Feeling Blue

More kitchen activity this weekend but of a slightly different nature. You may remember I bought these a few months ago after listening to an inspirational talk by Linda Rudkin.

They were planted in my veg bed and grew into these luxurious plants.

This weekend they were picked and chopped.

And immersed in boiling water to extract the dye.

Mean while I simmered some natural fabrics and threads in a mordant solution of alum... please note... mordants are used to fix the dye.

The woad leaves were strained producing an uninspiring looking brown liquid which then had to be whisked. This made a blue froth which was quite exciting... promise of colour to come perhaps? This liquid was then sprinkled with a reducing agent to remove the oxygen (this was starting to feel a bit technical)

The fabrics and threads were immersed in the dye and carefully removed where upon their colour gradually turned blue... magic!

Everything was then washed and hung out to dry... and as they dried the coloured turned from the lovely clear blue to the following pale grey! I'm certain I must have missed a step, or introduced oxygen to the dye vat... or something similarly silly... but how disappointing after all that effort!

The velvet was marginally better.

As were the threads too... but I don't think I'll be growing woad again in the near future. More like stormy weather than summer skies! (Linda's book is very good if you fancy trying natural dyes)

Feeling bereft of colour I spent today making this little book cover which did much to cheer my spirits.

I used this super skein of silk strips which I bought from Crafty Notions a few weeks ago.

And there were enough scraps left from the book jacket to make some cards...

and a couple of brooches

That's more like it!

A Proposition

It's 10.30 pm. The phone rings...

Me: Hello?
Joe: Mum... I've got a proposition for you.
Me: A what?
Joe: A proposition.
Me: Go on...
Joe: Do you fancy some lobster?
Me: Lobster? What, now?
Joe: Nick (his friend) can get us some lobster... they're really cheap.
Me: Back of a lorry?
Joe: No, he gets them through work (he does work for a restaurant)... so what do you think? Do you fancy a couple?
Me: (To tired to really think through the reality of cooking lobster) Go on then...

The following morning... Bleary eyed I go to the fridge to get milk for my tea and I'm confronted by three of these beasts... and what's more they are actually moving!!! All I can think about is this...

There is no way I can put a live lobster in a pot of boiling water, but Joe cooked and prepared all three.

And this evening we had a fabulous lobster salad... perfect for this summer wet August evening. Delicious!

And for the vegetarians.....

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...

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Courgettes of course!

Abel & Cole

Before I took my blogging break I was asked to review this cookbook. I gave it a quick mention but didn't really have time to review it properly. But now I've read it cover to cover I can whole heartedly say it's fabulous! And it is the sort of cook book you can just read for sheer pleasure. The photographs are gorgeous and the text is humourous. It is divided up into seasons so it is easy to use when your organic box arrives... or in my case when I dig up my latest offering from the garden. (Abel & Cole still don't deliver here.) So I can only agree with Country Living and say it is "A kitchen essential"

As you can see from the numerous post it notes it's not just a book to read but one to cook from too. I love the way the recipes are written more as if they are a guide rather than something to be slavishly followed. Glugs of this and handuls of that are just my sort of cooking!

As I've had a good crop of beetroot over the past few weeks I picked out a likely looking beetroot recipe... I immediately replaced the cream with creme fraiche but more or less stuck to the rules.

I have to say it looks a little alarming but once you've got over the fact you are eating luminous pink food it is quite superb. So good in fact I've made it several times and it is already established as a firm favourite.

Today's vegetable pickings were these carrots

So out with the A & C cookbook again and this time I found a recipe for cake.

Haven't tasted it yet but it smells divine and was amazingly easy to make.

That only used a fraction of the carrots though and so I found another recipe for a carrot salad.

Quick, easy and tastes good too!

The perfect accompaniment for tonights courgette and goat's cheese quiche. It's the third night running I've served up something with courgettes... not sure how much longer I'm going to get away with it.

The Abel & Cole cookbook has already become one of my favourites... and I own a lot of cookbooks!

I'll leave you with this little gem... one of the delights of growing your own veg! Captions on a postcard please.... or you can just leave a comment. Might even find a prize for the funniest one.

Turned Out Fine

The hen house has been sprayed and it looks as though we have the red mite problem under control... for now, at least. The girls have started laying during my absence from blogging and we get three eggs most days (not sure which one of them is slacking!) but as you can see the quality control is a bit random! The large ones all have had double yolks so far though.

I managed to tackle some of my vegetable glut. Several dishes of courgette and tomato bake were made for the freezer, a large courgette frittata was made to take to our picnic and I even made a courgette and lettuce soup for lunch which used four large Cos lettuces!

