Mustard Seed

05/04/2024

For whatever reason Meta seems to have changed settings such that what I post on Instagram now posts to my personal/friends only account & nothing I look at offers me the choice to switch it back. So for my foodie pics please follow me on there! I’m
Thanks!

22/03/2024

Final reminder for our CoppaFeel! breast cancer fundraising coffee morning tomorrow! Come to St James church between 10 & 12 for coffee, cakes & information! Please bring cash 😊💙 Everyone

29/02/2024

Really sad to read about the death of Dave Myers. We have been enjoying the latest series of Hairy Bikers Go West. Dave Myers: The Hairy Bikers star, who had cancer, dies at 66 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-68433675
💙🙏🏼

Myers, one half of the motorbike-riding TV cooking duo, was diagnosed with cancer two years ago.

25/02/2024

TOFU or in fact I want to call this photo “Dedication to the process” of . We don’t eat tofu. We’re obviously not trendy & having sampled the stuff in Chinatown in the 1990s I think we decided it wasn’t for us! Still a challenge is a challenge. So today I challenged the OH to find me some tofu, & in return he had challenged me to make it “tasty & not slimy”! Will report back 😆

24/02/2024

: a handy prompt as tonight’s dinner features one of my favourite brassicas ! There’s a beef & red wine stew in the oven, mushrooms & dumplings ready to go in, & there’ll be steamed new potatoes & cavalo nero on the side!

24/02/2024

OIL or liquid gold! Love the stuff!

23/02/2024

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.



This poem is in the public domain.

23/02/2024

FERMENTED: this one had me flummoxed for a while as we’ve done sourdough & microbiome & I’ve shown pics of vinegars for acids. Until I remembered this gifted me in a hamper at Christmas. I must confess I’ve only used it once and I definitely need some ideas as to how to make it the star of the show. So maybe members can suggest recipes or ideas for me to use this fermented speciality!

21/02/2024

GADGET: it’s been so much fun seeing everyone’s favourite kitchen gadgets for day 21 of photo challenge. I immediately thought of my food processor & my food mixer which I couldn’t live without. But as they seemed too obvious I went to my gadget drawer & selected these 4 trusty gadgets for today’s . The microplane grater is a must have for zests & Parmesan; the little nutmeg grater I inherited from my mum & love so much; the small scoop - a hangover from Pampered Chef days but great for getting even amounts of mixture for cookies or meatballs; & the fish scaler? I have to admit I don’t use it as much as the other gadgets, but it is so adorable it therefore made the cut. What gadget do you love most?

21/02/2024

This…
Screenshotted from

20/02/2024

Last year I started cold/open water swimming. It’s odd! I mean it’s really, really cold in a painful way! But it’s also really, really exhilarating in a way I can’t describe. After cold water swimming you have to be really careful about warming up. It’s not good to head for a hot shower as the blood will have gone to the core of the body to protect the key organs in the cold & heating up from the outside risks pulling all the blood away from those key organs. And so it’s better to warm up from the inside. This cappuccino at is my fave way to warm up after a swim! it’s fair to say I look like a bag lady with several layers and a woolly hat but I don’t care because I have a secret inner satisfaction that comes from doing something not everyone would dare! - today’s word for .
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19/02/2024

Not expecting any likes for this rather desperate photo of ! I just couldn’t find a decent pic of any cooked bean dishes which is surprising as I like beans! So here I give you cannellini & baked beans - somewhat ironically next to some Himalayan pink salt. ‘Cos that’s how I roll 🤣

19/02/2024

Just the most poignant & remarkable stations of the cross at
The first pic (4) depicts Mary, mother of Jesus, reaching out to help him as he stumbles; the second (11) how Jesus is held down by the crowd to drive in the nails.
I must confess I was brought to tears. The cathedral as a whole is a totally awe inspiring building with several wonderful chapels, works of art, statues etc But these stations of the cross are something else…

18/02/2024

PRESERVED … not sure I’m feeling too well preserved - body & mind have a habit of letting me down occasionally! But I do like to preserve nature’s bounty. Actually I think I enjoy the process & the jars lined up neatly on a shelf perhaps more than I enjoy eating them! There’s something about squirrelling things away for another day which often doesn’t arrive 😆 Here we have mincemeat - which I did use, preserved homegrown tomatoes in flavoured oil (which lasted seconds!), & some jam I think which whilst delicious we don’t eat much of. here is my take on for the
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17/02/2024

SOURDOUGH - so this is a bandwagon I’ve jumped on several times in my life! Firstly in about 2011 & at that time it was the twitterati who started the chat inspired I think by the sort of good living portrayed by et al. I carried on for a while & then got bored of it (I can get bored very easily!). I jumped on again during Covid, as did everyone and his dog, and again let it lapse after a while. Having retired from catering at Christmas I decided to get started again & after a dodgy start to my starter, am now in a pretty regular weekly baking routine. So here you have a white sourdough, a half & half seedy sourdough, some sourdough discard crumpets & an unbaked loaf. These are the ones I’m happy to show 🤣

17/02/2024

TRAVEL late because too many gorgeous places to choose from. This is Spinalonga & is special because I was reading the book The Island when we went & because the gorgeous was with us. We had lunch at a little restaurant opposite before we took the boat … and there were octopuses hanging out as if on washing lines.

14/02/2024

RED: at last a prompt from I can easily fulfill! From my catering days various versions & sizes of this strawberry cheesecake were delivered. Simple but delicious & totally !

