Sunday Sevens #49

I love sharing my weekly updates with you in the form of a Sunday Sevens. Thanks to Natalie at Threads and bobbins for creating the series. 🙂

Book I’m reading:

Seven Wonders of the Industrial World – Deborah Cadbury.

I’ve picked up a book from my library, (OMG I can say library!) OK, a very small library! :p (David is cringing with the amount of books I am buying!) It’s a book I bought years ago and not had the time to read. So I thought I would read it for my 2018 Year in Books. Deborah Cadbury’s book accompanied the acclaimed 2004 BBC series Seven Wonders of the Industrial World.

I have to admit the series was inspirational. The Industrial Revolution created revolutionary thinkers such as Isambard Kingdom Brunel, whose world changing designs were built by the superhuman navvies who toiled, bled and died creating a modern world! It made me stop and think of how we take for granted these wonderful works of engineering.

Awe-inspiring accounts of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, (which to me will always be the Roebling Bridge), and of Joseph Bazalgette’s Cholera defying London sewers are among the best episodes of the series. Add wonderful music by the then up and coming Hollywood composer Steve Jablonsky and you have the ingredients for a superb TV series. I was gifted the DVD set for a birthday and the book only adds to the incredible achievement of these men of vision.

Have you seen this TV series, read the book? What are your favorite industrial wonders?

Cooking:

Returning to the mundane, this week I managed to do some cooking. It’s been a while since I cooked a meal from scratch. It may have been for one (as David cooked himself a curry) but I was happy with the result. I followed the recipe from the Quorn site, of Fajitas with Quorn Pieces. I served with warmed tortillas. The meal was filling yet ultimately healthy as the main base was vegetables.

Spicy Quorn Fajitas

Honey bee on Salvia

Red Campion

Yarden:

All the sun of last week has made a big difference to the yarden. The potato chits and wildflower seedlings have pushed through the soil and the red campion has started to flower. The only sad demise from this winter was my beautiful Salvia Mystic Spires. It was loved by bees well into the autumn months. I am mourning this beautiful plant and hope to find a replacement in the shops in future.

#walk1000miles:

My miles this week have been an accumulation of walks with Riley, housework and sessions on the cross trainer. My miles this week has been 30, bringing my annual total to 607 miles.

 

Walking the Dog:

Christine and Riley

Riley and Bennie

This Sunday David and I got up at the ungodly hour of 5.30am to take a drive to Formby Point for an early morning walk with David’s sister, partner and doggy nephew, Bennie! It was the first time both dogs had met each other. After a good sniff both dogs walked side by side as we took to the sand dunes and walked along the beach. I think they both enjoyed their 3.5 mile walk.

That was my week, how was yours?

Thanks for reading,

Christine x

2016 – A Year in Food.

With New Year drawing closer, it got me thinking what posts I should do as a round up of the year! One idea was ‘a year in food,’ to post 12 pictures that give a flavour of 2016! I have followed many recipes this year and prepared hundreds of dishes, (some successful, others not!), so I thought I would do a little summary.

I hope you enjoy!

January:

 At the start of the New Year I was determined to make meals that were filling, yet healthy and with produce that help reduce cholesterol. So one of the meals I made was a Red Lentil, Chickpea and Chilli soup.

Red Lentil, Chickpea and Chilli Soup

Lentils are a good source of fiber, help with stabilising blood sugars and promote heart health.

You can find the original recipe here.

February:

The 28th of February was Global Scouse Day! Scouse is the signature dish of the city of Liverpool, usually made with meat. I prefer this vegetarian version with butter-beans called Blind Scouse.

Blind Scouse

You can find the original recipe here:

March:

One recipe I have returned to time and time again this year has been this One Pan Mexican Quinoa. It is healthy, filling and can be used with either quinoa or brown rice. It’s a very versatile dish. I see me making this for many years to come.

One Pan Mexican Quinoa

You can find the original recipe here: 

April:

This Pearl Barley Risotto with a crumbling of goats cheese would have been nice if it wasn’t for the very off putting buttery taste. I may attempt the recipe again, but leave out the butter!

