Today is Tuesday

The crows above my head are cawing and cackling with what appears to be delight. They tumble and turn, buoyed by the light breeze and warmed my the gentle hazy sunlight. For the first time in a few days, the clouds have broken and slivers of blue slide behind the breaks. As the day wears on, the sky becomes more visible and by the time we set off for our walk, the day feels fresh and bright.  

Moss sets her shoulders and pulls me up the hill, normarily I would rein her in but her keenness is infectious and we all yomp up the lane only stopping to catch up with folk we'd not seen for ages - conversation gushes as we both start and finish each others sentences - as we had done in a time prior. We make plans to catch up properly.

We continue up the lane, through the playing fields at the top of the hill then along through the sheep fields - looking for any calves in the neighbouring pasture. A small herd of Highland coos  over-winter up on this ridge each year and as January slides into February - shaggy calves appear looking not dissimilar to oversized teddy bears.

Down the other side of the hill we join the path which takes us through the nature reserve. Moss can not get into the river fast enough. All the streams are full and flowing merrily and 'Sagar's Lake' (a heavily silted mill pond) is full with bathing ducks. The bulrush heads seem to float above their straw-coloured stems. There is very little sound apart from the distance rumble of traffic, our footsteps and the occasional bird song.

The further along the nature reserve we walk, the clearer the skies and it feels pleasantly mild and wonderful to be out. The reflections in the mill pond capture me for a moment and I pause to take a photograph and preserve this precise minute.

At the far end of the nature reserve is a busy little cafe - well frequented by dog walkers and families, Youngest and I don masks and purchase three take away teas. Then, Youngest, his Girl, Moss and I sit and watch the ducks on the upper lake (another millpond renovated in the late 1980s) as we drink steaming hot strong tea. 

Tea drunk and the sun gently sliding back behind slivers of thin cloud, we set off back home. We stick to the footpath alongside the road back into the village - I am plotting another mug of tea, there is lunch to be made and Uni work to be done. I also have things to do and a blanket to get on with.

It is growing and feels heavy and warm on my lap as I add rows -  now over half way there - it should not take too much longer to get to the end and then a few bordering rows to finish. There is a double bed waiting for it😊 

Hope your Tuesday was a good one, gently getting you ready for Wednesday xxxx
 

New recipes for 2022

 Cauliflower and Macaroni Cheese

Simple and warming - I used the BBC good food version. However, I did my usual and adapted it slightly. The original recipe states to add all the cauliflower to the cheese sauce and blitz it to a silky smooth texture. I kept several of the larger florets to add to the pasta as we both like cauliflower to eat. The sauce does take on an elevated texture and taste and this is how I'll do from now on. I have made it about four times so far and it keeps well and rewarms nicely the next day.  General consensus it is a keeper!

Out of 10? definitely a high 8 or even a 9!

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Now. Say goodbye to your waistline and hello to 'pass me another slice please'! The full size recipe is quite generous so I reduced the amount to two thirds. If you are using uk ingredients make sure you use this treacle - not promoting it but I have made it with a different product and it was not nearly as nice. If you are in the US  - have a read of this regarding treacle.

I used the Mary Berry version and like the macaroni cheese I have repeated it several times, including turning in into 'brownies'.  I made the sauce a little thicker, cooking it a bit longer than the recommended time to thicken it and instead of using pouring cream, I used double and dolloped on a generous amount just before serving. Youngest has served his brownies with ice cream instead of cream and confirmed that that too is rather delicious. They are best eaten warmed.

This particular recipe is vastly more simple than the usual varieties making a rather soft and light 'cake' which is absolutely delish!!

Out of 10? Certainly a 9 or may be a 10 due to it being easy and quick and oh so tasty indeed!

Cheese Toasties (For Sandy)

These vary from family to family and it is one of those recipes that you can put your own stamp on - ours tend to be a simple one with a couple of slices of red pepper, mushroom, tomato seasoned well then doused in grated cheese. I sometime spread a thin layer of mayonnaise on the inside, Youngest often uses green pesto and Himself likes to add sweet chilli mango chutney - so you see - 'you make them your own'.

I have added a couple of links HERE and HERE for different suggestions and HERE for a page full of rather posh versions.

We also have under the grill toasties (aka cheese melts or open melts) which although contain very similar ingredients are quite different. 

The bread is toasted on one side only. On the untoasted side, pile on your chosen ingredients and top with cheese, season well and place under the grill until all melted and golden. 

Both these sandwiches make brilliant lunches and when eaten with a thick homemade vegetable soup is perfect for a wintery weekend meal.

Thanks to Youngest for the toastie and brownie photographs.

#52newrecipes

Slow Sunday

 

Soggy grey Sunday

Silver skies and soft sunlight

Rain

Sitting by a crackling fire

Crocheting a warming blanket, the hook sliding through the yarn.

Sipping tea

Chatting

Making cheese toasties 

Walking

Laughing at such a muddy face

Drinking more tea with shortbread biscuits

Baking a sticky toffee pudding

Gently sautéing onions for cauliflower macaroni cheese

Listening to the radio

Smelling the scent of a gingerbread spice soy candle

Not a bad day, gentle and restorative.

Hope your Sunday was good to you too xxx

I will post the macaroni cheese and sticky toffee pud recipes shortly - both worth it 😊

Wintery walk

Our festive break seemed to slip by without hesitation then suddenly we landed on the last day. It was only fitting that we took ourselves for a walk - the first and last one of our holiday. 

