I've Learnt This Lesson Now

 

Haha ... only joking.  😄

It's actually been rather nice waking up to daylight and occasional sunshine this past week.  In fact yesterday morning I was quite disappointed when the sunshine didn't make an appearance, it seems she was kidding us into what Spring could be like without rain, before going back into hiding.  🌞

I think I jinxed it by washing a few of my more Summery tops in readiness ... sorry!!

I had a white sink reset day yesterday.

A bit of bleach in and under the bowl with the washing up cloth soaking in it, then a good wipe down of all the sinks surfaces and edges, then transfer the bleachy water from the big bowl into the middle section, put the cloth back in and then an hour later finally pull the plug out, wiping everywhere down again with now sparkly white bleachy cloth.

It's a good multi-use of bleach, something that is not the best for the environment but that does the job well when used sensibly.  I learnt all this from when we had our septic tanks in various previous properties.  Put too much bleach into a septic tank and you kill all the good bacteria, so plan ahead when you want to use bleach.

And my biggest tip of the day ...don't put a white sink in your kitchen if you eat a lot of turmeric containing curries and red pasta sauces.  I've learnt this lesson now.  😄

Sue xx

But Is It Food?

 

I stepped into Aldi a couple of weeks ago and rounding the corner from the fresh fruits and vegetables and the fridges full of meats, yogurts and cheeses etc, I was met with this view of the next aisle.

This photo was one side ...

... and this the other.

I just said to myself, " Is this actually food?"

I think it's that over the last couple of years my eyes have been opening more and more to the ultra processed stuff that manufacturers are passing off as food, and that a large percentage of youngsters are now growing up thinking that these are their only food choices.  At least the garish packaging makes it stand out from 'real food' I guess.

I'm completely honest and I hold my hands up and say that I do buy some things that are most definitely ultra processed, but I do try to keep this to a minimum these days.  I definitely prefer something like this that at least contains vegetables and beans rather than fake meat.

But are these food?

Well, just about I would say, but I now tend to let the vegetables on my plate outweigh the processed item.  Of course I could have a go at making veggie burgers myself, but I usually have these as a 'I can't be bothered to cook' type of meal, so unless I set to and make a big batch of homemade veggie burgers for the freezer ... which I definitely should do one day when there is a bit of space in there ... these are currently staying on my menu.

Do you find yourself eating less and less ultra processed food items, or did you never eat them to start with?

Sue xx

Using the Riverford Vegetables, and Filling the Freezer

I made the soup that I spoke about making the other day, in fact it made so much more than the two portions I thought that I would get.  I ate one meal as a vegetable stew and then blended up what was left into two smallish portions for the next two days lunches and two larger portions to put into the freezer.  It's delicious, so I have something to really look forward to.

I dealt with most of the other Riverford vegetables last week and made up a large tray of Mediterranean style veggies and one that was more tomato and rice based.  I shared a tin of tomatoes and a tin of chickpeas between the two mixes and slightly varied the spices that I used so that they wouldn't taste too similar.

Once cooked they looked like this and they were both portioned into single serving sized helpings, and all but one of each was put straight into the freezer.

I had a helping of the rice and vegetables with a breaded fish portion, and then the next night I had the tomatoey vegetables with some tagliatelle.

 It's nice to have a few things stashed in the freezer for quick and easy meals.  But it does explain why my freezer contents never seem to go down. 😄

Sue xx

One Reset a Day

 

I follow an account on Instagram called One Reset a Day ... 'oneresetaday'.  On her account Anna,who is a 33 year old lady living with her father-in-law after a life change for herself and her husband, tackles one small reset a day in or around the house.

She inspired me. 😊

After feeling so bad for so long my place is tolerable, but it hasn't been deep-cleaned or sorted out properly for a while and the thought of all out Spring cleaning was filling me with dread, and yet I do want to make a start on sorting out the nitty gritty before our house move so that it is not all left until the last minute.

So like Anna, I am tackling just one thing at a time.  

Today it has been sorting out the fridge and seeing what is in there that needs using now, or dealing with in some other way.  First I found the cheese selection pack that I bought for Christmas and never actually opened.  Yes, it was out of date but the cheeses all seemed fine, so I set to and grated them all, put them into individual tubs and put them in the freezer.  Then I realised that I still had the potatoes, two onions and a couple of carrots from my last Riverford delivery to use up.  I am going to make a simple vegetable stew for my tea to remedy this immediately, along with a few lentils this will make a stew and probably a portion of soup for tomorrows lunch too.

Then I will stop and decide what to do next ... just one thing at a time.

Sue xx

The First Shopping of the Month ... and How the New Kitchen Actually Looks Today

 

Well this is the first shopping of March and as you can see I am still in a very random shopping mode. 

Aldi - £11.89

 It's a good job I still have a freezer full of vegetables and a cupboard full of tins that I am determined to use up before we move house.  All I am buying at the moment are things to plug gaps and things that I really fancy.  We are taking it in turns recently to buy a cucumber, and this week it was my turn.  We just have half each so it makes sense to pay for a whole one rather than two halves ...  which being more expensive I always think that this is very cheeky and unfair to single people!!  😄

And before you get too excited about my soon-to-be lovely new kitchen, that I showed on Saturdays post ... and which is actually pencilled in for installation in September ... here is this months walk-through of the bungalow, made possible this week due to the slightly more level surface that has been created, because as well as the floorboards having gone, all the floor joists are now out.

https://youtu.be/ZeWLlploSsg?si=nP3eNIWyGyMqWyDO

It's nowhere near as light and airy and gorgeous in reality is it.  😄

Oh well at least we have the images to keep us heading in the right direction.

Sue xx