Food for the soul for Friday -- Belsay today

My friend Kath recently visited Belsay as she says in her blog and she took some lovely photos but Kath -- it didn't look half as splendid then as it does today. And as for the Cragwood AW! BLUEBELLS

Food for Thought -- Ring the Changes -- Step by step easy adaptable recipe

If there's one thing I have to be this year it is adaptable to change. So in keeping with the year, when I invited my friend Amanda to lunch today I made an adaptable recipe. And it being a pleasant day, I thought we'd eat outside -- for a change. The real change is that this was our final lunch for some time as Amanda is moving away from the area within a fortnight YO! and I have to admit I will find it difficult to adapt to her absence. But she has her own adaptations to make so Good Luck Amanda with the move and in everything you do

At this point she was on the fruit cake

So if you need a recipe for a lunch, supper or snack that you can adapt endlessly to what you have available, here it is. And it's a fun recipe for children to do too!

SAVOURY SWIRLS

The basic recipe requires:

1 pk frozen puff pastry (I always have this in the freezer and it takes but 1hr to thaw.)

Some left over potato. (or you can make up some instant Mr. Mash or your favourite store cupboard brand)

Some cheese (any cheese)
and almost anything else you want to add -- today I chose chopped onions and red pepper.The only limit is your imagination.

From there on you can improvise:

Simply follow the picture process.

Roll out the pastry, layer on the potato, other ingredients and grated cheese, roll up and wet the edge to seal. Work the roll a bit to make sure it holds together. Cut it into sections about an inch thick, Pat these into rounds with your palms. Place on a floured baking sheet and cook at 200 (hot oven) for 20 - 25 mins. Makes about 12. Eat hot or cold with salad. Each is a little Oonahverse of flavour in its own right 

Now why not make up your own SWEET SWIRLS :)

  

Universe -- NUFF CHANGES -- could you give me a break?

Food for Thought for Friday -- Gammon Slow Cooked with Balsamic Vinegar -- Low Fat Recipe

There is a useful disambiguation of beef and pork cuts in Separated by a Common Language 
and since I am going to talk about GAMMON here I suggest this as a starter for shopping if you live in the US.

"[Ham and gammon] are both pork but ham is usually a leg of pork that has been aged, cured, smoked or cooked. Usually in the UK, its wet cured in a brine (salt) solution, then it's cooked. Gammon is the hind leg cut from a side of bacon, so it's cured (again in brine) but it's not cooked before you get it."

Gammon is not 'matured' like ham. Rather it is preserved. It has a less strong flavour than ham and a more open texture. My butcher assures me that upper leg of pork is basically the same cut but the brine changes the colour, texture and flavour of the meat -- otherwise it's just pork -- not gammon.

 sorry about the advert

For my purposes in the following recipe, the gammon joint has been boned and brined but not smoked. Also I tend to buy one that has little or no fat on it. (I would pick a leaner one than above.) If I wanted to roast it I would need the fat but this recipe is for a Slow Cooker/Crock-pot.
Buy 2 - 3 lb Gammon Joint
Because it is brined my first stage in cooking is to SOAK the gammon overnight in a large quantity of water. This prevents the dish from being too salty.

Put your slow cooker on HIGH
Dry the gammon using some kitchen paper. 
Heat some oil in a frying pan and sear it on all sides 'til it is nice and brown.
Place it in the slow cooker 

In a large jug or in the pan, mix:
1 cup hot vegetable stock
half cup Balsamic Vinegar
1tbs tomato puree/paste
1tbs soy sauce
1 tsb honey (I use Manuka as it has a stronger flavour)
half a red pepper diced
2 cloves garlic peeled.

Put the lid on. Go out and have a nice day :)

This dish will cook all day 6-8 hours on LOW or 4-6 hours on HIGH. You decide. It'll be waiting for you when you get home.
TO SERVE
Place on a large platter, pull apart with two forks, drizzle with some of the juices and serve with salad or roasted roots or a robust green vegetable such as cabbage or sprouts. It also likes sweetcorn, pickles and Coleman's English Mustard


and you can freeze what's left to eat cold with salad or in sandwiches. This one is a winner :)

Food for Thought for Friday -- Belsay is beautiful just now.

Food for Thought for Friday -- What was I doing with a sewing machine?

A woman about half my age with some very big veg.

I was recently having a clear-out and I decided to give away a sewing machine, which I had not used in fifteen years or so and hardly then, to a friend's daughter. A week or so later my friend came to visit me after my operation and along with some flowers, brought this crumpled photo.  It had been in the sewing machine box.

We'd gone down the The Eagle in Brynna, S Wales, our local at the time. It was August. My sister Esme was over with us on holiday and I had bought tickets for the Saturday Night Draw. One of the prizes was some giant vegetables that had won at the local show -- and here they are.

My little kitchen was busy for the next few days. Pumpkin Pie, Leek soup, Cream of Tomato Soup, Marrow and Ginger Jam, Vegetable Chutney... Somethings don't change.

Thing is that whilst these vegetables were impressively huge, none of them had much flavour! I did my best with them and the results were edible.

I hadn't seen this photo in years. Was I ever that young? (about 30). Was my hair ever that red? Did I really wear that horrible blouse? Where did that young teacher go? She looks nice. I don't remember her very well.

I remember we watched the Perseids out the back 'til about 1 am. Lots of shooting stars. I can almost taste them.

Life's like that.

Food for Thought for Friday -- Vernal Equinox

My favourite shrub Ribes is already in sweet bloom. Its raspberry-like flowers bright against the evergreen hedge.

Helibores, daffs and forget-me-not Jack Frost compete in the circle. Bits of colour brighten the border.

 I see a little rhubarb growing and the chives are up.    

Spring is with us :)

Food for Thought for Friday -- Sans Gall Bladder

And it's been a big week since last Friday. Having gone to the doctor and in much pain for 5 days, I was sent to the hospital's Surgical assessment unit. Nil by mouth and a scan later I found myself on Saturday's list!

How do you feel about having this surgery? asked the surgeon.
The words abject and terror came to mind but I recognised that fact that despite all my nice low fat diet food, my gallbaldder was determined to give me grief and it was at last time to part company. So Saturday about 4pm they wheeled me down.

Procedure

The costume wasn’t becoming;

turquoise and blue dolly-mixture

gown – loose ties, open at the back.

But I wore it well.

I was glad they offered no mirror.

A furtive feel beneath crisp folds

told me my hands were cold.

I felt terror.

My feet were flight-sock warm,

constricted like the cuff of the machine

or the tight furled fronds of a yet unopened fern.

I breezed a joke or two.

Panicking, I emerged

out of  mist and half remembered fears. I heard clearly

my name. The reassurance of a cup;

that first blessed sip.

©2014 Oonah V Joslin

I had a very bruised arm and hand when I awoke. Ms Robinson, my surgeon told me it took 17 attempts to get a canualr into a vein. They kept collapsing. I AM my mother's daughter!!!

I am glad they put me under quickly as soon as they realised what was going on. I only felt the first try.

a week on

I am beginning to feel much better now and I will continue to eat low fat because otherwise not having a gall bladder there's nowhere to store it. The consequences can be -- unpleasant. But at least now I can have a wee treat now and then and along the way I have learned to cook in quite a different way and I have lost two stone in the process.

Thank you to the nurses, cleaners, surgical and assessment teams at Wansbeck Hospital, whose endless patience and tremendous skills helped me and so many others on a daily basis.