The Cottage Smallholder

I’m working outside at the moment. Two glorious sunny days listening to the owls in the nearby chestnut tree. The house is so far from the road that you cannot hear the cars passing. They move silently, the size of trinkets from a Christmas cracker on a road that is barely a ribbon. There are Labradors here Read More »

I found some half price braising steak and parsnips on offer at the weekend. Both were tossed into my trolley along with a chunky bag of carrots and a can of Guinness. It’s the perfect weather for a beef in Guinness stew. As I was chopping the vegetables Danny piped up. “Do you know what Read More »

There are many more spiders in the countryside than in town. After 25 years I am finally happy to live alongside these arachnids and 99% of the time, I enjoy their company and their transient webs. I used to kill all spiders that I found in the bath in London. Large hairy-legged beasts that alarmed Read More »

Danny was upbeat as he swung his car into the space front of the butcher’s shop. “Let’s stop mourning Fred’s old shop closing and enjoy the search for a new butcher. It could be fun.” The Chicken Lady had reminded me that there was a good butcher in Fordham, a fifteen minute drive from Cheveley. Read More »

I inherited a lot of gardening tools from my aunt. Gradually over the last fifteen years I’ve enjoyed discovering the benefits of each one. I’ve found drawbacks too. Most garden tools are designed for bigger hands and taller people. Fostering a sizeable family of tools has taught me two things. • If you have access to the Read More »

One of our first culinary clashes was over mashed potatoes. “To be good, they need to be hugely unhealthy with lashings of cream and butter,” Danny announced as he searched the fridge shelves for double cream. “I like them made with a dash of milk and a large knob of butter.” “Milk?” His eyes rolled. Read More »

I knew on the recce visit that Freddie could be a good companion. His beautiful deep brown eyes sized me up carefully. “Do you think that Freddie will be a problem?” “Of course not. He’s lovely.” Somewhere deep down inside I reckoned that there might be glitches. I could tell from his glance that he Read More »

One of the great things about winter is that Jalopy becomes a sort of mobile fridge. Most of the door seals have deteriorated to slivers. This is great for keeping sandwiches chilled. Yesterday’s unfinished sandwich can fill a ‘no time for breakfast’ gap if I am running late the next morning. If you drive a Read More »

When I was a small child someone sent us three Advent Calendars from Germany. One for each child. I can still remember the anticipation as we opened the windows each day and looked at the pictures behind the doors on all three. These Advent Calendars were deluxe, with a really good image behind each door Read More »

If Danny loads the dishwasher when I get back from work and the cycle finishes before supper has reached the table, I know that I’m running a bit late. The cycle is 108 minutes. This morning I discovered some chicken and ham pie filling in the freezer – all that I had to do was Read More »