Saturday

Morning, all!  The sun is starting to shine, I have jam resting on the oven and all's well with the world.  Nice!

Yesterday was, thankfully, a little less intensive than Thursday.  Matt came round, re-lagged some stuff in the attic, repaired a leak in the airing cupboard and serviced the boiler.  That's the good news.  The bad news is that the boiler is pretty well knackered.  Ah, well, thank goodness I am, at the moment, in funds.

The jam is now in jars.  That's the third lot of jam I have made with my own strawberries and, as they are now slowing down, it is likely to be the last unless there's another rush of them.  I'm ignorant about strawberry growing but I read somewhere that if you religiously cut off all the runners, you might get another lot of berries.  As I don't intend to produce more plants, that is what I will do, I think.  It won;t hurt and if there's another rush of berries that's all to the good!

I got an email from Lathcoats during the week, informing me that the PYO is now open.  Weather permitting (it really hasn't this week) I will take a trip down there and pick strawberries for jamming and for freezing - and some for eating, of course.  I believe the gooseberries and the raspberries are also ready so I might get some of them too.  Raspberry gin/vodka is absolutely delicious!

After waxing lyrical about the Hubble and Rose fabric J and I used to make her dress, I went online and found a place where they sell H & R 'pretty' fabric.  I thought of my Building Society savings and went for it so now I have some very pretty fabric winging its way to me for stuff.  I think a skirt and a bag and  - oh, whatever.

Today I intend to bake rolls, make Jack-burgers and bake some buns for my two young gardeners.  I find a one-egg mix is just right.  I weigh the egg in its shell, crack the egg and then add the same weight of SR flour, sugar and Stork.  Never fails (tempting fate there but never mind) and makes four good sized buns, two each, with a drink to wash them down.  I have some chocolate icing left over from Wednesday which will be perfect to top them.  I like to give them something home made and knocking up a few buns or a small batch of biscuits takes no time at all.  There's never any left anyway!

My food plans today do not involve cake!
B:  bran flakes with sultanas, some water melon
L:  chicken salad with coleslaw and a honey and mustard dressing, natural yogurt with the jam skimmings
D:  Jack Monroe's carrot, kidney bean and cumin burger in a roll with a side salad, chocolate yogurt (natural yogurt with some instant chocolate powder stirred in - delish)