Author: Richard

Posted on

CIABATTA

I think I have nearly sussed out the recipe. Make the poolish 200gm each water and strong flour plus yeasdt and 7g yeast, mixc and cover overnight, then I add 200g flour and 140g water and tsp salt and I add some yeast. Mix for 1 min on minimum, then up a notch for another min and then up again for 4 mins. I then transfer to a mixing bowl and leave for an hour and a half. It should then be rather like pliable chewing gum, withwet hands fold over itself a few times and repeat this two more times at 45min intervals. Then shape the dough into 1 or2 loaves. Plenty of flough but do not squash or touch the top. Leave for 30 mins. Thn pop into oven with 210C fan assisted with a squirt of water (I pour some into a tray at base of oven. 20/25 minutes. I am getting there!

Next up I will try with dried basil?

Posted on

IDEAL MEAL

I love cook books! And have over 100! After a super birthday meal with the family I was thinking about another one. Everyone gets on well. There is a super park over the road for the girls. What about I give them all £50 to bring up ingredients (thinking fish from Looe! Speciality stuff Bristol. Then everyone mucks in and makes things like Meze and Tapas – BBQ stuff too. maybe put up £??? for accomodation? Everryone has to contribute something?

Posted on

BREAKFAST RECIPE

Make the day before – can be frozen?

Make a cookie – 100g each of butter, honey, wholemeal flour, oats and mixed nuts and maybe a couple of sheets of gelatin and some cinnamon (depending on time of year?). Mix and cook for 15-20 min at 180C. cool and cut into bars. Dunk into strawberry yoghurt and leave for 12-36 hours until dry. Voila!

I am also making bean sprouts and maybe some elderflower cordial if the sun comes out this afternoon.

Flame lily now by front door – I hope it likes it there? The herbs and mints mostly look good! Recipe experiments to follow! Should I dry some mint? And if so mixed or by type? I will ask Holly! Purple loosestrife to plant out today – more tomato plants to pot up.

I will make some cheese thins latter.

Posted on

WE KNOW BEST!

The arrogant generation of over priveged toffs (not all – ithers just copy thise that are!). Scientists were at best on tye periphery of COVID decisions. Ignoring expert advice and indeed belittling them. won the BREXIT vote for them. Many in the Cabinet are climate deniers despite irrefutable evidence to the contrary. Their main arguement is that put forward by Jame Lovelock of GAIA fame, who. proposed that mitigation was cheaper than trying to halt global warming. Money would be better soent in HIV/AIDS research. These views are echoed by Coffey, Anderson, Truss, JR-M, and the Telegraph(most of whom’s readers will be dead by the time the shit really hits the fan.

On which – surely climate activists like “Just stop oil” would be better off raising funds to produce hard hitting podcasts and YouTube videos and spreading the word on social media. i.e. bypass the establishment. Perhaps a campaign to put stickers on every lamppost and telegraph pole in all urban areas.

Back to. the COVID Inquiry – It seems highly likely that the government tactic of going to court is not to protect Johnson (Far from it!) but to protect themselves from forced disclosure. Of particular note is the furore building around Sunak’s role in decision making generally and the Eat out to help out scheme! He was the one with his digitsd on the cash – test and trace scheme must also come into question.

Posted on

HOUSING

The population of Manchester City Centre will have risen from 11000 to over 100000 since 2010 by 2024. Massive profits are being made with little affordable rents or houses available. However it is a sign that the demand is there for flats near the city centre. A number of stores are pondering this trend with Waitrose looking to create flats above its stores. This makes total sense, proximity to work, shops and leisure, combine this with rental of electric vehicles for holidays in the UK and ensuring access to green spaces and we can provide some sustainable solutions to the housing shortage without plundering the countryside. Add in roof gardens and converting multistory car parks to urban farms with use of hydroponics and it may even reduce the “urban heat island” effect.

We have seen various councils cut down trees most notably Sheffield and Plymouth. City planners should be embracing climate change to provide better environments for people and wildlife, not denying it. China has reported record temperatures last month and warnings are out for world wide record temperatures in the next 5 years as being almost certain. And yet we allow more oil to be extracted, more trees to be cut down, 10000sq.km last year in Brazil alone.

Posted on

FLAME LILY

I put the tubers in 20 days ago and they have sprouted and are 10cm high! I hope they will form a bright welcome to my porch! It is cold today – still got the N-E wind which brings the felt temperature down from 12C at present although 20C predicted later.

Elderflowers might be ready for picking on the next hot sunny day!

Lawns at my end of the road – 5 have a profusion of buttercups and have not been cut – will they let them go wild? TBH even this is a victory and hopefully we will see lots more bees – dragonfly yesterday looked a bit like a hornet!

Posted on

COVID ENQUIRY

The government is withholding Johnson’s WhatsApp records, that he himself is happy to let go. So what are they hiding? The Cabinet Office says handing them over could impinge on decision making in the future. More likely they are likely to reveal gross incompetence on a huge scale that will impact on most of the Governments ministers. Claiming irrevellance is not a decision to be made by those defending their actions. The longer the spat goes on the worse it will get for the government with possible criminal charges to follow.

Meanwhile – interest rates are set to rise again as the Brexit bonanza continues to bite. Eyewatering house prices and high mortgage and rents make it almost impossible for young people to own a house (Home ownership is falling). Time for a radical rethink of the housing market. Properly insulated heat and noise! flats that are close to jobs, shops and entertainment and open space.

Posted on

HONESTY

The Cabinet Office is to refuse to release communications to the Covid Inquiry. WTF! Just arrest them all for treason! or perverting the course of justice. Would full revelation result in the incrimination of most/many of the Cabinet? Will Sunak be indicted? Hancock?

Things happen slowly at times – but are we heading for a GE sooner rather than later!

Posted on

PLANTING

It may be a bit late but I am planting the seeds I have been given from Hauser and Wirth; Carthusian Pink; Pale-purple Coneflower; Hungarian Echinops; Button Snakeroot; Sweet Coneflower; Mexican feather grass; Chinese meadow rue and some Zinnia.

Hanging baskets begining to look good, Californian poppies from last year have appeared, lemon verbena not showing signs of life though. Mulberry trees looking healthy – perhaps this year there will be some fruit. Apricot tree has taken ok. I watered the vine which I keep forgetting about. Elderflowers are nearly ready for picking for cordial or wine! I am not sure how many apples I will get after my big prune last winter? Roses are looking good – loads of yellow ones, Shropshire lad pinks and the old reds and the climbing white by trhe gate all looking good. A couple of the bush ones are slowly growing – I need a trellis for the summer jasmine. Fuschia might be a bit dead? Raspberries are taking over.

It sounds like I have a huge garden but really it is not – just a 1950’s estate with lawns at front and back (except my lawns are no more! Britains lawns = the size of Somerset I read! I wonder how much electricity or fuel it costs to cut them once a fortnight? A lawn that is used is great, and woodpeckers love them too! But when they are just for – actually I do not know what! they do not look particulary nice – the ones opposite with a profusion of buttercups are much prettier, and the dandelion clocks are lovely.

Posted on

WEATHER 2023

I have no actual records but! it does seem that we have had more Easterly winds this year? It has not been bitingly cold here, just colder than it should be due to the wind? Today is another example – dry and bright sunshine, but a little chilly in the wind.