busy busy busy

I'm feeling a bit better - not great. Today a busy weekend (fun one too hopefully!) begins.

Today - office then wedding
Tomorrow - party
Sunday - gig

Hope you all have a great weekend. See you on the other side!

Still haven't shifted this stupid cold... but I have finished the scarf for my boyfriend's mum.

Dinner night

I have so far:

Made the tart (photo to follow).

Sliced the potatoes and layered them with onions and mushroom (coz I had a few left over) plus herbs (parsley and thyme). I poured over vegetable stock and dabbed some butter on the top. That is in the oven now as it takes an hour and a half. I'll take it out soon and put it back in once our friend is here.

I have de-stalked the field mushrooms and toasted the pine nuts. I have changed the plan a little here: I am going to put a dollop of cranberry and caramelised onion chutney on top of the cooked mushroom, then put goats cheese and/or herby breadcrumb crust on top of that and then sprinkle on pine nuts before serving. I have rocket and some little tomatoes to go at the side.

I have boiled the ham (coz that's how I like it best - soft texture) and scored the fat. I have now rubbed on some honey and have just put it in the oven, as I think it needs about an hour to get a nice shiny crust.

I might go and dress the rocket with some lemon juice and olive oil.... as I've got a few minutes to kill. Our friend is ALWAYS late so I'm not expecting him to arrive in the next half hour really.


P.S. After a promising start Wales just lost to New Zealand 9-29. Boo hoo.

Result: (Picture taken of my extra just-in-case mushroom which is in the fridge now.) The mushrooms looked really pretty on the white plate (see the meat picture) with the salad etc. I forgot the pine nuts - so ended up with mushroom grilled with goats cheese and herby breadcrumb topping. It was really tasty. I tested putting the chutney on but it made the mushroom go slimy during cooking, so I served it on the side with the salad.

Result... this is what's left of the meat!

Result: Pudding. Slice served with vanilla icecream.

Self-Employed and Confused

Today I woke up feeling pretty rotten. My body is aching and I have little voice. I am shattered, even though I have slept for 8 hours.

I would really like to take a sick day, which would give me a chance to shift this before teaching on Saturday. However because I am self employed with 4 different employers and only work in my office job on Thursday and Friday I would feel too guilty phoning in sick today.

Anyway: Thank you very much for your votes yesterday.

The menu for Saturday:
Field Mushrooms stuffed with.... not quite sure yet but goats cheese and pine nuts are a constituant part.
I am delighted that we ended up with this one for starter. I like mushrooms a LOT.

Honey-roast ham with this potato bake thing and veg.
I am also chuffed about this choice. The potato thing is made by baking sliced potatoes in stock. The top goes nicely crispy with a soft juicy potato bottom bit. Mmm.... Veg to accompany: Will depend on what I see in the supermarket.

Maple syrup and pecan tart
This came up because I allowed my boyfriend access to the cookery book. In fact I asked for his suggestions. He spotted this and wanted it immediately - so I know he will be over the moon about this choice. I don't really like desserts that much so either would have done for me.

I would post you photos - but I think I'd look like a weirdo. Instead I'll tell you about how it goes on Sunday.

Thursday Thirteen (I need your help!)

Thirteen random things (because I need your advice):

1) I am cooking dinner on Saturday and can't make a decision on what to cook.

2) Please help me choose the menu - Starter:


3) Main:


4) Pudding:


5) I am a competent cook.

6) I enjoy cooking so am looking forward to this weekend.

7) I haven't been participating in TT for a while because I am having some problems getting up for the office job on a Thursday and really haven't had the time before leaving.

8) I have been working most nights.

9) Yesterday I played in Oliver for a friend who couldn't do the matinee.

10) My friend who couldn't do the matinee phoned me to ask me if I could leave my trumpet as he'd forgotten his.

11) Because I am a good friend and a nice person I found the grottiest trumpet I could and modified it a little to make it slightly worse, then left it out for him. I did leave my real trumpet too - but he used the dodgy one which has tuning problems (I hear).

12) I went to the cinema last night and saw Burn After Reading.

13) I didn't like it.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Circus Night

OMG - A circus indeed it was!

I had a mum helping because her daughter was making a promise tonight. My planning at the moment is totally crap. I will improve for next term. We're getting away with it by using my experience and talent for winging it. But I suspect it's finite.

