I suspect his wife is keen for some sensible company. Not quite sure where Pat fits into this equation!

If anyone knows where I could find a peaked cap, let me know. And thanks to AF for his tips on driving an automatic. A friend in work said it was like driving a go-kart, AF suggested it was like a dodgem. I think Pat should stick with the go-kart analogy.

Well, carry on Jeeves.

House update

2008-07-29T08:44:00.002+01:00

We put in an offer on the house on Friday.
They said no.
But then said what they would consider, which was the sum I had kind of anticipated paying anyway- so maybe not that bad!
I will keep you updated...though I see that my blog view numbers are not exactly sky-rocketing. I will continue to shout into the ether though!

Just remembered

2008-07-25T19:51:00.007+01:00

Oh yeah, stuff did happen this week.

I made a new ironing board cover!
As you can see it fits in just grand in my spare room, or maybe it is a bit difficult to spot in said room as the cheery floral pattern blends in with the carpet.

It does look quite like Kath Kidston stuff, but did not set me back 20 notes.

In fact it hardly cost me a bean because I had the fabric lying around anyway. It was the back of an Ikea single duvet cover, the front of which I used to make the Roman blind in the spare room.

Should anyone think they would like one of these items for their Christmas, let me know. I reckon I could also stretch to a peg-bag.

General Friday Chat

2008-07-25T19:28:00.004+01:00

Very little has happened this week and certainly nothing has happened that was worth photographing. Therefore, sorry that this entry is not such a hoot as previous. A few points to clarify though.

1. I do acknowledge that the photograph of my "wonderful" pancake actually doesn't look that hot. Or rather, that it had been cooked too hot. 'Well-fired' was one comment I received. I think I have 2 options here

(a) make excuses to my large readership and claim that all the other pancakes were fab and that one was an exception
(b) tell my by now dwindling readership that I don't give a monkeys and if they can make better pancakes then they can post their own photos.

Yay! What an idea! A pancake competition! Realistically, am I ever going to write the next Chocolate and Zuchinni blog? There is no point in trying to make this blog have broad appeal.

I have not yet decided what the prize will be for the lucky winner. Watch this space.

2. I put an offer in on another house. All very nerve wracking. This is the property which was described by a 1st degree relative as massive and ugly and overpriced.

OK, it is not yet perfect- far from it. However I have high hopes regarding its potential and in a few years time (read 10+) I am sure it will be passable. In the meantime I have contacted the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum to see if they would like to come and take away the boiler for one of their exhibits. I hope to hear from the estate agent on Monday. Dad would have been proud of me - I offered 84K less than the asking price. Ballsy no?

That's all folks.
But just to keep you happy, here is a photograph of Patrick rowing.

Speedy Pancakes

2008-07-19T22:44:00.004+01:00

I tried out Anne Magill's pancake recipe.
It is ace, I am v pleased with it. I feel as though I have found some sort of baking-enlightenment.

The recipe was passed on to me in the verbal tradition. At Mum's retirement lunch Bron and I were commenting that whoever had made the drop scones had done lovely job, that neither of us could make them, and unfortunately the secret to said DS was probably 50 years of practice. However, I was dispatched by Bronters to find out (a) who made them and (b) to get their recipe. Finding out the answer to A was ok, (A.ok even!!) but I felt a bit of a pillock in the second part because Anne was labourious telling me the recipe whilst the other 7 octogenarians were rushing round her in the kitchen the size of a phone box with hot water and dishes. Undeterred, I got the recipe, and you will be pleased to learn that it is straight forward and 50 years of practice is not required.

So, as it was told to me.

Anne; Take 8oz of self rising flour.
Add to it 1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda. And 1/2 tsp of, of, Barbara! What do you put in pancakes?
Barbara -[answer off] I don't make them.
Emily - Salt?
Anne- no, not salt.
Emily - Baking powder?
Anne - (exasperated) No! Margaret- what do you put in pancakes?
Margaret- [knee deep in dishes] What? Pancakes? Mine are like shoe leather. Why is this dishwasher not drying the dishes? This thing is useless.
Anne and Emily exit the kitchen, with a look of great relief and embarrassment upon Emily's face. Anne continues to contemplate raising agents.
Anne- Not bicarbonate of soda, not baking powder, not salt - the other one.
Emily (last ditch effort.) Cream of Tartar??
Anne - Yes!! 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar.
Anne and Emily move to centre left of stage, Emily is seen to have aged considerably during this passage
Anne- OK, so are you with me so far? 8oz, flour, 1/2 tsp cream of tartar, 1/2 tsp bicarb and 2 spoonfulls of sugar. Mix all that round.
Emily - got it.
Anne - put 2 eggs in a measuring jug and switch them
Emily - (to audience) Friends, switching eggs? What is the meaning of this? Is this some kind of baking mojo? Should I be offering to cast out demons or call social services?
Anne - then make them up to 10 floz with milk. Add the liquid to the flour etc and mix round. When the bubbles start to appear on the surface start cooking.
Barbara- [moving from stage back during last passage unbeknown to Emily] You need a girdle!
Emily - [under breath] One more comment like that and you'll get a sock!! Ok, I had a few egg sandwiches and a slice of fruit cake, but that was all!
Anne- yes, put some butter on your girdle...
Emily - puzzled- wonders when ladies foundation garments became the topic du jour.
Anne -When it's hot, cook the pancakes, turn them when the bubbles form on the top side.
Barbara - You should get a girdle for your birthday!
Emily [to audience] the Terrific at Thirty mug and a girdle? No way! These oldsters have some cheek. At least I got the recipe....
Curtain falls
Voice Over - Here ends another chapter of "Recipes from the Edge" starring Emily as daring gourmand, recipe hunter extraordinaire, Anne as the gentle cook with 50 years baking experience and holder of Drop Scone of Jura Award 1972 and Barbara as Damart sales rep.

