TARRAGON & THYME

 I know that lots of people are not going to be happy about this but I think it is a necessary evil to try and control the virus from what I have heard. Better to try and stem it now than cause so much more loss and unhappiness in the longer term.  English winters are not the best time to be dealing with viruses and potential long term infections.  We are not now going away as planned as a result of this. What does really pee me off though is the constant criticism by political parties against one another.  This is a fight against an unknown quantity. There is no real right or wrong way and sometimes the waters have to be tested to see if perchance they could work.  The focus should be on trying to do something no matter what and inquests can be held at a later time when everything is under control. The focus needs to be on the fight in hand. Another practical thing that concern me though is that a lot of people are still going into shops without face  mask...

Pattypan's Pantry is quickly becoming a pumpkin patch.  Thus far I have six pumpkins, two Butternut Squash, four marrows, another 2kg of beetroot and a host of other veggies queuing up in readiness to be processed for food for the pantry. Think Pumpkin marmalade, canned pumpkin, pumpkin chutney, frozen pumpkin for roasting and pumpkin soup are going to be on the cards. The marrows are for chutneys and I have a load of other vegetables to hand to do stuff with as well. The beauty with squashes and pumpkins is that they will keep for sometime in a cool place so there is no rush to use up straight away.  Mine are predominantly for preserving but I still in the meanwhile have the option of using them for meals as well. They are being stored under the stairs as it is cooler in there than in the main pantry. I did in fairness grow some pumpkin plants this year and they were doing very well.  However they did not survive my first holiday in the caravan.  Next year I hope to...

Well I have been cold and been trussed up in jumpers and a thick jacket for the best part of the day.  OH is a bit more with it but now starving hungry and could not fancy the lamb chops.  We have therefore made a fleeting visit to the butchers as he fancied a stew.   We then had a lovely walk out with Missy to Castor Backwaters and the river is well high nearly to the top of the bank.  We knew it had been raining but had not appreciated that we had had quite so much rain.  The scenery was quite picturesque in that there were deep dark clouds one side with the sun coming from the opposite direction and highlighting all the autumn colours of the trees and bushes with them "popping" out with the dark background.  It was a pleasant walk in any event. We then made our way to see my step-son and his wife and spent a little time with them outside before coming back home and then with me getting on with tea. I have therefore made a big batch of stew 1.5 kg of...

It has been a cold dark day here in Peterborough.  We had intended to go to see the fish man this morning but both of us slept through the alarm and by the time we would have got there 10 ish most of the good fish would have gone so we have stayed in,  Had a breakfast and pottered.  OH has since become unwell and so I have been out to get some Neurofen. I think he has a bit of a chill.  In any event have packed him off to bed .  Missy is snuggled up next to him keeping him both warm and is on guard duty.   I have had to go into the back bedroom as everything seems to be getting in disarray and some of the stuff I have downstairs is destined to rest in here, so this room needs doing as a matter of necessity.  I have therefore been pottering away this afternoon in an effort to try and sort things out.  Not getting me far but at least I am starting to tackle it.  As the OH is on the day bed in the computer/craft room which runs off the back...

 I am trying to get my head around Instagram and failing dreadfully.  The little grey cells are not what they used to be.  If any of you have any suggestions for a good simple tutorial that I could follow they would be gratefully received.  I just need an idiots guide so that I can write and post stories, add in photos, but there is some information missing I feel which is making what little knowledge I do have not very fluid. I am no going away from blogging, but Instagram from what I see is a good spur of the moment platform to feed through things quickly. Help would be gratefully appreciated. Thank you Pattypan x

If you have never had Guinea Fowl before and get the opportunity to try it do so.  Guinea Fowl tastes to me like chickens used to taste years ago when they had a lot more flavour.  We tend to buy our Guinea Fowl locally from Willowbrook Farm in any event; it has though been a while since we had one.  They also had Venison in as well as other game so may well go back later in the week and get some of this too.  Thinking Game Pie here.  Yum. With Guinea Fowl, I tend to cook it exactly the same as I do a chicken.  Now I have the Ninja Foodie, I am going to try cooking it in this.  If the chicken is anything to go by that we had earlier in the week it will be the ideal way to cook this. Update: I cooked the Guinea Fowl in the Ninja Foodie and it was delicious.  Meat was nice and tender and did not dry out.  Cooked for an hour on 170 degrees C. I love Pheasant too; it is a favourite, however not hung under any circumstances.  No way.  My...

