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Showing posts from December, 2012

Awesome Geeky Dream alert

I suspect I've just woken up from the geekiest dream ever. I was 'watching' a film where Transformers, Aliens (and ergo Predators) all existed within the Star Wars universe. The plot revolved around an Jedi Autobot on a solo mission to stop the Empire releasing a genetically modified Xenomorph on Earth. I can't be alone in thinking this sounds amazing can I? Think of the possibilities? although I'm sleepy so I'm  struggling  past  Predators  with lightsabers... Posting it on Facebook led to this conversation: And maybe something will come from this sad little tweet because my own attempts are rubbish! but it works....

Sometimes cheating just works better...

It's from a packet - one I picked up in a Spanish supermarket and translated using Google translate ... and it worked...... (This is my favourite desert of all time, ever, I could eat a whole one - no probs....)

How to Cut a Pizza..

Via  ( T hats Nerdalicious ,  Reddit  via  Serious Eats )

Vintage NomBook - The Mixer & Blender Cookbook

Author: Alison Denny Date: 1973 (this edition 1977) Published: Book Club Associates I don't really remember acquiring this book, it's got no price scribbled into the corner in pencil a-la-charity shop, it doesn't have a cover and there's a slight possibility it came home from a pub with me, maybe. I don't know - it's not an official branded Kenwood book or anything, like #78 , but it does have photos and illustrated guides of my chef and the attachments (all the lively attachments) I own a blender too - so maybe it will come in useful ... maybe....

Merry Christmas

Source: whyismarko.com via Kristen on Pinterest This amused me when I spotted it on Pinterest - and I think it's a fitting way to wish you all a very, merry Christmas, and I hope you have lovely food....

Festive food & Baking

What are you guys doing for Christmas? We're going to some friends of mine in Stafford, which means we don't actually have to do much, we've made some Christmas puddings, well, Pete has made some - using the ever reliable Good Housekeeping and the slow cooker to great effect, and bar picking up a bottle of wine or two then we don't need to think about everything else for the main event. Well, Pete has to make his favourite veggie substitute - a cheese and lentil  loaf - but that's it. I've planned Christmas morning, panettone and fizz for a change. We'll have to remember not to recreate the year we spent on our own and consumed so much alcohol we fell asleep of the sofa by 8pm. Although that was fun... So, for a festival the has so much to do with food we're at a little bit of a loss as to what to plan and eat. We're good for veg, since our Christmas delivery arrived yesterday, and we'll be skipping around pubs tonight, so no chance to recreate l

Merry Christmas!

Yep - still can't decorate a cake! Merry Christmas everyone!! - we haven't sent many Christmas cards ( although we did a charity donation to St Luke's Hospice ) this year being as we're in Stafford for the festivities -. We'll be skipping around some pubs later on tonight ( once Pete has finished work, and we've had some food, providing he can still face being around people - bless him, he came home yesterday and couldn't face socialising after a very busy day at work - he was in bed by 10pm!) S o we should see most of you to wish you Merry Christmas in person. If we don't see you, we hope you have a very lovely, relaxing and fun time - that if you've travelled anywhere you got there safely and it wasn't too horrible and that you have a great day, with lovely food, exciting presents and no one gets in the way of you watching the Dr. Who Christmas Special. (5:15pm, BBC1) Love Nia & Pete xxx

When things go wrong - making my own raisins

I should have known .. I should be dubious of anything that's only mentioned in passing. I had a sudden thought as I sorted out the fridge today and I realised there were two boxes of grapes lurking in the back of the fridge. Since I was in a creative mood I though 'oh, I know, I'll dry them out in the oven and turn them into something useful. I've done it before, when we lived in liverpool turned a glut of cherry tomatos into sundried tomatos, but back then we had an electric oven. Of course  now we have an ageing, but other ise useful gas oven, which meant I had to guess at having the right setting. I either guessed wrong or the oven is worse then I thought. So, once my paranoia subsided that I would someone blow up the house I came home to find them looking a little bit juicer then before. I quick discussion with Pete and some playing around with settings at it would appear I've has it to high, and now I had a baking tray with burnt, hard grapes. Maybe I should i

Cleaning Potatoes in a dishwasher?

Really, anyone done this? Is this a thing?? Source: moneysavingmom.com via Karen on Pinterest Ha ha this is sooo me!!If you have 20 pounds of potatoes to wash for your Thanksgiving meal throw them in the top shelf of the dishwasher. Set on the quick rinse cycle and let your dishwasher clean the potatoes. :-) LOVE THIS! - Original quote with pin I suppose in theory it would work - but then I can't help feeling it would both not clean the potatoes and wreck the dishwasher - leaving everything to come out muddy forever more. I suppose it's no different from using a potato rumbler - and our Kenwood attachment has been great since we finally worked out how to use it - but you'd still have to peel them surely? Mind you, I don't really understand dishwashers, I don't own one and I'm not sure the one time I used the one in work I did it correctly....

Zombie Fruit Bowl

Source: 9gag.com via disti on Pinterest

App Review - Change4Life drinks tracker

Pete suggested I add this to my phone - well he'd added it to his own phone as part of his comprehensive health kick aspect. Google Play link I tried to do this on paper once, keep a diary of what I drank, it quickly spiralled into a selection of blurry notes on exciting evenings out and reminded me what was great about spontaneous drinking.I don't think this was the point of it. This is a bit more graphical, and it is handy to keep a track (although I'm not going to put the massive white wine binge from last week into it, that will just give me something to compare every other drinking session to e.g. - "well, it wasn't as bad as that day, I'll have another pint please" but I will carry on with it, just to see if my drinking is as bad as I think it is - it probably is. The only issue with this, and a lot of the other info on cutting out drinking is the 'tips' are full about way to not be thirsty, as opposed to bearing in mind I really like the tas

Some exciting additions to the kitchen

Saw this in a closing down sale in a shop I didn't know existed until I saw big signs in Brum. It's massive as far as cookie cutters go but it's very cool. I also got a T-Rex and a frog, I love cookiecuttters, just not a fan of making or eating cookies. Also, my lovely in-laws sent us up a Raclette pan, because we're down with the kids like that.

Spice Mix & Ingredient Inforgraphic

via Ragbag

Festive Things - Tree Edition

A few snap shots of some of our Christmas tree decorations - collected from travels and over the years...

I'm not sure what's worse...

... That I'm sat in here in my officer on Sunday morning watching YouTube Videos showing a Kenwood Potato Peeler at work, trying to fathom if we've just been using it wrong, or it is in fact rubbish. Or that someone has made these videos in the first place - and I'm the 1,654th person to watch a man, use a Kenwood chef attachment, to clean carrots. ... Succsess - and it appears everything is indeed sexier in French, even instructions on using free standing mixer attachments!!!!