Posh De-scaler, Random Meals and Happy Finds

 

This is possibly the poshest de-scaler that I have ever used.

My kettle was suddenly furred up, a very rare occurrence here in the north-west of England, so I rummaged in the cupboard for some bog standard vinegar.  There was none to be had, I checked Alan's under sink cupboard as he tends to have sachets of de-scaler under there, nope none at all.

So I bit the bullet and tried it with some of my very out of date Apple Cider vinegar.  Oh well better for it to be used in some way as I had never gotten around to using it much in recipes ... I hate vinegar flavours. Why had I bought it then, I have no idea!! 

It worked but it took four boilings of the kettle whereas malt or white vinegar takes two at the most.

Making Alan's dinners and teas while he has been working so hard at the bungalow, means that I am going through the contents of the freezer satisfyingly quickly.  The bottom drawer is now full of homemade items rather than convenience foods and as they are used up only a few of them are being bought again.

Fish fingers are a good emergency standby for a quick and tasty, even if slightly naughty lunch, so they will be replaced ... occasionally. 😁 

These garlic Plant Menu Kyivs are also a good standby, but I don't eat them very often these days, so again another occasional purchase from now on I think

Rummaging around definitely has it's advantages, as I found a single block of homemade soup and half a garlic baton yesterday ... it made for a very tasty lunch.

Sue xx

Replicating a Kitchen

On the previous post, in the comment section, Maeve asked if our new kitchen is the same as the one in the annexe.  So I thought I would dig out a few old blog photos to show you all just how much it really is the same.  A good side bonus to being a long-term blogger, is that you have an arsenal of photos at your finger tips to share and share again if the urge to do so overcomes you.  😀

There are three main differences, the first being the size as the new kitchen is much larger.  In my current kitchen there is only actually one set of drawers, two single base cupboards and one double wall cupboard.  Both base cupboards house something, one of them the sink base and it's pipes and the other one the main electrical consumer unit, so there is not actually a lot of shelf space in them.  What looks like a large cupboard next to the fridge freezer is actually housing the combi-boiler.

The second difference is the sink.

   My current one is cream in colour and has a twin bowl design, and the new one is stainless steel with just one larger sink bowl.  You do learn from your mistakes and I have.  The cream one while looking brilliant, and tying in so well with the colour palette of the kitchen, takes a lot more upkeep than any sink I have ever had before.  We eat a lot of spicy curries and tomatoey pasta sauces and they can stain it so easily.  Stainless steel is so much better at coping with this.

The final difference is the worktop, or countertop if you are not from the UK.  

While it looks exactly the same from above, the new one is a traditional worktop thickness and my current one is a much narrower design and is what is also used as the backsplash in place of tiles.  While the kitchen design company could get enough of this for the backsplash of the new kitchen, we had to go with a standard thickness for the worktops.

Alongside these three main differences there is also the size of the induction hob, I currently have a two zone or multi use sized hob and in the bungalow it will be a four zone.  Above it I have a smaller extractor unit than we have in the new place.  Our new one actually has shelves incorporated into the cupboard around the extractor fan, so even more storage ... although only Alan can reach the top shelf, unless I keep my little steps handy. 

The last difference that I can think of is the washing machine, in my current kitchen I decided to keep my old freestanding washing machine, but as our new kitchen is in the only living area of the bungalow this time we have gone for an integrated model.

Over the years I have have made very good use of the space in my current much smaller kitchen, it has really done me well.  So because Alan has always liked my kitchen he was more than happy for me to work with the same kitchen designer and fitter to replicate it.  💖

Finally, here are the two kitchen designs in the final planning stage.

My current kitchen.

Our new kitchen.

Oh, just look at all those cupboards and drawers.  😁

Right ... that's more than enough kitchen talk.

Sue xx

Tomatoes, Tiles and an Actual Kitchen

 

The weekend got off to a really good start with some of the homegrown tomatoes providing a very tasty breakfast alongside a few chopped onions from the freezer.

Very simple. but at the same time very, very tasty.

https://youtu.be/OpSeMM05PLQ?si=-FOP5C5pzIup4jFH

Then we called round to the bungalow for me to do a quick video walkthrough for Alan's Renovation Records.  He's enjoying watching them all back, when he actually gets to realise just how much work he has managed to get through over the course of this year.  This video shows a real jump forwards in the shell of an old bungalow actually turning into our future home.

Then we called up to Morecambe, there was no seaside walk this week though as we were returning three boxes of tiles that we had over ordered.  At £30 for a box of two tiles it was a journey that was well worth doing, it will nearly pay for one of the five doors that we will be ordering this week. 😄

Sue xx

Blowing the Cobwebs Away

 

With all the renovations still going on at the bungalow, it's been important to make an effort to do things at the weekend.  Alan really needs a break from being on his knees all week cutting, laying and sticking down the tiles and woohoo, he's got grouting coming soon.  So each Saturday we try and go somewhere.  With the weather dry and mostly sunny last weekend we decided to go to Fleetwood for a walk on the prom and a cup of coffee.

It's made a lovely change from the last couple of weeks, when the somewhere has been B&Q or Wickes for building supplies.  Although of course even those trips usually end up with a coffee and a bit of lunch, so it's not all bad.

Coffee in Fleetwood was accompanied by a bacon butty for the man in my life, it's been well earned.

After a sit down and half an hour of enjoying the gloriously fresh air while we drank, and in Alan's case ate, we took a walk along the full length of the promenade.  We were keeping pace with the Isle of Man to Heysham ferry which you can see out at sea in this photo.

https://youtube.com/shorts/mPgoWg4fZVE?si=gaI5Kpcn0r_ev673

Here's a little bit of the fresh air sound for you to enjoy, we stood there for quite a while enjoying the freshness.  Because I have been so slow at posting this, it's now almost the weekend again ... now where should we go this week? 😀

Sue xx

Rhubarb ... and Summer to Winter

I picked the last of the homegrown rhubarb at the start of the week, there was a lot more of it than I had thought.  It's no wonder the end of the garden seemed small, it was cowering under gigantic rhubarb leaves.  😄

Also in that photo is the last but one picking of the blueberries. I am bringing them in as and when they turn the right shade of blue, before the birds spot them.  They are all added to a little tub in the freezer after a quick wash.  There's not a lot but they will be a nice addition to some little cakes or suchlike.

Two big pans full of lovely rhubarb stewed down with sugar and a splash of water.

I got eleven takeaway sized tubs worth of rhubarb in total, which are now safely nestled in my freezer taking up lots of space.

With the much cooler nights drawing in, yesterday was the big changeover from my Summer duvet to the Winter one, this necessitates getting all the vacuum bags out from under the bed and airing both the one coming off and the one going on, on the washing line.  I was very lucky with the weather and it was a lovely sunny and blowy day.  

After swapping the duvets over I am now starting on the clothes swap around.  

Most of my Summer clothes get put away and my Autumn/Winter ones come out.  With only one small wardrobe to hang things in, this has been an annual twice a year thing, but as my collection of clothes goes down maybe not to far in the future they will all stay out all year round.  Although of course it's always nice to put the very summery lightweight and light coloured things away and see them again the following year.  

But as it's as good as going shopping twice a year, and always a good way to declutter a few more things each time I do it, maybe it will continue. 💖

Sue xx