Simple curtains

Getting ready for Glastonbury has this week consisted mainly of making curtains. 

Just a few more last minute touches then we're ready for a week in a field!

A little up-cycling project

Big G wombled these stools from a skip years ago and for all that time I've been looking at their disgusting fabric, trying desperately hard not to think about what each stain actually was. Finally, as the truck Lady Priscilla gets closer to completion I have given them some much needed TLC.

Lady Priscilla can now comfortably seat 4 for supper! On which note I must think of some new simple things to cook on our two gas rings and tiny gas oven...chilli and curry have been our staple summer diet for too long now and Glastonbury is fast approaching.

Fruit smoothies

When it comes to getting my five a day I'm pretty good at vegetables but fruit is most definitely a weak point.

With that in mind and summer fruits in abundance I have taken to getting my fruit in smoothie form. Any combination of fruit will do but a firm favourite recently has been Yeo Valley natural yoghurt, banana, strawberry, unsweetened peanut butter, oats (an idea stolen from Miss P's Kitchen) and a dash of juice.

Ingredients

1 banana

10 strawberries

Small handful oats

Heaped (very if you like it nutty) unsweetened peanut butter

1/3 tub Yeo Valley natural yoghurt

Enough apple juice to blend it to the right consistency (for me that's so it can be drunk through a straw)

1. Put all the ingredients in blender and blend until you are happy with the consistency

2. Drink! This will make enough for one large glass or two small glasses.

Elderflower cordial recipe

Having now tasted my cordial, here is the simple and super tasty recipe:

Ingredients

30 Elderflower heads

3 pints boiling water

900g caster sugar

50g citric acid

2 unwaxed oranges sliced

3 unwaxed lemons sliced

1. Rinse the elderflower to wash and get rid of any bugs.

2. In a large saucepan bring the water to the boil. Add the sugar and stir until it is completely dissolved. Leave to cool.

3. Add the citric acid (available from the chemist) orange and lemon slices and the elderflower heads.

4. Leave in a cool place for 24 hours, stirring every now and then.

5. Strain through a sieve first to remove all the flowers and fruit. Then strain through a muslin to get rid of any stray petals etc. pour into sterilised bottles or freeze in ice cube trays.
6. Let summer commence with sparkling water and gin (optional)!

Elderflower Cordial

Ahh tis the season for foraging and nothing screams summer more loudly (or with greater scent) than the humble elderflower.

It will not help my sugar free eating but last year I missed the flowers so I am determined to make elderflower cordial this summer. The flowers have come out in abundance this week and I am lucky to live close to many a winding lane with plenty of these lovely blooms.

I certainly couldn't have picked a less summery day to pick the flowers but brave the rain I did and my first batch is now doing it's thing overnight before being bottled up tomorrow. I'll post the recipe tomorrow once I have had a chance to taste it.

Leftovers

I don't know about you but I really enjoy using leftovers. I take an absurd amount of satisfaction in creating something from nothing (the leftovers challenge was also my favourite in this year's Masterchef!).

I have also given up sugar this week so with sugar craving in full swing I decided to make a leftovers lunch. A quick sweep of the fridge yielded some left over shackshuka sauce (tomatoes, green pepper, onions, garlic, chilli powder, and cayenne pepper), lentils which had previously been cooked with some garlic chilli and tomato purée, a couple of peppers, and some halloumi. I sliced and roasted peppers, fried the halloumi, reheated the lentils and sauce and voilà! 

Now I just need to avoid the Green and Blacks dark chocolate lurking in my cupboard and day one sugar free will stay on track.

Ekeberg Sculpture Park, Oslo

These are just a few of the sculptures at Ekeberg Sculpture Park in Oslo. Gifted to the city be a local businessman the park includes works by Dali, Rodin, Louise Bourgeois, James Turrell and Marina Abramovic...all set in 63 acres of woodland high above Oslo Fjord. It was the perfect way to idle away the hours with Ma and mini me.