It is a wet damp day very overcast here in Peterborough and I am in need of some Christmas Spirit.  Well not literally although I may have a tot of dark rum in a coffee a little later on. Many of you will probably have this magazine already.  However, I thought I would still share as there are some lovely ideas in here and with the current situation throughout the country we all need a chance to try and brighten up our lives a bit and do what we can for ourselves.  After all another big part of  Christmas is the food and the feasting . This magazine really is about Christmas recipes and celebrating. Now there are some really lush recipes in this magazine, which again I love. There is a recipe for a simple Christmas pudding which is not complicated, and one I would urge beginners to try.  It  is a relatively easy recipe especially for someone who has never made a Christmas pudding before. It relies on simple ingredients.  The school that I went to was a...

I need to get back into the habit of making lists and ticking things off again.  This helps me plot and plan things out and then I feel a sense of achievement if I have managed to tick things off the to do list.  It also focuses my attention as to what needs doing next. A modicum of control is required otherwise everything just goes to pot and putting it bluntly my memory is not what it used to be. + alongside item means it has been completed - means that has yet to be done. This year I am in relation to Christmas decorations trying to use what I have for the best part maybe accentuated with either some fresh foliage or faux foliage.  Will see how that goes. Traditional Christmas Items Christmas cakes made. + Christmas puddings made. + Homemade Mincemeat. + Nan's Fruit bread. - Household Planning Booked cats in to the cattery for their next stay + Arranged collection of old appliances so that new ones can be installed 6 week wait though as still only doing reduced collect...

OH disappeared off to to the caravan to do some work on it this morning complete with Missy in tow.  When we purchased the van it only had lino down what we had not appreciated was that there was carpet under the bed which we subsequently found.  As we are going off for a late jaunt soon back to Woodhall Spa OH has been muttering about putting the carpet down. When he looked again it was brand new carpeting. Thus far we have used the van just with the lino which with two humans and a Jack Russell and many footprints has worked out well.  We had been talking about making the van cosier in any event, but I still want to keep the van as pristine as we can married against the pleasure of using it and living in it when we go off and about. Today he has put the carpet down and it looks fab.  The van also feels much warmer underfoot.  With the central heating this should keep us cosier in the van when we do tootle off. He also sorted out the TV and managed to find load...

Has been a lazy day for a change and I have been able to spend time researching projects and writing the beginnings of posts or notes to fill out later on.  I find that sometimes I cannot find the words to express what is going on and at other times there is no stopping the words flying onto the paper.  This is what has been happening today. In any event I am grateful of the respite of a day to myself no matter that I had planned to do a load of stuff but that will have to wait for once until tomorrow. It has been a tad chilly today and so I have kept to the house.  Tea was simple enough as we had Italian Sausages with roasted mixed veg (including, potato, courgette, carrot, red pepper, onion, shallot, leek, butternut squash, sweet potato and it was very tasty.  I cooked it in the Ninja Foodie and it was all done and dusted inside an hour. Normally when I do it in the oven it takes a good couple of hours.  Thinking bills here. In any event it was very much enjoy...

Many years ago I made this on and off for a couple of years and I put up this original post in February 2012  Passionfruit Gin Recipe .  However as time goes on tastes change, you try new things and as I have a memory like a sieve at times I tend to forget things and recipes that work.  One thing that I do do though with most recipes is I adjust them as I go along with a bit of this and a bit of that but I cannot necessarily tell you how much of this or that I have used.  It was the way I was taught to cook and it also depends on your personal palate.  When it comes to sweetness of liqueur type drinks I tend to only put in a little sugar make sure it is dissolved and if it is still not sweet enough add a little more until I get it how I want it.  You can put too much sugar in and end up spoiling the liqueur, and once it is in it is sometimes nigh on impossible to get it out.  So always err on the side of caution when it comes to sugar.  Best a lit...

