Bit Of 'Chuck It All In' Cooking .. Garden .. And General Stuff...

Hello there ... 

well after dreadful rain last night and early morning (rain stopped play .. no trading today).. the sun came out this afternoon ..

 and it was lovely.

I spent the day getting vintage clothes ready for sale .. washing ironing .. and mending

 (the odd missing button .. hems that need attention .. that sort of thing).

Look at this pretty little 60's number having an airing in the apple tree.

  I got a whole stack of aprons last week ..

 I picked out these two .. 

they are so bright and cheerful I thought I would try them on eBay.

  Hubby P .. busy as ever ..

He is making a worktop .. 

from Victorian pitch pine .. for a customer.. client? .. Client ..does that sound a bit pretentious?

Anyway this lady has a beach hut 

(down south somewhere) 

and would like something nice to finish the top of a cupboard or unit or something. 

She gave Hubby P a sketch and dimensions .. 

and he set to with his trusty tools.

It should look nice ... do hope she likes it.

 The garden is looking very lush after all the rain ... and the flowers are coming into their own.

 His and Hers bluebells .. so pretty .. almost magical.

 And the herbs are positively zinging with freshness..

And for the cooking thing ...

I know  .. like me ..

 you like to see the cooking stuff ..

 I love getting ideas for quick easy meals .. 

cooking is not my favourite pastime ..

 sometimes I resent the time I have to spend in the kitchen when I could be amongst my flowers.

So today ... 

I had defrosted a portion of mince (ground beef).. but what to do with it?

I turned it into a bowl and forked it through ... 

I opened the fridge door and added..

 (to the mince) a bit of what came to hand ..

a squeeze of garlic puree, squeeze of tomato puree ... half a grated carrot.. half a grated red pepper ..

then a dash of pepper .. an oxo ..

 oxo's are a must for me .. when it doubt add an oxo!

I added a couple of handfuls of porridge oats and stirred it all up.

  The oats soak up all the juices and bind things together ..

 I always have a large jar of porridge oats handy.

As you can see here .. 

I have all kinds of dried stuffs .. 

just handy .. so I can add a handful to any dish .. or scoop a bit of rice into a pan.

 It keeps things easy .. I'm all for easy!

 Anyway back to the mince stuff.. 

I scooped it out in handfuls and using more oats ..I fashioned them into little patties and slipped them into a lightly oiled frying pan.

I have grilled these before .. 

and I imagine if you used very lean meat .. 

maybe turkey mince .. and grilled them they would be very healthy and low fat.

 Hubby P opted for his on buns .. he says he's a bun sorta guy.

I hid the salad underneath the patties ...

I opted for a little rice and salad with mine .. 

and very tasty it was too.

And quick ..

 I think I literally threw it together in ten minutes .. my kinda cooking.

Don't you just love summer ... 

salad is so quick and easy!

Enough of me .. early to bed tonight .. hopefully we can trade tomorrow!

Bye for now x

New Van Today .. Toys For Boys an All That ..

   

Hello there ...

All change today as Hubby P got his new van .. well .. not new exactly .. a 'nothing fancy .. but a sturdy workhorse' sorta van.

 Sad to say the old one went to the great scrapheap in the sky ..

 I think Hubby P had worked it into the ground and it would cost just too much money to get it through the next MOT. 

To me it looks exactly like the old one .. but a touch better in that I do now have a passenger side window that opens! 

Pure luxury ..! Hubby P knows how to treat a Girl!

Here he is loading it ..

 its amazing watching him .. 

its a bit like that game Tetris whereby everything is fitted together like a jigsaw .. its incredible how much he packs into the back of the van.

On the downside ... for me .. is the height of the darn thing ..

 I have to have a step to get in and out .. I feel a bit like the Queen waiting for her flunky to 

 'asist her to alight' ..

 either that or I end up falling on my behind!

 We are hoping for at least a couple of fine days over the Bank Holiday weekend so we can trade..

 I have been sorting stock .. 

and have packed a lot of nice white linen.

Hopefully I will get some ladies who appreciate such fine needlework and want to take some home with them.

 I do sell a lot to ladies from abroad .. 

I suppose it is harder to come by overseas...

 and its a nice ..

 'little bit of English Afternoon Tea ..

or Downton Abbey style stuff  .. to take home'.

 Just thought I would show you this ..

 who remembers having one of these on their children's Christening cake ?

Isn't it sweet.

Tradition was .. to save the top tier of your (fruit) Wedding Cake ...

 I wrapped mine well and put it in the freezer .. and use it as a Christening cake for your first born.

You could buy these pretty little storks and whatnot and stick them on top of the cake with a bit of icing.

As I remember the cake was just fine.

Nowadays people have sponge type wedding cakes and whatnot .. 

so I suppose the tradition has died out .

Can't say as I ever hear of saving top tiers .. 

gosh it makes me feel old!

 Nice sunny afternoon .. so I nipped outside with the camera..

 How pretty these Coltsfoot flowers look 

I know ..

spreading seed far and wide ..

But I love their cheerful brightness early in the year.

And these fluffy pompoms are an added bonus .. 

something to make me smile as I look out of the kitchen window.

 The Bluebells are here .. 

and adding their hearty blueness to the many shades of green ..

so pretty.

We will soon have the lovely scent of the Lilac .. everyday the buds are getting fatter .. ready to burst into loveliness...

 This is difficult to see ..

but its Will's apple tree (grown from a pip) .. 

we planted it near Fly's resting place .. and its doing so well.

Its only small but its bursting with blossom.

It will be interesting to see if it fruits .. just grown from a pip I doubt it will come true .. but we will see.

It looks very pretty.

Well .. enough of me .. have a nice Bank Holiday Weekend x