There’s something exciting in the air. The smell of the Season turning is here with the harvests and how it makes my heart sing. With the temperature dropping and the days racing toward Autumn I am feeling so very contented. This weekend anticipation of the coming season over took me and I have been busy stitching, baking and cooking. Now the stitching will have to remain hidden for a while as the brand new person it is intended for has yet to receive her gift. The food on the other hand…
I love to potter around in the kitchen, not necessarily making elaborate meals but the kind of comforting everyday food which I hope my children remember fondly when they’re grown. One of my all time favourite foods is soup and my absolute favourite soup is Spicy Butternut Squash Soup*. It is sweet, spicy and tastes delicious with creamy sour Greek yoghurt stirred through. As it was one of those days I made a simple loaf of bread although I forgot to halve the salt in the recipe so it was a bit salty for my tastes.
With bobbly cooking apples being left outside homes for the taking and blackberries weighing down the hedgerows it would have been rude not to make them into a crumble. I couldn’t make crumble and not make ice cream to go with it so some simple vanilla was easily whipped up in time.
Ah, more days like these please.
*Do you want recipes? I always wonder what you think of them.
Tags: Blackberry and Apple Crumble, Changing Seasons, Spicy Butternut Squash Soup, Vanilla Ice Cream
Posted in Family Life, Food, Home, Making | 6 Comments »
Each evening before bed we peer around our children’s door to make sure they are ok, as I’m sure you do too. Sometimes they need their covers settling over them or turning around from some contorted sleeping position. Last night when we checked, Milla was gone. Mr Kat came out of their room and said ‘She’s not in her bed.’ I smiled and rolled my eyes at the lump under our duvet but found nothing there when I pulled it back. For a minute or so we raced about the bedrooms looking into hidey holes and under beds until Mr Kat spotted her. Curled up at the end of Monty’s bed, wearing his t-shirt over her pyjamas, sound asleep.
*this picture was taken in near darkness, more power to my camera!
Tags: Canon EOS 500D, Milla, Monty
Posted in Family Life | 16 Comments »
I love the woods, there is something magical about the atmosphere among the trees. I would like to spend a good deal more time soaking up the vibrant stillness but for one reason and another we never seem to have the time. When I saw a tweet about the local Forestry Commission’s It’s Okay to Play activities I signed us up pronto.
We went to two sessions, bug hunting (which included far too many spiders) and story telling. Although they were aimed at children a little older then my two both sessions were brilliant.
Even more exciting was the sneaky peek play sessions we had on their soon to be opened woodland play structures. Gorgeous design and accessible to children of all ages.
We can’t wait for the play areas to be properly open, another reason to make more time for the woods.
I’m looking forward to a little woodland playtime of my own. I’m off on a Fungi Foray in October. I’ll be hunting for fungi under the knowledgeable tutelage of the Fungi to be With (no doubt to the relief of my best buddy who has long worried that I would poison myself and Mr Kat with a dodgy mushroom). I am being sent on the trip by Ooh.com where you can find courses, classes and events all over the country.
Tags: It's Okay to Play, West Wood, Woodland Play Grounds
Posted in Family Life | 13 Comments »
My sister in law gave me some John Lewis vouchers for my birthday and I had been trying to come up with something both frivolous and useful to spend them on. After seeing this post on Daily Candy I was googling Cuisinart frozen treat makers when I realised it was the same as this one from John Lewis. Although I wish they did it in different colours and that the description reflected the product a little more accurately* I am very happy with my choice.
There was much debate about what our first ice cream should be. The influence of our local ice cream makers, Jude’s whose ice cream is enjoyed by all on sunny trips to the zoo, won out and blackcurrant was selected. We managed to find enough blackcurrants left on the bush in our garden which has been protected from the birds and children by our rampant raspberry.
Without the prospect of hanging around for hours getting the ice cream out of the freezer to churn making our own ice cream is a quick job, especially when you have helpers.
We used the double blackcurrant ripple recipe from River Cottage although with about 100g less blackcurrants and didn’t do the ripple (because we couldn’t wait that long!). Our ice cream machine delivered a wonderfuly smooth ice cream in under half an hour. It was noisy when churning but as it is quick I can overlook that issue. The ice cream is sharp yet velvety and creamy, perfect in a cone.
And although my children did their very best to make a mess it all came out in the wash.
*for example: described as ‘finish – white’ but pictured and delivered as black. Described as ‘automatic mixing arm’ when in fact the arm is static and the bowl rotates. I expect better from you John Lewis…
Tags: Blackcurrant Ice Cream, Homemade Ice Cream, Housewife Recipes
Posted in Food | 11 Comments »
