Butternut and sweet potato soup!

Good Morning, hope everyone is having a productive Saturday morning?

I am just preparing  a revamped version of nigella’s Butternut and sweet potato soup, the butternut is really tough to cut, oh had to help!

then after you have peeled and chopped both the butternut and the sweet potato, I have fried them off a little to soften in a little extra virgin olive oil

then add a chicken stock cube and a 1/4 teaspooon a cinnamon,  a little black pepper, a teaspoon of garlic puree  and fill pan up with boiing water, cook until root vegetables are soft.

then wait for it to cool, this is a must believe me, as I scolded my chest last week when i blended soup that was too hot, it covered me and the kitchen! grrrr!

  

 In Nigella’s version she adds mace, but I hadn’t got any so, have made it anyway, last time I made it this way and it turned out fine!! I have cooked some chabitti buns, they are the ones prepacked and you just cook them!

 I have added some dried corriander to mine. Nigella serves hers with swirled buttermilk over the top when she serves  it!

 

menu plan w/c: 30/5/08

 

Good Evening,

I have just completed next weeks menu plan, I was trying to post some pictures from our curry night last night, but oh has spilt tea on my camera!!! so its not working atm, will leave it to dry out and then try again!

I am still sticking to our home made foods menu and with the prices of food soaring, it’s good that I cook from scratch, as it has defintely saved us money and also ensured that we have eaten healthy foods

sat: lunch: hm butternut and potato soup

tea: hm meatballs and wholewheat spaghetti

Sunday: chicken piri-piri, sweetcorn and spicy rice

Monday: Nursery fish pie and veg

tues: Sweet n sour chicken with brown rice

wed: slow cook sausage casserole, mash and veg

thurs: beef and chicken currys with brown rice &  nans

The Royal Oak, Great Ayton.

Good afternoon,

I have just arrived back from a pub lunch at The Royal Oak in Great Ayton, North Yorks. It is my favourite place to eat lunch. All of it’s food is home made and cheap. My best friend and her daughter went with me and ds2. Both the children are the same age, 11 and they always get on well!

The home made tomato and sweet pepper soup was served with croutons and a home made bun with turkey and stuffing!! I probably go there once a year for lunch and I always thoroughly enjoy it. In the little village of Great Ayton, next door to the The Royal Oak is the most amazing butchers, Petches, they make the most scrummiest home made quiches and cheese scones!

100,000 hits!!!!

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Good Morning!

I am celebrating today as my blog has had 100,000 hits!!! I wish I had a £1 for everyone of those!   lol!!

Just baking some double choc muffins, in my new silicone baking ware, which is brill! ds1 (23) is coming round for his lunch at 12, so we will be eating more chicken noodle soup and some muffins with whipped cream! yum!

The silicone bake ware is excellent, the muffins just pop out of it. It is also fab for baking Yorkshire puddings!

 

We will eat lunch at my new breakfast bar, it also has made a very handy workstation! ds2 and his friends love sitting round there! 

We got these stools to match

This is ds2 (11) at the breakfast bar with his computer, pj’s on and blankie round him!! ( Well it is school holidays) 

Supper in a Country pub!

 

After scoffing two bowl fulls of the soup earlier, I have been getting ready to go out later. Our friends phoned us yesterday and asked us out for supper!! ohhh, what a treat! :) 

We are going to a local country pub, which is about 3 miles away. The pub is one of our favourites, it’s a really old fashioned one, with long oak tables, big open real log fires and candles! It has a lovely atmosphere and the wine is good!

The kids always enjoy meeting up, they normally bring their own ds’s to play on. It gives the grown ups a chance to have a good catch up and normally the night is enjoyed by all!!

     

Chicken noodle soup!!!

Hola and Happy Bank Holiday to every one! (well, those of us who live in the uk)

I have been a busy bee this morning, first I made Nigella’s blueberries Pancakes and now as you can see I have made a huge pan of chicken noodle soup! I have baked some chabatti breads for the first time and they are presently baking in the oven! They did not seem to rise much, so I am not sure how they will turn out,hmmm. 

Don’t know what they are going to taste like!!  

This is the finished product, served in my much loved retro Denby lidded soup bowls! Bon Appetite!!

 

 Edited: Recipe added for Jane

In a large pan, boil and the simmer, a chicken carcas with 2 chicken stock cubes for about an hour, I also add pre soaked broth mix from Tesco, about two/three handfulls.

Strip the remaining chicken off the bone and put back into soup with noodles. I normally use wholewheat spaggetti, as it has low gi, as does the lentils and barley! Simmer for about 10 mins and serve!    

 

 

 

Bank Holiday week menu plan: w/c 23/5/08

I have not posted for ages! working 30 hours a week and doing all the household chores does not leave any time for blogging!! I have nearly completed my contract with the agency and have secured another one due to  commence on june 6th and its only 2 days a week!!!!!! So the good news is that I will have more time for blogging and more me time, which I have missed over the past four months!

 

I have just completed this week’s menu plan, its a Bank holiday on Monday, here in the UK and me and ds2 are both off now for the next ten days, so I have decided I must get back on track!

 

Friday: cod & chips (made in actifry)

sat: Nigella’s pork chops with gnocci and wholegrain mustard

sun: roast chicken dinner

Bank holiday monday:  Nigella’s pancakes

 lunch home made chicken soup

tea: chicken kebabs

Tuesday: longtail scampi, wedges and beans

wed : ham salad with boiled pots

thursday: ?? maybe takeaway.

It’s the Eurovision Song contest on saturday evening and ds2 loves it, he has asked for special snacks for a euro party!! OMG I hate euro yawn! I will just have to grin and bear it!!  oh going to work, he has the right idea!!  lol!