Monday

Yesterday was an extremely productive and busy day.  I think sometimes that one needs a weekend to get over the weekend!
So, what did I do . . .

Well, I started off by making a shopping list.  I needed to go to Sainsbury's for a number of reasons, one of which was that Morrison's doesn't stock everything I want or need.  There are others, of course, as I said yesterday!

Then I sorted out my top cupboard - one of them, anyway - to make room for the bread flour because I'm fed up of seeing it lying about.  There was some pretty old stuff there: some was chucked and some was used.  There was a pack of not terribly out of sell by date chive and onion bread mix which I set to begin in the breadmaker with the idea of making individual rolls rather than a loaf.  I found a packet of split peas which DEFINITELY needed using up so I put them on to soak.  As this was good and early, I know that by about 11:30 they would be ready to use.  I prepared the ingredients for the meatballs in tomato sauce.  I then took the dough and made 13 rolls, using my muffin tin for 12 of them - it worked very well, too.

Then I pootled off to Sainsbury's and spent about three times as much as I had expected, partly because of extra needed stuff (like printer ink) and partly impulse clothes buying.  You see, I need another target 'skirt' as I can now get into the one that previously served that purpose.  What I got wasn't a skirt and it will be a few months before I can get into it, I suspect, but it does help to have something tangible to measure progress with rather than just numbers on the scales.

When I got back, after putting everything away and heating the oven, in went the rolls, on the hob went half the split peas with stock, finely chopped potato, onion, carrot and parsnip with some seasonings, and the other half just had water added and simmered away.  After that I made the meatballs and did the necessary, making four good, hearty portions for cold evenings.  And I used some rather more out of date bread flour in hopes and the breadmaker turned it into a good, well risen loaf, so no complaints!
The soup is gorgeous, pure, old fashioned comfort food, and will be even nicer with some crisply fried bacon bits or shreds of ham added.  The other split peas will make a useful addition to a casserole or similar, one roll got eaten (one has to taste, after all) and the others are now in the freezer with everything else. 

And then, finally, I sat down at the computer and get going with the mini-reports.  Many were already done, there were just a few things to tweak and now the ones I need for tomorrow are all printed out and organised into plastic pockets, in order, ready for this evening.

It's going to be a l-o-n-g day . . .