... on dinner with friends

Dinner in tummies, nothing left on plates (after 2 portions each). Lynsey is pretend eating,

and May is doing the Donkey from Shrek pop noise. I love my friends!

Last night, my girlies in Dundee came over to our flat for tea. What ensued was some eating,

much chatting, alot of laughing, some tea drinking,

My ladies are in my camp when it comes to tea. Tea is important.

Boring cups will not do.

Tea must come from a pot.

some magic 8-ball playing...

The magic 8-ball predicted snow. It was right.

and some reminiscing...

We talked about friends past and present, we talked about good times, bad times, and drunken times. We were students together, there were ALOT of them. We talked about work - we are very lucky in that we all love our jobs. Their was alot of innuendo(there always is). At some points, Dave left the room to look at the interwebs, because we were being a bit more 'female' that he can deal with. It was good times.

When it was decided that my lovely girls would be coming to our wee flat for a midweek tea, I knew I wanted to make something hearty. The girls are hard working teachers, and need a good meal after a long day. Yesterday, when I was deciding what to make it was chilly cold, and so I decided a stew of some sort was in order. I had a look through my numerous bookmarked recipes, and found this cassoulet recipe from Luisa as The Wednesday Chef. I think I've taken out even more steps than Luisa has, and have added a little more chicken, some chorizo instead of the sausage, and some red pepper to compliment it.

Speedy Quick Chicken and Chorizo Cassoulet

Perhaps look at Luisa's blog for a picture of what It should look like.

I only remembered once we'd eaten most of it!

for stew

1tbsp olive oil

600g chicken, cubed

200g chorizo, cubed

1 onion, diced

1 carrot, diced

1 red pepper, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1tsp black pepper

1tsp sea salt

1tsp sage

1tsp thyme

2 bay leaves

2 tins chopped tomatoes

1 cup chicken stock

2 tins (about 500g) white beans (I used canellini and butter)

for topping

1 and 1/2 onion baguettes

1 clove garlic

1/2 tsp black peppercorns

• heat oil in large pan(ovenable if possible, mine isn't, so I have an extra step)
• add chicken, chorizo, onion, carrot, pepper and garlic.
• cook till chicken is browned and veg are soft
• add all other ingredients, stir well
• bring to the boil
• simmer on medium heat for 30-40mins, till sauce is thick(if your pan is ovenable, stick it in, lid on at a medium heat instead of simmering in pot)
• whilst simmering, whizz topping ingredients in blender
• set aside(at this point, pre-heat oven to 350f/170c/gas5)
• transfer cassoulet to oven dish
• sprinkle
• transfer to oven dish (mine are small so I used two)
• sprinkle over breadcrumb mixture
• bake, uncovered for 30 mins, till breadcrumbs are golden

I used roughly the measurements Luisa used, but if you seriously want to feed 8 people, maybe do at least another half of the amount, or twice it if you want leftovers. The five of us ate it all! I haven't had this with normal sausage, this was my first go at a cassoulet, but I have to say I think the chorizo added alot of the 'yum' factor. I was also entirely unsure of the breadcrumb to begin with, but it was gooooood. I shall be making this again.

p.s. I know I said I'd post the brownie recipe. I will but I want to try making brownie cupcakes, and I figure I should post both versions at once!

... a week in pictures - week 5

Monday

This week has been a bit of a funny week. I got home from work on Monday after my 6 day stint live-in nannying, and a bus journey( the photo was taken, by accident, as I was getting on the bus) and felt really disoriented. It took me a few hours and a night's sleep before I got used to my normal life!

Tuesday

I woke, groggily I might add, to a couple of inches of snow outside. It had been raining the night before, so it was unexpected, and even more strange the photo was take at 8am, and by 12pm, the sun had melted it all! I love the red door amidst the greys and white of the building and snowy trees. I spent alot of Tuesday pottering about the flat, watching TV and drinking tea.

Wednesday

Normally, I work on a Wednesday, but as I was quite tired from looking after the kiddies, I swapped my Wednesday shift for Friday. I did general housework stuff, some reading, some more drinking tea, and made some VERY tasty cocoa brownies. Because I am nice, I will post the recipe in the week when I've got the pictures turned round and saved! The plate is from our 'wedding china', which is a 4 place setting set of 'Claret' crockery by Denby. I am very afraid of breaking it, as the colour is discontinued, but we've been using it recently. It seems a shame for it to just sit in a cupboard. It makes me happy, and it makes even basic dinners feel a little bit more special!

Thursday

Thursday came, and to work I went! The gates and wall are those of the house near my bus stop. I haven't found a north, south or west house, but I love that this house is named for it's position in the village. I also like that the wall, plaque and gates look so solid. They've been there for a couple of hundred years, and probably will b for the same again.

