Maryom's Home Page

Wednesday, 30 July 2014

The Easiest Up-cycling Project Ever

As the weather's so warm we're eating lots of lollies - all of which come on wooden sticks which make excellent labels for seed sowing. This has to be the easiest, and possibly the most fun, upcycling project ever - and one that kids will enjoy helping with :)

Monday, 28 July 2014

Free Lunch - 27th July

Monday - no free lunch, but an almost free dinner; tiny salad potatoes and broad beans with lettuce, cucumber and cherry tomato salad (and fish)

Tuesday - salad - squashy over-ripe tomatoes from my parents (rescued with basil and olive oil), spinach, cucumber and mangetout peas

Wednesday - same sort of salad with additional courgettes

Friday - something a bit different at last! cabbage, cucumber, baby turnips, and apple 'thinnings' to make a huge coleslaw-style salad

Thursday and Sunday - sandwiches with tomatoes and cucumber

And most days - a glass of this year's elderflower fizz

Thursday, 24 July 2014

A quick re-think...

extra inches needed

I have a few skirts that I made a while ago - simple garments made from two full widths of material (45 inches each) gathered in to a waistband. I've decided these aren't the most flattering of garments but I rather like the flowery material so some re-purposing is called for. With this in mind, I'd cut out pieces for a top, then discovered it was too tight, so wanted to widen the front without making a mess. The easiest way seemed to be to insert an extra panel in the centre.

never throw ANYTHING away!

To make the insertion look like a deliberate design feature, I raided my hoard of lace trimmings, found a piece the right length and 'framed' the extra panel.

A 'design feature' not a fix!

I'm now hoping the rest of the project goes without any hitches.....

Monday, 21 July 2014

Free lunch - 20th July

An excellent week of 'free lunches' enlivened by regularly-cropping cucumbers and courgettes, and tomatoes from my parents' greenhouse.

Sunday, 20 July 2014

Necessary but dull

Today has been a day of dull, but necessary, sewing as I needed to shorten a pair of new trousers.

I have a bag full of scraps of trouser-bottom off-cuts, but for once I put at least part of it to use.

The trousers didn't have any belt loops and as I'd bought a slightly large size, rather than pour myself into a smaller one, the waist was a little loose.

So it was off-cuts to the rescue - four pieces of material, folded to hide the raw edges and....ta dah... belt loops!

Gooseberry Fool/Mess

I've been helping myself to the fruit on my parents' gooseberry bushes for the past couple of weeks. I made jam with some - with redcurrants and raspberries - but most of them have ended up in the freezer till I decide how exactly to use them. I just kept a few back to try making a gooseberry 'Eton mess'.

Now I was sure I had a recipe for gooseberry fool but couldn't find it easily, so I ploughed straight in, cooking the fruit till soft in my home-made elderflower fizz.

Meanwhile I whisked up an egg white to make small meringues - this is a time I really should have found out a recipe as I cooked them too quickly, ending up with a gooey rather than crisp texture.

The finished 'mess' - gooseberries and meringues layered with Greek yogurt

Wednesday, 16 July 2014

free lunch - 13th July

This is the last time you'll see raw broad beans appearing in my salads. I've been eting them quite happily for the last few weeks, but this week, while looking for something completely different, I read that the raw beans contain toxins. Although I'd probably have to eat several kilos a day to make a difference, I'm still going to stop - so now I'll need to find something new for lunch.