Weather and commitments meant that we had lots of lovely 'dog-loops' around the village starting and ending from home but we'd not managed to get our boots on and sling a rucksack on our backs and head off into the hills.

Tuesday was the day and we headed into the Dales. And found snow!

The air was bitingly cold and the light breeze just sliced through so we very quickly added more layers and kept moving to keep warm. 

We found a small naturally formed ledge which basked in full sun and protected us from the breeze so we stopped and had lunch as we watched our breath swirl around. Tea, sandwiches and biscuits were consumed while Moss either 'sunbathed' or sniffled around the snow.

Our trail followed the narrowing valley where we crossed the stream on an icy covered footbridge, the path suddenly rose sharply upward. As we climbed, the snow became thicker and the path icier and slippery in places.

After the steep pull we landed on an 'alp' arriving at a derelict farm house and barns. It is one we have visited before and affectionally call the 'Barn Owl Farm Barns' as the last time we were there, there was a family of Barn Owls nesting in one of the barns.

There is still tangible evidence that it was not so long ago that the farm was a family home, filled with people living and working in a beautiful but isolated area.

I wandered around carefully, the floor boards although all there - had a certain soft feel to them and I was not taking any chances. I took several photos before returning outside to find Himself and Moss playing in the snow. We continued along the farm track and I took a photograph of the farm at the end of their lane - on a beautiful summer's day, I could imagine how wonderful it would be to live there however it would not take much to get cut off and feel very isolated.

Our walk took us up and back over to the other side of the valley and we walked along the ridge back down towards the van. 

The late afternoon sun, as it slipped down, turned the snow from a brilliant twinkling white to shades of brittle cold gold and blue. It was beautiful but really cold and we knew we had to keep moving and get back down into the valley before it was too dark.

Back at the van and seven and half miles later, rosy cheeked and 'frozy toed' we felt gently happy. Being out on a crisp wintery day with glorious blue skies and soft golden sunshine had done us a world of good.

  

Take care

The last few years I have chosen a word to guide me, inspire me and remind me through out the year. A gentle nudge towards what I am hoping to reach or attain. Nothing like rocket science, more a gentle loving hug to help me along the way.

In 2019 - I chose walk. And walk I did. Through injury and self doubt, through stress and  unemployment, through rain and snow and wind and sun. I did it, I walked and completed a #walk1000miles challenge and found my head began to clear and I felt better for it.

A couple of years ago I chose journey. I needed something to work towards, I still felt 'lost' and directionless so by gifting myself a word that required some 'movement' meant that I did in fact - have something to achieve. The journey was not so much packing my bags although that would be part of my plan, it was more of a journey towards a better me. It also turned out to be a word that gave me strength to get through 2020 along with the rest of the world - we all had to journey through strange times and we all had to survive as best we could. Travelling through 2020 was a different type of journey I had hoped to navigate but it was one I learnt from and am still learning.

Last year's word was courage and I needed that so so many times through 2021. New job with a lot of new responsibility and so much to learn and to understand and to deal with. Some days I felt pulled thin having to do something that years ago would not have even concerned me. I needed my word and it certainly gave me the courage I needed.

Which leads me to this year's word. I have been waiting for it to fall into place. There have been several gently whirling around my head each one with merit, each one worthy but none felt completely right, until as I was taking a photograph of the sun's late afternoon rays glowing in a heavy cloud that 'my word' whispered to me.

CARE. Self care, care of the environment, care in completing daily tasks, care of those who need an extra moment, for those who need reassuring and that gentle 'care' that does not take much but means so much more. Care for those I love.

I suspect (I know) this one is going to be hard, going to test me as I am impatient, can be short tempered and hot headed (Himself blames my hair colour...!) But I am willing to let my word guide me.

Care. 

My word. 

Care.

And you? Do you have a word that you choose to guide you through the year?

 

It starts here :D

Despite a rather late night ... ok ok - well it was New Year's Eve and we did have a cracking cheese board and sticky toffee pudding to scoff  - any hoo, we eventually fell into bed ... then ...after a two hour 'nap' I woke up ... wide awake ... wide.... wide ..... wide... awake. 

Any hoo - by the time everyone had got up I'd only had about two hours sleep in total ... so cue a rather bleary eyed me for the rest of the day 😏😴😴

Going for the first walk of 2022 was the very best thing for a fuzzy head - induced by lack of sleep rather than anything alcoholic! The fresh breeze soon cut through the haze and filled my lungs with clear crisp air and despite it being the first day of January - it was amazingly mild and we soon shed jumpers and coats.

Moss ran around with the silliest grin on her face as she chased down her frisbee and ran around with it around her face.

We bumped (not literally) in to folk we'd not seen to chat to since before the first lock down and visited our local village café and had a welcoming warming brew as we sat outside in the soft sunlight. It almost felt .... normal?  Well as if 'normal' is a thing now!

 Hello January.

Hello 2022. 

And hello to the first walk of the year and boy did I need you 

to blow away those lack of sleep cobwebs!!

💚💙💜💚💙💜

Hope you have had a good start to your year and it just keeps of getting better

(As long as you get plenty of sleep 🤣🤣)

Right I am off to bed - absolutely knackered!!