Friday

Dave drove me to work, which meant and extra hour and 20 minutes sleep for me. I personally think every second counts. The pictures is the farthest point of land you can see from the Tay road bridge in Dundee, seen through it's railings. After work, I got the train to Glasgow, which was a bit of a rigmarole, to go to Dave's gig. Fun, singing and dancing were involved, and a lucky dip instead of a setlist.

Saturday

Saturday was spent with family - we went out for breakfast with Dave's family, and had dinner and watched a film with his sister and brother-in-law in the evening. In between, we did some tidying up of the flat, and I had to have me tea from a metal cup, as we have no china ones here. The stripy thing in the background is our duvet, which is in the living room, as we are using the sofa bed to sleep on when we are down. It feels like slightly posh camping. Also, I managed to find 3 pairs of jeans in one shop that fitted me properly, with is miraculous. I bought two of them, and am seriously considering going back for the other ones!

Sunday

Today, my sister visited, and we had a pizza picnic, and for the rest of it, Dave and I have been pottering around the house. I gave Dave a haircut yesterday, which I think is quite good! In the picture, he is filling in an interview for a punk zine, and whistling a Fran Turner song. For the rest of the evening, we shall be eating out baked potato dinner, watching some TV, and getting an early night before we have to get up to drive to work tomorrow.

How has everyone's week been?

... an award, and why there is no week in pictures!

Bonjour all! Last week, the day before I began my epic week of live-in nannying, I received a Happy Award from the lovely Lisa of Happily Ever After in Seattle. Firstly, I want to say that I think Lisa entirely deserved her award - she is lovely and smiley and positive! Secondly, this is one I am quite proud to have! I think happy and positive are definitely character traits worth having!

To accept my award (thank you, thank you, bowing etc) I should list ten things that make me happy. Should be easy enough!

1. Dave - he is a good husband! He made me a cup of tea this morning with me even having to ask, and he always has my back. He buys me Starbars when I've had a bad day, and not only has ethics and principles but lives by them. He also came to stay over with me on my job at the weekend, and we took the kids to the Transport Museum. I doubt many people would give up their weekend to do that!

2.My friends and family - because I have very, very good ones, and I am lucky for it.

3. Blogging - because it clears my head out and organises stuff for me, and because through it, I have a few new freinds!

4. Having a job I love - because I'm well aware that I'm lucky to have that, when many people are doing any job they can to make ends meet.

5. Books - They are comfort.

6. Art (and crafts) - drawing and painting and making things makes me happy in a way that not many other things do.

7. Music - becuase there is nothing llike seeing a really good band live, and I hae been lucky enough to see alot! also because my love of music is founded in my relationships with people. I hear a Frank Turner song and think of Dave, and our friends Kenny and Katie. I hear Kings of Leon, and think of my girls. Every song I love has a person attached to it! There is a lyric in a Gaslight Anthem song that says 'I carry these songs like a comfort wherever I go' and that is how I feel about the songs I truly love.(Incidentally, the song is about the singer hearing The Clash for the first time, and I very much relate to the experience.)

8. Tea and biscuits - for the comfort and the familiarity

9. Politics - because being politically aware means I can try to be a better person, and help to make things better, even if it is on a small scale.

10. Being at home - because I very solidly feel that I have one now, and though I love going out, I am content being at home watching TV with the husband, or having tea with my ladies. Maybe I am getting old!

And now is the fun part, where I get to pass it on! It is really, really hard to choose this small a number of people, but here goes!

First, I am passing right back to Lisa. I am lucky to know her!

Also Hannah - who is both happy and determined to make the world greener, and does good crafty things!

and Zoe - for filling my reader with loveliness, and for good twitter banter!

the lovely Serena - who is lovely and thoughtful of other people!

my other namesake, Lisa D - she appreciates the little things in life. And she loves books so she gets bonus point!

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There is no week in pictures this week, because I felt it would be wrong to have pictures of my wee kids, or anything that could show their environment on the interwebs! Also, the youngest of the two had tonsillitis, and I didn't have much time to sleep never mind take pictures! The whole wee was pretty frantic, and eye opening. It was fun too, but looking after someone else's ill child is a hefty responsibility!

I do have one picture to show though - the children's parents brought me a tin of butter biscuits back from France.

I love boxes and tins, and it looks so vintagey. They are also from a V swank company, and the biscuits taste beautiful. When I've eaten them all - I am trying very hard not to just eat them in one go - I shall use it to store my teabags!

I am going to spend a bit of today catching up on what the what is in blogland, and this afternoon, I an going for tea with my friendio May. Other than that, I will be watching TV!

How has everyone been?

...a week in pictures - week 4

Another busy week, another batch of photos...

Monday

This gentleman is near the bus stop in Kinross on my way home from work. Is it just me, or does he look really grumpy? Monday was a work day, but one with the bonus that we were driving up from Paisley, so I got an extra hours sleep! Hurrah!

Tuesday

I spent most of Tuesday at home, other than a little trip into town to get a gift for our friends recently born baby girl. This photo was taken at 3pm, as I sat on the sofa having a cup of tea. The light here isn't good for taking photos at the moment, so I was really excited to be able to actually capture the natural light. What clear from the natural light is that it was sunny! It made me ever so happy to see my candlesticks gleam in the light!