Pearl Barley Risotto

You can find the original recipe here:

May:

Vegetable and Quorn Sausage Frittata

I am not a big lover of eggs, but this 4-6 egg Vegetable and Quorn Sausage Frittata was surprisingly filling and enjoyable.

June:

Sea Turtle loaves

As I participated in The Wildlife Trust’s 30 Days Wild. I decided to get creative in the kitchen and made some mini loaves in the shape of Sea Turtles.

You can find the original recipe here:

July:

Bramley Apple Pie

One of David’s friends kindly gifted us a load of Bramley apples. For weeks after I was baking and eating apple pies! They were yummy though!

The recipe I used was one by the Hairy Bikers.

August:

Vegetable Tagine

I got the recipe for this Vegetable Tagine from a free Asda booklet. It makes a tasty dish with lots of different textures. For David, I complete it by topping it with a chicken breast, while for myself, I chop up a Quorn chicken style fillet for added protein.

September: 

A meal we don’t make too often and we should as it’s yummy, are these Spicy Mexican Bean Burgers. The recipe can be changed for any type of beans found in your store-cupboard. I serve with mounds of fresh salad.

Spicy Mexican Bean Burger

October: 

I am not a big fan of pastry, however I decided to try this Indian Samosa Casserole. I like Indian spices so that was a plus. It served 3 to 4 people generously. I will definitely be trying the recipe again.

Indian Samosa Caserole

You can find the original recipe here:

November:

Another dish I have made quite a few times this year is this Quinoa and Bean Soup. The original recipe called for white beans but I just used whatever beans I found in the store-cupboard! I have cooked a lot with quinoa this year due to its many health benefits.

Quinoa and Bean Soup

December:

For the final meal, I thought I would choose the wonderful Curried Red Lentils. I have been cooking this easy peasy dish since the summer. I even make a big batch of them and take them to work. They are scrumptious, keep me fueled all afternoon and are healthy! I even throw in a teaspoon of turmeric just for its cancer busting properties!

Curried Red Lentils

You can find the original recipe here:

So there you have it, a flavour of my 2016!

Let me know if you have tried any of the recipes featured? Or my post has inspired you to try some of them!

Thanks for reading,

Christine x

Sunday Sevens #18

This week has been a hectic one!

We finally finished working on the dining room floor! It took all of David’s seven days holiday! He’ll need another holiday to recover! We still have the hall and living room floors to do but I am thankful that I have my kitchen and dining room back!

I felt lost without my kitchen. I put a lot of effort into cooking the evenings’ meal. So when all I can cook is microwave, convenience meals, I feel rather short changed! Also this week was Meat Free Week, (mainly for Australia and the UK), another initiative to get more people to eat less meat. So once I got my kitchen back, I was able to make meals such as a vegetable taigne.

Ingredients and Method, feeds two people

• I fried an onion (chopped), 1 pepper (sliced) and a green chilli (chopped) in an oiled pan until softened.
• I then added to the pan 2 sliced cloves of garlic, 1 tsp of ground cumin, 1/2 tsp of ground coriander and 1/2 tsp of chilli flakes.
• After a minute I tipped in a tin of chopped tomatoes and threw in a handful of frozen peas. I covered the pan to simmer gently for 15 minutes.
• Lastly I added a tin of chickpeas (drained and rinsed) and cooked for a final five minutes.
• I served on a bed of spinach, with two fillets of Quorn chicken (sliced) and crusty bread.

On Sunday we released Hoppy back into the wild. David had managed to get most of the thread from around her leg, it was a painstaking endeavour. However, everyday since, she has been heard pecking at the back door for her dinner, which we dutifully give! What have we begun?

Tuesday was David’s birthday! (‘Happy birthday!’) To celebrate we went to the cinema to see Star Trek Beyond, not the strongest of the three films but an action romp none the less. We were also invited to David’s brother’s house for a chickpea balti cooked by his wife Bilgen. I was touched by the thoughtful gesture that all of the meals were vegetarian! While we waited for the homemade bhajis to cook we were entertained but their 11th month old son.