Phew.

It was hard work. Have to say, I've made it a few times now - only a half quantities, and it is great. One point worth making perhaps is that the mixture is thick enough to point a wall with. Very much a mixture rather than a batter, so don't be tempted to add more milk. The mixture requires a little spreading when it hits the girdle. I made them for mum the other day, and they were pretty much ready by the time the pot of tea was made. So, thanks to Anne and Barbara, genuinely, though my title Speedy Pancakes definitely refers to the time to make them, rather than the time to acquire the instructions.

Teacher's pet

2008-07-05T10:04:00.003+01:00

I am currently doing the Saturday morning adolescent diabetes clinic.
Boo.
However! It is the first Saturday of the hols and it is raining heavily, so I am anticipating not all will turn up.
To brighten the mood I baked brownies last night for my colleagues to enjoy. This is the recipe I followed, but I am not convinced it is that good. Comments and better recipes welcome.

185g butter (I know, metric units. Bring back Imperialism)
275g golden castor sugar (I just used ordinary)
185g dark chocolate - good stuff
3 eggs
85g plain flour
60g (or maybe 40, I am writing this off the top of my head) cocoa powder

In the style of Gordon Ramsey, butter and sugar; beaten. Eggs; added. Chocolate; melted. Cooled chocolate; folded (in). Flour and cocoa; ditto.
Now, I gave it 25 mins in a mod oven (~160 c). The I put another 8 mins on the timer because it looked pretty liquid still. However, I was watching the first ever Starwars film (for the first ever time!) and so I didn't hear the buzzer and it got a bit longer - though no idea how much longer.

The top of it is nice and flaky but it is really damp and squigy inside. I guess I remember the recipe from the Good Housekeeping children's cookbook which was perhaps a more spartan recipe (also made by a 9 yr old) in which it was all quite biscuity apart from a chewy middle.

2 questions
(a) is the current vogue for desert-like brownies universal or did I just muck up the recipe?
(b) do you have a better recipe?

progress report #1

2008-07-04T20:00:00.004+01:00

Hello you've reached Knit-Line...

Thank you to Mum and Alison for your help to date with my newest knitting project.

After having packed up so many of my possessions and then moved them to Patrick's parent's house and then realised the unpacking of them will not be for a long time I decided to get me some new wool.

It is 100% merino wool, I am using a Debbie Bliss pattern, all done on 3 3/4 needles (which are small as far as I am concerned) and a cable needle. Having never cabled anything before I am chuffed by the results! This is the back of the "ribbed cardigan" and I thought the detail at the back was lovely. Obviously when worn it will be pulled out a bit, which should perhaps show the pattern off a bit more but I am loathe to pull it for photographic effect as I suspect the picture that would follow would be a picture of Sad Emily, trying to put the dropped stitches back on her 3 3/4 needles.

Further photos will follow.

Chère Famille

2008-06-25T18:14:00.001+01:00

Hello All,

When I was in the process of putting the house on the market I was so pleased with all the improvements that I wanted to show you the pictures and give a blow-by-blow account of what I had been up to...hence my well-received power-point presentation "Walking Under the Property Ladder".

As you know, my house is now on the market (as good as) but we have bowed out of the one we were planning to purchase next week due to the fact that the house to the right of it appears to be peri-demolition. I am sure that you are all mighty pleased I have not gone through with the purchase - thus saving much head-melting on my part.

Anyway, I had decided to start a blog to keep you all updated on the house move (exciting pics of the removal van etc). The pictures of packing boxes will obviously have to wait, but I though I may as well embrace the blog-movement as I re-start the house hunting. I eagerly await your feedback!