New paintings and regular art updates.
Fish fingers and layered pasta salad? 40 odd years of eating together makes choosing portion sizes odd. Last night the cats were surprised at getting a lot of chicken breast. I can’t remember what I had for lunch… Oh yes, hot cross buns that were going stale. That’s the other thing, lots of food are in “serves two” packets. My freezer is too small to store much.
I will see what happens when hubby comes home? But I think things will be different. Life is a pain sometimes.
What are your feelings about eating meat?
I know I should eat less meat and more vegetables. I realise that the amount of CO2 and Methane created by meat farming is a major contributor to global warming.
The problem is I was bought up eating meat. Some of it was poor cuts of it, my parents could not afford much, so we had some very strange things on our plates. I’m not going to go into detail, suffice to say most of them had odd shaped bones.
I have tried to eat vegetarian food. But it’s hard to find a supplier of good imitation meat that isn’t too expensive. Suddenly vegetarian foods have become fashionable and therefore costly. With the cost of living crisis even tins of baked beans from some suppliers have trebled or quadrupled in price. So I guess the way to go is to cook from scratch.
Thinking about the prompt, I will try and eat less meat.
What are your family’s top 3 favorite meals?
We were introduced to more exotic food at quite an early age. My mother and father would take us out for meals to local restaurants. Mostly Chinese, but sometimes Indian eateries. It was there we learnt to use chopsticks. We ate tandoori or baltis. We never really ate anything too hot or spicy though. My favourite Indian meal had orange flavours in it, very mild, a house speciality of a local restaurant.
Then a few years ago I discovered a Japanese Restaurant near us. I had not really understood the difference between Chinese and Japanese food so it was a revelation. I soon got other family and friends to try the cuisine there. We sometimes have birthday meals there. I don’t think I have really explored world foods, but at least we have tried some.
We don’t celebrate Thanksgiving in the UK. It comes from the arrival of settlers in the USA and their survival despite the conditions there. I don’t know much about its history, it seems like many of the same treats and foods for Christmas are eaten during Thanksgiving. I know people make their way home to be with family and friends.
I have been to Plymouth in Devon, England, where the Mayflower left to go to America, but there is some argument about where it first set out from, and I believe there was another ship due to travel across the ocean, but it was in such poor condition that it did not go. I’m interested in the history of the celebration, and the variations between it and Christmas or other winter celebrations. I wonder if it’s similar to our harvest festivals earlier in autumn?
At Miso Japanese Restaurant in London Road, Stoke-on-Trent. Lovely food. I’m so happy that I was able to take my relative out there for a birthday supper.
Sushi and then Bento boxes with Plum wine to drink. It was an extravagant evening, but a real pleasure..
Miso is mentioned in Richard Osman’s book “The bullet that missed”, it’s a crime novel. Part of The Thursday Murder Club series. The owner of the restaurant didn’t know that Osman had written about it!
What food would you say is your specialty?
I had cooking lessons at school, the classes were called domestic science. I learnt to make all sorts of things in those lessons. They stood me in good stead. I learnt mainly baking, from rock cakes to Victoria sponges. But also things like Danish open sandwiches.
Then as a student I learnt to throw a meal together from scraps and at a low cost. Beans of many varieties were used together with lots of garlic and herbs and tomatoes. With some oil of course.
Later I learnt to cook a good approximation of things like chicken Kiev and other staples such as spaghetti bolognase. They probably looked messy, I was renowned for using chunky vegetables instead of chopping them finely.
So give me a few ingredients and I can try and rustle something up. The important thing is I can afford to eat, many people can’t, or are in situations where they cannot get food at all. I don’t know how I ended up being so lucky, I hope it lasts.
He’s had his op. A bad tooth has been removed. He came home this afternoon and has been very quiet but loving. I think he must have been in pain because when I used to stroke his face he sometimes flinched away. Now he’s pushing his cheek onto my hand. He’s better but sleepy. Lying on the stairs (as I type he’s just come to see me). The only thing is he’s got to stay in for two days, he’s already tried a couple of escape attempts! The vets say he’s well cares for (and fat!). No hard food anymore, the life as an abandoned cat was not good to his teeth. He must have fed on scraps before we took him in all those years ago. He’s twice the size now. Bless hom
Sandwiches, salad, sushi
A bit of everything in the salad. Spring onion, pickled onion, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber, mayonnaise. Salmon and Shrimp Sushi, with a bit of ginger and wasabi, and a few smoked ham sandwiches. It was tasty,
Staring, it’s the way my cats mug me for food. The silent treatment, no miaowing or purring. Just the long stare, the neat paws placed together as the cat stands like a sentry. The stare can go on for ten minutes or more until I give in and feed them, a cat snack, a pouch of food, then they don’t acknowledge the response, but go off outside or somewhere to sleep.
Crumpets toasted with butter.
Delightful taste
Hot and scrumtious
When I was young
We toasted them
On the gas fire bars!
Used a fork to hold them
That was before we got
A toaster
Tasty
Mallaband-Brown