Troy

Aura

Pet news, and Troy has a fellow patient joining him in the hospital cage. Poor Aura has had a relapse from his earlier condition which almost took his life last year. We found him on the floor of the cage squeaking, so we have administered anti-mite drops and are keeping him warm. Troy continues to be cursed by his inner ear infection, though seems much happier he has a bed fellow to snuggle up too.

The weekend dawned with the promise of warm, sunny weather (ha ha)! So David and I headed off for a walk, but where did we go? Post to follow. 🙂

Best wishes for the coming week!

Christine x

Sunday Sevens was devised by Natalie at Threads and bobbins.

Sunday Sevens #1

I have wanted to try another blog challenge (after my 12 hours of Day), for a while now and recently Sunshine and Celandines posted a list of some inspiring challenges to do! So I thought today, I would give Sunday Sevens a try!

At the moment I’m feeling ‘pumped!’ Seeing the late winter sunshine this morning has given me a much needed boost to my mood. I awoke on a lazy Sunday to bright blue skies!

Winter sky

On Monday I cooked my Mum’s favourite meal from my repertoire. Quorn Swedish Meatballs and Spaghetti! The recipe is pretty straightforward and does for 3-4 people.

• Cook 140g of spaghetti (for 2 people) or 280g (for 4)
• In a pan fry 1 white onion (chopped) and 2 garlic cloves (crushed and chopped)
• When the onion is soft add a jar of Dolmio sauce for meatballs (or any tomato based sauce), 1 tbsp of brown sauce and handful of frozen peas
• Crumble one low salt vegetable stock cube and add a bag of Quorn Swedish Meatballs, (or other vegetarian equivalent)
• Cook for 15 minutes on medium heat, stir occasionally. Serve on bed of spaghetti.

Tuesday was the Christian celebration of light, Candlemas. Once again, Sunshine and Celandines wrote a lovely blog post on the subject. I find it fascinating that most religions of the world have some kind of festival of light! Apparently Snowdrops are also called Candlemas Bells and symbolise the ending of winter. My perusal of the garden at the weekend brought the wondrous sight that I have Snowdrops growing!

Candlemas

Snowdrop

On Friday I met up with a work colleague I had not seen in almost three years! We caught up over a Costa coffee and buttered toasted teacakes! 

At the start of 2016, I suggested to David that he should cook at least one meal every month, to give me a bit of a break! Saturday’s have become the day when we try cooking something different. So this Saturday he planned the evening meal.

Last month David made a curry, and again this February he decided to make another one. He is determined to find a recipe that tastes like our favourite take-away, Saffron! For almost three hours he took over the kitchen! The curry turned out to be one of David’s best! He served it with rice, and sides of naan and vegetable samosas!

David’s Pasanda 

While David sweated in the kitchen, I sat with Artie and relaxed while listening to John William’s soundtracks on Classic FM!

Artie

Have you undertaken any blog challenges?

Christine x

Quorn Sausage Frittata

This was a Saturday meal a few weekends back. I’m not much of an egg lover, but it was surprisingly filling! The recipe made four decent sized servings, but we shared it between three! Sadly it’s not vegan.

Photo by David Evans

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 Quorn Sausages, or any other vegetarian sausage
• 1-2 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced. (I used a large white onion.)
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 1 pepper sliced
• 1 medium potato, peeled, boiled and roughly diced into 1cm cubes (optional)
• 50g button mushrooms, halved. (I left these out as don’t like mushrooms.)
• 4 plum or cherry tomatoes, halved. (I used about 10 cherry tomatoes halved and roasted before hand.)
• 4-6 large eggs
• 1 tbsp water
• good pinch paprika (optional)
• 2-3 tbsp freshly chopped flat leaf parsley (optional)

Method:

1. I oven cooked the sausages for 20 – 25 minutes, at the same time I oven roasted the halved cherry tomatoes for the same time.

2. While the sausages were in the oven I boiled the diced potato on a medium hob for 20 minutes.

3. In a large non-stick frying pan (approx. 26 cm diameter). I fried the onion, garlic and pepper on a medium to low heat, until softened. Then add the cooked sausages which were sliced into chunks.

2. I then added the tomatoes and potato and slowly cooked for a minute. This is where you can add the mushrooms if using.

