Saturday 4 April 2020

Strange Times Week 3 Post 3

Toast and marmalade is my go-to breakfast - and now it's usually between 9 and 10am, with a cup of frothy coffee - while I still have some in the cupboard.  I'm up every morning by 7.30 - thanks to Polly cat, but usually don't want anything to eat that early. This is all so different to the early smallholding years when we had a cuppa about 6 o'clock, then outside to milk and feed goats, check the sheep and let out the chickens, then back in again for breakfast and for Colin to be off before 8 and to get the children up, fed and out to catch the school bus at 8.30..............it seems a Very Long time ago now as I dawdle and potter around the house alone with no rush.
Accepting the situation we are in is much easier than moaning and I'm all for the easy life! and I've settled into a pattern of not hurrying with anything. My quiet life in Suffolk is even quieter although I do try and do something useful everyday - hence the marmalade below
 
 Several weeks ago I bought a tin of orange marmalade concentrate. I would have preferred a tin of the prepared lemon because my last batch was orange, but only Lakeland sell the lemon and I wasn't going to Ipswich, so orange it had to be.
Thanks to the Approved Food sugar I was able to get this made and, by adding a tin of grapefruit, rustled up 7¾ jars of Orange and Grapefruit Marmalade.....delicious. I have to admit to never making marmalade from Seville oranges and I never will while the tins are available.




This week I've also planted out the rest of the potatoes,  sown pumpkin, courgette and squash seeds and then peppers for the 3rd time. 3rd time lucky hopefully  - as  it will soon be too late.
And on dry days when I walk up and down the meadow I come in with a good bundle of sticks for lighting the wood-burner. A simple job but satisfying.


When I saw a Weetabix Loaf mentioned on a blog ( just a couple of days ago but I've already forgotten who and where - sorry but Thank you.) I remembered the pack in the cupboard ready for the Easter visit from oldest grandson which isn't going to happen.
It was so simple and tastes delicious...........I like simple and delicious!
2 Weetabix                                                      )
1 Cup Sugar - or a bit less as it's quite sweet )               All these into a bowl, mix and leave to
1 Cup Sultanas                                                )               soak overnight in the fridge.
1 Cup Milk                                                      )

Next day add one beaten egg and 1 Cup of SR Flour and stir well together. Pour into a lined loaf tin and cook at 150C for 50 minutes. (I used Mk 4 on gas because I forgot to look at conversion chart and most things are OK on 4!)

This week I'm so grateful for
  • Another week staying well
  • An improving weather forecast
  • Food in the cupboards. 
  • Quiet roads for cycling exercise

It's over two weeks since I went to Asda and 12 days since I got some fruit from the Co-op - I think I'm allowed to  head out for fresh fruit and veg next week to make a change from dried, tinned and frozen.


Hope everyone has a good weekend - enjoy the warmth and sunshine at home!

Back Monday
Sue

32 comments:

  1. That cake sounds just up my street, Sue - husband is wanting more cake nowadays and I like it easy! Thanks.

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    1. I like that it has no fat and all mixed in one bowl

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  2. My earlies went in this week too - Charlotte and Red Duke of York. Peppers (and aubergines) always seem to take longer to come up compared to tomatoes.

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    1. No idea why the peppers have such poor germination this year the sow by date is 2020 so they should be OK

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  3. I saw that recipe too and was sorely tempted but I'm not eating cake at the moment and have doubts about my self control, should I make it, so decided not to. Your cake and the marmalade both look absolutely delicious.
    The cans are such a blessing, aren't they? I made marmalade totally from scratch just one and never again - what a kerfuffle! It was tins from then on.

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  4. You can replace the weetabix with two cups of any bran cereal (teacups, not builder's mugs) and get a pleasant cake too.

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    1. I have a nice recipe for an allbran malt loaf - but no allbran or malt!

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  5. Staying at home relieves the mind of needing to get things. But one thing I did this morning was to start the car and run it for 5 minutes, which I haven't used for ages. Not sure how to start with a battery charger!

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  6. Like you, my mornings are slower now. I keep more than busy, but no rushing about like it was when we had Fairs to prepare for, auctions and car boots to go to - even shopping to do! I am loving having the TIME to do the things I used to do when the children were small and we had no spare money to go far. We used to take mum shopping on a Monday at X-Hands, and that was our outing for the week as we had no spare money for fuel. We didn't even go into Carmarthen!

