My goodness. it's been a long time since we spoke - time just runs away doesn't it!
It's getting distinctly autumnal now, and having worn nothing but sandals and flip flops on my feet for months, I'm now back in socks and trainers.
I've gathered all the tomatoes in, and all the runner beans that we're going to get, and I'll be cutting the runner beans stems down in a day or two. Thoughts are turning to tidying up the garden for the coming rest period of winter.
We've still got lots and lots of apples to use, so an apple will be going into everything I cook for the foreseeable future!
We were walking in Eastbourne yesterday and always have a little look in the greengrocers in Terminus Road, they have such beautiful looking produce and as it is run by people of Middle Eastern descent, there is always something unusual too. This time we bought an avocado that was the size of a melon, I've never seen one that big before! We had it for lunch today with tomatoes from the garden, good olive oil and halloumi. It was in perfect condition and absolutely delicious! Forgot to take pictures until it was all gone!
My hand
I have something called Dupytrens Contracture. I had lumps in my right palm and my little finger would not straighten, only going about halfway up. It was getting worse and the finger was getting crumped on a regular basis because it wasn't where I expected it to be and simple things like putting on hair product was getting hard to do as I couldn't rub it in very well etc.
I had to wait several weeks, but eventually got to see my GP and was referred and after a few months went to the McIndoe Centre in East Grinstead on Friday 6th September where I had a needle fasciotomy.
This was performed under local anaesthetic and consisted of the surgeon using a hypodermic needle to break up the fascia under the skin that was causing the contracture.
I had no pain at any point, never needed any pain killers at all, and could use the hand right from the off. It now straightens just like the other fingers and even the lumps have reduced a lot in size. You can see in the picture where the needle was inserted.
Needless to say, I'm very pleased! There was lot of waiting around in the centre, but that's to be expected, and I went armed with a book. They were efficient and looked after me very well.
Book Group
This month we are reading Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver.
This is what Amazon say about it
Demon Copperhead is a once-in-a-generation novel that breaks and mends your heart in the way only the best fiction can.
Demon's story begins with his traumatic birth to a single mother in a single-wide trailer, looking 'like a little blue prizefighter.' For the life ahead of him he would need all of that fighting spirit, along with buckets of charm, a quick wit, and some unexpected talents, legal and otherwise.
In the southern Appalachian Mountains of Virginia, poverty isn't an idea, it's as natural as the grass grows. For a generation growing up in this world, at the heart of the modern opioid crisis, addiction isn't an abstraction, it's neighbours, parents, and friends. 'Family' could mean love, or reluctant foster care. For Demon, born on the wrong side of luck, the affection and safety he craves is as remote as the ocean he dreams of seeing one day. The wonder is in how far he's willing to travel to try and get there.
Suffused with truth, anger and compassion, Demon Copperhead is an epic tale of love, loss and everything in between.
It was one of those books that I just couldn't put down, I absolutely loved it and was rooting for Demon all the way through. It's a long read at 560 pages, but that just gives more room for the story to unfold. A cracking read, recommended
Difficult dates
This week would have seen my daughter Tracey's wedding anniversary, the first one without her. I see things I want to tell her everywhere.
She had wanted a round table for their kitchen for instance and I saw a lovely one in a charity shop in Tunbridge Wells as I was passing and I momentarily thought, 'Oh, must tell Tracey about that, she'd love that'.
There are a lot of significant dates that are the firsts at this time of year. Their wedding anniversary, her birthday, her husbands birthday, their daughter's birthday and Christmas which she was besotted by. It's not technically the first Christmas as she died on the 21st December, but we were all shell shocked then, this year definitely feels like the first one.
The picture was taken the day before she died so is very special. Oh crikey, I'm in bits now!
On to some recipes
Fresh Tomato Risotto
If you are like me and grow tomatoes in your garden, you are likely to have large amount of them at this time of year. I was looking for ways to use a lot in one go and came up with tomato risotto which used 400g for me and my husband.
Oh my goodness, was it good! The delicious depth of flavour that good tomato gives, creamy from parmesan with a little bite from the rice.
Fresh tomatoes are at their best in summer, and from gardens and allotments, so frequently not available. You could use supermarket tomatoes of course, or a tin.
Green Tomato Pasta Sauce
If you grow tomatoes, it’s odds on that you will have green ones to do something with at some point.
This year had prolonged periods of rain which combined with warmth, when we had it, is perfect conditions for the blight virus. And sure enough, my large heritage variety tomatoes outdoors were struck down with the blessed thing, so I had to quickly pick off the green tomatoes and use them up before blight struck them.
The recipe is one way I used them, worked really well!
School Packed Lunches, and for adults too!
Now the kids are back at school, that delight of all parents, the packed lunch, is back in play.
I gathered together lots of ideas in this post, it's getting on a bit now, so the prices aren't current, but still very cheap.
Carrot and Sultana Loaf
If you take 250g flour, some yeast and water, you can add many, many different things to it and get a lovely loaf, with 4 portions, to use for any meal, as an anytime snack or after school filler.
Carrots and raisins feature in many things and make a lovely little loaf
I published an ebook for meal plan 1 in August 2021 and am delighted that many people have thought it was worth getting. I repriced it again in June 2022 and it was still holding on, even in these scary times. Now we are in September and prices have shifted again and I've managed to get my head around WooCommerce so I can feature it on the blog and you can find it here.
I was busy recooking, photographing and updating the recipes for Meal Plan 2 and putting them into an ebook as well. The meal plan was first written in 2013 and still prices up, which is fabulous and that is finally complete. The book is done now too, prices seem to be stable enough to do it.
I've finally completed the e-book from the Stretch A Chicken To Last A Week series. Took me absolutely ages to finish it off!
Do come and say hello on the Fantastically Frugal Food Facebook group, or the Sensational Slimming Sustenance group. I'd love to see you. Lots of useful tips, recipes and ideas. The over 17,000 membership are brilliant, brimming with talent.
And don't forget Thrifty Lesley, where there are 800+ recipes of fantastically frugal food and many weekly meal plans. And Cheap Family Recipes where you can find all kinds of delicious things that don't cost much, with two family monthly meal plans.
I've also got a few YouTube videos up, not many yet, but I'm planning to do more. I've done a couple more, need to edit them now. So much to do, so little time!
With all best wishes, until next time
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