Wednesday

On Wednesday, as I arrived in Kinross, I was greeted by the snow. The best thing to happen this day is that the littlest of my charges, who is wary of the snow, happily tramped along it in her wellies! I was so proud!

Thursday

Thursday was another work day, and as can be seen from the picture above, it was really, really cold still!

Friday

On Friday, I spent most of the day tidying up, and did a mini shop - Included in the mini shop were these treats - they are Tunnock's Teacakes - little domes of chocolate filled with mallow, with a biscuity base. There are made in Scotland, and they taste of happiness. In the evening, Dave and I drove to Paisley for the weekend, and watched lots of Friday night TV!

Saturday

Saturday was a really busy day. we made fliers for Dave's gig next week, did a bit of cleaning of the paisley flat, then went into Glasgow to distribute some of the fliers. Whilst in town, we went into a coffee shop called Tinderbox. It's a Glasgow based mini-chain, but we've neer gone in before, as it appears quite swish and trendy. Whilst it is trendy, it's also quite welcoming. You can see above my hot ch0colate and Dave's mocha. they were £2.10 each, so not too 'spensive, and very yummy! LOVE the sundae glasses too - the whole place is a bit of a mixture of modern and retro, but it's done really well. We then went to the debut gig of my friend's band Bunny and the Misshapes, which was brilliant, and onto a party at a friends house, which we got home from at 5am! All in all, a very good Saturday.

Sunday

Having gotten in at 5am, we slept quite late on Sunday. We drove up to Dundee so that Dave could get ready for the work thing he is going away on today, and so that I could start packing for going to look after the kiddiewinks till next Monday. This was my progress last night. I haven't actually done anything else, as I'm waiting for the washing to dry! Nothing like doing stuff at the last minute!

...is a busy bee(random babbling,update on intentions, and a recipe)

So, it's February. How did that happen?! Time seems to be flying by this year. I would quite like winter to be over now, as It has been very cold and quite grey here. I did notice this morning on my way to work that it is quite alot lighter in the mornings though, If you look at the photo below of the church by the witchy tree,(3rd photo down) you'll see it was taken at the same(ish) time as last week's, and it is much, much brighter! I am kidding myself, but it makes me think spring is coming (haha, spring in Scotland, not likely).

Daylight! Also, isn't the church cute!

The last month has been really busy for me, with work, and plumbing disasters. We should hear this week whether out insurance people will actually pay to mend the damage to the flat, so at least we will be able to plan stuff then. For the foreseeable future, we'll be travelling down on a Friday night, and back up on a Monday morning. This involves sleeping on our sofa-bed, which let me tell you, is not cosy. I feel bad for inflicting it on our past guests - though most of them have been smelly boys from various bands!

In other news, my boss has asked me to do extra days - hurrah for more money! Also, from Tuesday next week till the following Monday, I'll be 24hour nannying the kids. On my own. I predict that it will take me about a week to recover! We are going to go to the transport museum though, EXCITED!

Since we are quite, quite busy people, I have fallen behind on some of my intentions for this year. I am keeping up with the drawing, but my craft area is still two boxes with some stuff on top of it. I've also read the least amount I can remember in a month - I've read 5 books. I average 2 a week usually. I'm going to remedy both of these once my week of child looking after is done.

Also, I think we need to add some colour around our fireplace headboard in our bedroom (above). It kind of blends into the wall, which is sad as it is quite grand. We aren't allowed to paint, so I'll have to be creative. The only thing I can think of is tacking fabric to the wall and around the fireplace(up to the door frame top, and so that it is about inches wider than the fireplace on either side), which i think won't work as well as it does in my head! Any ideas?

On the cooking front, Dave and I are trying very hard to eat relatively cheaply, and to reduce our waste. I can honestly say in the last month, all that has been wasted is two portions of soup. That is not bad at all. It means that I've had to be creative with flavour combinations, and as I get up uber-early for work and prefer not to cook when I get home, we've had alot of soup! The recipe for today and tomorrows soup is below - the stock was made whilst I was boiling a pork hock(ankle joint, ick, I know!), and is really tasty!

Carrot, Sweet Potato and Pepper Soup

1 large sweet potato, diced roughly (peel if you prefer to)

3 large carrots, diced roughly

1 onion, diced

1 large pepper, chopped

3ltr pork stock(or what you have)

1tbsp mustard

2 pinches red pepper flakes

1tsp peppercorns

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1 garlich clove, chopped roughly

2tbsp olive oil

• heat oil in large pot
• add onions and garlic, cook till see through
• add all other ingredients, bring to the boil
• simmer for 40 mins
• whizz in blender
• eat with potato wedges!

potato wedge 'recipe' here at bottom of post.

I added a tsp of wholegrain mustard to the marinade this time!