Yesterday

I started sorting out the innards of the kitchen cupboards.  I am a short person some 5 foot 3 inches in my stockinged feed (used to be 5ft 5 inches) so I cannot feasibly reach up to the kitchen wall cupboards without assistance from a step stool or a ladder.  As the ladder is in the kitchen from something else I did earlier in the week, I used that.  I was sorting the tea and coffee cupboard out and adding in some new bits and bobs as I am attempting to get everything in its proper place.  I was dangling on one foot on the ladder when I lost my balance.  I popped my hand out to steady myself but fell and caught hold of the kitchen cupboard door which was open and ripped the cupboard door in half.  OH has had a look at it and thinks it can be repaired if he takes it off glues and clamps it.  Fingers crossed and toes plaited that it can be fixed.  I think I may be a bit of a liability.  Fortunately I did not  hurt myself.

One of the cupboards I have sorted out today is a thin very narrow cupboard. I use this cupboard basically for keeping all my yeast sachets, active yeast and granular yeast in.  There are boxes in there for the yeast sachets to go.  I also keep in a mixed seed mixture and some sesame seeds which I sprinkle on the top of bread when I make it.  The bread maker is directly below this cupboard. This particular cupboard also holds all my wine making yeast, sterilization cleaner, grape concentrate, Certo, Glycerine and Rennet.  So this also got a good sort out.  When I have it, it usually stores my jars of malt as well.

I also sorted out quite a bit of the wine making consumables and got them all into a box.  This includes my rubber corks and my fermentation locks.  I seem to have quite a few of these of both types so I think I have enough  to cover all 18 Demijohns.  I still have another box of winemaking equipment to locate which I suspect is under the stairs.  However, I am very slowly getting like with like, and a modicum of organisation is falling into place as well which is going to be brilliant when I get back into full swing again as everything will be easily findable.

We had a good walk with Missy last night.  She did well walking but she was hot so the walk did not take too long.  She did better on her legs tonight than she has been doing.

The next cupboard on the list is the condiments cupboard.  I did this a little while back but it has got into a bit of a mess.  Since I last did it I have found some jars in which to store my cornflour and also my Arrowroot both of which I use for thickening gravy.  The Arrowroot can be bought quite reasonably from Holland & Barrett in 1lb bags.  I really need to go and get a top up of items from here.  I also use another store which is called Grape Tree (successor from Julian Vine) my nearest branch is in Spalding as they tend to have different items yet again which I quite like.  They do have a website.

My cheesemaking box is all sorted as well.  It is nice to be able to locate the muslin I bought in when I need it rather than searching high and low for it.   I had to use it the other day (the muslin) to start the ginger beer plant off.  I am pleased to say that the "plant" seems to be living and I should have my first batch of home made ginger beer sometime next week.  One of the things I have noticed differently to every other recipe I have seen is that this recipe refers to a good pinch of yeast rather than a teaspoon of yeast which seems to be the modern equivalent.  I know when I have used the 1 teaspoon of yeast recipes that the beer becomes far too explosive, so I am hoping that this will work out well.

I also made a jelly this afternoon and popped a tin of mandarin oranges in.  This is for pudding today and makes a nice simple pudding.  Will just need some cream dribbled over it.  It was not quite set last night.  Might even turn it into an Eton Mess with some crushed meringues and ice cream.  Yum.

For tea last night we had fried egg, bacon and a tin of tomatoes.  I quite like the Italian tinned tomatoes which usually cost an arm and a leg.  However I have found that I actually prefer the tinned tomatoes from Aldi.  Not very expensive and full of flavour.

I also watered the garden up last night with my watering can.  I did add a good splash of the tea bag mixture and will do this regularly from now on.  Will see how it goes but I don't think that there will be any problems.

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

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