I'll need to organise a planning meeting for next term (hopefully in the pub... that'd be my ideal).

Tonight we: Made juggling balls out of balloons filled with bulgar wheat. It's quite cool - makes a sort of beanbag/stress ball thing. You use a funnel to fill a balloon with the wheat then twist up the neck. Cut the top off another balloon and stretch it over the neck of the filled balloon, to make a two-tone juggling ball.

This bit would have worked FINE except that I couldn't get a funnel anywhere (no time to try a DIY shop but I did do the Guide shop, hobby shop and supermarkets). In the supermarket by the balloons they had party hats. "Hmmm, they look a lot like funnels" I think.

Party hats are funnel shaped, but they do not make the greatest of funnels. We got by - and each girl went home with one juggling ball. But you can't really do much juggling with one ball! Also the Young Leader I think was trying to suggest they look like bollocks. I just ignored it - she was annoying me tonight anyway - totally unhelpful all evening. (I told her off for it even though I hate doing that).

We also had hula hoops and a tightrope with blindfold. We had a ball and they played some fairground style games with the hoops and the ball. I think the kids enjoyed the night actually - so the mess and stress was definitely worth it. Promise ceremony went well (with my Assistant making her promise too).

I'm shattered though now so it's bedtime for me.

HORLICKS - FYI

Horlicks - (click for link to their website) - is a malty milky drink that is amazing. It is so soothing. Mmmm. Hadn't had it for years til the other day.

roll on Christmas!

For some reason today I feel christmassy. I want to decorate the house and sit in PJ's with a fire, drinking cocoa.

Maybe it's because I had a cup of Horlicks.

Peach Tart

They didn't have any peaches in the shop so I used nectarines... And the recipe (Burekaboy) said I could put booze in if I wanted... so I did. Only I drank the remainder and ended up getting the recipe all wrong. I put it in the oven and then had to dig it out again to add a load of ingredients I had forgotten, which I suspect is why it didn't come out quite like the image on his blog (see my links section if you want to find the recipe - it was posted in September).

It looks a touch burnt and the whiteish bit's weird... but it's just coz I got drunk and mucked it up.... Go and see the real one on Burekaboy's site.

Add a bit of low fat creme fraiche - mmmmmm.

So in the meantime I bring you: Other works in progress... Christmas here we come!!!

I knitted myself a cornetto case last night... I am just SO cool. No really.

xmas gift no1 complete

Early Music

I love early music. It gets me going.

Next weekend I'm playing cornett - I've mentioned it on my blog before so I'll just link it for you to find out more yourselves. (changed my mind and stuck up a photo)

I love to play this instrument. On graduating college I acquired a resin cornett but last year I bought a wooden one. I have been trying to learn it since, and am getting to grips with it now.

So this weekend was to be the virgin outing for this instrument. Until today I discovered that the pitch of the piece is a fourth higher than I had expected. That's a lot higher!

A week of mental practising is what is called for.

all done

That's the show finished so I'm off again til next weekend (apart from daytime work). This is a good thing and I am now coming to read blogs.... for 5 minutes before I take my boyfriend to work as I need the car for my work this afternoon.

blogblast for peace

I am so short of time... getting in at midnight or later and leaving for work at least five minutes ago each morning... (the time on blogger's still an hour ahead I think). But I want to support this idea, so have done my best this morning. Now I must go and get a bus (haha.... taxi).

Head to Mimi for more information.

CONGRATULATIONS AMERICA!

Exciting news this morning.

late night grub

I have just eaten chinese food at midnight. I've had to turn the telly off now because I can't find anything much to watch other than America's election coverage - and nothing has happened yet so it's just filler chat at the moment.

p.s. I am not drunk.... and I am regretting eating chinese already.

Nice weekend. Work starts now!

This weekend some friends of mine came to stay. They have a daughter who's very little.

I haven't spent much time around very little kids, as I only have 2 friends with babies, and don't really get the whole baby thing. She was very cute, and it was interesting to see what they're like in real life. I do think she'll be more fun in a couple of years or so.

Am I actually allowed to say that out loud? I hope she doesn't know about the blog.

yawn

Post-Halloween Hangover. Working in an hour.