3. Lightly whisk the eggs, water, paprika and seasoning together in a bowl. Stir in the parsley (optional).

4. Pour the egg mixture into the frying pan and lightly shake the pan to distribute the mixture. Reduce the heat a little and cook the bottom of the frittata for 2-3 minutes until lightly set. We had to cook a little longer due to the amount of eggs we used.

5. Place the pan under a hot grill and finish off the cooking for about 2-3 minutes until the egg mixture is just set.

6. Leave to stand for 1-2 minutes before serving. If liked, dust the top with a little extra paprika.

7. I served with a wilted watercress salad (100g of watercress), with sliced garlic (6 cloves of garlic).

I found the frittata recipe from the Quorn website. I adapted it a little for our preference and so can you!

© 2016 Christine Lucas.

Christmas 2014!

Christmas 2014 for me started in mid November when I sat writing my Christmas cards while David played console games with his friends in the living room downstairs.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been this excited and really looked forward to Christmas. Perhaps it’s because I am in my own home? Or that I am in a better place, emotionally and mentally? Either way come the 1st December I put up my new (muchly contested) Christmas tree.

Christmas Tree

In the weeks following, I busied myself making the obligatory mince pies and Christmas cakes, of which I made 40 individual ones!

Mini Christmas Cakes

Since the middle of December, I’ve been listening to Christmas carols and songs. I remember as a child, listening out for Father Christmas’s float as it passed our road, and of the carol singers who came knocking at our door. It’s a shame they don’t visit any more.

Whilst enjoying the festive music, I made a playlist, with such tracks as:

1.  A Christmas Overture (Hess.)

2. It’s the most wonderful time of the year! (Andy Williams)

3. Sleigh Ride (Anderson)

4. The Snowman Suite (Blake)

5. A Christmas Festival (Anderson)

Artie will be witnessing his first Christmas with us. He has had an Advent calendar with chocolate catnip treats daily and has a stocking full of toys from Santa Paws!

Santa Paws’s stocking

With Christmas Eve upon us I am more excitable than ever. Christmas day is an anticlimax in contrast to the eve when my child self comes to the fore, all excited and nervous, hoping to hear the pitter patter of Rudolf’s feet on the roof!

Christmas lunch will be a concoction of Quorn roast and vegetables for me and a gammon joint for David.

Merry Christmas!

Christine, David and Artie! x

Quorn Madras…made the Christine way!

Today David and I both had a day off work. After getting David’s car from the mechanic all bandaged up and fixed (for now!), we headed out to my two favourite shops, Dunelm and B&M. I got a lovely set of egg blue curtains for the bedroom, a change from the teal ones from Dunelm at £30.

Come the afternoon, David worked on his aviary for the finches and I cooked up a mess in the kitchen. The house smells of Indian spices now.

I thought with having a day off, that I should do some more cooking. At least then I know that David is eating a proper meal! He can be so fussy!

So I decided to make a Vegetarian Madras taken from a recipe I saw in an Asda magazine. The recipe was much simpler to the one recipe I have also tried.

The ingredients were as follows. Serves 4 (though I halved everything as it was only for two.)

• 1 large onion
• 75g of Asda Madras Curry Paste
• 1 clove of garlic
• Handful (per person) of Quorn chicken style pieces
• 390g of Asda Italian chopped tomatoes
• 100ml of water (reduced if for two people)
• Rice for the amount of people served.
• 200g of frozen peas
• Naan bread (to serve)

Method:

• I fried the onion and the garlic in some sunflower oil.
• Once golden added the curry paste and cooked for a couple of minutes.
• I then added the Quorn chicken style pieces and cooked for 5 minutes
• Add the water and tomatoes to the pan and simmer for 25 minutes.
• While the sauce is cooking, put on the rice and cook for 15 minutes
• After the rice is cooked add the peas
• Put the naan bread in the oven for 6 minutes.
• Serve with your favourite beverage and radio station.
• Share with the important people in your life 🙂

The result was a curry that was not too spicy but warm enough to make the nose run! lol I was amazed that even David enjoyed the meal. He even cleared his plate! 🙂