Thursday

I had to use this; thank you, Google Images!

After yesterday's downpours, it is a sheer delight to look outside this morning and to see the sun shining merrily.  Lovely and shiny it is, and fingers crossed that it stays around for a while.  To adapt a well known song into a very different context, 'all is calm, all is bright' right now.  As with everything, I appreciate the good days much more after a nasty, rainy day.  Don't we all?

What a soggy, soaking wet day it was round here yesterday though.  I don't think it really stopped raining all day and there were some torrential downpours.  Thankfully the wind stayed away despite a worrying little hint on Facebook about tornado like cloud movement over Essex in the evening.  It they did develop, there's no evidence of it here.  However, I shall be on blight watch today!

As I was a bit not 100% I didn't do all that much and every time I sat down I went to sleep (I do feel much better now though).  I decided to make it a PJ day and it was a peculiar feeling, as if I ought to be at work but wasn't, I suppose because that's almost always been the situation when I've stayed in bed clothes all day.  To be fair, if I was still working I'd have gone in and put up with it but I'm glad I didn't have to.                      
In between snoozes I made some bread.  I wasn't convinced by the Lorraine Pascale burger baps recipe.  It was laden with salt and sugar and just wasn't soft.  Very disappointing.  Not one to attempt again.  The other bake was my usual wholemeal/granary and that came out really well although I made a mistake.  I've taken to standing Thermione on a tray when she's kneading the dough to prevent 'travel' (Thermo owners will know what I mean) but didn't realise that she was leaning on the back 'wall' of the tray as I measured in the flour and the water.  As a result I had a much larger amount of dough than usual, enough for four loaves, not three.  I only noticed when I measured out much less flour for the baps and thought 'That's way too much!'  However, it worked fine, dough being more a matter of touch and instinct than accurate measurement.  I did have to add more water and the loaves will be slightly under seasoned, I expect, but that's not a problem for me at all.

I don't usually make that much dough because I think it is hard on Thermione's engine but once will have done no harm.  From now on I know to check!

Also between naps I got stuck into the Housekeeper's Tale book and it is good.  Not exactly light reading but not heavy either and extremely interesting.  After reading some of it, I'm glad I live nowadays!

Today, this afternoon, I am in school and this morning I might have a go at that beetroot cake.  Fingers crossed!  Right now I have to get myself sorted and get the bins out.  I forgot yesterday evening.

Food: (I think)
Breakfast:  tomatoes on toast
Lunch:  chicken salad
Dinner:  chicken and mushroom risotto, runner beans