12/02/2024

This is my French house which we’re renovating from animal barns. Pic 1 is the new living room - I love the « pierres apparentes » stonework! I want it to look as close to its original rustic state! Pics 2 & 3 are typical of the rustic food we cook there - a chicken roasted over a firepit outside; a plum tart made just from pastry, homegrown plums & a little sugar. And the last pic is typical of so much of what attracts me to rural France! 🇫🇷 Ridiculously rustic outdoor cooking of huge pieces of meat on some ancient Machinery or contraption!! I love this word rustic! It totally feels like me!

10/02/2024

RITUAL : Bread & Wine are the most easily recognised symbols of the ritual of holy communion. I’m a Christian. In fact I’m licensed as a Lay Minister. And so sharing communion or the Eucharist is deeply significant for me. I am reminded that Christ died for me which is very poignant.
This pic for is of bread & wine on the table in our French garden. There’s even a jar of salad dressing in the background - oil to anoint home grown tomatoes no doubt!
So there you have it. A Christian of deep significance for many.

09/02/2024

PIZZA is todays word prompt for the . I have taken 100s of pics of pizzas over the years but I couldn’t find one with a nice looking base so this pic is more to evoke that moment of warm sunny day, pizza for lunch, chilled glass of wine. It was taken in France where they sell unbaked pizza bases rather like ready rolled pastry. The base is really not the best but it did just fine with a few fresh tomatoes, some saucisson & some Gruyère & herbs. Quick, easy & very passable if not authentic!!

08/02/2024

TURMERIC: day 8 of and this one was easy. I just had to remember which of the many occasions I have served this fish & hunt out the photo! This is ‘s salmon with turmeric, lemon & black pepper. It is super easy, super delicious & looks a treat on the table! The turmeric gives its musty warmth & fabulous colour against the zing of the lemon & the heat of the black pepper. Definitely a recommended recipe!

08/02/2024

FILO: not my best filo work as these were made from leftovers from my last catering job! I did mini canapé samosas using filo as the pastry, & had a couple of sheets left & the spicy vegetable filling. But they make a great snack with sriracha or brown sauce (OH’s condiment of choice! And so I give you scruffy samosas for the 😘

07/02/2024

Finally a loaf I’m pleased with… even a little proud of 🤣 Thanks to for the encouragement and for the original starter after mine went mouldy!
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06/02/2024

CHILDHOOD - I see the prompt & I’m already in tears. So many wonderful memories, so long ago. Another age … it really was. I grew up in the 60s - see the carpet and wallpaper of pic 1 - that’s me in the fore watching the black & white TV that only had the BBC. I have 2 sisters - pic 2 - I’m the youngest. They would say I got away with so much more than them. I didn’t know. Pic 3 - with my dad who I adored. They took us hiking everywhere - in Yorkshire & the Lake District. Dad with his hat - because men still wore hats in those days. He had several - smarter and checked for work; corduroy for leisure! Next is the day mum & dad dropped me off for university. I must have been 18 & look about 12. All smiles - maybe they were glad to shift out the last child , I suspect like me they went home with heavy hearts. Finally pic 5 is my family home - taken just a couple of years ago.Mum and Dad were both teachers - in the days when teaching was a respected profession. They bought that house before I was born & Mum lived in it until she was 87.
Dad died at only 70 - he was climbing mountains weeks before. Mum survived him by 22 years, widowed at 68. And now I am 60 - how did that happen? In the blink of an eye a life is lived.
I was so privileged - not in material things although we had many holidays, often in France … but privileged to be surrounded by love. I knew I was loved always & so as I’ve made my family I’ve wanted my children to know that same privilege of love.

05/02/2024

SPREAD - day 5 of so I’m hoping jam counts as you spread it on your bread? This is one of my favourite homemade jams - rhubarb & strawberry - the colours are just beautiful 😍 & as there’s always rhubarb in the garden it makes the strawberries go further. Besides the strawberry adds its amazing sweet flavour but the rhubarb ensures it’s not cloying. Try it - it’s a good’un.

05/02/2024

BATTER - day 4 of - I’m late on this one. But you can’t beat a good Yorkshire pudding in toad in the hole. So there you go!

03/02/2024

Day 3 of and todays prompt is ACID. I have a cupboard devoted almost exclusively to vinegar - one of my favourite acids! Scroll to pic 3 to see just a tiny selection of 1 shelf. There’s the usual balsamic, red & white wine vinegars, ACV with mother(!), rice vinegar, shaoxing rice wine vinegar, sherry vinegar, homemade cherry vinegar, & many more. But the two newest additions came as part of a Christmas hamper from my daughter. I love their bottles! I tried the blood orange one last night in a baked pilau dish made to accompany ‘s citrus & zaatar chicken. It was excellent! And the sundried tomato vinegar has already graced salad leaves with its pungent notes. So that’s my for you!

01/02/2024

Beautiful day for a 7.6c dip!
Followed by an excellent cappuccino!

23/12/2023

Defo not my best work - I didn’t have a plan you see, just started and then decided to just go with as I have the lurgy! But they’re done & so just the big meals to consider now. How many are you catering for over Christmas? I have 7 Christmas Eve, 5 on the big day, & 9 on Boxing Day. Tbh that’s enough!

22/12/2023

Stage one complete 😃 Only the two this year