Over the past few days, there has been an awful lot going on in the kitchen with me trying to squirrel away last minute goodies, or process goodies that I have frozen away in the freezer because of lack of time when they were in season.  Some of the projects include Marmalade and Plum Chutney which will taken out of the freezer on Monday night when I have a bit more time to myself.  However, I have been slotting in other projects as and when I have a few minutes. I found a big bottle/jar of Sloe Gin which I had forgotten about and that needed straining and decanting into clean sterilised bottles which has now been done.  Ideal for your own use or to give away as part of a Christmas hamper. I have also made Jumbleberry Liqueur, Jumbleberry jam, Damson Jam, Damson Gin, Pickled Cucumber, Pickled Shallots, Pickled Onions (with more to do of both), Pickled Beetroot and Pickled Eggs, Pickled Orange Slices, Pickled Clementine Slices and Pickled Pears.  There is still a lot ...

  Some of my earliest memories of Christmas include beautiful Christmas Cacti.  When I was little they used to be a very vibrant red, then pink and then on to white.  Mum always had them and kept them all year long and then got them to flower again in time for the following Christmas.  Up until a few years ago I used to have them too but I always ended up losing them.  I think it is something to do with the amount of light this house has and the central heating (when it is working) probably being too warm and not enough light.  As I kept losing them I gave up.  However it has not stopped me looking at them. Even though this Christmas may not be as many of our other Christmas's I am still making an effort to do as much as what I normally do.  Whilst in Waitrose on Saturday, I spotted a couple of Christmas Cacti, one bright pink the other very palest pink nearly white.  I have decided to give them another try and I may be able to take cuttings ...

I think I must have missed something somewhere but could any of you please advise me what the current regulations are for wearing a mask in shops?   I have a couple of queries.  Are the shops supposed not to serve customers without masks and if certain shops are serving customers without masks are they breaching current laws or is there a get out clause for them.   I had understood that everyone was to wear a mask unless they had a medical condition/exemption preventing them from so doing.  If they have an exemption do they have anything proving this. Do they carry a card for example?  I had understood that shops were not supposed to serve customers without masks especially when all their staff are wearing them. Or do the stores have their own guidelines which staff have to follow irrespective of whether or not they are morally right like not being confrontational with customers and still serving them.  It would be a mockery of the situation if th...

I fell lucky the other day when I nipped to the Co-Op as I found two joints of beef which had been reduced to £8 each.  They were the long medium sized roasting joints.  Last night I set too and cooked the Beef in the Ninja, on the same settings that I used for the Chicken the other night.  I baked/roasted it on 170 degrees C this time round and timed it for an hour.  The meat came up well and then I set too and cooked petit-pois, potato, carrots, cauliflower in the electric steamer as by then I had made the gravy from the meat juices and veg juices.  I switched over to saute-mode at this point.  The meal was delicious and made a very hearty and warming tea for the pair of us and there is lots left - might repeat the performance tomorrow evening or alternatively I may well turn it into a stew.  The beauty of one pot machines is that you can always find a way to use up left-overs and therefore get your maximum return on your outlay and good food to boot...

Just before we went on holiday and just as I had finished the bulk of the ironing, the ironing board collapsed on me and I hurt my back.  It collapsed downwards unexpectedly and ended up jolting my back with me holding the iron in mid-air.  How I caught that I am not sure.   I am now at the point where I have another batch of ironing to do and needed the ironing board.  OH agreed to take me to Dunhelm and I had a good look around.  There are a lot of nice things in store and I shall pay another visit again soon.  Lots of nice decorations in and lots of lovely household items such as fluffy cosy blankets, curtains etc.  Now I have a colour in my mind as to what I want in the dining room, I am also looking for some potential curtains.  Just looking at the moment, trying to draw the threads together in another direction.  Weaving dreams.  However despite all the distractions I did manage to stay focused and obtained my ironing board wh...