To make the soup... slice and saute several spring onions in some olive oil and butter. (The onions were from the garden too and were starting to look like leeks!)

Add some sliced courgettes... and because I happened to have them, a handful of peas. Saute for about 5 mins until cooked. Add lots and lots of chopped lettuce - I used four plus some sorrell just because I had it! Stir until wilted and add about a litre and a half of good vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer and then take off the heat and liquidise. Forgot to say that I added lots of fresh mint before I liquidised!

Return to the pan and warm through with a couple of tablespoons of creme fraiche. Serve with a good helping of grated parmesan cheese. A lovely summery soup using vegetables from my garden!

It turned into a beautiful summer evening... perfect for our picnic concert as you can see (Don't understand why my glass is empty)

We were treated to a spectacular display by a Spitfire accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra playing the theme from The Dambusters.

And then we listened to the wonderful singing of Katherine Jenkins, who was in fine voice. This is about as close as we got but close enough to see she had many different beautiful frocks!

All the usual Last Night of Proms tunes were played and the evening finished with fireworks that looked as though they were coming out from Audley End house.

All in all the day turned out fine... if it wasn't for the hour and a quarter it took us to get out of the car park!

I'm Back...

but is anyone there? Have you all abandoned me in my absence? Deadlines (well, some) have been met. Work (again, some) has been finished and I've just returned from a week teaching at Missenden Abbey Summer School. Nine super ladies have kept me on my toes in a week of machine embroidery... Razzle Dazzle Accessories. This is just a small selection of what has been completed during the week. Unfortunately Brenda no. 1 (there were two Brendas) had to leave mid week due to family commitments (either that or she'd had enough of me?) but she managed to finish several projects.


Jane also didn't make the last morning but these are some of her finished items.

There were braids, bookmarks and braclets.

Lots of stitching on metal

Some Button Babe brooches

Frivolous little bags made from sheer fabrics and sequins

And flowers made from all types of fabrics.


And among all these little accessories there was a wall hanging! At the start of the week, Zena quite categorically told me she had no interest in making accessories but she took on board the techniques, tried most things and then used what she'd learned to make this fabulous hanging which was almost a metre long!

Thank you Kim, Brenda no 1, Brenda no. 2, Rita, Jane, Liz. Jill, Zena and last but not least the lovely Grace. It was lots fun and I've had a brilliant week so hope you did too!

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Later today we're off to Audley End for a picnic and to see Katherine Jenkins at a Last Night of the Proms concert... so fingers crossed this early sunshine lasts and we don't get rain like last night. But before that I've a little red mite problem to sort out and then about a ton of courgettes and lettuces to deal with... it would seem that a house full of men left on their own for a week do not eat vegetables!

Thank you... and Au Revoir

I've a few belated thank yous and things I should really mention. First of all thank you to Lynda. I won a giveaway on her blog quite a while ago now and received this fabulous rust dyed notebook, which I've been using as a journal for my current degree module. Lynda also sent me instructions on how to make the notebooks which is definitely something I shall try when I've got a free moment...

I've also received this fabulous cookbook. Lucy reviewed it on her blog a little while ago and I left a comment saying it was a shame Able and Cole don't deliver in my area. To my surprise I got an email from a lady at A & C asking would I review one of their veggie boxes if they could deliver it. Of course!!! However, as yet they are unable to deliver the veggie box and instead I received the cookbook. I can only add to everything Lucy said... it's fabulous! It's well written, funny, all the recipes look simple and are seasonal, the photography is beautiful etc. etc. I will eventually do a proper review when I've tried some of the recipes... when I've got a bit more time...

And the third thing I received was this package of cards and an embroidery from Robinsunne as part of her birthday party giveaway... Thank you Robinsunne! I thought it was a lovely idea to have a virtual birthday party with cake to share with you all and party favours to give away and had fully intended to do the same... but I just ran out of time... because today is my birthday and there is no cake, only work to get done and classes to prepare...

Which brings me to the au revoir... you may have noticed there is a theme... there are just not enough hours in the day. I've work to finish for the degree, work that may or may not get finished for an exhibition, a summer school to prepare for and then go off and teach at the end of the month, I'm feeling just a little stressed, to say the least and so I really do need a proper blog break. Thank you for all your recent comments that I may not have replied to - as always they are read and appreciated. I will be back sometime in August but meanwhile enjoy your summer.

And I leave you with this... Kung Fu Panda... my birthday present from Sam.

I might be 52 but I don't have to be grown up! Au revoir!