Compost Jelly

 I'd been saving apple and pear peel for about 6 weeks and popping in the freezer, until I had a big bag full. I  added the bag of raspberries that were put in there last summer before I found the dry weather had made the raspberry seeds very hard. My jam pan was full . 

When everything defrosted and settled down in the pan I added about a pint of extra liquid and cooked until it became a pulpy mixture.

Then strained through a jelly bag all day. The basin of juice was put in the fridge overnight and next day warmed  up, sugar added and boiled until setting point. It didn't make a huge amount but as I have no jam it will be handy.

 I'll use some of the jelly when I make scones soon - for Easter perhaps- and get some clotted cream to go with them for a treat.........sounds like a plan!

I made this a couple of years ago using blackberries and peel, I  think the original idea for this came from Sue in Lancs - Thank you - it's a fun make.

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Food of Many Colours

 I like colourful food.

I thought that I'd done a post about colourful food not long ago but when I searched it turned out to be back in May 2024, so nearly two years and I'm still eating colourful, mostly made from scratch, food..

I thought this meal looked very colourful. It was a home made Scotch Egg, using own dried breadcrumbs and baked in the oven rather than fried. A handful of orange sweet potato fries cooked at the same time as the scotch egg. Then lots of green salad leaves, celery and mini plum tomatoes with a small splodge of mayo.

Not so pretty but very tasty........Leek and bacon pilaff with a chunk of home made focaccia bread, which I'd pulled a piece off to eat while I was waiting for the rice to cook !

I buy the very cheap bacon pieces from Asda (£1 for a 500g pack) and divide up into 5 portions before freezing. So bacon 20p, leek 58p, rice and a stock cube =pence. (At the opposite end of the spectrum - I only ever buy the locally produced sausages from Lane Farm. Two chipolatas of theirs, in the freezer since Christmas, were skinned and flattened and used to wrap the egg for the scotch egg)

Warm pasta salad includes peas, baby plum tomatoes, olives and feta cheese and a spoonful of mayo.

A quiche made using one portion of that cheap bacon mentioned earlier, onions and cheese and 3 eggs feeds me for 4 days, twice with carrots and broccoli

and twice with home made potato salad and mixed salad leaves, celery and olives.

Lots of colour in a chicken stir-fry below. The veg were carrots, onion and chopped cabbage leaves. I buy the pack of  British chicken mini breast fillets for £3.99 for 600g from Aldi - these were bought in February- and were divided up into 5 portions before freezing.

Carrots and cabbage again this time with my penultimate piece of nut roast made several weeks ago - probably just before Christmas and some quick gravy.

 
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Local Council Newsletter and ITFC on TV

 Our local District and County Councillor really looks like a member of the Green Party! It's the beard that does it.

He's a good bloke and does what he can for the villages he represents. He has lived in the same local village all his life so knows the area well.

The government wanted to abandon local council elections until they'd decided how Local Government in Suffolk was going to be reorganised. They've been persuaded to let the vote go ahead. Labour and Conservatives are frightened they're going to lose many Council seats to Reform - that won't be a happy outcome. I'm not sure it will happen here - we shall see.

It's quite funny, or it would be if it wasn't costing ratepayers money, but this will be the second local government reorganisation in my lifetime. We might even go back to what it was before it was all changed in 1974.

Anyway Andrew has come up with one idea that I heartily agree with. 

A few weeks ago, when I went across to the coast there were Road Closed signs every mile for 4 miles before the place that was actually closed - no diversion - most people in cars carried on regardless and then did a detour down a tiny lane around the obstruction. I have no idea what large trucks did. 

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I put the TV on  Saturday midday to see what was on in the evening (nothing much except athletics)  and discovered Ipswich Town  were about to kick off -  playing Millwall live and televised - Surprise! and a rare occurrence. I find it hard watching as it means holding my breath half the time! The result was a 1- 1 draw.

Ipswich is on the shortlist for City of Culture 2029 which is odd because Ipswich isn't a City. Last time I went into the town centre there were dozens of empty shops and everywhere looked very sad. I'm not sure what a chunk of money for 'Culture' would do to help.

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