    Like you, if I make Marmalade (which I don't any more - used to make it to sell at Car Boot Sales, or give as gifts at Christmas) I use the big tin of MaMade. It can be jazzed up with some crystalized ginger or a slug of Whisky.

    I was also relieved to hear that some of your seeds hadn't grown, as it's looking like the chillis and tomatoes aren't going to show, so we will have to sow again.

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    1. Tomatoes, Cucumbers are good. 5 Aubergines that are growing slowly and looking a bit sad but Peppers are a fail. Luckily after the first fail several weeks ago I was sending for some brassica plants so added peppers to the order, but only a couple and they are small and I really want the big pointy ones.

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  7. I use the marmalade concentrate, mix half a tin each of orange & lemon(freezing the other two halves until needed), add powdered ginger and call it "St. Clement's Spicy Marmalade". Seems to go down well!

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    1. Difficult to find the tins of lemon anywhere around here - I've never mixed the two together - a good idea

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  8. Anything that is simple to make yet tastes delicious sounds good to me. Like you, I have been enjoying toast and marmalade recently. I quite enjoy scraping the bottom of the jar, as I add brandy to my marmalade and it's where it settles! Perhaps that's why I've been feeling unusually relaxed. X

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    1. Thank you for the weetabix recipe - very useful and tasty

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  9. Agree about making Marmalade from Seville Oranges - which I used to do every year (what a performance) - but have to admit that now I live alone I buy Tiptree Orange and Tangerine - lazy I know. And as to the pattern of our days changing Sue - I know what you mean - it seems a very long time since I got up to feed the calves while David milked.

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  10. I like things being a bit slower too. No rush to shower and go out, a leisurely breakfast around 9am, blog hopping, emails, meal planning etc
    The marmalade looks delicious. I've never tried making any. Used to make jam when the kids were little but could rarely make it set properly. Stay well x

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  11. Oooh adding grapefruit to the orange marmalade mix is genius, I've never thought to do that I will next time. It will take away the overly sweet tang I should imagine.

    The Weetabix cake sounds good I might give that a go ... I have a lot of Weetabix :-)

    All my seeds, except the tomato and Marigolds which I only sowed on Wednesday are now up and coming on well, can you believe I FORGOT to sow any tomato seeds!! The Courgettes have come up strongly so we will have lots of plants to fill out the beds ready for viewings.

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  12. lovely! you're well stocked there.

    I agree, I hope people stay home. It's a beautiful day today, I'm going to go and get my washing out now.

    Stay safe and well, and enjoy your Weetabix cake!

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  13. That Weetabix cake sounds...interesting. Weetabix was never my favourite as a child. I must admit that I seem to be snacking more than usual. That might be a matter of feeling down or perhaps (I hate to say it because I have lots to do, but no motivation) boredom.

    I hope you have a good weekend!

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  14. Oh yes, those memories of getting up early, caring for livestock (we had cows to milk and poultry to feed), getting children off to school, gardening, preserving. They were busy times but happy too. Now I am quite content to potter around and do things more slowly - must be age! LOL

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  15. This post made me giggle. We are having late starts, a cup of tea and a read in bed before we actually get up. I too made some marmalade from the concentrate tin this week, and I copied down the instructions for the Weetabix loaf to make when our current cake is eaten.

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  16. Your marmalade sure looks good! We all have a lot to be grateful for if we think about it. Take care Sue!

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  17. I have never heard of marmalade mix in cans. We do grow a lot of oranges in Australia and most houses still have a lemon tree,even if it's in a pot with house plots being so small lately. Preparing the fruit can be a fiddle. I think I will try the loaf , healthier than most! Puddling along here,we have a nice place to be locked down in,just like all grannies out there missing the hugs!

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    1. Seville oranges from Spain are only available here in January so I guess the tins are our best alternative

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  18. It was Jules that first mentioned the weetabix cake I think. I am going to give it a try later in the week. I have a marmalade can ready for my next batch. Stay safe.

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    1. Thank you for letting me know where I saw it. - I'm hopeless at remembering where I've seen things

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  19. We made your Weetabix cake today. It's very good.

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  20. Nice bundle of twigs!! I am going to have to start doing that on my walks as well.

    God bless.

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