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Best Runner Beans Tips And Secrets

Posted by on Oct 3, 2008 in Vegetables | 5 comments

Best Runner Beans Tips And Secrets

I went down to get some unseasoned logs from the bottom of the garden at dusk. These keep the fire damped down well in the wood burner once it has got going and has produced a good thick layer of hot embers. Through the gloom I spotted that there was a final flush of runner beans hanging on the canes. A week ago, I’d been willing the doll-sized beans to grow. But, getting back after dark, I hadn’t visited the kitchen garden for a while and had forgotten all about them. Now we have a final sizeable harvest. Enough to freeze for Christmas...

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How to save money in 2008: September review.

Posted by on Oct 2, 2008 in Save Money | 9 comments

How to save money in 2008: September review.

I’ve always been touched by those wonderful tombs in churches and cathedrals all over England. The wealthy couple lie formally side by side, uncomfortably on their backs. At their feet, one or two little dogs lie for warmth and company. After a brief glance at the faces of the couple it‘s always the dogs that draw my attention. Quite often these dogs have clearly inspired the sculptor. They are full of life – perhaps they had dogs of their own that dived under the covers and warmed them on a freezing night. Our resolution not...

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Spam

Posted by on Oct 1, 2008 in Cottage tales | 4 comments

Spam

“Danny are you awake?” “Sort of.” “There’s just a blank screen when I try and log onto the site. I can still get in through the backdoor but there are hundreds of spam comments waiting in moderation.” A lifesaver at heart D was at his computer within seconds. Someone had hacked into the site and switched off the spam filter and managed to damage the theme too. So this is why there was just a white screen for nine hours last night. We have an excellent spam filter that generally stops an average of a hundred plus spam comments a...

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Reading to banish the nasties

Posted by on Sep 30, 2008 in Cottage tales | 12 comments

Reading to banish the nasties

When I’m under pressure I dive into books.  Mostly novels and mainly thrillers as I want to be totally immersed in another’s world. Reading about people under far more stress than I am is an addictive diversion. A good book is the potential killer of a decent day’s work. So I tend to keep them on the front seat of Jalopy to be indulged during breaks. Once when I was reading Donna Tart’s The Little Friend, I was forced to make a deal with my wanton reading gene. For each hour of decorating I earned five minutes with the book....

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A Hamper of Happiness

Posted by on Sep 29, 2008 in Cottage tales | 13 comments

A Hamper of Happiness

The Chicken Lady rang me a few weeks ago to discuss gelatine for making jelly in a jar rather than wobbly on the plate version. I hadn’t a clue. “What are you making?” I asked. “If I told you it would spoil the surprise.” I was intrigued. What on earth was she creating? TCL and S reversed into the drive in their small bright red cabriolet on my birthday. A generous hamper was sitting comfortably on the back seat swathed in a very smart woven tea towel. Danny was extricated from The Rat Room. After several glasses of bubbly the...

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Too much on my plate

Posted by on Sep 27, 2008 in Cottage tales | 6 comments

Too much on my plate

I’m working this weekend and out to play in the evenings so there will be a short intermission of service for a couple of days whilst the blog takes a mini holiday.              

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Best recipes for leftovers: Low fat stir fried coriander lamb with mange tout, baby corn and lime infused noodles

Posted by on Sep 26, 2008 in Lamb, Leftovers | 1 comment

Best recipes for leftovers: Low fat stir fried coriander lamb with mange tout, baby corn and lime infused noodles

We cooked Spanish lamb last weekend and still had lashings of lamb and sauce left over. Sometimes we are well intentioned, making a Shepherd’s pie with the remains. More often the remnants are jettisoned into the freezer and six months later the dogs polish off the bounty. Cold lamb doesn’t look wildly appealing. This week I was determined to use up the remains of lamb (500g) and the wine sauce in a stir fry. So this recipe is designed to follow on from our slow cooked Spanish lamb recipe. I’d bought a book on stir fries from Homebase....

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Cutting our fuel bills

Posted by on Sep 25, 2008 in Save Money | 19 comments

Cutting our fuel bills

Somehow the first chilly nights of Autumn feel colder than the hard frosts of January. By midnight I’m freezing and in need of a plump hot water bottle and all three Min Pins to heat up the far side of the bed. Yesterday, I woke hoping for rain. This would mean a much needed day off and the chance to repair the wood burning stove in the kitchen. It has lounged in the kitchen for four years unused. Our central heating is efficient. But now the cost of the two winter oil tank fill ups (£1,200) has made us think again. Four years of happy...

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